Graceketball

Grace has been playing well. She got All Tournament honors in the Portledge Girls Basketball Invitational last weekend. Yay for GraceAnne! Better still she looks like she is having a lot of fun in some of the games and is developing more and more confidence on the court. Portledge Panther's are coming together nicely as a team. Winning is fun and it always gets girls to buy in to what the coach is doing. Tamara Simpson got Tournament MVP. Go Tamara! Nice writeup on Tamara in Newsday . Great role model for GraceAnne.

Free yourself... “Perfectionism is a mean, frozen form of idealism, while messes are the artist’s true friend. What people somehow (inadvertently, I’m sure) forgot to mention when we were children was that we need to make messes in order to find out who we are and why we are here...” ~Anne Lamott Love this, from Stephen McCranie's blog...  http://doodlealley.com Be Friends With Failure  

Great weekend! Grace had an early Portledge Panthers practice Friday and afterward we went to see the Hofstra Women's team beat Fordham. Riverside Hawks provided the tickets and most of the Hawks teams were in attendance. Very nice night for all the Hawks families. Saturday morning Grace had a 9am Lady Lions practice at The Beacon in Bayside Queens. She was hitting her shots and going strong to the basket. At 2:00 we went to see Joe Tartamella and the St John's women's team beat St Francis at Carnesecca Arena. The Hawks provided tix for that as well so Grace got to sit with her teammates again. Sunday we headed down to Princeton to see Megan Griffith and the Tigers raise last season's Ivy Banner. They beat the Marist Red Foxes which had Emma O'Connor, who is a senior now, and the freshman Brittini Lai, who we saw play for Irvington last year. The highlight of the trip was seeing Taylor Brown get into the game for Princeton late in the se...

  Basketball never stops! Basketball is HUGE in the Philippines and they need our help. Help survivors of typhoon Haiya in the Philippines. Mercy Corps is a great organization. Unlike a lot of relief organizations Mercy Corps spends a large majority of the money donated on resources that directly help those in need rather than administration. Check them out for yourself or find another charity that is helping the Philippine recovery effort.

Portledge varsity has started practicing for the 2013-14 season. Grace says it's mostly conditioning so far but that they got to do some scrimmaging yesterday which went well. Says she's nervous taking jump shots for some reason.... shoot more of 'em then! She's trying to keep up with Tamara Simpson who is an excellent player... good idea! Bunky Reid Championship game will be this Friday night. Thought the season had ended but nice to have an additional game. Go Lady Lions! Lions practices Wednesday evenings and Saturday mornings. Hawks practices Friday nights. Pro-Hoops Sunday mornings, Game7 Sunday nights and Portledge practices weekdays after school. That's at least one practice or training session 7 days a week.... that's a lot, we'll see how it goes.

Couple games with Hawks, finished strong with Bayside Lions, Rose is done, Bunky Reid is done, working out with Jay Sunday mornings, working out with Marc at Game7 Sunday nights..... time to breathe.

Apple picking with her Lions teammates today. Did well enough in Bunky Reid fall league to make playoffs. Two games tomorrow night at Yes We Can Center in Westbury, win or go home. Chip is on Thursday. Won a couple games in the Rose Classic last week and played well. Trained with Jay Hernandez at Pro-Hoops in Glen Cove and went all out. Riverside Hawks tryouts went well, made the team, had first practice and looks like a nice group of girls, nice, knowledgeable coach. She's a Lion though, we love what Dave Johnson has been doing with her, the team, the parents, the girls, the tournaments and competition.... can't beat it! Portledge Panthers season coming up!

This Saturday morning at St John's. This will be the third annual and Grace's third year of participation. She'll be coming straight from her Lady Lions practice in Bayside. Grace raised $240 this year. Thanks to everyone who supported her and donated! That's around $950 over the three years she has participated.

