Let the match versus Washington State begin!
During the Doubles matches, Trojan Candy took a picture of the Pep Squad. Then, I walked over to the rest of the USC players who were sitting in the stands rooting for their teammates. The ladies posed for a picture. (Ellie Yates, friend, Kaitlyn Christian (11/11/2010), Sabrina Santamaria, and Paige Keating)
Now it was time for the Single matches to begin.
USC won the match by 4-1!
FIGHT ON, USC Women's Tennis Team to another VICTORY!
What an exciting weekend! My husband Jim and I attended both Women of Troy Tennis matches this weekend. The first match against the Oregon Ducks was on Friday.
With the Doubles point, our Women of Troy were now ahead 1-0 over Oregon.
Our women beat Oregon 4-0!
FIGHT ON, USC Women's Tennis Team!
Trojan Candy arrived at Town and Gown at 5:00 p.m. for the USC Men's Basketball banquet. I was purposely early so that I wouldn't miss the arrival of any players.
The reception started at 5:30 p.m. I was one of the first guests inside and sat on a couch facing the entry door. Then I saw him at the check-in table. It was D.J. Haley. Trojan Candy sprang into action! I walked over to him and politely entered in his conversation with three alumnae. The ladies knew that I wanted to interview D.J. Thanks! D.J. is a Graduate Student who majored in Applied Psychology. He transferred to USC from Virginia Commonwealth. D.J. chose USC for our excellent academics. From Palmdale, D.J. grew up in Los Angeles. He said that it was good to come back home. Trojan Candy is glad that he did! D.J. has played piano for thirteen years. He also plays the saxophone. Classical music and Beethoven are his favorite. He also likes composer Michael Giacchino. Favorite food? Lasagne. Thanks for the picture and interview. FIGHT ON, D.J.!
As I was interviewing D.J., the rest of the basketball team walked up to the check-in table.
I saw friend J.T. Terrell. (4/9/2013) We spoke about his future and the N.B.A. Good Luck and FIGHT ON, J.T.! J.T. asked Katin Reinhardt, Kahlil Dukes and Darion Clark to pose with him for a picture.
As I walked around the Town and Gown reception room, I spotted Nikola Jovanovic standing near the fire place. I stood near him and waited for him to finish conversing with two ladies. Now, it was my turn. I asked Nikola if I could interview him. With a smile, he said that I could. It was noisier in the room now, so Nikola had to bend over to hear me and to answer my question. Nikola is majoring in Business and minoring in French. He said that he chose USC for its basketball, its academics and because he liked Los Angeles. In addition to basketball, Nikola likes to swim, play volleyball and sand volleyball and dance. He likes all kinds of movies and his favorite recent movie is "Gravity." When asked what his favorite foods are, Nikola smiled and said, "Just about everything." Then, he said that he misses home cooking. We talked about his dad. Nikola said that his dad Lujbisa played basketball for fifteen years in the Adriatic League in Yugoslavia. One last tidbit, Nikola's roommate is teammate Luis Gavrilovic. FIGHT ON, Nikola!
Just as I ended my interview with Nikola, it was 6:30 p.m. The doors to the dining room opened. While Trojan Candy walked to Table 12, I saw friend Richard Flores and met his friend Patricia Serrano. I see Richard at Monday Morning Quarterback and at out of town USC football games.
Just before Athletic Director Pat Haden started the program, I saw Byron Wesley (9/1/2011) sitting with Pe'Shon Howard at Table 2. I discreetly walked to his table, took their picture and asked Byron if his mom was coming. He said that she would be coming a little late.
Pat Haden introduced the USC Athletic Personnel that were in attendance. Then he thanked the entire team for its EFFORT all season long!
Then, Coach Andy Enfield took the podium. He told the audience that Brendyn Taylor just had an operation to remove his appendix and was home recovering. Get well soon, Brendyn!
Coach Enfield spoke about each of our five Seniors. About D.J. Haley: "People are impressed by him." About J. T. Terrell: "He's nice, unique. Looks like a fun guy and everyone loves him." About Pe'Shon Howard: "He transferred from Maryland, but he is originally from Los Angeles." About Daniel Munoz: "He will be a very successful graduate manager." About Omar Oraby who was not in attendance: "He has a grade point average over 3.0. Omar has been invited to play in the Portsmouth, Virginia, Invitational."
Next, Coach Enfield awarded the trophies.
Dr. James H. Zumberge Highest G.P.A.: At 3.85 Samer Dhillon
Bob Boyd Top Rebounder: Byron Wesley
Bill Sharman Best Free Throw Percentage: Pe'shon Howard
Forrest F. Twogood Memorial Award Best Defensive Player: Omar Oraby
John Rudometkin 110% Effort: Julian Jaccobs
Harold Jones Memorial Most Improved: Nikola Jovanovic
Ernie Holbrook Memorial Award Most Inspirational Player: Luis Gavrilovic
Ryan Francis Scholarship Award: D.J. Haley
Sam Berry Award Most Valuable Player: Byron Wesley
After the awards were announced, Coach Enfield said, "Good night" to everyone.
Trojan Candy got to work as soon as I could.
Ever after the guests were leaving, I was able to interview Pe'Shon Howard. Pe'Shon transferred to USC from Maryland and played only this year. He told me that he is an L.A. "guy." His family lives in Los Angeles, and Pe'Shon said he grew up watching USC basketball on television. Thank goodness he found his way "home!" On a more personal note, Pe'Shon likes R&B music. He plays the saxophone. For his hobby, Pe'Shon said that he likes to sleep. Plus, he is always hungry, and he is always thirsty! Thank you for giving me an interview and FIGHT ON, Pe'Shon!
As I walked toward the doors, Trojan Candy saw Nikola Jovanovic and Luis Gavrilovic posing with Coach Enfield. I made it just in time to snap their picture.
My final picture of the evening is of Coach Enfield, Darion Clark and Glenn Libby.
Another "Trojan" filled evening!
FIGHT ON, USC Men's Basketball!