Puerto Rico

Well here's a video blog in Puerto Rico by Allyson Helleis, Casey Midlik, and Katie Swanson.  Sorry it's late....had some technical difficulties trying to post this, But better late than never!

Another Day in the Life

Hey all! I'm Allyson Helleis a junior on this team. We got back from Puerto Rico about a week ago, which was an amazing trip. Great cultural experience and I hope to go back some day. While we were there we went 1-1 and we played some pretty tough teams while we were down there!  Not to mention the beach and pool was so relaxing. I could fall asleep to the sound of the waves.  We were very fortunate with the amazing weather while we were there.

On a different note it's crazy how fast winter break went. I can't believe we start school in two days, I'm most definitely not ready. I enjoyed  every moment of lounging watching Netflix all day, along with  napping all day. This might make waking up for classes a little difficult but I'm ready for the challenge and  really want to get off to a great start this semester so I can start focusing on graduate school applications.

Overall the season has been going fairly well. We have had our bumps and bruises but we are starting to make great progress. We have a huge conference game tomorrow at capital university  and are very excited  to show them what  we have to offer!  Hope to see some of you guys at our games!

Allyson Helleis  #3

Home Sweet Home

Hey everyone!
I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and New Year! The lady Yellow Jackets are back from the beautiful land of Puerto Rico! I cannot describe in words how awesome it is there. The weather was warm, the trees were beautiful, the people were so friendly, and of course the beaches were amazing. While in Puerto Rico, we experienced a lot of their culture from the language, to the foods, to the customs, and to the land itself. We hiked through the rain forest, paddled in kayaks to the bio luminescent bay, shopped at local stores,  and toured Old San Juan, just to name a few of the things we did. Everywhere we went the people were welcoming. Being able to take a trip like this my senior year was very humbling and I had a blast being there with my teammates. Unfortunately, we had to come back to freezing cold weather, but there really is no place like home!
Have a great 2015 everyone!

Audrey
#24

When in Rome [AKA PR]

Hello friends. This is Alissa Munro coming to you from 39,000 ft in the air. We're on our way back from Puerto Rico haaaayyyy. This week has definitely been one for the books. We got there Saturday night and started off the trip walking around clueless trying to find a place to eat. Sunday we had practice at 9am and then had the rest of the day to just hang out at the beach. Monday we had our first game against Tufts...but we're not gonna talk about that. After that we had some more time to go shopping and just hanging out at the beach. Tuesday we had practice and then took a team trip to Old San Juan, the oldest city in the US. We got to see the old forts and walk around the city. The view from the top of the fort we went to was breathtaking. Wednesday we played again vs. Emmanuel and won by 1 in OT. It was so cool to play in a different country and coming out with a W was even better. We got to celebrate New Year's as a team which was also very cool. Thursday we went to a rain forest and got to swim in a waterfall --so now I get to cross that off my bucket list. That night we went kayaking in the Bioluminescent Bay, which may have been one of the coolest things I have every seen. The plankton in the water glowed if you stuck your hand or the paddle in. To get to the big lagoon we had to go through a little channel and me and Janaya only crashed a few times lolol. Now it's Friday and were on our way back home. It's definitely bittersweet. Leaving the warm weather and beach is hard to do when you know you're going back to the freezing cold. 

So there you have it...a basic rundown of our once in a lifetime trip.

That's all for now folks,

Alissa #13

Happy Friday world! It is I, Janaya Feaster and I am reporting to you from esj Tower hotel in Puerto Rico. Sadly, we are leaving in a few hours to come back to negative degree weather :( however, my time here in Puerto Rico was definitely enjoyable. Our hotel was right behind the beach so every morning after practice the team went straight to the ocean to lay out and swim. We also toured El Yunque Rainforest and that was pretty interesting to see the different scenery throughout the park. There was a waterfall in the middle of rainforest and some of the team jumped in to take a picture and stand il under the falls so that was a cool experience. The water was freezing however so we didn't stay in there for too long. My favorite take away from this trip was the bio luminescent bay. We kayaked in pairs through the dark bay and as we were paddling, we could see the plankton glowing in the water. Overall, it was a fun trip of learning about the Puerto Rican culture.

PUERTO RICO!!!!!

Hello all it's KEEKS sitting in the lobby in Puerto Rico awaiting the time to go home. I'm sad that it's time to leave I had such an amazing time and experience! Whoever came up with the idea to come to Puerto Rico you rock! I learned what a plankton was because of course I was thinking about the little person from spongebob lol. The bioluminescent bay was the coolest thing ever. I have never been kayaking so I was nervous of course but it was cool and it's safe to say that I'm a pro now. It kind of reminded me of avatar. Laying out on the beach was fun of course it was so pretty and the water felt amazing. It was cool to experience a different culture because the area around us was not what we were use to. Puerto Rico is such a beautiful place to visit but at the same everyone does not live a beautiful life it's kind of rough. Also being around people who hardly speak English you learn to adopt and ask questions that they understand, so they give you a answer that you understand. The rainforest was really cool and they have the prettiest waterfall I have ever seen. We learned there's no mosquito in the rainforest because the bats eat them also bamboo is grass and it grows 3 centimeters a day. I would come back here in a heart beat because the weather is absoultely gorgeous the sunshines constantly and the views are breathe taking! I also got to room with Erin Casey and Clara which was fun I shared a bed with Erin and we had great stories every morning of things each of us did while sleeping. I believe this trip made the team a lot closer and I'm excited to see what the new year has in store for us. Thanks to Bw and the coaching staff for allowing us to experience something that will probably only happen once in our lives

