Follow along as the Concordia women's basketball team hits the road for the 2009 NCAA Tournament. The Cobbers are competing in their 16th NCAA Tournament and will play their regional games at UW-Stevens Point.

FRIDAY, MARCH 6, 2009

9:15 a.m.

Game day! I know all 62 teams that are left in the tournament awake today feeling confident and ready to take on the world. There will be a sense of hope, longing to know what is going to happen and a whole lot of nerves.

I make it down to the complimentary breakfast, which is one of the best things about the hotel, and eat breakfast with Barry the bus drives. On the way in, I meet up with Larry Knutson and his wife who got into town last night. Larry's excited for the game and has already done a lot of the pregame work he usually does 2-3 hours before a game. The two arre also excited because they just bought a new puppy and have it with them on the trip. I let them know I have passes for them for the game and then head off to eat breakfast.

After finishing breakfast I head out to the bus to get ready for the shootaround practice. All the players are already on the bus and seem to be in a good mood which surprises me since usually on game day the joking and happy nature is replaced with a more serious tone as game time approaches.

We get to the gym after the 5-minute bus ride and are once again met by Patti Tomlinson. She takes us into the arena where we will have to wait for about 20 minutes until the gym is open at 10 a.m. for the actual practice to begin. The players head downstairs to the locker room to get changed. The Cobbers are given one of the best locker room locations as it is right under the gym. The other two visiting team have locker rooms closer to the men's gym which is a good 3-5 minute walk from the women's gym where the games will be held.

The players come up from the locker room and don't need to stretch. Shootaround practice is usually light with the emphasis on getting loose with lost of shots and then also going over the other team's out of bounds plays and halfcourt tendencies.

10:00 a.m.

The team is finally let into the gym and allowed to start practice. The NCAA region rep Brad Duckworth is there to meet us. He is already dressed in a shirt and tie and will be there for the duration. His night won't finish up until the last press conference after the UW-Stevens Point/Maryville (Mo.) game. That should be some time around 10 p.m. It will be 12 straight hours at the gym.

The Cobbers start the shootaround by just taking shots at each basket. They switch ends after five minutes. At one point Jenna Freudenberg hits five straight 3-point attempts. It could be a good omen for the game. The first thought that comes into my head is that it would be nice to see her throw down another 34-point game like she did against St. Ben's. Sara Sorbo is also knocking down shots from outside the arc. At one point she comes over to talk with the assistant coaches who are sitting on the team's bench (at the shootaround practice the gym is set up exactly how it will be for the game - bleachers pulled out, benches set up and scorers table in place). As she walks backwards with the ball she calmly nails a shot from 10-feet behind the arc. Good to see they are getting comfortable with the baskets.

I walk over and talk with the three coaches about superstitions. It is brought up that Jessica will have a new outfit for the game. It is a tradition she started the last time they got into the NCAA Tournament. Seems it is good luck in the playoffs if she gets a new outfit before each game. It's a tough superstition on the pocketbook!

The team then heads off to work on out of bounds plays as I sit and talk with Brad about Concordia University who plays in the same league as his team does. He says it will be an interesting match-up tonight and should be close.

From there I head off to get my revenge on Cassidy in P-I-G. I start off hot and have her down P-I to nothing. I can feel a victory. However, Cassidy starts to heat up and it is quickly tied at P-I. After we both make shots and then counter with makes to keep the game going, she walks over to the NCAA logo on the court which is situated about 12 feet from the basket on the right sideline. She steps up to the C-A in the logo and neatly hits the shot. I miss both my attempts and she wins again. She smiles and I let her know that it was nice to be knocked out on her trademark shot - as in hitting a shot from a place that has the first two letters in her name!

At one point during practice the team is going over a play that starts with a screen up high on the left side of the court. Jessica makes them run the play again so they can get it right with the timing coming off the screen. The play is executed correctly but then Sorbo cracks everyone up by coming off the screen and instead of dribbling to the basket, she picks up the ball - tucks it under her arm like a running back and runs it to the hoop. Even Brad cracks up with that one.

