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Kate Benz flashes a smile during the Pacific-10 Conference Women's Basketball Media Day, Oct. 26, at HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif.

Past Entries   • November 1, 2004   • November 17, 2004   • December 7, 2004   • December 27, 2004   • January 20, 2005   • February 1, 2005   • February 22, 2005   • March 10, 2005   • July 19, 2005   • August 29, 2005   • October 4, 2005   • October 21, 2005   • November 14, 2005   • November 21, 2005   • December 6, 2005   • January 6, 2006   • January 23, 2006   • February 22, 2006   • June 30, 2006   • July 27, 2006   • September 5, 2006   • October 24, 2006   • December 14, 2006   • January 22, 2007   • February 16, 2007

Washington State senior Kate Benz kicks off the 2006-07 season with her first entry to Kate's Chronicles as she continues to share her experiences with the Cougar women's basketball team. The forward from Portland, Ore., chronicled life as a Cougar during both her sophomore and junior seasons and will continue her accounts throughout her senior year. Please visit www.wsucougars.com for access to current and past entries.

June 30, 2006

It's summer in Pullman - you know what that means.

Actually, even if you live in town, you probably don't know what that means to a Cougar basketball player. For the 13 of us currently on campus, it means much more than barbeques, swimming pools, and trips to the Snake River.

Our weekends come to an end Mondays promptly at 7 a.m. in the Varsity Weight Room where we meet our trainer, Coach Lang. This is the first of our three weekly strength and conditioning workouts. After pumping iron for nearly an hour, we head to the cardio equipment and breathe an overwhelming sigh of relief when we hear the words, "last set," signifying the end of our morning workout session.

Most of the team quickly heads to summer school classes after this. For the few of us who took classes during the first session, the remainder of our morning is free until we meet up as a team at 4 o'clock to play pick-up games at the rec center. Arriving early or staying late, we get in extra shooting workouts as well.

To an outsider - and even to us on days when our workouts are demanding - this may seem like all work and no play. Quite the contrary, we are rather fortunate to be here and experience Pullman during the summer. Not only do we bond as a team, learning each other's quirks, but we get to soak up the small-town atmosphere when not many other students are around.

By the end of a basketball season, we know each other well enough, but being able to spend summers together allows our team to gel on and off the court. This creates a chemistry and foundation we build on the following season. Not only are our new players able to learn to ropes of our system and style, but they are capable of becoming situated with the campus, avoiding the clichés of inexperienced freshmen when school starts in the fall.

I've been away from my computer for quite some time, but I look forward to sharing more about our new freshmen with Cougar fans in future installments of Kate's Chronicles. Since I completed summer classes in early June, my days consist of working on my basketball game and working on my tan, so I have plenty of time to inform the curious readers. Thank you for the comments and compliments for what many call my "diary entries."

Here's to another year of great basketball and wonderful support - Go Cougs!