Tag Archives: NYUWS

Officially Retired

It’s weird to think that soccer is officially over. There were a lot of tears this weekend, lots of hugs, and lots of stories.  I could not be more thankful for my family, friends, team, fellow seniors, and my best friend Phebe, whom I could not have gotten through the past four years without.

Much love!

 

WE MADE IT!

WE MADE IT TO THE NCAA’S!  Today we found out that we got an at-large bid to the NCAA DIII Soccer tournament, one of 24 spots left. Six teams in our conference qualified, including: Chicago, Brandeis, Wash U, Emory and league champs, Carnegie Mellon. This is the first time in twelve years that NYU has made the tournament. The second in NYU Women’s Soccer history, and the first time that it has been done via “at-large” bid.

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I can’t put into words how an incredible of a feeling this is. Four years of blood, sweat, tears, broken bones, torn ligaments, bruises, and turf burns. I am so incredibly proud of all my teammates, past and present who have made this moment possible. This has not only been a personal goal of mine, but a program goal that was set four years ago and it is truly unreal to see how much everything has progressed in that time period.

I’m going to keep this short and sweet, because I’m so excited and there’s still a lot we have to do.We play Amherst this weekend at Nazareth College in Rochester at 1:30PM on Saturday.

You can read more information here!

The End of an Era

As I sit here on my last bus ride to Gaelic, I find it surprising that I’m not overwhelmed by a flood of emotions. It is, after all, my last collegiate soccer game, the last game of my career.

Man, that’s depressing to write.

Today begin like any other day –  I got up, got ready, met up with Phebe and headed to Coles. Four years of waking my tired body, and forcing myself to get out of bed. Four years of carefully evaluating pregame and practice meals. Four years of walking to and from second home, Coles. Four years of taping my body up, of icing, of stretching, and foam rolling. Four years of hopping in vans and buses just to get to our “home” fields. And after four years, it’s all coming to an abrupt halt.

It still hasn’t hit me yet. I’ve been reflecting on it all week but I’m still at a loss for words. How can I describe my four-year career in a single word? Ineffable – I don’t expect you to understand because it’s simply been indescribable in so many positive and negative ways.

Come December I won’t have mandatory workouts, or meetings or lifts or events to attend. I won’t have to pass fitness tests or complete three-minute planks. I won’t have a stringent schedule to follow all summer and winter and I most definitely won’t have the last three weeks of summer planned out down to the last minute.

So, what comes next?  Retirement? If we win or tie today,  we might get an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament next week. If we lose, there is the chance of ECAC’s, which would be great and terrible at the same time. Making the NCAA tournament has been a goal of mine for the past four years. This has been a long time coming and I can only hope that we continue to perform to the best of our abilities.

I’ve collected a series  of shots over the past four years. Looking back its crazy to see how much has changed.

 

 

Back at It (See what I did there?)

Frustration might not be the right word to describe what I was feeling going into this preseason. Frustrated doesn’t even begin to explain it. Upset, disheartened, and defeated don’t even get close to describing how I was feeling.

After a deadlifting accident last Fall,  my lower back was in a state of chaos – leaving L4/L5 and L5/S1 partially sacralized and the prospect of returning  100% was questionable. Numerous doctors appointments, x-rays, cortisone injections, and physical therapy appointments failed to get me where I wanted heading into my senior season. Nevertheless, I was determined to get back on the field.

August 13th rolled around and I still had back spasms during workouts and a numb sensation down my leg whenever I ran for more than a few minutes. In a word, debilitating. I might as well have had the word UNCLEARED tattooed across my forehead because that was the simple truth. Another cortisone injection, a cocktail of medications, ice baths and a daily back massages helped me get on the field again.  It was slow and excruciating learning how to dive again so that I didn’t further damage my spine. I believed that because I had done this twice before, why not a third time?

Nearly a month from that first day back on the field, just jogging for ten minutes, I am now back at it and fully cleared. There is still a painful jolt to my back every time my body slams into the ground, I have come to the realization that it is worth it. Every dive, every kick, every sprint. It is after all, my senior season.

 

 

Last First Day of School

Last first day? Is that even a thing? According to my Facebook last Tuesday, it is. There was a plethora of seniors who posted pictures of their first day of kindergarten accompanied by photos from their first day of senior year of college. Does time fly or what? Since Tuesdays are my busiest days (Lift, Soccer, 7 hours of class) I wasn’t able to snap a cute picture in front of the arch, but I think these photos will suffice.

5 Boroughs. One Team.

Some of you may not be as familiar with my NYU soccer career, however, I think it is imperative that you do know that the team means the world to me. Between the wins and losses, the injuries and celebrations, the friendships and adventures, the past three years have been a whirlwind to say the least. This post is dedicated to those who have been part of my NYU soccer experience – without you, I would be nothing.

