Tar Heel Invitational

Saturday, October 1 began the start of what would be a great tournament for Carolina and the Tar Heels.  The Tar Heels, many of whom playing in their first tournament, forged past NJ and West Point Gold, losing only to D.C. and tying West Point Black. Carolina conquered the tournament, going undefeated and winning Gold for the first time. 

This year placing in the top four of the tournament came with a monetary prize courtesy of USA Team Handball:  $100 each for third and fourth place, $300 for second place, and a whopping $500 for first place.  

Coach Wade Sutton stressed that UNC went beyond expectations and hopefully learned somethings to take into the next tournament.

"[We did a] great job this weekend.  I just wanted to say again how PROUD I am of both teams."

The UNC program won in total $600, Carolina with the gold and Tar Heels coming in fourth.

Back on the Grind

After a 4th place finish at Nationals in Salt Lake City, Utah and a 2nd place finish in Flanders, NJ this summer, UNC Women's Team Handball is back in full swing. 

With a glorious Fall Fest showing, the team has acquired many new women to share in this year's success - starting with the the first tournament of the year, Tar Heel Invitational.

Please join us October 1 & 2 in Fetzer Gym to feast your eyes on all that is: Carolina Team Handball.

...and the results are in: ELECTIONS

 As the year came to a close, it was that time again -  to elect the new leaders of CTHC. 

 Here are the results:

Liz Sims- President

Stephanie Tan- Vice President

Kaela O'Donnell- Treasurer

Rachel Armstrong - Operations Chair

                                                  Kate Milani - Public Relations Chair

Gold Medal Brought to Chapel Hill: Collegiate National Champions 2011

This past weekend UNC Women's Team Handball won its third straight collegiate championship by undermining West Point Black by one goal - a goal that came at the hand of Diva Desai, president of the club for the past two years.  This was Diva's last goal in collegiate handball, but at least she went out on top, and would later receive the Top-Scorer Award of the tournament.

UNC outscored West Point Gold in its first game Friday night, tying West Point Black the following day, and rounding out Saturday with a win against Dynamo.  

During the first match against Black, UNC lost three of its starters: Sylvia Exum (knee injury), Steph Tan (ankle injury), and Julia Taylor (red card).  Keeping composure UNC held WP Black to a tie, knowing they would be back for blood in the final.

Before the final match Coach Wade Sutton gathered the team in a nearby gym with a surprise.  CTHC Men's Coach Myles Bacon, who was suffering the loss of his mother, Edna Bacon, a long time supporter of Carolina Team Handball- especially the women's side,  phoned in and gave the women an inspirational message, triggering a series of events that would lead to another gold medal.

Coach Wade Sutton, with nostalgia, remarks on the final match,

"...gold medal match  [was] to be played on Sunday against West Point.  Our first half defense was great as we held WP to 7 goals and we held a three goal advantage at 10-7.  West Point would never go away though and kept fighting back and even took a lead at one point.  In the last 2 minutes WP tied the game and we took a lead on a great bounce shot (FAR CORNER of course) by KP but WP came down and tied it again.  With 11 seconds left Kaela got the ball at circle and was fouled from behind setting up a penalty shot.  With the score tied 16-16, Diva stepped up and hit the penalty shot to give us a goal lead and WP was unable to score.  So with a 17-16 victory, we are College Champions for the 3rd year in a row."

With the UNC men's team taking third place and women's with the gold, it was a good weekend to be a Tar Heel.

This blog post is dedicated to Edna Bacon, may you rest in peace and forever be in our hearts.

Carolina Women's Blue Cup Team Handball Tournament

Spring is here and the first tournament of the year is upon us. 

Come out to the annual Carolina Women's Blue Cup to watch some team handball. Games will be on both Saturday and Sunday. Detailed schedule and participating teams will be posted soon! 

 

 

Saturday, February 26 at 9:00am - Sunday, February 27 at 3:00pm

 

Julia Taylor: A Letter from Abroad

For many of you for whom team handball is simply another club sport, the idea that I gave up my dream study abroad opportunity or another semester at our beloved UNC in order to train full-time for handball is probably ridiculous. My parents were just as surprised too when I introduced the idea (or rather, they gave an immediate “Hell no!”).

