Becca Miller

Becca "B-E-C ATTACK!" Miller should definitley be one of your Top ultimate fantasies pick for 2013 College Championships (along 

with other Woman Scorned ladies). Honestly, she's been my Ultimate WS fantasy (its something the vets used to do) pick since her freshman year. Her rookie year she was WS's silent threat (she was a lady of few words). Her and her compradre, Sarah Pesch, their ultimate autodidacticism helped them master basic throwing before their first tournament rookie year. And like many ultimate players before her time, she has shown what love, hardwork, and dedication can bring to this sport. I am pleased to have played with such a devoted and skillful player. 

Woman Scorned, CLX, and Ultimate Love. HELL. HATH. NO. FURY.

Woman Scorned #12, 

Jazz

Her Heart is as Golden as Her Layouts.

If adorableness were THE definitive characteristic of a Callahan winner, Becca Miller has this thing in the bag.

And just because that is not the test by which we judge the nominees, I hope that anyone considering the qualifications of this prestigious award do not overlook what it's true namesake demands of in your weighted vote in looking beyond skills of the player in just the aspect of the game. 

The memorial award of the Callahan, asks that you weigh the character off the field as strongly, if not more so in my opinion, than the performance they give you on the field.  And if you feel differently, you may not have read or read enough times, the story of the man who was Henry Callahan.  I'll give you a second to follow that link and look it over...
 

...Really good stuff, right? 

We remember the person as his character which had nothing to do with his playing skills but everything to do with his love of the game and his dynamite personality.  Becca Miller is the precise definition of a Callahan winner judged only by her adorable persona yet she is still one hell of a stand-alone player in any tournament against the field of nominees.  The One-Two punch of Becca Miller is why I believe she is the highest qualified female player nominated in 2013 for the Callahan award.

It was not until recently that I had my first season playing with Becca as a teammate, so my first encounter and initial perceptions of Becca were when she was a freshmen and I as her coach in the first week of the Fall 2009 season.  Scorned had just come off it's first season qualifying for College Nationals and I was invested in seeing the program continue in it's success.  Becca has always imbued a lot of confidence in this alumna that passion and hard work will carry on the programs' successes.  In fact, I believe the current teams' success can be contributed to her silent devotion being adopted by each and every one of her teammates.  They respect her and have followed her lead.

In that first week of Fall practice, Becca came early and stayed late to work on throwing and I remember thinking "Are you kidding me!?"  I remember how awesome that was seeing the future of the team flash before my eyes.  Her confidence and ability were ten times of any typical rookie's throws by the first month because of her hard work alone.  It was always obvious from the first moment that Becca brought to the game a great field sense, great hands and stellar athleticism even before she acquired the knowledge of how to play but it is always that vigorous extra effort that remains with me today when I think back to meeting Becca.

When I ruminate further on that freshmen player and think about her attitude and abilities today from a coach's perspective, I believe her greatest strength is that she is VERY coach-able which has continued up to the present day.  She isn't afraid of (in fact, does not think much of) working hard to become better.  If you've ever taught anyone in anything at all, you will understand the importance of a coach-able person.  One who never thinks they have it all figured out and respects the lessons of others and has a steady hunger to become better.  That comes from a very humble and hard working attitude that Becca imbibes and it is one of the highest compliments I feel I could bestow on another.  I do not believe that Becca Miller is done becoming the greatest player she can be because of how coach-able and hardworking she is yet her abilities are already terrifying to the opposition.

As a teammate with Becca on the mixed team out of Ames, IA, The Chad Larson Experience, Becca is one of THE most reliable players.  I consider her relentless cutting to be the standard for everyone else.  Her playing style could be described as the energizer bunny.  Her cutting never ceases in any parts of the moving offense dragging along an exhausted defender.  Leave her vulnerable deep and she'll most obviously score.  When players tend to guard her against those scores, she'll get the disc on huge gains under and (despite her smaller stature) rip it deep to other opportune players.  I consider her the triple threat: she'll deny any player when on the defensive, she'll own you on any of her offensive cuts with speed and intelligence, and she'll be able to make the big mid-field throws.  This obviously hasn't gone unnoticed because Becca will be representing the U23 mixed  team this year.

And while her coach-ability and her skills could be talked about for days, I have still to touch on why I think her character is above all the rest.  And really, anyone would need to spend time with her on or off the field to teach themselves the subtleties of what it means to truly know such an innately good person.  She is never without a smile.  Constant positive energy and giggly jokes (that may or may not have to do with cats).  An aura of happiness and goodwill surrounds her and any encounter with her as teammate or as opposition will leave you with a smile and for the better.  Again, these are truly the characteristics of someone to represent this award.

So I congratulate the current voters of this award in having such a crew of wonderful nominated players who could receive this award.  Do not forget your power in picking the collegiate representative of what our sport stands for and thus, do not forget the namesake, Henry Callahan, each and every time you put in the vote.  Most importantly, I challenge you not to forget the name of Becca Miller when you're watching College Nationals this year in Madison and an adorable smiley player takes her team further than they ever have in the history of their team.  Her heart is as golden as her layouts.

~Melissa Gibbs

WS Alumni 

Becca

Becca is an absolutely incredible player, I think her playing speaks for itself. Most people know that  she is impossible to guard, and she is not someone you want guarding you in a big game. She makes big plays no matter who is guarding her, and she can shut down top offensive players on any team.

