Diary

Jamie
Chan

Past Entries

April 5, 2004

Ah! Spring is in the air! But that doesn't mean we're going to "stop and smell the flowers." With only a few more weeks until nationals, every practice and match is approached with high intensity and unparalleled focus.

On Wednesday, we were scheduled to play against Clayton College and State University. Everything was going as planned: the sun was beaming down on us, (the fluffy white clouds reminded Mary Ellen of "The Simpson's" cartoon), we warmed up, stretched, and did the match lineups.

However, just as we were about to start the matches, ominous dark clouds, tornado-like winds, and cold rain replaced the previously perfect weather. Amused, we took shelter in the gym, and waited to see if the weather would turn around. To pass the time, we chatted with Bobbi Patterson, our "guest coach," and munched on bagels provided by Breana's mother, and chocolate cupcakes, courtesy of Carina's culinary expertise.

After 30 minutes, the weather was still stormy, so the match against the Lakers was cancelled. Perhaps we'll be able to test our mettle against them another time!
On Saturday, we woke up early and drove to Montgomery, AL, for our rematch against Auburn University at Montgomery (AUM). We arrived at the AUM courts with plenty of time to spare.

As we were warming up, we were treated to a concert by Toby Keith. We weren't able to actually see where the music was coming from, so although we heard the music and the people cheering, we weren't sure if it really was Toby Keith giving a live concert 9:30 a.m.. Marge hypothesized that he was singing at a baseball game during "halftime." I thought the singing and cheering were coming from a really loud radio nearby. Well, regardless of where the music was coming from, and whether it was live of not, we sure got a nice concert!

Our match was scheduled to be played at 10 a.m., but by 9:45 a.m., AUM had not shown up yet. Puzzled, Coach Amy made a few phone calls and found out that we were at the wrong courts (she was never told which courts to be at, even after multiple phone calls beforehand).

So, we loaded up the van and made the "five-minute" journey to the "nearby" courts. However, the directions given to us wouldn't have gotten us out of a paper bag, much less to the courts (2002 UAA flashback!).

So, after approximately 25 minutes of U-Turns, "veering" onto the highway, and making a "quick left turn" we finally arrived at the courts, thanks to some help from our men's tennis team (who were also at the tournament). Needless to say, we were all ready to get on the courts and take on AUM.

Our enthusiasm and "heart" showed during all the doubles matches, but unfortunately, all three matches went to AUM. Not to be outdone so easily, we regrouped, refocused, and began our singles matches with renewed intensity.
Although each Eagle battled courageously, the Lady Senators laid down the law, winning five out of the six singles matches. Mary Ellen was the lone victor, effortlessly soaring past her opponent to reach her 100th career singles win -- making her the first Emory player ever to attain that mark! Awesome! Although we didn't come out victorious against AUM, each of us was pushed to a higher level of play that will ultimately benefit us in the matches to come.

This weekend, we are traveling to Boston to face some high caliber teams, but we're confident and ready to dominate whatever comes our way! Go, Eagles!

Jamie Chan is a sophomore from Lakeland, Fla. She would love to answer e-mail questions from Emory recruits and fans.