Thursday, May 21, 2009

The week between


Congratulations, Golden Bears. You've just won the Tallahassee Regional. Now what are you going to do? Just like the commercial says, they're going to Disney World, or at least Orlando, Florida. The Bears headed south to Orlando to spend the week between the Regional and the Super Regional. Or most of the team.
Cal Berkeley's finals officially started the day the team left for Regionals. It's been an interesting week as they players tried to balance the student and athlete aspects of their lives. Most of the team, with the help of assistant coach Tammy Lohmann, managed to make arrangements with the professors about taking finals in advance, or allowing someone to proctor the exams on the road. For five of the players, however, exams could not be rescheduled or scheduled remotely. Val Arioto, Shannon Houston, Jamia and Elia Reed, and Frani Echavarria flew back to Berkeley to take their finals on campus, leaving Sunday night after the game and returning to Orlando on Wednesday.
Finals for all of them are now officially over, and the relief was very noticeable on the weary students.
The squad did an indoor practice Wednesday night, overtaking an indoor batting cage in Orlando to try to get back into the swing of things. They spent about two hours running drills and taking swings, trying to get back into softball and also trying to adjust to playing night games.
What does Thursday, the final day in Orlando hold for the Bears? They're finally going to Disney World! (weather permitting). It looks dry right now and it looks like the trip will be on. Thursday night, the team leaves Orlando and will head on to Gainesville where the focus intensifies on the business at hand. Until then, its off to the Magic Kingdom for a well-deserved day of mental rest and fun.

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