The new physical changes in the system created new sectionals boundaries for our region impact all of the teams in this region, regardless of the division. Woman Scorned has found ourselves in arguably the much tougher section of the region with top teams like Iowa, Carleton, and Minnesota. While in the recent past, Scorned has hosted a one day sectionals tournament filled with fun events on the Saturday night, this year was much different.
Let’s start with Friday night…VEISHEA Friday. Scorned was all ready to go when we got the word that Sectionals was postponed possibly to mid-day Saturday, just Sunday, or even the next weekend. We found ourselves in quite the predicament with it being VEISHEA, all of the city of Ames raging around us, and feeling the pressure to join in the riots on Welch. Scorned buckled down (best we could) and settled for an “on the cusp” party which involved lots of dancing, singing, making fun of Jazzy, and holding back best we could until we got the word either way. Towards midnight we got the text that cars were leaving at 10 AM and we all started to prepare mentally and physically.
Games started at 1 PM on Saturday and we had University of Northern Iowa in the first game. Pandamonium (sweetest jerseys ever, btw) played savage with several new girls who had no tournament experience. Scorned came out strong right away in this tournament and took chilly break points into the stringent up/cross wind. Rebecca Weinmeister was seen on a multitude of occasions tearing it up for upwind scores in this game.
Woman Scorned over UNI 11-2
Second game of pool play was against Winona State. This was an interesting game. The girls only had 6, but they played strong and hard. It is impossible to not have respect for this team for the heart and skill they had. They fought hard against us and capitalized and anything and everything we gave them in the wind. Daisy had a great layout grab on an upwind throw in this game to put a point on the board. Both Gapstur and Cami had hand blocks in this game which make the highlight board.
Woman Scorned over Winona State 7-5
The last game of pool play was versus Iowa. The wind was still a huge factor in this game and both teams came out strong. Iowa got 2 breaks upwind early in the game and although Scorned worked it harder upwind in the remainder of the game, we were unable to get it across the end zone line. Scorned scored plenty of easy downwind scores, but being unable to get the disc back up the field, Saucy took the solid win. Highlights in this game included a D from Jessy that involved her nose and a lot of blood everywhere.
Saucy Nancy over Woman Scorned 5-7
The final game of the day was quarters against Nebraska. Gosh we love this team. It was a ton of fun and both teams fought hard. Highlights from this game included Bosco getting two foot blocks and a hand block on one of their dominant handlers (whom by the way have amazing flicks up and down the field & a hammer to destroy).
Woman Scorned over Nebraska 10-6
Saturday night, Scorned VEISHEA’d it up at Lana’s parent’s house. They made us some absolutely delicious chicken noodle soup and chili and Scorned jacked their hot water bill up for the month cleaning up for the day. After dinner, the girls settled down for some studying and to watch “The Land Before Time.” Lana, being the most amazing coach in the whole world, went out and brought us back some Cold Stone ice cream! After singing along to “Mulan”, having Magic Liu dominate against Coach K in a poker tournament, and working out the kinks in the sore muscles from the day, we hit the sack for some R & R. The following morning, we woke up to Hoistad saying “I smell food!!” and the team ate a delicious breakfast baked by Lana’s mom. The whole experience was amazing and it set the mood for the rest of the day. Ultimately, the Meyer's family is the bomb dot com.
First game of the day was versus Minnesota in Semi’s (since they had beat Carleton the day before in pool play on universe). Scorned was pumped up and ready to go. We set our sights on unleashing the fury, and that we did. Scorned came out ready to make an impact and took the first 7 or 8 points of the game uncontested. Cami had a sick layout for the disc and an upwind continue to Becca for the score. Britt took a highlight with a sweet D in the air against her girl striking deep for the score. The Minnesota ladies had some amazing hucks both forehand and backhand but Jazz had multiple D’s in this game that involved her throwing her body insanely high in the air to deny big down-wind hucks and KOB had several great grabs on big hucks. The Flag was the real highlight of this game, making its first appearance since Regionals of last year (where it was made on the way to the tournament).
