Southerns, Easterns and Roll Call

Outside of Centex there were 3 big tournaments that happened over the last two weekends and the results are very interesting, especially for some regions that don't get enough press, ie the Metro East, the Northeast and the Great Lakes.

Southerns

First, hats off to Dartmouth. They are really doing their job to get back to nationals, something they have not done since 2003. Sam Haynor is a weird but great guy and he is THE prototypical model of a Northeast ultimate player and I think his experience and leadership has really facilitated the formation of a truly phenomenal NE program. I also think that it is interesting that the other NE school that is getting some big wins outside the Centex bubble, Tufts, was right there with the Pain Train in the finals. I am guessing a capping situation resulted in a 12-10 win for Dartmouth but I think that Hollingworth's E-Men are a great program as well. Had the game gone to 15 like regionals will be, who knows who will come out on top. Another team that has done well despite ZERO attention is Notre Dame. Another in a slew of Great Lakes programs, the Papal Rage not only made the semis at one of the biggest tournaments of the spring, but they also won Ultimax by beating a red hot Pennsylvania team in the finals 15-12.

I think it is interesting that Notre Dame, Tufts, and Dartmouth are all doing well while their competition, Michigan, Illinois, Harvard, and Brown were all at Centex. I definitely think the Centex crowd was facing stiffer opposition, but a win is a win and confidence and composure (the two most important things in college ultimate) are still developed in this manner. As far as the Great Lakes goes, I think that Michigan is still on top. Illinois is right there and I think with Ohio State's success at Southerns as well as Roll Call, in addition to Notre Dame, I think the Great Lakes region will have one of the better regional tournaments with not only a bunch of teams close to one another but also teams that are talented and successful at the national level.

More of the same for the Northeast. Dartmouth and Tufts both look good but so does Harvard. I wonder if over confidence will play a role in regionals with Harvard feeling like they are the best in the region because of their Centex performance. If George Stubbs is back, they will play better than they already are but a peaking Dartmouth and/or Tufts team will challenge Red Line for the regional title. With Brown up and down all year, I think there are 3 teams that could come out on top (Tufts, Dartmouth or Harvard) with 2 of these 3 plus Brown taking the second bid. I have been to NE regionals a few times now and Brown always seems to do well despite their record. It's too bad Williams has dropped below radar but I think the NE is as wide open as it has been since I have been here and I hope to see some fireworks in May.

Easterns

The take home message from this tournament is that North Carolina teams do well at North Carolina tournaments. Congrats Gerics. All 4 teams in the semis were from NC (UNC, NC State, UNC-W, and Duke) and the finals was a good old fashion 15-11 barn burner between the Wolfpack and the Seamen. UNC-Wilmington is really beginning to assert themselves as an AC contender this year. Of all the AC powerhouses (Florida, Georgia, UNC, NC State, UNC-W), they have been the most consistent outside the Gators. However, they didn't go to Centex and the other 4 did. I was really disappointed that they passed up Austin after a great showing in Palo Alto, but I am sure it is tough to travel so much for ultimate. I only know of 1 kid on the team, Rusty Ingold-Smith, who not only went to the same high school as Jacob Goldstein, the Mahoney's, and Jasper Hoitsma, but he has also suited up with Slow White for the lat two years and his experience is top shelf. I think he is staying in NC to play for Ring this summer and will be missed by the Boston crowd. Either way, his speed on offense is really frustrating for defenders and his acceleration and bids really make him invaluable on D. I would bet he plays a large role in Wilmington's relatively shallow roster and would like to see them make it back to Nationals. However, I wonder if their lack of series experience will hurt them against teams that have been to the show routinely over the last few years, namely UNC, Georgia and, of course, Florida.

NC State is a real question mark for me. I think they are a team with the talent to take out everyone save Florida in their region, they just need to bring their best to every game. They seem to like the hammers and the deep ball as well as athletic D, which is a bad combination against polished teams like Florida. I also imagine them having trouble against good shallow teams because in a single game where endurance and legs aren't an issue, a few careless turnovers can really change the tides. I think they need to focus on their composure more than anything else and if they can play their best game more often than not, I think they have a shot at UNC-W. Both teams have history on their side, but I think given the chance, NC State needs to use their depth against UNC-W. This gets tough however, especially in poor weather. If regionals is perfect weather wise, I think NC State should throw out line after line of fresh cutters to exhaust UNC-W and despite not taking half, I think the Wolfpack can win in the long run, especially if they bring their A game.