The shootaround practice finishes up with free throws. The team is separated into two groups and each group heads to a basket. One player shoots two free throws in a row and then the next player steps up while everyone else is down on the lane like they would be for a game. In the group that has sophomore Lindsey Schultz it is amazing how even in practice when someone misses she gets the rebound. She is a tireless worker who always seems to be around the ball when it goes up for a shot. She led the team in rebounding and was named to the MIAC-All Defensive Team. That tells you all you need to know about Lindsey - commitment and effort.

Practice is over and everyone heads off to the locker room and then to the bus.

11:45 p.m.

This is the first real down time that I have because I have posted all the MIAC awards from men's and women's basketball and men's hockey. I take Larry Knutson the passes for the game and take care of some answers to questions that he has about the game.

The team will leave for their pre-game meal at 1 p.m. From there they will have about 30 minutes back at the hotel before leaving for the game at 3 p.m. I head off for a swim to relieve some of the stress of having sat in a bus and then at a computer all day on Thursday. It will also help to pass the time before the game. Even Sports Information Directors get nervous!

1:12 p.m

The team is sitting at the pregame meal at Perkins. The first sign that the game is just around the corner occurred when we walked in the restaurant and saw Jenna Freudenberg's parents and grandmother sitting at a table. Everyone is excited to see them because they know that this means that they will soon be able to see their parents.

Jenna and Sara Sorbo once again steal the show at the meal. Sorbo talks about a crazy dream she had and sings while Jenna just cracks everyone up with jokes and stories about past Cobber basketball moments.

The coaching staff is sitting together talking about the pregame speech. The theme for the speech will be about being tough. They are trying to come up with a hook, or a concrete image, that the players can grasp on to and take with them in the game. Jessica wants to be able to draw something on the whiteboard in the pregame talk that will get her message across. At the exact same time Jessica and Rachel look ato each other and come up with the same idea of a flexed arm showing off a muscle. They are pumped up and feel good about the idea. After drawing a couple of arms with a muscle, Jessica then bounces up and down in her seat and has an even better idea. She turns and tells it to Rachel and then they high five because they have come up with a perfect way to get across their point. Jessica goes back to her notebook and starts to draw. She then asks me if I can pull up a picture of Popeye on my phone. I laugh and then google a picture of Popeye. She takes the phone and then reels off a very good likeness of Popeye with a can of spinach in his hand and an anchor tattoo on his forearm. I am impressed with Jessica's artistic ability. Jessica and Rachel then discuss the possibilty of going to K-Mart to pick up a corn cob pipe or some other prop to make the visualization process even more concrete. She finishes the whole scene by blurting out the famous Popeye line "I y'am, what I y'am." You could tell she was pumped up and ready to go. Such is the life of a coach - always coming up with new and different ideas to motivate the players and give them an edge in the game.

3:06 p.m.

The bus rolls up in front of Berg Gym. You can tell it is getting closer to game time. The players are no longer smiling, happy and care free. Those players have been replaced by ones that are quiet, contemplative and thinking about the game. Most of the players are listening to music as they get off the bus. Not a word is spoken as they pick up their bags, walk up the steps and head into the gym.

The tension is thick and the feeling of anxiousness before a game is at hand.

The 1.5 hours before a game is the absolute worst for a coach. There job is done and now it is up to the players. It is a period of time where they have nothing to do but just sit and think about all the situations and things that can go wrong. If there was ever a study done about when coaches develop ulcers, stomach trouble and other stress-related sicknesses - this would be the time.

After getting dressed, the players head to the men's gym to stretch and go through their initial warm-up phase. They will only be allowed inside the game gym with 35 minutes to go before the tipoff. Both teams are on the same court for the first time together and you can tell they are trying to size up the opposition. The clock is ticking down on one team's dream of a national championship.

5:01 p.m.

After player introductions and the national anthem the game finally starts. Shortly before the tipoff their is a media panic moment as no one at the radio station is answering the phone which means that no one will be able to start the broadcast once Larry starts his pregame show. He is frantically calling around to track down station managers and producers. I am trying to track down the number of the internet company we have been using to broadcast the hockey games so they would be able to broadcast the game over the internet in case Larry can't get a hold of anyone. This also would be a logistical nightmare for me because I would have to change the links on our website which means I would have to hook up my laptop. I try and get a wireless signal in the gym but it's no use. The signal isn't strong enough to hook up to our server to edit the web. Starting to panic a little. Luckily Larry gets a hold of someone and we will be all set. Another disaster averted that no one would ever know about.

