The Lady Cardinals have Landed in Portugal

While we finish our pre-season here in the Washington, DC area, De and Kelly are doing theirs in one of the most intriguing corners of Europe: Portugal.  They have accompanied the Lady Cardinals soccer team on their transatlantic voyage.  The team started the journey in Lisbon and are now enjoying Porto.  I've never been to Portugal, but I know Brazil pretty well.  The Portuguese traditions and language are warm and beautiful.  I can't wait to see the "old country" for myself.  Check out De's posts on the CUA Athletic Department website.  By the looks of things, the trip is fantastic cultural exchange, training exercise, and soccer vacation all wrapped up into one.  Will De take the time to appreciate the colonial architecture?  I guess we'll see when we get back.

Best wishes to the CUA team on their journey.

Below, I cross post De's most recent entry:

March 5 – Game Time!Today we started the day off with breakfast at the hotel and then headed to downtown Porto. We took a nice walk to the Metro and experienced public transportation.  Then, when we arrived at our destination we had the perfect view of the Porto riverfront from very high up so we could see all of the city.  Once we arrived we walked down a long cobble stone road with many hills until we arrived at a wine cellar for a tour and tasting. We went to the Calem Cellars and saw how all of the different Port wines were aged over time in the different barrels. The tour was very cool and interesting because they had many different wines, the barrels seemed like they went on forever and many of them were 60 thousand liters! We all had a great time. After the tour at Calem we walked over one of Porto's famous bridges and in the middle of it was an awesome view. When we crossed the bridge we took a tramcar that brought us up the side of a mountain and was like nothing any of us had experienced before. Once we got to the top it brought us to the city center area with many shops and restaurants, which was very busy. We were allowed free time to walk around and shop which we all took full advantage of and enjoyed thoroughly. Then we took a long walk to a traditional Portuguese cafe which had very good food that we all loved! This time the waiter spoke English so that was a great help because we actually knew what we were ordering. The food was delicious and it was the second most popular cafe in Porto so it was a good experience.  Next, we took a long walk back to the hotel to take a rest because we had a long night ahead of us with our first game. After we rested up we had dinner at the hotel again which was pretty good! Then we headed to our first game against a club called Salgeiros and none of us knew what to expect at all because they play in the Portuguese women's league Second Division, so we were all a little nervous. Within the first three minutes of the game we realized we could keep up with them and it would be a good game. They scored an early header goal off of a corner and we went into halftime down 1-0.  The second half was much better for us as we controlled the ball and had several scoring chances.  Annie scored an awesome goal with her left foot from about 30 yards out that was perfectly placed which made the game 1-1. That was the final score and when we shook hands at the end we began to attempt to communicate to the Portuguese players and started to have a great time with them. It was an experience like none of us have ever had before and every time we both understood a word everyone would cheer. Then we ended the game in an agreement to hang out with them at night and it was a great time!!! BOM DIA!

Happy Birthday to Nap!

The lady we call "Nap" is celebrating her birthday today.  Happy birthday captain!  We hope you enjoy your day.

Happy New Year! (and some good news from a LUA player)

Hi team -

I've taken a much needed break from blogging and soccer organizing.  It will still be relatively slow, but it's time to come back from the wilderness and reconnect.

Let's start with a great story.  Remember Andy from Little Urban Achievers, who made a comeback from cancer to play in the Fall 2010? D2 championship game against us?  Read this old post.  Well, we didn't take a victory from that match, but the prelude was memorable.  We raised a fair amount of money for cancer awareness, something we have some experience doing. 

Anyway, I got a great update from Andy.  He's living a charmed life in London now, attending the London School of Economics and seeing some EPL games.  Here's the chain:

Tim -

As discussed via g-chat today, I am interested to hear more about your teammate, Andy, and how he is doing.  I would love to pass on any good information to my team, who will surely be interested to know what he's up to.  I plan to do another post on the blog about it.  Andy's a great fellow.

Happy Holidays!

Best,

Peter w/ Goleros

Andy	12/26/11 (10 days ago)
to Tim, me

Hi Peter- I hope you are well and your soccer team did well this year. 