I think UNC suffered a setback with their loss to UNC-W, but I think they were probably still beat from Centex. They are in an interesting situation because they have done well when NC State has not and vice versa. Like UNC-W and Florida, I think poor weather favors them because they are a patient and composed team. However, I think talent and firepower could be issues. They don't have a whole lot to contest teams at their level and rely on top to bottom good ultimate to win games. With all-stars like Ulty Arnie and Rusty, teams like NC State and Wilmington have the ability to put up points and breaks that UNC cannot make up. I think in poor weather they have got a shot but only against NC State. I would imagine a small nucleus like Wilmington would be spectacular in the wind and UNC's only hope is that their depth can overcome. However, Darkside does play well in the series. I had Georgia pegged for 2nd seed out of the AC last year and UNC came and snatched it away. This maybe that JoJah had yet to play their best disc (they made quarters at nationals and lost to Finals bound Colorado), or UNC was peaking at just the right time. Either way, I think Carolina sectionals will be one of the better sectional tournaments along with the Bay Area section with teams like Stanford, Santa Cruz, Cal and LPC all looking good with no clear front runner.

Roll Call

I was glad to see another big tourney spring up because it means good teams are playing each other and the playoff picture gets clearer and clearer. Pitt obviously had a spectacular showing by taking out Ohio State in the Finals 15-12. I have gotten some criticism for not talking up En Sabah Nur, and now I will try and shut them up. First I think their win against Wisconsin was a huge step in changing a great Metro East team to just, a great team. Going into a big but small school heavy tournament with a win like that under your belt really lets a team know that they can do it all. However, I wonder if a little over confidence hurt them in round one because they lost to one of their biggest regional challenges, Penn, on double game point. They did battle back and despite this loss took out Ohio State 13-7 and took the pool. Sunday would be a continuation of a great tourney and they managed to secure 4 wins in a row to take the tournament. I think it is interesting that the two teams in the Finals were also in the same pool, Ohio State and Pitt, and it goes to show you that seedings are irrelevant if you are good enough. I think Pitt needs to stay focused because the Metro East isn't theirs, yet. They didn't get another chance against Penn this past weekend and have yet to play Cornell, who had a great weekend at Huck of the Irish. I like Pitt to take the region but they are going to have to earn it like everybody else. They didn't take it last year and despite going to Nationals routinely, they have also routinely been #2 in their region. This year they are #1 but either Cornell or Penn could play spoiler for them. I don't see them missing out on Boulder, but they will need to play their best to come out #1 in the ME.

Ohio State is really playing great disc this year despite not playing in an NCUS or Cultimate tournament. They are another in a series of Great Lakes teams that really want to make the show this May. They took advantage of Michigan and Michigan State's drop off in ability last year and earned the chance to play at home on Memorial Day. That experience will really help them against Illinois and Magnum. I think Michigan's play at Centex really puts them at #1 in the region despite Illinois' superb showing, especially against Stanford and Florida. However, Ohio State really hasn't had the chance to face the best in their region recently and could still challenge either team for one of the spots to natties. I think the Great Lakes region will be one of the best series tournaments this year because all three teams will be peaking at the right time and each could make it to the A bracket come Saturday at Nationals.

