Ashton goes up and grabs a sailing disc from Zach (photo by Miguel)

Looking back over the several seasons I’ve been a part of league now, I have to say that this group of captains and teams have been the most even split across the board.  What I mean by that is on any given Sunday any team could wind up upsetting another one.

Greathouse said it this way:

“Fall League 2010 has come to an end, and I think it might have been one of our best.  There were no forfeits, plenty of surprises, and great play from top to bottom.  Four different teams won discs and we floated the keg.  Truly, how can league get any better than that?”

Fall league ended on a great note yesterday as Maroon held true to their promise to win it all, and Greathouse added another victory over Showkiller on Universe in the Chumpionship.  Congrats to Maroon “The Token Party” and White “Fabula Rasa” for winning discs!

Nick McGrane grabs this disc one handed in the Semi's (photo by Miguel)

Patrick chimed in to write a bit about the Maroon vs. Navy game:

“Kudos to Maroon. DTox drafted chemistry and attitude and that makes him a worthy captain of champions… Zach always kept the machine together….Crazy Nick was a major baller and todays MVP….. Tiffany and and Tom had veteran breaks at crucial moments… as for the rest … they all stepped up and did thier job …plus some. Maroon are the league champs, frigate END OF STORY.”

The League Champions page is now up to date:

http://gvilleultimate.com/league/league-champions/

Pictures are up from Miguel, and I’ll have Jim’s up later today.  Here is a link to Miguel’s Photos:

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/4005642/FallLeague/How%20to%20use%20the%20Public%20folder/index.html

Fall League is officially in the books and preparation has already begun for Winter League 2011.  Like Fall, Winter League will take place on Sundays from 2:00 to 5:00 PM.  We hope to have a league tournament, to award discs, and to partake in beverages.

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Oh, cruel fate!  It seems like every time an HL-centered team has a shot of finding ultimate glory, they are denied for a variety of reasons, including (and in no particular order):

1.      Nationals (think “gold”)
2.      X-Box (virtually all of them)
3.      Chicks (but only for those who have “game”)
4.      Tournaments (most of them)
5.      Starcraft II (for the rest without “game”)

So, as I break down the championship bracket, please note that “4” is in the back of my mind.  Now, let’s figure out those percentages!

Ooh Shiny (Silver)- Andy Hwang has had a fantastic season, with the likes of Robert Love, Will Cunningham, Laura, Alexa and Alicia all playing excellent, dominant disc.  And though they may have all the heart and desire in the world and are the complete and total opposite of “gold”, they stand virtually no shot of winning league, and here’s why: Andy’s entire handling corps is High Level, and unless they make a concerted effort to throw the tournament and get back to Gainesville Sunday morning, Ooh Shiny is going to look dull and listless as the remaining speedsters argue about who handles.   I expect rock-paper-scissor every point, with the loser saying “Fine. I’ll stay back” followed shortly by a resigned sigh of defeat and resignation.  Their best shot is repeated hospital throws to Bornberg.  Do it. DO IT!!!!!! So, based on that, I’d say that Ooh Shiny has only a 8% of finding Autumn glory.

Royal Book Club (Royal)- The Royal Book Club impressed the hell out of me at the League Tournament.  Forehand was  a superstar, and their gutsy style of “hey, we’re not terrible” offense and defense is impressive.  Now, like Ooh Shiny, the RBC will be missing some key pieces, including the aforementioned Forehand, as well as Jersey.  With that in mind, I think that they’ll be great in the Semis (against Silver).  After that, though, their road will be decidedly more bumpy in the finals. If the Book Club can limit its mistakes, and if they can run their solid Zone D, then they will most certainly have a chance.  The problem, though, is that Maroon or Navy will be waiting on the other side of the bracket.  And, though Hamlet, Andrew, Kahn and Zuhr will be able to run with the big dogs, I’m not sure about the rest of the crew.  In the finals of the league tournament, they went up against a Black team that was tenacious and hungry for a win, and I think they’ll see the same in the League finals.  But- like Kevin Keating in the face of a re-raise, the RBC will crumble.  So- despite being a lock for the finals, I give Royal only a 20% of winning discs.

