This post comes to you courtesy of Robyn Fennig, the gifted player from Wisconsin Eau-Claire. Fennig's perspective is interesting and insightful because her program is representative of the rapid growth the women's division has experienced over the past few years. Eau Claire is a very young program that burst onto the scene in 2007 with a 4th place finish at their first appearance at Regionals. They followed that initial success by making it to the game-to-go in 2008 and 2009, only to come up just a bit short.
Like many young programs, Eau Claire has faced many challenges in their growth from a fledgling team to a much more competitive program. Weather, travel and budget are some of the classic obstacles that any ambitious team has had to confront at some point; teams in Wisconsin and Minnesota certainly know this better than most. In both the open and women's divisions, Carleton and Wisconsin have managed to be wildly successful despite these challenges, but up until recently, they had been the exception to the rule.
This year marks the first year of a major restructuring effort by the UPA, and the establishment of a meaningful, regular season is something that will have a major impact on the sport's future. As someone representing a hungry young team, one that represents the future of this sport, Fennig's take on the restructuring effort is an important one to consider.
GUEST BLOGGER: Robyn Fennig
On the Restructuring Process
According to the UPA, there are four main parts to the restructuring process, as listed in the UPA online summary. I am going to leave out the 2nd item about enhanced rostering, since I feel benefits all schools equally. We all have to verify our rosters for the series, so having better resources available to all schools is important. For the sake of this discussion I will limit my focus to the other three points.
Eau Claire, WI (like many Midwestern schools) is located in a wonderful climate for many winter activities, unfortunately the sport of ultimate is not one of them. For clarification, our school is located in the Northwest part of the state. Snow, ice, sub-zero temperatures, etc. are an every day experience in Eau Claire for the first two to three months of spring season. Of course climate alone does not dictate team success. Teams like Ottawa and Iowa State who experience similar climate have managed to break into and thrive on the nationals-caliber scene. What dictates success in these sorts of climates, however, is the advantage of having adequate indoor facilities to use. For the teams who get to routinely practice on larger turf spaces have an advantage of playing more realistic ultimate.
UW-Eau Claire is not a school with a lot of indoor facilities, thus we are lucky to receive a single basketball court to drill, scrimmage, and teach the game to our players. We are more fortunate than some of our Central Region counterparts, like the newly created women’s team at UW-Lacrosse, who gets a space misleadingly named the “Multi-purpose room” which is a space smaller than most high school academic classrooms. Imagine trying to develop a team, let alone a successful program in this sort of atmosphere. It is hard to keep new recruits hooked when they are attempting to learn the game in 10 foot x 10 foot space.
This is also especially difficult for teams who share gym space with their Open Division counterparts. SOL often shares indoor facilities with our men’s teams, Eauzone and Eau2. There are advantages to this, yes, but many of them are lost when 60 people are forced to share space. Several of our players have suffered major injuries, simply because there are too many people on a basketball court.
This means that, like many other schools, our experience playing realistic ultimate is limited to traveling long distances to tournaments. This is especially challenging to a team like ours who has been on the brink of qualifying for nationals for three years. Our team dynamic is often challenged when we get outdoors and we struggle to succeed in our first higher caliber tournament of the season…as it is far different than the modified situations we are forced to compete in during the crucial beginning of the spring season in Eau Claire. Like many other up-and-coming teams we must travel long way to experience any sort of realistic ultimate and it takes a few tournaments before we are really flowing.
These relatively poorer performances early on in the season hurt our team when it comes to rankings and earning extra bids for regionals/nationals for our section or region. Teams grow when they are challenged. But poor performance during the regular season at a UPA sanctioned tournament, though beneficial to your team, hurts your sectional and regional opportunities. This gives disproportionate weight to the teams located in those regions with awesome year-round ultimate playing climate an advantage to the regions that have colder climate, and fewer local UPA sanctioned events.
(Side note: I might have less problem with this rule if our spring break fell during the regular season. Our spring break falls after the regular season cut-off date. This means we have to travel far away before spring break. For many teams, attending a spring break tournament helps qualify them for the 10 game minimum.)
I am definitely unsatisfied with the outcome of the restructuring. It harms medium-sized schools in colder climates a lot. We are not even closest to the largest of the UW-System schools, but are categorized the same way as UW-Madison with 40,000+ students. School enrollment (7,500 student body) is not the only significant factor that dictates team success. The Central Region alone provides two wonderful examples of this principle. If you have a team at a huge school, you are not guaranteed to qualify for nationals (i.e. the University of Minnesota). Nor are you guaranteed failure if you have a small student body (i.e. Carleton College).
What do I propose? I feel that a team, in order to qualify for any sort of D-II or D-III National Tournament, must fill out an application to do so. I think this application process should take a combination of “tradition” of ultimate at your school, student body size, location, and funding determines success. My suggestion is for the sectional and regional coordinators to sit down and determine the most qualifying applicants four to five schools from their region to submit the final applications to the UPA who selects the top 16-20 teams to attend this secondary national tournament. Sectional and Regional coordinators are most in tune with the smaller schools in the region. They understand these different qualifications at each school and can make educated and fair decisions; thus limiting the number of applications the UPA must evaluate.
On Contending with the Regional Powers: Madison and Carleton
It is definitely challenging on many fronts developing a program in a region that is dominated by Wisconsin-Madison and Carleton. When I started playing in Spring 2007, our team finished 4th at Central Regionals, in our first year making an appearance at that tournament. The next year, our captains tried to get us as many high quality games as possible to try to get our newer players as much experience as possible . We got in 3 games at College Terminus (though it was rained out…), and a few good games at Frostbite.
Since then our program has come a long way. What our captains have stressed every single year is that we need to get as much experience as possible. On a team where even our most experienced players are sitting on two years of mid- to top-level co-ed club experience, it’s hard to compete against players with junior worlds and elite high school experience. Wisconsin-Eau Claire is not exactly a school that draws a ton of ultimate players, even with our proximity to Minnesota. I don’t see that happening until we break into nationals.
With that being said, we take it season by season, with our focus being on trying to get our players as much game experience as possible. This means traveling to do this. This spring we will be heading to Philly Classic (17 hours away), Chicago Invite (only 5.5 hours away), and Centex (20+ hours away). I really appreciate the work of Michelle Ng and her crew at Midwest Ultimate are doing to help teams like ours get high quality games closer to home.
Another thing our team concentrates on is getting creative with what we have. Our practice facility consists of two basketball courts side by side. We concentrate on doing modified scrimmage situations with 4 on 4 and 5 on 5, and really emphasize our younger players getting the disc in their hands. We have experimented with randomly “freezing” game play to discuss positioning and strategy based on where players are standing. This has been successful on teaching field awareness. We rely on our captains and coach (Pat Niles) to come up with challenging, but game-like drills with the limited space we have.
