Field Hockey in Buenos Aires

We arrived back safely yesterday afternoon after a long flight from Argentina to Atlanta and Atlanta to Newark. Luckily our bus did not break down on the way back!

On our last day in Argentina we had our last practice with Pablo! We worked on defense for an hour and a half. We then thanked Pablo and presented him with a gift. He told us that he believes we will be very successful this year because we work so hard together. We rode the bus back to the hotel for some last minute packing and showering.

We then rode our bus to a buffet restaurant where everyone loaded up on food before the long trip ahead. We stopped at one of the largest malls outside Buenos Aires on the way to the airport and did some shopping for ourselves and family members before heading to the airport for our flight. Many of the girls bought clothes from stores only found in Argentina thus, creating a one of a kind style for our team!

On our final leg of the trip to the airport we passed a truck full of cows at a toll booth. Everyone laughed hysterically because Coach Jenn Rauscher claimed throughout the trip that statistically we see one everyday of our lives. We actually managed to see at least two a day the entire trip so you can imagine the laughter when we saw a truck full of cows.

We finally got on our flight to Atlanta at around 8:30 pm that night and headed home! We hugged and kissed Silvina and Carolina goodbye and thanked them for everything! They were such wonderful guides!

We had a team run this morning and a lift with Strength and Conditioning Coach Cory Walts. We anticipate the our first practice on our new turf will be this evening!

Our first season game is this Saturday versus Stevens Tech. We are playing in a tournament at Stevens. On Sunday we will also play Arcadia before heading home to begin the school year at Haverford. Everyone is very confident that what we learned in Argentina will translate to a successful season. However, as Coach Quinn always reminds us, “Success does not come to you, you GO TO IT!” and we most certainly will!

Thanks for following our blog this last week! Come out and support our team this season at our new turf at Swan Field!

Yesterday we woke up early to our usual breakfast of tea, coffee, fresh orange and grapefruit juices, muffins and croissants. We took a bus ride that was longer than usual out to St. Catherine´s Moorlands School. This is the school and hockey team where Silvina Corvalan, one of our many Argentine hockey experts, coaches. In the morning we worked with Pablo on receptions and passing. After our session we ate lunch at the school. We stayed at the school and had another half session with Pablo and Coach Quinn. We practiced until about a half an hour before our game. We played the girls of the St. Catherine´s Moorlands School team ( you can visit their website from the link on this blog). They were good competition but, we played hard and proved that we had learned so much in Argentina. After our game we headed back to the hotel and showered. We had some more spare time before dinner. A majority of the team ventured back to the artisans´ market next to the Hard Rock Cafe where we had been the day before. We ate dinner at Locos Para Futbol. It´s a restaurant on the corner across from our hotel. The atmosphere was fun. We watched several different soccer games on the big screens at the restaurant. Some of the girls purchased commemorative Argentine olympic soccer jersies. While we were at the restaurant Roxy Jaffe and Josie Ferri befriended some of the waiters who were serving us. They were really friendly and even offered to show us around the city. But, with a big day ahead of us we all headed back to our room to get some rest.

This morning we ate breakfast and boarded the bus for our clinic with Pablo at CCBA.  We had an excellent session. Everyone was working hard and applying the new techniques we had learned over the week. Everything seems to be coming together.

After practice we boarded the bus for our community service activity at the Maria Nuestra School. The school was not too far from St. Catherine´s. We really enjoyed our time at the school. We met and spoke English with a wide age group of students. Most of them were 15 or 16 years of age but, we also spoke with younger girls and boys who were 12 and 13. They were all so friendly and welcoming. We talked about our favorite music, movies, where we are from, what we like to do in our spare time and our favorite subjects in school.

Afterwards we ate lunch in the school cafeteria. We headed out to the field to run a field hockey clinic with the school´s team. The girls were skilled but in desperate need of equipment and good coaching. We played warm-up games with them and then played seven vs. seven. We had so much fun this afternoon. The girls on the team were so sweet.

After the clinic at Maria Nuestra we headed back home to get ready for an evening of tango lessons and a perfomance. We had some spare time for some last minute shopping before we left for tango. We had an hour long tango lesson. It was so much fun! Everyone paired up and learned the steps. Our tango teachers were very serious but, we definitely have the steps down. We are just about ready for a debut performance upon our return to Haverford! Afterwards we entered a ballroom and sat down for a really tasty meal and a tango peformance. The dancers were amazing. Their costumes were so elaborate and beautiful. There were also several musical interludes by an even greasier version of Ray Liotta and his female counterpart. By the end of the night we were exhausted. We headed back to the hotel and hit the sack.

Our last day in Argentina is tomorrow! What a wonderful way to spend a majority of preseason. We´ve really got to know each other. It´s been an amazing experience. We have learned so much in such a short period of time. Everyone is trying to cram all the hockey tips into their brain in order to make this experience even more valuable upon our return.

We have our last practice tomorrow and then we head to the airport and back to Haverford! Upon our arrival we will be greeted by our gorgeous new turf field. We are incredibly excited to play on Swan Field this fall! This season is sure to be unforgettable!

This morning we woke up earlier than usual to catch the ferry to Colonia, Uruguay. We met at 7:45am in the lobby after a quick breakfast of croissants from a local bakery. We boarded the bus to take us to the port. After a receiving our tickets, we got in line for customs and immigration. Everyone found it funny that we got a stamp for leaving the country and entering Uruguay even though it was only a few hours by ferry and for a day.

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Yesterday we had our first practice at Club Ciudad Buenos Aires (CCBA) not too far from our hotel. Everyone woke up feeling refreshed from a good night´s sleep and ready to play some hockey. The club is very large. It houses not only field hockey but, facilities for swimming, tennis and golf. There is also a club house restaurant where we ate lunch after our practice.

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After leaving for Newark Airport yesterday morning we encountered something unexpected. Everything was going well as we rode along the highway to our final destination. As we rounded the ramp towards the airport less than a mile away we heard a loud pop. Coach Quinn said, “It really felt like we were coasting down that ramp just now.” The bus driver pulled the bus over to check the tires and instead determined that the belt of the bus had broken and he would be unable to steer the bus to the airport. We were less than a mile away from the Delta terminal. The coaches scrambled quickly to their cell phones to get the situation under control. This was one situation in which Coach would definitely not need to “roll with the punches” as she would in Argentina. Read the rest of this entry »

We began preseason just yesterday and already we are off to a great start. Yesterday morning (at 6 am!!!) we ran our timed miles and tested our pro-agility and 20 yard dash. We also tested our one rep max for the bench and squat in the weight room with our strength and conditioning coach, Cory Walts. Everyone did very well and I think we all have high hopes for the season.

After breakfast, we practiced for two hours at the Haverford School. We worked on skills such as passing, dribbling, and “shaving,” a technique that eliminates the defense. It was a good first practice but, I think everyone was a little nervous.

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This August training camp will have a different feel for the Haverford College field hockey team. Instead of going through gruesome practices in the humid summer temperatures, the Fords will prepare for the season and get some South American culture on a nine-day trip to Buenos Aires, Argentina.

NCAA rules allow participating teams to make a trip abroad once every four years. Haverford will be making the trip through ZAG Hockey, which specializes in field hockey trips for college teams.

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