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Day 3 Recap: Saturday, Oct. 31

2009 UPA Club Championships
Sarasota, Fla.
Masters Division
By Michael O’Dowd

Semifinals
Surly 15, DoG 12
DoG played Surly in the first semifinals game, which had all the makings of a great game. Both teams have a highly controlled and potent offensive game and it proved to be a high-percentage contest. DoG made a couple of blocks that created chances for breaks, but after all was said and done, they could not punch it in. On the flip side Surly got a couple of chances to put a break in. The game was a beautiful exchange of possessions without much success on what were two good defenses. The turning point of the game was when DoG’s Mike Cooper got hurt. Mike took an inadvertent blow to the head, and took a little time off mid-game to clear his head. During Mike’s time out of the game, DoG had a brief lapse in cutting strength and gave up a break and the ensuing down winder. After that it was merely trading offensive scores until Surly reached fifteen.

DoG made another great appearance at the UP Club Championships. DoG had limited and stars this year yet proved to be just a few timely blocks from reaching the finals.

Troubled Past 14, Beyondors 12
The second semifinal was two of the best teams at the tourney, Troubled Past against the Beyondors. The Beyondors were the only team from the B Pool to make the semifinals. They also hadn’t lost all fall. Troubled Past was a talented team with one 17-16 loss to Surly on Thursday’s pool-play game. There would be a lot of expectations from both teams for a victory. Over the weekend the Beyondors had lost Andy Cruz and Ryan Yarborough to injury, and the starting players for Santa Barbara were all getting a little overplayed in the heat.

The Beyondors started out the game by scoring the first three goals and Jeff Landesman from the Beyondors was amazed by the ease with which the goals were scored. It looked to be another smooth victory for a team that didn’t have many challenges all weekend. But Troubled Past would right the ship with some solid offense to get back into the game. With some outstanding blocks by Chuck “Snertz” Johnson, Troubled Past started to take advantage in the game and were poised to take half. Troubled Past’s Ryan De Austin, Mark Mcghee and Brian Linkfield all played major defensive roles in the hot conditions.

At sevens, both teams had it more than once to take half, but Troubled Past scored the big upwinder to take the lead at 8-7. It was at this point the momentum seemed to be on Troubled Past’s side. There was pressure defense played by Troubled Past ,and the Beyondors had some unusual unforced errors. There were a lot of discussions and as the game moved to the end phase it was soft capped at 12-10, Troubled Past. The ending was merely a formality as both teams held serve to finish the game 14-12. The Beyondors will be back in force and promise to win a few championships in the future. They have a young line-up and a solid tight knit group. The Beyondors were also the only team to go through pool play without a loss.

Championship Game
Troubled Past 15, Surly 12
The Finals of the Masters Division promised to be a tough match for both teams with deep rosters and some unstoppable offensive weapons. The game started with an emotional memorial pull for Marty Bakko, the fallen player from Surly.
Before the fireworks, there was a ceremonial pull from Surly, from the hinterlands of Minnesota – the land of 10,000 Hucks – to honor their friend Marty Bakko who lost his battle with cancer this year. The game began with tears in many eyes and fire in lots of hearts.

Both teams traded points heading downwind as Surly put up familiar bombs with Eric “Turtle” Lonsdorf ripping it to Paul Anderson and John Chandler. The first break went to Troubled Past. As they picked up an unfamiliar bomb turnover, Brian Linkfield, Aaron Switzer and Mark Magee moved the disc upfield like Wall Street investment bankers move other people’s money and scored the goal.

It cannot be understated how crucial iced towels and masseuses were to Troubled Past’s strength. It was a war of attrition all weekend long with the sun beating down on all teams. But the Troubled Past group had a very deep line-up.
Troubled Past was able to adjust to their isolation on one side of the field, putting Ryan DeAustin deep and Brian Linkfield poaching underneath. Surly was not accustomed to swinging the disc quite so much, and Troubled Past’s defensive stalwarts made some plays. Pat Benson, from Big Sky, went horizontal and over the shoulder for a block while Matty Albinson made good on his mantra: “I like guarding the small, shifty guys . . . what can I say?”

