No Wisconsequences Registration Starts Aug. 1st!
No Wisconsequences is back and better than ever after a year off due to terrible, but typical, North Central weather. Kick off your college season right Oct. 5-6th 2019 at the Milwaukee Polo Club! More details are available on the official tournament website linked here:
Registration will open on August 1st and we can't wait to see y'all this fall!
FALL TRYOUTS 2019-2020
Tryouts for the 2019-2020 Season will be hosted on Tuesday and Thursday from 4:30 - 6:30pm beginning on Tuesday September 10th! Feel free to fill out this interest form to give us a little information about yourself.
Also, feel free to contact us with any questions.
An End to an Era in Austin - Nationals 2019
One last "Thank you fans" from the 2019 Wisconsin Hodags. Thanks to Peter Tan for this photo!
Coming off of an emotional ride at Regionals with a statement win over CUT to take the third and final bid from the North Central, we took four weeks to prepare for the heat of Austin, Texas in a final battle for the 2019 season. Memorial Day Weekend was characterized by intense heat as expected; as to why USAU decided to host Nationals in Austin despite pleas from local Universities to retract the decision is beyond me. Many teams dealt with countless cases of heat stroke, and we had one of our top cutters have to sit out for a day due to heat exhaustion. With that said, apparently this wasn't even as hot as the weather normally gets for that time of year, so I guess we were lucky to have only one case of heat exhaustion...
Friends, family, fans, and alum crowded Bella Donna and our sidelines over the weekend. It's always incredible to have this kind of support. The parents were on point in making sure there was more-than-enough food and drink on the sideline, willing to help out in any way at the drop of a hat. They made sure we had ice rags available at all times and our water bottles filled. Athletic Trainer Jerod Keene from Recsports was also with us and Bella over the weekend, working an 8 hour day Friday followed by a 10 hour day on Saturday in the Austin heat. Just an absolutely amazing sideline demonstrating the Hodag Love and Wisco Love that goes beyond the confines of the team. Huge thanks to everyone involved!
Friday, we started off playing Victoria, a team that we had won in large margins against at Stanford Invite. This round of pool play was no different with a 15-6 win. The next round of pool play was against Tufts who we had played much closer to at Florida Warmup. It was a back and forth battle with Tufts, but we ultimately pulled away winning on hard cap 9-8. Day one of pool play was a success going 2-0.
Saturday began round two of pool play with Pittsburgh who we had last lost to at Florida Warmup. In this filmed game, there was some back and forth breaks, but Pitt was able to get the final upwinder to win 15-13. Our last game of pool play was against Oregon; we had secured a spot to pre-quarters by this point but would not be able to get first (and thus a bye past pre-quarters) unless Pitt lost in the final round of pool play and we beat Ego. Oregon went up quite a bit at halftime with Pitt confidently ahead in their game, so we let the foot off the gas to rest for pre-quarters. Our bottom half of the roster gave a good effort, almost earning a crucial break after a set of upwind/downwind breaks that would have put us on serve with Ego. But alas, Oregon won handedly 12-9 resulting in a final record of 2-2 in pool play for the Hodags.
Pre-quarters was the final round of Saturday in which we were pitted up against Texas who we'd last seen and beat comfortably at Centex. The filmed game began with Texas taking a strong lead by the end of the first half at 5-8. Coming out of half, Texas retained the lead at 7-11. But after a spur of energy, the Hodags made a huge comeback by scoring six points in a row to ultimately win the game 13-11. An incredible feat in the push to quarters.
At this time, Bella had also been playing pre-quarters on the field behind us. Right as we finished our game, Bella had begun and been playing universe point against Colorado Kali for pre-quarters. We all rushed over after our pre-quarter to watch the final point of their match. After a grueling 13 minute point, Bella pulled out the 12-11 victory over Kali to go onto quarters. Two incredible performances by Wisconsin teams in the pre-quarters round.
With our win in pre-quarters, we would proceed to face off against juggernaut UNC in Quarters on Sunday morning. There wasn't much to say aside from the fact that we got handled. UNC swept the Hodags in an 8-15 win to end the Baby Blue's season. In a moment, that was all for the 2019 Wisconsin Hodags. Tears, words of wisdom from departing seniors, and a final "Hodag Love" soon followed.
And so, this will be my last major post on this website. It seems that Dan Garlock will be taking the reins for the foreseeable future. I hope that the documentation of the History of the Hodags continues, and I imagine myself looking over the recaps, past blog posts on the Hodag blogspot, re-watching the Blueprint, and dragging myself through other various memorandums to relive those moments of wearing Baby Blue. I now join the growing ranks of Greybeards... it seemed like such a far away transition even just a year ago. But, like death and taxes, so is the consistency of five years of eligibility in college ultimate.
I have many fond memories from my four years on the Hodags and one year on the Pimpdags. Coming to Madison, I did not expect this to take ahold of my life and free time in the way it does. I'm content to be consumed by this because it gives me purpose -- something to work for -- and, more importantly, a family that I've relied on for my sanity and wellbeing. I see my other non-frisbee friends go about their college and work lives carried by the wind, which is a perfectly acceptable way to live, but having the Hodags allowed me to cast a sail and charter my own ship. I've seen hard work, drive, friendship resembling brotherhood, deep caring, and trust on the Hodags; I've grown as a person experiencing these things in my Baby Blue.
Aside from the website carrying onward, I hope for a few things to develop for the future of this team. I hope for a dedicated and hardworking future leadership and team that pushes the boundaries of the mundane necessities expected of them (which I tried to do). I hope for the continued growth of the endowment, hopefully reaching a point to financially assist the team. I hope for a further cohesiveness of the Hodag alumni network (and other Wisconsin ultimate alum), tying together alum from the inception of the program(s) until now. I hope the Hodag families continue to stay tight-nit and involved in this wonderful team and incredible experience beyond their kin being a current player. I hope the team of 2020 has already began putting in the work for next season with the realization that the clock is ticking and the mindset to never be satisfied with the amount of work put in. The current team will only be as good as you pushing yourself to be better, every single day.
Now, it's time for me to push myself in the club and AUDL scenes. I still want to be the best, and I still want to win. I've been shown by the Hodags how to work, and I'm excited to employ that as I move forward with my ultimate career. I plan on doing big things, and anything I accomplish is dedicated to my roots here in Madison.
