home

College Coaches please click here for the latest Gulf Coast Eagles Roster and their Basketball Resumes

The Eagles Fly on the campus of UNC!

July 5 Update 2 - all Players please bring all uniforms to orlando.

Hi Parents, Please note that due to the changes on the teams, we have reassigned houses. Below is also the rooming assignments for the girls and directions to the houses.

House 1 - Hollywood House - 2767 Lido Key Drive, Emerald Island, Kissimmee, FL 34747

1 King (2) - Julianna, Laura
1 King (2) - Sam Feig, Grayson
1 Queen (1) - Laura Wallace
1 Queen (2) -, Connie D., Caylee
2 Twins (2) - Coach Kelly, Coach Jess
2 Twins (2) - Taylor, Felice
2 Twins 1 Full (4) - Mallory, Tylar, Erika, Liz

House 2 - Healy House - 8581 La Isla Drive, Emerald Island, Kissimmee, FL 34747
1 King (2) - Sam Hugan, Dakota
1 King (2) - Savannah R, Michelle
1 King (2) - Hannah, Savannah Foreman
1 Queen (1) - Coach Tom
1 Queen (1) - Jamie then Jennifer
4 Twins (4) - Andie, Rachel, Sidnie, Sara Denny
1 Queen (2) - Sophie, Erica

Directions from Interstate 4 to: 8581 La Isla Drive, Emerald Island, Kissimmee, FL 34747

Take I-4 to exit 64B (Hwy 192 West) Go West on Hwy 192 to the first traffic light after Marker #5. There is a Taco Bell and a Red Lobster on the left corner and a Walgreen’s on the right.

Turn left onto Formosa Gardens Blvd. (There is a Winn Dixie Super market in the plaza on the right. A better market, Publix, can be found 2 miles further down 192 on the right. Proceed to the 4 way stop. Turn right onto Funie Steed Boulevard. There will be a white wall on your right. Drive .5 miles to Emerald Island. You can’t miss the huge entrance on the left. Turn left. (Note: The tennis courts are located on the road to the left.)

Proceed to the gate.Tell the guard that you are staying at 8581 La Isla Drive and your departure date. If you arrive between 8 AM and 10 PM he will direct you to the club house, where the Emerald Island Concierge will provide you with a parking pass. If you arrive after hours he will take down your license plate info and give you a day pass for your car. You will need to stop at the club house the next day to register. (Note: Be sure to take this pass down from your mirror when you are neither on Disney property nor at Emerald Island. It is a sure sign to those “in the know” that you are a tourist. Especially true in the shopping mall parking lots.)

Take the Second Right on the round about onto Emerald Island Boulevard. Go all the way (approximately 3/4 mile) to the stop sign and turn right onto La Isla Drive. 8581 La Isla Drive is the third house on the left and is the tan house with white corner stones.

Directions to: 2767 Lido Key Drive, Emerald Island Resort, Kissimmee, FL 34747

Same as above until Gate. Take the first right on the round about onto Secret Key Cove. Take the next right onto La Isla. Take the first right onto La Isla. Take the first right onto Lido Key Drive. 2767 is about ½ mile on the right- a brown house.

July 5th Update

Parents and Players - I am very excited about our Showcase and National Tournament over the next two weeks. This is the youngest group we have ever taken to Nationals in recent times, based on the AAU age groupings we have 3 Juniors, 8 Sophomores, 9 Freshman, 3 Eight Graders and 1 Seventh Grader. With most players playing up, this will be a fabulous experience for our younger players. The Blue Team is playing 16u Division 1 (3 juniors-4 sophmores- 1 freshman), the White Team is playing 15u Division 1 (4 sophomores, 3 freshman, 1 8th grader), Red Team is 15U Division 2 (5 freshman, 2 8th graders and a 7th grader).

As long as we play hard and listen to the coaches we will be fine. It will be a challenge for sure, but that's what will make us all better. So as we enter this week, let's make sure we focus on playing hard, having fun and make this a fantastic experience. Winning is not measured by the score or our record this week, it is measure by us playing to our potential. Please remember this, most teams never get the opportunity to play at this level. Think of all the AAU teams in the 16u and 15u age group though out the country, there are only 112 teams in the combined 15u & 16u age groups. We are playing in a elite group. As a inspiration please read below the difference between Evolution - Competition

Evolution vs Competition

Here is this thing that makes life so interesting.

The theory of evolution claims that only the strong survive, maybe so.  But the theory of competition says just because they are strong doesn’t mean they can’t get their asses kicked.  That’s Right! See what every long-shot, come from behind underdog will tell you is this; the other guy may in fact be the favorite, the odds may be stacked against us, fair enough.  But what the odds don’t know is that this isn’t a math test.

This is a different kind of test.

One where passion triumphs logic.

So before they throw the ball up for the tipoff and the clock starts ticking, just remember that out here on the court the results don’t always add up, no matter what the stats may say and the experts may think.

When the game is on all bets are off. 

Don’t be surprised if one of us decides to flip the script and take a pass on saying uncle and then SUDDENLY as the old saying goes, we have ourselves a game!

Will your passion and determination flip the scrip for us?

Players - Please find links to some helpful information on our defense and offensive schemes.

out of bounds

defense

zone offensive principles

Eagle Review Items

Defense – Our Key to Success – Play like your hair is on fire!

Red – on the line up the line

Blue – intense pressure on ball, everyone else inside 17’ playing in help.  Hard recover when your player receives ball. 

Color 21 – trap on guard brining ball up once she turns her back or on the the first entry pass to the wing.  We will also trap in the corners when player turns back.

30 – 1-3-1 concept with player who would normally plays underneath in the zone facing guarding designated player.  Face guarding player must deny ball to designated player

12 – half court 1-2-2 zone press – review on Thursday morning

25 – 2 -1-2 –  half court trap with middle player chasing on the traps.  Review Thursday morning.

Offense

Fist – dribble drive.  Attack, attack, attack.  Looking for layups, free throws, three pointers.

Fist Z – Dribble Drive Zone attack – pass, cut from top ball side and replace.  Always cut away from ball after initial UCLA cut.  Away, man post principles, Stay – post follows ball and cutters cut away to corners. 

45 – 1-4 low setup.  Ball screening the guard with the ball side player lined up on block.  Opposite post player setting down screen  for off ball wing player to curl or pop.

40 – straight up 4 down with guard penetration and post player ball side vacating to set screen for opposite post.

41 – flex offense

49 – 1-4 set up with a flex cut & screen setup, then transition directly into flex principles.  Spacing-spacing-spacing

Buster – zone play with a one three one offense setup. 

45Z – 1-4 setup.  Post player pin low zone players in, then guard at top throws ball into the corner.  Opposite post goes to free throw line extended playing a hi-low game, initial guard makes themselves available for easy outlet pass and skip.  On the rotation, post players criss-cross with low player having option to locate into the short corner.  Review Thursday.

July 4th Update - Happy 4th of July to Everyone!

Here are the rosters for the Showcase and Nationals:

Blue - Juliana, Tylar, Liz, Taylor, Erika, Mallory, Laura, Grayson

White -Connie, Sam H., Sam F., Felice, Dakota, Erica D., Sophie, Caylee

Red - Michelle, Savanna Rains, Savannah Foreman, Hannah, Sidnie Sharp, Andie, Rachel, Sara

FYI - We will practice in Orlando Thursday Morning about 9:00am in Altamonte Springs. We will do a review and get players who missed boot camp up to speed. Practice will be a hour and half or so. I will work with parents on getting everyone there. We should plan to eat about 11:00am or so, and then kick off 8 days of hoops!

The Goal, be playing somewhere on Thursday the 15th! Have a Great & Safe 4th celebration. tk

July 1st Update

From - Jennifer Euler

Hello everybody.  The car assignments are complete.  I have tried to assign based on where you live to make things easy on the drivers.  I would ask that each girl make contact with your driver to find a mutually acceptable spot for pick up.  Remember, the drivers are helping you and it would be very appreciative if you accommodate them.  Bart and Julie - I need your telephone numbers to add to this list, please.

I will have the addresses for the house tomorrow or friday. 

Drivers - you may leave anytime on the 7th that works will your schedule.  I believe check-in for the houses is after 3:00 p.m.  The teams will be required to be at the Milkhouse at 1:30 on Thursday.  The older girls can split up to support the younger girls at their games at 2:30 and then the younger girls will support the older teams at their game.  After that, it will be hit or miss.

The girls need to bring money for Thursday night for dinner.  It will be up to drivers based on time they leave for dinner on the road or pizza ordered at the houses.

Car Assignments:

Pam Thomas 239-404-0749

      Sam Hugan, Savannah Foreman, Sam Feig

Mindy DiPietro 239-287-1030

      Sophie DiPietro, Erica Dominguez, Grayson Pinholster

Mary DelNegro 239-822-3763

     Hannah, Felice, Sidnie

Jamie Mosbach 239-289-5504

      Rachel, Andie

Joni Norton 239-691-5554

      Liz Norton, Ericka M., Mallory, Taylor

Laura Wallace 941-780-2731

      Caylee, Tylar, Laura Hackett

Julieth Gonzalez

      Michelle, Dakota

Bart Raines

      Savannah R.

Tom Dean  239-896-7027

      Connie Dean

June 30th Update #2

I apologize if anyone got overly excited about my question of moving Boot Camp, it was merely a question trying to help everyone involved. Ok, here is the schedule for the weekend, everything is the same except Saturday morning, we will start at 10am and end at noon!

