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Committed to Excellence

 

October 12, 2006

 

Courtesy: Whitney Leman

 

For three days and two nights, the EOU women’s basketball team proved that they are committed to their program.

 

With a 6 a.m. practice, weight lifting, and day of class under their belts, the journey to Catherine Creek outside of Union began Friday afternoon.

One by one or as a group, the girls turned their cell phones in, set their tents up, and anticipated a relaxing weekend with no Saturday practice. Coach Weissenfluh may not have had a practice plan for “commitment” weekend, but she did have a plan.

 

After settling in, and setting up camp, the three-man senior class prepared a five-star (spaghetti) meal by camping standards. Then came the icebreakers.  The coaching staff had prepared several different team-building activities for the weekend. “We wanted to do activities that helped everybody learn more about each other and foster trust amongst the team,” Coach Weissenfluh said. For example: each girl was handed a piece of paper with “fill in the blanks with a teammate’s name.” Without revealing any names, the girls soon found out who was suspected as the “gassy” girl on the team, the girl most likely to end up on America’s most wanted, and the girl who was most likely a bully when she was young, etc.

 

“I thought the ice-breakers were the best because we knew so little about each other yet we were able to have fun with it and be silly,” senior Candice Davis said.

 

For the next couple of days, the girls also had frequent opportunities to earn monopoly money, which would then be used to buy prizes Sunday morning at the Weissenfluh Auction.

 

Of them, the biggest earnings went to the first five teams to complete EOU’s version of MTV’s Real World/Road Rules Fresh Meat exile challenge. The girls were given a partner, and an envelope, which at the end read “see you at the top.” What started out with a .3-mile run turned into carrying a sandbag full of 20 soup cans that the girls were instructed to bring earlier—plus 45 additional pounds—up the mountain. The catch, just like on the show, was that there were puzzles along the way with prizes resulting in minutes off of your team’s final time, or dropping from 10 pounds to your entire bag on site.

 

Over a grueling hour later, newcomer Breana Olson and junior Elise Hawes brought home the big bucks with a first place finish. Dripping in sweat, after the last team finished, the girls had to carry the weight back down the mountain, and only dream about taking a shower. “This proved to me how hard working and dedicated the girls will be this season,” Weissenfluh said.

 

The team also tested their trust as they were led on an excursion through the mountains and woods after dark. With one flashlight at the front of the line for “emergency use only,” the girls were instructed to hold onto the person in front of them and to not let go for any reason. Half a mile later the journey was completed with a few thorns in the face, some sweaty palms, and the trust of an entire team.

 

“I thought it was a challenging and good experience for a team to go through,” Captain Stephanie Neubauer said. First-year student assistant Jami Huntsman agreed, saying that the hike represented everything a team goes through during a season, such as trusting your teammates, having their backs during tough times, communicating effectively, and reaching a desired destination or goal.

 

Saturday, after the freshman prepared a cereal and orange juice breakfast without spoons or cups, the team hopped back into the vans and headed for the La Grande High School track. For four hours they volunteered at the community’s 12-hour drug free relay; helping with the rock-climbing wall, a blow-up obstacle course and boxing ring, volleyball games, lap counting, and the surfing version of a mechanical bull. Fourth-year player Christie Weaver said it felt good to volunteer somewhere that really needed them.

“It’s nice to be appreciated,” she said.

 

Before it was time to head back to camp, the sophomores picked up Dominoes on the way, which was distributed while the caravan was stuck in road construction.

 

On their last night, after hotdogs and hamburgers prepared by the junior class, the girls attempted to teach and learn the EOU fight song, performed their rendition of singing around the campfire, and chose team and season goals for this year. They also continued to earn cash by playing black jack, doing crossword puzzles, and playing TV trivia.

 

Finally, after using a port-a-potty for what seemed like weeks, the girls got up around 8 a.m. Sunday, packed up their tents, loaded up the vans, and stood around a prize-filled picnic table. The Weissenfluh auction prizes ranged from a fleece EOU jacket worth $60, to a “get out of morning conditioning” card. Needless to say, the latter went for more!

 

Coach Weissenfluh, who also learned a lot about her team over the weekend, said it was nice to take the team to a different environment where they were able to build relationships without the intense pressure of competition. “It was a great weekend and I hope that the girls enjoyed it half as much as I did,” she said.