The Token Party Team (Maroon)- The Token Party Team, I fear, is not going to feel like celebrating on Sunday.  I think Darin has done a great job, but their magical little run is about to come to an end, and it’s due to the tournament.  Without crazy Nick to call “buffalo”, without Hex, and without D-Tox himself, there just won’t be enough gas in the tank to go the distance.  With that said, Maroon is far from resembling Silver.  Zach, Julie, Tiff, and Tom can all work the disc.  Ashton will be a viable deep threat and lock down deep defender, while Ryan “Pasadena” Walker will have every reason play hard in the hopes of redemption.  So, Navy would be foolish to look past them.  And, we all need to remember that it’s difficult for one team to consistently beat a well matched opponent.  For example, it took White four tries before they finally got Silver.  Nevertheless, I think those missing pieces are going to cripple the revelers.  So, The Token Party Team will have a 32% chance of winning it all- though that number will triple if they survive Navy.

Frigate Awesome (Navy)- Frigate Awesome is my pick to win it all, and here’s why: Jeremy Brenner is the real deal and is one of the best players in all of league.  However, reportedly he might not be there.  Ben Jaffe is one of the best throwers and if he can see and is healthy, will easily be able to dissect any zone.  As for the middle managers, Navy has Michelle and Lyle, who will be able to keep the Frigate on course.   On top of that, I don’t think they’ll be affected in the slightest by the absences of the High Level guys.  My only concern, though, is that their performance in the league tournament was just embarrassing, and I don’t know why.  Maybe they were missing players, or maybe they just didn’t care.  And yet, a team of questionable heart, of questionable desire and character is the favorite.  I was asked once which Patrick Navy needed to win it all: the ruthless buccaneer, or the easy-going, relaxed guy we all know and enjoy having a beer with.  On Sunday, he needs to be ruthless and take a page from the Lieutenant’s book and sell his soul.  Winning league (for real!) is no easy task, and Navy better be prepared to do whatever it takes.  So, based on that, I’d say that Frigate Awesome has a 40% chance of finding league glory.

Here’s the recap:

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The season is almost done, and so now, it’s time for me to tuck it in and sing a little lullaby.  Before we do that, though, let’s play a little game that’s called “Percentages.”  I’ll name the team, and then give you their percentage for winning it all- and by “all,” I really mean by finishing in 5^th place.  Bravo!

Harvest Moon (Orange)- Captain Lee has a 12% chance of winning chump discs.  The main thing he has going for him is that he should have his quality players on hand, including Coleman, Josh, Cynthia, and Michelle.  If they can get on the same page, and if they can play some lights out defense, then they’ve got a shot of busting through the play in game and then in to the Finals, where they can stun the world by taking it all.  Here’s their problem: they’ll have to go through Black first, and if they survive that, they’ll have to go through Forest, and if they survive that, they’ll have to go through either White or Gold- teams that they have either never beat or escaped against on Universe. The good news is that if Lee can get through Black, then his chances of winning it all will quadruple.  Plus, no team has more chemistry than Orange.  Unfortunately for Lee, it’s all bad.

“gold” (Gold)- Yeah, I’ve been banging on “gold” all season, and in the Quarters and at the league tournament, they were exposed as the frauds that I’ve said they were.  Sure, the Tournament isn’t an accurate indicator, but it does fit in nicely with my narrative, so I’ll say that they have a 4% chance of taking 5^th.  Strangely though, their lack of heart has nothing to do with it.  Instead, it’s the fact that Allen drafted a B-heavy team and they have a tournament that weekend.  So, though Miguel and ZJ are fantastic, and though they should be able to hit Chris who should be continuously open, they’re going to be too thin to contend.  No Vannoy, no Shiggens, no Pookie and no Captain Allen spells disaster for “gold”.  Of course, if all of those Gold players can get back in time, then, I’d bump them up into the 30-40% range.  That could happen if “gold” cared- even just a little… which they don’t.

Good on Paper (Forest)- Forest is in the same boat as “gold,” and should be missing a number of their key players at game time on Sunday.  However, because they have more heart, desire and character, there is a much better chance that Captain TJ, Baby, and Bennett will get back to the field.  And yet, I can only give Good on Paper an 13% chance of winning it all.  In their favor, they’ll have KJ, David and Jenna calling the shots, as well as Fro Joe, who has demonstrated time and time again that he is among the best.  The problem though, is that they’ll have to go through the winner of Black/Orange.   Against Orange, it’s probable.  Against, Black, they’ll have virtually no chance.  But, a hallmark of TJ teams is that they tend to play their best when there is nothing on the line.