Surly vs. Troubled Past
Photo by Bil Elsinger

Troubled past took half 8-6 and kept up the pressure. Paul DeMorgan and Geoff Richman’s solid leadership with the disc played an important role in constantly settling Troubled Past’s excitable and emotional players. Surly, behind solid handler play from Mark “Paco” Enright among others, kept trying to find the proper long strike with the quirky defense. It was a chess match of a group effort on defense to stop Eric Lonsdorf. Both Eric and Dave Boardman seemed to be “posterizing” whoever was guarding them. But Troubled Past kept moving on offense and Brain Snyder pulled them out of the abyss more than once with huge grabs way up in the air.

Troubled Past used a deep squad of massaged hamstrings and iced craniums to overcome the tradition, coherence and defending championship of Surly for a 15-12 victory. Troubled Past is your 2009 Masters Division UPA Club Champion. Although they had several players who had won multiple past championships on their roster, there was a majority of first-time winners on Troubled Past which making the victory extra special.

As for Surly, they played extremely well and were a few turnovers away from repeating. Surly also had beautiful ceremony with Marty Bakko’s ashes following the finals. They were a very classy champion and just a wonderful group to be around for all the other teams. Surly embodies the Spirit of the Game with their hard play and friendly demeanor.

 

Day 2 Recap: Friday, Oct. 30

2009 UPA Club Championships
Sarasota, Fla.
Masters Division
By Michael O’Dowd

Friday’s Masters Division play was at its finest, with all of the top teams navigating their way to the semifinals of the tournament.

POOL A
In the first round on Friday Surly played GLUM in a tightly contested match. Surly pulled away in the middle of the game but GLUM turned on the heat and got back in it to make it close. Surly won 15-11.

Glum
Photo by Bil Elsinger

Troubled Past took care of a hard-running Boneyard team 15-9 and Dog handled Ball and Chain 15-7.

In the second round play of Pool A, Ball & Chain came out strong against Surly, a No. 1 seed that had already won the pool. Ball & Chain just outright took the game 15-12. Surly came in just a little cautious with nothing on the line and Ball & Chain was really on their game. Great finish to a newly formed team that promises to be great in the future. Dan Powers and Dan Konisky did a great job bringing a whole new group together in Atlanta.

Troubled Past played DoG in the last game of pool play and this promised to be a good game from the start. Both of these teams have been power houses in the Masters Division recently, and something had to give. Both teams held serve throughout the first half. But in the second half the lack of healthy bodies for DoG began to take its toll. Troubled Past applied some defensive pressure and turnovers were put in for the first victory as Troubled Past defeated DoG 15-12.

Dog
Photo by Bil Elsinger

In a strange sequence of events the game between Glum and Boneyard began to take on new importance with regards to who would make the quarterfinals. GLUM had been up in the game and had control, but Boneyard worked their way back into it around half and was not going to quit. Boneyard’s hard-running style was just the right fit to play GLUM at that time in the tournament. It was tied at elevens and moved into a close game all the way until the end when the Boneyard pulled away and won it 15-13.

Pool A ended with Surly on top and Troubled Past second. Then there was a three-way tie for third place between all of the No. 2-3 seeds because of Boneyard’s gritty performance. The tiebreaker came out Dog third, GLUM fourth and Boneyard fifth and out of the quarterfinals. Without Boneyard’s improbable victory, DoG would have played the Beyondors in what promised to be a great quarterfinals game. Ball & Chain finished sixth in pool play with a victory over top seeded Surly.

Pool B
O.L.D. S.A.G. played Mileage in the first round of Pool B today with a lot on the line. Mileage started with a few drops and never really shook it off. The O.L.D. S.A.G. team is a veteran squad that holds advantage in a game well. O.L.D. S.A.G. wins over Mileage 15-13.

Beyondors played against Real Huck as a battle of the unbeatens in the pool. Beyondors handled Real Huck, 15-10, but not without a fight. Real Huck, from Chicago, really proved to be a force in this tournament.
In the last game of the first round Double Black handled Throwback, 15-9.

Last round of play for Pool B had Mileage getting a much needed big victory over Throwback 15-6.

