Soccer: Year 4

Soccer season started on Wednesday with a 1-0 win over Madonna University of Michigan. This is my fourth year as the unofficial photographer for the girls team. In August of 2006, my first semester teaching here, on my second day of class, four freshman girls in the front row, with big smiles on their faces, asked if I was going to be at their game. I asked, "What game?" and "Where?" and they explained that they were on the soccer team and they were playing their first game on the soccer field on that afternoon.

So, I went to their game and brought my camera, because I always take my camera to sports events, thanks to Scott's volleyball and basketball adventures in high school. The girls played very well and won their game easily, 6-0. One of my students was the goalie, another was a midfielder who hustled like crazy and ended up with grass stains all over her uniform because she was diving and sliding so much. Another girl ran all over the place along the front line stealing balls all the time. And the fourth girl in my class scored three of the goals in the game! I was very impressed and ended up with a few good pictures, which I posted on facebook for the girls to see. Soon I was getting emails from parents and grandparents thanking me for posting the photos.

The girls from my class are seniors now. One of them has graduated early. I'll be sad and glad to see them graduate. Several other athletes have been in my classes since that first year, and I've become quite involved in the sports program and am serving as a board member of their sports boosters association. Today I'm helping out in the hospitality room for a volleyball tournament. One of the volleyball players is in my class this semester, so maybe I'll start going to volleyball games along with soccer, basketball, track, softball, and baseball.