Professional Season

We are all back from Christmas with our family and friends. Everyone seems satisfied with their gifts this year. We have a little over 3 weeks of basketball with no classes to worry about. I like to call us "Professionals" this time of year.

We won 2 games in a tournament last weekend and now resume our conference schedule. This time of year can really solidify the bonds our teams has been forming. It's a time we can really focus and decide who we are and what we want to be known for. It takes a great deal of determination to be a great college basketball team. Every individual has to stay focused on doing her best everyday and sacrificing for the good of the team. Being selfless is really hard but it is a mark of every good team.

Almost Christmas!

With school now out, we like to consider ourselves professional basketball players. One semester is in the books (coaches are anxious to seeing the grade reports) and we've learned a lot about our team. At 4-4 we have the opportunity to pick the direction we will go for the rest of the season.

We spent some time during a team retreat determining our values and what we are going to strive for from this point forward. It's up to each person to decide to be "all in". Team-First and Commitment are two of the values our group identified as "absolutely essential".

Because we are so talented, we know our level of success will be a result of our own determination and willingness to embrace our roles. All seasons have their ups and downs; teams with character find ways to navigate through and reach their goals.

Merry Christmas!

She's Purdy Darn Cool!

Tae'lor is one of those people who is driven and willing to do whatever is necessary to achieve success. This small town girl has been playing basketball since the age of 5, and it shows with her talent and ability out on the court. When given the opportunity to participate in a short interview, Tae'lor answered the following way:

What do you like most about college basketball?
The variety/strategy and the fast pace of the game.

What is your favorite memory so far this year?
Me, Kaitie, Kellie, and Jax were headed back to the dorms and Kaitie had to pee really, really bad. Instead of just parking, we decided to drive around Regis campus and not let Kaitie out. At one point Kaitie had dropped Kellie’s purse out of the car and Jax had to pick it up while the car was moving. We were all laughing so hard.

What other hobbies do you enjoy?
I enjoy volleyball, track, rodeo, and shopping!

Colt McCoy or Tim Tebow? Why?
Tim Tebow all the way! He is very, very attractive. Has big muscles and is smart!

Favorite pro team?
Dallas Cowboys

What do you want to do after college?
I want to either be a doctor or do something in sports medicine.

What do your siblings think about you playing college basketball?
Bay’lee thinks it is “super cool and awesome” to have a sister playing ball in college.

How do you like living on your own? With Erin O’Toole?
It’s nice being on my own, except for I don’t get my own bathroom. I do miss home a lot. Living with Erin is fun and I am always entertained.

What was your favorite toy when you were younger?
A fold and jam basketball arcade game.

Carrie Underwood or Taylor Swift?
Taylor Swift

How much do you love Meagan Nickell?
Depends on the day! ;)

"We swept the weekend!"

Regis opened the 2009-10 season hosting the first annual Catholic Schools Tournament. The initial game against Newman was filled with all the first game excitement you would expect. Everyone played and contributed as our 6 freshman saw their first action as college basketball players! Starting forwards Chelsea Porter and Emily Kuipers lead the way from downtown, connecting on 7-11 3-point shots.

Rockhurst provided a different challenge as they had a deep bench and many talented inside players. Our defense did the job in the second half, holding the Hawks to just 1 bucket during a 5 minute stretch. Salina Kuiper provided the offense punch, scoring 26 points in 24 minutes.

Next up, CSU - DH and Ft. Hays State as we travel to the School of Mines, Nov. 27 & 28th.

Full game stories: http://www.regisrangers.com/sports/wbkb/index

Darth Vader!