Huge Hodag Love to all of the family, friends, fans, and alum who watched and supported us at Nationals. You all are very incredible for going out of your way to cheer us on. Thanks again to our Recsports athletic trainer Jerod who managed our injuries and extended the life of our team over the course of Nationals. Thank you to all of the parents who photographically documented our journey this year. One last Hodag Love to you for reading along -- Jeffe
Friends, family, fans, and alum crowded Bella Donna and our sidelines over the weekend. It's always incredible to have this kind of support. The parents were on point in making sure there was more-than-enough food and drink on the sideline, willing to help out in any way at the drop of a hat. They made sure we had ice rags available at all times and our water bottles filled. Athletic Trainer Jerod Keene from Recsports was also with us and Bella over the weekend, working an 8 hour day Friday followed by a 10 hour day on Saturday in the Austin heat. Just an absolutely amazing sideline demonstrating the Hodag Love and Wisco Love that goes beyond the confines of the team. Huge thanks to everyone involved!
Friday, we started off playing Victoria, a team that we had won in large margins against at Stanford Invite. This round of pool play was no different with a 15-6 win. The next round of pool play was against Tufts who we had played much closer to at Florida Warmup. It was a back and forth battle with Tufts, but we ultimately pulled away winning on hard cap 9-8. Day one of pool play was a success going 2-0.
Saturday began round two of pool play with Pittsburgh who we had last lost to at Florida Warmup. In this filmed game, there was some back and forth breaks, but Pitt was able to get the final upwinder to win 15-13. Our last game of pool play was against Oregon; we had secured a spot to pre-quarters by this point but would not be able to get first (and thus a bye past pre-quarters) unless Pitt lost in the final round of pool play and we beat Ego. Oregon went up quite a bit at halftime with Pitt confidently ahead in their game, so we let the foot off the gas to rest for pre-quarters. Our bottom half of the roster gave a good effort, almost earning a crucial break after a set of upwind/downwind breaks that would have put us on serve with Ego. But alas, Oregon won handedly 12-9 resulting in a final record of 2-2 in pool play for the Hodags.
Pre-quarters was the final round of Saturday in which we were pitted up against Texas who we'd last seen and beat comfortably at Centex. The filmed game began with Texas taking a strong lead by the end of the first half at 5-8. Coming out of half, Texas retained the lead at 7-11. But after a spur of energy, the Hodags made a huge comeback by scoring six points in a row to ultimately win the game 13-11. An incredible feat in the push to quarters.
At this time, Bella had also been playing pre-quarters on the field behind us. Right as we finished our game, Bella had begun and been playing universe point against Colorado Kali for pre-quarters. We all rushed over after our pre-quarter to watch the final point of their match. After a grueling 13 minute point, Bella pulled out the 12-11 victory over Kali to go onto quarters. Two incredible performances by Wisconsin teams in the pre-quarters round.
With our win in pre-quarters, we would proceed to face off against juggernaut UNC in Quarters on Sunday morning. There wasn't much to say aside from the fact that we got handled. UNC swept the Hodags in an 8-15 win to end the Baby Blue's season. In a moment, that was all for the 2019 Wisconsin Hodags. Tears, words of wisdom from departing seniors, and a final "Hodag Love" soon followed.
And so, this will be my last major post on this website. It seems that Dan Garlock will be taking the reins for the foreseeable future. I hope that the documentation of the History of the Hodags continues, and I imagine myself looking over the recaps, past blog posts on the Hodag blogspot, re-watching the Blueprint, and dragging myself through other various memorandums to relive those moments of wearing Baby Blue. I now join the growing ranks of Greybeards... it seemed like such a far away transition even just a year ago. But, like death and taxes, so is the consistency of five years of eligibility in college ultimate.
I have many fond memories from my four years on the Hodags and one year on the Pimpdags. Coming to Madison, I did not expect this to take ahold of my life and free time in the way it does. I'm content to be consumed by this because it gives me purpose -- something to work for -- and, more importantly, a family that I've relied on for my sanity and wellbeing. I see my other non-frisbee friends go about their college and work lives carried by the wind, which is a perfectly acceptable way to live, but having the Hodags allowed me to cast a sail and charter my own ship. I've seen hard work, drive, friendship resembling brotherhood, deep caring, and trust on the Hodags; I've grown as a person experiencing these things in my Baby Blue.
Aside from the website carrying onward, I hope for a few things to develop for the future of this team. I hope for a dedicated and hardworking future leadership and team that pushes the boundaries of the mundane necessities expected of them (which I tried to do). I hope for the continued growth of the endowment, hopefully reaching a point to financially assist the team. I hope for a further cohesiveness of the Hodag alumni network (and other Wisconsin ultimate alum), tying together alum from the inception of the program(s) until now. I hope the Hodag families continue to stay tight-nit and involved in this wonderful team and incredible experience beyond their kin being a current player. I hope the team of 2020 has already began putting in the work for next season with the realization that the clock is ticking and the mindset to never be satisfied with the amount of work put in. The current team will only be as good as you pushing yourself to be better, every single day.
Now, it's time for me to push myself in the club and AUDL scenes. I still want to be the best, and I still want to win. I've been shown by the Hodags how to work, and I'm excited to employ that as I move forward with my ultimate career. I plan on doing big things, and anything I accomplish is dedicated to my roots here in Madison.
Huge Hodag Love to all of the family, friends, fans, and alum who watched and supported us at Nationals. You all are very incredible for going out of your way to cheer us on. Thanks again to our Recsports athletic trainer Jerod who managed our injuries and extended the life of our team over the course of Nationals. Thank you to all of the parents who photographically documented our journey this year. One last Hodag Love to you for reading along -- Jeffe
Nationals Photos:
Peter Tan
Jennie Miller
Shem Garlock's Photos
The Wisconsin Hodags' 2019 Callahan Nominee
He is a 5th year Hodag and current captain of the team after being an officer for the previous two years. He is a fierce competitor who despises losing. He's a guy that you love having on your team but hate seeing line up across from you. He's battled through an ACL tear and chronic hamstring issues yet is still a top player in the nation. He never ceases to raise the level of intensity in even the smallest drills at practice which is paramount in developing our team. Nick has dedicated himself to this team, and he is the embodiment of what it means to be a Hodag. Now presenting Nick "Tenorman" Vogt as our 2019 Callahan Nominee:
Another U24 Player in Our Ranks
Congrats to Tynan Eurwongpravit who will be competing with the Hong Kong U24 National Team at Worlds in Germany this summer! Ty is a current Sophomore and second year Hodag. Best of luck Ty!