As we found out two weeks ago, our facilities are not exactly what our Central Region friends have access to. We went to Iowa State for a turf/court scrimmage. Yeah, the turf was rough, but the fact that we could huck the disc was enough to excite us. I think that the scrimmage with Iowa State and Wisconsin-Madison was a good step to see how we’re developing this season. Next season will be difficult, there will be a lot of turnover for SOL. What the captains do next year I think will be a defining moment in the development of our program. Anna [Hettler] and I will be available to help in any way we can.
On How to Improve College Women's Ultimate
I think that women’s ultimate in general has a lot of work to do. As a former college athlete at a high level D-III program, I saw the type of work that we did to support high school and middle school-aged players. I feel that this type of relationship has yet to really be developed between elite women’s club teams and women’s college teams. The work that Michelle Ng and her crew are doing with Midwest, most noteworthy with the skills clinic and roundup division at Midwest Throwdown are the start of something. I feel that our club teams need to reach out more to the college teams, especially programs like ours. We do not necessarily know where to go for help, or even what to ask if the help is there. Once this sort of exchange takes place, womens college ultimate will thrive.
Fennig's Preview of the Central Region
University of Wisconsin (Bella Donna)
Yet again, the Bellas have one of the deepest, most ridiculous teams in the nation. Led by 2009 Callahan Award Winner, Georgia Bosscher, and all-region selection Emelie McKain, their talent pool is never ending. Impact players Frances Tsukano and Sandy Jorgenson now have elite level club experience. Add Laura Bitterman, FOTY ’09 Rachael Westgate, and Jenny Gaynor offer the team athleticism and speed. This team has the potential to be unstoppable.
Carleton College (Syzygy)
This team is always a mystery to me until Regionals in May. Their strength during mid-February is relatively weaker than the team that shows up to Regionals, as it should be. This team always peaks at the “right” time. Most other teams in the Central refer to this phenomenon as the “Carleton Learning Curve.” I expect an equally impressive squad come May. Anna Snyder is in my opinion, the most dominant player on their team. She’s athletic and has a field presence matched by few in the region.
Iowa State University (Women Scorned)
SOL has a friendly rivalry with Iowa State. They are some of my closest friends and greatest competition that pushes me to my limits. Jasmine Draper and Christine Rosen are the two that most people know by name and face. They both played for the Chad Larson Experience (CLX) who took 2nd at UPA Club Nationals and are heading to Prague this summer. However, many overlook impact players like Jessy Erickson’s huge plays, Sarah Hoistad’s sick break throws, and Jiear Vang’s overall skills add depth to Women Scorned.
Wisconsin-Eau Claire (SOL)
SOL has been on the brink for three years. This year we have some good depth with some players that are extremely under-rated. But this is the year where people will get to know them. Anna Hettler, one of our co-captains, gets 3-4 solid handblocks a game is a great leader on O and D. Brit Gartner is a versatile, balls-to-the-walls player that any team could hope to have. Martha Harris’ low breaks and sick throws…Jess Haller’s athleticism, Melissa Jordan’s ridiculous NCAA D-III championship sprinting speed. We are looking to make some noise and throw off the status quo.
Other players to look for:
-Alyssa Olson, Minnesota (Ninjas)
-Depalma sisters, Minnsota (Ninjas)
-Megan Greenwood, Iowa (Saucy Nancy)
-Eyleen Chou, Wisconsin-B (Atropa)
-Emily Karoblis, Wisconsin-Stevens Point (Shockwave)
-Alex Haroldson, Wisconsin-Whitewater (Schist)
-Hailey Bronson, Winona State (Bad Monaz)
-Beth Langer, St. Thomas (Rainy Day Women)
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Sunday, March 21, 2010
2010 Stanford Invite (aka President's Day Recap - Part Two)
As the return from hiatus continues...
FJR and wife were busy moving from one location to another so life has been a bit crazy over the past few weeks. Intertubes access was a bit spotty, and I spent the bulk of my Ultimate-related time focusing on prep for Stanford Invite and the UPA College preview. Maybe I'll figure out a way to get paid writing this stuff...
THE STEVINSON INVITE - The Dead Cows and the Dirty Ground
While Cultimate generally deserves a fair amount of criticism, making the decision to move to Stevinson was the smart thing to do. Sure, it's not exactly the awesome backdrop of Palo Alto, but it did allow teams to make contingency plans and mentally prep for the relocation. The fields weren't great but decent enough, but the relatively few and entirely full porta-potties left a lot to be desired. There are some images you simply cannot wipe away from the brain.
My major gripe ended up being with the bracket -- the quarters ended up having two rematches with one of them (Wisconsin vs. Stanford) being seeded for a rematch. I fought pretty hard to get our matchup switched since I felt that we deserved a matchup with a different pre-quarter winner since we had previously beaten UCSB to get into the quarters. Additionally, it was annoying to have the rematch be a intraregional matchup, an important consideration since the regional wildcard will swing between the Southwest and the Atlantic Coast.
There's no guarantee that we would have beaten Stanford, Cal or Western Washington but I'm sure that none of those teams would take offense if I thought our chances of winning were much better against them than against the Burning Skirts. This seems like a small thing, but it means a ton to a team like ours. Getting into the semifinals of one of the prestige tournaments is a big step and we finished tantalizingly close to that goal. Hopefully, Centex will bring bigger and better things.
Tier One - Oregon, Wisconsin, Washington and UCSB
Element climbs upward and the Burning Skirts take a bit of a hit after the weekend. UCSB had a disappointing weekend but they will be back; be sure of that.
At this point, there's a good argument for putting Oregon in its own tier (Super One) and the other three teams into Tier Not Quite One. On paper, Wisconsin should be the biggest threat to Fugue but neither of their matchups has been close. Element knows Fugue the best and put up a tight fight in the finals of the Stevinson Invite.
The biggest issue facing Fugue might be the pressure that comes with being undefeated. This is one of those annoying talking points that seems to come up way too often during the pro football season, but there is certainly some truth to it. I'm not even sure how many women's college teams have had a legitimate shot at an undefeated season (I think Stanford actually did it several years ago?). It wouldn't surprise me to see Fugue slip up at either Centex or Regionals. If they remain undefeated going into Madison, I don't think they'll be feeling the pressure at that point (except maybe in the finals). On the contrary, being undefeated will likely give them another level of confidence and make them wicked scary. Like Tier Super One scary.
Tier Two - USC, Stanford, Colorado, North Carolina
Right now, these stand as the current best bets to either climb into the top tier or take out one of the four teams. I'd include UCLA as a dark horse but the season-ending injury to Atari (Sarah Peters) and the serious injury to Hawkins really hurts them going into Centex. Once Hawkins gets back, they'll be a dangerous team during the College Series.