This year I decided to make some bold moves.  After my health issues I decided life was too short not to take some chances and see what was out there.  So I applied for Masters programs in London- and somehow got into the London School of Economics!  It took some courage to accept, as I’ve been living and working on Cap. Hill for close to 10 years and most of my good friends are in DC, but I did it.  In September I packed up my life and moved to London, which is absolutely the right decision.  I’m studying International Relations at the LSE and working part time for think tanks in London.  It is an absolutely fantastic city where I meet interesting people all the time.  I do a lot of traveling around the UK and Europe thanks to the cheap airline tickets, so I’m seeing a good bit of the world while I read newspapers about the demise of the euro (a good time to exchange dollars for euros, and pounds actually).  I also got a Membership for the Tottenham Hotspurs.  They have been my team for some time now, and Ive seen about half a dozen matches at White Hart Lane as well as gone to watch Clint Dempsey at Fulham a few times.  I have a lot more matches line up this coming year- which is causing me to go broke.  But I’ll gladly eat PB&J sandwiches for dinner if I can watch a few EPL matches each month!! haha. Going back to school after being out of academics for a decade has been a bit of a challenge, but I really do relish challenges in my life now.  the big challenges are never that big once you jump in- and the rewards are always worth the effort.  The school has been fantastic for me- I am learning a ton about the world not only in the classroom but from my classmates.  My program has one of the most diverse student bodies in the world, so every day I learn something new about a culture or how someone else perceives the world.  I’ve also continued to raise funds for cancer research.  Over the past several years we’ve raised over $5,000 for cancer research and your team played a major role in these efforts.  This year I’m doing a fundraiser in London where I hope to raise around 1200 pounds to donate to cancer research in the UK.  So that is a bit about what I have been doing.  Some major-major changes, but all for the good.  I’m loving life and living it to its fullest.  If you or anyone is making any trips to London, please let me know.  There will be a good pint waiting for them, on me, and some soccer tickets if we can make that happen too. 

Happy Holidays.  I hope all is well with you.  And thanks so much for checking in.  It is very kind of you.

All my best,

Andy

   

Andy -

What a great update.  I couldn't respond earlier for fear of giving it short shrift.  It's fantastic to hear that you've thrown off the shackles and gone after what interested you.  My dad always gave me those speeches, and whenever I followed them, I always felt right about it.  But of course enrolling in the London School of Economics is not exactly like backpacking the world or becoming a ski bum.  What great experiences.  Are you taking Ryan Air or Easy jet or another carrier on these short jaunts?  I am an aviation analyst, I care about such things.

I wish I could visit White Hart Lane with you.  I eased into the EPL last season, but this season I dove in full speed.  I watch the games on the weekend.  My favorite show is the Premier League Review, produced by the league and played here on Fox Soccer Channel.  I have never fully committed to a team.  I won't do Manchester United or Man City or Arsenal for a number of reasons.  I've always been drawn to Liverpool and I would say I follow them most closely.  But of course I've had my eye on Fulham for years given the McBride/Dempsey connection.  They're finally on a tear this season.  And it's funny you mention Tottenham.  I never considered following them closely before, I'm not sure why.  But watching them this season has been a pleasure.  They're an extremely talented side.  I enjoy watching Modric play, and Adebayor and others are thrilling.  One question for you though - why is Gio Dos Santos riding pine?  It seems he's a pretty electric player - he's not even worth a shot sometimes?

It's also nice to hear about your cancer awareness efforts.  The Goleros have continued in that vein, recently raising a modest amount for our teammate, who did a Breast Cancer walk in support of a family member.

All the best,

Peter w/ Goleros

From: Tim
Sent: Sunday, December 18, 2011 9:56 PM
To: Andy 
Subject: Fwd: news about Andy

hey Andy!

The email below is from Peter, the captain of the soccer team Goleros that we played in the Div 2 championship game last spring.  It was Peter and Goleros that helped raise some money for cancer research during our championship match you may remember.  Anyways - Peter wanted to send around an update to his team, per his email below.  Can you get in touch with him?