Grace has been asked to play in both The Rose Classic and The Bunky Reid Fall League with a team called the Lady Lions by her Portledge teammate and friend Morgan Follet. Played a great game in Brooklyn on Saturday. Met her teammates for the first time, got nice minutes, scored, passed well, had fun. The girls are all quite good they were all playing defense and they move the ball very well. That's what it's all about! First game in Bunky Reid will be tomorrow. She has a 7:30 with the Lions and then an 8:30 with Greg Meyerhoffer and the Glen Cove girl's varsity. That's been going well and I know Grace appreciates the opportunity. Coach Mayo is having her work with the second unit and show them how to run plays etc.. She likes it and it gives her an opportunity to stay in touch with her friends and former teammates. It also gives her time in the gym as well as some limited game time. Hopefully the Lady Lions will work out for GraceAnne and she'll have an opportun...

Sundays are J days. J is Jason Hernandez. Very nice group of girls have started to come together every Sunday at 11:00. This past Sunday they had a friendly but intense workout, playing 4 on 4, 3 on 3 continuous, running drills and developing their skills and IQ.   Stone, JT, Wood, Hooch.... Could be a very special group of girls.

So, GraceAnne will be attending Portledge School for her freshman year. Seems like a great fit for her and a wonderful opportunity. Making a decision on high school was not easy... that's an understatement, making a decision on high school was not easy at all . Grace is leaving a lot of good friends in Glen Cove. They also have a new girl's varsity coach who is a very nice guy as well as an extremely competent and experienced coach. Once a couple of opportunities presented themselves, the quality of the academics and individualized attention she would receive became the deciding factors. The process of finding a private high school began tepidly last October. Grace expressed an interest around that time and I didn't take it too seriously. I really wasn't into it. Her mother had her take the catholic school test and attend open houses at several of the nearby private catholic high schools, due diligence... not knowing if it would go anywhere, what the process wou...

Talking is fine. Sometimes it helps you think things through, crystalizes thoughts prior to taking action.... Eventually you have to stop talking about it, gotta be about it. Some private schools seem interested in Grace playing basketball for them in September. That's definitely flattering for her and a testament to all the hard work she has put in. As parents it's me and Remi's job to try and create situations and present opportunities that will afford Grace a path to whatever success she desires. If she wants something bad enough we know she'll work hard to achieve it. She's proven that to us both academically and athletically. Bottom line, basketball offers no guarantees, none. Fun to play, teaches lifelong lessons, creates lifelong friendships, keeps kids fit, busy and out of trouble. Academics is where it's at if you want to limit risk. A good education provides unlimited opportunity. If basketball opens a door, fantastic! Ball is life, ball is life, b...

Summer ball is going really well for GraceAnne. She's working hard in every game, gaining confidence, taking the right shots and making good decisions. Still wish she'd put the ball on the floor more and be more aggressive on the offensive end but, making good progress. One thing she's doing now is moving well without the ball. She's very well conditioned and has been giving her defenders fits at having to chase her through the offense.... doesn't always get the ball but she is definitely much more available for it. Currently playing in two leagues. Freeport Lady Red Devils Summer League at Freeport High School with her Glen Cove Varsity teammates. Bunky Reid Allstars at Bunky Reid Park in Westbury with her Rising Stars AAU teammates. Tuesday nights have been kind of fun because she has a game in each league so we're at Bunky Reid at 7:15 and then go directly to Freeport for her 9:15 game. Rising Stars is on a really good trajectory right now. Pretty brutal A...

Great weekend! Grace played with Game7 McCombs and had a very productive tournament. Enjoyed going out to St Joseph's College in Patchogue, short ride, nice campus, nice gym, lots of stuff to do nearby between games. This is the second Riverside Hawks tournament Grace has done this month and Kenny Parham, St Anthony's coach, does a really good job of organizing and running them. Had two close games against decent competition, one blowout and then an improbable upset against the Riverside Hawks 9th grade team in the 4th and final game. I won't pretend the Hawks weren't tired, they played back to back to back, but, we'll take the win against that level of competition any day! Allie Murphy is a tough cover and I don't think that kid gets tired ever! Grace knows Allie from working out at Jay's and when she saw she would face her said "Dad, I seriously don't want to have to defend Allie...". She did and she kept her in front of her while she was o...

