Between the 30s: A Little Dose of Kumbaya
4/21/2016 12:00:00 AM | Women's Lacrosse
April 21, 2016
Juniors Jess Angerman, Tess Korten, Margaret Metzger and Anna Schueler, who were named the first captains in program history, will alternate blogging each week to keep fans up to date on Team Three. In this edition, Jess reflects on the growth of the program over the past three years and thanks the many loyal supporters of the program.
Welcome back Michigan Fans!
You're probably confused by the title of this week's captain's blog, so allow me to fill you in. I'll credit Coach U with the interesting word choice, but if you're anything like me and have no idea what Kumbaya means, then we can just say it means to relax and reflect, and that's just what Team Three did this week.
Coming off a tough loss to Penn State and the Big Ten Tournament quickly approaching, we spent some time reflecting on the different class experiences in Teams One, Two and Three, and particularly how our culture has developed and can continue to grow. Teams One and Two got an opportunity to advocate for their belief that everyone should experience the anxiety of having to sprint across campus to 7 a.m. lift, while the freshmen of Team Three exposed the brief reluctance of the sophomores and juniors to offer rides to workouts -- but don't worry we only made them suffer like we did for a little while.
In our first year with two returning classes to help reign in the incoming freshmen, we realized how much easier it was to form relationships and blur class divides. While Teams One and Two share special bonds, Team Three is a family full of camaraderie, energy and passion. This has been evident in our last few games, particularly Duquesne and Penn State. We've stressed the importance of connecting with each other both on and off the field, and those connections make playing the game all the more fun.
On Saturday we hosted our first Youth Lacrosse Day in the Big House, which gave local girls' youth teams the opportunity to compete in the greatest stadium in the country. Seeing their excitement and love for the game was very inspiring before our game, especially for our Michigan natives: Emily, Margaret and Vespa. Although the traditional lacrosse hot beds are on the East Coast, seeing the impact lacrosse has on girls in Michigan reminds us of how much the sport means to us and what a large part of our life it has been. Kim Coughlan was surprised with her own personal fan club, and the rest of us were just happy to see the outpour of support from the community, even those who are not involved in lacrosse.
For some of the juniors, with the last home game of 2016 right around the corner it seems like graduation and our final season is quickly approaching. With this in mind, it's very important to us to continue to grow and make strides every single day in practice and as student-athletes at Michigan. Going into our fourth Big Ten game against an exceptional Maryland team, we remain confident in our potential and abilities to improve as much as we can in the last few weeks of season.
We truly appreciate all of the support and confidence our family, friends, staff, and fans have shown throughout the last three years. As we continue to work hard and grow as a program, we look forward to achieving more success now and in the future.
Don't miss our last home game of the season this Saturday at 1 p.m. against the Maryland Terrapins, and follow us as we head to Rutgers next weekend and the Big Ten Tournament, which begins May 5!
Thanks for checking in and always, Go Blue!
#5 Jess
