"If you trip over your own feet I won't pick you up," Kevin said.

Neil faced forward and decided not to ask.

It felt good to run after spending half the day in the bus, but Dan stopped them after two laps. They stretched by the benches until the referees signaled them to enter the court. They tugged on their helmets and gloves, gathered their racquets, and stepped onto the court for fifteen minutes of drills. The captains stayed behind when everyone else was kicked off the court. Dan met the Terrapin captain at half-court for a coin toss. Dan won their team first serve, so the Terrapins chose to start at home court.

The announcer read off team statistics when the captains left the courts. He called the Terrapin's starting line-up with over-the-top enthusiasm and introduced the Foxes with polite detachment. Neil was impressed despite himself. The abrupt switch in tone was an effective reminder to the Fox team: they were far from home and friendly territory.

Neil was called onto the court second. He had to pass the Terrapins to take his spot at half-court, so he checked out his backliner mark on his way by. Herrera had half a foot on him, so he'd have a longer reach. Neil would have to settle for being faster.

Neil stood on the line and watched the rest of his team join him. Allison didn't look at anyone as she went to the dealer's spot. Matt tapped her racquet with his as he passed and settled onto far-fourth in a straight line back from Neil. Neil was glad to have Matt on his side of the court, but he knew what it meant. Matt was the Foxes' strongest player, and Neil was the weaker half of offense. Matt was there to clean up behind Neil's inevitable messes.

Andrew was the last one on court. He carried his massive racquet across his shoulders as he headed for goal. Neil couldn't get a good look at his expression through the heavy grating of his helmet. Neil wouldn't worry about him until second half, but he turned to watch Andrew's progress anyway.

He expected Andrew to head straight for the goal, but Andrew stopped near Allison. Neil was too far away to hear if Andrew said anything to her. He didn't linger long before continuing across the court. Allison didn't watch him go, but she shifted on her feet and raised her racquet to ready position.

The head referee handed Allison the ball. A warning buzzer sounded; it was one minute until game time. The six officials split up and filed off the court on opposite sides. They closed and locked the doors behind, and Neil watched as they spread out to either side of the court. Neil could still hear the crowd's noise through the overhead vents, but the walls helped muffle it. Neil tensed to run and tried to count seconds in his head. The buzzer sounded and Neil felt it sing through every nerve in his body.