Friday morning, 6am. Still whipping away the sleep; but a cold shower and hot coffee zap me into readiness. Now what to do? There's something I'm supposed to do today...radio show at noon, West High football game at 7. The way I figure I need to be at the station doing prep work by 10:30, leaving me just enough time to hit the lake for an hour. Even Sports Directors get to go fishing once in a while...
That's basically how my weekend started, and damn near how it ended, but you probably don't want to read about how my failed attempt at top water fishing and how I should have used a crank or spinner or soft-plastic jig...or do you?....no you don't.
This weekend marked the first competition for a lot of the Hawkeye sports teams. Field Hockey traveled out east to take on a gauntlet of top teams in the Big Ten/ACC challenge, Volleyball got the 2010 season rolling in Carver at the Hawkeye Challenge, and the women's soccer team stayed in Iowa City for Iowa Tournament against the likes of Northern Illinois and Central Michigan.
It was a good weekend for the Hawks.
Most notably, Coach Sharon Dingman's volleyball squad is off to a 3-0 start, going 9-3 in set play. If you are looking for a rising team, look no further than Iowa Volleyball, which has shown steady improvement over the last two seasons since the arrival of Sharon Dingman. Although missing some experience from last season's team due to injury and graduation, this team is loaded with fresh talent, and is lead by 6-3 senior Becky Walters. "Upper Deck Beck", as she will be known from here on out, had 5 block against Alabama to start the season, and 6 kills in the second set against Southern Illinois, and 16 kills against Green Bay.
Although Field Hockey is a different story, having started the season 0-2 in the Big Ten/ACC challenge, it should be noted that their weekend featured match ups against #6 Wake Forest and #1 North Carolina. Expect this team to bounce back at home this coming Sunday against Miami of Ohio at Grant Field.
Coach Ron Rainey, leading his soccer squad into the weekend's Iowa Tournament in Iowa City, said he liked his team's effort and composure after two wins, bringing the overall record to 2-1 on the young season. A single goal was all the winner on Sunday, as junior Alyssa Cosnek took a charging goalie head-on and tapped the ball home for a second half score.
All in all, a great weekend to be a Hawkeye. Now, if only I could get these fish to start biting...