At this point, the only team to take out any of the top four teams (not including those four) is the surprising Hellions from USC. Crazy that.
USC
Let me get this out of the way because these things should be known to everyone outside the Southwest region. Mary Kate 'Uzi' Hogan deserves serious Callahan consideration for blazing a new trail for this team, rising from a regional punching bag to the current heights (7th in the last rankings). I think Lindsey Cross should be on the next Team USA in 2013. Let me move on.
I think we're pretty darn good and getting better. Prior to Pres Day, I guess we had developed the rep as a team that would come really close to big wins but fall just short. Kinda like the Dallas Mavericks. Or Charles Barkley. Or... *gulp*... the Buffalo Bills.
Last year, we had a string of seven straight double game point losses (twice to Cal, Oregon, Ottawa, UCLA, St. Louis, Wash U.). [There was a one point victory over Arizona at Centex but Scorch scored the final point after the hard cap had sounded.] This year, we had two double game point losses at Santa Barbara Invite (UCSB and UCLA), running the total to nine straight.
There was a huge difference in how we handled those losses. The cliche about what doesn't kill you making you tougher is definitely true. We are a much tougher team than we were last year.
This was finally evidenced on a tough Sunday at Pres Day. After beating Element the night before, we were on cloud nine. Of course, we came back to earth with humbling losses to both Cal and UCSB. We had gone from the verge of a bye and a spot in the quarterfinals to a tough pre-quarterfinals game against Carleton. Yikes.
Beating Syzygy on double game point might have been more significant to us for the long term than the win over Element. Obviously, I'd rather take a win over Washington than over Carleton this year, but the way we beat Syzygy meant so much more. After going up 4-0 on Carleton, they roared back to life with five straight to take the lead. We eventually earned our break back, but they broke us late in the game to go up 10-9. In fact, had they taken a little longer to score the hard cap would have sounded and the game would have been over.
Given a second chance, we held serve and got a fairly quick block on double game point. When Bambi hit Jaws for the game-winner, we landed a spot in the quarterfinals, something that had eluded us by the smallest of margins at Pres Day and Stanford Invite the previous year.
We took a major step forward at the Stanford Invite by (a) beating UCSB for the first time ever, (b) advancing to the quarterfinals and feeling confident that we could win, and (c) beating Stanford for the first time ever en route to a 5th place finish. Even better than our actual finish is that the Hellions fully believe that the best is yet to come.
There are obviously consistency issues to deal with (big win over UCSB followed by big loss to Element, solid first half against Bella Donna followed by a poor second half, Sunday at Pres Day), but these issues are great problems to have. They are what separates being very good from being great (one of the top four teams in the division).
Stanford
Emily Damon is one of the top handlers in the nation this year. I love her game and her leadership. Caitlin Rugg is stepping up in the role Jenny Founds possessed last year. Ana Brown is one of the most underappreciated defensive players in the division. And their jerseys still have Stanford written on them. That goes a long way.
The one major hole in Stanford's offensive game is that they are missing a definitive go-to receiver. Last year, they had Danielle Platt and Liz Cassel who could command the middle of the field. They have a number of solid cutters but so far, nobody has stepped up as that person who is going rip down 50-50s and force defenses to shift their focus.
Even still, Stanford is like a zombie (and the zombie film genre) and will keep coming back no matter how many times you think they are dead. Wisconsin owned Superfly in their first two matchups this year, but in the quarterfinals, they were down 8-3 at half. Certainly, it has to be mentally draining for Superfly to know that they had full control of the game and let it slip away, but if any team can handle these kinds of ups and downs, it is Stanford.
The margin of our game against Superfly is misleading. They were down after two grueling games (Wisconsin and a long, tough battle with Cal) but they still kept things close in the first half. We broke the game wide open in the second half and ran away with the game. Plus, they hold the edge in our matchups 2 to 1.
Stanford has a legacy of coming up big at Nationals, and I would hate to be the team to face them in the quarters. They will almost certainly match up with one of the teams in the top tier and be a pain in the ass for that team. Ask Wisconsin about last year.
Colorado
Kali returns a number of players from last year's squad that consistently improved over the course of the season. Tina McDowell is doing a great job as coach, as reflected in their 6th place finish at Pres Day (despite missing a few of their top players). They also won the Midwest Throwdown with relative ease, infusing the team with a great deal of confidence.
With Heather Waugh gone, the heart and soul of this year's team lies with Courtney 'Cougar' Verhaalen. I wrote a bit about Coug in the upcoming UPA preview so I'll let the article speak for itself. Brenna Hokanson is also back after a FJR-esque hiatus from school. FOTY in 2008, her return is a big boost to Kali's handling corps. She gives Kali the ability to stretch the field and can be a consistent source of break mark throws.
Of the teams I've seen this year, I think Kali is the squad that has the potential to improve the most over the course of this season (aside from the Hellions, of course).
North Carolina
I didn't get a chance to watch much of UNC at the Stanford Invite, but Leila Tunnell is the obvious centerpiece of the Pleiades and will be a cinch to finish top 5 in the Callahan voting. You might be able to find five better all-around players, but very few offer the complete Callahan package like she does. Her leadership and commitment to sportsmanship are top notch and set her apart from other players on the Callahan short list. I'm also speculating that Tunnell will benefit from a large East Coast contingent rallying around her.
Tunnell's supporting cast includes Janna Coulter and rising star Lindsay Lang. Only a sophomore, Lang has plenty of Juniors experience and a strong candidate to be on the Juniors Worlds squad.
Despite traveling across the country with only 12 players, UNC was able to play tight games with Stanford and Washington and notch a couple wins against top-tier teams, a 15-6 drubbing of British Columbia and a split of two games with UCLA. Pleiades is a good bet to take the top spot out of the Atlantic Coast and find themselves in the quarterfinals in Madison.
-----
The next post will be up in a couple days, this one from a guest blogger, Robyn Fennig of Wisconsin Eau-Claire.
FJR and wife were busy moving from one location to another so life has been a bit crazy over the past few weeks. Intertubes access was a bit spotty, and I spent the bulk of my Ultimate-related time focusing on prep for Stanford Invite and the UPA College preview. Maybe I'll figure out a way to get paid writing this stuff...
THE STEVINSON INVITE - The Dead Cows and the Dirty Ground
While Cultimate generally deserves a fair amount of criticism, making the decision to move to Stevinson was the smart thing to do. Sure, it's not exactly the awesome backdrop of Palo Alto, but it did allow teams to make contingency plans and mentally prep for the relocation. The fields weren't great but decent enough, but the relatively few and entirely full porta-potties left a lot to be desired. There are some images you simply cannot wipe away from the brain.