Friday - July 2 - Estero High School

10:00am to 12:00pm

3:00pm to 5pm

7pm to 9pm

Saturday July 3 - Estero High School

10am to 12pm

I have heard from Tylar, Laura and Caylee about staying Friday night. Tylar and Laura will stay with Erica Dominguez. Caylee is staying with Sophie. During the down times at boot camp you will be able to go home and relax, eat and get your feet up.

Here is the complete schedule for the Showcase of bracket play:

Blue Team - Thursday 4pm, Friday 10am & 2:30pm and then a bracket game Friday night.

White Team -Thursday 2:30pm, Friday at 8:30am & 5:30pm. Bracket play is all on Saturday.

Red Team - Thursday 2:30pm, Friday 8:30am & 5:30pm. Bracket play is all on Saturday.

With the schedule we have received, coaches will check in the teams Thursday morning. Players do not need to be at check-in. All players need to be at the houses by Thursday at noon, so if anyone wants to wait til Thursday to head up to Orlando, that is ok with the coaches. We will have team meetings of all teams Thursday at noon at the houses. Coaches probably will not be there til late Wednesday night or early Thursday morning.

If you are not leaving with the group on Wednesday please let Jennifer Euler know.

June 30th - Update

Showcase Schedule are out - Blue plays at 4pm on Thursday, Red & White play at 2:30pm. I will hand out schedules at Boot Camp.

Dear Parents,

Jennifer and I have been working on meal planning and supplies for the team houses.

We have estimated that we can provide food for all of the girls and coaches at a very low cost of $10 per day for a total of $70 for the week.

Please place a check, in the amount of $70, in an envelope addressed to Pam Thomas, and send it with your daughter to boot camp this week.

Additionally, there are staples and supplies that each house needs. To prevent redundancy or a lack of items, I have assigned each family items to bring. If you are not arriving on 7/7, please send these items to boot camp as well. I've tried to keep the amounts at $20 or less.

All parents are responsible for sending drinks to Orlando for their player...ie case of Water, Gatorade, vitamin drinks,etc.

Mallory Motyka----Mac and Cheese

Grayson----Ziti

Andie W--Lasagna

Staples

Please confirm with me that you have received this email. pthomas4@comcast.net

Pam

June 28 - Update

Parents,

Good evening. Below is the house assignment and information regarding driving. I do not have the address of the houses but I can tell you who will be assigned to each house. Pam Thomas will be sending out an email regarding what each family will be required to donate for the trip. That list will be out the first of the week.

House One:

Coach Kelly
Coach Jess
Laura Wallace
Julianna
Laura
Taylor
Mallory
Liz
Tylar
Ericka M.
Caylee
Hannah
Michelle G.
Sidnie
Savannah R

House Two:

Tom Kane

Jamie Mosbach/Jennifer Euler

Connie
Erica D.
Sam Feig
Sam Hugan
Grayson
Felice
Dakota
Sophie
Savannah F.
Rachel M.
Andie W.

Also, regarding driving, we have 17 spots with parents going up. That leaves 5 spots open so it looks like we are going to have to rent a van. However, not all parents have responded to my emails. Therefore, if you need a ride, please let me know - even if you have already sent me an earlier email - do it again so I can get a final count. If I do NOT hear from you, I will take that you do NOT need a ride.

Drivers right now are:

Pam Thomas has space for 2 girls
Mindy DiPietro has room for 4 girls
Mary DelNegro has room for 2 girl
Jamie Mosbach has room for 1 girl
Joni Norton has room for 6 girls
Laura Wallace has room for 2 girls

Pam, Mindy, and Jamie are in Naples and I believe Mary and Joni are in Ft. Myers, and Laura is in Sarasota. We will make meeting spots for the girls needing a ride depending on where they live.

Cooking assignments will be in a separate email.

Jennifer

my email: jedster1720@embarqmail.com

my phone: 239-290-2349

June 22 - Update

Boot Camp Agenda- Ladies and parents, AAU Showcase and Nationals is just around the corner. The purpose of our Boot Camp is to get everyone prepared to show their best during the NCAA Viewing period. I have had a number of college coaches contacting me and plan to watch our games in Orlando. So we need to make sure we are ready to go. We are assuming that you have been working out on your own or with your high school team and you are physically prepared, boot camp will give us a chance to go over our offensive and defensive strategies. Along with scrimmaging a little with some of our previous players.

Our schedule for the two days is below:

Friday - July 2 - Estero High School

10:00am to 12:30pm

3:00pm to 5pm

7pm to 9pm

Saturday July 3 - Estero High School

10am to 1pm

Ladies, we will NOT be putting you through conditioning drills over the two days, we will focus on our schemes both offensive and defensively. We will also do a lot of shooting during the four sessions. Saturday will be review and scrimmaging to get ready.

Ladies, please be physically ready to go, it looks like the Blue Team will have 7 players, Sadie Campbell is not going and I believe Carleigh Watts is out due to a knee injury. The White Team has 8 players and Red has 9 Players. Everyone will receive playing time and everyone must be ready to play! This is a GREAT opportunity for everyone!

June 14 - Update - USJN

So far, the following kids have expressed an interest in going to USJN:

1.    Landen Drake

2.    Erika McKenzie

3.    Laura Hackett

4.    Juliana Cavallaro

5.    Caylee Wallace

Based on only 5 players we will not go! Last chance! Please contact Coach Kelly today or tomorrow!

June 10 -Update - A Note from Jennifer Euler and our Volunteer Parents

Good evening ladies,

I have received various snippets of emails and I believe you have also asked or mentioned that you would be able to assist with the girls when they are in Orlando.

Right now, I am asking that each of you provide me with the following information please:

1.  Your name, telephone number;

2.  Who is your daughter and what team she is on; 3.  Where you will be staying or if you need a place to stay.  Pam was working with a few parents to stay at a house she rented; 4.  Length of time/days you will be in Orlando (i.e., I will be there from the evening of July 9-15); 5.  Whether or not you are willing to cook for the team; 6.  Whether or not you are willing to be a point of contact for the team your daughter is on; 7.  Whether or not you are able to be a driver to and from games on the days you are in Orlando;

From my experience, I believe it would be a good idea to make a list of all of the girls that are going to Orlando and give each family a required item or two to bring.  I do not want to worry about shopping unless it is necessary.  Some of the items I was considering for each house:

1.  Toilet Paper

2.  Paper Towels

3.  Dishwasher soap/Regular dish soap;

4.  First aide kit;

5.  Several casserole dishes that can be reheated - i.e., baked ziti, macaroni and cheese, fettucine alfredo;

6.  Bag of Chicken from Costco/Sams

7.  Bag of Hamburgers from Costco/Sams 8.  Box of hot dogs from Costco/Sams

9.  Fruit - grapes, bananas, apples, or whatever 10. Vegetables - probably in the form of salad with dressing and brocolli/cauliflower/carrots 11. Peanut Butter/Jelly 12. Rolls 13. Cases of Water 14. Chips 15. Trail Mix 16. Protein Bars 17. Cereal 18. Eggs/Bacon/Frozen pancakes 19. Condiments - Butter, Syrup, Salt, Pepper, Ketchup, Mustard, Mayonnaise 20. Sandwich meat/cheese 21. Garbage Bags 22. Windex/409 23. Juice 24. Gatorade and/or LoCal Sports Drink

We can bring a few empty coolers and fill them at the pick up point for the girls.  I think this will be a lot less stressful then trying to get money from each girl to contribute towards shopping not to mention shopping for 40 people does not thrill me.

I personally feel that if we try to have formal sit downs for meals, that could backfire because of timing with the games.  I think it we structure things so food can be reheated or cooked in batches would be best.  We will have a better idea about dinner time once the schedules are out.

Thoughts? Suggestions? Answers? Feel free to comment.  I am only here to help organize.

Jennifer

June 9 - Update

Money Due List - Thank You,.this list is now very short. Still waiting on Carleigh Watts, Sam Feig, Landon Drake, Laura Hackett.

AAU Dates- folks, a number of you have asked the dates for Nationals, please see below

- AAU National Showcase July 8-10, AAU National Championship - July 10 -15

All information on Nationals is at http://aaugirlsbasketball.org/Events/2010NationalChampionship.aspx

Nationals Lodging and Transportation - we have a roster of 25 players for nationals. Based on the houses we secured through Jennifer Euler, we will be able to fit all the girls into two houses. Now, as far as transportation we need to figure out how we are getting these 25 student/athletes to Orlando and then how we are getting them from the houses to Disney everyday. Last year with one team we rented two vans, we can rent vans again this year, but of course that is additional expense to all families. Just checking websites, the cost of a van for that period of time is about $700. Based on what we know of who might going we would need 2 vans. That's about $60 per player.

So here is the help we need, I need a volunteer who will coordinate transportation to Orlando and back and forth to games. Once we have that person, we will need to know who is going to Orlando and who can help us with transportation.

All Players need to be in Orlando on July 7th. If anyone will not be there on July 7th, we need to know asap. If we don't hear from you we will expect you there.

Food Budget

In addition, we are working on a food budget for the 11 days. I would estimate $200 per player, that would be for all meals cooked at the houses. That money will be due at Boot Camp, July 2.

USJN's

We have a few players that indicated that they would like to attend Junior Nationals. Ok, the date for Junior Nationals is 7/22 to 7/25. The cost for the players that went last was $709 per player. If you would like to go, YOU MUST email Coach Kelly by Friday June 11th, . her email address is KellyStu@LeeSchools.net.