Fabula Rasa (White)- Arguably, White has the straightest, cleanest shot to win discs, and here’s the case: The Lieutenant will have Brice and Walker; he’ll have strong women in the form of Bobo and Clea; and finally, he’ll have great handler support from Smock and Goldstein.  So, initially, I wanted to put their chance at 45%.  HOWEVER, and this is big, he’ll be missing key players, including Held, J-Bug, Catabay and possibly Daines.  On top of that, if all goes the way I suspect, it will be another classic Showkiller-Lieutenant matchup, and so that divides White’s chances of surviving by at least half.  Still, White does have a shot, so I’ll be generous and say that the Rasa has a 26% of winning their pathetic, little bracket.

The Dark Knights (Black)- The League Tournament was a magical time for Phil and his Knights.  After getting humiliated by Navy in the Quarters, they showed up at the tournament and went a perfect 6-0.  The League Tournament though- as we all know- is just a pale shadow of the real thing.  Nevertheless, I’m going to go out on a limb and say that Black has the inside track even though they have a potential of three games.  First, there are virtually no B-boys on this squad.  Second, the Williston Roadies (Craig, Brandon, Matt) are firing on all cylinders.  And third: their women are downright dominant.  For example, did you guys see Christine sky the Lieutenant?  Granted, it’s hard to not sky him, but still, it was beautiful!  So anyway, I like Black’s chances.  I expect Campbell to prove himself to be the Baller-in-Chief, I expect Meg to fly around the field and score goals, and I expect Ben Stone to keep the vertical game wide open which will give Black a 45% chance of winning it all.

Here’s the recap:

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Dark Knights take Champ Discs!

The first set of disc’s for League have been passed out.  Congrats to the Dark Knights on going 6-0 and taking Champ Discs, and Frigrate Awesome scooping up the Chump Discs.

The idea of League in a Weekend was originated by Greathouse and was a success because of great weather and 8 solid teams plus friends from Forest and Red being put together.  For the most part things ran smoothly because the Captains got to the field and extra players were distributed randomly amongst the 8 teams.  Most teams ended up being light on Saturday which worked out because there were only 3 games, and then on Sunday most teams looked near full strength.

Frigrate Awesome B Bracket Discs!

The tournament as a whole gave several people who have never been to a tournament a glimpse at having to play 5 or 6 games in 2 days, and really showed how much endurance and strength it takes to play Ultimate.  It also gave teams a chance to take on teams they might have lost to earlier in the season a chance for redemption.

Great weekend everyone!  Thanks for making the first League Tournament AWESOME!

Special thanks to Jim and Mike starting their day at 7:00 AM on Saturday getting water, candy, and setting the fields.  Jim and Lyle made the pools, set the playoff format, and came up with a matrix to distribute players.  Jim also took a bunch of great pictures!

Please feel free to comment and let us know how you liked the tournament.   Especially Mr. and Ms. Biscuits!

Complete Results below:

Saturday Results:

Pool 1:

Game 1: Black over Maroon, Silver over Orange
Game 2: Black over Silver, Maroon over Orange
Game 3: Black over Orange, Maroon over Silver

Pool 2:

Game 1: White over Gold, Royal over Navy
Game 2: White over Navy, Royal over Gold
Game 3: Navy over Gold, Royal over White

Sunday Results:

Quarters: Black over Gold, White over Silver, Maroon over Navy, Royal over Orange

Semi A: Black over White, Royal over Maroon
Semi B: Silver over Gold, Navy over Orange

Final A: Black over Royal
Final B: Navy over Silver

Final Standings:

1) Dark Knights (Black) – 6-0
2) The Royal Book Club (Royal) – 5-1
3) The Token Party Team (Maroon) – 3-2 and Fabula Rasa (White) 3-2
5) Frigate Awesome (Navy) – 3-3
6) Ooh Shiny (Silver) – 3-3
7) “gold” (Gold) -0-5 and Harvest Moon (Orange) – 0-5

Photos:  http://gvilleultimate.com/league/FL2010/photos/?album=1&gallery=6

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This week, I don’t have any rankings or report cards to give, so instead, I’m going to pass out awards.  Now, if we were all in Mrs. Helm’s first grade class, it would be promotions and medals for everyone.  Unfortunately for you, that’s not how it works here in The Sour Age.  Just so that you understand, when Suzie doesn’t give you a card on Valentine’s Day, it’s because she thinks you’re a dork.  So, if you don’t get honored here… well, you do the math.