I am really curious about Harvard. They are arguably the front runner from the Northeast but they are not as far ahead from the rest of region as they would like. They are definitely good, but they are going to need to stay focused every game to make it to Boulder. Their quarters loss to Penn tells me two things, 1) Penn is the Davidson of the 2008 College Ultimate Season. They are playing GREAT spoiler ultimate with wins against Michigan, Pitt, Harvard, and Cornell. They are definitely #2 in the ME and I hope Pitt is ready for them. 2) Harvard can be beaten if they look past their opponent. This is what I see potentially happening at NE regionals. Harvard comes out strong Saturday and draws the lowest seed Sunday. This could potentially be a team like Boston College or Wesleyan, two teams that are scrappy, good and would LOVE to catch an over confident team sleeping. I am not saying that they lose but they could end up going to 15s or 16s just like Wesleyan did to Williams last year. This could frustrate Red Line and put them against a red hot Tufts or Dartmouth team who could take advantage and send Harvard to the back door bracket. This would suck for the Cambridge boys because they would then have to go through a confident Brown team and the loser of Tufts/Dartmouth. This situation would favor Tufts and Dartmouth because I think the two would prefer to face each other in the finals over either Brown or Harvard because they are in similar boats. Neither has been to nationals in recent years and Dartmouth has issues with winning games to go. A Tufts/Dartmouth finals would be awesome and I hope Dartmouth would win because I think Tufts could take out Harvard or Brown but Dartmouth has a tendency to slip once they lose their first chance to nationals. Long story short, if every one of these 4 teams' play their game, there are 6 equal probabilities for 2 teams going to Nationals.

Closing Thoughts

I think the series this year is going to be the best since I have been following ultimate. Almost every region is wide open and I am really excited to see how April and May pan out. The Bay Area and Carolina sections are going to be great because we will get to see where some of the best in the country line up one another. The Great Lakes, Northeast, and Northwest Regions are all COMPLETELY wide open and have more parity than the NBA western conference.

Despite all this hype however, Nationals in Boulder is basically going to be Nationals 2006. It is Florida's to lose and Wisconsin's to win. The Gators are going to be #1 in the NUMP this week and will stay that way until Nationals. Wisconsin will probably be relegated to #2 and as long as they keep a lid on Minnesota and CUT they can get comfortable there. Gibson is unreal and I think he can lead a great campaign in Colorado. However, he couldn't make the finals without TG last year and in good weather the Hodag depth is going to be UNREAL. I would love to see Colorado, Michigan, Arizona, or god knows who else, make a run in 6 weeks but I think the Blue Caller rivalry will make another appearance in the finals.

just my thoughts

match diesel

Thats why they play the game

I am going be honest. I had almost an entire write up done going into the finals. I started researching Queen City and had updates about TiV through semifinals. I was ready to go, I knew it was gonna be Wisconsin vs Arizona (shocking, I know but I was ready) but I figured the Hodags would take Sunburn 13-6 or something. However, I am getting text updates from my cousin, 5-3 Wisconsin, 10-8 Wisconsin, what the fuck? How is Arizona scoring? Sunburn lost to Claremont in quarters at regionals last year, what the hell am I missing? I dunno whats going on in the desert, but I am gonna find out. I want to write more, but I will save that for later. I will say, though, that like the Patriots, no team is invincible. Go Arizona, please talk to me.

Here is my original writeup. More to follow:

So Trouble in Vegas has come and gone, as has Queen City Tune Up. There were a lot of big winners in Vegas, not mention a few broken hearts. Charlotte also housed the biggest barn burner East of the Mississippi and my NUMP ballot looks like the floor of a Pedro Martinez sponsored cock fight. Here are my thoughts on each tourney.

Trouble In Vegas

First lets start off with the Cultimate extravaganza that has been dubbed the best and worst idea in the history of ultimate. I hear the weather was actually good this year which is nice considering the last two years were like Wyoming in November.

Wisconsin: I thought the 'dags were gonna steam roll folks but they definitely had their pulses raised en route to winning their 2nd tournament. They had close games against CUT (11-9) in semis and Arizona (12-11) in a capped finals that ended with a Sunburn score. I want to draw some conclusions, but like the 6-5 Wisconsin loss to CUT and Texas beating Colorado back in 2006, what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.