The Beyondors had to play Double Black in what promised to be a close game of regional foes. Double Black was up to the challenge and kept it close up to the end, but Beyondors played solid towards the end and took the game 15-13.

The last game of pool play was O.L.D. S.A.G. playing Real Huck for the placement in quarterfinals for both teams. O.L.D. S.A.G. proved to be the better team and held serve most of the time to win going away 15-11.

Pool B finished in this order: Beyondors, O.L.D. S.A.G., Real Huck, Mileage, Double Black and Throwback.

Quarterfinals
The first Quarterfinal pitted Surly(A1) versus Mileage(B4) in a rematch of last year’s finals. Mileage had had a tough tournament and had a real chance to turn it around. It was obvious they came to play. They started off with two breaks and a 3-1 lead. Mileage was still up 5-3 and looked to have started to finally play their game. But the game got close and it was tied at nines. After that Sulry got a big break and went on the score the rest of the goals. Surly wins 15-9. Mileage had a tough go of it all weekend long, but had some change over as well for the future.

The second quarterfinal was O.L.D. S.A.G.(B2) versus DoG(A3). Two seasoned teams that know each other well. DoG has gotten the best of their battles recently, but O.L.D. S.A.G. has added a few more legs than DoG. So this game was close with very few breaks. Dog had a one- or two-goal lead for most of the game that could be erased with one break, but it just didn’t happen for O.L.D. S.A.G.. They stayed close and eventually Dog won 15-13. O.L.D. S.A.G. played a great tournament and only lost two close games to two of the semifinals teams, Beyondors on DoG.

The third quarterfinal game was Beyondors(B1) against GLUM(A4). And it was a very close game. The Beyondors took an early advantage with a few breaks and built a two- to three-goal lead, but GLUM just kept on coming at them. Although it was close, the Beyondors had a strangle hold on the game and prevailed 15-12. GLUM proved to be a solid upgrade from previous teams with former GOAT players and a good group of athletes from the large Ottawa Ultimate community, which features their own fields designed specifically for Ultimate. Expect Ottawa to be a force in the future with such a rich talent pool.

The fourth quarterfinal pitted Troubled Past (A2) against Real Huck(B3). This was an intriguing match-up with real Huck giving so many other teams fits all weekend with their patience and athleticism. Troubled Past started out with a break on the first point and set the tone. Real Huck hung in the best they could but they were in uncharted territory in the quarterfinals and troubled past was deep and hungry. The final of this game was 15-7 in favor of Troubled Past, but the Chicago contingent really played their hearts out all weekend. They left with a taste of quarterfinals and looked for the next goal of semifinals on the horizon.

There will be some awesome semifinals games on Saturday on fields 25 and 26 at 10:30 a.m. Surly takes on DoG in the first game and Troubled Past plays the Beyondors in the second. All four teams have a legitimate shot to win it all.

 

Day 1 Recap: Thursday, Oct. 29

2009 UPA Club Championships
Sarasota, Fla.
Masters Division
By Michael O’Dowd

A Pool
Surly started off with a solid victory over Boneyard, 15-7. Surly’s deep roster, combined with an outstanding defensive performance proved to be too much for Boneyard. The additions of Dave Boardman, Phil Bowen, Chris York and Steve Ridgely strengthened their already potent roster. Boneyard’s Augie Kreivenas had some amazing plays. T.J Cawley, Terry Kramer, Roger Lassiter and Trent Morrow all had strong games for Boneyard, but the writing was on the wall early.

Troubled Past beat the new version of Ball & Chain, 15-10. The game was close in the first half and Troubled Past pulled away with a timely set of breaks to end the first half and start the second.

In a rematch of the regional finals, GLUM handled Dog, 15-10. GLUM’s young legs took over in the second half. Derek Hogdson, Dave Janssen and Pete Knowles all took major roles for GLUM in one of the first-ever inter-regional Master’s pool-play games.

 

GLUM vs. Dog
Photo by Bil Elsinger

 

The second round in Pool A pitted a freshly beaten DoG team lining up against the No. 1 seed in their pool. Surly once again proved their depth by building a solid lead and cruising to a 15-8 victory. Eric Lonsdorf was too much for DoG to handle. DoG’s Mike Cooper proved to be unstoppable all day long no matter who guarded him.