Coach needs to know by this weekend or she is booking another trip. If you would like to attend, you would need to send $164.28 asap to us to pay the entry fee. The $164.28 is based on 7 players attending.

Boot Camp

Final item, need some volunteers in Fort Myers or Naples to house the Sarasota players for one or two nights during Boot Camp. Boot Camp is Friday July 2 and Saturday July 3. We will have two practices per day. Please email me if you can house some players.

We expect all players to be at Boot Camp! Boot Camp is very important! During this time we will be going over all offenses and defenses and preparing for Nationals. Remember why you are going to nationals, if you go out on the floor and don't know what your doing, it will show! If for some reason you will not be at Boot Camp, please let us know.

June 6 - Update

House and Nationals -Money Due List! Below are the folks that we are still waiting on funds from:

Sadie Campbell, Erika McKenzie, Carleigh Watts, Laura Hackett, Tylar Tracy, Landon Drake, Felice Rismay, Sam Feig, Dakata Waugh.

Folks, PLEASE! If we don't hear from you by Wednesday June 9th we will consider you "Not Going" to Nationals! I must send money on the 10th!

Parents - We have four parents that are working diligently trying to coordinate the 8 days in Orlando. We need parent help and support for chaperoning and cooking at the houses. If you plan to go to Nationals please let Alicia Motycka know at motors4@embarqmail.com. Alicia will be working with Jennifer Euler, Pam Thomas And Laura Wallace on the coordination. Also, if you are going and want to share accommodations please let us know. Laura Wallace has volunteered to stay at one of the houses, we need parents to sign up to chaperon the house as well.

A Sad Day - tribute to John Wooden

Coach Wooden on Leadership

Coach Wooden Shares His Insights on Leadership

Here are some snippets from Coach Wooden's excellent book called

Wooden on Leadership.

LEADERS MUST CONTINUOUSLY LEARN

I believe leadership itself is largely learned. Certainly not everyone can lead nor is every leader destined for glory, but most of us have a potential far beyond what we think possible.

Those who aspire to be leaders can do it; those who wish to become much better leaders can also do it. I know, because this has been true in my own life. Whatever coaching and leadership skills I possess were learned through listening, observation, study, and then trial and error along the way.

In my opinion, this is how most leaders improve and progress. For me, the process of learning leadership continued for 40 years until the day I walked off the court for the last time as head coach - March 31, 1975 - following UCLA's tenth national championship. In truth, my learning continued even after that. (Pages 4-5)

PARENTING IS THE BEST MODEL OF LEADERSHIP

At some point, later than I'd care to admit, it became clear to me that the most productive model for good leadership is a good parent. A coach, teacher, and leader, in my view, are all basic variations of being a parent. And while parenting is the most important job in the world, leadership isn't far behind. I revere the opportunity and obligation it confers, namely, the power to change lives and make a difference. For me, leadership is a sacred trust.

A leader in sports, business, or any other field of endeavor should possess and provide the same qualities inherent in a good parent: character, consistency, dependability, accountability, knowledge, good judgment, selflessness, respect, courage, discipline, fairness, and structure.

And while all these will make you a good leader, they will not make you a great leader. For that one additional quality - perhaps the most important of all - is necessary. Although it may sound of the place in the rough-and-tumble context of sports or corporate competition, I believe you must have love in your hear for the people under your leadership. I did. (80)

LEADERS DEMAND ATTENTION TO DETAILS

There was no single big thing that made our UCLA basketball teams effective, not the press or the fast break, not size, not condition - no single big thing. Instead, it was hundreds of small things done the right way, and done consistently.

A leader must identify each of the many details that are most pivotal to team success and then establish, and teach, a high standard of behavior or performance in executing those details. How you - the leader - define "average" is how your team will define it. Some leaders define average as average; some define average as being significantly above average.

It is easy to be lazy when it comes to details. Laziness is a euphemism for sloppiness, and sloppiness precludes any organization from achieving competitive greatness and success. Your ability as leader to set and achieve high standards in the domain or details - to insist that average will be well above average - is one of the accurate predictors of how effective you will be as a leader, and how productive those under your supervision will be as a team.

Once you recognize the connection between sweat socks and success, you have acquired one of the most valuable assets for effective leadership, namely, that little things, done well, make big things happen for you and your organization. (147)

LEADERSHIP IS GETTING THE MOST OUT OF YOUR AVAILABLE TALENT

You need talent on your team to prevail in the competitive arena. However, many leaders don't know how to win even when they have great talent in their organization. Furthermore, leaders are frequently forced to compete when the talent matchup isn't in their favor. What do you do then?

While a book can't replace talent, it can provide productive insights on how to get the most out of the talent you have available. And this, in my opinion, is the first goal of leadership - namely, getting the very best out of the people in your organization, whether they have talent to spare or are spare on talent.

Your ability to bring forth - maximize - the potential and abilities of those under your leadership marks you as a great competitor and leader. Some years, the teams I taught were blessed with significant talent. Other years, this was not the case. But in all years - with all levels of talent - my goal was the same, namely, to get the most out of what we had. (289-290)

June 1st Update

Blue Team

We have a opportunity to scrimmage against Community School, they are looking to scrimmage our Blue Team at their place next Wednesday night. Ladies please email as to your availability. We are working on scrimmages for our teams as well.

Payments Due - Please find below the folks that still need to send in their payment for housing and tournament fee:

Sadie Campbell, Erika Mckenzie, Carleigh Watts, Laura Hackett, Tylar Tracy, Landen Drake, Felice Rismay, Sam Feig, Sophie Dipetro, Sam Hugan, Liz Norton, Savannah Foreman, Dakota Waugh, Savanna Raines, Connie Dean. We need your money this week.

We have a few players very interested in joining our teams and we will be speaking with them next week. We need to round out our rosters as we have lost a few players to injury & academics.

Reminder - $227.89 balance for house rental & AAU Showcase is due Tuesday June 1st! So far I have received funds from Mallory Motycka, Michelle Gonzalez, Erica Dominguez, Grayson Pinholster, Sidnie Sharp, Juliana Cavallaro! Thank you to those who have sent their money in, I really appreciate it!

I need to send the balance due in for the houses or we lose them. The deadline to register and pay for the Showcases is upon us, PLEASE take care of this today!

Parents interested in going to Nationals - Please contact Alicia Motycka at motors4@embarqmail.com.

Pam Thomas asked me to post this message as well: I am looking to share housing with another family during Nationals. I will have 3 in my party (myself, and 2 kids 14 and 10). I have found a couple of places. which would allow either 3 more, or 5 more. The cost per night would be around 17 pp per night for the 6 person, and less for the 8 person. Full kitchen. Resort activities.
Please contact Pam at pthomas4@comcast.net.

Final Three Items Today -

1. I am assuming that since no players or parents have gotten back to us that no one is interested in going to USJN in Washington DC. We had requested anyone interested email me by May 15th. If anyone is interested we need to know asap.

2. If you have received letters from any colleges or universities please let us know. We will be emailing coaches in the next week informing them where we will be playing in July. We want to make sure we contact anyone interested in you.

3. Please send us your summer schedule. We are trying to arrange a few scrimmages in June which will have some college coaches in attendance. A number of coaches have called and requested to watch a few of our players in this type of setting. So please let us know your practice dates and team camp dates.

May 19 Update - Beach Bash Tournament Cancelled - Important info for Nationals.

Unfortunately our Beach Bash Memorial Weekend Tournament had to be cancelled due to a lack of team registrations. In speaking to a number of teams, budgets and finances are very tough at this time of the year. We are all sad as we really wanted this event to go off!

So ladies, our spring season is now completed. Now I hope all of you will go back to your high school teams better players!

A Special Thanks to Coach Kelly, Coach Jessica and Coach Amy for their volunteer hours in coaching, without them this program would not be possible!

Boot Camp - The Eagles will again get back together for our annual Boot Camp on the night of July 1, and then July 2nd & 3rd. We will publish a complete agenda by June 15th. Our Boot Camp is an intense 2 and half days of practice to prepare us for our run at Nationals this summer. Remember, we will all be in Orlando July 7 through July 15. Boot camp will be held at Estero HS. For those from Sarasota area, we will work with the local players to find you a place to stay for the two nights so you will not need to travel. Boot camp schedule will be Thursday night July 1, 2 practices on Friday July 2, two practices on Saturday July 3. If you will not be able to make these practices we need to know asap!

Nationals House Payment - Important - for everyone attending Nationals, we must have your money in to me by June 1st as we must send the balance to the real estate agent. The balance due is $184.62, this includes a $500 deposit that must be given and will be returned when we vacate the home.. One we received that refund every player will receive their portion of the refund, which should be about $38.46.

Nationals Tournament Fee - Showcase Fee - Our Nationals Championship Tourn. fee is already paid as we saved $300 by paying before April 15. The Junior and Sophmore/Freshman Showcase that we are playing in prior to Nationals at Disney is $375 per team, which is a total of $43.27 per player. We must also have this money by June 1st as the registration deadline is just a few days after that date.

So the total we need from each player by June 1st is $227.89. Sidney Cohen, Jasmine Jumpp and Hannah DelNegro, your initial monies will go towards this amount. I will get with you three individually to give you the amounts owed.

Please send your payment to 8008 Sivon Way, Naples 34119! If you owe any additional monies, please, send those as well by June 1.

