Plenty of Mundelein highlights out West

Editor's note: Mundelein's boys and girls basketball teams returned home this week after spending eight days in Arizona, where they enjoyed some sunshine and relaxation, as well as some games.

Several players took the time to write a daily dairy. Below are accounts of the girls' final five days of their trip. Accounts of the first three days ran in the Daily Herald last week.

Day 4

"Mountains and Desert Mountain"

We spent the morning touring in the mountains. The views are absolutely breathtaking. Photos cannot do justice to the amazing landscape here. We found a road that was not blocked that led us up quite high in the mountains (it was open because they were doing some construction) and got some exhilarating views.

After our mountain excursion, we spent a couple of down hours at the hotel before heading off to Sweet Tomatoes for a late lunch. Everyone took full advantage of the buffet.

Last night, we traveled back to Desert Mountain High School to play the host Wolves. They came out on fire. The Lady Mustangs seemed a step behind all night and eventually fell to Desert Mountain 58-39. The Lady Mustangs will be playing for third place in the tournament at noon Thursday as they will be taking on Camelback.

After a stop off at In-N-Out Burger on the way back to the hotel, it was time to get ready to turn in. After another long and exciting day and yet another late night (we did not get back to the hotel until 10:35), it was decided that the girls needed to get ready to get to sleep as we play again in about 13 hours. As a result, you get my ramblings for the day. Don't fret. The girls' writings will return tomorrow!

Happy New Year, everyone!

- Coach Harding

Day 5

"Finale and Knar's"

There is no better wake-up call than a sleep chat with Rachael Millner. We just wish we had a video camera. But another day in Arizona brings sunny skies and beautiful weather. With our stomachs filled with a great breakfast and our Mustang pride, we were off to play our next and final game. With the help of Brooke (Evans) and Alina (Teslenko) charging into everyone's rooms and jumping on everyone's beds, we were definitely pumped up for our early game. We are happy to report that we topped off our trip with a win, which allowed us to win third place in the tournament. Special shout out goes to Brooke Evans (Love ya, girl!), who was chosen for the all-tournament team. Sadly, our win was a battle and with any battle comes setbacks. Jessi Bjerning ended up getting a bad cut under her chin and had to get stitches. But a Mustang never backs down. She was out of the hospital in a matter of 15 minutes. When everyone gathered at the hotel, we quickly got spiffed up and were on our way to the Knar's grandparents' house. Not only were their freshly picked grapefruits delicious, but their pulled pork and sloppy joes were mouth watering. And after being treated to show tunes on the piano courtesy of Molly Rohan and Megan Hanas, we elected a new member of our Mustang clan: Charlie Berry. Following our arrival at the Knar's house, we went for an eventful walk and headed over to the annual light show. With any festivities, we decided to make a mark in Arizona by appearing on the Jumbotron. It was certainly not over because we ended our night out with a dance party with a bunch of little kids at the park. We proceeded to the party vans and headed back to the hotel, where we switched up the room assignments and developed new relationships with our new roomies. Now we are waiting for the varsity boys basketball team for a great New Year's Eve party and a night of fun.

Hope you all have a happy New Year and (according to Toni Knar) make sure you have your New Year's "Revolution" in mind!

- Toni Knar and Megan Hanas

Day 6

"A day of fun"

Finally, today we were able to sleep in. Coach Harding picked us up a healthy breakfast that consisted of delicious doughnuts. Today was more relaxed because we didn't have a set schedule. We decided that we wanted to go to Cracker Jax, a mini golf and game place. We had a lot of fun getting to know our new roommates as we golfed. We learned who was good and who wasn't. Good thing we aren't golfers (except Olivia Dunigan). After the many group pictures, we headed to the go-kart line. After convincing the guy to let all 12 cars go at once, the race started. While most of us went because of the fun of the ride, others were out to get first place. As she tried to pass everyone, Kate Wallen caused quite a few collisions. There was no serious damage done. Before we left, Coach asked Kate what the sign at the front of the race said to make sure she could read. She responded "No Bumping."

