We are the Dragons, the Mighty, Mighty Dragons!

After the first round of the Super Cup Tournament on Tuesday, October 27th, the lady dragons knew it was time to kick things up a notch. We practiced hard every chance that we got. 5:00am conditioning and afternoon practices were longer and seemed to be filled with more intensity. The girls knew that winning the Super Cup would not be easy.

Last year, the girls made it to the finals, under the leadership of Coach James Blay, who is now in the US, studying at Mercer University. They were defeated by a Catholic school in Monrovia called Don Bosco. Many of Don Bosco's girls play for the national team, so needless to say, they are really good. After winning our first game of the tournament, we were told that we would be facing this team again for the finals. The girls were nervous, but very motivated and determined to win.

On Thursday night, we had a poster making party with the girls. We made paper hats, posters, wrist bands, and even confetti (we already had the confidence that we were going to win, and would need to throw confetti when we celebrated after the game). This was a really fun time, and a chance for us to just hang out with the girls. We even ended the night with a surprise skype session with their former coach, James Blay. The girls LOVED this, and so did James. It was great motivation and encouragement before their big game.

On Friday, the school day started with the inauguration of the newly elected student council president and his officials. The excitement only increased when the assembly was over, and the girls got dressed in their uniforms. It is amazing how much this game united the student body. It reminded me of my four years in high school, and being involved in competitive sports.

We loaded in the vans and headed for the sports commission in Monrovia, where we took on Don Bosco. We got started on a rough start, although we knew we were capable of winning this game. The girls seemed nervous, and it began to show on the court. Our offense seemed off, and we were not making simple lay-ups. We called a time-out pretty early in the first half and got re-focussed. The girls fought hard for two 15 min halves, and were constantly trailing Don bosco by a close margin. In the last 2 minutes of the game, the lady dragons took the lead, and the crowed stood to their feet. The cheering was so intense that I could barely hear myself as I was talking to the players. When the buzzer went off, the game was tied 36 to 36. The clock was set for a 5 minute over time. The girls were exhausted, but they knew the prize was worth 5 more minutes. The lady dragons led the over time, and won the game 43-39!! WE WON THE SUPER CUP!!! The fans rushed the court, and we cheered and hugged. This was a huge mile marker in Ricks history. The Ricks students, teachers, staff, administrators sang the school ode with so loud and with so much pride. I felt so proud to be a part of this school family!

The week could not have ended on a more positive note. We say that Ricks Institute is the best school in Liberia, and now the rumor is that the girls basketball team is the best the country! What a great feeling for the girls, their coaches, and the entire school!! I can't wait to take the girls to receive the trophy next week!!