Please check website weekly! Also, if anyone is interested in additional training, we have our Nike Camp Overnight Camp at University of Tampa and our Point Guard - Perimeter Player Camp at Estero HS.. Both are outstanding camps and we will have college coaches at both.

Hope to see you soon!

May 10 -Update

Practice - Saturday 5/15 at Estero HS. 9am to 12pm! All Teams!

MAY 5 -Update - Schedule change

Please find below the newest pool play schedule for this weekend:

Blue Team - Friday 9:40pm - Court 11, Saturday 9am court 6, 1:15pm Court 11

White Team - Friday 8:15pm Court 5, Saturday 11:50am Court 8

Red Team -Friday 8:15pm court 6, Saturday 11:50am Court 12

I will still check in all teams Friday, I will also check-in hotel and get room keys for all players and coaches rooms. I will leave the hotel about 6:45 for Wide World of Sports Complex. If you are arriving after that time and will want to get in room first please email me tomorrow or early Friday for arrangments.

May 3 - Important Update

If you have a uniform without a number on front, please email me or call me today! tom@winwaysinc.com or 239-357-3020.

May 3 - Update

Hotel for this weekend:

Fairfield Inn & Suites Orlando Lake Buena Vista in the Marriott Village 8615 Vineland Avenue,
Orlando, Florida 32821 Phone: 1-407-938-9001 Fax: 1-407-938-9002

Transportation to Disney Complex - with all players having a ride to Orlando we are assuming then that everyone will have rides to the Disney Complex for the games. Coaches will be at the Disney Complex all day Saturday going from game to game, so we will rely on the parents to bring the players back and forth. Please let us know if you are bringing players but can't transport to and from Disney Complex.

May 2 -Update

Spring Fling Schedule

Red - Saturday 9:00am court 10, Saturday 2:40pm court 10

White - Friday 8:15pm court 5, Saturday 11:50am court 8

Blue - Saturday 9am court 9, Saturday 1:15pm court 11

After pool play then each team goes to bracket play single elimination. We need all White Team players at Disney Sports Complex by no later then 7:15pm. Blue and Red teams need to be at hotel by at least 10pm. Room assignments are below. We encourage Blue and Red to attend the White Teams Game Friday.

If you would like to download the pools and brackets here you go:

Blue and White's Schedule

Red's Schedule

Registration - Players DO NOT need to be at registration. I will register all teams Friday afternoon. I need to have a AAU registration cards and a copy of birth certificates for every player when I register the teams. I need the following players AAU cards or birth certificate, Felice Rismay birth certificate, Jasmine Jumpp AAU Card and Birth Certificate.

Very Important - Uniforms - I need Every Player to email me the number on your jersey and the color - light blue or dark blue. I need this by end of day Monday! email tom@winwaysinc.com.

Fordham Women's Basketball Camp - (from coaches at Fordham who saw us at Deep South) anyone interested in Fordham Univ. in New York City. they are offering a camp which takes place Saturday June 26th to Sunday, June 27th! It is a varsity level overnight camp consisting of 2 intense days of instruction from our experienced staff with 64 years of combined experience!

We especially encourage any player who has interest in Fordham University and in our basketball program to attend the camp, which at $150, is very cost sensitive. It is a great way for us to get to know your kids and for them to meet our players andexperience our coaching style...Not to mention seeour beautifulcampus in NYC and get the Fordham experience fortwo days!

On that note, our two signees from the 2010 class attended our camp last summer and then received scholarship offers from us because of the talent, character and work ethic they displayed in camp.

Please feel free to email or call me if you have questions. My cell # is 718-924-5172.

Thank you,

Nettie Respondek

Recruiting Coordinator, Fordham Women's Basketball, 441 East Fordham Rd. Bronx, NY10458

If interested talk to Coach tom first.

Final item - please review your payment balance below, I need everyone current by weeks end. If there is a problem and you will not be current please contact us asap.

May 1 - Update

Good Practice today ladies! Please keep working out by running sprints, core workout and working on ball handling and shooting. Work harder away from practice then you do at practice. Ask yourself this, will you be a contender or a pretender next weekend?

Ok, I went thru our finances and this is our expenses so far:

I have paid all the bills listed above except half of the hotel bill for this weekend. . Based on the checks I received today I am still waiting on $1.627.41! Please remember that if part of the money that you have collected was written to Fast Break to Success, 10% stays with the foundation and 90% is returned to you. Please find below the list of where everyone is at according to my accounting:

Mariah Dowdell - owes $158.94

Mallory Motycka - credit -$ .56

Sadie Campbell - credit - $62.56

Erika McKenzie - owes -$42.44

Taylor Kramer - credit - $62.96

Carleigh Watts - owes - $204.04

Juliana Cavallaro - credit -$132.96

Laura Hackett - owes -$192.04

Tylar Tracy -owes -$232.44

Landon Drake -owes -$22.44

Felice Rismay - owes - $76.94

Erica Dominguez - owes -$36.54

Sam Feig -credit $14.58

Grayson Pinholster - credit $63.46

Sophie Dipetro -owes $36.54

Sam Hugan - credit $92.56

Liz Norton - credit $108.55

Caylee Wallace - owes $36.04

Savannah Foreman - credit $107.96

Sidnie Sharp - owes $22.44

Dakota Waugh - owes $92.44

Michelle Gonzalez - $0

Savanna Raines -$168.90

Connie Dean - credit $59.00

Jasmine Jumpp - owes $230

If anyone has a different number, please let me know asap and we can compare numbers. Please, we need everyone to be current this week!

Spring Fling - I will post the schedule as soon as AAU post it on the website.

Please find below the rosters for spring fling and room assignments:

April 29 - Update 2

The training sessions held by Winning Ways this weekend had to be postponed due to circumstances outside our control. They will be rescheduled in June. We will still have practice Saturday morning 9am to 12pm!

April 29 - Update

Practice Schedule Change - Saturday 9am to 12pm All Teams! Sunday - No Practice!

Parents - if you are interested in staying at the Same hotel as Team for Spring Fling, please contact Alicia Motycka at motors4@embarqmail.com. Alicia has secured some excellent rates.

Spring Fling Rides - I have had one player email me asking for a ride to Orlando. Please let me know asap if you need a ride.

US Junior Nationals - July 20 -July 25 - This tournament was not on our schedule from the beginning but have had a few folks inquire about it. It is in Washington DC and we went last year. It is the week after Nationals is over. We need to know by May 15th who would want to attend this tournament. It is very similar to Deep South with a ton of college coaches. At this tournament there always seems to be a bunch of Florida Schools as well as a ton of schools from the Mid-Atlantic states. We will take one team and it will be coached by Kelly Stutz. Approximate cost $650 for everything. If interested please email us by May 15.

April 27 - Critical Update

Players and Parents - I need your help. We need your payments that were due April 10. We have 26 players and I have complete payment from 14. Here is the list of folks paid up to date:

Sadie Campbell, Mallory Motycka, Erika McKenzie, Taylor Kramer, Juliana Cavallaro, Landon Drake, Felice Rismay, Erica Dominguez, Grayson Pinholster, Sophie Dipetro, Maggie Bender, Caylee Wallace, Sidnie Sharp, Connie Dean

Folks, if you have given your daughter the check and your name is not listed please call me asap. Some girls have been giving me checks at practice, spring league games, North Carolina, it has been crazy and I could of missed one. Please in the future, put all checks in the mail:

Winning Ways, 8008 Sivon Way, Naples, Florida 34119

We need all monies ASAP! I have already paid for Spring Fling, Nationals, and had to send $1,000 to hold the houses!

Based on the $1,000 deposit for the houses, we have a total of 27 completely committed to Nationals and we should have two or three more players committments by next week. Please send to me a check for $37.04 (based on the 27 committed) to cover the house deposits. Please, send them timely as I have already fronted the money. If you would like to know your balance, please email me at tom@winwaysinc.com and I will give you exactly what I have for you. Please no phone calls. Some folks owe more then the $170 (April10 payment) and some owe less.

Thanks for your immediate attention to this!

April 23 - Update

Red Team - LeAira Talford has decided not to continue with the program. We are adding a few new players, Jasmine Jumpp plays the 4/5 position at Estero HS, Hanah DelNegro is a guard from Ida Baker HSand led her District in 3 point shooting, and Sidney Cohen from Gulf Coast HS who can play the 1, 2 or 3. We are still looking to add one or two more girls.

Thanks Alicia Motycka, Mallory's Mom for helping us with hotel in Orlando! Stay tuned to a new low rate for Spring Fling!

College Coaches Attention - Ladies and parents, I have received several emails and calls from college coaches requesting information on our players. These coaches saw our players in North Carolina. Congratulations ladies. As information comes in I will pass along to those individuals.

Additional Training Opportunity - Anyone interested in getting some extra training, one on one training is available from both Coach Kelly and myself. In addition, Alexa Kane will here from May 12 to May 31st. Alexa is currently coaching at University of Central Missouri and is responsible for guard/perimeter player development. Alexa handles off season individual workouts for the Jennies. Alexa will be available for individual and small group training during that time frame. This is a great opportunity to work directly with a coach at the next level. If interested please email Alexa at kane@ucmo.edu or email me at tom@winwaysinc.com.

Pictures- if anyone took pictures from North Carolina, Florida Southern or Think Pink - PLEASE pass them along so we can post them. We will also send out to newspapers and such. Thanks!