Congratulations to Laura Barry on being named Assistant Coach at East Tennessee State University!!! Laura is going to do BIG THINGS! Laura is a super person and has worked extremely hard with Grace over the last two years. We miss her already but it's nice to see her get this opportunity and I have no doubt that she will make the most of it! ETSU has put together quite the coaching staff and it will be interesting to follow them next season. I only hope that Happy will be able to adapt to the country life in Tennessee having moved from an apartment in Green Point BK... Laura Barry Assistant Coach Women's Basketball Coaches Laura Barry  joined the ETSU women's basketball coaching staff in June 2013 after spending the past two seasons as a graduate assistant coach at St. John’s University; including overseeing the team managers and practice players, helping organize gameday operations and travel, utilizing social media, and assisting co...

Wood & Stretch-MP gettin' better

Had a busy weekend and a busy last few weeks. Grace is doing Pro-Hoops Academy with Jay Hernandez. It's close to home so that really helps. Three nights a week from 7-9:00 she works out with Jay and anywhere from 6 to 10 pretty good players.  9-10 she shoots on her own. She's the youngest and some nights the only girl. It's been really good for her to have to go up against these big strong guys. She's not nearly as tentative and has been going strong to the basket as well as taking her fair share of open jump-shots. Jordan and McKayla come some nights and Grace running with or going against those guys is a priceless opportunity. Still practicing one night a week with Rising Stars and coach Lauren Tartamella. Played a tournament last weekend and the girls really stepped it up. Wound up losing three out of four which sounds bad but it really wasn't. They were in every game and played hard all the way to the end. Played man to man defense which is what they ne...

Four of my favorite people! Brittany Hunter, Carrie Moore, Grace Stone, GraceAnne Woods Hot Sticky Night in Manhattan...

St John's grad assistant Laura Barry is moving on. Laura has been a phenomenal resource for GraceAnne over the last almost two years and we will miss her.... a whole lot . I'm predicting great things in Laura's future and we definitely want to stay in touch. Don't know where she's heading yet but whatever program lands her will be very, very fortunate to have such a hardworking, passionate, patient, knowledgeable coach.... and great person. Old School... outdoor training at St John's with Laura

Very nice! Rising Stars is working out very well so far. Nice group of kids that are all self motivated and committed. As a team, we have taken our lumps in the early tournaments... and had some successes as well. One thing that has become apparent as the team's personality starts to show itself, these kids have tremendous heart and determination. That's a really good starting point, makes it easy to coach and is something you can't teach. I feel like the dogged and relentless attitude always comes from home and is a reflection of the parents having their priorities straight. It's also a reflection of character, this is what we're looking for. It's not about basketball. I find myself saying and thinking this a lot. These kids have been working hard in practices and grinding in every game to the final horn regardless of score or situation. They know they are learning, they know they are working to get better, they know they make mistakes, they know if they work...

First AAU action of the season tonight. Rising Stars have been coming together but it's a new team with inexperienced players. I think we may have had maybe six practices? That would be fine but we're playing two of the top 8th grade teams on Long Island this weekend... jumping into the deep end of the pool. Might as well get right to it! Be interesting to see how Grace plays. She's in a position where she needs to step up and lead a team on her own for the first time. She's going to have to stay focused, keep her head up and go hard no matter the score. Ws aren't going to matter as much as how she handles herself. Here we go!

GraceAnne Woods received Nassau County A2 All Conference honors last night at the Nassau County Girl's Basketball Coaches Association's All Star Dinner 2013. That's a mouthful. What it means; She played well this season, her coach Corinne Turner nominated her for the award, the other coaches in the conference agreed she should get it. Pretty cool for an eighth grader to get an All Conference award! GraceAnne and her mom Remi It was a very nice night at the Crest Hollow Country Club. Several of Grace's Glen Cove teammates were also honored and we ran into a bunch of coaches, parents and players we knew from other school districts. The Mepham girls Grace trains with at Pro-Hoops cleaned up with a bunch of awards!