Rookie of the Year:  This award is reserved for players who are new to league and made an outstanding contribution to their team.  Normally, I limit this to just one player, but instead, there are three that come to mind and all own a share:

• Sarah Gardiner of The Dark Knights.  From Phil: “Sarah plays her heart out on every point.  She’s caught several deep passes this season, and is an amazing defender! [Sarah] is a true Dark Knight. Look out FUEL!”
• Steve Hofstetter of Frigate Awesome.  Steve is brand new to the game, but picked it up really quickly.  Plus, Steve is extremely speedy and plays man-defense like you owe him money.
• Kyra Catabay of Fabula Rasa. From Mike:  “Kyra has hands of gold and can pretty much catch anything.  As a cutter, there aren’t many who are better.  As for defense, Kyra can run both man and zone, and is everything you’d want in a player.”

Captain of the Year: Our winner is Darin “D-Tox” Toscano of the Token Party Team.  Darin is the Captain of the Year (well, season) for a couple of reasons.  First, he put together a winning crew that had a regular season record of 7-2, which netted them the 1 seed.  Second, he gives his players the freedom to do their job, which makes for a well-balanced team.  And finally, though quiet, he leads by example by playing hard each and every point.  Honorable Mention: Andy Hwang (who possesses many of those same qualities).

Player of the Year (Dude): John Bornberg of Ooh Shiny.  John came into the season with a reputation as being one of the leagues fastest players, and he did not disappoint.  Against man coverage, he will simply outrun you on the deep cut and look for Robert Love to put it deep.  Against a zone, he will pop underneath over and over again, and quite simply, cannot be stopped by anything short of a Regionals caliber team.  As for defense, he will quite literally take an opposing player out of the point, and plays as tight as any player as league has ever known.  Honorable mention: Jeremy Brenner of Frigate Awesome.

Player of the Year (Chick): Jenna Dahl of Good on Paper.  Jenna is an extraordinarily good handler who slices apart zones with a flick of her wrist.  As a handler, she works the disc as well as anyone, and is as smart a player as there is on the field.  On top of that, we all discovered on Halloween, she is as tough as they come.  When she and Bennett went up to D a poorly thrown disc, we all saw the collision and heard the sickening crunch.  Jenna just threw some ice on her head, and that was that.  Honorable Mention: Michelle Fusting, because damn it, she is good.

Best Offensive Team: The Token Party Team (Maroon).  The reason these guys get the nod is because they are the most balanced offensive squad in all of league.  Just about all of their players are comfortable with the disc (Julie, Tiffany, the Nicks, Zach, D-Tox, etc.)  On top of that, they have multiple ways to attack a defense.  They can put it deep by sending Ashton on a post route, or they can bring death by making a thousand cuts and swings as needed.  Their keys to success are experience, handling, and versatility.  Honorable Mention: “gold,” (but only when they feel like playing).

Best Defensive Team: Ooh Shiny (Silver).  The key reason they’re so good at defense is… wait for it… Yes, their speed.  Lenoci, Bornberg, Lynch, Love, Burkhardt and Dickinson are all fast.  Strangely, their zone is better than their Man, but that’s for two reasons.  The first is that Silver’s Z is ultra-aggressive and they attack the handlers and can almost turn the game into a 6 defenders v 3 Handlers.  The reason for that is because Bornberg can be parked deep, and from there, he can lock down most of the field.  And, if they turn the disc, they are able to play transition D because of their speed.  Honorable Mention: Frigate Awesome (Navy).

Most Spirited Player: Beyond question, this honor goes to Dan Kahn of the Royal Book Club.  He has never failed to cheer, and honors the Spirit of the Game more than any other player in league.

The Team that Most Defied Expectations: The Royal Book Club.  When the Czar drafted his team, the other captains all thought that he was crazy.  Well, apparently he’s not.  After taking down “gold” in the Quarters, the RBC had their ticket punched to the Semis, which is no easy task.  Congratulations Royal, and good luck.