April 22 - Update

Practice Schedule - All teams will practice next Saturday May 1st from 9am to 12pm, Sunday May 2nd 3:30pm to 5:30pm. Red and White may have a week night practice at Cypress Lake HS, that will be announce later this week.

Roster Changes - there will be no roster changes from the Deep South! We are probably adding a few players to red and one player to white to get both squads up to the 10 players we originally planned to carry.

Ladies, many of you had a outstanding weekend at Deep South, some of us struggled throughout the weekend. If you go back to the first practices we had I told you that you would get exposure, and your game would get exposed! First thing to understand is that if you did not play up to your potential it is not the end of the world, especially if this was your first trip. Now, if you don't do something about it, now that it is a problem. The first thing is work on conditioning.

Clinics - Second thing, work on your skills. If any of you would like to attend any of the clinics this weekend or next weekend and are a little short on funds, please let me know, we can make it happen for you.

Spring Fling 2 - we are all registered for Spring Fling 2. We will be staying in a hotel and the info for parents is below. I need to know by email how many parents plan on attending. We would like to not have the expense of vans so if we have enough parents going we can not have that expense. Please email me at tom@winwaysinc.com. Ladies, if you will need a ride to Orlando and back please email me before Sunday.

Fairfield Inn & Suites Orlando Lake Buena Vista in the Marriott Village 8615 Vineland Avenue,
Orlando, Florida 32821 USA Phone: 1-407-938-9001 Fax: 1-407-938-9002

Cost per player based on the 26 we took to Deep South is $76.23 which includes two night stay, free continental breakfast and two coaches rooms. This amount will go down as we add players. Parents, there are still rooms available and you can call them directly to reserve your room. We will play Friday night, Saturday and hopefully Sunday.

April 19 - Training available

All Eagles Players receive 15% off these training opportunities:

Come improvement those critical skills this spring!

"Shoot Like a Pro" Shooting Camp - Saturday April 24

Mid-Range Jump Shot Clinic - Saturday April 24

Guard Perimeter Skills Clinic - Saturday April 24

Attacking the Rack Clinic - Saturday May 1

Post Camp - Be a Beast in the Paint - Saturday May 1

click here for more information on each session

April 13 Update #3 Important

Please make sure that you daughters have their medical insurance information with them. Also, please make sure that you give us emergency contact information, phone numbers etc. Attached is a easy form to complete and send along:

Driver's please collect this form from all players. If you would like to email to me that is fine as well. This is for your daughter's protection in case they are injured during the trip.

click here to download this form

Deep South Travel Form

Name_______________________________________
Age____________ Height__________ Weight_________ 
Street Address_________________________________________________
City____________________

Home Emergency Contact_____________________________ Phone_______________Cell_____________
Email______________________

Medical Insurance Carrier:______________________________

Policy Number______________________________

LIABILITY WAIVER: I hereby authorize the Director of Winning Ways of SWFLA, Inc. to act for me according to his/her best judgment in any emergency requiring medical attention. I hereby release, discharge and indemnify Winning Ways of SWFLA, Inc. staff, affiliated entities and their officers, agents and employees from and against any and all liability or causes of actions arising out of, or in connection with, my and/or my child's participation in the Deep South Tournament.

Parent's Signature: _____________________________Date:___________

Parent's Name:_________________________________

April 13 - Update- 2 - Note to Sarasota Parents and Drivers from Jennifer Euler.

Some of them are confusing the Exits. We are NOT meeting Sarasota parents at Clark Road, Exit 205. We ARE meeting parents and vans at Exit 207 Bee Ridge Road at 6:00 p.m. There is a McDonalds right off the Interstate at Bee Ridge Road.

April 13 - Update -

Reminder - we had a date of April 10 for the remaining payment of $170. I want to pay for Nationals today before leaving for NC. By paying now we are saving $300. We also need to send deposits for the houses in Orlando for Nationals. If you have not sent your payment in, please, send in to me asap. Thanks!

April 11 Update - Update

Captains - congratulations for being voted as the leaders of the Gulf Coast Eagles by your peers! We will meet with you briefly Thursday night when we arrive. Captains, please make sure that your players are organized at registration and the NCAA presentation Thursday evening.

Red - Sophie - Caylee

White - Landon - Grayson

Blue- Double T's - Tylar and Taylor

Important Info concerning trip

First let me say THANK YOU to Jennifer Euler for coordinating all the travel plans and THANK YOU to all the drivers.

With our return trip we have a scheduling issue! Three of our 5 drivers need to be back to work bright and early Monday morning. In addition, we have a few players that cannot miss school on Monday. With the Red and White teams having games at 1:50pm on Sunday, there is no way from them to leave at 4pm from Raleigh and drive straight through. Due to this scheduling issue, all teams must leave Sunday morning. The Blue team will play at either 8am or 9:20am, so everyone will leave immediately after that game. If a few vehicles that are full of Red and White Players might even leave first thing Sunday morning to get back to Florida at a reasonable time. If any parents have an issue with this plan you are welcome to give me a call, but this is out of our control. I will let the tournament director know today, so they make any provisions they need to do for the teams we would be playing.

Leaving information from Jennifer Euler

Good evening parents. We have finally completed the trip itenerary. All South Girls are required to be at the Enterprise Car Rental at 7191-1A Cypress Lake Drive, Ft Myers, FL 33907, (239) 466-8819 by 4:30 p.m. (this is a little earlier because the South driver is able to leave work at 3 now) (If you are a South Girl and need help getting to Enterprise, please call Jennifer Euler 239-290-2349ASAP to make arrangements for a ride.). We will meet the Sarasota drivers at Exit 207. All North Girls need to be at McDonald's by 6:00 p.m. It will take the South drivers approximately 1.5 hours to get to Sarasota from Enterprise. Therefore, Sarasota drivers, please plan on meeting the South drivers at the McDonalds at Exit 207 at 6:00 p.m.

***North and South Girls - Please tell Tom Kane or Jennifer Euler which location you will be at so we do not leave anybody behind***

We will continue our drive until we get to I-95. We will stop just North of Jacksonville. We will leave the hotel between 8:30-9:00 depending on what time we get to the hotel Wednesday night. Below is the route we plan to drive.

MapQuest
From: 38 Madison Dr, Naples, FL 34110-1322 US
To: 3908 Arrow Dr, Raleigh, NC 27612-4657 US

DRIVING DIRECTIONS
--------------------------------------------------
A) 38 Madison Dr, Naples, FL 34110-1322 US
--------------------------------------------------
1. Start out going EAST on MADISON DR toward EUCLID AVE. (go 0.4 miles)
2. Turn RIGHT onto LAKELAND AVE. (go 0.5 miles)
3. Turn LEFT onto IMMOKALEE RD/CR-846 E. (go 1.1 miles)

***At Exit 207 - Bee Ridge Road, we will meet up with the Sarasota vans and additional girls will transfer to other van***
4. Merge onto I-75 N via the ramp on the LEFT toward TAMPA. (go 241.4 miles)
5. Take the US-27 S exit, EXIT 354, toward US-301/OCALA/US-441/SILVER SPGS.. (go 0.4 miles)
6. Turn RIGHT onto US-27 S/FL-500 S. Continue to follow FL-500 S. (go 2.8 miles)
7. Turn LEFT onto US-301 N/US-441 N/NW PINE AVE/FL-200 N/FL-25 N. Continue to follow US-301 N. (go 80.1 miles)
8. Merge onto I-10 E via the ramp on the LEFT toward JACKSONVILLE. (go 12.9 miles)
9. Merge onto I-295 N via EXIT 356 toward INT'L AIRPORT/SAVANNAH. (go 15.0 miles)

***Once we get onto I-95 North, we will travel 13.3 miles to Exit 33 - International Airport Blvd - depart interstate to International Airport Blvd, travel 2.1 miles to Microtel - looks new online - $63/night + tax - 10 Rooms - FREE breakfast****

10. Merge onto I-95 N via EXIT 35B on the LEFT toward INT'L AIRPORT/SAVANNAH (Passing through GEORGIA and SOUTH CAROLINA, then crossing into NORTH CAROLINA). (go 412.3 miles)
11. Merge onto I-40 W via EXIT 81 toward RALEIGH. (go 27.0 miles)
12. Merge onto I-440 E via EXIT 301. (go 9.9 miles)
13. Merge onto GLENWOOD AVE/US-70 W/NC-50 N via EXIT 7B toward CRABTREE VALLEY/DURHAM. (go 0.6 miles)
14. Make a U-TURN onto GLENWOOD AVE/US-70 E/NC-50 S. (go 0.1 miles)
15. Turn RIGHT onto ARROW DR. (go 0.1 miles)
16. 3908 ARROW DR is on the LEFT. (go 0.0 miles)
--------------------------------------------------
B) 3908 Arrow Dr, Raleigh, NC 27612-4657 US - Courtyard Marriott - 919-782-6868
--------------------------------------------------
>> TOTAL ESTIMATED TIME: 12 hours 26 minutes | DISTANCE: 804.51 miles

Also, for the first time in years, two of the teams have the potential to play late on Sunday afternoon. After much discussion and careful thought, we have decided it best to forfeit this game and leave immediately after the Blue team plays on Sunday morning. Three of the drivers must be back for work on Monday and several of the girls have AP testing on Monday. By both teams forfeiting it allows the remaining teams to play each other so we have not cause harm to another team by not showing up to the last game. We appreciate your support and understanding for this tough decision.

