Captain's Log with Lindsey Howard: Home Sweet Home
2/4/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
Captain's Log with Lindsey Howard
WEDNESDAY, FEB. 4 -- Home Sweet Home
Hello everyone! This past weekend we were on the road for the first time this season at the ITA Kickoff-Weekend in Williamsburg, Va., where we joined host William & Mary, North Carolina and Texas. The team that won both of its matches would qualify for the ITA National Team Indoor Championship in Madison, Wis. Since I have been at Michigan, we have never participated in this prestigious tournament, so to me this weekend was an exciting opportunity. We opened the weekend against the Tar Heels on Saturday and suffered a heartbreaking 5-2 loss. Although we were disappointed, we still had another tough match ahead of us and wanted to end the weekend on a high note with a win against the Longhorns. The doubles was intense as Chisako Sugiyama and Tania Mahtani clinched the point with a big win at No. 1. Winning the doubles point gave us confidence and momentum going into singles and we went on to win four of the six matches to complete a 5-2 victory. You know what that means ... we sang! Sadly, Max (and his trumpet) does not travel with the team for road matches. Unfortunately, we did not advance to the National Indoor, but the men's team did so a big congratulations to them!
I am from Richmond, Va., so being in Williamsburg was like being at home! My parents, my high school tennis coach and some friends from high school all came out to support us. I even knew some of the umpires because they had chaired some of my high school matches! Because Michigan is so far from home, my parents rarely get the chance to watch me play tennis anymore. So I was super excited when I found out that we were going somewhere close to them! It was weird though flying in and out of Richmond and never going to my house. I thought about sneaking away and taking a taxi home ... just kidding Ronni!
Last night, our team went to Mock Rock, a variety show put on by Michigan varsity athletes. For the past two months we have been trying to raise money for the event. SAAC asked that our team raise $320. We exceeded that goal and instead raised $345, so great job girls! The co-chairs, Cody Waters (wrestling) and Laura Dunn (rowing), did an excellent job putting the whole show together. Desmond Howard emceed the event, and although he is an analyst and not an entertainer, I thought he was funny, enthusiastic, and overall just awesome! There were also some great performances, with men's track (Cool Runnings) being my favorite. This year we raised more money than we ever have before and at the end of the show a check was presented to Mott Children's Hospital for $33,000! Athletes go to Mott every Thursday night to visit patients, but with Mock Rock we are able to contribute in a different way.
I can't leave you all without mentioning the Australian Open. What a weekend for professional men's tennis! I seldom watch tennis on TV but found myself captivated by Rafael Nadal's performance. After pulling out an unbelievable five-set win against Fernando Verdasco in Friday's semifinal, Nadal came back the next day and defeated Roger Federer in five sets to win the title! You had to feel bad for Federer during his post-match speech. It was obviously a tear-jerker because half of our team was balling before our match against Texas ... literally. To see some more high-quality tennis (just like what you watched on TV this past week), come out to the Varsity Tennis Center this Sunday (Feb. 8) at 11 a.m. to watch our team battle Yale!
