Danielle Scott Weblog

What sitting on the edge of the chair matches we have had for the fans. Two five game thrillers one against China and the other verses Poland. I hope you were able to see it. Wow beating China in China was spectacular. We were accused of over celebrating but I say well it is the Olympic Games! We silenced the crowd. Praise God! Well we will cross with Italy tomorrow who finished second in their pool. This year there was a coin toss or draw to decide who the second and third place team of each pool will play.

Will be a tough challenge but nothing less expected.

GO USA!

Danielle

Let the Games begin! Oh wait they have!

Lots of exciting things going on! We made it to the village on August 2 and it is awesome. It is so huge! Our housing is nice. Our team is sharing two apartments each with three bedrooms and kitchen and a common area. The International Zone is complete with a bank, salon, post office, tearoom with Chinese dance entertainment, a small mart (convenience store), gift shop and more…

Opening Ceremony was awesome as usual! The lighting of the torch was so unique and cool. As the torch bearer slow immolation of running around the track added build up to the anticipated lighting of the torch and beginning of the Games.

Pool play is on the way. We are 2-1 after beating Japan opening match on August 9 in four, falling to Cuba in an ugly 0-3 loss and beating Venezuela yesterday in four. Two more match left in preliminary round, China on Friday and Poland on Sunday.

As I wrote earlier in this email the Village is huge. We all bought bikes when we learn that they were available for purchase. So Ty and I went for our first ride last night. I was excited and scared at the same time. I prayed “Lord please don’t let me fall and get injured or hit anyone (as obviously there are a lot of athletes walking around”. Well on the ride there Ty’s seat took on a various ranges of motion from all the way forward to all the way back so she had to try to balance where she sat on the seat. On the return, my PEDAL FELL COMPLETELY OFF! Can you believe it. So there we were in the dark searching for the bolt. We found it, but now we are warning everyone to do a once over on their bikes before taking it for a spin.

More to come on our match verses China,
GO USA!

Danielle

Hey Yall, it has been one week today since our finish of the World Grand Prix. We placed in the final week.
And the announcement of the 2008 Beijing Olympic team. What a stressful waiting period the hours that followed the match. Finally at just after 10 pm the meeting was called to order and the announcement was made. A very difficult decision for our staff as they trained so many athletes. I am so happy to have been selected as one of the twelve. Although only we twelve selected will travel to Beijing all who trained with us in Colorado will be represented there, as well as our entire Nation! Wow, our entire Nation!

After 31 hours of travel I arrived in Baton Rouge to spend my days off with my family. My husband arrived there before me. We had a great time with the kids (my nieces, and nephews), who are getting bigger and bigger. My mom was and is beautiful as usual. Baton Rouge seems to change with every visit. More shops and restaurants. Eduardo and I celebrated our second year anniversary on July 15 at a restaurant call Flemmings. Flemmings restaurant gets two thumbs up! We arrived a bit late but the service was remarkable evening though it was near closing. We were given strawberries dipped in chocolate as a gift. Mmmmmm, Mmmmmmm.

As you know I love going to the cinema. Although I am so behind in my film watching, we made time to catch a movie. We saw “WANTED”. It was entertaining, definitely action packed! Time flew by quickly however we squeezed in a couple of hours of billards with my dad and cousin. Yes all of this in my short three day stay, not to mention lifting weights and getting in cardio.

Today was day two of a seven day training session until we depart for California for sea level training in Berkley and processing in San Jose. Woohoo!

The countdown continues! GO USA!

Danielle

I am on the airplane heading to Baton Rouge as I write this entry. I have to rewind a bit to bring you up to date. Probably you are already aware of our results. Seems we love the five game “thrillers” as the journalist like to write. We beat both Japan and China in five. Woohoo! We lost however to Cuba in five, and Italy in four (I think, it seems so long ago, hehehehehe). Yikes I am getting old, but physically I certainly don’t feel it. All praise be to God.