Happy new year!
Love shekiera aka keeks

Hello all, this is Gabrielle blogging as I wait to head to Puerto Rico airport to arrive back to good ole Ohio. I cannot believe it is already time to head home! As much as I do not want to leave I am very excited to be heading back home! I really enjoyed traveling to old San Juan and exploring the oldest city in the United States. The bio luminescence bay was also a great learning experience, especially since there are only five luminescence bays in the world. Puerto Rico even happens to have three luminescent bays out of he five. Those are just a few of the memorable time I got to experience. Until next time!

-Gabrielle

Hey Readers!
So here it is, our last night in Puerto Rico :( This week has been such an amazing experience. Not only did we play against some top ranked teams, we were also able to learn so much about the different culture in Puerto Rico while making some pretty great memories. One of my favorite times during this trip was visiting Castillo San Felipe del Morro fort. It was gorgeous, and I loved learning about all of the history it had to offer. I don't want to waste your time telling you about all of the other things we've done such as the bio bay, Old San Juan, and hiking in the rain forest because I know others have already shared about them, but let me express how beautiful it is down here! I'm definitely going to miss the amazing weather and scenery, especially when we have to come back to 20 degree weather :/ Nevertheless, I'm so thankful for this trip before school starts up again! Hope everyone had a great New Year! Let's make this year one to remember!!! 

Till Next Time!

Megan #33 

Puerto Rico

Hey everyone!

Tomorrow is our last day in Puerto Rico and it's been a great time! Yesterday we won an exciting game by one point against Emmanuel in overtime, which was a great way to end 2014. Today was an awesome start to 2015 because we went to the rainforest and did the bioluminescent bay. In the rainforest we went into a waterfall which was freezing but definitely worth going into. I learned that you could actually eat the peel of a banana and that the trees in Puerto Rico don't have any rings if you were to cut them down because they don't hibernate like they do in Ohio. The bioluminescent bay was so much fun because we had the opportunity to paddle in a two person kayak into a lagoon to watch the plankton in the water glow. This trip has been a once in a lifetime experience that went by too quickly and is something I'm glad I had the opportunity to experience with my second family. I'm not looking forward to coming home to the cold temperatures again since it's been 80 degrees and sunny everyday I've been here. Puerto Rico is something I will never forget because I've created great memories with some of the best people and I've had the opportunity to experience some amazing things.

Marissa "Momo" Hellisz #22      

Hi everyone! Today is our last night here at Puerto Rico. The whole trip has been a great experience. My favorite part was walking around Old San Juan. I loved to see the narrow streets and the different culture. Visiting the Castillo San Felipe del Morro fort was so beautiful. Reading the history from throughout the fort was extremely interesting. Today, we visited the rain forest. Our tour guide was highly educated on many facts about everything in the rain forest. One of the most interesting facts about the rain forest is that the trees do not age. The trees here do not form rings inside them because they never lose their leaves. I am very grateful to have the opportunity to travel here and compete in games. Happy New Year!!!

-Katie Smith #5

Hello, this is Geena Gabriel reporting for duty. I cannot believe that it is already the new year and how quickly time has flown. My first semester of college has come and gone and so has my Winter Break!! haha Coming to Puerto Rico for our big trip has been the highlight of the year so far! From just being in 80 degree weather to spending quality time with the team has been a great experience! From reading previous blogs, you have already found out what we have done and my favorite so far was the Bio-bay. It was something that I have never experienced before and it is something that i will remember forever!!!!!! I am very upset that we have to leave tomorrow but all good things must come to an end. This week has gone by way too fast and I wish everyone a safe and Happy New Year!! (: GOOOOOOOO JACKETSSSSSSS

Puerto Rico trip :)

Hey everyone!
This is Kenzie blogging from Puerto Rico 😁 this trip has definitely been one I will never forget! Yesterday we played against Emmanual and we won by a 1 point at the buzzer! It was crazy. We went into an overtime and at the end they had 12.5 seconds to score and we locked down and stopped them. It was a great feeling to come out with the W. After the game we all went to the beach and then in the evening dressed up and all went out to dinner together for New Years Eve. Today I woke up and went to the beach at 8:30 so I could get some sun before we left for the day. Sydney, Janaya, Audrey, Shari, and I went on jet skis in the ocean. That was one of my favorite parts of the trip. Then this afternoon we went to the rainforest and went and stood under a big waterfall. It was chilly but totally worth it! Then in the evening we went to the Biolumineciant Bay and it was really awesome to see all the plankton glow. Now we are in our way back to the hotel and tomorrow we have our flights back to Ohio in the evening. I am not looking forward to coming back to the 20 degree weather but it will be nice getting back into the swing of things and see family. Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoy all our blogs :) And lastly Happy New Year!!! Welcome to 2015!