Kaitie, aka Darth Vader, is a spunky energetic little ball of fire. She came to us this year from a little town back in the mountains by the name of Almont, Colorado. Kaitie is a little shy when it comes to talking about herself, somewhat like a little minx. However, those of you reading this today get a privileged insight into the life of Kaitie Vader.
Her favorite thing about basketball is getting to play with people that are great at what they do. While that may be true, she once let slip the real reason she comes to practice ecstatic everyday. She absolutely loves getting put in timeout by Coach Raunig. In a private interview she stated that there was no other way she would rather spend her evenings than in the back of the line in timeout.
Now if this information alone doesn't make you see why we love having Kaitie on our team, perhaps a little talk about her muscles will. Not only can Kaitie bench the most weight on our team, but she can also lift the most during shoulder press, lat pulls, bent rows, and dead lifts. Now, some of her power has been attributed to her farm girl upbringing, however, it is also believed that she was built to be a protector.
We keep her around on the streets in case any trouble comes our way, not only for natural strength, but her retaliation effort has been unmatched. Unknowing that she was being recorded, Kaitie said once she almost set her brother on fire with a sparkler! Clearly, not even family will get in the way of Kaitie's desire to protect those around her, which is a quality we love. Any team would be grateful to have this hustler on their roster, however, we snatched her up and are never letting her leave!

By Kara Larson

Update

After two Division I exhibition games, our team has learned a lot about itself. These opportunities have given us a taste of the intensity and speed of the college game.

We have two more weeks of practice to improve on some things and really come together as a team. Our spirits are high as we come to practice everyday with a determined and focused attitude.

On a lighter note: Our team had a great time at the Halloween Volleyball game. Everyone really got into it as you can see. Kara and I volunteered for a relay race. I feel confident we would have won had the other teams not cheated!

A Long Week of Practice but Now Its Game Time!

Today we will play our first exhibition game against the University of Northern Colorado. We are all very excited as it has been a long road to our first outside competition.

Although the weeks of practice have been hard, we have put in several aspects of our game and have only a few more things still to learn. Some days were a little overwhelming for our new people since they were both physically and mentally exhausting. The coaches are very pleased, however, with the progress and effort of all the players.

Now it’s time to test our new skills against a different team. Its game time baby! -Bri #20

Game Day!

Regis Basketball would like to introduce Meghan Hollenga:

Meghan Hollegna is one of the freshman joining our team this year. Originally from Colorado Springs, CO, Meghan says the closeness to home was the one drawback of Regis, but she fell in love with Regis' school and basketball program on her visit and she couldn't imagine going anywhere else. Meghan quickly fit in with the team and earned the nickname "Han," and yes, she would like you all to note that is spelled with an "a" and not an "o!" If you ever see a practice Han will be the one wearing bright green prewrap- she never goes a day without it!

Her personal goal for this season is to focus on defense and help the team in rebounding. One of our first games of the regular season is against Fort Lewis; this game will have a little extra significance for Meghan because she'll get to battle her older sister Hayley. We're counting on ya to win that one Han! ;) Off the court, Meghan likes to relax by sleeping and watching Hannah Montana- don't worry she is older than a ten-year-old, on most days at least ;) Just kidding! :) Meghan has been a great addition to our team, we're so happy to have her, and are excited for her and our upcoming season!

Practice - we talkin bout practice?

That's right. We are talking about practice. Everyone is excited and ready, not to mention a bit nervous. As coaches, we are reminding ourselves to take things a step at a time. This team is so talented and athletic, it's hard not to think ahead to some of the amazing things we are going to be able to do.

Practice is where teams are made, roles are earned and dreams start to become reality. As with anything worth working for, practice will be filled with ups and downs. Teammates are there to pick you up when you struggle, push you when you have more to give and celebrate with you when finally get it right.

I am blessed to be a part of this team and excited to jump into the fray and hang on for the ride!

Community Service

Last Sunday morning we woke up at 4:00 am to move barricades and direct traffic for the Race for the Cure, in Denver. Although not as entertaining as cheering at the finish line we helped the community of Denver by directing traffic for parking. While directing traffic, Lauren and Erin put on a line dancing show! Although one car commented on the dance, there was not a lot of enthusiasm from the drivers. Junior Nug (Kaitie) almost got run over trying to stop a vehicle to give them directions. PS. It was cold. Five hours of community service down, eleven hours to go.

We Made It

Wahoo!!
After five weeks of grueling workouts we can now call ourselves Rangers. Today marked the finish to a great pre season. Now, for the first time in history fall break falls before season, so we are all headed home for a couple of days. And when we return after dominating softball in flag football, we will start practice #1. Our newbies have proved to be strong assets so far. And the returners look forward to building our new team. Another addition to this years pre season were Brian and Tate from Next Level Performance. They led our weightlifting and speed training workouts. In addition to 'yolking' us, they taught us running technique. Our coaches are pleased as well and everyone is ready to get to work!!