GLUM Squared off against the No. 2 seed in their pool, Troubled Past, and was out muscled 15-8. The first half of this game saw no breaks for the first 11 points, after that Troubled Past’s Aaron Switzer, Eric “E.J” Johnson and Keith Monahan played solid leadership roles in a game that was closer than the score indicated.
The final game of the second round of Pool A pitted the fifth and sixth seeds, Ball & Chain against Boneyard, respectively, for a decent shot at the quarterfinals on Friday afternoon. Ball and Chain looked to be an early favorite in this game, but Boneyard’s Pride was ever present in a gutsy performance. Boneyard’s hard running style paid dividends and they ran away with the victory 15-10.

The final round in Pool A proved to be the best match ups of the day. The biggest game of the day was every bit large because No. 1 seed Surly pulled off a stunning one-point victory over Troubled Past. Troubled past started with a break on the first point of the game and it looked ominous for Surly, but the game evened out from there. Troubled Past finished out a strong first half with a break and worked the score all the way up to 10-7, in favor of Troubled Past. It was at this point that Troubled Past made the mistake of thinking they had the game. A slight huck-happy turn for Troubled Past augmented with accurate long-flick bombs by Eric Lonsdorf on the transition brought Surly right back into the game. From that point on it was a one- or two-point game the rest of the way with the advantage going to Surly. Surly received the pull at 16-16 and Troubled Past’s Chuck “Snertz “Johnson got the defense on a long huck to Surly’s Eric Lonsdorf. From that point it looked as if Troubled Past had the game in the bag. But a slight miscue on an easy pass to an open receiver sealed Troubled Past’s fate. Surly was more than glad to have a second chance on the game and worked the disc all the way in for a solid score and a 3-0 record for the day.

GLUM’s game against Ball & Chain turned out to be highly competitive. Each team had chances to set the tone early and take advantage, but GLUM was ready and won, 15-11. Glum’s solid Open-age player pick-ups proved to be the difference in the game. They are a much different team this year and proudly bring one of the best teams ever to the UPA Club Championships.

The Last game of Pool A third round pitted DoG versus the No. 6 seed Boneyard. On paper this was not much of a game, but due to their hard-running style, Boneyard is a tough team to play in the last game of the day. So although DoG won 15-11 there was a lot of energy expended to keep DoG in the hunt for quarterfinals.

B Pool
The first game in Pool B was the No. 1-seed mileage against six seed Real Huck from Chicago. No sane man gave Real Huck a chance in this game. Mileage started out with several mistakes to go in a three-point hole. As the game progressed Real Huck proved to be, well . . . for real, and worked the game’s final pass into the end zone for the win. But they dropped the disc in a chance to win and most observers thought Mileage would come back and win the game. From there each team had several turns in the first game out of the gate until it was 16-16. Both teams had it to win twice. But surprisingly the No. 1 seed lost to the No. 6 seed for the first time ever in the Masters Division. Real Huck won 17-16.

During this game the Beyondors made quick work of Throwback, 15-6, so they could stay in the shade and watch the two outstanding games on each side of their field.

O.L.D. S.A.G. versus Double Black was a battle of the third and fourth seeds in the B Pool and looked to be a good match on paper. O.L.D. S.A.G. added some new talent and seemed to always get the underneath when they need it. Urban Philadelphia Ultimate proved to be too much for the boys from Colorado. Just when Double Black was poised to take a lead of get a break, the tough team from Philadelphia scored the goals they had to win. Final score in a terrific game was 16-14 in favor of O.L.D. S.A.G.

Second round of Pool B pitted Mileage versus Double Black in a rematch of last year’s pool play game of sorts. Mileage was a little shell-shocked from losing that first game and showed it with a little hesitancy. Double Black had already lost the first game they played in a heart breaker and was not about to go down 0-2 in games. Something had to give in this battle of the winless. Mileage proved they wanted it more after John Boy and some of the other backbone players worked in some must-score possessions to win 15-13.
The second round game between O.L.D. S.A.G. and the Beyondors was hotly contested. They had help from the observers who made the game very civil for two anxious teams. Most of the game was a small margin lead for the Beyondors with settled offense and a little zoney clam work to change up from their man to man defense. Beyondors eventually won 15-12, but the O.L.D. S.A.G. team was well within a few turns of knocking off that two seed in the B Pool.