Woman Scorned over Minnesota 13-4
Finals provided us with a rematch versus Iowa and we had a bye before the game to regroup and prepare mentally and physically. Scorned has seen Iowa more than any team this season and they are no strangers on or off the field (seriously, they've went to every single Spring tournament that we went too and have dominated). This is a true rivalry and it always results in a hard fought game, regardless of the score. We were pumped up and ready to battle right away in this game. Scorned hit the ground running, scoring the first 5 points of this game before Iowa could answer back with a point of their own. The intensity of this game for Iowa State was absolutely substantial, and every single person on our team was 100% in that game. The highlight list was unreal:
Woman Scorned over Saucy Nancy 11-6
Scorned came out of VEISHEA weekend with no hang overs and big smiles on our faces. We fought hard and worked as a team to come out on top and create a huge drive bringing us into Regionals in two weeks. We can’t wait to see what sort of weather North Central Regionals will bring and what each team will come to the table with. Hell Hath No Fury, Like a Woman Scorned.
Huge thanks to Lana’s parents for dinner, and the complete AWESOMENESS that was involved in our amazing Saturday night. Thank you also to Joe Brisbois, Pesch’s parents, and Jessy’s parents for coming to support us. Lastly, thank you to the TDs for a great tournament despite the crappy conditions-you did an amazing job!
Last note:
Cheers from the weekend that were created:
Call: “VEISHEA”
Respond: “Sunday”
Call: “Where did Bosco get her sweat suit?”
Respond: “Gap, Gap, Gap”
-Gapstur, Hoistad, Magon, Cami
“All-Region Teams are comprised of individual players, as selected by their peers, who exhibit excellence in skill, athleticism, integrity, and leadership during the current college season.” (USAU statement)
From her notable ultimate skills to her profound presence on the team, Cami Nelson is a prime candidate for Freshman Of The Year (FOTY).
On the field, Cami is regularly tearing it up. Easily making the A line in her first season, she is frequently laying out for incredible catches, practicing tenacious defense on her opponents, and denying all others in the sky. Her versatility as a player allows her to perform even in the most intense games as a handler or a cutter.
From the moment Cami stepped on to Woman Scorned, she has put the team first and fully dedicated herself. Her hard work and focus are evident in her game as she puts in 100% effort every time she steps on the field. While her ultimate skills clearly demonstrate her FOTY potential, it is her pure integrity that makes her stand out. Cami is true to Spirit of the Game by upholding the rules, building up her teammates and opponents, and acting as a positive leader to all around her.
On Woman Scorned, Cami emerged as a leader immediately. From the beginning of the season, she has been recruiting others to ultimate, pushing every one of us in practice, building our team bond through any and all situations, acting responsible in group situations, and she even saved the party at the Iowa City Scrimmage in January. I am proud to have Cami as my teammate and friend, and I strongly encourage you to consider her for Central Region FOTY. Cami Nelson fits the definition of FOTY perfectly and provides a true representation of both our team and our sport.
If there is one non-series tournament of the spring season that college women’s teams get most psyched up for, it is Centex. In all honesty, Centex could definitely be argued as more competitive than the USAU National tournament due to the fact that there are no regional restrictions on bid entries. Also, this year the tournament included more than double the teams that attend Nationals. Anyways, Scorned was pretty flippin’ pumped for it!
After a 5th place finish at Easterns, Scorned had a great week long spring break vacation, followed by a week of classes before the trek to Austin. Although the drive comes to more than 30 hours round trip, we had a roster of 17, 2 of our coaches, and 3 other helpers hanging out on our sidelines. With a full night of sleep (for most of us) Friday night, Scorned was ready to turn some heads and rock it Saturday.
Scorned came into the tournament seeded 19th which put us as the first seed of pool G in Division 2. It wasn’t long before we made the executive decision to rename pool G to “The Pool of Hell!” In our pool was Woman Scorned (Hell hath no fury), Hell’s Bells, and Hellions… also Tufts, who unfortunately missed out on the memo when choosing their team name back in the day.
