Day 3: College National Championships

Sunday morning put us in the 9th place bracket up against Carleton for the first game. Scorned's spring record with Syzygy consisted of only one game which happened to be the semis game at regionals. Syzygy took that game quite handily, so we were looking to come out strong and get some redemption and prove our spot in the region.

Scorned came out strong and ready to prove our point putting points up on the board right away. Syzygy kept up the fight, but Scorned took half at 8-4. Fired up we danced away the ten minute half and returned to the line ready to finish the game. Syzygy came out of half ready to fight back and change the tempo of the game. Scorned scored the first 3 points after half before Syz could put any on the board, but once they got running they weren't looking to stop. Carleton brought the score to 11-14 before we put another disc into the end zone to end the game and take the win 15-11.

After a short break between games, we look the field in a game for 9th place against Washington Element. This is the first time EVER that Woman Scorned has played Element, so that was pretty neat. This team had great spirit and phenomenal athleticism. Although we came out looking to win the Ninals bracket, Element came out harder. Element took half 4-8 (I think?) and Scorned used the half to attempt to recuperate and hydrate. The heat and weekend was taking its toll on us and it was showing in our game. The second half gave us a chance to fight back, but we were unable to shut down Elements big hucks and running game. Although we kept our heads up and took the line ready to fight every point, Washington owned the game and took the win for 9th place with a score of 15-6.

Finals turned out to be quite exciting, showcasing two of the teams in Pool A (our pool), UCSB and Michigan. UCSB took the game from the beginning but Flywheel never gave up the fight and nipped at their heels the entire game, pushing the intensity and making for a great show. The playing field of the tournament was unique in the fact that no team went undefeated and there were quite a few "upsets." Congratulations to the Skirts for winning the championships and taking home the gold. It was great weekend of games and ultimate for us!

Woman Scorned finished in 10th place at the USAU College National Championship, breaking seed by 7! It was an absolutely amazing weekend and we couldn't have asked for more.

We would like to give a huuuge thank you to all of our supporters and fans. Thanks to Joe Brisbois and Bob Liu for sideline support. Thank you to all of our alumni and parents for helping us travel to Colorado and for the support through phone calls and text messages! We would also like to thank all of our observers for their amazing work during games, they were absolutely phenomenal, and one more big thank you to everyone at USA Ultimate who made the tournament run so smoothly, you do amazing work!

Lastly we want to thank our unbelievable coaches, Kevin, Lana, and Memo. We could not have accomplished what we did this season without you. Thank you so much for all of the time and hard work you put in and for pushing us even when we didn't want to.

-Gapstur #2


(photos thanks to Steve Fury)

Day 2: National College Championships

Saturday, 6:20 am wasn't too bad knowing we had a day full of ultimate ahead of us. After a fun little drive to the fields, listening to our extremely over played CD that only plays half of the songs without skippin, we started warm ups. First game was versus Michigan.

I have wrote about Michigan several times on here and both of our games this season were quite memorable. Scorned took a win at Easterns over Flywheel to take 5th in the tournament, but had a solid loss to them in the first game on Sunday of Centex. I have wanted this rematch ever since Centex and was pretty excited that we got it at the big show. Michigan definitely brought their game today!

The game started out with a score from Michigan, but Scorned answered back quickly to keep the game close. Both teams kept the intensity up and traded points but Scorned took half 8-6. Coming out of half, Scorned was looking strong and keep putting them up on the board, but Flywheel didn't let up either. Although Michigan took the final point of the game, Scorned was able to hold them off long enough to take the win at 11-10 in hard cap. The intensity in this game was definitely something to mention and both teams never let up or accepted defeat. Thank you to Flywheel for 3 great games this season and bringing hard competition every time.

The next (and last) pool play game was against Gungho at 2:30. Scorned watched these girls pull out an amazing win against first seeded UCSB on universe point right before we took the field with them.

Gungho was still riding that high from the last game and came out hard to score the first point. This game honestly looked very similar score-wise to the Michigan game. Both teams fought hard and traded points but Scorned snuck a few extra points in there to take half at 8-6. This game was full of absolutely insanezo bids from both sides of the disc. Big hucks and bigger grabs were made, but (in my opinion) this game held the highest spirit of the weekend for us. Scorned came out fired up in the second half and pulled up a bigger lead taking the game with 14-11. This win put us with a finish of second in our pool!

So, like every single tournament pretty much ever, the inevitable happened. Our pre-quarters match up put us up against none other Saucy Nancy! Not looking to shy away from this match up, Scorned took the field amped and ready to go.