The last game of round two was Real Huck versus Throwback. Real Huck had already proven to be for real and handled business against the over-matched throwback contingent. Real Huck wins 15-9.

Last round of the Thursday in B Pool was the No. 1 seed Mileage versus the No. 2 seed Beyondors. This was a game featuring a wounded team versus an unproven squad in the pool for top position. The Beyondors came out a little off of their game and went down 6-4 to a hungry Mileage team. This was the wake-up call the Beyondors needed, and proceeded to clamp down on defense and put in some transitions scores. Beyondors took the first half, 8-6, and never looked back. Mileage had no answer for Greg “Hollywood” Husak, who was the catalyst with his strong physical play. Beyondors won going away, 15-10, and Mileage was glad to see the day over.

 

Beyondors vs. Mileage
Photo by Bil Elsinger

 

O.L.D. S.A.G. handled throwback with relative ease 15-7. Throwback was starting to show their lack of numbers and O.L.D. S.A.G. always comes to play every game tough. O.L.D. S.A.G., at 2-1 with their only loss coming to the Beyondors, can seal up second place in the pool with a victory over Mileage first thing on Friday morning.

The final game of the day was Real Huck versus Double Black – the sixth seed versus the fourth seed, respectively. On paper this was a slam dunk for Double Black, but the Real Huck Team proved to be the best No. 6 seed ever in the Masters Division and won a hard-fought game 15-10. Real Huck was the first sixth seed to go 3-0 in recent memory and they are very steady with a large group of runners that don’t play as if they are sixth seed. Real Huck can now dictate their future on Friday and can plan to play the in quarterfinals.

2009 UPA CLUB CHAMPIONSHIPS
Masters Division Preview
By Michael O'Dowd

This is the most talented field of Masters teams ever assembled. The large influx of strong Open players has transformed the Masters Division into a whole new level of competition. For example, all of the traditional powerhouse top seeds added strong Open players to fortify their teams, and the first-year Masters team from Santa Barbara has three current Open Division champions on its roster. This year appears to be the start of a new era.

POOL A
(1) Surly, (3) Troubled Past, (6) GLUM, (7) DoG, (10) Ball & Chain, (12) Boneyard

Surly players still have the spirit of their fallen comrade Marty Bakko strong in their hearts. Dave Boardman, Phil Bowen, Chris York and Steve Ridgely all return from their 2007 runner-up team. Surly is a very tight-knit team. They do have a few stars – Mark “Paco” Enright, Eric Lonsdorf, and top defender and leader Randy Gage – but Surly is also focused on aggressive defense, camaraderie and drinking the best beer . . . their own. Funniest guy on the team: Dave Steglich.

Troubled Past is more of a mixture of the San Francisco Bay Area and Oregon players this year. New key additions are Brian Linkfield, Spencer Reeder, Brian Morris, Mark Mcghee and Matt Albinson. This team has been very close to getting into the finals in the past, so there is some fire building for this year’s competition. Troubled Past brings athleticism, toughness and their own unique brand of play. Funniest guy on the team: Aaron Switzer (when taken in the right context).

GLUM has been rejuvenated and comes into the UPA Club Championships as a top seed by defeating DoG twice at the Northeast Regionals. New additions Dave Janssen, Simon Teather, Brent Cournoyer and Derek Hodgson are all key to their youth movement. They have great teamwork, loud sidelines and solid role players to keep everybody fresh. Pete Knowles, Chris Keith, Owen Lumley and Seton Stiebert all have game-breaking skills. Funniest guy on the team, by far: Dave Maggs (if you have a minute or two).

DoG (Death or Glory) is not coming in as one of the favorites. They lost a pool-play game and had to play an elimination game at Regionals for the first time ever. Never underestimate the heart of a champion, however. Jim Parinella, Alex de Frondeville, Mike Cooper, Jordan Haskell and Jay Watson are the only members of every DoG Club Championship team returning this year. They have one important win in them for sure. There is no funny guy on this team.