Camping video-finally

I figured out the video, yea!

Season Starts With A Snap Of A Camera

We are all so excited for season to start, and this is the first glimpse into what this team will become. After all of us had put our jerseys on, there was conversations going on about this feeling like a game day and jitters were running through us all.

Even as we were heading to the back of Main Hall, where this picture was taken, there were smiles from each individual. Feeling this excited is what makes being a college athlete worth it. Being able to share memories and jokes with friends that you know will always be there for you.

We are a team now, but more importantly we are a family. Here's to our season this year, may it bring great rewards for all of us.

Colorful Colorado

Our camping trip to the mountains was a huge success! The campground was great. Tryouts for QB took place early in the afternoon...We have a game of touch football at the end of conditioning season. Salina will be on my team as a receiver!

We had delicious chile and roasted brats on the fire. Smores and games around the campfire that eve. The girls bunked in the camper cabins. Kara does not believe sleeping in cabins with heat is really camping but they were all greatful when it started raining.

The rain/sleet forced us back to town a bit early. Chelsea and Meagan volunteered their condo for lunch and watching football.

It was a great start to a great year!

Camping

Our team is off to Golden Gate State Park today for a weekend of camping. It promises to be a fun time of food, games and dancing...
I will post next week with a report and pictures.

Using Their Heads

Last year's team ranked #20 in the nation in team GPA. We take great pride in our team's academic achievements. Placing high on the WBCA list is a yearly occurance at Regis.
We have great expectations in the classroom this year, as well. Our incoming group brings with them outstanding credentials. Our new freshman averaged nearly a 24 on their ACT. You can access the entire story by clicking on the link below.

Pictured: Ashley Pope, a native of Fort Collins, Colo., sports a 3.53 GPA in Health and Exercise Science.

http://regisrangers.com/sports/wbkb/2008-09/news/WBCA_Top_25

Welcome to Regis!

All of our new freshman are moving in today! Everyone on the team has shown up to help the girls get moved into the dorms.
I hear there is a mean game of "pick-up" scheduled for later today. Love the enthusiasm!

Stay tuned for many new updates on the blog. I have a plan to include all the players throughout the year as guest contributors. We plan on taking loads of pictures and getting the video thing worked out. Let me know if you have any feedback about the site.

Thanks!

Message to the Team

Hello and welcome to our new blog! Sign up and let your friends and family know about the site as well. I'm just getting it started and coming up with ideas. Let me know what you think.

Hopefully you are all in shape and fine tuning those skills we expect you to have mastered. I'm looking forward to seeing you out of towners, especially Salina and Kara, my post players!

Enjoy your last few weeks of summer. I know I'll be out on the boat as much as possible :)

I'm also working on getting a more updated team pic and changing my color schemes. Creativity is not my strongest suit ;)
Maybe I'll get Lo to be my assistant editor.

No luck so far on the video. Will have to get that figured out. I'm thinking we will have guest bloggers from the team. Each person can blog their experiences for the week once school starts.

Summer

So Lauren and Sue, this is for you - my trustee followers.

Summer has been great so far. Most of our local players have dropped by to chat. Our summer league team has been steadily improving and are really enjoying getting to know each other on the court.

We love hearing from all of our out-of-towners via the text or email.

I'm attempting to upload a video of the RMAC Centennial Celebration. Diana Lopez (2007) was honored as the greatest basketball player in the history of the RMAC.

Regis Men's Coach Lonnie Porter was the Master of Ceremonies. He did a fantastic job and gave the event a touch of humor at all the right moments.

Until next time,

Coach Bain

Summer Time

Our staff has been enjoying the summer but also preparing for the upcoming school year.
We are SO excited about the 2009-10 team. A great nucleus of returning players welcome 8 new talented and wonderful players to our family.

Lauren Luebbe, one of our seniors, will be a major factor on the court with her ability to score from anywhere. Off the court she will be a key leader for all of our players to look up to.

Just starting to create this site. Though a championship pic was a good place to start.