Two Decades in A Moment - North Central Regionals 2019
The Faceless Army celebrating after earning the last bid to Nationals in the North Central Region over CUT. Thanks to Carol Roan for capturing the moment!
Regionals weekend was one for the ages. There was initially the usual 30-40 degree, raining, and wind in the forecast, but somehow, we were spared with no rain, just the cold temperatures and wind. We packed into Tenor's, Wolk's, Benny's, and Simon's houses for the weekend, so shoutout to those guys and their families for hosting us. Also, had a birthday celebration for Nick on Saturday night at the Vogt's place. It's always enjoyable seeing Nick's face get as red as his hair during the annual, embarrassing singing of happy birthday. But onto the tournament...
We pretty much walked through pool play with no team scoring more than 8 points on us. We stomped Iowa 13-6 to start followed by beating Iowa State 13-8; both of these games, we looked very put together taking down these second tier teams (for lack of a better term for the next best, non-bid-earning teams). We finished up Saturday beating UW-Whitewater 13-8 followed by Mankato 13-4. Sunday morning, we squared up against Minnesota B and won pretty handedly 13-8. I will say, in terms of offense, this was the most well put-together B-team that I can remember; they weren't making many mistakes and were hitting their throws offensively.
Going 5-0 in pool play pit us up against second in the opposite pool, Minnesota. The wind became more of a strong upwind/downwind on the field. Minnesota was well put together and managed to get a pair of upwind/downwind breaks. We missed one upwind break opportunity but were able to convert on another upwind break opportunity. Unfortunately, we did not get the downwind break following the upwind. Minnesota ended up winning that game 15-12 on the upwind hold. After a shocking upset of Iowa State 14-12 over CUT in the other semis, this would pit us up against CUT in the game-to-go to earn the third and last bid to Nationals.
CUT has been our longstanding rival. In recent years, the Hodag-CUT rivalry has not been as intense as it was in the past due to friendships developed between the teams, but with that said, this was the game-to-go. Both of our seasons were on the line. CUT was missing Joe White (concussion) along with Stan Birdsong (hamstring issues) and Ethan Bloodworth (broken ankle on a contentious bid from one of our guys) having to take early injuries in the game. Most all of our squad was bruised and beaten up but not out of the game. Despite both us and CUT discussing with the observers prior to the game to hold off on carding (which both CUT and us had issues with in previous games), we were handed out 3 TMFs which were not warranted in my opinion as they were either incidental contact or contact caused from CUT players going into our guys who went into other CUT players. I believe that the CUT guys would agree with this sentiment; I even overheard a couple CUT guys during stoppages and on the sidelines expressing their agreement that the TMFs on us were bad cards. We did get one PMF on the contentious bid that hurt Bloodworth which, though being unintentional, was reckless and warranted. This game had a similar upwind/downwind that we had during the Semi which intensified at various points in the game.
We came out swinging hard in that game. I (Jeffe) managed to sky a CUT dude for an upwind huck and came down with another big layout on an upwind huck during the first half, both of which lead to two sets of upwind/downwind breaks. CUT managed to also get a pair of upwind/downwind breaks which put us at 8-6 at the end of the first half with us receiving to start downwind to start the second. We got the hold followed by an upwind break. Despite us getting a turn and marching it down the field to the red zone, CUT managed to get the coverage sack and hold on the upwind, followed by a downwind and upwind break by CUT making it 10-9. We trade upwind holds, 11-10. We work the disc upwind, and Rami hits a bladey flick to JT for 12-10. Apparently, cap had gone off; in a flurry of astonishment, that's the game. We just knocked out the one-seed in our region. We defied the odds. We're going to Nationals.
This marks the 20th consecutive year our program has attended College Nationals, tying Colorado Mamabird for the longest Nationals attendance streak in the Men's division (Carleton Syzygy has 29 consecutive years for the women's). Even more so, knocking out CUT means that the Hodags have now tied CUT for the most ever appearances at Nationals in the men's division; that is, both of our programs have attended Nationals 27 times. A very momentous win for our program.
I usually tend to stay objective in these write ups, but more and more, I've wrote with slight personal skews as I try to leave my trace before I graduate from the program this year. I think it would be appropriate to write here about the emotion that I felt during that semis game against CUT because I think a lot of people on the team can associate with my feelings despite not being able to associate specifically with my situation.
Here's a little background on me to set the scene. Being a Master's student in Mechancial Engineering and doing research well is hard. Trying to captain an elite level college program while also trying to be on the sideline for the Radicals for the upcoming AUDL season along with my schooling is insane. At any given waking moment, I am either working/researching or training, handling the alumni board, doing spiritwear, managing Recsports/parent/alumni/sibling team relations, etc. for the Hodags running on 3-7.5 hours of sleep a night. My advisor does not like that I play frisbee, and that's a fun (i.e. stressful) relationship to manage. This has been my life, and at first, it was extremely taxing emotionally, physically, and mentally. But I've learned to love it. I don't know why, maybe blind acceptance, but somehow, I managed to recognize that this is the work that I need to and want to put in to be the best ultimate player, Mechanical Engineer, and all-around individual that I can be.
So in between the Minnesota and CUT game at Regionals, I remember thinking to myself that CUT is going to be a very difficult game. We hadn't beat them in the Spring season in at least four years, and it'd be inhuman to not think about the possibility that we might lose. So in that moment by myself walking to and from the bathroom between games, I thought about what life would be like if we lost. I'd have a lot more time to focus on research. I'd have all the time in the world to finish those 6 online assignments (of 16 assigned due by the end of the semester) for my PhD-level heat transfer course that I haven't worked on due to the rest of my responsibilities weighing me down. I could just focus on one team (the Radicals) and not have to worry about the multitude of tasks that I deal with as a captain of the Hodags anymore. I could finally make my advisor happy. I could offload some of the overbearing stress. And I decided, in that moment, that none of what I just mentioned was worth it.