My major gripe ended up being with the bracket -- the quarters ended up having two rematches with one of them (Wisconsin vs. Stanford) being seeded for a rematch. I fought pretty hard to get our matchup switched since I felt that we deserved a matchup with a different pre-quarter winner since we had previously beaten UCSB to get into the quarters. Additionally, it was annoying to have the rematch be a intraregional matchup, an important consideration since the regional wildcard will swing between the Southwest and the Atlantic Coast.
There's no guarantee that we would have beaten Stanford, Cal or Western Washington but I'm sure that none of those teams would take offense if I thought our chances of winning were much better against them than against the Burning Skirts. This seems like a small thing, but it means a ton to a team like ours. Getting into the semifinals of one of the prestige tournaments is a big step and we finished tantalizingly close to that goal. Hopefully, Centex will bring bigger and better things.
Tier One - Oregon, Wisconsin, Washington and UCSB
Element climbs upward and the Burning Skirts take a bit of a hit after the weekend. UCSB had a disappointing weekend but they will be back; be sure of that.
At this point, there's a good argument for putting Oregon in its own tier (Super One) and the other three teams into Tier Not Quite One. On paper, Wisconsin should be the biggest threat to Fugue but neither of their matchups has been close. Element knows Fugue the best and put up a tight fight in the finals of the Stevinson Invite.
The biggest issue facing Fugue might be the pressure that comes with being undefeated. This is one of those annoying talking points that seems to come up way too often during the pro football season, but there is certainly some truth to it. I'm not even sure how many women's college teams have had a legitimate shot at an undefeated season (I think Stanford actually did it several years ago?). It wouldn't surprise me to see Fugue slip up at either Centex or Regionals. If they remain undefeated going into Madison, I don't think they'll be feeling the pressure at that point (except maybe in the finals). On the contrary, being undefeated will likely give them another level of confidence and make them wicked scary. Like Tier Super One scary.
Tier Two - USC, Stanford, Colorado, North Carolina
Right now, these stand as the current best bets to either climb into the top tier or take out one of the four teams. I'd include UCLA as a dark horse but the season-ending injury to Atari (Sarah Peters) and the serious injury to Hawkins really hurts them going into Centex. Once Hawkins gets back, they'll be a dangerous team during the College Series.
At this point, the only team to take out any of the top four teams (not including those four) is the surprising Hellions from USC. Crazy that.
USC
Let me get this out of the way because these things should be known to everyone outside the Southwest region. Mary Kate 'Uzi' Hogan deserves serious Callahan consideration for blazing a new trail for this team, rising from a regional punching bag to the current heights (7th in the last rankings). I think Lindsey Cross should be on the next Team USA in 2013. Let me move on.
I think we're pretty darn good and getting better. Prior to Pres Day, I guess we had developed the rep as a team that would come really close to big wins but fall just short. Kinda like the Dallas Mavericks. Or Charles Barkley. Or... *gulp*... the Buffalo Bills.
Last year, we had a string of seven straight double game point losses (twice to Cal, Oregon, Ottawa, UCLA, St. Louis, Wash U.). [There was a one point victory over Arizona at Centex but Scorch scored the final point after the hard cap had sounded.] This year, we had two double game point losses at Santa Barbara Invite (UCSB and UCLA), running the total to nine straight.
There was a huge difference in how we handled those losses. The cliche about what doesn't kill you making you tougher is definitely true. We are a much tougher team than we were last year.
This was finally evidenced on a tough Sunday at Pres Day. After beating Element the night before, we were on cloud nine. Of course, we came back to earth with humbling losses to both Cal and UCSB. We had gone from the verge of a bye and a spot in the quarterfinals to a tough pre-quarterfinals game against Carleton. Yikes.
Beating Syzygy on double game point might have been more significant to us for the long term than the win over Element. Obviously, I'd rather take a win over Washington than over Carleton this year, but the way we beat Syzygy meant so much more. After going up 4-0 on Carleton, they roared back to life with five straight to take the lead. We eventually earned our break back, but they broke us late in the game to go up 10-9. In fact, had they taken a little longer to score the hard cap would have sounded and the game would have been over.
Given a second chance, we held serve and got a fairly quick block on double game point. When Bambi hit Jaws for the game-winner, we landed a spot in the quarterfinals, something that had eluded us by the smallest of margins at Pres Day and Stanford Invite the previous year.
We took a major step forward at the Stanford Invite by (a) beating UCSB for the first time ever, (b) advancing to the quarterfinals and feeling confident that we could win, and (c) beating Stanford for the first time ever en route to a 5th place finish. Even better than our actual finish is that the Hellions fully believe that the best is yet to come.
There are obviously consistency issues to deal with (big win over UCSB followed by big loss to Element, solid first half against Bella Donna followed by a poor second half, Sunday at Pres Day), but these issues are great problems to have. They are what separates being very good from being great (one of the top four teams in the division).
Stanford
Emily Damon is one of the top handlers in the nation this year. I love her game and her leadership. Caitlin Rugg is stepping up in the role Jenny Founds possessed last year. Ana Brown is one of the most underappreciated defensive players in the division. And their jerseys still have Stanford written on them. That goes a long way.
The one major hole in Stanford's offensive game is that they are missing a definitive go-to receiver. Last year, they had Danielle Platt and Liz Cassel who could command the middle of the field. They have a number of solid cutters but so far, nobody has stepped up as that person who is going rip down 50-50s and force defenses to shift their focus.
Even still, Stanford is like a zombie (and the zombie film genre) and will keep coming back no matter how many times you think they are dead. Wisconsin owned Superfly in their first two matchups this year, but in the quarterfinals, they were down 8-3 at half. Certainly, it has to be mentally draining for Superfly to know that they had full control of the game and let it slip away, but if any team can handle these kinds of ups and downs, it is Stanford.
The margin of our game against Superfly is misleading. They were down after two grueling games (Wisconsin and a long, tough battle with Cal) but they still kept things close in the first half. We broke the game wide open in the second half and ran away with the game. Plus, they hold the edge in our matchups 2 to 1.
Stanford has a legacy of coming up big at Nationals, and I would hate to be the team to face them in the quarters. They will almost certainly match up with one of the teams in the top tier and be a pain in the ass for that team. Ask Wisconsin about last year.
Colorado
Kali returns a number of players from last year's squad that consistently improved over the course of the season. Tina McDowell is doing a great job as coach, as reflected in their 6th place finish at Pres Day (despite missing a few of their top players). They also won the Midwest Throwdown with relative ease, infusing the team with a great deal of confidence.
