It was a hectic week of school and soccer yet again (which is why this is a mid week post about last week). As I usually start out telling you every week, I went to my normal classes, did my normal research, and went to my normal classes. However, we had our first game of the conference season on Wednesday which made my week even more jam packed.

We unfortunately lost on the road at Longwood 1-0 on a night where nothing seemed to be going right for us. However, we are tough, united, and ready to regroup and kill it on the road again next week at Gardner Webb. That game day on Wednesday was a long day as we arrived back on campus in the early morning hours on Thursday, and I had a Quantitative Analysis test that morning. It may also be important to note that it took me a full 3 hour lab period to complete it. It was a struggle to say the least, especially since sleep time was limited. I was relieved when it was over, and I worked really diligently the rest of my day so that I could try to squeeze in a little nap before practice that night. (it was definitely worth it)

However, I think my lack of sleep was making me susceptible to the nasty cold that was going around campus. I had a pretty nasty cough, but nothing could get me down because I decided to take an impromptu weekend trip to Maryland to visit my amazing boyfriend who goes to the University of Maryland for our anniversary. When Friday rolled around I couldn't believe how quickly the week went. It was another busy day, and our practice was in the early afternoon right after my classes ended. To my delight our coach decided to let us have a fun team bonding event in the HPU arcade rather than practice in the rain. The games got pretty competitive, especially the at the ping pong, foosball, and pool tables. It was a perfect lead in to a fun weekend.


Our community service event that was going to follow practice was unfortunately cancelled due to rain, so I left ASAP for UMD! We had no game this past weekend, so it was a perfect time to take a day trip.  It was a blast, I got to watch my boyfriend play soccer, and more importantly just spend some quality time with him in the midst of both of our busy schedules. I spent no time on homework whatsoever, which put me behind a little bit this week, but the complete break from my hectic student athlete life was worth it. Sometimes days like that are needed in order to keep me motivated.

It was another fantastic week at HPU! Per usual... as I have said every week I had my mundane yet still great activities like classes, research and soccer practice, but there were a few twists this week. We had an oddly timed game on Thursday night (we rarely ever play on Thursday nights), but it was definitely an exciting one. We played USC Upstate in our last non-conference game of the year. It was a gorgeous night to play soccer under the lights at Vert Stadium, and we had a large crowd thanks to it being "Greek Week" on campus. It was definitely thrilling to have some fans other than our families... not that we don't appreciate our families, because they're amazing and we love all of them to death. Anyways, we won the game 2-0 to continue the best start in HPU Women's soccer program history which is cool. I can't wait to keep working hard with the team and getting better everyday to see where this year takes us. Last year was a epic ride to the NCAA tournament, and hopefully we can experience that again.

After the game I knocked out my physics test at 7:50 am the following Friday morning and eagerly finished out my classes before going to the HPU ropes course with the team. It was thrilling! I definitely have a fear of heights like many of my teammates, but we went on the high ropes course that ended with a zip-line nonetheless. We also went on the low ropes course to test our balance and communication skills. The scariest part though by far was climbing up, standing on, and then jumping off a modified telephone pole to hit a bell approximately 40 feet above the ground. Even though you are strapped in and held up by two ropes by your teammates, your mind just keeps telling you that throwing yourself off a pole 40 feet in the air is a bad idea. Not to mention the fact that the pole was extremely wobbly and difficult to stand on. I don't think I have ever shook from fear so much in my life. However, it was a great bonding experience with the team because there wasn't one person who wasn't uncomfortable at some point, yet we all still communicated and worked through our fears together.

After that I was pretty tired, so some of us went to dinner at the grill before going to get some dessert. That half baked warm cookie dough with ice cream and whipped cream on top definitely hit the spot. Luckily this weekend we got to spend some quality time at home at HPU for the first time in a while, which was much needed. I had time to do my homework after practice and relax a little, which was probably the thing I was the most excited about. Overall, it was a super exciting week for me. Not sure if I would jump off that pole again... I think it was a one time thing, but it was still an epic week in the life of an HPU Student athlete.

P.S.  Sorry I don't have any pictures of the ropes course. I didn't bring my phone with me, but if you go follow HPU Women's Soccer on Twitter or High Point University Women's Soccer on Facebook you can get a look at all the fun things we did!

Last week was another fast and furious week! I went from morning weights to classes, research, and then practice per usual. When Friday finally rolled around I was relieved. I finished my first Physical Chemistry exam on Friday morning, and I was ready to leave our weekend soccer games. (Saying that I slept well on the bus ride would be bit of an understatement)

Our first game on Friday was at Appalachian State. It was an absolutely beautiful afternoon to play soccer as it was sunny and warm with slight mountain breeze. Despite the weather, our team ended up suffering our first loss of the season. It was disappointing, but we were eager to bounce back as we traveled on another lengthy bus ride to Nashville, Tennessee to face Vanderbilt on Sunday.