I had set out to be the best and help my team be the best in the college division. This was my last opportunity to do that in my entire life. And, in that moment, I decided that through the stiffness and soreness that I was going to do whatever it took to beat CUT. I remember grunting to finish cuts and beat my guy, having to remind myself in the stack that I have more in the tank to give. I remember getting charlie-horsed pretty hard about a quarter into that semis game and limping a bit between points and a lot after the game (s/o to adrenaline) but fighting through that pain to the finish. I remember trying to manage my emotions, juggling between being fired up and staying level-headed. But I wasn't just there to win my personal match up; I was also there to encourage and cheer on my teammates in their ups and downs to make sure they were in the right mental space to succeed in that game. In that moment, there was no degree that I was pursuing and no homework I was thinking about doing. In that moment, that semis field in Blaine contained my entire world and mental space.
And with all of that said, here I am back in Madison, back to the stress of finishing these 6 homeworks meant for 6 weeks in just 8 days time along with the research that I need to get done and spiritwear I need to ship out. I foresee a handful of sleepless nights in the near future, but I wouldn't want it any other way. I've spent too much time as it is writing this essay, but it's good therapy in these hard times. Now, I just have to figure out how to tell my advisor that I'm hoping to leave for Austin a week before Nationals to train in the heat with my second family. Hodag Love. -- Jeffe
Thank you to all the families, alum, Bella, Fauxs, and Atropa who came out to support us! Thanks to our huge parent network for being the most incredible sideline, providing snacks and lunches! Thank you to Jerod Keene, athletic trainer from UW Recsports, who came out and managed the injuries for us and Bella. Congrats to Bella on making it to Nationals too!
Thanks to Carol Roan and Peter Tan for taking pictures! Please take a look at the pictures below:
We pretty much walked through pool play with no team scoring more than 8 points on us. We stomped Iowa 13-6 to start followed by beating Iowa State 13-8; both of these games, we looked very put together taking down these second tier teams (for lack of a better term for the next best, non-bid-earning teams). We finished up Saturday beating UW-Whitewater 13-8 followed by Mankato 13-4. Sunday morning, we squared up against Minnesota B and won pretty handedly 13-8. I will say, in terms of offense, this was the most well put-together B-team that I can remember; they weren't making many mistakes and were hitting their throws offensively.
Going 5-0 in pool play pit us up against second in the opposite pool, Minnesota. The wind became more of a strong upwind/downwind on the field. Minnesota was well put together and managed to get a pair of upwind/downwind breaks. We missed one upwind break opportunity but were able to convert on another upwind break opportunity. Unfortunately, we did not get the downwind break following the upwind. Minnesota ended up winning that game 15-12 on the upwind hold. After a shocking upset of Iowa State 14-12 over CUT in the other semis, this would pit us up against CUT in the game-to-go to earn the third and last bid to Nationals.
CUT has been our longstanding rival. In recent years, the Hodag-CUT rivalry has not been as intense as it was in the past due to friendships developed between the teams, but with that said, this was the game-to-go. Both of our seasons were on the line. CUT was missing Joe White (concussion) along with Stan Birdsong (hamstring issues) and Ethan Bloodworth (broken ankle on a contentious bid from one of our guys) having to take early injuries in the game. Most all of our squad was bruised and beaten up but not out of the game. Despite both us and CUT discussing with the observers prior to the game to hold off on carding (which both CUT and us had issues with in previous games), we were handed out 3 TMFs which were not warranted in my opinion as they were either incidental contact or contact caused from CUT players going into our guys who went into other CUT players. I believe that the CUT guys would agree with this sentiment; I even overheard a couple CUT guys during stoppages and on the sidelines expressing their agreement that the TMFs on us were bad cards. We did get one PMF on the contentious bid that hurt Bloodworth which, though being unintentional, was reckless and warranted. This game had a similar upwind/downwind that we had during the Semi which intensified at various points in the game.
We came out swinging hard in that game. I (Jeffe) managed to sky a CUT dude for an upwind huck and came down with another big layout on an upwind huck during the first half, both of which lead to two sets of upwind/downwind breaks. CUT managed to also get a pair of upwind/downwind breaks which put us at 8-6 at the end of the first half with us receiving to start downwind to start the second. We got the hold followed by an upwind break. Despite us getting a turn and marching it down the field to the red zone, CUT managed to get the coverage sack and hold on the upwind, followed by a downwind and upwind break by CUT making it 10-9. We trade upwind holds, 11-10. We work the disc upwind, and Rami hits a bladey flick to JT for 12-10. Apparently, cap had gone off; in a flurry of astonishment, that's the game. We just knocked out the one-seed in our region. We defied the odds. We're going to Nationals.
This marks the 20th consecutive year our program has attended College Nationals, tying Colorado Mamabird for the longest Nationals attendance streak in the Men's division (Carleton Syzygy has 29 consecutive years for the women's). Even more so, knocking out CUT means that the Hodags have now tied CUT for the most ever appearances at Nationals in the men's division; that is, both of our programs have attended Nationals 27 times. A very momentous win for our program.
I usually tend to stay objective in these write ups, but more and more, I've wrote with slight personal skews as I try to leave my trace before I graduate from the program this year. I think it would be appropriate to write here about the emotion that I felt during that semis game against CUT because I think a lot of people on the team can associate with my feelings despite not being able to associate specifically with my situation.
Here's a little background on me to set the scene. Being a Master's student in Mechancial Engineering and doing research well is hard. Trying to captain an elite level college program while also trying to be on the sideline for the Radicals for the upcoming AUDL season along with my schooling is insane. At any given waking moment, I am either working/researching or training, handling the alumni board, doing spiritwear, managing Recsports/parent/alumni/sibling team relations, etc. for the Hodags running on 3-7.5 hours of sleep a night. My advisor does not like that I play frisbee, and that's a fun (i.e. stressful) relationship to manage. This has been my life, and at first, it was extremely taxing emotionally, physically, and mentally. But I've learned to love it. I don't know why, maybe blind acceptance, but somehow, I managed to recognize that this is the work that I need to and want to put in to be the best ultimate player, Mechanical Engineer, and all-around individual that I can be.