Though the Grand Prix is a long tournament, I really enjoyed going to the different countries and to be greeted by some of our familiar followers of USA volleyball, Keikei, Naa, Kin and gain new fans. It was awesome playing in front of a nearly sold out arena of about seventy-five hundred fans against Japan in Japan, and more than four thousand fans in Poland… Not to mention, the interpreters from each city are the best, so sweet and helpful. They worked so hard to make us comfortable and to have everything we needed. Thanks, Grand Prix organizer, and everyone who made our stay smooth.

You know, our results weren’t really indicative of what our team can do. I think the best is yet to come as we are still getting to know each others tendencies, bettering our skills and working at minimizing our error (which not doing so really made a difference in wins and loses). Everyone was giving an opportunity to play so we are also are building our team chemistry with whomever is on the floor. Finally getting everyone healthy and staying healthy over the next several weeks will be key to what I expect to be USA’s best finish yet.

However before we get back to pooling our gifts, love and passion for the game, we get a short break to visits our family and friends. Though we won’t play volleyball we will have to do cardio and weight lifting twice.

That’s it for now.
Blessing to ya and thanks for your prayers and support,

GO USA!

Danielle

Well, it was a rough day at the office. We lost to Brazil today in three. There were moments throughout the match when I though we had a chance, however we couldn’t play consistently. Our block and defense was off.

The positive about the finals being a round robin tournament is that we don’t have to wait until next week. We will play Japan tomorrow. We played them the first leg and won in five. I am expecting another difficult match.

GO USA!

Danielle

Yes! All Glory be to God! We qualified for the finals of the Grand Prix for the first time since 2004. Our qualifying couldn’t have come at a better time as this is our last tournament before the Beijing Olympic Games! Of course all of the teams that we will face at the Games will not be in the finals however we will get to play Asian, European and South American styles of volleyball.

We beat Turkey in four today. WOOHOO! While our errors were still many, we controlled the match for the most part.

Tomorrow we will play one of the top ranked European teams, Italy. This should be a fun match. I think we match up well against them. Both teams are very familiar with each other, although both teams have newcomers. Italy is a team of few errors so we will have to clean up that area of our game in order to beat them.

Stay tuned,

Go USA!

Danielle

Well, we lost a day traveling here from Poland, rather it was a really long travel day almost 30 hours with the delays. Jenny just had us stretch rather than start with a double day Tuesday. Our bodies were grateful for the rest.

Wednesday everyone went to get massages. Here a one hour massage is like $35! It was wonderful. Actually Kris Richard and I went together. Instead of changing into a robe for the massage they gave us this half top which opened in the back like a hospital gown and pants. The pants were so funny because of the length. We are sure they would have been full length on a native, but on us it was like our half pants reaching just below the knees. The used hot towels to prepare the body for massage. My massage pressure was great I left there feeling ready for our early morning practice.

I decided at hit my trainer Emery for my legs after the morning practice yesterday. He usually takes care of all the massages and treatments for the team. I think he was feeling cheated on with a lot of us going out to get paid massages. I even went for a foot massage. It wasn’t the best that I have had but who am I to complain, it was and hour of having someone massage my feet.

And now GAME DAY yeah! Down with Poland National Volleyball team.

GO USA!

Danielle

Second leg down. Wake up time 3:33 am to start another 26 hour travel day! Good bye Warclow, Poland and Kate our wonderful translator. Also we had to say good bye to coach Li, Gen-san and Angie. They are heading back to C. Springs while Tom and Robyn will join us in Chinese Taipei.

Well, the time went by quickly. Especially with my friends Marta and Mattia from Italy visiting. We won all three matches, finishing first in our second week of the Grand Prix preliminary play. And actually we moved to second overall. Right now we are looking pretty good for making the final round hosted in Yokahoma, Japan. The finalist will be top five plus Japan. The final match of the weekend was quite a fun match playing Poland in front of their home crowd. There were red and white banners and cards being waved all around the arena and then the one lone but large USA flag. Yeah, GO USA! The crowd was not to be quieted even as we dominated the match. I scored on 8 of my 9 attempts and had two blocks. Heather was named MVP. Yesterday Kim G was named MVP and Friday’s match Lindsay was the MVP.