And finally, this is Jack Skunk’s All-Star O and D lines for Fall League, 2010.  Take a look and enjoy.  First, the Offense and I’m calling a Zone-O:

1.      Michelle Fusting- Handler
2.      Jenna Dahl- Handler
3.      Calvin Vannoy- Cutter
4.      Bennett Wachob- Cutter
5.      Ashton Manley- Deep
6.      Zach Floyd- Handler
7.      John Bornberg- Deep

Jack Skunk’s Starting D Line, and we’re going Clam:

1.      Meg Harris- Right Off Point (Right side of the cup)
2.      Joanna Nevillle- Left Wing
3.      Rob Brice- Left Off Point (left side of the cup)
4.      Patrick Douma- Point (primary mark, shade flick!)
5.      Miguel Palavicci- Short deep
6.      James Dahl- Left wing
7.      Travis Lynch- Deep Deep

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11/6 -11/7 – League Tournament – All day Saturday & Sunday

11/14 – No League – FUEL Tournament – A lot of ladies would be missing therefore it was best not to have Semi’s / Final’s here

11/21 – Semi’s / Final’s + BEvERages – the conclusion to league was best for this weekend

We did a lot of work with all the Captains, FUEL, High Level teams.. etc to try and avoid as much conflict as possible but in the end short of ending league in December this was the best schedule.

However, in the event you feel ripped off and violated please feel free to contact us via the contact form or better yet via the Skunk Hotline as more than likely it was his fault anyway!

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But we all know we like to see a picture so here’s how it is shaping up:

Captain Reports:

Navy vs. Black

This game could have played many different ways (permutations for math likers). You must be wary when it comes to Captain Phil. I like his game and captaining … period.  His presence elevates league. Really…. along with Mike & Jim, a good bit of what we all enjoy about 2pm on Sunday is their doing. Thank You!

In the end the wins and losses don’t really matter, YOU (infinite plural) ultimately have little or no control over such trivial matter. The main flaw with the “win” is that once it’s has been completed, you must do it again in order to be to resatiated (not a real word). So down the periscope with wins, let’s just play with intensity, but not lose site of the big picture (sportsmanship, safety, civility, friendship etc..). After seeing a big collision in the Forest vs. Maroon game, I am reminded that to be healthy enough to play the next game is all the win we should ask for. Thanks Knights and Navy for simply being there.

Patrick

Sent from my minus 4G i frontal lobe

Red (Fire Ants) vs. Orange (Harvest Moon)

Last week, Scott and I decided that instead of ultimate, we were going to play a game of “who can drink the most” for 9th place. But, once we learned that the powers that be tweaked the playoff format so that the winner of this game had a back door into the chump bracket, it was on. I got a little worried when I ran into Josh and James at Nationals, who said that they wouldn’t be able to make it for league. So we would be missing two true handlers, our best receiver (Dylan Miner), and the best hands on our team, who has also been giving us some great minutes handling lately (Michelle Zak). Turns out it was nothing to worry about, as Red only had eight or nine folks. Absent for Red were Pilgrim, Kek, Mike Vu, Jojo, Jessica Lancia, and others. We were pretty confident we had Red out-matched, so we decided to use this game to practice our zone D. Generally, Red had trouble moving it through our zone without forcing a long one (we forced a lot of turns– I’m pretty sure every member of Harvest Moon ended up with a D by the end of the day), but a good number of Dad’s hucks did connect for scores. Our O was smooth and chilly against Red’s zone. Our handlers (combinations of Cynthia, Daniel, Coleman, and Casey) never made a bad decision and only looked deep if it was actually there. Huseyin and Al (as usual) did a good job finding the holes as poppers. Ponz positioned himself nicely in the end zone for a few scores. For Red, Dad put up some very attractive hucks for scores. Scotty was always around to bail out the thrower high in the stall count. Jessica Sockwell (as the only present lady for Red) deserves props for playing the entire game. Parker Kelly had some Ds. I was really impressed by Anthony Vogt’s play– he’s a new player, but he’s super athletic, and he’s showing a lot of promise. His play has really has really improved in the short amount of time since Red and Orange last played in Game 2.

Overall, it was a fun, spirited game. I think there were only one or two calls made the entire day. Red deserves a huge amount of credit for playing hard the whole game and never giving up, despite being short-handed and out-gunned. We took the first half 6-3, but Red made a second half run, I believe cutting our lead to 9-7. Red ran out of gas at the end, though, and we took the game, 15-9.

Lee

Fabula Rasa v. Ooh Shiny

I was getting ready to write a detailed report, but then I realized that I’d only be repeating what I sent to my team last night, which was this:

“Rasa-

Here’s the update: We lost to Silver 12-15, but it was a damn good game.  I was really proud of everyone.  AJ played until he could physically go no more, Clea played every point and found every hole in Silver’s zone, while John laid out and tried to save the disc for a goal, and crunched his shoulder as a result.  I could easily go on, but instead, let me just say that it was an outstanding effort.