Meanwhile - what is your plan for when you are in DC after xmas?

Tim Daly

It's Alumni Week

That's trouble

I'm sure you saw Ally's inspirational post earlier this week.  We DID visualize the game, and guess what, we did quite well.

Ally's post reminded me to get in touch with some other people in the Goleros family to see what's up.  If you're inspired yourself, reach out to an alumni of the Orange and White, and let us know what our people are doing.





From Suzie, current teammate on the IR:

Hey Peter!
I miss you guys! And I miss playing soccer! My foot is ok, I am still on crutches but I go to the doctorThursday and I'm hoping he'll let me get into a walking boot! Baby steps, I guess.
Unfortunately I am unable to come to the game, but good luck and I hope you kick ass!I'm so proud of how well you guys are doing!
Suzie

From Jackie Y, who I believe you may possibly remember if you think really hard about it.  Let's see, she was that girl from Jersey who had a sense of humor as I recall.

Hey Peter!!!
long time no talkie.. How are the kiddies? and the rest of the family?Things are going well here in the dirty Jerse... it seems like AGES ago that I lived down in DC and played with the Goleros.... I read this article and think, "HOLY crap CUA has infiltrated Goleros!!!" which is not a bad thing... but that's soo great that the girls have joined the team :) makes me sooo very happy :)
I am hard at work at school... tons of classes and I am almost done.. almost.. May 2013 I will have my BS/MS in Foods and Nutrition with a Sports and Wellness Certificate! :) Then I  apply to an internship and go off to that for a year and then sit for the RD exam and HOPEFULLY become a Dietitian! 
I play on a bunch of teams up here.. I play On sundays with a women's league in Randolph, NJ.. then Sunday nights I play on a Co-ed team run by my boyfriend and we play in morristown and our team name is Ramrod (but we will be changing that next season! hahaha) and Finally I play on a women's Indoor league on monday nights in a dome in Montclair and I think our name is Orange Crush! hahahahahahah
NONE of these teams have the soul or spirit like the Goleros did... They come MIGHTY close.. but none of them shine a light on what I miss down there :(
I love that article and picture... thanks so much for posting it! PLEASE tell everyone that I love them and miss them!love,Jackie

From Ashley, who is living in Miami now:

 PETER!!!Good!! How are you? I miss soccer so much. There isn't any teams that I have found down here :( I love Miami though! So warm and we live right on the beach!!! Lifestyle is pretty chill. I am working at a Physical therapy office and working on my PTA (physical therapy assistant). So exciting! How is the family and the new baby? Hows the team? Hows work? 
Talk to you soon, send the team my love! :)

-- Ashley

It's great to hear from our friends!

On the mend

Our depth has really been tested this season.  Just last week, we put our third player on Injured Reserve.  Like Suzie and Carlos, Anna is out until spring.  She has undergone surgery by Dr. John Klimkeiwicz of Georgetown, for all intents and purposes, the team orthopedist.  The doc repaired severely torn cartilage, which caused pain and lack of mobility for more than 2 years.

This was much-needed scheduled surgery, and wow, we owe Anna a debt of gratitude for intentionally planning it around the regular season.  She wanted to give us a boost into the playoffs and help the team.  What a teammate!  That's way beyond the call of duty.

And what a player too!  Let's get back to this torn cartilage thing.  One would think that tearing the cartilage from the bone would render a player useless on the field.  Not with this player.  She's been solid this season, scoring 5 goals and contributing one assist.  Those are pretty big numbers for an 8-game season - actually 7 games because one game was a forfeit win.  We have so much confidence in her as an outlet on the pitch.  She has a good work rate as a striker and makes the people around her better.  She's also the most successful female offensive player in club history, scoring more points than any other woman.  I would have to look it up, but I would estimate that she's contributed about 25 goals (not to mention saving about that many as keeper).  By way of comparison, Jozy Altidore has probably scored about 15 goals since moving to various clubs in Europe 3 years ago - and he has the opportunity to play up to 30 games a year versus our 16.

