June 12, 2007 • Colorado Springs, Colorado

The day started out okay with bright sunshine. But then the weather started getting rough (the tiny ship was tossed ... but we digress). Springtime in the Rockies, oh how we love thee. Cold, windy and rainy.

The weather outside didn't much matter once everyone stepped into the gym, got taped and started shooting. They could not care less what was going on outside. A lot of the players have competed for USA Basketball in the past and everyone was catching up while shooting around and waiting for the official start to practice.

Coach Joanne P. McCallie had a surprise in store for everyone to begin the session. They each had to do as many rotations jumping rope in two minutes and then follow that up (not immediately) with as many push-ups as possible. No time limit. Just keep doing ‘em until you drop. Max out. Then came some basic dribbling, ball-handling and other warm-up drills. And, finally, they got out onto the court for some five-on-five play.

At the end of practice, with everyone exhausted already, each player had to make a free throw or the whole group had to get on the line to run sprints. Well, mostly sprints. The coaching staff mixed it up a little bit and tossed in push-ups and sit-ups every now and again. After a long day of travel, getting settled into the hotel, racing over to practice and then competing at 6,200' for over two hours, let's just say that there was a lot of sprinting going on. But nobody complained. Players were staying positive with each other, even with those who missed several free throws and forced the rest to toe the line on more than one occasion. The final player, who shall remain nameless, finally hit on her fourth attempt and anyone watching would have thought a championship had just been won.

All-in-all, however, it was a productive practice. All but three of the 14 athletes had competed on a USA Basketball team in the past and knew each other's strengths so they began clicking right away. And the ‘newbies?' They fit right in.

But don't take our word for it ... check out the photo gallery and read what the players had to say...

Charel Allen, University of Notre Dame
What did you think about the first practice?
This is all new to me. We do push-ups at Notre Dame, but it's usually not ‘max out.' Today I only did 30, that's not good enough for me. And with the jumping rope, it's all about getting the rhythm, keeping it going and go with the flow.

How did you think the practice was overall?
We just have to get our legs going up and down, coming off the plane. We all got up early (to travel to Colorado Springs) and we just had to get our legs into the practice. The further into practice we were, we kept cheering each other on. And then at the end with the free throws, we continued to cheer each other on.

Do you feel you have to push yourself a little bit harder, not having played for USA Basketball before?
I would say a little bit, because most of these girls were here last year, they played on the U20 team, or they were here the year before on the U19 team. But they're very encouraging to me, even though I'm a newcomer I feel good playing with them.

Jolene Anderson, University of Wisconsin
What did you think about the first practice?
It definitely was difficult. We were all excited to come back and play together. But it was a tough challenge coming out and playing right away, only have an hour to prepare and then go through jump ropes and push-ups right away. But we've just got to push through. We'll come back better and ready tomorrow.

Did you just arrive in Colorado Springs?
Yes, and by the time I got to the hotel I only had an hour. So it's kind of like, unpack, lay on your bed for about15 minutes and go get ready.

Did you know what to expect today, having played for coach P on the 2006 USA U20 National Team?
Yeah, definitely. Especially playing against coach P in the Big Ten Conference. Now she's in the ACC, but I knew the type of coach she was and coach Dixon from last year, too. You kind of know what to expect, but you can't take anything for granted. You have to push yourself every day.

You had a few fans (members of Wisconsin's women's ice hockey team, who are in Colorado Springs for a USA Hockey training camp) out here tonight supporting you. Tell me about that.
(Laughs) They're from Wisconsin. You have to represent everybody from Wisconsin and support, congratulate everyone from Wisconsin, especially back-to-back national champions like them. They're great players, they're friends of mine and they asked me what time we practiced, so I told them. I'd love to go see them practice and if I have a chance, I will. But if not, I think they'll understand.

DeWanna Bonner, Auburn
What did you think about the first practice?
I would say that it was expected. You had to come in and learn each other. It was tough, but at the same time it was fun because we got back into the rhythm we had during tryouts. It was fun.

How did this compare with your first practice last year with the 2006 USA U20 National Team and coach P?
I think I was more in condition because I knew what to expect. I would say last year was a little tougher because I was nervous and we had to run the mile and a half. So it was a little better this year.

What do you think about this group, are you clicking?
Yeah, because we've all played together, almost everyone here has played with someone else on the team. Or we've played against each other so you know kind of what they do. This is going to be a good team.

Essence Carson
You've played for a USA Basketball team three summers in a row now, going on your fourth. How did tonight's practice compare with other first practices?
It's definitely tougher. Coach P is a great coach, she knows what it's like to coach at the elite level. Going to the U21 World Championship we know we're going to come up against some elite competition and everyone's out to get the United States. We're going to have to go out and defend our goal, it's going to be tougher and that's why we have to train harder than the games. Train until we pass out if we have to (laughs).

You guys went through a mini-boot camp today, did you know that was coming, had you been preparing yourself for it?
Oh yeah. I knew it was coming, but you can only prepare so much physically for it. The other side of it is mental. Maxing out is a big mental factor and it plays a big part in it. You have to push your body past where your threshold is, you have to be mentally tough to extend that threshold.

What was it like getting back on the court with the different groups you've played with over the last three summers?
It was great. A few of them, this is the third time I've played with them. This is my fourth team so we know what it's like to play with each other. The chemistry is there so we're not really worried about that right now. We're worried about the players who didn't play for Coach P last year, they have to learn her system as quickly as possible. And then we just have to go out and play basketball that we know how to play and that's smart, fundamental basketball.

Amy Jaeschke, New Trier High School / Northwestern
What did you think about your first practice?
It was a really tough practice, I knew it would be going in. Playing with these college players is a lot of fun because it's at a totally different level than what I'm use to.

How much do you think this is going to help you heading into your freshman year at Northwestern in the fall?
It's going to push me really hard. Just keeping up with these girls is tough, but it's a lot of fun and totally worth it.

Have you ever experienced a practice this intense?
No! (laughs) I have not. It was pretty tough, but it was good. I felt good afterwards.

At the 2007 USA Basketball Women's National Team Trials last month you were trying out with the U19 group, the sessions were staggered so you weren't going up against these players. Did you know any of them coming into tonight's practice at all? Was it difficult?
It's different because you don't know all the players. Through visiting schools and stuff I've met a lot of the players. But they've all been really nice. A lot of them have come up and introduced themselves and have been really friendly. So that's helped out a lot.