Scrimmage, Lift

2 hours of nearly savage scrimmaging with Georgetown players and coaches plus Doe dudes, first college vs club and then jumbled. Super fun. Afterwards had a quick bite with Aman, then hit the gym for my last eccentric lift of the cycle:

Press in clean: 5 at 45; 3 at 65lb
Muscle clean: 3 at 95, 115, 135lb
2 full cleans to 1 power clean and jerk: 5 at 175lb
Eccentric back squat: 5x3 at 195lb at 5:0:0
SLDL: 3x10 per leg
Ab wheel roll-outs: 3x15 from the knees
25 incline situps

Coaching

3 games at Brodown plus an intra-squad scrimmage to 7 in the last round during which I played in hiking boots. Super fun.

PT, Scrimmage, Summer League

1 hour of PT
~3mi biking

Scandal/Grit/Doe scrimmage vs Swing Vote
10 points played (2 O, 8 D)
2/2 on O, 3/8 on D
1 A, 1 G, 1 D, 3 T

5/8 throws (1 flick huck tailed OB, 2 throws to space in front of cutters who slowed up and allowed the defender to get a run-through block)

Advanced League vs Kerrigan & Mikey & Bubbles &c.: won 15-11 in probably the best game we've had from a team vibe perspective. I turfed one flick but also picked up 2 blocks and did good work in the zone offense.

Scrimmage

Picked up with some Doe dudes and league teammates against Bang!

DC Tryout, Alumni Scrimmage

4 hour combined tryout with Truck and Doe. Hadn't played in six full weeks, felt real rusty and had several drops. Physically felt fine, was able to move the disc and do some good things, play close if not stellar defense. Was glad for the chance to get those reps in before heading to beach nationals next weekend.

Had a great time at the first annual Justice alumni scrimmage, too. Suited up for the alumni, caught a few swilly throws for scores and only had two turns that I can remember. Overall a fun full day of frisbee before heading to the DC United game.

Coaching, Shuttles

1 hour practice followed by a scrimmage against local club players. Then, did:

8x(6x25yd) on the 1:30 all reps under 0:30

Commentating, Coaching

Did the color with Greg in the booth at the Breeze game. It's not me on the field, or even on the sideline, but it's a way to be involved and I enjoyed doing it. Good game, good crowd, fun atmosphere, and some pretty delicious BBQ.

Rushed over to Georgetown afterwards to find the guys down 0-4 against the Black Cans squad. Rocky start, but we were able to get it together a bit to at least score most of our offensive points. Came close to some pressure blocks as well, but in general did not match up well against a much smarter group of players. Lots of little things to work on, but only one more week until the Series.

Lift, John Doe Scrimmage

Snatch to 155lb
Power clean and jerk to 185lb

Three games to seven vs Black Cans

DC Breeze Scrimmage

vs Medicine Men

Halftime Showcase

Played 7 on 7 savage at the halftime of the Washington Prodigy game, women's full-contact football at the same home stadium we have. My team "lost" 3-4.

Later I crushed a game of Settlers, foam rolled with the PVC pipe, pounded water and hit the hay.

Breeze Scrimmage

15-13 vs Towson

Practice

3 hours of 7 on 7 outdoors, mostly scrimmage in a strong wind. Ended with a short workout:

Stair workout, 3x20 box jumps
15 pushups, 25yd sprint
20 situps, 25yd sprint
0:30 pushups (30), 0:30 situps (28)
1:00 pushups (28), 1:00 situps (48)
0:30 squats (22), 0:30 bicycles
1:00 squats (42), 20yds tire flips

Bench press: 8 at 130, 6 at 140, 6 at 140, 5 at 140, 1 at 160

Tryouts

Rolled out early this morning to try out for the New Jersey Hammerheads, one of the AUDL expansion teams. After a dynamic warmup, I did some athletic testing: vertical jump of 25", 40yd in 4.88 and 100m in 13.81 against the wind. Nothing impressive.

After the athletic testing we moved into scrimmages, and I got some decent reps in at handler. We finished the day with some tabatas:
8x(0:20 on, 0:20 off) mountain climbers
6x(0:20 on, 0:20 off) burpees: 9, 8, 7, 7, 7, 7
4x(0:20 on, 0:20 off) split jumps: 22, 20, 18, 18

London Scrimmages

17-15 GB Open
17-10 France

Long Day

After a solid few days of rest, headed back to BID for a night with friends and then went with them down to the Mercer fields for a scrimmage against the DEVYL open YCC team. With only two subs, the first two games to 7 were a little rough for me and the other "club" players (mostly Machiners), but we handled business and squeaked out wins against the top U-19 players in the area. For the third game to 7, we combined with the U-16 team and played 4/3 lines, giving everybody some good experience (but the U-19ers won that scrim).