Arizona: I get a text Saturday night, "Arizona beats Florida". I know that Sunburn has a few winter wins for the ages. They knocked off the Squids at Santa Barbara a few years back but Florida?!?! They managed to do something that no one has EVER done, beat the Gators in Vegas. The next thing I know Arizona beats Cal and faces Harvard in semis, semis?!?! Ok, Vegas is weird, Arizona wins, good luck against Wisconsin. 23 points later Arizona scores it's 11th goal to end a capped game. 11 on Wisconsin? Oregon got 9 on the Hodags at nationals and a team that has never made nationals gets 11? Are you serious? I have no idea what this result means, but I will say that no one has gotten this close to Wisconsin this year and this really shows that Arizona could be significantly better than just a quarters/semis team at Regionals. My sources say the finals were exceptionally well played on both sides. I think I am one of many that is blown away with this performance and I really hope to see more of Sunburn this year. The Southwest royalty could shift significantly this year and if Arizona can keep it up, they may have a chance to finally play in a game-to-go. I wish I had more information on them, but I'm on it.

CUT: When I asked my buddy JAM (who was there) what he thought of Carleton, he had one word, "Fast". The crafty boys from Minesooota are definitely experienced, polished and on track to challenge the best in the country. It's too bad they got all this World's talent right around the time Wisconsin was on their way to an unprescedented, and un-possible, undefeated season. Tough draw in semis but they really belong this year. Their biggest advantage, their Junior World's talent, is actually 2-fold in the sense that not only are these kids spectacular, but they have all already played together and in analogous systems (ARHS and Paideia). If they can overcome the size barrier by playing crisp, mistake-free ultimate, they can challenge Wisconsin when it matters. Unlike the rest of the country, CUT is unafraid of the baby blue and if they can capitalize on Wisconsin's raw intensity with composed ultimate, they maybe the NY Giants against the NE Patriots this May.

Whitman: I am really glad someone from Washington reads my blog. Here is what Joe's Brother had to say about the Walla Walla Sweets:

Somewhat off the radar, but maybe worth keeping on eye on in 2008 is that the best high school player in the country last year, Jeremy Norden, went to Whitman and claimed a lot of other Juniors players had interest in going there as well. Plus, he said the club gets an enormous amount of support (financially and otherwise) from the school and community. He's good enough by himself to propel a team into the mix. And the RSD chatter supports the rumor that there are other solid HS standouts on the freshman line. No word on their bureaucratic recruiting (they had a paperwork related DQ last year), but if their papers are in order, this team could be THE team on the rise.

They're at TiV this weekend, so by Monday we should have a little more info on them.

Turning heads and making quarters (over Ego no less) was definitely not what I was expecting from this Pool F second seed. They have their work cut out for them and are going to need to keep it up to get out of the Northwest.

Haavard: Aside from the Ivy rivalry, I am really impressed with these these guys. They are the new Brown. Making semis by beating two hot teams in Whitman and Illinois is impressive considering what teams usually make it this far in the desert. Most NE teams play their best in the spring and seeing that Redline is getting big wins (but not against the squids, HA) when they can't even practice outside says a lot. They have stellar freshmen with Andrew Vogt and George Stubbs (injured), but Zirui Song, Dave Roebuck, and Dave Lipson are all superstars. I had the pleasure (sarcasm) of playing against them this past summer/fall when they suited up for New Noise and like Cal, their club experience is really paying off for their program. However, NE teams have a tendency to shuffle around a lot come the series. Harvard definitely has their work cut out for them in a region with the most teams fighting for a spot at nationals (Williams, Brown, Dartmouth, and Harvard) with no clear front runner.

Santa Cruz: Finally, they show up. Despite a slow start they battle back from starting 0-2, and go through UCSD to make quarters. DLK gives me far too many shout outs, but I will say the slugs finally showed why they are in contention to win the Bay Area section and come out of the NW. Vegas is cool because there are 3 days of good ultimate and several teams get a chance to do well. Illinois owned day 1, Santa Cruz had their time to shine on Saturday, and Arizona owned the Lord's day. They beat my Squids (by 1) making quarters, but got stuck with the ravenous wolves (Wisconsin). It would have been cool to see them play any other team because they might have stood a chance. Regardless, they brought themselves back to their status post Sean Ryan and have the knowledge that they can bring it to Stanford and Cal. I feel sorry for LPC because they will have to play one of these teams while the other two duke it out in semis come sectionals.