With Heather Waugh gone, the heart and soul of this year's team lies with Courtney 'Cougar' Verhaalen. I wrote a bit about Coug in the upcoming UPA preview so I'll let the article speak for itself. Brenna Hokanson is also back after a FJR-esque hiatus from school. FOTY in 2008, her return is a big boost to Kali's handling corps. She gives Kali the ability to stretch the field and can be a consistent source of break mark throws.
Of the teams I've seen this year, I think Kali is the squad that has the potential to improve the most over the course of this season (aside from the Hellions, of course).
North Carolina
I didn't get a chance to watch much of UNC at the Stanford Invite, but Leila Tunnell is the obvious centerpiece of the Pleiades and will be a cinch to finish top 5 in the Callahan voting. You might be able to find five better all-around players, but very few offer the complete Callahan package like she does. Her leadership and commitment to sportsmanship are top notch and set her apart from other players on the Callahan short list. I'm also speculating that Tunnell will benefit from a large East Coast contingent rallying around her.
Tunnell's supporting cast includes Janna Coulter and rising star Lindsay Lang. Only a sophomore, Lang has plenty of Juniors experience and a strong candidate to be on the Juniors Worlds squad.
Despite traveling across the country with only 12 players, UNC was able to play tight games with Stanford and Washington and notch a couple wins against top-tier teams, a 15-6 drubbing of British Columbia and a split of two games with UCLA. Pleiades is a good bet to take the top spot out of the Atlantic Coast and find themselves in the quarterfinals in Madison.
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The next post will be up in a couple days, this one from a guest blogger, Robyn Fennig of Wisconsin Eau-Claire.
Friday, February 19, 2010
2010 President's Day Recap (Part One of Two)
Here's my official return from hiatus. For reals this time. The ladies of Fugue harassed me this past weekend to deliver the written goods. Since they won a little tourney in San Diego called President's Day, I'll make this post my present to them.
PRESIDENT'S DAY
Before I get to the past weekend's events and the different teams I saw, I want to extend kudos to UC San Diego and all of the teams in attendance at Pres Day. For the second year in a row, the quality and depth of the women's field at President's Day far eclipsed that of Trouble in Vegas. Neither of the elite Canadian teams (Ottawa and UBC) were in attendance, but Wisconsin, Washington and Western Washington made the switch to San Diego this year.
Given all of the problems with this year's TiV tourney (certainly, the weather was not Cultimate's fault but there are certainly other areas where they have dropped the ball), the decision to go to Pres Day was clearly the right one. The weather was perfect, the format guaranteed a number of high quality games, and all of the major needs were taken care of. The TDs did a good job of collecting the scores and reporting them promptly on the UPA score reporter.
I would love to see Pres Day remain an elite-level tourney, and I hope that the tourney organizers continue to elevate the quality of the tourney. Here are a few areas where the tourney can improve:
1) Fields - Originally, the D pool was going to be split between two locations since the RIMAC fields can only fit seven full-sized fields. I think their solution to squeeze another field was the right one for the weekend, and this avoided the headache of having teams shuttle back and forth (and potentially wreak havoc with cap times).
While I liked that the entire tourney could fit at the one field site, I think it's preferable to have full-sized fields. Perhaps most of the teams would disagree with me on this point, but I think UCSD would be smart to get everyone's opinion on this matter.
Considering the relative importance of this tourney, the women's division should have had the two extra fields be located at the same site (Muir or the other field site) and avoid the scheduling / field dimension issues.
2) Scoreboards - They had scoreboards on Monday but not for the prior days. I think this was because the open division was using them. Again, priority should be given to the women's division if the division continues to be of much greater significance than the open division.
3) Observers - I know it's tough to get observers in general, but having observers for the pre-quarters and beyond would be a tremendous start. Having observers at Stanford and Centex last year was great, especially for teams expecting to make the trip to the College championships.
4) Publicity - This is a premiere tourney and better coverage of the games would go a long way to growing interest in the women's division. An improved website, tourney photographers / videographers and game recaps would be a big step in the right direction.
I want to be clear that I'm writing all of the above suggestions because I want to see continued growth for the women's division. Set higher standards, work harder to achieve them, and reap the rewards when you see the division grow in scope and quality.
All right, let's get to the teams.
-----
I'll focus on the teams that finished 1-10 at Pres Day. If I have time, I'll write up a part three detailing thoughts on the other teams. Of the top 10 teams, the only one I didn't see firsthand is Wisconsin, undoubtedly one of the strongest squads in the division this year. Hopefully, I'll get to see them at Stanford.
Tier One - Oregon, UCSB, Wisconsin
Hello, Big Three. These were the three teams that I thought were going to be strongest coming into this season, and the results of this weekend fully validated my predictions. None of these three teams are completely bulletproof to the teams in the tiers below, but barring major injuries or a big upset in pool play (resulting in a brutal quarterfinals matchup between two of these teams), these three should be in the semifinals in Madison.
Oregon
Fugue was my pick to win the tourney (... um, I mean out of all of the teams that aren't named USC...). Several people commented to me this weekend that their roster looks exactly the same as it did last year. While this isn't completely true, it is mostly true. And it is also only mostly true that they could field a line of super-seniors (5/7ths, I think).
Molly Suver? Check. Shannon McDowell? Check. Jenica Villamoor, Julia Sherwood, Tina Snodgrass, Morgan Zajonc? Check, check, check, check (I'm running out of checks here). Bailey Zahniser and Kimber Coles? Only sophomores? Damn.
There is no one single player you can key in on, but I think there's a decent argument for Julia Sherwood as the biggest difference-maker on this squad. She presents a very tough matchup when she is operating in the backfield. She covers a lot of ground, is extremely quick and moves the disc exceptionally well. She's also a fantastic defender. What's not to like?
As their games against Stanford and UCSB demonstrate, Fugue can be beaten, but this squad has a lot of the similar components possessed by last year's championship squad from UCSB. They have depth, a ton of elite-level experience, a great deep game, and a top-notch coaching staff. Their biggest challenge going into Stanford Invite and Centex is handling the pressure that comes with having the big bull's-eye on their back. The fact that Fugue is one of the most easygoing, fun-loving teams in the elite ranks will only help them over the course of the season.
UC Santa Barbara
UCSB also has the look of a team remarkably similar to last year's championship roster, but there is a sizable difference between the 2009 and 2010 versions of the Burning Skirts. Aside from no longer having Andrea Romano, Katie Barry and Kristie Bowen on the roster, Steve Dugan is no longer their coach. Losing the leadership offered by Dugan, Romano and Barry is really hard to measure, but it is substantial.
Fortunately for UCSB, they have oodles of talent to overcome this. Kaela Jorgenson and Carolyn Finney, the Wonder Skirt Twins, are back as their 1-2 punch, but it is Marie Madaras who is now their underappreciated star player. As Fugue learned in the semifinals in Columbus, Madaras is an athletic cutter and defensive playmaker who is now gaining confidence as a thrower. Sophomore Stephanie Karba may be the tallest handler in the women's game and will be a big part of their success this season. Bri Cahn, Shannon Bubb, Emily Bass, Erin Mordecai and Arianne Johnson are all very solid contributors who have the confidence of champions.
