2008 Woodie Awards
Frisbee team lays out a path to nationals
Derby Cox
Issue date: 4/29/08 Section: News
The football and basketball teams failed to win titles, but there is still hope for Maryland sports fans looking for another national championship.
With a second-place finish in the Metro East Women's Regionals on Sunday, the women's club ultimate frisbee team secured a place in the 16-team national tournament to be held May 16-18 in Boulder, Colo., for the first time in team history. During the past six years, the team has gone from struggling to recruit members to achieving the No. 13 ranking in the nation from the Ultimate Players Association, the sport's governing body.
After cruising through the opening rounds with blowout wins over Haverford and Penn State, the Terrapins persevered 15-9 over Pittsburgh before losing to tournament champion Ottawa.
The loss set up a rematch against Pittsburgh for second place and the tournament berth. After a back-and-forth match that progressed much like their previous meeting, the Terps pulled away by virtue of better conditioning.
"We just had more stamina, and we ran them into the ground," club president and sophomore government and politics major Molly Rose said. "We won using our legs and our heads."
The highlight of the match came when co-captain and senior civil engineering major Heather Smith performed a rare "Callahan," in which a player scores on defense by intercepting the frisbee in her opponent's endzone.
The trip to the national tournament will cap a breakout season for the team, which finished with a 26-3 record during the season and won its sectional tournament for the first time.
"As a team, we decided to really go in a new direction," said senior journalism and Spanish major Melanie Lidman, a former Diamondback opinion columnist. "You can decide to do [a club sport] for the community and camaraderie, or you can take it to the next level."
Lidman was one of many on the team to give up her job to focus on training, she said.
The team began a strenuous training regimen that included gym workouts, swimming and track practices, which irked the track team.
With a second-place finish in the Metro East Women's Regionals on Sunday, the women's club ultimate frisbee team secured a place in the 16-team national tournament to be held May 16-18 in Boulder, Colo., for the first time in team history. During the past six years, the team has gone from struggling to recruit members to achieving the No. 13 ranking in the nation from the Ultimate Players Association, the sport's governing body.
After cruising through the opening rounds with blowout wins over Haverford and Penn State, the Terrapins persevered 15-9 over Pittsburgh before losing to tournament champion Ottawa.
The loss set up a rematch against Pittsburgh for second place and the tournament berth. After a back-and-forth match that progressed much like their previous meeting, the Terps pulled away by virtue of better conditioning.
"We just had more stamina, and we ran them into the ground," club president and sophomore government and politics major Molly Rose said. "We won using our legs and our heads."
The highlight of the match came when co-captain and senior civil engineering major Heather Smith performed a rare "Callahan," in which a player scores on defense by intercepting the frisbee in her opponent's endzone.
The trip to the national tournament will cap a breakout season for the team, which finished with a 26-3 record during the season and won its sectional tournament for the first time.
"As a team, we decided to really go in a new direction," said senior journalism and Spanish major Melanie Lidman, a former Diamondback opinion columnist. "You can decide to do [a club sport] for the community and camaraderie, or you can take it to the next level."
Lidman was one of many on the team to give up her job to focus on training, she said.
The team began a strenuous training regimen that included gym workouts, swimming and track practices, which irked the track team.
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The Moose
posted 4/30/08 @ 9:25 AM EST
Too bad the "Helpful Corn" had legs because they threw their game against Ottawa. it's also very unfortunate that they're going to go to nationals not knowing the rules, they'll probably be able to get in some oth teams' heads too. (Continued…)
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