After a WaWa lunch break and some re-warmup, Blueprint held practice with 14 players plus me. I helped run a handler drill and then we played a series of games to 3, which were also pretty tough. Hot, humid, one sub for both teams, it ended up being a long day for the few of us that were there for both the DEVYL scrim and BP practice. We finished up with a couple sprints and then Albert, James and I went back to Frenchy's house. We hopped in his pool for a much-needed cooldown before nomming on delicious home-grilled burgers and side dishes courtesy of the French family. Overall a very tiring, but also fulfilling day.

Pike vs PoNY

Woken up at 5am by the thunderstorm, had lucid dreams until 8am. Watched a few highlight videos, showered, had a pear and two slices of bread (all I had in the dorm).

At the fields around 10:20am, throwing around and cleating up, then warming up and getting ready for my first tryout experience. We played three or four scrimmages as X/Y teams, then one Pike vs PoNY scrimmage (lost 9-15). I made a couple poor throwing choices--one, in particular, where I tried to rush a huck after boasting that I have hucks (stupid)--and a few execution errors. Mostly, though, the difficulties I ran into came from not knowing the team very well. I did feel strong as a handler behind a zone, and I definitely made some strong deep cuts (and even caught a few huck goals, one after a good box-out in the big game). I didn't always know what spaces were open, but I cut hard and often got open, after finding open space. I put in a lot of effort when I was on the field, but my tendonities came back by the third scrimmage and limited my playing. I definitely favored offense after my knee started to hurt, but still got in some D points. I think my downfield D was pretty good, and I definitely stayed tight when I was on handlers, but this is one area where I'd like to put some extra focus--playing shut-down defense on club players is a skill that will directly translate to my play with Machine. So I'm learning. I was somewhat hazy on whether I should be taking away the io or oi break at any given time, and thereby let off a few around backhands--but in general kept a low, active mark. I didn't feel 100% but I felt good working hard.

For the next two weeks, it's rest and rehab again--except for the alumni game.

Scrimmage vs CHS

Alright, so I've taken a hiatus from training for the sake of Thanksgiving. I cooked Thanksgiving dinner myself, including turkey, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, and green bean casserole. Delicious, if I do say so myself--I'm chowing down on leftovers as I type. Given the lack of updates, it's probably due time that I wrote about the scrimmage against Columbia HS.

First of all, playing one of the best high school programs in the country is a unique opportunity for a rising college team, and I think this connection will prove extremely valuable for both teams. Especially so because of Columbia's consistency: they have a strong talent pool, a dedicated coach, a great support structure, and blah blah blah. They're good, we're getting better. The one thing I think is weird as hell is the extreme variance of my teammates' reactions. Some of them lost to CHS playing in the NJHSU, so about half of us realize how legit this juniors team is. The rest of the team is new or nearly new to the sport, and thinks they're probably going to be chumps--after all, aren't we in high school? Perhaps I'm imagining that second reaction, but the sidelines buzz with that sort of sentiment--we're older, we should be winning.

But we don't. Our matchup at Club Sectionals was intense and competitive, everything a good game should be (except we lost..haha). Our most recent scrimmage was not terribly different, but for a few things. I hesitate to mention them--it wouldn't do to make excuses--but the truth is, I was disappointed in my team's performance. Our focus was to be zone, something both teams need work on. Therefore, we determined the test would be two games to 11. In the first, both teams were required to come down zone on the pull. The second game was to be a real game, albeit shortened.

Neither game went well. I saw a lot of mental mistakes from my teammates, and I know I forced too many throws. The throws I know I have, but could not complete due to the weather--my hands were cold, and I didn't adjust, so I suppose that's one big mental mistake as well. I think I played well overall, however, and I am fairly confident that my defense was strong. I did get handblocked by Zander, though...that never feels good. I got skied twice in the same point by taller opponents, the first a hammer that sailed past my head and the second on a high pop to somebody that should have been covered and wasn't my responsibility, but more and more I realize my deep defense needs some serious work. I did sky somebody on D at another point, though...he was taller than I, too.

We lost both games 6-11. It did not leave a bad taste in my mouth, though, which is only surprising because of how I try to nurture a competitive nature. I was far from content, however, and will take these memories with me to the weights and the track this winter. I believe I have mentioned already, though, how much respect I have for those guys. I agree with Ariel's assessment of our team: a lot of potential, a lot of work to be done. I am confident that we can succeed, and I am happy with what I've seen already this season. Nunez told us that we are the strongest he has seen Rutgers to ever be in the fall, and I know we are further ahead from where we were last year, but I am hungry. I feel like a lot has been left up in the air and we need to nail it down, get everybody to put in a lot more work--in the gym, on the field, and in their mental game especially--before we can even approach the kind of success I see us capable of. That's really what impresses me about CHS: they're doing it. I can see them peaking this spring.

It makes me want to hit them weights. I just wish I had the support of my teammates doing it with me.