Illinois: For a team that wanted to break into the elite, they definitely did not disappoint. They managed to knock off 2 juggernaut teams in Oregon and Colorado, on the first day no less. Folks have been talking them up a lot on RSD as of late and I continually understand why. They lost in pre-quarters to Haavard, but this kooky format with 10-8 scores and 80 teams really doesn't blemish Illinois' hopes. They showed that they are #1 in the Great Lakes and have given Ryan Purcell and Will Neff an enemy to fear.

Colorado: I wanted to mention a few words about Mamabird's seemingly poor weekend. It looks like Beau is no longer wearing black and gold considering that he wasn't in Vegas for the first time in 3 years. Martin Cochran was also not in attendance but a broken foot has sidelined him only until March and if he heals alright, #17 and the rest of Colorado will be back for the series. I will say that without Beau their offense is going to have to make some serious adjustments. Jolian can't throw to himself and with Mac Taylor streaking deep as well, their handling responsibilities are going to fall on veterans like Chris Wicus.

Closing Thoughts

TiV is just as crazy as Vegas itself. Arizona 11-10 over Florida, Santa Cruz 11-10 over UCSD, Whitman 10-9 over Ego, Carleton 11-9 over Colorado, all of these scores are close/exciting, but suspect and do not paint a clear picture. There are many more positive things to take away from this than negative, though. Arizona and Harvard need confidence, and their results help them. Florida and Colorado need to know that they have weaknesses and their results help them. Whitman and Santa Cruz need to prove they belong and their results help them. UCSD and Oregon need to know that they can win but also know that they can lose and their results help them. CUT needs to know that they have got the talent and Wisconsin needs to know they can't intimidate their way to another national title and their results help them out.

Queen City Tune Up

Just when I thought I had it all figured out, UNC, Georgia, NC State, and Michigan had to go and screw it all up.

NC State: The biggest winner is obviously the winner. But damn it, where the hell did they come from?!?! They weren't at Warm Up. I didn't write about them. What the hell?!?! They played spectacular and hats off to them. They really have dropped below radar since finishing 5/8 at nationals in 2004 but they could be back in black...and red. If I had to guess, i think that they took advantage of a gassed UNC team, twice. They played them in the last round on saturday after UNC barely beat Michigan 9-8. They then played them in the finals after a 15-14 semifinal game with Georgia. I wonder if they can handle UNC at 100% and I also wonder if UNC has the depth to make it to out of the AC.

UNC: I am not sure what to say about Darkside. At 100% it looks like they are the real deal but I wonder about their legs. They made the finals but they lost to the same team twice after winning double game point matches. I think their depth has got to be an issue and this problem will not fix itself considering that Georgia is very deep and Florida has more star power. They took 2nd in the region last year so they have history on their side and I hope they can keep it up against the AC's best in Florida, Georgia and now NC State.

Georgia: Ahh, I wish you guys were going to Stanford. They sweep their pool, they dismantle Edinboro and Georgia Tech, and then WHAM, get taken out by UNC. I think behind NC State, Georgia gained the most from this tournament. The funny thing about ultimate is that unless you are challenged, you really can't see your weaknesses. I remember Furious at nationals in 2006. They raped everyone, including Chain Lightning 15-7 in semis, but their offense really wasn't tested and Sockeye took advantage in the finals. What's cool is that this is just QCTU. Georgia now knows that UNC, as well as Florida, can take them down and they will take this knowledge into practice the next 3 months. Hopefully Swanson stays healthy, but he is lucky that he plays for a very deep team.

Pitt: Delaware won the region last year but after this weekend, Pitt is definitely the aggressor. Pitt has some phenomenal talent in sophmores Chris Brenenborg (team USA) and Eddie Peters (Pike), not to mention a lot of veterans with nationals experience. They were definitely the best Metro East team in Charlotte. They beat Penn and finished ahead of Delaware, not to mention taking NC State to 12-10 in semis. However, this is just February. Keep the engines burning boys, you'll need it if you want to earn big wins for yourself and your region in May.