So in between the Minnesota and CUT game at Regionals, I remember thinking to myself that CUT is going to be a very difficult game. We hadn't beat them in the Spring season in at least four years, and it'd be inhuman to not think about the possibility that we might lose. So in that moment by myself walking to and from the bathroom between games, I thought about what life would be like if we lost. I'd have a lot more time to focus on research. I'd have all the time in the world to finish those 6 online assignments (of 16 assigned due by the end of the semester) for my PhD-level heat transfer course that I haven't worked on due to the rest of my responsibilities weighing me down. I could just focus on one team (the Radicals) and not have to worry about the multitude of tasks that I deal with as a captain of the Hodags anymore. I could finally make my advisor happy. I could offload some of the overbearing stress. And I decided, in that moment, that none of what I just mentioned was worth it.
I had set out to be the best and help my team be the best in the college division. This was my last opportunity to do that in my entire life. And, in that moment, I decided that through the stiffness and soreness that I was going to do whatever it took to beat CUT. I remember grunting to finish cuts and beat my guy, having to remind myself in the stack that I have more in the tank to give. I remember getting charlie-horsed pretty hard about a quarter into that semis game and limping a bit between points and a lot after the game (s/o to adrenaline) but fighting through that pain to the finish. I remember trying to manage my emotions, juggling between being fired up and staying level-headed. But I wasn't just there to win my personal match up; I was also there to encourage and cheer on my teammates in their ups and downs to make sure they were in the right mental space to succeed in that game. In that moment, there was no degree that I was pursuing and no homework I was thinking about doing. In that moment, that semis field in Blaine contained my entire world and mental space.
And with all of that said, here I am back in Madison, back to the stress of finishing these 6 homeworks meant for 6 weeks in just 8 days time along with the research that I need to get done and spiritwear I need to ship out. I foresee a handful of sleepless nights in the near future, but I wouldn't want it any other way. I've spent too much time as it is writing this essay, but it's good therapy in these hard times. Now, I just have to figure out how to tell my advisor that I'm hoping to leave for Austin a week before Nationals to train in the heat with my second family. Hodag Love. -- Jeffe
Thank you to all the families, alum, Bella, Fauxs, and Atropa who came out to support us! Thanks to our huge parent network for being the most incredible sideline, providing snacks and lunches! Thank you to Jerod Keene, athletic trainer from UW Recsports, who came out and managed the injuries for us and Bella. Congrats to Bella on making it to Nationals too!
Thanks to Carol Roan and Peter Tan for taking pictures! Please take a look at the pictures below:
Peter Tan
Carol Roan
Strokin' at Sectionals -- Lake Superior D1 Sectionals 2019
Tenor yeeting on some poor dude. Thanks to Carol and Peter for the photos!
Sectionals was... Sectionals for the Hodags. This year, we were at the Naga-Waukee grounds. Saturday pool play we rolled through everyone and went 3-0. That's a 15-4 win over UW-Eau Claire, 15-2 over UW-Oshkosh, and, the closest all weekend, 15-7 over UW-Milwaukee. It was nice having a larger lead over Milwaukee this time around so that we didn't have to break 3 times in a row to win on cap like last year; future teams, take and keep a lead.
Being in the Midwest, we were treated to some of the finest Spring, er, late Winter weather Wisconsin has to offer. A gentle snowfall that accumulated an inch or two left us with numb fingers and toes, but it was a good reminder that Winter never truly ends. As an odd twist to the schedule, we only had one game on Sunday for first place, and if we won, we'd be done. We wanted to get out of the snow and decided to beat UW-Whitewater 15-5 so that we could change out of our wet, cold clothes and cleats as quickly as possible.
There were a couple of us who decided to brave the cold and cheer on the Fauxs to a possible Regionals bid. An odd change up this year was the division of all the B and C teams from the A teams into a separate developmental tournament which had its own pool and bracket play. The division expanded all the way to teams from Minnesota, and there was only one bid out of this division to Regionals. Being a former bomber myself, I was a bit upset at the lack of opportunity for the Fauxs to play decent competition. Furthermore, the Fauxs would've probably earned a bid to Regionals if they'd played in the "A-team" division. I think a similar dividing of divisions happened my Freshman year on the Pimpdags too, except there were no bids to Regionals out of that division. Regardless, the Fauxs rolled everyone on one side of the pool, and Ugly Duckling (Minnesota's B-team) rolled everyone on the other side of the pool. Ugly Duckling unfortunately gave it to the Fauxs and ended their season which means that we'll never get that usually annual opportunity to play the Fauxs or even the Daglets for that matter because of the split divisions. Sad missed opportunity. Jeffe's ranking on splitting up the divisions: not good out of 10.
Next up is Regionals in Blaine. It's the big one. A season goal of our team this year is to win Regionals which we have not done in a while. We've been on the up-and-up all year, and it seems like we're in a good position to be peaking at the right time. And if we're lucky, maybe we'll get the usual ice cold rain rather than snow for Regionals.
Thanks to all the parents who toughed out the weather, cheered for us, and provided food, drinks, hand-warmers, etc. this weekend. Also, big shoutout and Wisco Love to the handful of Bella and Atropa who came out to support us and the Fauxs on Sunday despite the terrible weather.
Being in the Midwest, we were treated to some of the finest Spring, er, late Winter weather Wisconsin has to offer. A gentle snowfall that accumulated an inch or two left us with numb fingers and toes, but it was a good reminder that Winter never truly ends. As an odd twist to the schedule, we only had one game on Sunday for first place, and if we won, we'd be done. We wanted to get out of the snow and decided to beat UW-Whitewater 15-5 so that we could change out of our wet, cold clothes and cleats as quickly as possible.
