State Tournament

It’s game day! State championship game day! We woke up to sleet and snowflakes, but not even the frigid temps could dampen our spirits. 

We’ve been knocking on the door of the state championship for four years. It happened today in the most exciting, best quality of  play I’ve seen in a long time. After more than two hours on the pitch, two extra time periods and a PK shoot out, NUSA was crowned the D1 Tennessee State Champions! 

And the fam drove in to see it! 

Keagan had the biggest cheering section of the team!

These boys have been playing together for years hopping from club to club and coach to coach. They had one goal, win State, and last May they agreed to move together to NUSA for the best chance to do just that. 

It paid off! 

It was one of the coldest games I have sat through, but it wasn’t until we got in the car that I even noticed my toes were cold. Two overtime periods and a PK shoot out will do that!

Winning state and holding the championship cup has been Keagan’s dream for several years. I thought for sure the dream was over when in the first overtime period, Germantown scored two goals in about five minutes, and then proceeded to run down the sideline taunting both players and parents yelling, “It’s over! It’s done! It’s too easy.”  But our boys persevered and came back to score two goals of their own in the next overtime period, and you better believe we countered with, “It’s too easy!” When Bennett scored the last pk, the sidelines went wild, and we celebrated with, “It’s done!”

We relived the entire game at the house, on the couch, while watching football. We might do it again tomorrow.

Congratulations Keagan! Now let’s win Regionals! 

Weekend of Soccer

Spring soccer means ID camps. We have a list of schools we are hoping to tour and a list of camps Keagan hopes to attend. With two of our showcase tournaments canceled, we feel the pressure to get in front of as many coaches as possible. This weekend marked the first, of hopefully many stops. 

Keagan and I flew to Charlotte for an ID camp. We took the car rental to our first stop, Lenoir Rhyne. Keagan likes this school because it has all of the programs he’s interested in studying, has a soccer program, and 30% of the students are athletes.  The town is small, but it’s very close to the city. These are all pluses in his school selection criteria, but this ID camp is not until April.

Sunday he attended the Wingate ID camp. This town was even smaller than the one we visited on Saturday, but the campus was a little nicer.

He had a great showing until his knee cap popped out of place. We got a chance to spend the rest of camp in the sports medicine facility. Clearly this is not a great start to our big spring plans, but we are trying to roll with it and not give up hope. We have two weeks until the next planned camp.

Pressure

Keagan is attending a half day ID camp today at Carson Newman. 

While at camp, he received an email from a coach at another school that wrote to say he planned to attend next Sunday’s state league game. This is a big game; the winner takes the first place standing and is more highly seeded in October’s state tournament. Keagan feels lots of pressure to keep his knee healthy, get enough rest, and perform. When he read the coach’s email, he texted our group chat today, “even more pressure on that game.” 

Evan responded. 

My Friday Night Lights

This is my Friday Night Lights on a Wednesday. I have been looking forward to this game all day! So much so that I texted this to Keagan today during my lunch break. 

The start of the game was rough. Like 30 minutes rough. I felt like we needed another round of prayers because God didn’t seem to hear the first one led by #0.

We won 5-2, though, and earned another three points to climb one more place in the standings. Keagan delivered an assist tonight that scored our third goal! 

Weekend on the Road

I love weekends on the road when you see and do so much, you totally forget about work and the drudgery of the daily routine. Friday night took us to East Tennessee. We were up bright and early Saturday for a college tour of a small Christian school with a great D2 soccer program. 

Keagan loved its proximity to Knox, the assortment of outdoor activities, and the small town feel. The athletic facilities weren’t bad either. 

Saturday afternoon we met up with Evan and Makinley in Knoxville for a late lunch. I love Market Square and downtown Knoxville. 

Right before I snapped this pic, Evan told me Mak loves his mustache (which I know is not true). Who could? 

We drove the UTK campus because Keagan had not been yet, and we both got a tour of the frat house. Keagan was in a bit of a shock with the size of the campus after touring a much, much smaller school. 

Then it was game time. Keagan had a state league game just a mile from campus. Evan came to cheer on his little bro. We racked up another win and climbed in the standings. 

Saturday night we hit the road again for Chattanooga. We woke up Sunday morning ready for state league game #2. 

It ended in a very disappointing 2-2 tie. 

Chasin’ a Dream

We are in Louisville today for another soccer camp  and another chance for Keagan to chase his dream. The soccer circle gets smaller every year, and today it was proven when we ran into former teammates from the 2015 CSC team and the 2017 TUSC team. We also ran into friends from our high school team three hours from home. 