Anna, on behalf of your teammates, we can't wait for you to fully recuperate and come back!  Get well.

Jackie J Leads the CUA Women to the Conference Championship Game

Two important Jackies

You may have noticed that we've been without our trusty defender, Jackie J, all season long.  That's because she has made an inspiring comeback to rejoin the Catholic University women's soccer team this season.  Due in no small part to her steady play in central defense, the Lady Cardinals are playing for the Landmark Conference championship today at 1:00 p.m. EST.  They face the Scranton University Royals.  The game will be webcast here.

Behind Senior Captain Caitlin Brett and a strong coaching staff that includes not one, but two Goleros standouts, the Lady Cards have rolled through the 2011 season with a 12-6 record, with just one loss in conference play.  They are enjoying their sixth post-season appearance in the last seven years.  If they can manage a win today, they will earn a berth in the NCAA Division III tournament, which begins later this month and concludes in San Antonio, Texas.

I wish I could be there for the game.  I am sure the Cards have a good game plan that will give them an edge.  De and Kelly are both assistant coaches for the defense, and you shouldn't be surprised that defensive shape has been key to victory all season long.  Just as your captains' envision our defense on Goleros, the Lady Cards are enjoying success from the back by distributing well and playing an active role in the offense.  Jackie J is, according to sources, steady as ever, making fierce tackles and displaying that quality first touch that we have all seen with our own eyes.  I'm just a little bit proud that Jackie helped to re-launch her college career on our squad.

So, CUA Women, the Goleros are behind you.  Given the number of alumni that are playing, and have played for the Goleros, CUA is in our DNA.

Go Cards!

Franchise Player

Elyse in action

This is a big week for Elyse.  She's worked hard to raise a ton of money for Breast Cancer Awareness.  In support of her mom, who has been out to support us on occasion, Elyse is headed off this weekend to complete the New York Avon Walk for the Cure.  You may have seen my earlier post on this topic.

We'll be there in spirit to support you, E.  You're a rock solid teammate and a great person.

You're also a true #10.  There is hardly a goal scoring sequence that you don't help orchestrate.  I am not the only one who recognizes the skills.  Your captains are grateful that CCSL is not a free market enterprise because we shudder to think what we would have to pay to secure your services on the open market.  Your stock is trading high, too, having just scored the winning goal in our match last weekend.

Best of luck!

Silver Fox to go on the IR!

He's in such good shape, I bet you thought you'd never see this image.  But it happened.  The Silver Fox suffered his first significant soccer injury in years, spraining his right ankle in the Tuesday night pick-up game that he and George play.  George texted me that night - when he told me the news and I heard the two of them laughing like hyenas I thought it was a joke.  So I went to the ER myself.  It wasn't a joke.  But we had about as good of a time as you can have in an ER at midnight.  Carlos told the people in the waiting room that it was a skiing injury.  I played the role of (pretend) angry manager when the doctor came around.  Darn it, I need this central defender back on the field next week.  Doc, make it happen!  Give him a shot!  The PA who reviewed the X-rays was a little alarmed and tried to tell Carlos that it would take longer and that he shouldn't be forced to play soon.  Better to take his time to recover properly.

Carlos saw the Goleros team Orthopedist, Dr. Klimkeiwicz of Georgetown, today.  Yes, we have a team Ortho.  He did an operation on me, and he has treated Carlos and a few other players as well.  As we get older, we may have to take him away from his practice focused on Georgetown athletes and devote him full time to our players.


The diagnosis is severe ankle sprain, 6 weeks.  Get well buddy!  You're in great condition.  You will make a full recovery.  And yes, take your time!

A league of their own

You can count on them at happy hour too

Nap remarked to me last week that our women have been awesome this season.  She was bragging about "girl power."  Sensing that she was on to something, I looked a little deeper into this matter.  Turns out it's true.  

Ever since the character of this team fundamentally changed in 2004, when we picked up some recruits like Jackie Y and Kristin who gave us a lasting foundation, we’ve been blessed with a solid female roster.  If you play with us, it's no secret: the women often carry the team.

