On a blustery, frigid Minnesotan morning a team of highly-motivated, lethally-skilled AFROTC cadets embarked on the great voyage of the semester. It was 21 February at 0630 in the morning when the team huddled in the armory for their last farewells as they packed up their gear. Lines of bystanders littered the sidewalks to see them off. It was as if they were leaving for an epic battle. The three and a half our car ride seemed like minutes as the caravan of b-ballers blasted adrenaline pumping music in preparation for what was to come. Each team member focused on what he or she needed to do to bring glory back home. At approximately 1100 the caravan arrived at the front steps of the coliseum of their destiny, North Dakota State University's Armory Gymnasium. The ballers stepped on to foreign ground feeling confident and unafraid, with determination in their faces. In a
matter of hours three games quickly flew by with blood, sweat, and tears the only remnants left behind as reminders of what happened on the court. The two freshmen phenomes, Cadet Clayton Beck and Cadet Nathan Gassie combined for a total of 23 points, not to mention a deadly block by Cadet Beck's brick-wall style defense. If I didn't know better, I swore I heard him call in the S.W.A.T. team! Our senior crew leading the team led the charge with a combined total of 75 points! It should be noted that Cadet Jon Leveille called in a precision air strike from far outside of enemy territory, knocking down a whopping seven 3-point shots! Cadets Travis Yang, Shawn Brown, and Emily Timinski provided close air support (CAS) with a combined total of 14 points to keep the adversary at bay. Although the team did not bring home the championship trophy, if it weren't for the hard work and team mentality of each of these individuals the war surely would have been lost. Thanks to their efforts, we are able to proudly walk away as a fierce competitor awaiting next year’s trials by combat!
-Cadet Christian Wachter