Wisconsin
With the College Championships in their backyard this May, the stage is set for this year to be Bella Donna's year. Reigning Callahan winner Georgia Bosscher is back and looking to add a college championship in the same year she won her first club championship. As most people know, Bosscher is a phenomenal player, but it is a huge mistake to overlook how talented the rest of the squad is.
Emilie McKain can dominate for extended stretches and provides a lot of the fire for this squad. Laura Bitterman, Jenny Gaynor and Elizabeth Vu offer a wealth of experience and talent. Bella Donna will only get better when Frances Tsukano returns from her injury.
Though they lost Amber Sinicrope (didn't return to school), Bella Donna made a major addition with Brandon Malacek and Courtney Kiesow taking over the coaching reins this year. Malacek brings a champion's mentality to the team and could give them the vital piece they've been missing the past few years.
In San Diego, Wisconsin took their first major step by dismantling their pool on Saturday, including a 13-4 win over a talented Stanford squad. They fell back to Earth a bit with a narrow win over UCLA, and a loss to Oregon in what was a highly anticipated matchup. Their 13-4 trampling over a very up-and-down Cal squad demonstrated what this team is capable of, but they came up short in their matchup with the Burning Skirts.
The pressure is definitely on Wisconsin to make the finals of either Stanford or Centex. Both Oregon and UCSB already have the confidence of a champion. Wisconsin certainly has the talent and experience, but a win over either squad in Palo Alto or Austin is close to being necessary in order to conquer their demons at the biggest stage.
Tier One Point Five - Washington
Befitting a team led by Shannon O'Stripey, Element is in a tier all by itself. The only one seed to falter in pool play, Washington is going to be interesting to follow all season. This team has plenty of talent, but right now, as O'Malley and Lindsey Wilson go, so go the rest of Element. This team could join the top tier, drop into the second tier or detonate over the Puget Sound and end up as enigmatic as the ending of Akira.
As if their current dynamic weren't interesting enough, everyone's favorite controversy-generator, Cyle van Auken, is now the head coach for Element. Ron Kubalanza has moved to Chicago and is currently coaching the Northwestern women. Last year, the two coaches seemed to balance each other well, leading Element to the finals. This year, it remains to be seen how this dynamic plays out.
I saw the many faces of Element in our pool game on Saturday. There were times when Element looked very balanced and utilized players 1 through 7. At others, they relied heavily on the O'Malley / Wilson combo. As we fought back and got a couple breaks, their two big playmakers were pressing quite a bit and their supporting cast seemed to be thrown out of sync. I continue to be impressed by Cailey Marsh who transferred from UCLA. She came up with some critical plays and was a steady handler for them during crunch time. They'll need players like her to be the difference makers if they are to seriously threaten the top three teams.
On our end, the win over Element was a huge step forward, the kind for which we've been hungering a long time. Our game was the last one going on Saturday, so a number of teams came to watch the end of the game, adding to the excitement of the game. We came back from a four point deficit during an 8-2 run that catapulted us to a 13-11 win. Tied at 11s, we took the game by scoring on a big flick bomb from Jesus to T-Stamp. On the final point, Jaws got a layout D on a reset and Uzi finished the game off by launching a backhand to Screech (who initially misread the disc but was able to spin around and get the disc on a second effort).
Though we lost to Cal in the first game on Sunday (rendering our UW win moot for the purposes of quarterfinals matchups), the win still meant a ton for our confidence and the future of our young program. The list of elite teams we've never beaten got a bit smaller after Pres Day, and we're eager to shorten it even more at Stanford.
PRESIDENT'S DAY
Before I get to the past weekend's events and the different teams I saw, I want to extend kudos to UC San Diego and all of the teams in attendance at Pres Day. For the second year in a row, the quality and depth of the women's field at President's Day far eclipsed that of Trouble in Vegas. Neither of the elite Canadian teams (Ottawa and UBC) were in attendance, but Wisconsin, Washington and Western Washington made the switch to San Diego this year.
Given all of the problems with this year's TiV tourney (certainly, the weather was not Cultimate's fault but there are certainly other areas where they have dropped the ball), the decision to go to Pres Day was clearly the right one. The weather was perfect, the format guaranteed a number of high quality games, and all of the major needs were taken care of. The TDs did a good job of collecting the scores and reporting them promptly on the UPA score reporter.
I would love to see Pres Day remain an elite-level tourney, and I hope that the tourney organizers continue to elevate the quality of the tourney. Here are a few areas where the tourney can improve:
1) Fields - Originally, the D pool was going to be split between two locations since the RIMAC fields can only fit seven full-sized fields. I think their solution to squeeze another field was the right one for the weekend, and this avoided the headache of having teams shuttle back and forth (and potentially wreak havoc with cap times).
While I liked that the entire tourney could fit at the one field site, I think it's preferable to have full-sized fields. Perhaps most of the teams would disagree with me on this point, but I think UCSD would be smart to get everyone's opinion on this matter.
Considering the relative importance of this tourney, the women's division should have had the two extra fields be located at the same site (Muir or the other field site) and avoid the scheduling / field dimension issues.
2) Scoreboards - They had scoreboards on Monday but not for the prior days. I think this was because the open division was using them. Again, priority should be given to the women's division if the division continues to be of much greater significance than the open division.
3) Observers - I know it's tough to get observers in general, but having observers for the pre-quarters and beyond would be a tremendous start. Having observers at Stanford and Centex last year was great, especially for teams expecting to make the trip to the College championships.
4) Publicity - This is a premiere tourney and better coverage of the games would go a long way to growing interest in the women's division. An improved website, tourney photographers / videographers and game recaps would be a big step in the right direction.
I want to be clear that I'm writing all of the above suggestions because I want to see continued growth for the women's division. Set higher standards, work harder to achieve them, and reap the rewards when you see the division grow in scope and quality.
All right, let's get to the teams.
-----
I'll focus on the teams that finished 1-10 at Pres Day. If I have time, I'll write up a part three detailing thoughts on the other teams. Of the top 10 teams, the only one I didn't see firsthand is Wisconsin, undoubtedly one of the strongest squads in the division this year. Hopefully, I'll get to see them at Stanford.
Tier One - Oregon, UCSB, Wisconsin
Hello, Big Three. These were the three teams that I thought were going to be strongest coming into this season, and the results of this weekend fully validated my predictions. None of these three teams are completely bulletproof to the teams in the tiers below, but barring major injuries or a big upset in pool play (resulting in a brutal quarterfinals matchup between two of these teams), these three should be in the semifinals in Madison.