Michigan: Will is a great pick up but like I said, I think Michigan's performance will improve tournament to tournament. Their offense is going to have to adjust to #1 and it is no wonder that playing outside for the first time in '08 was not kind to Magnum. However, they did play UNC 8-9 (what kind of score is that) and dismantled a national caliber Delaware team 13-3. They did lose to Penn when it mattered though, but I have a feeling they may have looked past them considering they had beaten Georgia Tech 10-6 and Penn lost to Virginia in the last round on Saturday. Needless to say, I am sure they have a lot to think about back in Ann Arbor and hopefully they have the tools to put together a fight against a fired up Illinois team that had a great weekend in Vegas.

I want to reiterate how amazing NC State and Arizona played this weekend. I was expecting Wisconsin/CUT and Georgia/UNC but like Berman says, "thats why they play the game".

In the next few weeks we have two prez day tournaments, Kaimana, Hellfish Bonanza and Mudbowl. I will be watching Stanford this weekend in Hawaii and I wonder what Mike Payne has done with Bloodthirsty after they got rocked in Santa Barbara. Stay tuned, this year is just getting started.

Just my thoughts

match diesel

Notable Tourney Performances

I thought that since the series is still in full swing, i would write about some tournament performances that I think are very interesting over the last 5 years or so.

North Carolina Darkside, Stanford Invite 2004 - This was a stellar performance by UNC. They get a the bid to stanford and are slated as the 15 seed. That is bascially dead last because they give the 16th seed to the stanford qualifier winner. In any event, UNC comes out huge on saturday and beats Stanford in pool play, wow. Ends up making it all the way to the finals and falls just short of winning the tournament. They had to face off against Stanford again in the finals where they lost on double game point 16-17. They broke 13 seeds and I am sure enjoyed themselves on the west coast.

UCSB Black Tide, SW Regionals 2004 - Arguably the best UCSB team in the 21st centruy. Take down UCSD at sectionals and in semis at Regionals and have to face Colorado in the finals. Colorado had won the past 2 previous regional finals game and was going for the trifecta. This colorado team had Beau, Richter, Chicken, JV and Parker. Needless to say, Tim Henshaw, Mike Brown and the ineligble Nate Bouxsein took them down 15-11 in a stellar game that had UCSB own Colorado's hammer happy zone offense. Too bad UCSB got DQ'd and Colorado went on to win it all.

Florida, Trouble in Vegas 2006 - This tournament was the first showing that Florida was the real deal. They had previously won the Florida Winter Classic, but beating CUT in the finals and taking down Wisconsin, not to mention other college national qualifiers was their acid test. This tourney result showed that the likes of TG and Kurt Gibson were the best in the country and could potentially do the unthinkable, go to nationals for the 1st time as the #1 seed and win it all.

Stanford Bloodthirsty, Kaimana 2002 - This has been, historically, the best college ultimate team ever (maybe not anymore), but their dominance has never been more prominent than in Hawaii in February 2002. They travel to Kaimana, as usual, only this year, they bring it. They go a spectacular 7-2 making it all the way to the finals, beating eilite pick up squads like Grey Tide. One would think a flashy college squad would go down fast and quiet to some cagey experienced veterans, but these guys came to ball. However, they hit a brick wall known as Nada Mooger and fall 17-12. However, they were down 9-2 at half and fought them 10-8 in the 2nd half, not bad for a bunch of under age, barely shaving, undergrads.

Stanford Superfly, College Nationals 2007 - This womens team showed 2 things at this tourney, 1) heart and 2) experience. Stanford has won like 4 college national titles in the last 6 years and this past year was probably their toughest. They come in as the #5 seed (nothing special) and in retrospect, how can a national champ come in ranked 5th? I'll tell you, the weather sucked and they were the only ones that could play in the wind. In any event, they start out OK, and go 2-1 in pool play, losing in the last round to the burning skirts. However, they claw tooth and nail to win prequarters/quarters/semis/finals. I don't know of another champion that has had to play in pre-quarters, not to mention get through quarters and semis by a combined 5 points. I am sure that the finals rematch between Stanford and UCSB was spectacular for Stanford taking them down 15-7 (after a 15-11 loss in pool play).

