Traveling With The Terps: Day Two
12/11/2003 7:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Dec. 11, 2003
COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Terps awoke to blustery and cold conditions on day two in Columbus. The rain that stormed down yesterday was long gone - along with the 50 degree temperatures that temporarily graced the area. This morning's temperature rested in the mid-30s with wind chills somewhere in the twenties.
The team was treated to a wonderful (and warm) breakfast to start the day at 8:30 a.m. The Westin Hotel provided pancakes, French toast, bacon, fruit and all sorts of other wonderful goodies. After breakfast, the team returned to their rooms to get ready for the long day ahead.
At 9:30 a.m., head coach Sasho Cirovski, Seth Stammler, Sumed Ibrahim and Abe Thompson made their way to Crew Stadium for interviews with ESPN's Amy Rosenfeld and Ellen Weinberg. The material they collected will be used for the telecast of tomorrow's College Cup semifinal game against St. John's at 5 p.m. on ESPN2.
The rest of the team made their way to the stadium around 11 a.m. for the squad's walk-through of the facilities. They were able to look through the locker rooms and venture out on the field. There, they saw the NCAA and College Cup logos being painted on the field-a quite interesting process in the ever-blowing wind.
Following the walk-through, the team moved on to Ohio State University for a press conference and afternoon practice. Cirovski, Stammler and Jason Garey met with members of the media during the press conference while the rest of the team warmed up in Ohio State's indoor facilities in the Woody Hayes Center. Stammler, not surprisingly, was called on to answer more questions about returning home and playing in front of a local crowd. He continually talks about how excited he is to see and play in front of all his friends and family.
After the press conference, the team ventured outside for a brief practice on Ohio State's fields. They cut it short, ending around 1:30 p.m., because of the dropping temperatures and decreasing wind chill. Back at the hotel, the Terps dug into a lunch of sandwiches, fruit and cookies to refuel after a long morning and part of the afternoon of activity.
Mandatory study time was set from 2:30-4:30 p.m. Team members were expected to either be in the room set aside for study hall or in their hotel rooms with the televisions off and the books open. Though they're hard to concentrate on, finals are quickly approaching and the Terps have to be prepared.
At 6:15 p.m., the team left for the College Cup Salute Banquet to meet up with the other three teams-Indiana, Santa Clara and St. John's. In addition to the fantastic pasta dinner, the teams were introduced, coaches and players spoke and various College Cup organizers made speeches. The highlight of the evening was perhaps the receipt of 2003 College Cup scarves-a gift that will truly come in handy during this bitter cold weekend of soccer.
The Terps returned to the Westin Hotel around 10 p.m. and were set free (though firmly encouraged to get back to hitting the books). There's a big day tomorrow and these Terps need their rest. Goodnight from Columbus on day two of Traveling With The Terps.