This season is a case in point.  Even with new faces and roles, we’re finding our game on defense again, relying upon our women to play centrally and on the wing, to stop the major attacking threats and to provide good service to the midfield.  We've got versatility, toughness, and some surprising speed in those players.  (It’s been great to have De back in the mix, hasn’t it?)  In the midfield and at forward, our female side is productive to say the least.  We have women who demonstrate skill and sharp decision-making with the ball at their feet.  When it comes to that last pass or shot, our women account for 19 of the 52 points tallied thus far this season, or roughly 37%.  I did the numbers on paper last week, and if memory serves that's at least 5 goals.  I am virtually certain that these stats are the highest in our division, and I bet it’s tops across all divisions in the league, including Premier, where rosters are packed with former female players from top Division 1 programs.

Deadly in the box

Over the years, we've had some great stories to tell: Anna's hat trick a year ago, making her the highest scoring woman in club history; Carolyn's left-footed golazo last season at Trinity; Nap's ability to steer the ball to safety in traffic.

The Lady Goleros are...wait for it...in a league of their own.

Congratulations, papa!

The skills are in the genes

Great news in the Goleros family.

We have a new addition.  Ermy and his wife Margot - one of our tried and true fans and a lovely person - had a baby boy.  Little Wesley was born on October 5th, weighing in at 8 lbs 20 inches!  All is well, I'm told.

Congratulations to our teammate.  That is a game changer my friend!

Happy Birthday, Captain!

Whether it be stepping into goal when we need him, offering inspirational words in our team huddles, or capturing our great moments in photos, this team wouldn't be what it is today without our fearless leader.  Please join in wishing him a very Happy Birthday.  Thanks for all you do for the Goleros family, Peter!

Road warriors

Did you know that members of our team recently drove nearly the entire length of I-95 in a single day?  By my estimates, they drove about 1,500 of the 1,900 total miles of highway stretching from the Miami area to Maine.

The teammates were Carlos and Ally.  Carlos woke up early Sunday morning and drove home from Miami with his family.  Ally woke up and drove to New England with Tom.  I am told they stopped for the night in Worcester, Mass, before continuing on to Portland the next day.  So unfortunately Ally did stray from the I-95 corridor for a period of time.

I work in transportation so this stuff is noteworthy to me.  Was it worth this very random post?  You decide.

Read more about I-95 here:

http://www.i95coalition.org/i95/Home/I95CorridorFacts/tabid/173/Default.aspx

Support a teammate and donate

Many of us have been affected by cancer in some way.  Elyse is raising money for the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer.


Visit Elyse's fundraising page here...and make a donation to support a teammate!

Dear Family and Friends,             I am excited to tell you on October 14-16 my mother and I will be participating in the Avon Walk to help fight breast cancer.  Breast cancer is a disease that has touched everyone’s life in some way.  Likewise, this is personal to me since my own mother was diagnosed with breast cancer.  I am proud to say that she is a 12 year survivor! She feels that her life was saved through awareness and early diagnosis. This will be the second time my mother is doing this walk.  Eleven years ago when I stood at the finish line and watched her complete the 60 mile walk wearing a pink survivor shirt, I never felt prouder and wanted more than anything to complete another walk by her side.  I am doing this walk to celebrate my mom, continue to raise awareness, and help defeat this horrible that disease that threatens my family, my future family, as well as all of our loved ones.              A quote that my mom shared with me since a young age was, “You’re not a failure if you fall down, you’re a failure if you don’t get back up.”  My mom didn’t only teach me this quote, but she showed me its true meaning.              Please join me in this important fundraiser by donating whatever you can to support my walk to continue awareness, prevention, and early diagnosis. You can make a donation online by simply clicking on the link at the bottom of this message. Whatever you can give will help! I truly appreciate your support and will keep you posted on my progress. With love and thanks, Elyse

*Avon image courtesy of Avon Walk for the Cure (no copyright information on the website).