There were a couple of us who decided to brave the cold and cheer on the Fauxs to a possible Regionals bid. An odd change up this year was the division of all the B and C teams from the A teams into a separate developmental tournament which had its own pool and bracket play. The division expanded all the way to teams from Minnesota, and there was only one bid out of this division to Regionals. Being a former bomber myself, I was a bit upset at the lack of opportunity for the Fauxs to play decent competition. Furthermore, the Fauxs would've probably earned a bid to Regionals if they'd played in the "A-team" division. I think a similar dividing of divisions happened my Freshman year on the Pimpdags too, except there were no bids to Regionals out of that division. Regardless, the Fauxs rolled everyone on one side of the pool, and Ugly Duckling (Minnesota's B-team) rolled everyone on the other side of the pool. Ugly Duckling unfortunately gave it to the Fauxs and ended their season which means that we'll never get that usually annual opportunity to play the Fauxs or even the Daglets for that matter because of the split divisions. Sad missed opportunity. Jeffe's ranking on splitting up the divisions: not good out of 10.
Next up is Regionals in Blaine. It's the big one. A season goal of our team this year is to win Regionals which we have not done in a while. We've been on the up-and-up all year, and it seems like we're in a good position to be peaking at the right time. And if we're lucky, maybe we'll get the usual ice cold rain rather than snow for Regionals.
Thanks to all the parents who toughed out the weather, cheered for us, and provided food, drinks, hand-warmers, etc. this weekend. Also, big shoutout and Wisco Love to the handful of Bella and Atropa who came out to support us and the Fauxs on Sunday despite the terrible weather.
Photos by Carol Roan and Peter Tan:
Stepping It Up at Centex -- Centex 2019
Harrison staring down a fresh kill while Ty roars. Thanks to Carol Roan for the photos!
We were ranked 20th going into the weekend... CUT was the only current bid-earning team in the North Central... Centex was a very crucial weekend for us to increase our chances of going to Nationals. We had trained hard, and we knew what we needed to do going into the weekend. With a last minute McClain cancellation by another sports club team the Wednesday before Centex, we were lucky to get one final chance to get some throws and practice in before we made the 18 hour drive down to Austin for the big weekend. Our only team practices and playtime in the Spring leading up to Centex had been Florida Warm Up, Stanford Invite, and three McClain indoor practices (including the one we picked up that Wednesday).
Saturday was a windy, warm day for pool play. Our first pool play game was against Illinois. We came out with a fire and performed well, winning the game 13-7. Our next game was against Texas A&M, a team that had made some noise early regular season and was in bid contention like us. We put A&M away with an authoritative 13-5 win, a very strong 6-0-6 to help max out our points in the ranking algorithm. The last game was against #1 seeded Texas going into the tournament. We continued the trend of the first two games and succeeded with a 13-9 win over the #4 team in the country. This would place us first in our pool which would allow us a bye through pre-quarters that Saturday evening. It was very apparent after day 1 that the Hodags had an energy and appetite for success that should not be taken lightly.
Sunday, as always, we wore our best -- baby blues. We started off against Colorado State, another team trying to earn a bid. In a close back-and-forth game, the Hodags were able to pull through with a 15-13 victory. This would pit us against LSU in the semis. LSU also was on the edge of earning a bid. We've had a history with LSU due to their wishy-washy calls and our somewhat chippy responses. We were able to keep our cool, play a fairly clean game with LSU, and pull through with a 15-13 win. This put us in finals against Colorado, a team who had done us dirty at Stanford Invite. We wanted vengeance and came out hot, running a small break train to take half. Coming out of half, we slowed down and were broken back a couple of times. The game became on serve and got to 13-13 with us receiving. This point went back and forth with our offense working hard to get the hold. The hard cap went off during the point, and this would be universe. Unfortunately, the Hodags were broken on universe point loss to Colorado, a devastating defeat after the hot streak we rode. The championship was in our grasps for a moment, and we could not hold on.
On the brighter side of things, our solid performance at Centex bumped us up to 11th in the rankings, ensuring that we'd earn a bid for the North Central. This Centex also showed glimmers of how formidable the Hodags are with the post-season right around the corner. We will begin to be able to practice more frequently and outdoors upon our return to Madison which should help iron out our issues as the post-season approaches. But for now, we'll head to Spring Break in Galveston to get a few practices in and enjoy time with our team and the other Wisconsin programs.
Congrats to John Tan and Jeff Maskalunas on making the all-tournament team!
Thank you to Carol Roan for documenting the weekend:
Saturday was a windy, warm day for pool play. Our first pool play game was against Illinois. We came out with a fire and performed well, winning the game 13-7. Our next game was against Texas A&M, a team that had made some noise early regular season and was in bid contention like us. We put A&M away with an authoritative 13-5 win, a very strong 6-0-6 to help max out our points in the ranking algorithm. The last game was against #1 seeded Texas going into the tournament. We continued the trend of the first two games and succeeded with a 13-9 win over the #4 team in the country. This would place us first in our pool which would allow us a bye through pre-quarters that Saturday evening. It was very apparent after day 1 that the Hodags had an energy and appetite for success that should not be taken lightly.
Sunday, as always, we wore our best -- baby blues. We started off against Colorado State, another team trying to earn a bid. In a close back-and-forth game, the Hodags were able to pull through with a 15-13 victory. This would pit us against LSU in the semis. LSU also was on the edge of earning a bid. We've had a history with LSU due to their wishy-washy calls and our somewhat chippy responses. We were able to keep our cool, play a fairly clean game with LSU, and pull through with a 15-13 win. This put us in finals against Colorado, a team who had done us dirty at Stanford Invite. We wanted vengeance and came out hot, running a small break train to take half. Coming out of half, we slowed down and were broken back a couple of times. The game became on serve and got to 13-13 with us receiving. This point went back and forth with our offense working hard to get the hold. The hard cap went off during the point, and this would be universe. Unfortunately, the Hodags were broken on universe point loss to Colorado, a devastating defeat after the hot streak we rode. The championship was in our grasps for a moment, and we could not hold on.
On the brighter side of things, our solid performance at Centex bumped us up to 11th in the rankings, ensuring that we'd earn a bid for the North Central. This Centex also showed glimmers of how formidable the Hodags are with the post-season right around the corner. We will begin to be able to practice more frequently and outdoors upon our return to Madison which should help iron out our issues as the post-season approaches. But for now, we'll head to Spring Break in Galveston to get a few practices in and enjoy time with our team and the other Wisconsin programs.
Congrats to John Tan and Jeff Maskalunas on making the all-tournament team!