Drivers are as follows:

Tom Dean - 239-896-7027

Stan DiPietro - 239-287-3630

Jennifer Euler - 239-290-2349

Dawn Tracy - 941-232-1352

Laura Wallace - 941-780-2731

Car Assignment -

Dawn Tracy Vehicle - Tylar, Juliana (or Julian), Laura, Mariah, Carleigh

Laura/Dave Wallace - Caylee, Savannah R., Sam F., Sidnie S., LeAira

Jennifer Euler - Erica D., Maggie Bender, Sam Hugan, Grayson P., Dakota

Stan DiPietro - Sophie, Savannah F., Sadie, Felice, Liz Norton

Tom Dean - Mallory, Taylor, Jessica, Landen, Erika, Connie

If there are any issues or swapping of vehicles it can be done after you are on the road. Carleigh, LeAira and Sidnie will need to cram into the 3 cars leaving Fort Myers and then more once in Sarasota unless there is a parent that can take them in separate vehicle to Sarasota. Please let us know if anyone is available to do that.

Each girl is required to stay in contact with their assigned driver so they can get to games, food, room, etc., and in case of emergency.

If parents would like to donate snacks for the ride and water, please call Jennifer Euler. She will keep track of the donated items for each car.

April 9 Update #2

The schedules for Deep South are out and you can click on the links below to view each teams. When you look at the brackets they are set up a little different then what you may be use to looking at. The most important game is the first game, it determines if you are in winners bracket or losers bracket. Once you are in a bracket you stay there. The Blue Team is playing in the 16u Signature Bracket B, both the Red and White Teams are in the 15u National Bracket A.

As you will see the Blue Team will play on Friday at 10:20am against a Prince William Virginians at Fetzer Gym at UNC. White and Red's first game is 6:30pm Friday, White plays Georgia Power Shock at Carmicheal Auditorium (where MJ played my favorite facility) and Red plays North Carolina Angels Elite at Dean Smith Center at UNC.

So here ya go:

Blue Team Click here for bracket schedule

Blue Team Championship Bracket schedule click here

White & Red - click here for 15u Bracket Schedule

Let the fun begin!

April 9 - Update

Good practice last night Red & White! I think we have a better grasp on the offense, both fist and four down!

Transportation to Deep South

Ok, looks like we are set on transportation to Deep South. We have 19 players from Naples and Fort Myers and 7 from Sarasota area. We have 3 drivers from Naples/Fort Myers and 2 from Sarasota, so we need some help getting a few kids to Sarasota to ride in one of their vans. We are leaving on Wednesday and will return LATE Sunday evening. Jennifer Euler is heading up the transportation crew and they are determining what time everyone is leaving. No one should be out of school Wednesday. If you would like to contact Jennifer her email is Jennifer@heightstitle.com and cell number is 239-290-2349!

Budget - ok, we are down to 26 players going to Deep South. We have one player injured, and one player decided not to attend. As you may recall, the budget was based on 10 players per team, I think we will save some money with vans and of course the hotel money we didn't spend for last Saturday's tournament. The hotel rooms are a total of $112.61 per night, so the players have 7 rooms, the total for the 3 nights in NC is $2,364.81. We also have the one night on the road and the coaches rooms. we have collected $2,600. I did make one mistake on the budget, I did not account for the coaches rooms at deep south, the coaches are only using two rooms so hopefully we have enough from the van savings. Once we return I will do an accounting of all bills and report back to everyone. You can check my math as I was a PE major!

Practice tomorrow - BRING YOUR CLEAN UNIFORM! We will reissue uniforms with correct numbers at the end of practice and YOU will be responsible to bring it with you to NC.

Tournament Schedule - I know everyone is anxious to see schedule, when it is available I will posted here. Until then, please, don't call and ask, I do not know and have NO control over it. We will play one or two on Friday, two Saturday and one Sunday! Should be out early next week. Thanks!

For those traveling with us and folks that were with us last weekend. our coaching staff will be slammed all weekend. We have 15 games to manage and coach over three days, we'll be very busy. Whatever you can do to help us with managing the players in the off time would really be appraciated. We will have some written instructions for them. On Saturday we will have the girls pick two captains for each team. These players will be responsible to know schedules, what needs to be done when etc. So players, think about who you think the leaders are on your team.

AAU Nationals Update - Thanks to Jenn Euler we have found two houses to have the teams stay at during Nationals, They are both 7 bedroom houses. and sleep 15 each. click here to an example of one of the houses . This will save all families a significant amount of money. We are renting the house for about $2,400, significantly less then a hotel.

Disney Spring Fling - the date below is wrong, the correct date for spring fling is May 7-9. Thanks.

Deep South room assignments -

April 7 - Update

It's a sad day, college hoops is over! Great Tournaments, great comeback by UConn last night, they truly are special.

Ok, down to biz. Red and White practice is tomorrow at 6:30pm to 8:30pm at Cypress Lake HS, 6750 Panther Lane, Fort Myers, FL 33919. Get off 75 at Daniels and head west across 41. After 41 go about 3 to 4 miles, you will come across Panther Lane, make left, school is on the right.

Saturday Practice - Red & White - 1:30pm to 3:30 PM -Estero HS. (Sorry Sarasota crowd, gyms didn"t work up there). Blue practice 3:30pm to 6:00PM. Blue team, be stretched ready to go at 3:30pm. Blue will scrimmage some of the OLD Gulf Coast Players and maybe some special guests.

Uniforms - Ladies bring uniforms either tomorrow night or Saturday - CLEANED! We have specific numbers we need to have for Deep South as we have given them to the NCAA.

Deep South Stuff

Ok, I think we still need one driver! Once we have all the drivers we will work out a car situation, who is riding with who. My initial goal was to leave Wednesday and knock off a big part of the trip that night. Then Thursday arrive in Chapel Hill Thursday around lunch time or early afternoon. The trip driving is about 12 hours.I was hoping not to have the ladies in the vans for 12 hours, and then next morning play, but I leave the timing up to the parents. Coaches will be arriving early evening and we need to go to registration Thursday night. The girls also have a NCAA presentation that is mandatory. Please find below some specific information.

For those interested in who the 228 teams are that are playing, click here for a listing

For those who want to check-out the site and follow the results during the weekend click here

Hotel Information - Courtyard Crabtree, 3908 Arrow Dr, Raleigh, North Carolina,USA27612 Tel:919-782-6868

To make reservations through the tournament host agency call 877-543-7937 ask for Bryan Fujimoto or Mike Savit. Please tell them you are with the Winning Ways Gulf Coast Eagles. Our rate is $99 per night, 4 in room, includes a hot breakfast. We have reserved 15 rooms, the team and coaches need 10 rooms. I will hold the balance of the rooms for the drivers of the vans. If you are driving please let me know if you would like one of these rooms.

The Deep South is a very hectic weekend. We usually have a early morning game Friday, so we need to be rested. Each team will play two games Friday, two games Saturday and at least one game Sunday.

Team Registration Location:
Marriott Research Triangle Park
4700 Guardian Dr. Durham, NC 27703

NCAA Presentation & Coaches Certification Check-In
Thursday, April 15th 3pm-10pm. Make-up session: Friday 9am - 12 noon

Tournament games will be played at the locations show below. Please check the Schedules & Scores link to determine which location(s) your games will be played at.

4/6/10 -Quote

Hope you watched the Butler - Duke game last night! I think this quote that I received my daughter a few months back says it all:

Evolution vs. Competition- Here is this thing that makes life so interesting. The theory of evolution claims only the strong survive, maybe so, maybe so. But the theory of competition says just because they are strong doesn’t mean they can’t get their asses kicked. That’s right. See what every long-shot, come from behind underdog will tell you is this. The other guy may in fact be the favorite; the odds may be stacked against you, fair enough. But what the odds don’t know is that this isn’t a math test. This is a different kind of test. One where passion trumps logic. So before the whistle blows and the clock starts ticking. Just remember that out here the results don’t always add up.

No matter what the stats may say and the experts may think and the announcers may have predicted. When the race is on all bets are off.

Don’t be surprised if someone decided to flip the script and take a pass on saying uncle. And then suddenly as the old saying goes, we have ourselves a game. 

Go Stanford Cardinals! Make History tonight!

4/5/10 -Update - Bad News

Well unfortunately the news was not good for April Boomer from the Red Team, it was confirmed today that she does have a torn ACL and will need surgery. hopefully she will be back in the fall for her high school season. This takes the Red Team down to 8 players, so plenty of PT for everyone. Get tons of rest!

I did talk with April this morning and the first thing she told me was "Coach, you don't know how much you love the game until someone tells you, "You can't play". Ladies remember that everytime you step on the court! Keep April in your thoughts as you cross the line to play!

4/5/10 - Update

First Thanks Tom Dean for volunteering to drive! Looking for 2 more drivers!

Weekend Overview- I believe all the coaches agreed that we made progress this weekend. The Blue team played very well in the second game, but conditioning and mental toughness got the best of them in the third game.

White team played very well in the second game - so good that the scared the team that was to play them at 7:40pm and they didn't show up! :)

Red Team made significant strides throughout the day! We learned how to break a press, move the ball with less dribbles!

I think everyone can understand that the competition is a bigger, faster and stronger then what we are use to in SWFLA. It is only the beginning! I would recomend everyone is out running the courts. Don't go out a run 3 miles, go run 10 times up and down the court dribbling and imagining game circumstances. The shoot game shots, off the, dribble, then run the court again. Train like your in a game, not a cross country runner.

