Tournament report
We keep getting better and better. I keep watching this team play and then thinking back to last fall and finding myself amazed at the transformations we've undergone as a team and as individuals. This weekend we took 10 to Ultimax: Allison, Albert, Cliff, Dan, Dave L, Emily, Gene, Karl, Mark, and Shane and played very well. Our bracket was apparently the Ivy League bracket as we played Yale and Princeton. Our first game seemed to get away from us as we lost to Yale, 15-3. We immediately turned to face Princeton. Some of our problems from the Yale game lingered during the first half of that game putting us behind. However, late in the first half and most of the second Princeton put a zone on us and discovered that Cliff was a popper "extraordinare". Through the course of the game our other middles (playing a modified zone O to take advantage of Cliff's destructive capabilities) and the deeps began synching up with the rest of the offense and we saw numerous swings and subsequent passes down the line gaining yardage as we consistently attacked their zone. Unfortunately, we weren't able to overcome the margin they had gained early in the game and soon found ourselves facing a 14-7 score. They turned it over near the endzone and we set up a play as Gene went to get the disc. Gene got the disc and "finger jersey" went off beautifully. But, there was a pick. The disc went back to Gene and he called Darkside Luebke and we again ran the play to perfection and this time there were no calls. Unfortunately Princeton went on to score the next point and we left with a 15-8 loss, leaving us 0-2 in pool play (Georgia, the top seed in our pool didn't show). However, Cliff, in recognition of his play, had earned the right to sleep in one of the beds that night. (Cliff was a mad man in other aspects as well, coming out of nowhere to swat and catch discs out of the air on 'D' and 'O'.)
So, we went to the pre-party party at a local sub shop and found that we were playing Vassar on Sunday. After attending THE party and socializing some more with the Princeton team (comments Cliff?) we got a night of sleep. On Sunday, we started strong against Vassar, taking a 2-0 lead but then, in what was to become a game of rallys Vassar went on a 6-0 run to take a 6-2 lead. We countered and went on a 4-0 run of our own and the half ended at 8-7 Vassar. We came out ready to make a run but suddenly went flat, making errant passes and dropping catches, and Vassar took advantage, going on a 5-0 run, 13-7. But, Darkside wasn't through, we rallied against their zone and shut down their offense, going on a 5-0 run of our own to bring the game to 13-12. Unfortunately, Vassar again managed to find their spark and scored the last two points of the game to send us home 15-12.
Despite our 3 losses, I continue to be pleased by our team. This weekend we continued to improve our zone offense, getting the middles and deeps involved. We also played a consistent force and took advantage of it, something we've hardly done at all before. There was also a sense of determination and confidence in our game that kept us going in each game.
Next stop Fools - look out, here we come.
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