On Saturday we hosted a clinic for children. This was an awesome time for everyone. Kids came to this clinic in hopes to learn more about the game of basketball, from the Tiffin coaching staff and players. In return we got great attention. This shows the teams community outreach, with hope that these kids will want to come to our games. We also want them to come to other things we host such as lock ins and other camps and clinics. The most difficult thing about hosting this clinic was that there was no talent requirement. Some of the kids that were present had never played basketball before, whereas some had pretty good skill. Finding the happy medium between two skill levels was very difficult. All in all it was a good time and taught patience and helped the program out.

    As soon as we get back to school, we do not waste much time. We are beginning lifting, open gym, and individual workouts this week. Though I am not playing, it is important for me to be at all of these things and support the team. The lifting is coached by Tiffin University's strength and conditioning coach, Jennifer Rosslet. We will lift three times a week all the way throughout preseason. Individual workouts are not exactly what they sound like. Because we are not allowed to have practices yet, we separate into positions. The guards play for an hour working on position work, and the post work on their position for an hour. Sometimes we will have team individuals which is just combining the two. My job at these things are to help out the coaching staff. Mostly I will be helping with stats, passing, rebounding, and when needed give my input if the younger players have any questions. This is a good experience for me if I want to become a coach because I will have to be able to instruct people one day.  Below is a picture of the team before mahout's, showing off their muscles they have developed over the summer.

There is no off season when it comes to basketball. Even though the players are not at school, they have to put in just as much work to prepare themselves for the up coming season. I took part in creating this summer workout book for them to follow in order to keep in shape. Over the summer my job was to make sure all the players were sticking to their workouts. I had to be sure I stayed in contact with everyone. The other thing that was difficult was once a month everyone had to take a trip to Tiffin to play in open gym. I was required to be there even though the coaching staff was not able to be present, yet I was not even playing. I think that will be the biggest challenge this year.

    In order to have a successful program, it is most important that the program has enough money to operate. Though it may not always be the most fun thing to do, the team does a great job of fundraising for the program. Tiffin Women's Basketball hosts a shoot out at Tiffin, and area schools. This shootout has grown to be very popular in recent years. High schools from all around the state of Ohio come to compete in some friendly summer competitions. It is a long couple of days for the team. We are in charge of setting up all of the gyms that the teams will be playing in. We also work to scoreboards for the games, take admission, and sell T-shirts and concessions. At the end of the night we have to do a detailed cleanup, and get right back at it in the morning. This year the shoot out went very smoothly with few issues we had to deal with. The biggest problem we had to face was dealing with referees coming late, or teams forfeiting games. Luckily, it was not our job to take care of the scheduling. 
    Later that week we hosted a three day long kids camp. Kids from around Tiffin are invited to come and learn about the game of basketball from the TUWB team. And the following Saturday we hosted a position camp. The guards on the team worked with Jr. High and above players that want to play the guard position. The posts helped work the players wishing to learn about the post position. This was another great way for the team to use their talents while raising money for their program. 
    The picture included is of the entire teamthe last day of the long week working the shootout and camps.