I abandoned my wife of 13 years last night, leaving her to turn our house into a Sponge Bob Square Pants paradise for our son's 4th birthday party today, to go watch Wash U play against Mizzou at US Ice Arena in Chesterfield. Two reasons to go were Nick Leidenfrost and Lucas Jacobsen, students I know originally from CS 101 who play for Wash U. I ran into Nick's parents at the rink, so we sat together and watched the game.

The final score was 6-0 in favor of Mizzou, but most of those points were scored quickly in the second period. In the first and third periods it was a close match. Mizzou's goalie was very fast, and our team has had only 4 practices.

It was great to watch Wash U play, and I encourage anybody who can to go see the games.

The schedule is apparently a secret, as the web site hasn't been updated since the middle of last season. And at the ice complex, our game wasn't listed on the Big Board. I've written the coach and captain to get a schedule, without any success. I'll treat the first person who can provide a season schedule to lunch at the Olympia.

The Wash U fans, present company excepted, are a step above fans you find most places. There was a literature major sitting in front of us, who was encouraging our team to score a touchdown afterwe were down 6-0. The same guy was offering subliminal messages to the Mizzou players, like "Stop scoring".

I haven't been to many hockey games, and am just trying to learn to play the sport myself. It is amazing how well these guys skate, shoot, and hit. So go see one of our games. It will be fun, eh?

Two closing observations: Nick is one of the fastest things I've ever seen on ice; Nick's mom is somebody you want on your side of any conflict, particularly a hockey match.

Posted by: James at October 13, 2002 11:23 PM