Dalat Eagles Return to the Nest

Christy Chow

After a long week in Manila, Dalat’s varsity women’s soccer team headed back home without a trophy—but with lifelong memories. Thankfully, this trip back didn’t involve a 3am wake-up call. The team of nineteen women left the YunJyo Lyso Ministry Center at 11am and arrived at the airport after an hour-long drive through traffic.

For some reason, this team attracted misfortune whenever they travelled. Upon arrival at the check-in counters, the officers informed the team that their carry-on bags were now too heavy for the flight home, which resulted in them having to check-in their precious cleats and uniforms. Before checking her bag in, Kayla Ronning (11) warned the officer, “If my bag doesn’t get to Penang, I’m going to know who to blame.”

The team hopped onto the plane, only to soon find out that there had been a delay. By the time the team arrived in KL, their next flight to Penang was set to leave in thirty minutes. Before the plane landed, Coach Frohlich cautioned all the girls they had a tight connection and that they would have to rush.

The team took these words to heart, and as soon as the seatbelt sign went off, the nineteen women stood up, hurriedly got their bags from the overhead compartments, and sprinted off the plane with Aunty Claudia leading the way.      

The team panted in their efforts to follow Aunty Claudia’s pace and finally caught up to her at the transfer counter, where she nearly knocked over all the line separators in order to get to the front of the line. Christy Chow (12), Riley Phillips (9), and Darby Kendrick (12) doubled over laughing at the sight, but still managed to sprint to the front with their passports in hand.

The girls rushed through security and ran to their gate, only to find out their gate had changed. They immediately sprinted to the next gate but found out they had another twenty minutes to wait as their plane had been delayed again.

After a quick flight to Penang, the girls were ready to be home in their beds. But another barrier stood in their way. They may have sprinted to their flight, but their bags hadn’t, and were still stuck in KL. Kayla Ronning (11) exclaimed exasperatedly, “I guess I’m going to have to go back and find that officer now!” Again, Aunty Claudia stepped up to the challenge of helping the girls get home, and negotiated with the officers to send their bags to school, allowing the team to finally head back home. 

Despite these mishaps, this team of women still had a great time. This weeklong soccer trip resulted in a memorable experience for every single member of the team, even though it may have ended on a messy note.

As first-time ACSC traveller Riley Phillips (9) put it, “It felt like one big chaotic hilarious adventure that was memorable but, at the same time, exhausting. I loved it.”