Red-White Team - we are having practice this Thursday at Cypress Lake High School from6:30pm to 8:30pm.

Blue-White-Red - we are planning practice Saturday! We are trying to get a gym in Sarasota to help offset our teammates up north. All teams will practice for a segment, then white and red will go and Blue will have a practice by themselves. Stay tuned for time and location.

Ladies -bring your clean uniforms to practice....all of them! Thanks,

Only 10 days to Deep South!

The difference between average teams and very good teams is that good teams do not surrender to fatigue.
Rick Pitino

4/3/10 - Need Parent Help!

Due to our coaches schedules and reducing time away from work we need a few more parents to step up and drive to North Carolina. Coach Amy, Coach Kelly, Coach Jess need to be in school on Thursday, I will be in Tampa Wednesday & Thursday working so we need your help. As a FYI, all coaches are paying their own airfare!

If we have 5 players in a van plus a driver we will need 6 van drivers. Right now we have:

Jennifer Euler, Stan DiPietro, David Wallace, Bart Rains (tentative)! If I forgot anyone please let me know. Looking for 2 to 3 more parents.

Parents, we are trying to do this with the least amount of intrusion into our coaches work schedules, please let me know asap if you can drive. Thanks!

4/2/10 - Update

1. Resume's are on website - click above to view!

2. For some great info on eating habits for a basketball athlete click here!

3. White and Red teams, please be at gym 1 hour before game, Blue be there no later then 8:25am!

"We use to practice in the gym at the high school; then, on the way home, we'd stop and play on the playgrounds until eight o'clock. I played when I was cold and my body was aching and I was so tired...and I don't know why, I just
kept playing and playing and playing."
Larry Bird

4/1/10 -

Players and Parents - Spring and Summer Basketball is all about players developing new skills and mastering acquired skills. This is not about wins and losses, it's about getting better, every week! To do this a couple of things are essential, Passion, Stamina, and Strength. In that order, without the first one the second is not attainable.

The reason for this note today was initiated by the lack of passion and stamina at practice today. We will never get strong as a individual players or as a team, unless the first two are there. Players, you need to look yourself in the mirror and ask yourself a question, are you doing the things away from team practice to make you successful this spring season.

Ladies and Parents, I have said from day one of tryouts, it's not what we as coaches do with your daughters, it's what your daughters do with what we give them. We as coaches have given you a wealth of information, drills and tips.

Teams, Blue-White-Red, we gave all of you a core workout with a ton of exercises, we said to do it minimum three times per week. Look yourself in the mirror and ask the question, are you doing the work consistently that is necessary to become stronger?

Teams, Blue-White-Red, we have given you 25 to 30 ball handling drills. Elite Players work on a group of them 4 to 6 times per week. Ladies, look yourself in the mirror and ask the question, are you doing the things necessary consistently to become a better ball handler, with both hands?

Ladies, it is a given that if you want to become an ELITE Player, you must keep yourself in the best possible shape. If you do not have the discipline to run 3 to 5 days a week, you need to look in the mirror and ask yourself, "Is this really my passion?". You do yourself more harm then good going to exposure tournaments and not being able to play at a fast pace for sustained periods of time. If you were a college coach and saw a player consistently not making extra effort plays, jogging down the floor in transition and looking exhausted? The only way to be an ELITE PLAYER is to be in top physical condition. That's YOUR responsibility.

Parents, just a word of advice from one who has raised three and having taken all of them through the athletic college recruiting process, if your daughter is not doing the discplines outline above, think seriously if this is money and time well spent. Ladies, it's easy to say you want to play in college, the hard part is doing all the work to get there. If you you do, make the Commitment Today to do all the work necessary to make yourself successful!

Ladies, let's start today developing the habits to be an ELITE PLAYER! We Believe in You! You Believe in YOU, and make your Goal an Accomplishment!

Discipline is the bridge between Goals and Accomplishments!

Coach Tom

3/31/10 - Update

White Team Game Change - White Team's last game on Saturday has been moved up to 7:40pm!

3/30/10 - Update - Lot's of Stuff

Schedule for this weekend

Blue Team -Court 2 Sat. 900 AM vs. Lakeland Cavs Elite, Court 2 SAT 340 PM DEBO ELITE, Court 2 SAT 620 PM VS Lady Clutch

White Team - Court 2 Sat. 1020AM vs. St. Augustine Wolves, Court 1 SAT 620 PM VS FGB 17U, Court 1 SAT 900 PM VS Osceola (trying to get this game moved to 7:40pm)

Red Team - Court 1 SAT 1140 AM VS Next Level, Court 3 SAT 220 PM VS FGB 15U, CT1 SAT 500 PM VS Lakeland Cavs.

Transportation - If you will need a ride please let us know before Thursday's practice. Please email Coach Tom. If you can take extra players, please let me know. email tom@winwaysinc.com

Food -Pack a cooler with GOOD food, sandwiches, fruit, drinks etc.

Deep South Transportation - We are looking for Van Drivers!

Parents, if you are going to Deep South and are willing to drive one of the vans we have reserved please let me know asap. So far I have Jen Euler and David Wallace. If you told me and I didn't remember (easy to happen) please remind me. We have reserved 7 vans so we need some assistance.

Player Resume's - I will start putting player resume's up on the website this week. Please get them to me asap.

Some Coaches Cell Phone Numbers

Coach Tom -239-357-3020

Coach Amy - 941-544-1756

Coach Kelly - 239-791-9797

3/29/10 - Update

Hope everyone had a fun weekend at University of Tampa! Thanks to you and all the other teams, we will again be making a sizable donation to several Cancer Foundations.

Ok, on to next weekend, the schedule will be out after 10pm Tuesday night, so look for it late Tuesday or early Wednesday. We are planning on having a practice this week, Thursday at 9am - noon at Estero High School. I believe all players but one are on Spring Break! All teams will be at practice. I think we would all agree we need more refinement on our offense and defensive schemes. Plus we will be installing a press, press breaker and a few other wrinkles.

We are changing the rosters up a little to help with playing time and balance of teams. Please fine the rosters below:

Blue Team - Coach Tom, Assisting Coach Amy & Coach Tina

Juliana, Tylar, Laura, Moriah, Liz, Mallory, Carleigh, Sadie, Taylor

White Team -Coach Amber, Assisting Coach Jess

Connie, Erika, Landen, Felice, Grayson, Sam F, Sam H, Maggie, Erica D

Red Team-Coach Kelly, Assisting -all of us!

Savannah, Savannah, Sidnie, Dakota, April, Sophie, Caylee, Michelle, LeAira

Practice - Thursday 4/1 - 9am to 12pm - Estero High School

3/24/10 - Update #2

Please pick up rooms keys and uniforms from coaches at Martinez Center. As the tournament website communicates, all teams (even ours) must go through the check-in process.

3/24/10 - Lot's of Info Today

Room Assignments for this weekend

Room 1 - Mallory, Sadie, Carleigh

Room 2 -Taylor, Erika M., Landon

Room 3 - Felice, Maggie, Grayson

Room 4 - Sophie, Sam F., Sam H., Savannah F.

Room 5 - Sidnie, Connie, Savannah R., Leaira

Room 6 - April, Erica D., Michelle, Liz N.

We have mix everyone up so we all get to know each other! Coach Tom will ahve the keys and will give them to a designate for each room. Parents, we will need your help monitoring the players activities. Please let us know what parents are staying at the hotel. Our Coaches will be in the gyms with our teams which all play at different times. Our suggestions to all players is to bring a cooler for your room stocked with drinks fruit and GOOD HEALTHY food. You will not find restaurants outside the hotel to walk to, so bring food for your room. There is a concession stand at the gym.

* All Players need to be at the Martinez Center at least 1 hour before your game time for check-in. We must have your AAU Card or you cannot play, NO EXCEPTIONS! We also Need your birth certificate and please also bring a copy of your report card for our files. You need all these items or you cannot play.

Team Schedules

Below are the first game schedules, the balance of the schedule and all other tournament info can be found by clicking here

Blue - 16u Pool A, Friday 7:15pm Martinez Court 2

White - 15u Pool A, Friday 8:30pm Martinez Court 3 - Coach Donnell will not be coaching the team due to a death in the family. We have a Junior College Coach that will be joining us this weekend and she plans to go to Deep South with us as well. Coach Amber Bisko is one of our Winning Ways Coaches who lives in Fort Lauderdale and is an outstanding young up and coming coach. Coach Bisko graduated for Nova Southeastern and was the MVP of her college team and made numerous visits to the NCAA Tournament!

Red -15u Pool B, Friday 8:30pm Tampa Prep Court 1

Meals - Since I will be tied up running the tournament, I am relying on coaches, parents and teammates to try and stick together and eat together. I would also appreciate if we could root for each other whenever possible. Remember, you now have about 30 teammates! Coaches will tell the players what time they are to meet for breakfast and such and when they are leaving hotel. The walk is not far from hotel, so if there are not enough cars to transport, we can walk to the games. Parking ion campus is at a premium.

Uniforms - everyone will receive their uniforms prior to first game. All uniforms are Blue and White, so please wear appropriate color sports bra's and other items.

April 3 - Tournament Update

The venue has changed for this event, it is now being held at Florida Southern University. We should be able to eliminate the hotel stay and drive up early. This will save us some money. Parents, if you haven't paid your balance yet and are doing so this weekend, the hotel costs for players and coaches will be credited towards our costs going forward. once that schedule is published we will determine travel arrangements.

