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Looking at the positives
Kristine Lilly is the all-time appearance leader and third all-time leading scorer for the U.S. Women's National Team. The midfielder from Wilton, Conn., was a member of the U.S. teams that won the 1999 World Cup and 1996 Olympic Games. Lilly also played on four national championship teams at the University of North Carolina. Lilly is training for the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney. Check out Lilly's diary every month on CNNSI.com.
April 9,2000
Hello everyone. I think the last time I wrote, we were in Portugal. You probably know by now, we won that tournament for the first time. We beat Norway in the final 1-0.
I have to admit it was one of the most tiring games I have ever been in. I didn't feel good the night before and some of the day of the game, so I guess I was a bit worn down and then the game itself was a battle. We held strong and finally won the Algarve Cup. Since then I have been home and just today I got back from Charlotte, N.C. We just spent a week in Charlotte training and played two games vs. Iceland. It was a good week of training. We beat Iceland the first time we played them 8-0, and then we played them again Saturday night and tied 0-0. I know that was a little bit unexpected, after beating them 8-0, but that is the game of soccer and things to learn from.
Usually one of the hardest things to do is to get up for a second game against a team you just played three days before. However, at this level, there is no excuse, you must be ready.
I think we were ready but things didn't fall our way like they did the first time we played them. It was one of those games where you have all these shots on goal and the goalie has the game of her life or you are just missing by a hair.
It doesn't help at all when a team bunkers. That means, the team puts their entire team in their defensive end and it is like running into a wall all game. It actually was good they did that in an ironic way. We struggle when teams don't come out and play us, so this was a good lesson and also helped us to see what was good and what we need to work on.
I hate to lose but I hate to tie just as much. After the game Iceland was so excited that they tied, it made me just plain mad. We were angry because we tied. In a way, it felt like we lost and that will give us motivation to work even harder and get fitter.
Which leads me to where I am heading for a three-month stint. We are training in San Diego at the ARCO training center in Chula Vista, Calif. It is a great and beautiful facility, and we will be there along with some other athletes from other sports training for the Olympics.
Our training starts April 17, so I will spend this week getting things ready to head out there. I am living with Carla and Julie again. We have been roommates for all the other residency programs so I am looking forward to that. Plus Carla's little boy lives with us, and it is fun having a child around. I'm looking forward to being in San Diego for some warm weather and some full-time training.
I couldn't believe today when I flew home to Connecticut and it was snowing. Yes, snowing on April 9. It pretty much snowed all morning, then finally warmed up a bit. So the southern California sun is something I am looking forward to right now.
Since Portugal there has been some changes. One of my good friends on the team, Tish, didn't get asked into residency. It is the one thing about sports that I dont' like -- the whole cutting process. I think she is an amazing player and teammate so I didn't agree with the decision, but I am not the coach.
I do miss her a lot. After playing with someone for close to 10 years, it is hard not having them around. She is an amazing person and player, and I hope she will always remember that, because I would have her on my team any day. Tish if you are reading I miss ya buddy.
There are always things in life that you come across that you must find ways to get over or just deal with. It is never easy.
One way I think I like to look at things is the positive sides, or good things about the situation. I am the type of person who isn't going to let anything stop me or bring me down. However, I have also learned that there are going too many things that will affect my life and I will have strong feelings about them and they may also hurt or make me angry.
I think it is how you handle situations and let yourself go through all the different feelings and grow from there. You can't run away from anything, even though you may want to. It will always be there, so I'm learning to deal with the feelings and focus on the good things. For example, without Tish on the team, I feel a void but I remember the good times and will stay in touch with her and keep her close.
So don't try and run away from anything. Accept it, feel what you're going to feel, and let it out.
The game of soccer is a great sport but it is also great to me because of the people I play with, people I have met, and how it lets me be me. I hope we all find avenues that make such an impact on our lives, or find jobs that we love and make us happy.
Until next time enjoy spring and open up the windows in the house when this short cold front goes away.
Always believe.
--Kristine
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