This week we will play Poland, Turkey and Italy. Our team seems to be improving. Italy will be a challenge and measure as to how much we’ve improved and what else we need to work on as we approach the finals.

I have a few pictures I would like to post but they are too large for my website. I will have to see if I can have the size maximum increased.

GO USA
Blessing to ya,

Danielle

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Want to see the last exhibition match against Brazil played on June 14,2008? Well, here is your chance. see USA Volleyball play on Sunday June 29 at noon ET MSNBC and on NBCOlympics.com.

We beat Thailand on yesterday in four sets. Should have could have beaten them in three. But to their credit they did play a lot better the third set serving tougher and running more combos. I saw action first, second and fourth sets. I hit7 of 7 attacking and added four blocks to our victory. Today we have Dominican Republic our NORCECA rival RRRRrrrrr.

GO USA!

Danielle

Well howdy do…We are already in the second week of Grand Prix. The summer started with an A/B team going to Pan Am Cup in Mexicali who did a great job in qualifying USA for the 2009 Grand Prix. GO USA! Then Brazil arrived in Colorado for three exhibition matches all pre agreed upon that five sets would be played instead of the normal best of five match series. Well the first two matches were thrillers. Those two matches were taken to the fifth set because the sets were tied two all. Brazil (ranked number one in the world) won the first match. While USA (ranked fourth in the world) won the second match. The third and final exhibition match was dominated by the Brazilian. They won four set to our one.

After the first leg of the Grand Prix hosted in Kobe, Japan we finished in a very close second place with Japan finishing third by one point! Turkey had a surprise first place finish thanks to our lost to them in our opening match. I think our team has made some adjustments, and gotten out the first match jitters. I am looking forward to some great matches this week against in Wrocraw, Poland verses Thailand, Dominican Republic and Poland.

OH, oh! two of my friends from the land of Chieri, Italy have come to show their support for me and team USA, Marta and her brother Mattia. So wonderful to see them. It has been two years! Too long! They of course know also Kim Willoughby, Jen Joins, Logan Tom who also played in Chieri, as well as Heather Bown, and Lindsay Berg who have played many years in the Italian League.

That’s it for now,
GO USA!
Blessing to ya!
Danielle

Hey Yall,

Well, this week has gone by quickly, even with our four practices! Since we don’t have much time to get back to USA volleyball, our rhythm, our system, and chemistry, it is full engine ahead. Woohoo! It is really exciting. Thank God for the recovery center.

There are a lot of players in the gym. Actually, part of the team went to Mexico to compete in the Pan Am Cup Grand Prix 2009 qualifier. Our coaches are still wanting to see new players or players who haven’t been with the program very long in competition. With only a few days more than two months remaining before Beijing, there is still a big pool of players aspiring for only 12 positions to represent THE UNITIED STATES OF AMERICA! Very intense but exciting time.

Anyway, the weekend is near and I have yet to tell you about the wonderful weekend team USA had over at Diane and Ricks home. It was like a drive to the country, lots of land, even goats! So peaceful and quiet. The food was great, chicken, tuna, salad, fruits, PIES! We are looking forward to another BBQ weekend so that Robyn can do her pink chicken and ribs… We played games and tried to balance on the rope, that reminded me of a low ropes course.

This weekend not so exciting… but Jen and I plan to get a manicure and pedicure. And I will probably spend the rest of the weekend getting my hair braided. Yep a long painful process but oh so practical.