Here’s a quick recap: as usual, we dug ourselves a 1-5 hole, and then battled back to tie the game at 11-11.  It was a good come back, but we fell short.

It sucks, but I’m really proud of our performance.  Last week- and this is the truth- I was livid, because we were flat and made a lot of stupid errors.  This week though, we fought like dogs and scrapped for every point, and I love any team who can give me that.”

As for Silver,  they are fantastic.  Rasa played one of its best games of the season, and that still wasn’t enough.  Both Johns, Andy, both Roberts, Alicia and everyone else on Silver is just great.  They may not be able to win it all, but I fully expect them to make the finals and be in contention for discs.  Well played everyone.

-Mike

Dark Knights vs Frigrate Awesome

It wasn’t a matter of heart, it wasn’t a matter of plays, offense, defense… We came out and played our balls off (no offense ladies).  It came down to turnovers and we had bunches especially near our goal line.  Navy was a well oiled machine that just never stopped getting in our face.  Half was something ridiculous like 8-2.  Second half nothing went our way while everything that fell from the sky came up in Navy’s hands.  We did manage to score 4 points in the second half, but every point felt like we were trying to move a mountain while Navy was playing basically savage and still just used and abused us.   I pity the fools of Maroon who have to face Navy next… Suckers!

Phil

Royal vs. Gold
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The book club took the victory, but it was about as rewarding as trying to enjoy a Don Delillo novel via Cliff’s Notes.

The book club jumped off to a quick two- or three-zero lead, in large part because of gold’s having only five people to start the game, which promptly turned into six, and finally a seventh showed. Royal’s initial ease and “let’s take advantage of our numbers” game plan quickly digressed to “let’s take advantage of their two females by playing six men on offense.” This brave strategy paid off (barely) and we took half after some seriously sloppy offensive decisions by Andrew, top-notch offensive performances from Jersey and Barrow, and a hard-fighting defensive effort put forth from the savage gold.

Our decision at halftime to slow things down on the goal line seemed like a perfectly good strategy as we consistently were able to move the disc through gold’s zone, only to falter in the red zone. This seemingly sound (though easy to forget) suggestion to chill was partially ignored by our fearless master of organic free flow, Dan Kahn, who’s superficially brilliant idea of how to hit his rapidly moving target was thwarted by the superb reflexes of a gold poacher. This act—compounded by the nervousness of having the under-manned gold quickly close the point gap and general level of comfort the book club had been enjoying—lead to a strong bit of internal discord in the ranks of the book club, producing a temporarily chilly environment of another type.

We were able to keep it together, though, and refocus on playing within own limits, whatever those might be. Sebastian had excellent popping maneuvers to foil the gold zone; Ron tangled up the defense to create holes for the poppers; Erica and Bill knew where to be to score points; Brad had a stellar dive across the goal line for a much needed team morale booster; Collin had a stellar flying end zone bid (I guess the ground can cause a fumble in ultimate?) and took a much needed injury time-out to reclaim his breath; Jill went from full-throttle to deathly still as she experienced the thrill of her first concussion; Dan Kahn continued to break sticky defenses and slow offenses with deftly placed cross-field flicks and scores; Jim took pictures.

Bottom line: It pays to have the whole team, not just the Cliff’s Notes version. The golden seven played a commendable game—one that might have been drastically different had the rest of their team been present to participate.

Andrew ‘The Czar’s humble servant’ Ragsdale

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Quarters!

The Sour Age
Quarters Predictions
October 29, 2010
By: Jack Skunk

The report cards are done, but for those of you who might have missed it, here’s a quick recap in table form:

Now, let’s get to the predictions.

Harvest Moon (Orange 9^th Seed) v. Fire Ants (Red, 10^th Seed)

There’s no reason for me to kick two teams that are down, so I’ll try to keep the sarcasm to a minimum.  But anyway, here’s the deal: both teams are bad (especially the Fire Ants), but they have fought like dogs all season.  Harvest Moon, on the other hand, is not horrible, but their Blue Chips (Josh and Coleman) always seem to have better things to do.  Ophelia: live and learn, right?  Anyway, here’s what’s going to happen: Orange will win, since they stand an outside shot of breaking out of the C and into the B, where they might be able to contend for discs.  And, against Red, the Zs will look great (Zak and Zilla).  On top of that, the Fire Ants will be without Pilgrim, who has gone off to worship at the alter of John Stewart and the Daily Show.  My advice to Red: take off the safety, send Vogt and Vu deep, hope that Joanna is there, and sling that hash!  What have you got to lose?  Granted, it won’t be enough, but give it a shot.  The Harvest Moon shall peek over the horizon and win by 4.