Saucy came out ready to go and took the first several points of the game. Scorned was not ready to back down. Taking the fields with our heads up every point, Scorned never let up on D or O. Although the game didn't end in a W, Scorned is far from disappointed. We played with all of our hearts, laid everything out on the field, and played as a team. I can't post this blog without a mention of Jazzy's INSANE D in this game. She had several layouts that literally put any ultimate I have ever seen to shame. She really inspired us to keep fighting and giving everything we had not matter the score.


Scorned plays Carleton Syzygy at 10:30 am for 9th place. (can't escape the North Central Region, can we?)

-Gapstur #2

Nationals: Day 1

Oofta, this is going to be a fun blog post. Well, it just happened and I haven't really had time to take it in, nor will I because tomorrow we are about to get right back at it. But here is what happened...

Being the 17th seed overall and 5th seed in our pool, we had our first game at 2:30 pm! It worked out, but it was pretty difficult to sit around watching other people get to cleat up and not being able to take the fields ourselves. After watching some great games (like Carleton beating UNC) we finally got to start warm ups and eventually take the field.

The first game of the day was against Tufts Ewo. Woman Scorned has seen this team once at Centex and we pulled a win out on universe point in the last game of pool play. Tufts went on to have an amazing tournament ending up 3rd place overall.


Tufts came out strong right away as we worked the jitters out. Ewo went up 2-0 right away before Scorned could put a numbers up on the board. We pulled ourselves back together and started to really get a run going. Scorned went up and took half 8-5. After taking the first actual 10 minute half this season, we came out hard and kept pushing our lead. Tufts worked several different defenses, but with each adjustment, Scorned answered back and we came out victorious with a final score of 15-10. This was a great game that was hard fought on both sides and a lot of fun all the way through.

Coming off of the Tufts win, felt great and Scorned utilized the 30 min break between games to cool off and hydrate. A few of us were starting to feel the altitude, but thankfully it was nothing too serious. The next pool play game was versus University of California Santa Barbra-the #1 seed in both the tourney and our pool. Scorned has only ever played UCSB once (last year at Centex) so we didn't really know much going into this game other than that this would be anything but an easy game. Personally, I have always had a bit of a team crush on them because they ALL wear skirts!

UCSB came out hard and scored the first point, but not without a fight. Scorned answered back right away with the next 4 points to take the lead 4-1. After taking a time out, the Skirts came out hard and tied the score up and took half 8-6, but we were not willing to settle for a game that was just close in the first half. Scorned came out hard and took the first point after half and continued to rally in the second half. Soft cap went on as we tied it up at 11-11. Although Scorned continued to push hard and give everything we had, the Skirts took the next two points to take the game with a great layout score for one in their end zone. This game was not only intense, but it also proved to have great spirit and show the true grit of both teams.

Scorned kept our heads high although this was a tough loss, and we are very excited to jump right back into our cleats and play Michigan and Northwestern tomorrow! Games start at 8:30 am for us, so we will see you in the morning!

follow us here!

-Gapstur

(photos from USAU website)

The Road to Boulder

Literally our trip Tuesday from Ames until our campsite outside of Boulder.

9:32 Leave Ames

9:38 Daisy tries and fails to quit her job,

10:01 Daisy whips out the red vines.

10:14 Well at least this car ride isn’t as bad as mardi gra

10:56 healthy snacks come out

11:27 t swift shuffle hour

11:39 everyone is wearing woman scorned hats in the car

11:53 Daisy finished pump up buddy letter

12:03 started raining

12:13 cool lightning strike

12:18 holy rain..

12:29  tswift power hour over. Next song, international harvester

12:51 DQ in Lincoln

1:13 Wieno found a quarter at DQ

1:25 leaving DQ. Woman Scorned Loves Kurt from the Lincoln DQ!

1:47 first Colorado license plate (still in Nebraska)

3:04 regionals recap in the car

3:11 archway monument

3:14 gas station stop #1

3:18 Cami and Gap took a picture with a bear at a gas station in Nebraska

3:21 left the gas station

3:43 just decided to have mini smores for dinner

3:48 alpaca sighting

4:18 cami claims she saw a porcupine

3:55 just went back in time (entered mountain time zone)

4:27 McDonalds bathroom and snack stop

4:29 Daisy realized her coffee she set on top of the car fell off when we drove away

4:40 passed a huge boat on the side of the road

4:49 made it to Colorado

5:32 standing water on the road..

5:42 almost got struck by lightning

6:29 spotted mountains

6:56 Loves truck stop, 53 degrees! 37 miles

7:19 Woman Scorned flag up in the car, almost to boulder

7:23 entered into Boulder County!