Ball & Chain was restarted by a pair of Dan’s: Dan Powers from Above and Beyond, and Dan Konisky. Through networking and tryouts they put together a new Masters team in Atlanta. Ball & Chain picked up some Florida talent in Doug Schwartz and Eric Gilmore. They have 10 players who have never been to the UPA Club Championships, so they are very excited. Charlie Yood and Rex Taylor are the driving forces behind the offensive and defensive lines. Funniest guys on the team: a pair of Daves – Schmitt and Chaiken.

Boneyard snuck into the UPA Club Championships by downing Chesapeaked in the backdoor game at the Mid-Atlantic Regionals. They played a near flawless game against a dejected Regional finals loser. If they can duplicate that type of performance, they will do very well in Florida. Augie Kreivenas is their big star, but they have a great group of solid players like Terry Kramer, Tim Lupo, T.J. Cawley and Roger Lassiter. Key new additions are Brett McCall, Jeff Plentl and Alan Ellis. Funniest guy on the team: Victor Maneilly.

POOL B
(2) Mileage, (4) Beyondors, (5) O.L.D. S.A.G., (8) Double Black, (9) Throwback, (11) Real Huck

Mileage added depth and some new Open talent to their finals team from last year. They have ramped-up their defensive squad to complement their super potent offense. The new additions are Dallas Open players Johnny Thompson and Jerome Price, as well as Alabama players Donavan Thomas, Brad Sparks and Jay Pigford. Mileage has the same stars of John “Boy” Grzwynski, Lenny Correll, Tom Etchison and Matt Krie and they want it bad this year. Funniest guy on the team is Erik Ward.

The band is back together. The Beyondors, who have won three Open Division titles and a College title or two, have been together for almost 15 years. Ryan Yarborough, Greg Husak and Brandon Steets all won the Open Division last year with Jam. Blake Garnand, Andy Crews and Steve Dugan set the tone. J.D. Lobue and Buzz Ellsworth bring Masters Championship experience from Denver. Corey Sanford and Chris Gavigan anchor the defense. Funniest guys on the team: the Glimme twins.

O.L.D. S.A.G. is the longest-running Masters team in the country. They have won the Mid-Atlantic Region every year except their first. O.L.D. S.A.G. won it all in 2002. Key new additions would be Peter Abrahamsen from Sweden, Mark Worley from Forge and Brian Whelan from AMP. Steve Wherry is out of retirement to captain again. Steve Finn and Jon Proctor, two ex-Rage players, are two old “new faces” back in the mix. They are missing the legend Big Rick Atkins to the “R” word. They are all funny.

Double Black is the representation of the Denver Masters community that is 70 players strong. Double Black works it out so there is always a team to play for, and a place to play for the whole community all year long. Rob “Lope” Steinmetz is the player/coach and brings spirit and experience from Johnny Bravo. Jason Flock from Bad Larry is also a new addition of energy and talent. Tad Miller from Mileage is another key addition. Scotty Bennett leads this proud team. Funniest guy on the team: Mark Karger

Throwback is in a state of rebirth again. Dan Anderson, Rhetick Sengupta, Justin Hughes and Darrin Blye are backbone players and set the tone for the younger Seattle Masters group. The speed comes from Robert Choi and Jerry Keister. Matt Bartolotti anchors the defense. Derek Knoechel apparently put trial law ahead of this tournament so he won’t be there. Major Ben Thielhorn, Chris Hurwitz and John Babin are all nice additions to this squad. Funniest guy on the team: Brian Fish.

Real Huck did some heavy recruiting and looks to get into the Quarterfinals this year. They picked up Eric Geile from BAT and three notable Michigan players – Chris Reynolds, Graham Smith and Adam Krawitz. Another nice addition is Open player Leo Wang. Gary Ledonne, Johnny Hock, Nate Volkman and Paul Callaway all play considerable roles and will have to come up big to put this team in contention. The Grandhaven Michigan guys bring the food and beer and make the party happen.