St. John's University Athletics
Volleyball Postcard: Greetings From Vietnam Part VIII
5/18/2007 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
- St. John's Volleyball Travels To Vietnam
Hello Everyone,
Today is Friday, May 18, 2007 and it is our ninth day in Vietnam. I woke up at 8:30 a.m. this morning and then my roomy Toya [Blunt] and I went to eat breakfast in our pajamas. It was great. Just so you know that is the latest I???ve woken up since we???ve been here.
It was a big day for our team because we were going to play Japan in the semifinals at 6 p.m. On big days like these I need to get my rest; therefore I slept, woke up for lunch and took baby naps throughout the rest of the day. Toya and some of my other teammates took advantage of the free time to go shopping and buy souvenirs for their friends. I wish I could have gone on the adventure with the girls.
At 4:30 p.m., Toya, Coach Jo-Jo [Persico-Smith], Coach Mario [Treibit], Coach Li [Chen] and I piled into the elevator to meet the rest of the team in the lobby. When I exited the elevator, everyone was waiting and getting pumped up on their iPods. Usually I only see Dana [DeMayo] dancing while she listens to her iPod, but today I saw couple others who were zoned into their music as well. Then I put on my iPod and listened to my ???Vietnam Baby??? playlist.
When we got to the gym, the stands were filled and it was very loud. We watched the end of the first game between the national team of Vietnam and Kazakhstan. Before I knew it we were warming up for our big game. I was really excited and nervous to play Japan because I knew it would be a tough match. Six-o-clock finally came, the crowd started cheering, we made sure we did our prayer before the game and then it was time to take the court. We started off strong, taking the first game from Japan and then we won the second and third to give us a 3-0 win. The third game was the closest and hardest game because Japan was not ready to give up. But our blocking was great today and it made defense a lot easier for me. Good job guys!
After the game, we signed autographs and even took a couple pictures with some Vietnamese fans. Tonight for dinner, we ate with the Kazakhstan team. Valeria [Kovaleva] was our translator for the night. We ate pizza, French fries and Vietnamese food. It was nice to eat with the Kazakhstan team because it gave us another chance to interact with the players and coaches. Plus, at most of our meals it is just us sitting together. So it was nice to have some new faces at the dinner table.
Tomorrow will be another big day for us. We will be playing in the championship match against the national team of Vietnam. My roommate is passed out next to me so I think I???m going to join her. Good night!
Oh, wait! One more thing, I would just like to say that I love this trip! It is so much fun. I love who I am with and meeting new people. This has been such a great experience for me. Not only playing volleyball at another level but also learning about Vietnam and its culture.
Last thing, Mom, this is your E-mail for tonight, alright? No worries, I am in good hands. I love you and I will be seeing you soon!
Lena Yee #7