The thing that most people don’t know about her is behind the scenes. She is probably the most humble person I have ever met. She does everything and anything that is asked or not asked of her. She does not take credit for anything she does, but just hands the credit right back to her teammates. This season specifically she has stepped up and played any role that has been asked of her on the field.

Becca is a great teacher, and ultimately teaches by example. She plays hard at every practice, on both offense and D, and constantly challenges everyone on the team to get better. She hosts outside of practice gatherings to work on throwing, plays, and anything else that her teammates want work on.  Becca is the first person on the team to come up with quirky team activities, and she never hesitates to take charge of a task that needs to get done.

On the field, I do not think I have ever seen her get in an argument about a call. She is always calm and collected and willing to talk out and explain calls when they are made.

Becca has dedicated herself to her, team, teammates, and to the sport of ultimate over the past 4 years. I am so grateful to her for all the things she has taught me both on the field and off.  She is my roommate, friend, teacher, captain, teammate, and sister. I am so proud of her and all of her accomplishments, and she fits into every aspect of this prestigious award.

-Cami 

WS #16 

Bex

From the first Woman Scorned practice that Becca attended, it was evident that she brought raw athleticism, natural field sense, and superior coordination to the game. Even from those early days, anyone who watched her play would not be surprised by her level of skill as an ultimate player today. What makes Rebecca Miller stand above her peers is that despite her natural superiority, she is still the most driven, humble, and adorable player that I know.

For four years Becca has dominated her competition, but she has never once stopped striving for improvement. Whether it is at practice, sprints, drilling, or game time, no one works harder than Becca and only few have been able to match her level of work ethic. She pushes every single one of her teammates
and without ever being offensive or harsh. She takes advantage of each opportunity to improve and encourages others to do the same. On the field, she can always be counted on to get open, throw the disc to the best option, run down a huck, or get the game changing D- all without ever taking credit for any of it herself.

Becca’s dominance doesn’t end on the ultimate field.  She currently holds the brownie eating record on Woman Scorned with a whopping 17 brownies in one sitting, can hula hoop for an eternity, and not only crushed her chemistry courses without complaining, but got into graduate school for chemistry. She once stayed awake to keep our driver company after a tournament for a total of 47 hours (part of that was because she wanted to reach her jersey number, 47). She finds the positive in everything and creates fun from less than ideal situations.

Becca has come a long way from the quiet rookie she once was. She now leads Woman Scorned with confidence and poise as a co-captain. She is a reliable friend, patient and understanding captain, and the teammate I am so lucky to have had the chance to play with. Her passion is inspiring and humbleness exemplary of spirit of the game. Becca’s defensive and offensive abilities, dedication and leadership in ultimate, notable sportsmanship, and delightful personality make her the ideal Callahan candidate.

-Lindsey Gapstur #2
Scorned 2012

My Vote's for Becca Miller

Rebecca Miller (better known as Becca Miller and to some Bex Miller/Sexy Bexy) is a girl to be reckoned with.  If you didn’t already know, she’s a great Ultimate player and she managed to get where she’s at right now in four short years.  Yeah, she’s a naturally athletic girl but that’s not to say she strolled her way to where she’s at now.  Countless hours of throwing and extra workouts with her life partner Peschy has made them a dynamic duo that you won’t forget about. 

I actually went to high school with Becca but we weren’t friends then (sad panda.)  But that doesn’t mean I didn’t know about her.  I knew she was a XC superstar, and that she was shy and quiet.  Actually, the captain of the mixed Ultimate Frisbee high school team that I played on wanted to recruit Becca to play with us but that never panned out.  Oh, how things would’ve been different if that had happened.

Through the years of being on Woman Scorned, Becca has non-stop been a girl full of surprises.  We all thought that quiet and innocent Becca would be a great offensive add-on to our team with her speed and quickly acquired field sense, but she was more than that.  I specifically remember at our indoor scrimmage Becca’s Freshmen year of how she got a D on her girl going deep and in my mind her saying NOT IN MY HOUSE (she didn’t though, she barely spoke 5 words her Freshmen year.)  And ever since then, she’s been a D-ing machine.  She’s an all-around player on the field, both willing to play full-speed offense and tenacious defense.  Whether she’s behind the disc as a handler or cutting for the disc as a cutter, she can do it all and boy can she do them well.

One quality of Becca that makes her stand out once you get to know her is her willingness to always learn something new.  In Ultimate, you can meet some cocky people who think their always right and it’s either ‘their way or the highway.’  Becca is the opposite of that.  Even though she has four years of college experience under her belt along with two years of elite mixed club experience and even as the current co-captain of Woman Scorned, she’ll never say no to having a chance to learn something new from anybody.  And that’s what makes her a great teammate and leader.  She’s always there to listen and give her two cents when necessary and she inspires her teammates to become better players by becoming better people.

I know I don’t personally know all the Callahan nominees as well as Becca and there may be some that are cuter and nicer and can even eat more brownies than Becca (doubt it to all of the above), but that’s why I’m writing this blog.  She's been a great teammate, an always-there-friend and a fun co-captain and I'm honored that I have gotten the chance to play alongside her, live with her, work with her and just be friends with her.  You may not know Becca as intimately as I have, but I hope you will someday because although she’s the kindest person off the field, on the field she’s a scorned woman you don’t want to get on the wrong side of.

-M