After the moments of tension are over I meet the parents of former Cobber head coach Sara Cepek who have come to the game. They live close by and the Dad is a lifelong high school basketball coach so he rarely misses a chance to see a game where there is some connection. I end up finding out that he coached Concordia University's head coach at camp and is good friends with her. They also have other connections with the program - such is the world of coaching - you are never too far removed from anyone in the business.

5:20 p.m.

The game has started at a frenetic pace. Both teams are pushing the ball up the court and not taking very long to get off a shot. Unfortunately for the Cobbers, the Falcons are hitting from the outside. CC makes a couple of runs but then is reeled in each time by a timely 3-pointer, or two, from CU. The Falcons are also able to get the ball inside to their taller post players. It has all the signs of a game that will go down to the last minute or two.

Just before halftime one of the swing moments in the game occurs. The Cobbers force a turnover and have the ball out of bounds on their own baseline.  They have the ball, a four-point lead and seven seconds to get the ball up the court with an attempt take their biggest lead of the game. Unfortunately the moment completely unravels for CC. The Falcons steal the inbound pass on the wing, make a pass into the middle of the lane and one of their players hits a running jumper just before the buzzer goes off to cut the lead to two points at 38-36. You can hear the gasp from the Cobber fans in attendance.

6:36 p.m.

Game is over. Season is over.

It was a back-and-forth second half with many lead changes and ties. Like so many games it was the team that got shots to fall in the final two minutes of play that won. The Cobbers led by two at 67-65 with 3:29 but then went cold. They were down by one with 1:10 to play in a game that still could have gone either way. The Falcons made a free throw to push the lead to two and then the Cobbers ran a play to get an open 3-point look on the baseline. The play worked but the shot just rattled in and out. The Falcons then made their free throws down the stretch (4-for-4 in the final 31 seconds) and came away with the four-point win.

What followed over the course of the next 20 minutes is something I will never forget. After the handshakes and the team chat on the floor, the players then started to console each other. One-by-one they came over to lone senior Jenna Freudenberg and gave her a hug and tried to help ease the pain. I've been through that situation many, many time and it never gets any easier to watch. This one was even worse because of how much Jenna means to the team.

At any NCAA tournament game there is a mandatory postgame press conference. It starts 10 minutes after the players start to leave the floor. I meet up with Brad and we synch up our watches so that at 6:51 I will take Jessica and Jenna from the locker room to the press conference. The team is in the locker room and I sit on the stairs outside waiting. I can hear Jessica addressing the team and she is very emotional as she describes how proud she is of the team and how much they have to be proud of in themselves for all they have accomplished. The 10-minute time limit is up but I don't have the heart to go in and take Jessica and Jenna to the press conference. An NCAA rep comes to get them and I plead for a couple more minutes. Finally, they are able to compose themselves and head off down the long corridor to the press room.

The press conference starts with Jessica giving an opening statement about the game and then the reporters get to ask questions. As Jessica is talking, Jenna is having a hard time with the whole situation. She sticks her head inside her jersey and is really choked up. Jessica starts to describe all the great things about the team and how they are a "true" team and it is an honor to coach them game in and game out. She also starts to choke up.

I have been to many, many press conferences and this one is the hardest I have ever had to sit through. Even the reporters can sense the emotion and they are reluctant to press further on any questions. Anyone who believes that coaches and players don't put their whole lives and souls into a season should have witnessed that press conference. It is a testimony to the accomplishments of both Jessica and Jenna and shows exactly why they are so successful.

I pick up the very nice player participant medallions that each player receives for participating in the tournament and then walk with Jessica, Jenna and Larry Papenfuss back towards the locker room. I take the awards to the bus and then sit on the steps outside the gym and try and compose myself. I always hate the feeling of a season-ending loss and this one is even worse.

8:03 p.m.

The team is eating dinner at Noodle & Company. It is a meal that everyone has already preordered before the trip began (another task handled by Steph so the trip would run smoothly). There is not much talking as the team eats. They are still trying to process what has happened. Jenna barely eats and just sits and stares at her food.