Wisconsin Hodags, Centex/Nationals 2007 - This team is freaking good and there is no more proof than them completely dominating at centex and nationals, a feat that has never been done. For the first 3 years of Centex, the winner was always the loser in the finals at nationals. Colorado loses 14-15 to Cal at Centex and Wins 15-7 at nationals (2004), Colorado rolls Florida 15-7 but loses to Brown at nationals (2005), Florida loses 14-15 to Wisconsin only to beat them 15-12 at nationals (2006). Wisconsin was better than the curse, better than the rest, they stand alone. I am glad I never had to play them.

UCSD Air Squids, College Nationals 2005 - After years of taking a back seat to UCSB and Colorado, UCSD finally earns its bid to nationals. Comes in ranked 9th, the best seed for a non #1 seed at natties. Takes on Georgia in the first round and shocks Dylan 15-6 (that was a fun game to watch). As per usual, we lose to UBC (Oscar and Morgan owned UCSD) 16-17. However, by some miracle of existence, UBC loses to a revamped Georgia and by differential UCSD makes it into quarters. How serendipitous? Instead of having to play Wisconsin, Colorado, or Standford in quarters, we draw the winner of Texas and Queens Kingston, Texas, which is a much better game than we could have dreamed for. manage to cruise into Semis (without a close win) and play against Colorado. We still choke though losing 15-13 to our regional rivals. If only Phelps were there. Not every team in semis is missing their all region deep/defender/etc... cuz he is abroad for a year.

Chain Lighting, Club Nationals 2006 - Not unlike UCSD of 2005, these guys went from a 10 seed all the way to semis. Great wins over Sub-Zero, Revolver and Ring, not to mention a close 14-15 loss to the eventual champs, Sockeye, in power pools. I don't think anyone had John Hammond, Dylan and Jason Simpson pegged for the semis, but they definitely earned it. Too bad they didn't have it against a more dominant Furious. Maybe Zipp will sling this late peaking team to another semis berth or maybe the finals.

Southeast Storm, Potlatch 2006 - This was 1 of 4 MLU teams at Potlatch and I think was the most surprising. After winning college nationals Kurt and TG were brought up to the big boy table to play with the club all stars. Seeing that they are truly as good as billed, and maybe in better shape, they teamed up to be the best fantasy 1, 2 punch. SE Storm shocked most, me at least, and made it to the finals where they almost won. I think most figured the NW would roll seeing that they were all FG or Socekye guys, but SE held tough and showed that the region with the best combination of warm and active weather can ball.

Mischef, Club Nationals 2006 - Coming in as the 2nd seed, expectations are always high. But after 2 close pool play games (15-12 to poodle club, 4 seed, and 16-15 to 2nd seed AMP) I didn't think Mischef could win the 8 games to win natties. Power pool was more or less the same, win 15-12 (gendors), win 15-13 (slow shite), on to quarters. A barn burner against quarter final against Tandem (15-13), a 15-13 semifinal close one (Gendors) and then another game against Slow, this time they won it all, 15-11. Thats a lot of points to play. I could not believe that Mischef kept winning these close ones. They won their first game easy (15-9) but after that they finished with a combined score of 106-89, thats an average score of 15-13. By comparison, Fury went 120-45 or an average of 15-5/6. Lots of heart/legs on that Mischef squad, they ain't gonna blink at the wire.

Ring of Fire, Club Nationals 2002 - This team came in ranked 8th and had a decent run through pool play (2-1) and power pools (1-1). They draw Bravo in quarters (who came out 2nd in power pools after a great win over Furious) and manage to win a universe point thriller 15-14. Then they have to play Sockeye who looked pretty legit after owning in power pools. For whatever reason they roll the fish 15-8 and successfully claw their way into the finals. They have to play Furious again and go down 17-12, but they brought it and I am sure they were as intense as I am long winded.

Carleton, College Nationals 2001 - They come out the 4 seed and potential national champion. However, they get shocked in the first round of pool play, 16-17 by UNC-Wilmington. However, rather than hang their heads, they kept it together and rode Nord all the way to the finals, winning most games by 5 or more. I think they are one of only a few teams to ever win college nationals without a perfect memorial day record. Never the less, they still won it all. Hopefully natties will be in Devens again while I am stuck in New Haven.

Next week will be my preview for natties. Good luck to all remaining teams in their regional tournaments.

Match Diesel