Aug. 6, 2001
Click here to viewthe tour web site.
As the head coach, I have been assigned to wrap up our Germany trip with the final entry to our daily journal. There are so many positive thoughts and impressions we have all formed on this trip, but I will give it my best shot.
We are so appreciative of all the support we have received from our Georgia Tech Athletic administration to allow us to take such an awesome trip. Because of their support and commitment, our team was provided with a once in a lifetime competitive and cultural experience. We are very grateful for this support.
Maja Pachale’s mother, Christina, planned a fantastic trip for us. From arranging the matches, to securing hotels and meals, and have exceptional sightseeing tours planned even before our arrival, the trip was a huge success largely due to her efforts in organizing everything so well.
Our players and staff all really enjoyed sharing in the homecoming matches and social gatherings for our two German players, Maja and Alexandra Preiss. This really made the trip even more special for all of us. Having Maja’s grandfather at several of the matches and on some of the trips provided us with some of our favorite memories.
I was so proud of our players for so many reasons. We have a mix of some veteran players and some relatively young players, and I was pleased with the way the team traveled, meaning being on time, no complaining, no problems, plus, I was particularly pleased with our development and progress in terms of volleyball improvement.
Our team played stronger as the tour progressed and we saw some solid improvements in each and every player. In this regard, the trip was especially beneficial.
Our players and staff saw so many incredible sights over the 12 day tour. From fascinating cultural sites, to beautiful scenery, and of course, shopping. We really arranged some full days with travel, sightseeing, and highly competitive matches.
We will have thousands of pictures and hours of video to be shared when we return to Atlanta. Everyone will be anxiously looking forward to seeing the pictures and videos of the many great experiences. We will likely download some highlights on our website so our fans, family and friends can enjoy some of them as well.
Our staff and players are all really looking forward to having a very successful season, and this trip certainly has laid the foundation in terms of raising our level of play and seeing specific individual improvements. We were voted as the top team in the ACC in the pre-season poll, and I feel we are all confident that we can have an exceptional year.
Two-a-days begin Aug. 8th, and we plan to work extra hours with our very talented group of six incoming freshmen, while allowing our players who made the Germany trip some recovery days before we have them practice twice a day. Our coaching staff is pleased with the progress we made on the tour, and at the same time, we are very excited about working with our six new players, each of which will have a very important role this Fall.
Our recruiting for 2002 has been going well, and we really like our chances with three bigtime hitters in particular, this would give us one of the top recruiting classes in the country and provide a very bright future for our program.
With all things considered, there are really not too many ways this trip could have gone much better, which is an extremely positive endorsement. Great food, warm hospitality every place we went, exceptional weather, incredible sightseeing, good team chemistry, and a lot of high level volleyball by our team. I am so pleased we were able to provide such a great opportunity for our players.
We have arrived home safely, and we sincerely appreciate all of our friends and fans who have followed our trip through our website. All of the game stories and diaries will remain on this website for some time, if you want to take a look at it from time to time, and Frank, Maja’s boyfriend, has a website as well. Click here to view the tour web site.
Next order of business is hard work in two-a-day practices and preparation for a great seaon this Fall. We will see you at O’Keefe Gym!