If I forgot anything please just send me a email.

Reminder.....basketball resumes are due March 31st!

3/22/10 - Update

Here are the roster's for the next two weekends:

The schedule can be located by going back to the main page and clicking on "Think Pink" info and schedule link.

Orlando Trip - Please find below the hotel we will be staying out Friday 4/2/10. We have reserved rooms for coaches and players. If you would like to stay at same hotel please feel free to give the call.

Fairfield Inn & Suites Orlando International Drive

• 7495 Canada Avenue
• Orlando ,   FL   32819
• Phone: 1 407 351 7000

3/18/10 - Lost Ring

If anyone found a ring Sunday at Estero please let us know. Taylor Kramer lost her ring and it is quite valuable to her. Thanks

3/17/10 - Lot's of Important Stuff

1. AAU Cards - Everyone needs to go online and register with AAU for our tournament next weekend. here is the link http://www.aaugirlsbasketball.org/ . On right side you will see "Join AAU", just follow steps to join. Our club code is FLBW59DKB0. We need your AAU number on Saturday so we can register our team rosters Sunday. Please deduct the cost of the card from the budgeted total amount due.

2. Hotel for Think Pink - Howard Johnson's located just a block away from the gym. Our discounted rate is $79 per night. Please call Lisa Reilly at 813-223-1351. Rooms will be held through Sunday, Monday all rooms will be released.

3. To date we have received deposits from: Sadie Campbell, Jessica Montalvo, Sophie DiPietro, Savannah Foreman, Mallory Motycka, Sidnie Sharp, Caylee Wallace, Savanna Rains, Sam Hugan, Erica Dominguez, Connie Dean, Liz Norton, April Boomer, LeAira Talford, Grayson Pinholster. If I missed anyone please contact me asap. If it is possible to turn in the balance at Saturday's practice, that would really help us tremendously. At a minimum we need everyone's deposit Saturday so we know who is in and where are rosters sit. Please remember the balance of first payment is due March 24th.

4. Schedules for the Think Pink Tournament will be posted on the website under the Think Pink heading. Look for the schedule Monday night.

5. Rosters for Think Pink will be finalized on Sunday, look here on Sunday night for the rosters.

6. Please make sure you read yesterday's information as we have changed the practice schedule for this weekend. Uniforms will be given to the teams at the tournament. We will assign numbers at Saturday's practice. Girls that have been with the program will have first choice.

7. Room assignments will be posted here next week for the Think Pink Tournament.

8. Parents, we would like to NOT have to rent vans to transport the players to this event. We do not need travel together to the tournament. Please email Coach Tom, tom@winwaysinc.com ,if you can drive some players to the tournament. I will be leaving Naples very early to setup tournament so I will be unable to transport players.

9. Food - there are not a ton of places within walking distance of the hotel to eat. If parents are going and we can bring food in for the players that will go a long way to cut down your expense. Suggestions would be fruit, juices, water, gatorade, lunch meat, etc.

10. Shoes - If anyone is in the need of new shoes, Mallory and Sadie tried out the new Fila Numbers sneaker. We have a fantastic deal on these shoes through our affiliation with the Deep South Tournament. These shoes cost us $39 per pair which includes shipping. Both Mallory and Sadie felt the shoe was very comfortable and gave excellent support. If interested please let Coach Kane know and we will get a pair ordered for you.

11. Coaches - NCAA Registration - the link to certification is http://www.ncaa.org/wps/portal/ncaahome?WCM_GLOBAL_CONTEXT=/wps/wcm/connect/ncaa/NCAA/Sports+and+Championship/General+Information/Certified+Basketball+Events/policy_participant_approval

scroll down page to Application Process! Please give me the receipt and I will reimburse you for AAU registration and NCAA registration at practice.

3/16/10 Update - Important Change!

Due to some changes with the gym - we will only have a Saturday Practice, but it will be two sessions - 9:00am to 11:30am , then 1pm to 2:30pm. Pack a lunch and we will eat on campus. If this schedule change conflicts with your schedule please email Coach Tom at tom@winwaysinc.com.

Both Saturday Sessions will be at Estero High School!

No Practice Sunday!!!!!

3/13/10 -update

Sunday 3/14/10, practice is 2:30pm to 5pm.

We have developed a letter for all players to utilize for seeking donations and sponsors. To download load the letter click here .

Please find below a estimated budget

3/12/10 - Deep South Hotel Information

This is to confirm that we have received your room reservation for theWinning Ways Gulf Coast Eagels basketball team. Everything is in order and we are holding 15 rooms with two queen beds for the team at the Courtyard Crabtree, 3908 Arrow Dr, Raleigh,North Carolina,USA27612 Tel:919-782-6868 for arrival Thursday, April 15 for 3 nights at a rate of $99 per night plus tax. Confirmation numbers will be sent to you by mail or email about ten days prior to arrival. If you have any changes in the interim, please let us know as they occur. When contacting us for any reason, please refer to your team name and assigned number, #44.

We would appreciate your cooperation in checking with all families about their plans at least three weeks prior to arrival as a large volume of changes in the last two weeks will increase the chance of errors and slow our response time. Please send us individual reservation names and credit card numbers as early as you can. Additionally, to help minimize the possibility of an error, please send any changes that you have by email. When sending changes, please do not send an updated list; just send a list of the specific changes to be made by name. Finally, as you know from the information on your room reservation form, too many last minute changes may result in penalties

If you have any questions, please feel free to give us a call at 1.877.543.7937

Bryan Fujimoto & Mike Savit

3/9/10 - Tentative schedule

3/13 - practice Dunbar High School 8:30am to 11:30am

3/14 -practice Estero HS 2:30pm to 4:30pm

3/20 - practice Dunbar HS 8:30am to 11:30am

3/21 - practice Estero HS 2;30pm to 4:30pm

3/26 -3/28 - Think Pink Tournament - University of Tampa

4/3/10 -FGB One Day Tournament - Orlando

4/11/10 - practice Estero High School -2:30pm to 5:30pm

4/15 -4/18 - Deep South Classic Tournament - at UNC, Duke, NC State. Leave Thursday 4/15

5/1 - practice time & site tbd

5/8 - practice time & site tbd

5/14 -5/16 - AAU Spring Fling - Disney

5/28 - 5/30 - AAU Beach Bash - Fort Myers

AAU Nationals and Summer Showcase's, All in Orlando

• 15u Nationals – 7/10 – 7/15
• 16u Nationals – 7/10 – 7/15
• Freshman Showcase – 7/11 -7/13
• Sophomore Showcase – 7/8 – 7/10
• Junior Showcase – 7/8 – 7/10

3/8/10 Parent and Player Info

Good Evening! If you are receiving this email your are invited to be a part of the Winning Ways Gulf Coast Eagles for the 2010 Exposure Season. Again, our teams are focused on improving your game, making you the best high school player you can be and finally, preparing you to expose your talents to coaches at the next level.

Please find below our practice schedule which starts this week:

Saturday March 13 from 8:30am to 11:30am at Dunbar High School

Sunday March 14 from 2:30pm to 4:30pm at Estero High School

(we will follow a similar schedule next weekend as well, then we are off to some tournaments the following weekends)

At these practices we will hand out a schedule of practices and tournaments for the next month. In addition later this week, that same schedule will be listed on our website, www.winwayshoops.com. Please visit that site and you’ll see a section that will say Gulf Coast Eagles Updates, this is where all information can be found in reference to schedules, tournaments, sites, travel schedule and more.

I am very excited at the coaching staff we have assembled. We have 4 Female Coaches who all played and or coached at the college level helping us this year. They are:

Amy Mazner former college coach/player, high school coach and now a referee!

Tina Hadley Head Coach Lakewood Ranch HS and former college player!

Jess Vitale Head Coach Robinson HS and former college player!

Kelly Stutz Head Coach Cypress Lake HS and former College Head Coach!

We also have working with us:

Dwayne Donnell Head Coach Dunbar High School and his staff

Trevor Schneeberger Head Coach Seacrest High!

Please understand, we all will be working with each team. We plan to practice our three south teams together, they will run the same offense and defense. In our practices we will have time scheduled for player skill development as well as going over our schemes. The majority of our players this year are Sophomores and Freshman and we are very excited about that fact. All the coaches that we have assembled are focused on player development. We are all in this together to work with these young ladies to improve their skill level and help them in any way we can reach their basketball goals. None of the coaches make any money doing this, they are in it for the love of the game and they all love helping players improve.

As we discussed at the tryouts, the approximate cost for the full season will be around $1,500 to $1,800. That would include uniforms, transportation, meals, hotels and paying the coaches expenses. At this weekend’s practice, we need a check for $100 as a deposit from each player demonstrating your commitment to the program. Later this week on the website will be a budget which is based on 10 players per team. Please review that budget. At our practice session on Saturday starting at 11am, we will have a parents meeting to give a complete overview of the program, the costs, what is covered and what we need parental help with this season. We will also have that meeting again on Sunday at 4pm for any parents who cannot attend Saturday’s meeting. At this meeting we will start the conversation of fund raising and assist with some ideas.

Last item, some players who attended tryouts did not receive this email! We have offered this program to you and once we understand at practice this weekend who is committed and who is not, we will offer additional roster spots to those who did not receive the initial invitation. So please give this careful consideration as we need to know your intentions this weekend.

So, congratulations, we look forward to seeing you on Saturday and Sunday! Please visit the website later this week for more information.