That’s it for now
Blessings to ya

Danielle

Hello all,

I made to Baton Rouge on May 11. Yes on Mother’s Day. It was a beautiful day. I was glad to be home to celebrate my mom and grandmother on this day. My grandmother reached 84 years of age on May 10 but we had a surprise party for her on Mother’s Day. She is pretty keen and expected something special was going to happen. She really looked great and had a good time seeing her grand kids, and great great grand kids, family, church members and friends.

Now I am in Colorado. Practicing in the altitude isn’t so bad but the three flights of stairs get me every time. Actually I just started practicing a new breathing technique. You know as you get higher in altitude the air is thinner and seem you need more oxygen. Well, I thought I would try inhaling more often to see if I would feel less winded, and it worked! Could be psychological but I really felt less winded.

Well, Monday just about all of those who will compete this summer arrived. Because of all the varying end dates of leagues players are joining the team at different times. Now we are just awaiting the arrive of one setter. My body feels good. I am healthy but I am taking full advantage of our recovery center. There we can get massages, or use the aqua massage bed. There is also a sauna, steam room, Jacuzzi and cold plunge.

Ok, that is it for now.

Take care, and blessings to ya,

Danielle

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Well folks I am heading out of here. I got to have a few last things before leaving Brazil, acai and pastel with caldo de cane…hum hum. I am looking forward to leaving the cold behind as Sao Paulo is getting chilli. I am happy to spend Mother’s Day with my mom and Grandma who will be celebrating her 84th birthday. And I am excited to join the National Team. Today I trained with the men’s team from UNIP again. As usual it was challenging but fun.

Blessings,

Danielle

Hello Everyone,

Well, I am winding down my time here in Brazil. May 10 is my Grandma’s 84 birthday and my fourth grade teach Mrs. Borden (can you believe that I remembered that!?!), and of course May 11 is Mother’s Day. So I will be heading out on Friday. Jenny, the head coach of the USA National Team is allowing me to join the team after these special days. Thanks Jenny!

In the meantime I am enjoying time with my husband and my in-laws. Yesterday we had a BBQ. They call it Churrasco in Brazil. We actually found really BBQ sauce at the market. Most Brazilians don’t like it because the sauce is a bit sweet. But to me the ribs were the bomb! I have been on a diet these last two weeks so yesterday break from it was an especially nice treat. And I am working out. Last week I trained with the UNIP (university) men’s team. I held my own until they figured out my timing…hehehehe. Then I had to throw some shots. Today I trained with Finasa’s Junior team. It was fun. I played middle and outside. Ya know how I like to mix it up lol.

It is a nice day in Sao Paulo…sunny but a bit chilly. The Baton Rouge heat will be welcomed by me as I am not a cold weather person.

That’s it for now.

Take Care,

Danielle

Hello Everyone,

Well, I am winding down my time here in Brazil. May 10 is my Grandma’s 84 birthday and my fourth grade teach Mrs. Borden (can you believe that I remembered that!?!), and of course May 11 is Mother’s Day. So I will be heading out on Friday. Jenny, the head coach of the USA National Team is allowing me to join the team after these special days. Thanks Jenny!

In the meantime I am enjoying time with my husband and my in-laws. Yesterday we had a BBQ. They call it Churrasco in Brazil. We actually found really BBQ sauce at the market. Most Brazilians don’t like it because the sauce is a bit sweet. But to me the ribs were the bomb! I have been on a diet these last two weeks so yesterday break from it was an especially nice treat. And I am working out. Last week I trained with the UNIP (university) men’s team. I held my own until they figured out my timing…hehehehe. Then I had to throw some shots. Today I trained with Finasa’s Junior team. It was fun. I played middle and outside. Ya know how I like to mix it up lol.

It is a nice day in Sao Paulo…sunny but a bit chilly. The Baton Rouge heat will be welcomed by me as I am not a cold weather person.

That’s it for now.