Thank you to Carol Roan for documenting the weekend:
Carol Roan Photos:
Ultiworld also took video of a couple of our games:
Another Stanford in Stevinson -- Stanford Invite 2019
Big Head Ed (Ted) getting higher than the 'birds at Stevinson Invite 2019. Thanks to Carol Roan for taking photos!
I can hardly remember what the actual Stanford Invite fields or surrounding area looks like. The drive to the Stevinson fields through the California farmland of white flowered almond trees in bloom is vivid though. The best memories are made getting to San Francisco the Friday before the tournament to visit the Golden Gate Bridge, Chinatown, Muir Woods, and the Wharf. Friday ended for us all when we made the two hour drive South to our hotel Misson del Oro, a really nice hotel that was affordably priced because of its location in the middle of nowhere California. So I guess on the off-chance you ever find yourself in almond country south of Stanford, check out del Oro.
We lucked out with the weather Saturday and Sunday with only an overcast and windy conditions rather than the torrential downpour predicted by the weatherman. All of the rounds (including bracket play) were shortened to games to 13 and only played to hard cap at 85 minutes with the next round starting 5 minutes after the previous round ended. This meant that many games went to or close to hard cap, and there was a quick turnaround between games. We got to strut the new drip this weekend: blue, black, and white jerseys.
Victoria was our first victim where it felt easy to score, and we played one of our first complete games of the season on all ends with a final of 13-5. Next, we faced the #1 seed in the country UNC. Our offense struggled to click to start the game, and we were broken the first three points. Upsides really only being a break out of half and trading for the rest of the game, we sputtered out an 8-12 loss. Stanford was our last pool play game of Saturday where we went back and forth, ultimately taking the game to universe point. We pulled to start double game point and after applying solid pull pressure, Stanford threw a first throw turnover on a miscommunication (not even being able to center). We quickly scooped and scored for the 11-10 win. A very short day with three games back-to-back in under 4.5 hours.
Sunday was bracket play and the first time in the new baby blues. Unfortunately, we were not able to live out the "Hodags never lose on Sundays" mantra, chalking up a 7-10 loss to Colorado in pre-quarters to start the day. This put us in 9th place bracket play against Cal. We played too tight with Cal and ended up losing 10-11 on hard cap which is the worst way to finish a game. This put us in the 11th place bracket where we were again to play Victoria. After a rallying speech by a mustached Logan, the D-line started off the game strong with a few incredible layout scores for breaks. This immediately trended the saying "Only bangers for scores" between the Hodags. And there was (mostly) all bangers for scores. We clobbered UVic once again 13-4.
Immediately following the tournament, Dan and Logan shaved their Stanford (Stevinson?) 'staches at the field complex, and the rest of the team followed suit within the next day. We made the usual trip to Shanghai Dumpling King in San Francisco before departing on a grueling redeye to O'Hare followed by drive to Madison, dropping some Dags off on the drive back at their 8:50am classes that morning. Lot's of work to do before Centex in two weeks, but with snow on the ground and no McClain practices, that work will be confided to the Shell on the track and in the gym.
Thank you to Carol Roan (Ben and Ted Schewe's Mom) for taking photos! See below for a link to the photos:
We lucked out with the weather Saturday and Sunday with only an overcast and windy conditions rather than the torrential downpour predicted by the weatherman. All of the rounds (including bracket play) were shortened to games to 13 and only played to hard cap at 85 minutes with the next round starting 5 minutes after the previous round ended. This meant that many games went to or close to hard cap, and there was a quick turnaround between games. We got to strut the new drip this weekend: blue, black, and white jerseys.
Victoria was our first victim where it felt easy to score, and we played one of our first complete games of the season on all ends with a final of 13-5. Next, we faced the #1 seed in the country UNC. Our offense struggled to click to start the game, and we were broken the first three points. Upsides really only being a break out of half and trading for the rest of the game, we sputtered out an 8-12 loss. Stanford was our last pool play game of Saturday where we went back and forth, ultimately taking the game to universe point. We pulled to start double game point and after applying solid pull pressure, Stanford threw a first throw turnover on a miscommunication (not even being able to center). We quickly scooped and scored for the 11-10 win. A very short day with three games back-to-back in under 4.5 hours.
Sunday was bracket play and the first time in the new baby blues. Unfortunately, we were not able to live out the "Hodags never lose on Sundays" mantra, chalking up a 7-10 loss to Colorado in pre-quarters to start the day. This put us in 9th place bracket play against Cal. We played too tight with Cal and ended up losing 10-11 on hard cap which is the worst way to finish a game. This put us in the 11th place bracket where we were again to play Victoria. After a rallying speech by a mustached Logan, the D-line started off the game strong with a few incredible layout scores for breaks. This immediately trended the saying "Only bangers for scores" between the Hodags. And there was (mostly) all bangers for scores. We clobbered UVic once again 13-4.
Immediately following the tournament, Dan and Logan shaved their Stanford (Stevinson?) 'staches at the field complex, and the rest of the team followed suit within the next day. We made the usual trip to Shanghai Dumpling King in San Francisco before departing on a grueling redeye to O'Hare followed by drive to Madison, dropping some Dags off on the drive back at their 8:50am classes that morning. Lot's of work to do before Centex in two weeks, but with snow on the ground and no McClain practices, that work will be confided to the Shell on the track and in the gym.
Thank you to Carol Roan (Ben and Ted Schewe's Mom) for taking photos! See below for a link to the photos:
Carol Roan Photos:
Putting the "Warm Up" in Florida Warm Up 2019
Going up strong in the wolf pack at Florida Warm Up 2019
Came out of hibernation for this 3-day classic, grueling, and building tournament that is Florida Warm Up. We were fortunate to have 80°F heat all weekend and bluebird skies -- a 130°F increase from the polar vortex in Wisconsin the previous week. Least to say, Hodags were burnt and a handful returned to Madison donning albino skin tanks. Before I dive in, I just wanted to give a shoutout to all the families and friends who came out to support use! We had the most incredible sideline support whether it'd be cheering, having food or sun screen ready, and all the other tidbits provided generously by our fans. The Hodags continue to travel the best out of any college team. Thank you!
