Day 8, Monday, January 3, 2005, Morning in Prague
By Jessica Ford (Blaze Volleyball Club)
Today we got up at 7:45 and went to our lovely breakfast downstairs. Then at 9:00 we all got on the bus to journey to Prague. When we got off the bus we went on the tram for 10-15 minutes. After we got off the tram Cory broke us up into three separate groups. I was in CJ’s group and we went to the “square” in the town center. CJ told us a little history about what she knew about the church and then we broke up into two smaller groups and went down little alleyways where there were some shops. In the Czech Republic they are not afraid to show sexual things, such as on t-shirts. When we met back up with the two other groups, I think we all experienced something that we hadn’t seen before. The mothers of two little boys pulled down their pants and let their child pee on a tree. Hey, when you gotta go, you gotta go! We witnessed this while waiting for the Alaskan moms who had lost their way. Prague looks like a great city, and I’m looking forward to getting back into the city with some more free time tomorrow. After our sightseeing trip was over, we came back to the hotel for lunch and to get ready for a big afternoon of games.
The ladies enjoying Prague City Center
Editor’s Note: Today is the Kick-off of the Brandys BIP Pohar (Cup) Brandys nad Labem, Czech Republic, January 3-5, 2005
Participating Teams:
German Junior National Team
Olymp Praha Junior Team
Slavia Praha Junior Team
Zizkov (Prague) Junior Team
Jacksonville 18’s
Jacksonville 16’s
San Jose 18’s
Day 8, Jacksonville 16s’ Day
By Carey Donald
This morning started early with breakfast at eight. It consisted of the typical bread, yogurt, and cereal. At nine, we were supposed to meet in the lobby in order to go into the city for our first orientation. Because I was finished with breakfast within ten minutes, I of course had time to get dressed in my long underwear and assorted jackets and get a quick nap. At nine, we boarded a bus with an interior straight out of the 60’s and were driven to the closest metro stop. Again, I got a nap in on the bus. We all fit into one subway car and rode to the Museum stop.
Once in the city, we split up into three groups to orient ourselves with the city. I chose to be with CJ as she has been to Prague many times. Our first and only destination was the main square, although I don’t know what it is called. Since this is my second trip to Prague, Andi and I searched for the same shops we shopped in last year, and somehow we found our two favorites within the hour of free time that we had. Both shops had very interesting oriental things. Andi bought a few things, but I didn’t. We met back up with the group at the famous clock in the famous square. We walked back up the main street to the metro station to meet up with up with the entire group. Three Alaska moms were late, but Cory waited for them and we were good to go. The bus picked us up at the station and drove us back to the hotel. I fell asleep on the twenty- minute bus ride. Once back at the hotel, I ran upstairs to get my fourth nap in for the day. I couldn’t wait three minutes for the key to make it to my room, so I jumped in CJ and Noelle’s bed. At two we had lunch, and I was back upstairs to get some more sleep. At three, we met in the lobby to go to the gym. Luckily we played in a gym that is connected to the hotel, so we never had to go outside. We watched the two teams that we would later play and got scared; they seemed huge.
Our first match was against the German Junior National Team. They were all very tall, but that didn’t stop us. On the other hand, maybe it did, because we lost. The first game’s score was 25-18. They were monstrous, but not as impressive as they looked. The second game’s score was 25-9. I don’t know what happened. It was still fun though, because I was struggling to understand any word of German they spoke.
The second match was against a team from Prague. We lost again, but I still had fun. The scores were 25-14 and 25-11. The Jacksonville 18’s have passed their bad luck down to us but the Jax 18’d did beat the San Jose 18’s. It might have come from me though, because tonight was the first night I played with the 16’s. Maybe I should go back into retirement.
Jax 1 vs. Jax 2
Day 8, Jacksonville 18s’ Afternoon
Lauren Elcess (St. Augustine Juniors)
Today while everyone went to the city Leah, Chelsea, and I decided to stay at the hotel and rest up a bit. The rooms are way 60’s, but the beds are really comfortable. Lunch was at 1:45 then a lot of us took naps while the coaches had a quick meeting. When we left for the gym it was raining and really cold outside. Fortunately the walk was short. Our first match was against Zizkov Juniors and we lost 17-25 and 20-25. Everyone was tired and played really bad. Right after the first match we got to play our San Jose team. Somehow everyone stepped it up for this match and we beat them in three. The scores were 25-16, 22-25, and 15-11. It was an awesome match! The third team we played was the Olymp Praha Juniors, which are from here. We did well halfway through the first game then we started to slack of a little and they rallied off about five points in serves on us. We lost that game 17-25. The second game we came out strong the second game and had a good lead on them then they managed to come back the last couple of points and beat us 25-22. Overall the day of volleyball went good for us because we beat out rival team from California. I’m ready to kick some butt tomorrow.
J’Ville 18’s with Zizkov Juniors
Day 8, Alaska’s Afternoon
By Michele Trainor, Amanda Trainor’s mom
The afternoon began with the Alaska girls watching and observing two European teams on the court. Doing this from an observatory deck allowed them to watch the moves and plays better.
Following the game the team was driven an hour away to a sports hall in Prague proper. The first set was primarily a practice. This allowed the girls time to warm up and hone their skills. Once again, playing a team from another country was intriguing. Intriguing in both the very idea of it and in observing their playing skills. It was a wonderful chance to get in more playing time. The coaches from both teams were affable in allowing more games than just a set. The second set against the Juniors was intense. However, this is exactly the type of competition that encourages our team to try harder, learn more and strive to do better.
After an afternoon of six games, Team Alaska is getting a good night sleep and dreaming of our professional training session tomorrow. Good Night!
SSK Spanielka Repy (Youth) vs. Team Alaska: 25-15, 23-25
SSK Spanielka Repy (Juniors) vs. Team Alaska: 6-25, 4-25, 10-25, 11-25
Day 8, San Jose’s Afternoon
By Danielle Higginbotham (North Florida Volleyball Academy)
We walked over to the gym, which was about a five-minute walk in the cold rain. Our first game was against the Prague Junior team, a decent team, which we could have beaten except our numerous errors cost us that match along with our other 2 matches we played today. We took the Prague team to 3 games, where we lost 14-16. Our next game was against the Jacksonville 18’s team, and of course that was a game we really wanted to win. Our team seemed to be really frantic and panicky, which was a huge factor that led us to giving them the first game. The second game got better, and we won that one taking them to three. The third game was really intense, especially towards the end of the game because the game was so tight. We were defeated, with the final games score 13-15. WE WANT A REMATCH! Our final game was against the Zizkov team, who were wearing buns (gross), and again, we continued our losing streak. We took this team to three games also, and lost 13-15. Today was not a good day for team San Jose.
San Jose 18’s vs. Olymp Praha (Prague)
It’s so crazy how different the style of volleyball is over here, kids were raised playing volleyball from a very young age, and many of the teams we have faced have been playing together for several years, along with practicing multiple times a week. I have noticed that most teams keep their offense very simple, usually with a high set on the outside, a quick in the middle, along with a high set back also. The hitters over here are also EXTREMELY good at seeing the block and hitting around it. With the better teams we have faced, it was very rare to fully block a ball, most were touches if they were touched at all. All and all, the level of volleyball is a lot higher than it is in the states. We have a lot of work to do before we can catch up to them.
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