From there the team would head next door for ice cream at the Cold Stone Creamery. This is when the heeling process officially starts. As the team forms groups of three to eat a container of get-better ice cream they slowly start to open up and laugh. There are four or five different groups that have all gotten a different type of specialty ice cream. Instead of buying my own bowl I decide to just sample all of the player's unique treats. Most of the team has chosen some sort of cookie dough or chocolate concoction. A group with Jenna Green gets a strawberry blonde ice cream that is really good. The award for most chocolate in one type of ice cream goes to the trio of Ashley Beseman, Brittany Jossart and Abby Evavold. The three have some sort of double chocolate, chocolate cake, chocolate fudge, chocolate chunk, chocolate fudge mixture. I take one bite and immediately get three cavities. It is so rich that I don't it would be possible to eat more that two bites without getting a stomach ache. The three dig in and less than 10 minutes later the tub is gone. It was an impressive display of ice cream eating. I didn't think there would be any way they would finish. Most groups weren't able to finish their tub, and if they did, it took them a lot longer. Ashley, Brittany and Abby not only finished it, but made it look like a little dixie cup!

The real kicker comes when Abby gets up and starts looking for more ice cream from another group that hadn't finished. Abby is one of the smallest players on the team but has shown an unbelievable ability to pack away the ice cream.

The team heads to the bus and they are in a much better place. They are starting to realize how much they have accomplished and how happy they are to still be with their teammates.

9:15 p.m.

After getting back to the hotel I scramble to post the box score and other important info on the web so that all the media can pick it up. I am also trying to track down the results from the first day of the MIAC Track and Field Championship Meet so I can put them on the web. In the meantime I can here the players go by my room on the way to the pool area. After not being able to swim or sit in the hot tub for the first two days of the trip they are going to take advantage of this opportunity.

I finally get all the necessary info posted and then call all the TV stations to make sure they received the score, stats for their 10 p.m. newscast. I then call Eric Peterson from the Forum to ask if he needs anything special. He wants to talk with Jesica so I head to the pool area to find her. She is talking with some parents next to the pool so I have to interrupt her conversation so she can carry on an interview with Eric on my phone. She is being interviewed as she sits by the hot tub watching her team goof around and return to normal - a very interesting scene.

The interview ends and Jessica heads back to her chair to be by her team. Rachel comes down and surprises everyone by getting in the hot tub with the team to enjoy the evening and relax. Even assistant coaches need to find a way to let go of the emotion of playing in the final game of the year.

10:45 p.m.

I have been busy posting track results, softball scores and tennis scores as well as writing the recap for the game. I decide a change of scenery is necessary and head to the restaurant and bar at the hotel. It will be nice to sit in front of big screen TV's, watch some other sports and try to deal with the entire day. At one point I come out of the restaurant area and am met by Jenna Freudenberg and Sara Sorbo. They want to know if I can get them some ketchup packets. It seems they want to play one final practical joke on Rachel. The plan is to create some noise outside Rachel's room and have Jenna slam into the wall. They will then talk very loudly about Jenna's condition with her stitches (she received nine stitches above her left eyes in the MIAC Championship game). From there they will go to their room, put on some band aids and the ketchup to make it look as if Jenna had reopener her cut. They will then head back to Rachel's room and knock on the door and tell her what happened and see how badly she will freak out.

I laugh and find the waitress to get the ketchup packets. I come back out and they are telling their plan to some of the parents that were around the area. They all think it will be hilarious and can't wait to hear the outcome.

I head back into the restaurant and am invited by some of the parents to sit with them and talk about the season, team and future. After only five minutes I can see why the players are all great people - their parents are the same way. I spend the next hour meeting and talking with Erica Nord's parents, Lindsey Schultz's parents, Jenna Green's parents and Maggie Bauernfeind's Dad. They have many questions about what goes on at Concordia and have great stories as well.

It is always nice to meet the people that put so much time and effort into making Concordia a wonderful place to be at. Most of the parents make it to every game - no matter if it is home or away. They all make sacrifices and all revel in the wins and feel the heartbreak in the losses. They are as much a part of the team as anyone that sits on the bench. It was a nice way to cap a day that started in promise but ended with closure.

It will be another short night as the bus is planning on pulling out of the hotel at 8 a.m. We are headed for home.