Oregon
Fugue was my pick to win the tourney (... um, I mean out of all of the teams that aren't named USC...). Several people commented to me this weekend that their roster looks exactly the same as it did last year. While this isn't completely true, it is mostly true. And it is also only mostly true that they could field a line of super-seniors (5/7ths, I think).
Molly Suver? Check. Shannon McDowell? Check. Jenica Villamoor, Julia Sherwood, Tina Snodgrass, Morgan Zajonc? Check, check, check, check (I'm running out of checks here). Bailey Zahniser and Kimber Coles? Only sophomores? Damn.
There is no one single player you can key in on, but I think there's a decent argument for Julia Sherwood as the biggest difference-maker on this squad. She presents a very tough matchup when she is operating in the backfield. She covers a lot of ground, is extremely quick and moves the disc exceptionally well. She's also a fantastic defender. What's not to like?
As their games against Stanford and UCSB demonstrate, Fugue can be beaten, but this squad has a lot of the similar components possessed by last year's championship squad from UCSB. They have depth, a ton of elite-level experience, a great deep game, and a top-notch coaching staff. Their biggest challenge going into Stanford Invite and Centex is handling the pressure that comes with having the big bull's-eye on their back. The fact that Fugue is one of the most easygoing, fun-loving teams in the elite ranks will only help them over the course of the season.
UC Santa Barbara
UCSB also has the look of a team remarkably similar to last year's championship roster, but there is a sizable difference between the 2009 and 2010 versions of the Burning Skirts. Aside from no longer having Andrea Romano, Katie Barry and Kristie Bowen on the roster, Steve Dugan is no longer their coach. Losing the leadership offered by Dugan, Romano and Barry is really hard to measure, but it is substantial.
Fortunately for UCSB, they have oodles of talent to overcome this. Kaela Jorgenson and Carolyn Finney, the Wonder Skirt Twins, are back as their 1-2 punch, but it is Marie Madaras who is now their underappreciated star player. As Fugue learned in the semifinals in Columbus, Madaras is an athletic cutter and defensive playmaker who is now gaining confidence as a thrower. Sophomore Stephanie Karba may be the tallest handler in the women's game and will be a big part of their success this season. Bri Cahn, Shannon Bubb, Emily Bass, Erin Mordecai and Arianne Johnson are all very solid contributors who have the confidence of champions.
Wisconsin
With the College Championships in their backyard this May, the stage is set for this year to be Bella Donna's year. Reigning Callahan winner Georgia Bosscher is back and looking to add a college championship in the same year she won her first club championship. As most people know, Bosscher is a phenomenal player, but it is a huge mistake to overlook how talented the rest of the squad is.
Emilie McKain can dominate for extended stretches and provides a lot of the fire for this squad. Laura Bitterman, Jenny Gaynor and Elizabeth Vu offer a wealth of experience and talent. Bella Donna will only get better when Frances Tsukano returns from her injury.
Though they lost Amber Sinicrope (didn't return to school), Bella Donna made a major addition with Brandon Malacek and Courtney Kiesow taking over the coaching reins this year. Malacek brings a champion's mentality to the team and could give them the vital piece they've been missing the past few years.
In San Diego, Wisconsin took their first major step by dismantling their pool on Saturday, including a 13-4 win over a talented Stanford squad. They fell back to Earth a bit with a narrow win over UCLA, and a loss to Oregon in what was a highly anticipated matchup. Their 13-4 trampling over a very up-and-down Cal squad demonstrated what this team is capable of, but they came up short in their matchup with the Burning Skirts.
The pressure is definitely on Wisconsin to make the finals of either Stanford or Centex. Both Oregon and UCSB already have the confidence of a champion. Wisconsin certainly has the talent and experience, but a win over either squad in Palo Alto or Austin is close to being necessary in order to conquer their demons at the biggest stage.
Tier One Point Five - Washington
Befitting a team led by Shannon O'Stripey, Element is in a tier all by itself. The only one seed to falter in pool play, Washington is going to be interesting to follow all season. This team has plenty of talent, but right now, as O'Malley and Lindsey Wilson go, so go the rest of Element. This team could join the top tier, drop into the second tier or detonate over the Puget Sound and end up as enigmatic as the ending of Akira.
As if their current dynamic weren't interesting enough, everyone's favorite controversy-generator, Cyle van Auken, is now the head coach for Element. Ron Kubalanza has moved to Chicago and is currently coaching the Northwestern women. Last year, the two coaches seemed to balance each other well, leading Element to the finals. This year, it remains to be seen how this dynamic plays out.
I saw the many faces of Element in our pool game on Saturday. There were times when Element looked very balanced and utilized players 1 through 7. At others, they relied heavily on the O'Malley / Wilson combo. As we fought back and got a couple breaks, their two big playmakers were pressing quite a bit and their supporting cast seemed to be thrown out of sync. I continue to be impressed by Cailey Marsh who transferred from UCLA. She came up with some critical plays and was a steady handler for them during crunch time. They'll need players like her to be the difference makers if they are to seriously threaten the top three teams.
On our end, the win over Element was a huge step forward, the kind for which we've been hungering a long time. Our game was the last one going on Saturday, so a number of teams came to watch the end of the game, adding to the excitement of the game. We came back from a four point deficit during an 8-2 run that catapulted us to a 13-11 win. Tied at 11s, we took the game by scoring on a big flick bomb from Jesus to T-Stamp. On the final point, Jaws got a layout D on a reset and Uzi finished the game off by launching a backhand to Screech (who initially misread the disc but was able to spin around and get the disc on a second effort).
Though we lost to Cal in the first game on Sunday (rendering our UW win moot for the purposes of quarterfinals matchups), the win still meant a ton for our confidence and the future of our young program. The list of elite teams we've never beaten got a bit smaller after Pres Day, and we're eager to shorten it even more at Stanford.
Friday, November 20, 2009
Back From Hiatus
With Socal Warmup starting up in less than 24 hours, it is time for me to finally return to this blog and the college season. I had originally planned on writing extensively about the mixed division since I was playing with LA Metro this year. I assumed some of the responsibilities of leadership, and I needed some time away from writing about Ultimate.
My team had a fantastic run to Nationals, and we finished 11th in Sarasota. Short of what we were hoping for, but all in all, we had a great season and set the bar higher for Metro and LA Ultimate as a whole. On a personal note, I ended an abysmal streak of 15 Nationals losses in a row (playing with Monster in 2006 and coaching USC this year) with a win over TAU in pool play. The next hurdle is to get to quarterfinals and beyond.