Saturday, after the 8 hour bus ride, we arrived in Nashville on another delightful day. We practiced at a teammates old high school field, and then, to end the day on a high note we went to another teammates aunt's house for dinner. We had pasta, salad, and the most beautiful display of desserts I have ever seen. A lot of families and friends made the trip to Nashville as well, so we got to hangout with everyone for a few hours. It was a blast! On top of that, we also got to celebrate two of my teammates Birthdays in the same weekend! Our team really is one big family, and I am so blessed to have each and every one of them in my life. Even a drive back to the hotel that night to get into the freezing cold pool to refresh our legs couldn't dampen the mood. The weather in Nashville that night was gorgeous fall weather, but it was a bit chilly for a nightly swim. It was a cool 60 degrees with a breeze, and we were in the pool... (One of the small sacrifices we make in order to play our best)

To finish off the jam packed weekend, we got to sleep in on Sunday morning before breakfast at 9 am. After breakfast and some down time we left for our game versus Vanderbilt. We were ready for the challenge, and the team really came together and performed well. The game was a hard fought up and back battle by both teams, and the game ended a in a 1-1 tie after two overtimes. It was a definitely a great way to end a week full of school, soccer, and family. The hectic week and long bus ride back to HPU was, yet again, definitely worth it.

This past week started off delicious as I took my first visit of the year to 1924 Prime on Monday when I returned from Maryland. I went with a few of my teammates, and I really enjoyed the large piece of filet I ordered. I almost changed my mind to order the salmon, which I have heard is delicious too, but I couldn't convince myself to pass up a piece of steak. My dad grew up on a farm in Maryland, so his family used to butcher a cow every year, and eat steak all the time. Thus, I grew up eating a lot of meat as well. I could never be a vegetarian, so it was definitely a great way to start off the week.

The rest of my week was pretty mundane. Per a usual week, I went to classes all morning, did my chemistry research in the afternoon, and went to practice at night. Nothing too exciting, until our game day on Friday. Luckily the thunder and lightening held off so that we could play. We had a home game against Stetson, and we came away with a 2-0 win. Becca scored 2 goals in the final 10 minutes of the game! This meant our team had officially achieved the best start in program history with a record of 3-0-2. Yay!!

On Saturday I had a relaxing laundry and homework morning. Then I went to practice, and the first home men's soccer game of the season against VMI. They won an exciting game 1-0 after a lightening delay. The delay was long, but luckily there were some adorable puppies to play with in the mean time.  ------>

We finished off the week with another win against North Florida on Sunday to continue our best start in program history improving to 4-0-2!

I have lots of work for school this week, and my first official test of the semester... Eek Physical Chemistry is scary! I hope it all goes well so that I will be in a good mood when we travel to play App State and Vanderbilt next weekend. Wish me, and our team good luck! Thanks for reading!

Well as this is my first blog post ever, I figured I would introduce myself. My name is Jenny Marshall and I am currently a Chemistry Major and a Marketing Minor at High Point University. I am also a Junior on the HPU Women's Soccer team. I am originally from Frederick, MD where I have three amazing sisters and two loving parents. I have an awesome, crazy, and hectic life that I wouldn't trade for anything. I have a lot to say about my life as a student athlete, and I can't wait to share with you what I am up to for these next few weeks.

Let's start off by talking about my first week of school last week, which actually turned out to be only one day of class, because I left for soccer the next morning and missed the following two school days. That left me a little stressed and with a lot of catching up to do this week, but that's not what I am going to focus on because the rest of my week was amazing.

Our soccer team took a trip to Maryland! My home state! I may be a bit biased, but I think Maryland is the best state. (Maryland obviously has the best state flag.) I visited the Baltimore inner harbor with my teammates where we had an unconventional scavenger hunt, and then learned how to eat maryland crabs. As an equally important note, I was able to introduce my teammates to the flavor of Old Bay, which is the most heavenly spice ever invented that only native Marylanders know about.

We played two schools while in Maryland, Towson University and Mount Saint Mary's University. We tied Towson's team 2-2, which I was a tad bitter about since one of my best childhood soccer friends from home plays for them. Regardless, it was nice to see her after the game along with the entirety of my immediate family. We then went on to beat Mount Saint Mary's 2-1 at a field I had practiced on since I was 5 years old.

These two games were the first times in 3 years my whole family has been able to come see me play, and they were accompanied by lots of old friends and my old high school coach who was a great mentor to me. Topping off the amazing weekend, the entire team came to my house for a pasta dinner. I was able to see my dogs and just enjoy being home for the first time in over a month, and for the last time till Christmas. It was definitely worth rolling back onto campus at midnight only to wake up for my 7:50 am Physics class on Monday morning.