Frigate Awesome (4^th Seed) v. The Dark Knights (5^th Seed)

This game is a no-brainer, or at the least it should be.  First, I really believe that Frigate Awesome is going to win the whole thing.  I can run through the laundry list again and comment on the Brenners, Fusting and Jaffe, but there’s just no need.  We know that they have handlers, huckers, cutters, and pure, raw, unpolluted speed.  Now, of course, this is a Showkiller team, so they always stand a chance, and I fully expect Campbell, Stone, and Williams to play hard and lay it on the line, since they know that chump discs are hallow and meaningless.  Plus, the Knights have a slight edge in women, with Chris O, Gardiner and Harris.  Another fly in the ointment is Captain Douma, of Navy.  Is he there to have fun, or is he there to win?  We’ve seen both, and I just don’t know.  Logically, it should be the Cut-throat.  Nevertheless, I think he’s going to have a hard time turning it on against Showkiller and Campbell.  Sure, he can hit the start switch easy enough if Hamlet or the Lieutenant are on the opposing line, but against Black, he might not be able to get fired up.  And yet, there’s no getting past this fact: Navy is better, and a lot better at that.  In a close one, Frigate Awesome will avoid disaster and win on Universe.

Ooh Shiny (Silver, 3^rd Seed) v. Fabula Rasa (White, 6^th Seed)

White and Silver will be meeting for the third straight time, and Ooh Shiny has convincingly defeated Fabula Rasa twice already.  I’d love to build this up and say that White has a chance, but they just don’t.  Sure, White has good players (Goldstein, Torrey, Catabay, etc.) but they just don’t have the speed.  On transition turns (as we saw last week) the likes of  John, Robert and Alicia will be open and easily score.  But all right- Fabula Rasa is not completely without hope.  If the earth opens up and swallows all of Ooh Shiny, then White can potentially win by forfeit.  Another possibility is for Captain Hwang to drop the pull 15 consecutive times on his goal line.  Or (and this is the least likely option) if Fabula Rasa can eliminate half of their unforced errors, then it will be close.  In the real world though, we’re going to see a repeat of last week.  Ooh Shiny will glint happily as they win by 4.

“gold” (2^nd Seed, Gold) v. The Royal Book Club (Royal, 7^th Seed)

My original prediction was going to go something like this:  “The Book Club is screwed, and there is no possible way for them to win.  Miguel will be open the entire time, Vannoy will be a beast, and Royal will just make too many mistakes.”  But, I’ve just received a report that “gold” will only have from 6-8 players on Sunday, which is incredibly bad timing.  A game to 15 on a hot day with a short-stacked team for a crucial playoff game is a worst case scenario.  Based on that, I’m going to go out on a limb and say that the Royal Book Club will get the win.  Hamlet, Silverman, Andrew and Colin will have a dominating performance and annihilate “gold.”  On the plus side though, does “gold” really care?  Probably not.  Champ discs, chump discs, no discs?  What’s the difference, right guys?  I admit, it could be a trick, but I just don’t think so.  The Royal Book Club should get the “upset” and start a new chapter and win by 8.

The Token Party Team (Maroon, 1^st Seed) v. Good on Paper (Forest, 8^th Seed)

This was supposed to be an exciting game, but TJ and most of his team are planning to blow off Quarters, and go to nationals so that they can watch real Frisbee players.  The Token Party Team, on the other hand, has its priorities straight: to take care of business and make it into the Championship bracket.  Some people wonder why Zach consistently goes as the number 1 overall first round pick, and here’s the answer: because he wants to win it all, and he’ll run over his own mom if she gets in the way.  As for TJ (and the rest of Forest), that’s just not how they roll.  Sure, if they were all there, they could run with Maroon and possibly win.  Baby, Jenna, Fro Joe, David, and the rest are all damn fine players and an outstanding collection of talent. Unfortunately, key elements will reportedly be missing, so instead of a great game, TJ will have pre-made excuse to explain how yet another one of his dreams crawled under a rock and died.  Good times!  The Token Party Team gets a pass and will boogie into the Champ bracket, winning by 6.

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