Hey Flyer Fans!
You guys haven’t forgotten about me yet have you?
It has been almost five months since I last put on the Flyer uniform and a lot has happened since then. After season when most seniors hit relax mode, I hit the gym. I am not done playing basketball yet! I continued to work out with the girls in their post season individuals and kept up on my conditioning because I had Canada Basketball to look forward to this summer. To further demonstrate that we have some of the best coaches ever, Coach Rechlicz put almost as many hours as I did in the gym helping me out and getting me into shape. Although she never did get me in one-on-one I will admit she did take me down in a pretty intense shooting contest. Regardless, I owe a lot of my future success, academically and athletically, to the University of Dayton.
I received my degree in Exercise Science. I always thought that I would eventually go to teachers college and teach; however, the on and off-campus internships I had to complete as part of my graduation requirements here at Dayton have inspired me to become a certified strength and conditioning coach. I am currently putting that to use by helping train family and friends. I plan on continuing my education in grad school and have not given up on teaching. Those will both be in the forefront as soon as I get some steady living arrangements.
From June 23-August 1 I spent six weeks training with the Canadian National team. It was a pretty grueling camp comprised mostly of two practices a day but also eight games Рfive versus Chile and 3 versus Sweden, all of which we won pretty solidly. GO Canada GO! I did warn everyone that you would never forget where I came from. ļ
In other news, I also signed with a professional team in Portugal while I was at training camp. Starting September 29 I will be spending seven months in Barreiro (15 minutes from Lisbon), Portugal. Mike Andersen, cross-country runner extraordinaire, my boyfriend and also recent graduate of UD will also be coming and is currently enrolled in a program that will place him in a job teaching English in Portugal. Therefore, no worries, as much as I will miss all of you I won’t be too too lonely!
I am really excited about this new endeavor, living in Europe and getting paid to play the sport I love but I definitely will miss a lot of things that I know will never be the same. I will miss the team companionship, conversations in English, the close relationships with my coaches as well as the great support system that college athletics have built. These will all be things that will be tough to get used to living without. It is weird to think about watching the Flyer games online like any other fan. I am still not quite ready to be on the other side of it all. I was so curious to hear about how summer workouts were going and how everyone on the team was doing over the last few months. You know, if everyone came back in shape, how badly Mike Bewley (strength/conditioning coach) kicked everyone’s butts, the funny moments I missed out on and how the lone freshman is adjusting. The things I would know if I were still an active team member.
Everyone has been great about filling me in which has been nice. I hear Cassie Sant, the newest addition to the team is doing very well and I am excited to hear how her freshman year goes as she continues to keep it real by filling my position as team blogger.
Mike and I will not be disappearing as we plan on keeping everyone updated through a blog of our own. I will make sure Cassie fills everyone in on how to read it in her upcoming posts. I hope everyone’s summer has been great and you are gearing up for what I am sure will be another successful year from the Flyers. Let’s not let last years attendance record go to waste and start a tradition! Get out to those games!
It’s a great day to be a Flyer Alumni!
Love Kendel
