Liiga Match...playing with giants

Wednesday night we played another Finland Cup game against the number one team in the league, Salo. Now before I talk about the match, I just wanted to preface who was on the other side of the net and why they should maybe play in higher league. The libro is about 5'4 a buck ten, amazing on defense and passing, other wise known as the best libero in Finland right now. The setter is also national team royalty with quick wrists, making it sometimes hard to read where she is going to send the ball. Both middles were 6'5 with fast arm swings both I think were from Belarus, Russia. And the last of the notable players on the team and easily argued their best player on the team, the opposite, De Carne. She is around 6'9, over 2 meters when she takes a full approach and swings putting the ball inside the 10 foot line. Even though she is 35 years old she has quite the resume, playing almost everywhere important in Europe. Getting to the point, we lost in 3 sets, thankfully breaking double digits in scoring but getting no higher than 16 points. The other team was just really good at playing the basic game. They never did anything mind boggling or super acrobatic that we were all shocked at what we were seeing. Salo is a team to beat for sure, they have won 50 consecutive matches in a row here in Finland. Yes, they are very well respected, yes, they have some amazing players on their team, but they are human just like everyone else and can be beat, we just need to not give them so much respect that they know that everything will be easy.
Our team had moments of genius in the match but we all know that we can be better all around. The fact that they were making hot dogs and the smell was permeating the nostrils did not help at all. But non the less I was focused on the game at hand, my nose was the only thing distracted. Luckily the match does not count against us in league play. So this weekend we face Eura, a team we have already played and beaten so its time to get fired up about that. Not throwing the Salo game totally away, but learning from it and moving on. There is only so much one or a whole team can do when playing against giants. I hope we get that win this weekend, that is where it really counts. One point at a time to the finals is the goal for everyone on this team I hope.
I am moving into a teammate who is getting surgery on her knee apartment this weekend as well. Will be by myself at last, at least until the end of January, then she comes back for work and I will move somewhere else. There are only so many apartment buildings in this town so we shall see. Until another time.