Getting Hitched

It's a big week for our teammate, Cat, who is getting married to her longtime boyfriend, Mike, this weekend.

We wish Cat the very best this weekend and in this next phase of her life.  Mike is a lucky guy, we know that for sure.  His bride is such a dynamic, intelligent, and fun person.  She's also a tough cookie on the pitch.  We like that...a lot.


Cat, we can't wait to hear the stories about the event and the honeymoon (travel-related stories only please).

Enjoy!  We'll be thinking of you when we get that first win of the season.

She was born during pre-season

If you know how to use a computer, by now you've heard about George's daughter.  Yes, it was unthinkable years ago when George was a wild, crazy, untamed bachelor.  But if you didn't notice, those days are over.  Any day now he's going to give up that BMW and start driving a Volvo wagon.

Congratulations to George.  This beautiful girl, named Nora, was born Saturday night.  Look at that proud papa!  Best wishes to Megan as well.

Goleros sign new player

Please welcome Diana, a.k.a. "Nap" to our team.  You know her from summer league, where, in recent weeks, she's stood with us to withstand quite a scoring barrage by our opponents.

She's got skills and we're lucky to have her.  It was an easy decision, really.  She's cool and we're going to need some reinforcements as Tracy moves to the reserve roster and fall schedules look hectic for a lot of our ladies.

Nap is the latest Lady Cardinal to join our team.  In fact, you may have seen her name come up in this previous post.  Nap was recognized by Catholic for her high school honors in New Jersey.  Yes, in addition to being the latest Lady Cardinal, she also continues a regrettable tradition of Jersey girls on our team, dating all the way back to Jackie.  I'm kidding of course. 

Welcome Nap!

Special recognition

Congratulations to Elyse for being recognized as one of the best high school players in Northern New Jersey over the last decade. She ain't in high school anymore. She's a college graduate and Lady Golero. She's one of many players making a difference.

It's an interesting write-up. Read it here.

Photo credit to CUA Athletics. No copyright information available on the website.

Making it happen

You may have noticed a little something about Nate. He's playing really well no matter where he plays on the field. He's doing a little bit of work on all three lines and running like the dickens.

Versus DC Divided, he broke the mold and opened up scoring with a nice aggressive run all the way to goal. He kept folks on their toes the rest of the game to make sure we didn't give it away.

Versus DC Thunder this week, he was excellent. He helped us to get organized and managed to transition the ball from defense to offense nicely.

Keep it up, Nate!

Out of Office

On April 9th, I'm headed to France for two weeks. It's going to be awesome. We've got an apartment in the center of Paris, not too far from Champs Elysee. We're going to enjoy the city and do a few day trips. We've got one overnight planned to the Normandy Landing Beaches. You'll be getting way too many updates from me on facebook.

Since it will be relatively slow going, I may post a few times on the blog. And I'm going to try to bring some boots so I can join in some pick up if I can find it.

Ally's your point of contact for everything. She's got this thing. You're going to be sorry though. She's kind of a disciplinarian.

Good luck, team!

Jon & Missy

This is a big week for Jon & Missy, two of my favorite people.

On Saturday, they are getting married in the area.

After that, they're off to the Caribbean. This, apparently, is some kind of excuse for Jon not making our April 18th game (?).

I'm sure you would agree that Jon & Missy are great together. Personally, I couldn't be happier that they are getting married. I wish them the best.

Missy is our #1 Fan. She's at the games. She shows up to the happy hours. She talks Jon down when he gets a little too worked up.

I'm worried about two things though. First, let's hope she doesn't change her mind in the next few days because Jon is a seriously lucky man. Second, let's hope when they're married that we still see get to see Missy. It's pretty common for the wives to drop out of the soccer scene once they secure the union; they're interest in watching a group of adults struggle to kick a ball dissipates. I've seen it a million times. And I speak from experience. While I have all the support in the world at home for my soccer endeavors, I do get quite a few teasing remarks thrown my way when the Goleros texting network goes into high gear on Sundays.

Anyway, feel free to use this space to commemorate the occasion for our friends. Congratulations to them both!