This past weekend, we returned from our trip to Hungary. It didn't end up being much of a tournament; all the teams canceled except for the host team, and us!! We drove 7 hours each way to play one team, two times. Despite our disappointment, the trip was definitely worthwhile. Our first afternoon there, we basically got off the bus and headed straight for the gym (it was pretty hard to get warmed up after driving for so LONG!!) It was a back and forth battle the whole game, and in the end we came up 4 points short.

The next morning, we had a team meeting about what we needed to work on to do better in our second match. We wanted to play a much stronger defense, and make better decisions in the fastbreak. Feeling really positive going into the game, we started off just awesome! We executed our defensive strategy, and played more together on offense. By halftime, we were up by 20. Everyone on the team got minutes, and produced on the court. It was great to see us working hard, and having fun at the same time.

Learning from these two games, we have been practicing hard all week preparing for our first league game on Sunday. We will face Roznava, a new team in the Slovakian league. We are definitely excited to get started!!

On our day off this week, KJ and I found our way to Spis Castle- the second largest castle in all of Europe!! It is located just 30 minutes outside of Poprad. It was a spectacular site! We hiked up the small hill it sits on, and walked around the twists and turns for hours! We had a great time taking pictures, and learning about the Slovakian culture.

Now its time to get focused and ready for our first game!! I'll be sure to post updates after every game!

First Few Weeks In Poprad

After a delay out of Seattle, a 9 hour layover in Chicago, and an hour delay on the tarmac before takeoff, I finally made it to Slovakia!! It has been an incredibly eventful first two weeks. Poprad--the place I will call home for the next 7 months--is a small town at the base of the High Tatras, a beautiful mountain range that borders Slovakia and Poland. I live with the other two Americans (KJ and Neek!!) in a small three bedroom flat a few minutes from our arena.

For the most part, we are still getting settled in. Besides practicing twice a day, we are learning our way around town and finding out what Poprad has to offer. This past weekend, we hosted a three game tournament. We went 2-1, beating two teams from our league to win the whole thing!! Our team played well together considering we had only practiced together for three days before the tournament. The coach and most of the girls speak GREAT English, which definitely helped.

On our first day off since arriving, our team visited AquaCity, Poprad’s biggest attraction. AquaCity is a large aquatic center that includes an Olympic size pool, various saunas and hot tubs, as well as water slides. We mostly went to relax so we spent our time in the menthol steam room, and the herbal sauna. It was incredibly rejuvenating, and a good way to start off another week of double days before we head to a tournament in Hungary. I’m EXCITED to get going!!