7:38 made it to the fields!

8:13 ate chips and salsa at rio grande, downtown Boulder

8:56 Gapstur stopped at a round a bout

9:51 arrive at campsite get yelled at by mean campsite guy

10:14 walked a mile to the bathroom to brush our teeth

10:37 went to sleep

Feel the Fury, Unleash the Love.

11 days to Nationals...

Jessy Erickson for Callahan

Jessica Erickson for Callahan

I have had the privilege of playing all of my five years with Jessy, and she has gained my respect and the respect of her teammates through her ultimate skills but also her leadership. Her words have influenced Woman Scorned in almost every situation our team has encountered. The natural skills she has as a captain have facilitated the cohesiveness of this year’s team. She is a very cool, collected, and leveled headed lady who always seems to know what to say on and off the field. Her leadership has kept the team focused and held together during our struggles in the season.

Her cool presence and tactfulness are just a few of many skills she brings as a leader. She may not be the loudest but her presence is definitely felt on the field. In the past, other great player have overshadowed Jessy’s great role as a cutter. Unfortunately, it has only been recently that she has received the recognition that she deserves. This lady has matured into one of the top offensive threats in the country, and this season she has been Woman Scorned’s most consistent player. Jessy can get open against any defender, and throughout her career on Woman Scorned she naturally developed the ability to catch every disc that is thrown her way. Whether it’s a low bullet or a disc thrown 4ft away from her, she makes it her job to catch it. Teams will even see her move the disc by breaking the mark or hucking it deep.

Defensively, Jessy is a wall on the mark and has one of the top counts on Woman Scorned for hand blocks. Her expertise in zone defense ranges from the cup all the way deep. Jessy’s dominance in the air allows her to be a deep threat in any sort of defense.

When it comes to spirit of the game, Jessy plays with class and knows the rules well. Win or lose, Jessy always keeps her composure, and I’ve never seen her blame others or make excuses. She always gives positive reinforcement to her teammates and other players on the field. She is gifted with the ability to calmly discuss a dispute using the rationale of the rules. Like many others, Jessy has been dedicated to this sport since her rookie year, and she has continues the legacy of great leadership on Woman Scorned. Jessy Erickson embodies the perfect candidate for the Callahan Award, and that is why she is Woman Scorned’s nominee for 2011.

-Jasmine Draper #12 on behalf of Woman Scorned

North Central Region Woman Scorned

Finals are finally over, and now I get time to digest what happened this past weekend. All week I have been fighting the urge to process regionals, but I haven’t really had a chance to sit down and really let it hit me. I hoping that happens tonight when I get to spend time with my teammates and let it all sink in. There have been a few interesting dreams and short spots when I have allowed regionals to infiltrate the mess of anatomical terms and pathologensises that were packed in my brain, and I want to write about a few of these thoughts.

Mag’s recap of regionals is great for so many reasons. One thing she said that I really agree with, is her mindset going into the tournament. There were times in the weekend that things looked iffy, like we might not make nationals, but really, for the last 2 months I have known in my heart that we were going to make it. Realistically, that is a naive thing to say, looking at our regional competition. This region is outstanding, and no team had an easy path to nationals. Every team that was at regionals had a chance to grab one of those bids, and to say otherwise is naive (in my opinion). I think Midwest conference results are proof of that.

There are two things that truly amazed me about this weekend.

(1) How Scorned managed to come together as a team even stronger than before (not going to cover this. If you saw us play, you should understand. If you didn’t, read Mag’s recap post)

(2) How much support and love exists in this region.

I can honestly say, that after every game this weekend, I had players from the other team come up and not only congratulate us on our wins, but also sincerely wish us luck in our future games. In addition, Scorned had sideline support all season from other teams during games at a variety of tournaments. Although this may be one of the most competitive regions in the nation, there is still a strong sense of unity between teams, and I love that.

Coming from experience, I know what it is like to lose to a team that is pursuing the same goals. When we lost to Carleton in Semis, they knocked our dreams down a notch, in order to accomplish their goal. That is how it works. Last year, we lost to Iowa at regionals and ended our season with that loss. Do you get mad about it? No, you respect your opponents for pushing you and wish them luck in their journey. Last season Bella Donna was the team that ended a lot of dreams for other teams. At Nationals, several of us went to support the teams in our region and watch some good old college ultimate. Bella Donna took 3^rd at nationals in a close game against the Skirts in semis. Later that night while talking to some of the Wisco girls, one of them said something to me that really stuck in my head. She apologized to us for losing the semis game and letting us down. Honestly, I thought it was crazy at the time. I was thinking, “You made semis, you guys are awesome!” But after this past weekend, I sort of feel where she was coming from.