Grace's G7 McComb's team won their first round game in the Island Garden Super League playoffs. Grace played well but rolled her ankle. She got back in the game and seemed to be moving well but a couple hours later the ankle started swelling. She wasn't able to play in the second round last night. No way to know if she could have helped but her team lost by 7. AAU season next. Niveen drives to the hoop If you're still playing at this time of year then you've already had a good run. Princeton went down in the first round to Florida State. Cut the lead to one early in the second half but things fell apart for the Tigers after that. Tigers have a lot to be proud of this season. Niveen's last game as a Tiger. It was great to see her college career from her first game as a freshman at Stony Brook to the final game in the NCAA Tournament at Waco. Lots of good young talent on this team and the future looks bright for Princeton. Grace, Remi and I went to ...

Courtney with another Ivy Title! So, tonight will be the NCAA women's selections for the Tournament. Madness! Grace has a Rising Stars practice at LuHi at 6:30 and selections start at 7:00. It will be interesting to see where people are seeded this year but even more importantly, the regions they will be playing in. We have really good seats at Carnesecca for the first and second round games. Would be great to see some of the coaches and players we know, have a connection with! The only team of ours, those that Grace has a direct connection to, that has an automatic bid is Princeton. They won the Ivy for the fourth year in a row. YAY Courtney, Megan and Milena! UConn, Kelly Faris and Heather Buck, will be in for sure and likely a #1 seed.... they will play in Bridgeport since it's close to home. Creighton, Coach Carrie Moore, is on the bubble but I think with their record, strength of schedule and making the tournament last year they will get in. Pretty sure Michigan, K...

Grace has been playing well for Glen Cove Varsity. The team has won its last three games, the final game of the season is tonight. It looks like they will do well enough to make the playoffs. Pretty good accomplishment considering there are 4 eighth grade starters... and the season has been a little turbulent. Corrine Turner has taken over the coaching duties for the Glen Cove Varsity. She did a great job with the girls last year on JV and since taking the reigns she's not lost a game. She runs challenging practices, demands excellence and holds the girls and herself accountable. Good stuff. The future of Glen Cove girls basketball looks bright. Grace played a couple games with Kevin McComb's Game7 team in the Island Garden super league. Kevin is good people, solid guy. Grace played well and had fun playing with the girls she's gotten to know. Nice bunch. They usually move the ball well and play fun basketball... if they straighten out their defense they'll be a rea...

Sunday the 13th was a long day... Woody & Laura It started with getting Grace out of bed bright and early for her workout in Queens. 8:00 am - Laura Workout, St John's University Fresh Meadows Queens 11:30 am - Pro-Hoops Workout, Buckley Country Day School, East Hills 2:00 pm - LuHi vs St Mary's, Long Island Lutheran, Brookville 7:30 pm - Rising Stars AAU Try-out, Long Island Lutheran, Brookville Woody & Stone Woody Tipping it... Woody & Jay Tuesday Grace had a varsity game that they lost by 1 with 7 seconds left. Missed opportunity. Interesting sequence to finish. Down one with 15 seconds left. Woody hits a put-back to put Glen Cove up by one. Grace's teammate steals the ensuing inbound pass. Glen Cove now has the ball, up one, 12 seconds left, shot-clock off.... coach has a timeout left but doesn't use it to settle the girls and instruct/teach them how to finish up one....  kid drives to the basket rather than eating the ...

Haven't been keeping up lately. GraceAnne has three varsity games this week, Mon., Wed., Fri.. Natives are getting restless. The team is 4-4 but some of the losses were very ugly, especially the most recent one this past Friday. Focus didn't seem to be there. Teams should show a steady progression over the course of the season, especially teams this young, this talented.... parents appear to be considering bringing pitchforks and torches to games. Coach looks like a deer in the headlights. I'm staying out of it. That said, this week should be a good test of whether they have actually regrouped after what sounded like a good Sat. morning practice. Earlier in the week GraceAnne took a trip up the the Westchester Civic Center with Stone to watch LuHi play Irvington and later St Anthony's against Ossining. Both top LI teams lost in competitive games. Great for Woody to see players like Saniya Chong, Brittni Lai and Lexi Martins... they've worked hard to get to the nex...