Claire and Phebe at Aviator Field, Brooklyn

Claire and Phebe at Aviator Field in Brooklyn

On the way to practice the other day at the furthest part of Brooklyn, a few of us were joking that we’ve been to played soccer in every borough except Queens. Our practice turf is on Pier 40 (Manhattan), we play at Gaelic Park for our home games (Bronx), and Staten Island has been a staple practice field in the spring. Today, changed that when we practiced at the Metropolitan Oval in Queens.

The view from the Metropolitan Oval

The view from the Metropolitan Oval

Being an athlete at NYU comes with its challenges, such as lack of home fields, but what we lack in physical space, we possess in adaptability, humor, and camaraderie. The past three years would not have been possible without the girls by my side, especially the rest of my junior class.

We came. We won. We conquered NYC today. 5 Boroughs, 1 Spring Season. Who knows what challenge lies next?

We came. We won. We conquered NYC today. 5 Boroughs, 1 Spring Season. Who knows what challenge lies next?

 

Rhythm

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I lost my rhythm a long time ago, and no I’m not referencing my inability to dance – that’s another story in itself.   For those of you who know me, you know that I enjoy the rush of being busy and the stress of a demanding workload. This semester was no different, my approach, however, was of a completely different nature.  Instead of getting worked up about being a few minutes late to work because the trains were running late or stressing out over a huge assignment, I took on the mentality that life happens, either you can relish in the beautiful, twisted complexity of it or be angry over something you don’t have control of anyways. Although some may mistake this for a nonchalant-don’t care- attitude, it truly was a blessing in disguise.

“Some things in life are out of your control. You can make it a party or a tragedy.” – Nora Roberts

It’s a rainy Friday night and I’m sitting in my apartment, sipping on Earl Grey tea (my favorite), in my worn out running tights. A wave of nostalgia washes over me, as the rain taps lightly against my bedroom window, bringing me back to the rainy days spent at a café in Madrid. A sudden urge to write forces me to exit the Hulu show that I was only half-watching, and I open up a blank Microsoft Word canvas.  It stares back at me for a few seconds before I find my rhythm again.

Inspiration has been lacking and fleeting this past semester, too many late nights spent studying and not enough mornings filled with a warm cup of tea and my laptop.  An unacceptable excuse, but an excuse nonetheless.  I’ve struggled to maintain balance and rhythm and my writing isn’t the only thing that shows it.

Soccer recently ended and as most seasons go, there was an end of season meeting to cap off the year and see what areas I need to improve on before next August. To say that I had a sub par season would be an understatement, but that again is a sorry excuse for what really happened. I came in unprepared and as a result didn’t to play my potential. Though I was upset and confused the entire season, and projected my problems on the field onto other parts of my life, I ended up realizing at the end of the season that what I was truly missing was balance. I was unable to work and play my best because I lost my rhythm, both on and off the field.

Though I was upset at the time, this season has been a lesson in perseverance and the artistry of being a good teammate. What I have come to realize is that the little things are what makes a team so great. Yes, the goal scoring is exciting and the exhilaration of stopping a shot in the upper 90 of the goal compares to nothing else in the world, but the truly beautiful thing about being on this team, are the bus rides to away games and team dinners in cramped apartments and the funny Snapchats we send to each other as we sit in hotel rooms hundreds of miles away from home but only feet away from our second family.  What I’ve learned is that when you have rhythm, you become unstoppable.

I’m learning how to dance again, find my rhythm, if you may.  I’m determined to make life a celebration, not a catastrophe, and relish in the positivity of it all, because I’ve learned that  some things are truly out of my control.

Back to Basics

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We are approaching Day 5 of pre-UK training and it’s finally beginning to sink in: less than one week till we touch down in London town and we cannot be more excited. Our days have been filled with two practice sessions and an education component in the middle to supplement our trip to the UK.  Our daily schedule is not set, but it usually consists of a 10AM practice, 1:45 PM education and a 7PM practice. Sometimes our evening practices are substituted with a strength and conditioning session in the early afternoon, so we get more rest time for the following day. Our education lessons are taught by a 5th year Ph.D. student, Angela, who is absolutely amazing. She knows so much about England and the UK – her enthusiasm about the topic is definitely contagious!

On the field, we are looking strong and coming together as a team.  After a semester abroad in Spain, it felt great to finally get back on the field with my teammates. The passes are crisp, the shots are stronger, and our chemistry off the field is evident in the way we play – it’s almost as if we can read each other’s mind and where we want the ball to go.  If we’re looking like this now, I cannot wait for how we will be playing come September.

As the turf burns find their places below our knees and the blisters begin to form underneath our toes, we are subtly reminded that we are home again, not only on the field, but also as a team.  I feel so incredibly blessed to not only be spending part of my summer training with them but also traveling abroad with them.

Until next time.