Road to London 2012: Game Day 1- USA Defeats France

Thursday, August 30, 2012

Game Day 1- USA Defeats France

The first day of competition is always interesting...the jitters are there and the team is always pumped to play someone other than ourselves. But it is especially interesting when the opponent is a team we haven't played in about six years. As far as I can remember we haven't played the French since the cross-over of World Championships in 2006. Needless to say it had been a while and we didn't really know what to expect. Our coaching staff had met with coaches from other teams and had briefly discussed some key points to note about the French...but we were still going in blind.

After a few minutes we were off to the races and our team found a great rhythm...next thing you know its 41-8 at the half. The 2nd half was a bit more forced as the intensity had to drop and our momentum consequently slowed. We still outscored the French and finished the game 63-24...all in all not a bad day's work.

Tomorrow we meet the Germans...our rivals to the bitter end. They finished 2nd to the US in 2008 and 2010, so as you can imagine there is a definite desire to beat us on this stage.

I wish there was more to say...but that's about it for now...I am sure tomorrow will be more interesting! Until next time....

2 comments:

AJ MessmerAugust 30, 2012 at 5:47 PM
Congrats! I'm sure it felt good to get the first game jitters out and not have to worry about a really tight game.... Did you personally do alright? I tried watching it online but it wasn't one of the games they were streaming.
ReplyDelete
Replies
UnknownSeptember 30, 2012 at 7:52 PM
Hey Sarah-It is amazing you are such a spirited player and spokeswoman for para athletes every where. My 5 year old son has transverse myelitis as you do and has
since he was 16 months old. He so looks up to you and your team mates. He is just starting his first full season on prep team wheel chair basketball. He would be so
hyped for the season if he heard back from you. If you ever get a quiet moment, our email is thebaziles@aol.com. His name is Drew Beutel. Thanks for an awesome
representation for our United States! Sincerely, Liz Beutel
ReplyDelete
Replies

Add comment

About Me- The Basics

I was born and raised in Denver, Colorado. In 1995 I became partially paralyzed when my body thought my spinal cord was a disease, attacked my nerves, and permanently damaged them. Three years later I made my first international team and I have been competing at the Paralympic level since. I competed in the 2000 Paralympic Games in Sydney, Australia and 2004 Paralympic Games in Athens, Greece as a swimmer, capturing a silver medal in the 100m breaststroke in Sydney and finishing 4th in Athens. From 2000-2002, I set, held, and reset the World Record in the 1500m freestyle.

In 2002, I started college at the University of Illinois Urbana- Champaign. While earning both my degrees, I was a member of the Women's Wheelchair Basketball team and helped them earn 5 National titles. In 2004, my shoulder injuries had compounded and my swimming career came to an end. However, in 2005 I was selected as a member of the USA Women's Wheelchair Basketball team and I have since competed and helped the US win silver at the 2006 World Championships, and win Gold at the 2007 and 2011 ParaPan American Games, the 2010 World Championships, and the 2008 Beijing Paralympic Games.

This year will be a year of big endings and new beginnings for me...as Captain of the USA Women's Wheelchair Basketball Team I will compete in my fourth and final Paralympic Games in London. So as I count down to the end of my athletic career and the next chapter begins, I hope you'll join in the celebration, the chaos, and the fun of the Road to London!

About Me- The Truth

I believe that basketball, work, and well life in general, are supposed to be fun; that every day is an opportunity to make yourself and the world around you a bit better; and that it’s ok to take things seriously, as long as you don’t take yourself too seriously. I regularly make fun of myself and laugh at my own craziness!

I actually think basketball paints a great picture of who I am and who I strive to be. You're probably accustomed to watching a team shoot, pass, and run some speed drills during warm-up, and you’re guaranteed to see all of that with Team USA, as well. But then you’ll take another look…and you’ll likely see me, USA #11…and with a song in my head and my headphones blaring, my game prep always includes some bad dance moves and occasionally some really bad singing! And as you watch my warm-up you'll notice that I don't seem to care too much about how bad it looks or if anyone is watching…it’s not about a show... it’s all about keeping it fun and light. I joke it's not about how good you play, it's about how good you look, but in reality it's how good you feel and I believe that laughter is the best medicine and have learned over time not to take myself too seriously…so I don't, especially on the court!

Fun is instrumental to success on and off the court and with the right playlist I know anything is possible! So while I may have to apologize to our coaching staff, 4 men who over the years have listened to "Booty Wurk" probably 1,000 times and who have suffered through the 90s boy-bands over and over again...I know it works!

Despite the “unconventional” warm-up as you watch the game you’ll see the serious athlete you expect and the game deserves. It's like a complete transformation...say good-bye to the bubbly, never met a stranger personality and hello to serious competitor.

So in a nutshell...like me don't expect this Road to be too serious...but expect it to be a bit silly, definitely a bit unexpected, and an all around GOOD TIME!

Thursday, August 30, 2012

Game Day 1- USA Defeats France

2 comments:

Blog Archive