Westerns Review - Teams

Hey all,

Some comments about teams that Northwest played at Westerns as well as some comments about teams we didn't play.

Teams we didn't play first.

Churchill HS: This is a great program that was unlucky two games in a row and ended up out of contention. They were in the toughest pool as it turned out. Look at their roster and you will see that they only have one senior. They will be right back in contention for the title next year. Not only that but with the work Luke is doing building middle school programs in Eugene that town will be huge at the elite HS level as well as the YCC level. Churchill and South Eugene have already turned out some amazing players who will be in the spotlight this weekend at College Nationals. Luke is probably a little down right now but watch what happens next year for Churchill. And then watch what happens when their middle school programs start sending kids into the high school program.

Crescent Valley: These guys and girls are great. This is the only team that I saw that had girls playing in the open division. We have only had great games with Tribe over the past two years and we are going to miss the seniors who are graduating. They are as classy as a team gets, but they can beat you too. Their coach, Jones, has done a great job with this program. Good luck to all the Tribe seniors, I hope you guys are playing in college and that we see you around at tournaments.

Lakeside: Lakeside was our biggest Seattle rival this year with our last game of the year ending in a tight 15-12 victory for us. There are also a couple younger siblings of NWS guys on the Lakeside team. Lakeside is led by a group of phenominal seniors who along with coaches Jeremy and Meredith have put together a strong program in a not always hospitible envioronment. In fact two of the Lakeside players missed their state quaterfinals soccer game to attend Westerns. Lakeside is a short quick team that also has a lot of freshman playing points in important games. These guys will continue to be strong if some of the younger guys step up and fill the big shoes left by the graduating seniors. Look for the seniors to make a big mark in college ultimate.

Seattle Academy: SAAS is a young team with a ton of talent and a great coaching staff. When they play well they are a very good team. Their main issue is their consistency, but that will improve as their strong freshmen and sophomores get older. It was great to see SAAS cheering for us in the final especially considering that we are arch rivals in every sport. We are very similar schools only a few blocks apart from each other in downtown Seattle and we compete in the same league in other sports.

Teams we played in order of when we played them:

Lakewood: This is an up and coming team and program. I was very impressed with their coaching, athleticism, and disc skills. They had a big guy on their team who is only a junior and will be a major player next year and in college. If this program can keep its coaches and continue to build support from their community, they are going to be very very strong. They seemed to be a bit nervous playing us in their first game of the tournament. I saw them play a little on the second day and it was clear that they had improved tremendously in one day which is what tends to happen to young teams at these kinds of tourneys.

Nathan Hale: Hale is another Seattle team with a great coaching staff. They were very unlucky in that one of their key players was too ill to travel to the tournament. That loss affected them tremendously. When they played us their heart wasn't in it because of who was missing and I think they might have been looking past us to their next game with Lakewood to decide who would get the second seed out of the pool.

Armstrong: We played Armstrong last year when they were stronger. Graduation affected their experience level but they still worked hard and they were obviously well coached. They had several chances to give up against us but they kept playing hard until the final point was scored. Plus they had a great team nickname.

South Eugene: We found out that we were going to have to play South Eugene, Lakeside, or Churchill in our quarter final and we knew that we had our work cut out no matter which team ended up across from us. The Axemen are another team that only has a couple of seniors and will be even stronger next year. By the time the game started the Axemen were down to 9 or 10 healthy players. The difference in the game were a couple of unlucky throws by SE and a greatest by one of our guys that saved us big time. I can't say enough about the heart of this team, they never gave up even though they were playing tired. The final score was 15-9. They are are also a very classy team. This year's group carried on the great tradition of Axemen ultimate. And no they don't need a coach but it would be nice to see them getting more support from their community.

Alameda: After South Eugene we had to turn around and play another strong team. Alameda has a great coach and great players. They are a classy team. We knew we were in trouble after the first few points so we jumped into a zone defense just as the winds picked up and that was the difference. By that I mean the wind being the difference, we are a good team in the wind. The final score in no way reflects how close this game was. In fact our semi-final lasted two or three points longer than the other semi so Hopkins got a good look at us before the final. This is a small school program that will continue to be strong as long as they continue to have strong coaching. They also have several players who can step right into college ultimate. I wouldn't be surprised if there is a callahan award winner to come out of Alameda in the near future.

Hopkins: This is a great squad and this program will be a huge player on the elite HS scene for years to come. They had great coaches as well as what looked to be great community support. The coaches from both teams talked before the final and we decide to request observers just so nobody was robbed on a final point or anything. This was a very classy final game. It started with both teams shaking hands and wishing each other good luck before the game started. We had observers, but as far as I could tell not one call went to the observers. Not one. Somebody correct me if I'm wrong on that. The game was back and forth and was very even. Both teams had athletes and skills. Both teams did throw the disc away a couple of times, but I think the difference in the game were three jaw-dropping defensive plays by a couple of our guys. I disagree with the UPA reporter who thinks both teams played a little loose because of the big crowd. I can't speak for Hopkins but we put the disc downfield because it is effective for us. It wasn't just one guy on our team either, it was two or three hucking and six or seven scoring. Anyway, if this game was played 10 times I bet it would go each way 5 times. People are talking about Amherst and Northwest needing to face off to prove who is the best team in the country, but in my opinion Hopkins needs to be conidered as a possible best team in the country this year as well. Our team is hoping that Hopkins will now be considered as a Westerns team from now on, because we loved playing them and want to play them again win or lose. They play the game the right way and are deserving of respect from all over the country.

One last thing. Did anyone happen to shoot the final game on video. We didn't but would love a copy of the game.

-Mike Mullen, Head Coach
The Northwest School Boys Varsity Ultimate Team