Friday evening Scorned got a chance to check out the turtle pond on UT campus and lie around by the pool. The evening included an interesting family dinner with all 22 of us at Olive Garden followed by costume making in the hotel rooms. Although the tourney gave us a chance to sleep in, I woke up about 2 hours early from a dream, in which Michigan asked to scrimmage us between games because they wanted a rematch from Easterns… it was weird and I couldn’t sleep with so much Frisbee anticipation on my mind. Also, that rematch actually did happen Sunday. After a nice young man who was in town for the Special Olympics helped me carry my ice cooler to our room, we headed to the fields to start the day.
Game 1: Southern California Hellions of Troy
Scorned came out in the first game ready to play some serious ultimate. The Hellions were ready to answer back with fast, fresh legs to run. We utilized our strengths and played smart and chilly from the beginning, allowing us to gain a lead and set the pace of the day with a big ‘ol win.
15-8 Woman Scorned over SoCal
Game 2: Colorado State Hell’s Bells
This is our second match up with these ladies this year. We played at Harvest Moon in a great game for 5th place in the fall. This is an extremely fun team with great spirit… plus their old logo was very similar to ours. Scorned kept the fury raging into this second game. Despite Hell’s sick upwind forehand hucks and intense defense, Scorned was able to break the cup in zone and move the disc where we wished on offense. This game once again served to be a lot of fun with lots of sideline banter and jokes on and off the field between each team. Hopefully it won’t be long until we get to see these ladies again!
13-8 Woman Scorned over Colorado State
Game 3: Tuft’s University Ewo
In the 3rd game of the day, we came up against the #2 seed in our pool, Tufts. This was their first tourney of the spring, so we didn’t really know what we were up against. This team was large and their depth was quite apparent. One of their girls had pretty insane bids on both O and D, which added to the intensity of the game. Scorned was definitely starting to feel the heat in this game as the wind picked up a bit, and our decisions on offense were not as wise as before. In one point (I think it was this game) I attempted a forehand huck upwind to Kyra which literally turned over almost immediately after leaving my hand. It was definitely in the top 5 most unsuccessful plays I have ever tried to make…and that is saying something. Scorned had a lead in this game but allowed the score to tighten up near the end as Ewo fought back. The game ended on universe point and Scorned chalked another win up on the board.
On another note, Ewo had an amazing tournament, finishing 3rd overall. Although there were some crazy upsets at Centex this year, I think Tufts was the biggest surprise of them all, breaking seed by something like 20!
Woman Scorned over Tufts 11-10
Game 4 Crossover: University of Texas Melee
This game will go down in Woman Scorned history for all of us who were there. It was amazing. From the beginning, the game was tight. Texas took half at 8-6 but Scorned was bound and determined to win this game and break up into Division 1. There were sick grabs and Ds pretty much everywhere from both teams. Jessy and Becca were monsters in the Sky, while our handlers put up pretty hucks both up and down wind. Bosco, Jazz, Cami and Mag were freaks on the field both offensively and defensively. In one point, Mag went up for a disc in the end zone but didn’t come down with it. Without any worry at all, Cassie snuck in for the snag and the score, making a huge play for us. While the play was absolutely insane, what was even better was Mag’s reaction to the play.
A time out was called with 3 points left in the game, and Scorned used the opportunity to amp us up even more. Scorned scored an up wind point to bring the game to 11-10, but Texas answered back in the next point to tie it right as hard cap came on. Since we were the last game of the day, the sidelines were pretty packed and there was so much yelling it was crazy. The final point lasted about 10 minutes with both teams playing intense defense and forcing Ds. Scorned worked it up to the end zone line, Hoistad to Mag on an IO. Scorned wins! We took the game through pure will power and fury!
Another thing that made this game so awesome was our sideline help. Big thanks our friends on Seaweed and Saucy Nancy for cheering us on in that game. You were all amazing!
