What The Heart Wants

Getting To Know You

The Hearts' bus pulled into the lot at the Doubletree in Cary around 4pm. Following a re-iteration of the roommate assignments for the trip, the players and staff got off the bus and retrieved their bags. Check-in for the team was done quickly by the front desk and everyone received their room keys. Erica informed the team that dinner would be at 5:30 in the Dogwood Room with a 7:00 opening meeting in the Cardinal Room.

***

Tonight's opening meeting was called to order by Erica just after 7:00, once the last of the stragglers had strolled in.

Erica: This road trip serves several purposes for our team and the organization as a whole. The most important thing is being able to train outdoors in decent weather for a few days prior to our first match against Boston on the 7th. We also get a chance to run through our away-game protocols before the opener and test out the roommate pairings. The team will also have a chance to spend time together away from the field, which we hope leads to greater unity. The players in this room are going to be who we have on the roster, with the additions of Sarah and possibly another Thorn in the future. I won't go any longer in keeping you from tonight's activity, so I yield the floor to Carm.

Carm: As part of the team bonding emphasis that we're placing on this extended road trip, I have divided the team into five groups for a get-to-know-you activity utilizing the Spirit's "Fast Five" concept. The leader of each group has the discretion of determining what questions they wish to ask of their fellow Hearts. I split up couples, housemates, and former teammates as best as I could, so you would be with people that you don't already know well. As we're one short in terms of players, Lauren will be joining one of the groups.

Carm announced the groups, which were as follows: Steph L., Lindsey, Steph O., Cami; Ali, Cari, Morgan R., Savannah; Diana, Emily, Morgan A., Lauren; Steph M., Becca, Frannie, Sammy Jo; Kristie, Jen, EJ, Liz. After that, the players were dismissed to re-convene in the leaders' rooms.

***

Kristie's group met in Jen and Frannie's room as Steph was using their room for her group.

Kristie: We know each other somewhat, but not really that well. Before we go into the formal questions, I want you to tell the rest of us how you are connected to Erica, sort of a "six degrees" thing.

EJ: Do we have to stay within the team to get from A to B?

Kristie: Yes.

EJ: I played at Duke with Becca, who plays on the Canadian National Team with Diana, who played in Washington with Ali, who played under Erica on the US National Team.

Kristie: Very good, EJ!

Jen: Diana and I are both graduates of Princeton, which leads to her and Ali, etc.

Kristie: I have a feeling all of us are going to link to her through Ali by some means. Liz?

Liz: I played in North Carolina with Steph Ochs, who played in Washington with Ali, etc.

Kristie: Guess I should wrap it up with my connection. I'm engaged to Steph McCaffrey, who has the same middle name as Emily, who played in Portland with Lindsey, who was on the 2016 Olympic team with Ali, yadayadayada.

Jen: A little different way of getting there, but it's still a straight line.

Kristie: First question. What one thing are you terrible at, but don't care?

EJ: Singing. I have a voice that should only be heard in the shower, but I love bopping to the radio in my truck and singing along with it.

Jen: Ice skating. You'd think being a little lower to the ground I'd be able to keep my balance, yet I end up on my rump over and over.

Liz: Dancing. These hips DO lie when it comes to getting down on the floor.

Kristie: Yoga. Sam has been trying to get me to be calmer and channel my inner warrior, but I fidget too much for it to be effective. That said, going to the studio with her during the off-season gave me an excuse to spend time with my wittle sissy.

Liz busted out laughing at Kristie's teasing description of her former Courage teammate.

Kristie: What one player in the league would you consider asking your significant other to be your get-out-of-jail-free pass? I'll go first. I'm sure you're all thinking I'll say Abby, but it's actually Shelina Zadorsky. Imagine what us two could do together between the sheets.

Jen: And Steph would let you tap her?

Kristie: I don't know about LET ME, but if I were allowed to wander, she'd be my choice.

Liz: You know I don't swing that way, so this is just a hypothetical. Sorry, Jen, but I have to say Danielle Colaprico.

Jen: That's alright. It's a hypothetical encounter, not an actual one. Besides, I think you could give her a good run if you got the chance.

EJ: Christina Gibbons. That's also Becca's.

Kristie: Ever thought about, you know....

EJ: Thought, yes. Discussed, no.

Jen: This is an odd choice, but I'd pick Labbe, someone who could dominate me in bed and make me scream.

EJ: Do I need to keep you away from her?

Jen: Nah. I love and respect her and Ali too much to ever THINK of trying to invade on that.

Kristie: Pat's or Geno's?

EJ: Pat's. The fries are better there.

Jen: Geno's. More options for non-beef eaters.

Liz: Ditto, Jen.

Kristie: I'd say Pat's both for its variety of combinations and because the bread is slightly softer than Geno's. Number four. Where do you want to go for an eventual honeymoon?

Jen: Greece. It looks so romantic and reminds me a bit of some of the places Danny and I went in Australia while playing in the W-League.

Liz: I can't say Hawaii because my family and I have been there too often. Perhaps a fall foliage tour through New England.

EJ: Ooooo. That sounds like it would be fun, just the two of you on the road away from urban life. My choice would be Sedona, which is in northern Arizona. Not as hot as Phoenix, with a mixture of an artsy community and red rock and clay hiking trails around the city.

Liz: Never thought of that as a honeymoon destination, but if you're looking for a laid-back place that's out of the way, that's a good one.

Kristie: Paris. I know Steph would hate it, but indulging in the culture and the fashion for a week or two seems to me like a dream.

Jen: You're right. Steph would probably leave you on the Champs-Elysses and camp out at Parc Des Princes or Stade De France.

Kristie: Final one. Name one thing one of your housemates does that drives you up the wall.

EJ: Becca leaves dishes on the coffee table, expecting me or Morgan to clean up after her.

Kristie: Sounds like Hoodrat's problem with her dirty clothes. You can never tell what's clean and what's not, and most of it never gets into the hamper.

Liz: There's not much that riles me up about Steph Ochs, but her clanking around the house when she gets up for her early-morning runs.....AAAAGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHH!

Jen: Haven't lived with Frannie long enough to pick up anything that rubs me wrong, so I'll go with Cari's need to run the shower for 15 minutes before getting in it. Water isn't free, people!

Kristie: Think the other groups had as much fun as us with this?

EJ: I'd hope so, especially with Diana, Ali, and the two Stephs leading them.

Frannie returned to her and Jen's room, which alerted the four of them that other groups had finished. Kristie, EJ, and Liz left to join their roommates ahead of 10pm curfew.