Today I’m cheering for #10!

There is No Off Season

There is no off season for soccer. Summer training is in full swing! 

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=KN4fcRHFW5g&feature=youtu.be

Summer Vacation

Our trip to Peru was postponed again. The rental car crisis means flying anywhere stateside is almost impossible because you can’t rent a car. This is our summer vacation instead  - a collection of soccer camps. 

This weekend we are in Alabama for our first ID camp. It was supposed to rain all day today, so I packed a raincoat and umbrella. It was 87 degrees with clear skies. I needed sunscreen instead of rain gear. Now I have a sunburn on my face and a heat rash on both legs. I could heat an entire room with the heat radiating from my body right now.

But I got to watch my favorite 16 year old play soccer. Keagan has been asleep since 7:15. He had a shower, ate a burger, cooled off with ice cream and hit the hotel bed ready for sleep.  The heat and training took its toil on him too. Number 118 will be back on the pitch tomorrow. It’s supposed to storm all day. I will not be upset at all if God sends us lightning at our lunch break, so we can head home a little earlier than planned. 

This Never Gets Old

This weekend Keagan and I were north of Atlanta for a  soccer showcase. Luckily, there were no round abouts and no one way street mishaps this go around. Just three hard fought soccer games in our once upon a time “home” state. No matter where we are, watching him play never gets old.

We won the second game, but didn’t fare so well in the other two. We saw no college coaches in attendance, and we played on the back half of baseball fields while the soccer fields “rested”. Our hotel bathroom had mold on the walls, and our free breakfast did not meet Keagan’s expectations. But this! This never gets old. 

Adventures With Mom

My soccer weekends with Keagan will be some of my favorite memories in the years to come. From learning you don’t turn right on red in North Carolina to learning how to maneuver the round abouts in Indiana to evasive driving techniques in Tennessee when being “followed” by sketch cars with one headlight, you never know what you might encounter next when you are with us. His commentary keeps me laughing. I haven’t laughed this hard since our last trip.

We played indoors today at the absolute best facility. It was seriously the most modern and inclusive facility I have ever experienced. We played a local team from Indiana and came away with a 5-2 win. 

After a quick lunch and naps, we headed downtown to tour Butler. It was just meh. 

We stopped for dessert at Cake Bake, where the cake slices are small but cost as if you bought an entire cake. It didn’t matter the cost, it was so good! But Keagan has definitive opinions about small portion sizes. Just ask him. 

Next we tried to find a place for dinner. We inadvertently drove through the bus lane, we took the block a couple of times to find a coveted parking spot, and went the wrong way on a one way. We finally arrived at a local spot in the Broad Ripple neighborhood. We made quite the entrance when I tripped over the curb and debated for a good minute about whether we should wait inside or outside to be seated. All the while, Keagan muttered, “Adventures with Mom never cease to amaze.You can always count on something happening.” 

After dinner he suggested we spice up our Saturday night at “Books and Brews.” The sign outside said where “people drink, read, and converse.” Keagan said that sounded like the worst possible combo, so we settled for the hotel room and football. 

And his eye? Well it looks worse than it actually feels. Tomorrow we play Michigan. Let’s cross our fingers for another win.

Indy Showcase

We are in Indianapolis for a soccer showcase tournament. I’m wrapped up on the sidelines like I’m in the Arctic Circle. I bought new boots anticipating cold and I’m so glad that I did. At today’s game, I was sitting on the sidelines with every part of me under multiple layers. Keagan came out of bounds for a ball and said, “Mom? Is that you? Do you have enough layers?”

In the second half Keagan was elbowed in the eye. He was pulled from the game and had to undergo concussion protocol. We are hoping the eye remains open tonight and doesn’t swell shut so he can play tomorrow. On a positive note, we won today’s game 1-0 against Louisville, and Keagan was awarded the game winning assist. 

After both of us completed school work, we went to dinner in downtown Carmel with friends. This city is just beautiful! I could do without the hundreds of round abouts, but I love the architecture and Christmas lights. The downtown looks like something from a Hallmark Christmas movie. 

Tomorrow we play indoors. I can’t wait to see how we perform against the local team, and I can’t wait to watch the game without layers of blankets in my lap. 

It Was a Long Wait

Keagan has waited years for this weekend’s game against his old club. Two years ago he was playing up and didn’t get to play any 04 teams. Last year his OCD in his left knee had just been diagnosed, and he was on six weeks of rest. He has waited all of this season to play this game. This game is all that has mattered to him since tryouts in June. 

We won 2-0. And for the cherry on top, Keagan was awarded the assist for both goals!