Dec. 7, 2005

It's all come down to my final diary entry. I know it's been awhile since my last entry and the end of our season, but I really wanted to take some time and let the past couple of months sink in. I still haven't fully accepted the notion that my career as a soccer player has finally come to an end. I've been playing this sport since I was five years old and, while I knew it would eventually be over, I can't image my life without it. Whenever I run the outer-loop or drive down Main Street, I always look at the field and convince my stubborn self that it's all done--I will never feel the thrill or the nerves of a Friday night game; I will never again push through a 90-minute match on a Sunday when the heat index is somewhere in the 100s; and I will never again feel the rush of adrenaline after we score a goal or win a championship. Amazingly, even with all that I am leaving behind, I know I am ending my career in the best position possible: on top. I couldn't have asked for a more perfect senior year: we won conference for the first time, we beat SMU for the first time, and we went to the NCAAs for a second-consecutive year. I have seen such amazing growth in this program over the past four years and I am so excited to watch where it s goes in the future. There isn't a doubt in my mind that within the next couple of years we will be in the top 25, even the top 10. My best advice to my teammates I am leaving behind is this: savor every moment you have, it will all be over before you know it; and, work your butt off; you don't want to leave with any regrets.

A lot of people asked me if I cried after our final game. No, I didn't. And it's not because I am some heartless person who has no emotion; it's simply because I ended my career the way I always wanted. I can't wait to pick up my ring in the Spring!