We all had a taste for Red Robin - yum. We are getting used to the scared response when we tell them we have 21 people. Everything went smoothly, except that they forgot Megan Woit's food. After eating, we went back to the hotel to swim in the beautiful Arizona sunshine. While discussing scary movies and learning how much Coach Harding doesn't like them, we all decided that we wanted to go see a movie. We had to choose between "The Princess and the Frog" and "Sherlock Holmes," and "Sherlock Holmes" won the vote. After a candy run, we all hopped into the vans and headed to the movie. Everyone liked it and even Coach Evans stayed awake. We are now back at the hotel and everyone is ready to get some sleep so that we are well rested for a fun day tomorrow.

- Meagan Schultz and Sarah Small

Day 7

"A 'Grand' day"

We woke up at 7:40 feeling like P. Diddy. It was a beautiful and sunny morning, perfect weather for a four-hour drive to the Grand Canyon. As the altitude increased, the environment surrounding the vans began to look more like home. The dry desert slowly transformed into a blanket of snow and the cacti were replaced by snow-covered evergreens. Although the drive seemed dreary and prolonged, our final destination was nothing short of breathtaking.

At the park, we met up with the boys team, which seemed to have the same itch of anticipation as we felt the entire drive there. After a much-appreciated bathroom break, we started the hike toward the canyon. We didn't realize how much our eyes were in for a treat. The suspense was building as we approached a gap in the trees and there it was, one of the Seven Wonders of the World! The entire team gazed in awe at the beauty that truly can only be experienced in person.

Although we came from the harsh winter conditions, some people were not properly equipped for the snow. Not to name names but No. 42 (Toni Knar) and her brother, No. 24 (Robert), trekked through the snow in slippers and sandals. Mother Knar came to the rescue with a quick fix of plastic bags to keep the snow off their cold, little toesies. As we were walking back to the vans, Coach Harding was in the process of warning the group about the dangers of the slippery walkways. All of a sudden we see Coach Harding on the ground after slipping on the ice. Rock on, Coach! After a good laugh, he got back up and continued on. Once again words could not describe the sight before our eyes.

After a safe drive back home, a nutritious meal at Sonic and a dip in the hot tub, it was another successful day in the lives of the Lady Mustangs

- Jessi Bjerning, Molly Rohan and Alina Teslenko

Day 8

"The finale"

Today was our last day in Arizona, and we started off with a good breakfast from our hotel and went swimming. We enjoyed the lovely weather today by swimming and sun tanning by the pool before continuing our journey in Arizona. We headed out to go and watch the Arizona State women's basketball team play UCLA. Unfortunately, ASU lost by a lot, but we got some great pictures, souvenirs and food. We then headed to the "fashion capital of the world" - the mall! While we were there, we felt like we were in a Hollywood magazine because many of the shoppers, let's just say, looked like they were about to walk the runway. This also includes children! It was very different from good old Mundelein. While we were leaving the mall and heading up the escalator, Megan Woit suddenly stopped. Nobody knew why until they saw her sweatpants were caught in the end of the escalator. We had to push the emergency button, which stopped the whole escalator, just to get them out. Grandpa Evans had to pull them out with all his might, and let's just say her pants lost the strenuous battle. But luckily we all got a good laugh out of it. After the catastrophe we went to eat at Red Lobster for our final meal. We all would agree it was DELICIOUS! Megan found out that their A1 steak sauce was great. You know what I'm saying? We then headed back to the hotel to pack for our early journey home. We are all eager to see our friends and family, but definitely not eager to see the snow. We have had an amazing time together and have really grown close as a team. We will take so many memories home with us have so many inside jokes to look back on. We are so thankful for the parents, administrators and coaches that made this possible. All we have to say is, "Goodbye, Arizona! Hello again, Mundelein!"

- Brooke Evans and Taylor Davis