Tied Game

Last weekend there was a tournament that last 3 days. It was from Thursday to Saturday. Our first game was Thursday night. We had never played the team before and we really didn't know what to expect. We had played their JV team last year, and they were really bad, but they could have had some really good kids on their varsity team. They didn't have anyone good, and the first quarter went really well for us. We were up 3 to 0 and we thought that we had the game in the bag. The second quarter went pretty well. We kept our 3 point lead, but they had also scored 3. The score going into the half was 6 to 3. We were still fairly confident that we could hold on to our lead.

Image courtesy of FINA

The third quarter did not go well. We didn't score any goals and they had caught up to us. The score was 6 to 6 and now we started to get worried. Our defense had fallen apart and our offense had come to a stand still. I don't really know what happen, but we just couldn't play. The fourth quarter started and we were all really nervous. We didn't want to end up losing this game. About a minute into the quarter, we scored and we were up 7 to 6. But they came back and scored and it was all tied up again. With just over a minute left in the game we were able to score and take the lead. We stopped their next  possession, but were not able to score on our next one. They called a time out with around 30 seconds left in the game. All we had to do was stop them and we would win the game. We failed and they scored with 10 seconds to go. We tried to get a quick shot off, but missed and that was the end of the game. There was no over time, so the game ended in a tie.

3rd Best Team in the State

We played what a team that many people considered to the third best team in the state. They had some really big kids on their team. At least 2 of them were 6'4 and they had a few others that were almost as tall. We knew it was going to be a hard game. The first quarter didn't go so well. We were down 5 to 1 at the end of it. Their counter attacks were just too good for our defense. That was the only way the scored goals. When they set up their offense, they couldn't score on us. The second quarter went a lot better. We started to play better and stop their counters. At the half the score was 6 to 3. The come back was real.

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At half time we really thought that we could come back and win the game. In the middle of the third quarter we were only down by 2. The score was 9 to 7. But then, things started to go downhill and by the end of the third they pulled ahead to make it 12 to 8. It just kept getting worse from their. They scored a quick goal at the start of the fourth and then coach took out half of the starters and left me in with most of the second team. I had no idea what he was doing and by the end of the game the score was 16 to 8. We let them score 4 more goals in the fourth. It was a really close game at one point, but we just let it go. It was a game we could have one, and I think that if we play them again, we have an actual chance at winning.

Visitors from Texas

Last weekend visitors from Dallas, Texas came to play us. They were really good and had robes. They were really cool. My whole team wanted them. It made them look so good. Just having robes makes you look 10 times better than you actually are. They were still really good and we got beat really badly. The final score was 23 to 3. It was not a good game for us. We couldn't do anything. Our offense was nonexistant and our defense was even worse. They countered on us a lot. Half of my team doesn't get back on defense and its really hard to cover 3 people at once.

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They had one really good guy. After the game I found out that he go a scholarship to go play water polo at Cal. He was lefty and was unstopable. He was also really fast at swimming. Whenever he got the ball he would score. There was nothing we could do about it. Towards the end of the game they put in thier JV team. We could handle them and in at the very end of the game we figured out how to score and started playing a bit better. It was too little too late and, in the end, it was a good learning experince and we found out how far we actually have to go to be able to beat them. Its gonna take a lot of hard work and effort and isn't as easy as we thought it would be.

First Game of The Season

Last week, we had our first game of the season. The team we played was really bad, and after the first quarter we were up 9 to 0. I scored 3 of those 9 and after the first quarter he took out everyone that was starting and put the newer kids in. It was a good opportunity for them to get some game time against a team that wasn't very good. They did a really good job, and at half time the score was 16 to 1. I played for most of the third quarter, but I didn't play for any of the fourth. The final score of the game was 23 to 9. The same guy scored all of the other teams 9 points. He wasn't even good. I played defense on him in the first half and he would try to shoot from 7 meters and I stuffed him almost every time. He would also try to kick me in the face every time we were swimming down. After a while it got really annoying, and I wanted to straight up hit him in the face. He never actually hit me, so I wasn't that mad about it, but it was still getting on my nerves.  

Image courtesy of RTS

Overall, the game went really well and it was a good way to start out the season. Lots of the newer players got game time and we stomped the other team. They shouldn't of scored 9 goals. They really shouldn't of scored at all. We lots of games coming up and I can't wait to see how good we are going to get this season. 

Practice Again

Water Polo practice finally started agian and I am really excited about the upcoming season. High School swimming ended and we had the State swim meet. We won the meet by a lot. The other teams weren't even close and it was a good way to end my first year of high school swimming. Now I can switch to my main focus, which is water polo. We've had practice for a week now, and it feels great to get back into the swing of things. So far we've only been going over the basics, but I can't wait until we get into some new stuff. Our first game is this week and it'll be interesting how well we do. We have some knew people and our coach isn't very good at explaining things, so I don't know if they actually understand anying.

Image courtesy of Water Polo Planet

We have a lot of games this week, and many more to come. I think that we have at least one every week and somethimes even 2. This will go on all the way to May. That is when state championships are. I'm just really happy that swimming finaly ended and water polo started. I'm ready to see all the people I hated in the fall again and beat them. I'm not gonna lost to Pork Chop again.

Too Many Swim Meets

For the past 2 weeks we have had a swim meet every week and we have 2 more in the next 2 weeks. It just too many. I don't understand why there is a swim meet every single week. It's pointless. I'm not gonna go any faster than I did the week before. There is no reason to have a swim meet every week. The only good thing that comes out of it is that we get to miss practice once a week. Normally swim meets are on a Wednesday and that is distance day. I hate distance. So that makes it a little bit better, but one every week is still way too many. One time we had 2 swim meets in one week. One was on Wednesday and the other was on Friday. Why? There is no reason to have them 2 days apart. There should be maybe 2 meets a month. Not 2 a week.

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One more problem with swim meets is that you get home a lot later than when you get home from practice. The worst are away meets. I get home really late, and then have to do homework and other stuff and it's really annoying. Even home meets. They take too long. Also they are right after school and I just don't feel like I can swim fast right after school. High school swimming will be over soon, and I'll go back to club swimming, where we only have 1 or 2 a month, which is a lot better.

Practice

Last Saturday, we had a random practice. I thought it would be fun, but some guys from a different team showed up, and I have no idea why. They were really annoying. There was one kid there that thought he was hot stuff. He was a big dude, not fat, but really beefy. He acted like he was the boss of all of us and we were all so done with him and the 2 other guys he brought with him. I don't even know who invited them. I showed up and was like,"Who the hell are these random kids". I was pissed off from the start and that kid just made it worse. 

Image courtesy of Water Polo

At the start of practice we did some swimming drills and he started talking about how fast he is at swimming and stuff. He told me his times, and it turns out that he actaully sucks. He was at one of our high school swim meets and his stroke was the ugliest thing I have ever seen in my life. It was so bad. After that, we started to play a game. In the middle of the game, the coach stopped it to talk about something and coach said that someone needed to get to a certain position and that kid said, "like that'll happen". That pissed me off, and probably even more my teammate who was guarding him.