I'll write more about USC in an upcoming preview of the Southwest region, but I feel very good about our chances this year. The bulk of last year's team remains intact and reaching semifinals at Sean Ryan (despite the absence of several key players) bodes really well for the Hellions.
I'm also planning to post some thoughts about how to improve the women's college division as a whole and take a look at some of the hot topics for the 2010 season. If anyone out there is interested in contributing, drop me a line at frho@sbcglobal.net.
My team had a fantastic run to Nationals, and we finished 11th in Sarasota. Short of what we were hoping for, but all in all, we had a great season and set the bar higher for Metro and LA Ultimate as a whole. On a personal note, I ended an abysmal streak of 15 Nationals losses in a row (playing with Monster in 2006 and coaching USC this year) with a win over TAU in pool play. The next hurdle is to get to quarterfinals and beyond.
I'll write more about USC in an upcoming preview of the Southwest region, but I feel very good about our chances this year. The bulk of last year's team remains intact and reaching semifinals at Sean Ryan (despite the absence of several key players) bodes really well for the Hellions.
I'm also planning to post some thoughts about how to improve the women's college division as a whole and take a look at some of the hot topics for the 2010 season. If anyone out there is interested in contributing, drop me a line at frho@sbcglobal.net.
Thursday, July 2, 2009
The College Championships - Q&A with UPenn Coach Marc Stachowski (Part 2 of 2)
FJR: Having qualified for pre-quarters after pool play, you had exceeded the expectations of outsiders (including myself). The wins over UNC and Iowa State were solid wins but what came next was something that nobody could have anticipated. The win over Carleton eliminated any doubts about the strength of your squad, and turned Venus into the story of the tourney. Talk about the lead-up to the Carleton game and the game itself. Stachowski: If we made the pre-quarters we'd match up with the winner of the Carleton vs. UNCW pool game. I was hoping it would be UNCW since I had watched them play a little bit and thought they were close to UNC in style and talent. I figured that could be a good way to encourage our team to pull off another upset. Unfortunately, Carleton beat UNCW 15-11. And since that game was happening at the same time as the Stanford/UNC game, I didn't even get to watch Carleton play. Uh oh.
So, on the minus side it looked like Carleton was playing some really good ultimate. On the plus side, I figured we'd be a little more rested since our last game of the day was over two hours before Carleton's... and also since we played a completely open rotation against Stanford to try to preserve our top players for later.
During our warmup after a five hour break, we looked a bit lethargic. Carleton was looking very efficient and sharp doing their warmup drills and I noticed with some concern that they were a very tall team. My message was the same as any other game during the series... play our game... keep a vocal involved sideline. As the game got underway we started out sluggishly but the mental toughness was there. We were making good decisions and working the disc really well and not panicking after they had a couple of monster skies by their tall receivers. We slowly got a grip on the game and took half 8-7.
During half time we seemed to find our second wind and came out very energized... running off 4-5 straight against a tired looking Carleton. When Katie Poulos, a third year player and super steady cutter and defender, made her first career layout grab on a disc that looked like nobody would get to, it was good for the 14th goal and the Penn sideline erupted. A turnover and a few throws later, Opi pointed to a corner of the endzone and Kate Anthony put it there... with Opi out-jumping a taller defender for the final goal. And just like that, we were suddenly in the quarterfinals of Nationals. And unbelievably, another goal change: "Lets make semis!"
FJR: Beating UNC and Carleton was one thing. Getting to the quarterfinals was amazing. But challenging Washington Element, a team that was on everyone's short list to win the title, took Venus from this year's Cinderella to one of the great underdogs in Ultimate history. How were you able to contend with a juggernaut like Element?
Stachowski: Honestly, I felt pretty good about our chances against Washington. We had been doing a great job of focusing on our own game the entire weekend and with a good night's rest I thought we'd be ready to pull off yet another upset. The message to the team was basically: nobody expected us to be here... everyone will be pulling for the underdog... just get out there and show everyone what we're made of and leave it all on the field.
As Penn warmed up up before the game I could tell it would be a much harder contest than anything we'd played in all year. Not only because of our opponent, but also because of the heat. I felt pretty confident that our top 9 could match up well with any other 9 at the tournament, but going against a team so deep and talented I was worried that we'd have fatigue problems towards the end of the game. Still, the girls had shown an incredible amount of fortitude so far... maybe there was another miracle to be had.
And for a while there, I really thought we were going to pull it off. At one point in the first half, we were making huge plays
everywhere... Opi got a huge deflection D then tore downfield for the score to make it 6-3. 6-3!! At that point, a girl from Pitt (we had fantastic support from players from all over the ME all weekend... Pitt, Penn State, Maryland, Cornell) stopped me on the sideline and said something like "Doc, what is going on here?" I shook my head and said "I don't know." I really didn't know. The euphoria of that early lead... the energy and excitement of the Penn sideline... the energy and buzz from the crowd... our team of underdogs playing their hearts out and taking it to the number 2 team in the nation... just an
amazing feeling. That's probably my favorite moment of the entire tournament.
Unfortunately, Washington was able to apply relentless pressure on both offense and defense and the chilly decisions we were making all weekend started thawing quickly. A couple of uncharacteristic drops... and turfed throw here and there... and suddenly it was 7-7. That focus that had been so sharp all weekend was showing some wear.
Still, we took half 8-7 and we were feeling very upbeat about our chances. But the Washington pressure was just too much for us and you could see our energy output dropping dramatically. We traded until about 10-10 or so, then Washington broke us twice I think. We traded again to 12-13 and Washington finished us off with two in a row. We'd come within 3 points of attaining a goal that we would never have thought possible just a few weeks beforehand. Our season was over.
FJR: Now that the 2009 season is over, what are your prospects going into next year?
Stachowski: It's hard to say what our prospects are for next year. We are losing Raha Mozaffari (three time all-region), Whitney Viets (captain, all-region, Callahan nominee), Rachel Shah (captain), and Kate Anthony. Basically, Raha, Kate and Whitney played every point of every victory and the quarters loss. And Rachel played every D point as a defensive handler and had zero turnovers. That's a lot of ultimate skill and leadership to have to replace.
On the other hand, to say that our remaining veterans and rookies have been galvanized by this whole incredible experience is an understatement. Every one of our rookies has signed up for a local league, and/or has written me for things to work on over the summer, and on and on. Hopefully some of the rookies will make good progress over the summer and come back with a purpose. We have a bunch of determined vets who are ready to step up and have their turn as well.
So, with some progress there and another good rookie class... maybe a transfer or two... maybe some hotshot HS player will read our story and decide to go to Penn to be part of our program... who knows?
What I can say is that by the time Sectionals 2010 rolls around, we'll come in with a low RRI but full of fire, determination, discipline and heart... and we'll be gunning for another trip to Nationals... playing our game... one point at a time.
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