Woman Scorned over Texas 12-11
After the games, Scorned jumped right into a quick, last minute dance practice as the dance off got started. Iowa came out first in the line-up with a pretty great performance by Chelsea Russell who absolutely carried their team to take 2nd place. Chelsea has been entertaining us Central Region kids for a while now between games when she finds things to twirl and we are all in awe by her talents. It was a great performance, and I was extremely impressed although a little upset that we were denied the incorporation of both fireworks and animals in our dance, but Iowa was allowed to use fire. I’ll get over it, it’s fine, Iowa did a great job. However, SOL is the real story here, taking the win a second year in a row with a performance IN THE DARK! Even without Martha and Anna, these girls dominated the dance field and showed everyone what’s up. Our dance, yet again was a bit of a fail. Once again, the sound system couldn’t handle the beat that we chose and the bass drown out the words to Monster, but we rocked it anyways.
Following the dance, we headed to a late dinner where Becca ate 7 brownies, putting Kevin to absolute shame in an eating contest. There was big talk of ice baths in the hotel after dinner, but I think Jessy and Mag only mustered up about 10 minutes (and Jazzy for 3 min) of courage before bailing…pansys.
First thing Sunday morning, my Friday night dream came true when we were matched up against Michigan in pre-quarters. The bottom line in this game was that Michigan came out to prove a point and win the game. Scorned did not. Both teams pushed the intensity of the game, but every time Scorned made a break upwind, Flywheel answered back the next point with a break of their own. There was absolutely no comparison in our fury from Saturday to Sunday and it showed. I’d like to thank Michigan for that cheer about “Great lakes, great times.” It has literally been in my head for 2 weeks and I keep catching myself singing it. That cheer is money, especially with a little cow bell in there. I really, really hope we get one more chance at this match up.
9-14 Michigan over Scorned
Our next match up was against Cal Berkeley’s Pie Queens. Scorned has never played Cal (or at least not since I have been on the team), but several of us met these girls last year at College Nationals in Madison. These ladies are a ton of fun and the team is just stacked with Bay Area talent, so it was really cool to get to play them. Bob was huge in this game, adding a bit of an advantage to our team. Having played ultimate in the Bay Area the past several years, he had some great insight into their game how we should work to shut them down. Even with this advice and advantage, Scorned was unable to stop PQs IO forehands and handler rotation in the upwind points. Toward the end of the game Cal broke away and solidified their lead to take the game.
7-11 Cal over Scorned
The next game put us up against Northwestern Gungho. I’m almost positive that this is the first time we have played them this year, which is pretty unusual. This game was the last fizzle for Scorned; we were just unable to relight the flame from Saturday. The first half of the game consisted of trading points back and forth. Scorned had some big hucks in this game to put points on the board, but Gungho broke up wind and took the lead around half. Lien Hoffman had an insane layout poach D attempt in this game, it was sick. Jazz and I both stopped running we were so impressed. These girls were also a lot of fun. I definitely missed something that went on in this game, but there was A LOT of pretty serious talk between teams of trading one of our black girls for one of their Asians. Scorned tried to fight back in the second half, but Northwestern didn’t let up and hard cap ended the game.
6-11 Northwestern over Scorned
Our final game was supposed to be versus Penn, but due to their team having to catch flights, we decided to double forfeit because taking a win 15-0 didn’t seem right in a game we didn’t actually play. This put us with a final placement of “tied for 15th place.” Although Sunday games did not go as we had hoped, Scorned walked away with our head high, breaking seed and pulling ourselves up from the Division II bracket into Division I.
Scorned hit the cars for some dinner at Pancheros before jumping in the cars for the long ride home and back to cooler weather and reality.
Scorned would like to give an enormous THANK YOU to our coaches Lana and Kevin (aka Coach K) for their great coaching this weekend. Another huge thank you to Misra, Taiwo, and Bob for amazing sideline help all weekend and making the trip to Austin with us!
Huge thanks to Texas Melee and Michelle for hosting yet another amazing tournament.
-Lindsey Gapstur #2