Knowing sports, people will probably look at our Wisco game and talk about how it was an upset and how crazy it is that Bella isn’t going to nationals for the first time in I don’t even know how long. It is crazy. They are a great team. I wish our region had one more bid, because I think they deserve to be there too, but that is another conversation. What I take from that game, and what I am going to be thinking about when I walk onto the field in Boulder, is how I am not just wearing a Woman Scorned jersey anymore. I am playing for each of my teammates, just like any other game, but I will also be playing for each of those teams who don’t get to be there.

I can’t say for sure, but I think that is what the Wisconsin player was feeling that night when she apologized to us. Scorned may not have qualified for nationals last year, but Bella (and Carleton) was playing for us. Scorned won the game to go against Bella this year, and it was a huge accomplishment for us, but now it is time to prove that we deserved it. Now we get to play as North Central Region Woman Scorned. We play ultimate, and this sport is about much more than winning and losing. There is a network of family here, and every time I step on the field I gain a new appreciation for how real that support system is. Although it is tough to make “The Show” when you are a team in this region, it makes it so much more worth it when you finally accomplish that goal I can’t wait to make the trip and play some disc in Colorado!

Gapstur #2

Midwest Mayhem

Since I have trouble studying as is with Ultimate on my mind constantly, I decided to channel my thoughts positively into writing WS's Regionals Recap.

FRIDAY - With much anticipation on whether or not Regionals was even happening yet, Woman Scorned debated throwing a party Friday night to possibly mimic the same fiasco that went down for Sectionals/Conference/whatever it's called now. With ISU's unique academic calendar, whether or not Regionals happened as planned made a big difference on how much time the kids had to study for the upcoming week of Finals. So basically, everybody was on edge. However, decisions were finally made and Central Regionals had successfully been moved to Middleton, Wisconsin. To Wisconsin Woman Scorned went.

At the amazingly nice Country Inn & Suites the team stayed at...hair was dyed, did and doned. The ladies went to bed with anxious hearts and colored hair, ready for anything that tomorrow had to bring them.

SATURDAY - Upon arriving at the "fields", teams warmed up to what appeared to be the backyards of a residential complex. A bit confused and chilled by the strong wind that swept through, teams got ready for the day. Want to know how strong that wind was on Saturday? Enough to knock a front tooth out of an Eau Claire lady (props Estelle). Oh yeah Midwest weather. Woman Scorned's schedule for the day was Minnesota, Luther and Eau Claire.

Minnesota

The Ninjas were ready to come out and play us especially after the fired up game at Sectionals. With similar weather conditions, the Regionals game could've gone either way. Unlike Sectionals, Regionals' games were heavily dictated by who won the flip since upwind points were both draining and difficult when playing against teams that could punt. Despite their high release backhands from their powerhouses DePalma and Andrea, and fast cutters, WS was able to clamp down on defense (for once) for the win.

13-4 W

Luther

Rumor has it that Freya's been wanting to beat us Woman Scorned ladies for a while now and any bystander could definitely tell that Luther wanted every point from us. The wind had picked up and the points were longer as each team tried to battle each other out for their respective upwind scores. Speed-demon Kristin Schultz and steady handles Courtney Greenley kept their offense flowing but WS kept their throws low and their patience on end for another win of the day.

15-8 W

Eau Claire

We haven't played this team all Spring semester which is odd for being Sister Teams (whatever it's called), we were a bit on edge as to what kind of offense and defense to expect from the made-over team. Many familiar faces graced the team but there were also many new faces, all of them extremely talented. The wind definitely dictated this game with a harsh up and down-wind and since Scorned lost the flip, getting an upwinder was crucial. Also, since WS beat Luther and Luther beat Eau Claire we needed to win to keep our #1 seed in the pool...if not, we would have a 3-way tie and a whole bunch of stuff would've gone down after that. The game started off with immense intensity as WS made it up-wind all the way to the endzone line at least 10 times. No joke, it was a 30 minute point. We didn't win the point despite our patient and carefully calculated passes and multiple upwinder points after that followed suit. Our frustration started to show as point after point we got denied by simple dumb mistakes. But understanding the importance of getting an upwinder hit our team all at the same time and we finally scored an up-winder, giving us the lead (7-6). After that, it was a calm and collected down-winder and with the impending soft/hard cap we were able to seal the deal.

8-7 W

After ending the day with an intense game, Scorned went back to the hotel and passed out. Ice baths were taken accordingly.

