Lessons about teamwork

Basketball is a teacher of many lessons. I learn new lessons everyday through my exposure to basketball.  During my time here at Stanford, one of the most important lessons I have learned is the importance of teamwork. Here are a few lessons about teamwork:

Tenacity - As a team, we have a duty to strive and persist to win as many games as possible. As the saying goes, “The game is not over until it’s over.” We must fight tenaciously until the clock hits 0.0.

Effort - The more work you put in, the better the results. Winning as a team takes consistent effort from each teammate.

Attitude - Attitude is everything. Whether our attitudes are expressed verbally or through body language, a positive or negative attitude can be infectious.  Staying positive and working together as a team is a major key to success!

Mindset - Basketball requires mental toughness.  As a team, we must keep our minds focused on our goals to be victorious. Without a strong mindset, challenges become obstacles!

Work ethic - A strong work ethic not only builds character, but also produces rewards on and off the court!

Opportunity - At Stanford we have an amazing opportunity to play basketball while obtaining an excellent education, and this should not be taken for granted. We also have an opportunity to bond and grow as a team. Teams with great chemistry win championships. 

Repetition - Great practice makes great players, and great players make great teams. The more we practice, the more we sharpen and develop our skills that prepare us for challenging games ahead.

Knowing Who You Are On and Off The Court - Perhaps the most important lesson I have learned is that basketball demands that you know who you are, whether on the court or off.  We play the game of basketball and strive to do our best, but basketball does not define us – we define it.  If we maintain this perspective, we are free to excel, not just in basketball, but also in all walks of life. 

-- Bri

Spirit animals

Hey Stanford Fans!

Y’all get to see us play every week but how much do you really know about us off the court?! Well… what better way to get to know us than to know which spirit animal each of us most resembles!

Alanna- a wombat! (small animal native to Australia). Alanna is a wombat because she is soft, cuddly, adorable, and…. Australian!
Alexa- a sea turtle! They’re laid back, go with the flow, and love to travel!
Marta- a poodle. Confident, proud, and spoiled.
Shannon- a giraffe! Tall and cute!
Britt- an elk. Very competitive with great endurance. Also a high sense of integrity.
Kaylee- a lioness! Because she’s always fierce, whether it’s the way she acts, looks, hoops, or any other aspect of life.
Bird- an elephant. Wise and peaceful but still enjoys having fun.
Bri- a dog! Loving, playful, and VERY loyal.
Kailee- a wolf. There’s no doubt KJ has her packs back!
Karlie- a cheetah. Marvelous, fast, and smooth!
Lili- a bear. Symbolic for strength and courage. Has strong grounding forces and provides stable leadership.
Alex- a sloth. She thinks for herself, moves at her own pace, and just likes to hang out and do her own thing.
Kiran- a deer. Calm, peaceful, and wise.
Tess- a raccoon. Crafty, smart, and willing to eat anything in sight. Also, as long as they are unbothered, they mind their own business and stay under the radar.

Hope that gives you guys some insight into who we really are!

— Kiran

Coffee Club

As a freshman, I didn’t really know what to expect for when we would travel to our away games. For example, where would we eat? Would we have time to see the city we were playing in?

I was imagining our road trips to be like the road trips I would go on during my AAU tournaments…lots of free time, shopping, seeing the iconic places the city I was in had to offer, etc. I love traveling and road trips were especially fun!

However, in college, I quickly realized that road trips for away games were very different. Traveling during season and in the midst of school barely left any free time to do anything. Between practices, watching film, team dinners, shoot-arounds, and of course lots and lots of homework, there was always something to be done at the hotel.

But as someone who loves to travel, I still wanted to experience some aspect and get somewhat of a feel of city we were staying in. That’s when I learned about Coffee Club.

Coffee Club, established by previous Stanford Women Basketballers, is a group open to anyone who wants to join. Every morning on road trips, Coffee Club meets in the hotel lobby before breakfast. Tess Picknell, Coffee Club’s president, searches for local and unique coffee shops to go to, and then whoever shows up for Coffee Club that morning; we all walk together to that coffee shop.

Consistent members of Coffee Club are myself, Tess, Bird, Hanna (our video coordinator), Kaitlin (our athletic trainer), John (our communications director), and Mary (our intern).

Coffee Club is such an awesome group. It gives me and everyone else an opportunity to explore and experience the city a little bit when time permits us not to.

Coffee Club gets me up early and has me feeling productive. It’s a great start to my day! Not to mention, talking with Coffee Club members over warm pastries and delicious cappuccinos unique to each city never fails to put a smile on my face…also Bird always seems to have a funny story to tell.

It’s a great bonding experience. I even remember one time a coffee shop in Spokane had board games, so we all gathered around a table and started playing Scrabble! It was so much fun!

Hopefully Coffee Club will continue in the upcoming year. Who knows… maybe after Tess graduates, I will become the next Coffee Club President?

— Alexa