Back Home, But Not For Long

After five days in Chicago (along with four plane rides in which I was in the last row for three of the four, and in the next to last row for the other one) for the Maggie Dixon Classic hosted by DePaul University, the NSU Lady Demons basketball team is back home. Despite a valiant rally--NSU trailed by 20 with nine minutes left--the Lady Demons came up five points short against Morgan State in the Consolation game. What's even more impressive is that NSU spotted the Lady Bears the game's first 15 points. The Lady Demons could have started packing early, but they didn't--and that says a lot. Head Coach Jennifer Graf's focus--as she stated in her post-game radio interview--is to get her team playing with that same heart, effort, and intensity, the entire game. Their next chance to do just that will be Tuesday, in the friendly confines of Prather Coliseum. The women and men will host Centenary College in a doubleheader. The Lady Demons' game will tip at 5:45. After that, their next three games will be on the road (Alcorn State, Texas Tech and Jackson State). So Tuesday is the time to show your support for both the Lady Demons and Demons. Of course, if for some reason you just can't make it, be sure and tune in to 100.7 KZBL-FM, and nsudemons.com, for all the action. See you on the radio!

Tony Taglavore

Voice of the Lady Demons

It's Windy (Surprise) and Cold in the Windy City!

Greetings from Chicago, where yes, it is windy, but it's also downright cold!

The Lady Demons have been here since Wednesday for the Maggie Dixon Classic, hosted by DePaul University. Friday, NSU played what Head Coach Jennifer Graf called their best game of the year (and I agree), despite losing to the Blue Demons 93-56. Had the Lady Demons not given it everything they had against a much-taller DePaul squad (6'3, 6'2, 6'2) it could have been a repeat of the Texas game. But NSU put together some nice runs, had some open looks, and deserve an "A" for effort. This afternoon (Saturday), the Lady Demons will take on Morgan State for third-place in the tournament. You can listen to all the action beginning with the pre-game show at 4:45 on 100.7 KZBL in Natchitoches, and around the world at nsudemons.com.

I interrupt this post to ask a question. How did I end up on the last row from Alexandria to Houston, AND Houston to Chicago? I thought Coach Bob Austin (who coordinates travel) was my friend???

For some players, like Ronikka Drake and Jordan James, a trip to Chicago is nothing new. They are both from the Midwest. Ronikka has been our tour guide, and has a large group of family and friends here cheering her on. How large? When we pulled up to the arena Friday, there was a bus out front. One of the other teams? No, it was full of Ronikka's family and friends! Jordan's parents are here as well, and let me just say this--her mom can cook! Meredith Graf's family flew up from Natchitoches to spend the Thanksgiving holiday watching Meredith play. It's nice to see the players receiving so much support. It must pay off--Ronikka led the team with 13 points Friday!

For others, this is their first trip to Chi-town. It was neat to see the look on their faces as they starred at the skyscrapers and squealed over the shopping possibilities. For those of us who have been blessed to travel over the years, we are tempted to take for granted just how fortunate we are.

Speaking of Thanksgiving, it's tough for everyone to be away from home. However, Head Coach Jennifer Graf and her staff do all they can to make it as pleasant as possible. She came through big time, hooking us up with Thanksgiving Dinner at Ditka's in downtown Chicago, named for legendary (at least in this town) Bears head coach Mike Ditka, now an ESPN analyst. With 21 in our group, we had a room and waitstaff all to ourselves, complete with a HD, big-screen TV showing the Cowboys-Saints game! It was neat to walk around and look at all of the Ditka memorabilia.

It's been a nice trip (despite the single digit wind chills). Just one more thing, and it will have been a really nice trip. Let's get a win Saturday and come back home! See you on the radio!

Tony Taglavore

Voice of the Lady Demons

Savona checks in from Cancun

NSU freshman soccer player Ashlee Savona checks in from the Gold Cup in Cancun, Mexico

Hey Demon fans!

I heard about the loss today (NSU's 3-0 loss to Southeastern Louisiana) and I am really sorry that I wasn't able to help the team get to the tournament this year. I can't imagine how Sara (Sadler) and (Heather) Burt are taking it right now but please give them my regards and congratulations on a great senior season.

The last time I updated you was the day before our first game against Mexico. If you didn't hear already, we lost that game 7-2. Walking out into that full stadium of 9,980 Mexican fans and the 20 Guyanese fans (our families) was an un-real experience. You could tell that they were a very strong team tactically, and they kept possession of the ball extremely well.

We put up a fight against them and did what we could with a week of practice and playing together in this new system of 4-2-3-1 and we managed to score 2 goals out of it. Our coaches were extremely proud on how well we did and considering we were not expected to score a goal, they couldn't be happier.

The next day after the game, we watched the game at the hotel and it showed our constant mistakes that we would need to fix before playing Canada. That day we didn't have a practice, however we were able to go shopping for a couple hours and go into downtown Cancun as well.

Today (Sunday) was the day I have been looking forward to since I joined this program, the day we play Canada. I was extremely nervous to be honest but I was also full of excitement. Walking on to the field with a much smaller crowed, I looked at the Canadian team on the other side of the field and I saw players I used to look up to when I was a kid It was a huge shock to me when I realized I was going to play against them.

Lining up to appreciate the national anthems, it was hard not to sing the Canadian anthem but then again, it was a great honor to hear it in a FIFA Qualifing game.

As the game started, I quickly lost the nerves I had coming into the game and played my heart out. In the end we lost 8-0 but I was extremely happy after the game. Not very many people get to have this chance to play at the highest level possible and I have learned so much from it. We are preparing for our next game on Tuesday against Trinidad. I will update you soon.

Ashlee

Greetings from The Gold Cup in Cancun

This is a day-by-day blog from Ashlee Savona, NSU freshman soccer player, who is currently participating in the Gold Cup as part of the Guyana National Soccer Team

I'm sorry I haven't been able to post as frequently as I've liked to, but the internet here is limited and I need to use that time to do my school work online.

The past few days have been hectic but we have found some time to relax. We lost to a boys U17 team 12-7 in florida the day before we left but it was a much needed game to pick up the intensity and speed of our game.

We arrived in Cancun on the 26th and our coaches gave us the day off to go to the beach right outside of our hotel. We have had a practice everyday in the morning following with an ice bath back at the hotel and a pool recovery session as well. We have also played a game of beach soccer as well.

It is really hot down here but it is expected to start raining throughout the upcoming week. We went to walk around the stadium this morning and it is a really well kept field, almost as good as ours, but the stadium itself isn't that big.

We are going to watch the U.S. play Haiti tonight (Thursday) and we are all really excited to get a feel of the environment. Our first game is tomorrow (Friday) at 7. I want to wish the girls (NSU) good luck and I know they can bring home two wins this weekend and make the tournament.

I will update you soon.

"Paint the Town Purple" and "Wear Purple Days" issued by City of Natchitoches Proclamation

On Monday, October 25th, at the Natchitoches City Council Meeting, Mayor Wayne McCullen and the Natchitoches City Council issued a proclamation declaring Tuesday “Paint the Town Purple Day” and Friday and Saturday “Wear Purple Day” in honor of the Homecoming Festivities at Northwestern State University. Pictured are Natchitoches City Council member Sylvia Morrow and NSU Associate Director of Athletics Dr. William Broussard.