For fifth-year players Mickey Thompson, Tony Petraglia, and
Benny Aldridge, the 2003 season of Ultimate Frisbee could not have
started any better. The 7 – 0 squad is not only off to a noticeably
good start, but this year they did something they haven’t done in a
long time.
“We had a tournament in Utah last weekend, and we ended up
winning,” said Petraglia, graduate student in chemical engineering
and co-captain of the team. “There’s only three of us fifth-year
players here, and this is the first tournament we’ve won in those
five years.”
The tournament the team won was the Big Sky College Warm-Up
Tournament, held at Utah State. Among the 14 teams entered, CSU
emerged as the victor.
A combination of the veteran players and the large influx of
younger players has been a big plus for the team this year,
Petraglia said.
“The sheer number of kids we had come out for the team was huge,
not to mention the talent many of them brought,” Petraglia said.
“We took 32 players to the (tournament), we’d never taken that many
since I’ve been here.”
While the fall season serves as a preparation for the spring
season, the goals for each season hold the same values.
“The number one goal is always to play in as many tournaments as
possible, to get beginning guys some experience,” said Thompson, a
senior philosophy major. “We’re going to try and get to Nebraska
for a one more tournament this season, but ideally our goal is to
qualify for Nationals.”
While the major boost this year has been the amount of incoming
talent, a few returning players have stood out with their
contributions to the team.
“There’s a few guys who have stepped up their leadership roles
this year, and really helped us out,” Thompson said. “Juniors Brett
Kolinek, Adam Zwickl and Quinn McClain, just to name a few, are
doing really great this year.”
Morale and community are two other aspects that Petraglia said
play a big part on the team’s success this year. While Ultimate
Frisbee is sometimes referred to as a party sport, Petraglia offers
a different perspective.
“There is a great sense of community within the Frisbee
community,” Petraglia said. “For example, at every tournament, the
host school will generally throw a party for all the participating
teams after the first day of games.”
Petraglia also believes the sense of camaraderie within in the
team can be just as important to the season.
“This year we’ve got a bunch of guys that work really hard, and
know how to have a lot of fun together when their not working
hard,” Petraglia said. “I think if you have a good combination of
those two, you’re probably going to be a pretty successful
team.”
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