The reason for my insanity is simple: if an athlete has the opportunity to somehow put the Olympics on the radar, they’d be insane not to take it. I had only been playing handball a semester and a half when I was recruited by USA Team Handball to be an alternate for their National Team trip to Poland. All it took was the idea of international competition (combined with five weeks of training with the National Team this summer) to warm me up to the idea. It wasn’t until three and a half weeks before I was supposed to depart for Denmark that I finally decided to go (my parents thank me for the graying that resulted from my wavering).

So here I am, two months into a training regimen in a tiny little country in Europe where the skies are quite gray, the weather is quite cold, and the men are quite blonde. I didn’t have any idea what I was getting myself into when I stepped onto the plane. I didn’t know how to speak any Danish… not even “hello” (goddag) or “yes” (ja) and “no” (nej). I didn’t even know Denmark was still a monarchy! Consequently, my first week and a half was borderline miserable. I was one of maybe 10 international students at my training academy, the only American, and I was overwhelmed by Danish words and food. But since then I have fallen in love with Denmark and the Danes, even though I still struggle with the language and the lack of Mexican food.

To give a little glimpse into what I’m doing: I am at a sports academy called Idrætshøjskolen i Århus where athletes can come and train in hopes of attaining a professional career in handball or soccer (sorry, football). There are maybe 120 student-athletes living in residence-style halls on a campus with several gyms and workout facilities. We have a personal trainer, coaches, nutritionists, handball theorists, and physical therapists. In addition to my training at the academy, I have also earned a spot on a club team called Christiansbjerg IF, a fourth division team. The Danish women’s handball league is the best in the world right now, and I have definitely reaped the benefits playing among incomparable competition under incredible coaching.

I come home next week for the National Team tryouts and the Tar Heel Invitational, then I return to Denmark for another two months to complete my training. If you’re interested in keeping up with my whirlwind life across the pond, I’m doing my best to keep updating my blog at http://handballadventures.wordpress.com/

Tak!

Daily Tar Heel covers our president, Diva Desai

UNC student excels internationally in handball

By SETH CRAWFORD | The Daily Tar Heel

Updated: September 30, 2010, 12:48 AM

Senior Diva Desai grew up playing basketball and soccer.
Then the Cary native came to UNC and was recommended to play on the club handball team. Three years and two national championships later, she competes on the under-21 USA handball team.
Desai said she was drawn to the athleticism handball requires.
“It is just a very unique sport,” she said. “It seemed like quite the challenge at the time.”
The challenge was soon second nature to Desai. She immersed herself in the sport on-campus and internationally. She became the public relations officer for the club her in 2009, when she tasted her first slice of national victory.
The UNC women’s handball team beat West Point for the Team Handball Collegiate Women’s National Championships two years in a row. The second time, Desai took home a new handball as the tournament’s top-scorer.
She was elected president of the club in fall 2010, and her involvement in the sport dramatically changed. UNC hosted the Tar Heel Invitational the same weekend the USA U-21 national team was holding tryouts in the area.
“I didn’t think I had a shot,” Desai said.
Desai decided not to try out and played in the tournament instead. Her play on the final day of the tournament caught the eye of USA Team Handball’s Technical Director Mariusz Wartalowicz.
“He came up to me after the game and was like ‘We’ve selected you for the U-21 national team that’s going to Poland. Are you available two weeks from now?’” Desai said.
Wartalowicz said it was Desai’s good peripheral vision, controlled calmness and court leadership that got the national team’s attention.
Desai’s life has been a whirlwind ever since. USA Team Handball flew her to Poland to compete in a few international tournaments and invited her to Colorado Springs this past summer to participate in the organization’s elite camp. Desai also won another national championship and was chosen to play for the USA Women’s Select Team in Germany.
After toying with the idea of taking a semester off to train with a Denmark club team, Desai decided to enjoy her senior year at UNC. After graduation, the business major hopes to work as the marketing supervisor of a European McDonald’s and play on a club team near her work.
Desai is currently preparing for UNC’s home tournament, the largest women’s handball tournament in the nation, and she is training to tryout for the USA Pan-American Games qualifier against Canada.
“I believe she has a very good chance of making the national team,” Desai’s teammate, Andrea Kline, said in an e-mail. “She’s a leader.”

http://www.dailytarheel.com/index.php/article/2010/09/student_excels_internationally_in_handball