Take Care,

Danielle

Hey, thanks to all of you who have been voting for me in the poll of ten nominated for “Who is the greatest Olympian to wear a US Women’s National Team jersey”. It is an honor to have been chosen as one of the ten on the list. So thank you to my family, friends and fans all over the world who are voting for me… Especially my fans in Brazil where I am currently playing and where volleyball is the second largest sport in the country. I am definitely surprised by the results as there are so many great players in USA Volleyball.

Go USA!

Danielle

Hey, thanks to all of you who have been voting for me in the poll of ten nominated for “Who is the greatest Olympian to wear a US Women’s National Team jersey”. It is an honor to have been chosen as one of the ten on the list. So thank you to my family, friends and fans all over the world who are voting for me… Especially my fans in Brazil where I am currently playing and where volleyball is the second largest sport in the country. I am definitely surprised by the results as there are so many great players in USA Volleyball.

Go USA!

Danielle

Well, I have been putting off writing this entry as I was so disappointed and didn’t want to think about our defeat. But of course one can’t help it, the flashbacks of the match, the if only’s that stand out so much more when one lose continue to creep in my thoughts. Instead of forgetting, I remember. I think that is best. Sure forget the loss, but remember those things, the if only’s, and make an effort to do better.

The first set was all Finasa. It appeared that we would win in three. Bad illusion as we lost the second set followed by a third set thumping. Still not at any point did I think we would lose the match. This was the finals. I remembered Toshi saying,”15-13 in the fifth set, that is volleyball,” and that was my hope, if only we could win the fourth. I came back in the match when the score was 19-23 Rexona. Difficult but not impossible as we were in that exact situation when we won the fourth set 26-24 to win the round three finals 3-1. My belief in the team and my faith was not shaken. We lost the set and the championship 1-3, but I still believe that we were the better team. We unfortunately could not show it that day. I am proud of my team and grateful for my experiences this season.

Congrats to Rexona 2007/2008 Superliga Champions.

The match was on Saturday and Tuesday I was back in the gym lifting weights (Monday was a holiday). Now I have to keep my conditioning and arrive in shape for the National Team season and primary focus Olympic Games 2008 Beijing! It is necessary to have a break from volleyball to allow one’s mind and body to recovery. Praise God that I am healthy and being motivated well it comes easily when I think on the quote that I just shared with my USA assistant coach Tom…”Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men Col 3:23 For nothing is impossible with God Lk 1:37 .”

One last GO FINASA for 2007-2008 season.
And now… GO USA!

Blessings,
Danielle

Danielle

WE’RE GOING TO THE FINALS! QUERO DIZER “WE ARE IN THE FINALS!” Hallelujah! Boy it was a tough series. Both matches were five gamers. In each we lost the first set. We really need to get out of the blocks faster. Against Rexona it will be much more difficult to come back from being down 0-2 but not impossible. So that was our situation this second match verses Brasil Telecom, down 0-2, we had to make a decision as a team that it was in our best interest to finish this series now rather than take it to a third match. Nothing was said in those terms exactly but looking into each others eyes and the change in our performance was better than words. We won the third and fourth set and now it was game time. Fifth set… as if coming back from 0-2 wasn’t enough to make our fans hearts skip a beat, we then decided per our performance to make winning the match even more challenging by getting down by four points. YIKES! Everyone knows that coming back from a deficit in the fifth set is really difficult. We rose to the challenge and won by a nail biting, two point edger…15-13 final score. Praise the Lord.

One week of preparation for the Championship Superliga title verses Rexona.

Go FINASA!

Danielle

Woohoo, we have qualified for the semi finals. Never a doubt in my mind but Medley/Banespa really played their heart out; so congrats to them. We thumped them the first set but again seemed to relax after that losing the second. Everyone entered the match to help in the victory. I scored 17 points in the match. Next up Brasil Telecom. We faced them in the first round finals winning 3-2. And twice in the regular season winning 3-1 both times. But we all know that that doesn’t mean much. It does, however, give the team confidence going into the semi verses a team against whom we have had multiple victories.

Go Finasa,
Blessings,

Danielle