Fri July 25, 2008
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Passing Time with Nick SpittleApril 16, 2008
Hello everyone. Once again it has taken me much longer than expected to complete a Passing Time. I guess you are in store for a much longer-than-average entry. Last time all you readers heard from me we had just finished the series against Ohio State over a month ago. It would be a little much if I went through a synopsis of each match we have played since then. So I will just tell you that there have been some very exciting wins and a couple disappointing losses. Along the way was our trip out to the great islands of Hawaii. Although it took place literally the weekend before finals week and we were all very nervous about the upcoming exams and papers due, we made it out safely, surviving through the winter quarter. What was nice about the Hawaii trip for me, personally, was that my Grandma Spittle made it out to witness the matches. Many of the players' parents also made the trip but it was cool of my granny to come because she has never seen me or any of my brothers play before. It made me very happy that she was able to see us before the opportunity completely passed her by. It was also a good trip for Aiea native Brent Asuka, because he was able to roam around his stomping grounds for a few days and show us the hot spots to eat. After both of the matches, Saki's parents, Mike and Dani, stuck with the tradition of Hawaiian generosity and prepared a feast to feed everyone three times over. Not for just one of the nights, either...But both nights! It was just an absolute phenomenal feasting. Throughout the entire season there has been no shortage of effort by any of the parents. It seems like every road trip we ensue, there is always a household welcoming us in and allowing us to clean out their kitchens. We have started traditions in Hawaii with the Asuka's. On the way down to UCSD we always make a stop at the Yoder's humble abode in San Clemente for some tacos. By the way, there are so many different ingredients to put on them, Jon Steller and I completely forgot to put the meat in our first round of tacos. We weren't really missing out on anything since they were still so darn tasty. Anyway, whenever we head up to Santa Barbara, the Reinholm's always welcome us on their massive ranch. MJ can cook a mean breakfast, lunch, and dinner...Believe me I've had them all. Even the parents whose sons are no longer on the squad still welcome us into their homes. Our last road trip up to NorCal, we stopped and had a nice pasta dinner at Jim and Mary Webber's house followed by some delicious frozen yogurt pie. Maybe all the pie didn't end up in our bellies, but that's a different story. Thank you to all the parents on behalf of the whole team, we love your food. And how can I forget the train ride home from UCSB. Two years ago, myself and a few guys on the team stayed the night in Santa Barbara to catch up with some old friends on the team and took the train home the next day. This was easily one of my best memories from my college experience. So Taylor Wilson, Ryan Ammerman, Anthony Spittle, Cory Yoder, Kevin Carroll and I decided to do the same thing this year. Once again the train did not disappoint. It always has something interesting in store for all who ride it. It is now the most exciting time of the volleyball year with playoffs underway. Tonight we have our play-in match against the Trojans of USC. The match is being held in Crawford Court instead of the Bren because there is some sort of car show occupying it. Although we enjoy playing in the Bren more than Crawford, it provides us with a huge home court advantage since USC plays in probably the largest gym in the conference. This also means that a lot of people are going to be getting their access denied since Crawford only seats a fraction of the Bren. If we win this match we will be traveling out to Provo, Utah to take on BYU, after this it will back to SoCal as Long Beach State is hosting the Semi's and Finals of the MPSF tournament. Please make it to any games you can, we need your help as we look to DEFEND IN THE BREN! Until next time -Nick |