Compare and contrast time...there's one (painful) difference between these two pictures...can you tell what it is?

SUNDAY - Since we kept our first seed, we went straight into semis against Carleton the next day. We played at new fields (IM fields) and although the sun was shining the wind was chilly like none other.

Carleton

Yet another team we hadn't seen at all this Spring semester, we've always known that Syzygy is a team that no one should take for granted. Being our first opportunity to qualify for Nationals, WS went into the game with the mindset to win and never lose sight of Boulder. However, Carleton came out strong with their smart handlers Snyder and Reed and their surprisingly tall receivers. WS has always been slow and groggy on Sunday mornings but it was still a hard hit to lose to Carleton.

3-11 L

Eau Claire

I've always felt that Midwest Women's teams have always held grudges, especially when they get the chance to play a team they loss to just the day before. We knew that Eau Claire was going to come out hard but we took the Carleotn loss hard and managed to stay focused. Solid handlers Gartner, Iansa and Jess broke mark after mark to the wide-open cutters on the break-side of their vertical stack. Desperate hucks were also caught by their youngings and road runner Melissa Jordan and although the wind wasn't as strong as Saturday, it was still present enough to impact our game. I personally took the Carleton loss hard especially as a sideline observer so I taped the shit out of my ankle and hopped into the Eau Claire game all fired up. I had sprained my ankle in the MN game the previous day and thought I was done for the weekend but after RICEing as much as I could, I called it good enough to play. We played shut-down defense and were able to wrap up the game for the first win of the day.

9-4 W

Wisconsin

This game meant a lot more to Woman Scorned than people probably knew. This game was our last chance to qualify to Nationals. Woman Scorned has never beaten Bella Donna in WS history. Bella Donna has always (as far back as my college knowledge extends) qualified for Nationals, even getting as close as semis last year. Tempers were flared during this game but that's to be expected especially when you're putting National qualification on the line. That said, some amazing offensive and defensive plays were also made. Handler enthusiast McCain (from what I heard through the grapevine) was nursing a similar ankle sprain to mine although much more recently (the game before against MN...damn those Ninjas, too darn fast) and had sat out the first few points of our game but eventually hopped into the game after WS started the game with a KAPOW! And by KAPOW! I mean, getting an up-winder right off the bat bringing the score to 2-1. Closely followed was an efficient transition from defense to offense and a down-wind score, 3-1. Bella scores a down-wind but we catch them high in the stall-count near their endzone and we convert another point, 4-2. Similar plays follow and Bella takes a time-out, 6-3. WS's feeling good. So good we stayed fired up after the time-out and score again, 7-3. A quick score by Bella forced us into a time-out to make sure to keep our heads in the game, 7-4. Losing our groove, we stumble through the next few points, layout D's coming from both teams, Bella takes half, 7-8. Heads were low at our dumbness to think that the game was in the bag far too early in the game. But then something magical happened. A light switch flicked on. The same thought traveled through all of our minds..."We are going to win this game. We can beat Bella Donna. We, Woman Scorned, are going to Nationals." We came out of half-time down but with our heads up. The next few points were riddled with turnovers, iffy calls and some sick tenacious D. Before we even knew it, it was game.

11-8 W

Personally, it hasn't hit me yet. Maybe it's because all along, before even the first point was played at Regionals, I knew we were going to Nationals. Not saying that our competition was going to be easy (it was anything but) but I knew that WS always had the potential (PE = mgh...got a Physics final later today.) Or maybe it's because of the lack of sleep from Finals week. I really don't know. But I know that the next 3 weeks of training and practicing with my team is going to be just great. Nothing's going to bring me down.

My fellow team mate Britt asked me at a gas station stop (that everybody seemed to have rendezvoused at...WS cars, ISUC, Nebraska, Carleton, even Lana's HS basketball coach), how it felt to catch the winning point both times to the game that qualified us for Nationals. And I honestly responded "Oh, I didn't even think about that." And nobody should think about it that way. It's not about the winning point (whether it be a desperate hammer to the far end of the endzone) or a Callahan (ok that'd be cool) but about the combined team effort. It's about how every one of my ladies was either playing their hearts out on the field or yelling their voice hoarse on the sidelines. To me, every one of my team mates caught that winning point.

Congrats to Saucy, IHUC and LUFDA...see ya'll in Boulder.

Thanks for all the WS alum, ISUCers and other fans that supported us this weekend. And as always, a shout out to our amazing coaches Lana, Kevin and Memo.

Mag #08

The painful difference? A fallen soldier.