Slept in on Friday with pool play starting at 1 PM for the Hodags. Our first game was against Virginia Tech which turned out to be a much tighter game than we anticipated. O-line struggled to hold, and D-line converted a few breaks but missed more opportunities to score. Rough first pool play game losing on double game point 12-13. Our next game against BYU was much more promising. Another tight fought battle with a universe point win at 15-14 which gave us some tempo considering we were the only team to beat BYU that weekend. The last game of Friday's pool play was the typical, Cyle van Auken-coordinated showcase game between Wisconsin and Florida under the lights. Florida played their typical shooting game and tight lines, and they seemed to be connecting on everything to start. The first half of the game, we came out very slow going down 5-7; this was a trend for most of the weekend. Coming out of half, our O-line converted, and we manufactured a noticeable improvement in sideline energy. Made sure to cap off the game with an exclamation coming back and winning 13-11. A very satisfying win considering Cyle has been keeping a record of the Hodags vs Florida matchup the past however many years, and the Hodags have failed to beat Florida at Warm Up for the past three years. Well Cyle, make sure you mark down the win for the Hodags this year.
Saturday pool play started up with a match against LSU. The only real fun part of the game was when one of the LSU captains called their players "ignorant" along with a couple other choice words on the field mid-point. Benny also broke his hand following through on a backhand huck (i.e. punching) an LSU dude in the face. But we played pretty poorly, not shutting down their threats (a very similar game to Virginia Tech) and ended up taking an L 8-11. Our next game against Pittsburgh was a lot closer than the score represented. The D-line did a great job keeping us in the game, but the O-line continued to struggle to convert. We took another loss 7-10. Our last game of pool play was against Tufts, another game that we decided should go to universe. We pulled through on a huck to score to win the game 10-9 over Tufts, mirroring our start to pool play where we lost on universe via a huck from Virginia Tech.
Warm Up decided to use a USAU style algorithm to determine bracket tiers which was a very odd approach that lead to some strange placements of teams in the bracket. Regardless, our 3-3 pool play record put us in the third tier bracket due to our loss to Virginia Tech who had an awful pool play aside from us. Bracket play was highlighted by much more holistically sound games. The last and fourth game of Saturday was bracket play. We stepped on Illinois State 15-7. Sunday we had two more games of 17th place bracket play with a 15-7 win over Alabama-Huntsville followed by a 15-5 win over Emory to claim 17th place (woohoo...).
All-in-all, this weekend proved to be a great building weekend for the Dags (in all seriousness, not the euphemistic kind of way). There was obvious improvement and cohesiveness between the team that developed over those three days. As usual, a lot of the playing time was spread out, so rookies were able to get a good taste of the speed and play of college ultimate. We were also fortunate to have much less injuries than last year's Warm Up which should definitely help us going forward. Our final record for the weekend was 6-3.
In other news, Hodag alum Jake Smart ('12) coached Brown to a Florida Warm Up championship for Brown. Congrats Jake!
Thank you James Hill for writing our live Twitter feed. Thanks to Carol Roan and Jennie Miller for the photos this weekend. Thanks to Game Point Performance for putting together a highlight reel of us. Links to the photos and reel:
Slept in on Friday with pool play starting at 1 PM for the Hodags. Our first game was against Virginia Tech which turned out to be a much tighter game than we anticipated. O-line struggled to hold, and D-line converted a few breaks but missed more opportunities to score. Rough first pool play game losing on double game point 12-13. Our next game against BYU was much more promising. Another tight fought battle with a universe point win at 15-14 which gave us some tempo considering we were the only team to beat BYU that weekend. The last game of Friday's pool play was the typical, Cyle van Auken-coordinated showcase game between Wisconsin and Florida under the lights. Florida played their typical shooting game and tight lines, and they seemed to be connecting on everything to start. The first half of the game, we came out very slow going down 5-7; this was a trend for most of the weekend. Coming out of half, our O-line converted, and we manufactured a noticeable improvement in sideline energy. Made sure to cap off the game with an exclamation coming back and winning 13-11. A very satisfying win considering Cyle has been keeping a record of the Hodags vs Florida matchup the past however many years, and the Hodags have failed to beat Florida at Warm Up for the past three years. Well Cyle, make sure you mark down the win for the Hodags this year.
Saturday pool play started up with a match against LSU. The only real fun part of the game was when one of the LSU captains called their players "ignorant" along with a couple other choice words on the field mid-point. Benny also broke his hand following through on a backhand huck (i.e. punching) an LSU dude in the face. But we played pretty poorly, not shutting down their threats (a very similar game to Virginia Tech) and ended up taking an L 8-11. Our next game against Pittsburgh was a lot closer than the score represented. The D-line did a great job keeping us in the game, but the O-line continued to struggle to convert. We took another loss 7-10. Our last game of pool play was against Tufts, another game that we decided should go to universe. We pulled through on a huck to score to win the game 10-9 over Tufts, mirroring our start to pool play where we lost on universe via a huck from Virginia Tech.
Warm Up decided to use a USAU style algorithm to determine bracket tiers which was a very odd approach that lead to some strange placements of teams in the bracket. Regardless, our 3-3 pool play record put us in the third tier bracket due to our loss to Virginia Tech who had an awful pool play aside from us. Bracket play was highlighted by much more holistically sound games. The last and fourth game of Saturday was bracket play. We stepped on Illinois State 15-7. Sunday we had two more games of 17th place bracket play with a 15-7 win over Alabama-Huntsville followed by a 15-5 win over Emory to claim 17th place (woohoo...).
All-in-all, this weekend proved to be a great building weekend for the Dags (in all seriousness, not the euphemistic kind of way). There was obvious improvement and cohesiveness between the team that developed over those three days. As usual, a lot of the playing time was spread out, so rookies were able to get a good taste of the speed and play of college ultimate. We were also fortunate to have much less injuries than last year's Warm Up which should definitely help us going forward. Our final record for the weekend was 6-3.
In other news, Hodag alum Jake Smart ('12) coached Brown to a Florida Warm Up championship for Brown. Congrats Jake!
Thank you James Hill for writing our live Twitter feed. Thanks to Carol Roan and Jennie Miller for the photos this weekend. Thanks to Game Point Performance for putting together a highlight reel of us. Links to the photos and reel:
Carol Roan's Photos:
Jennie's Photos (you just need to create a Snapfish account to download):
GPP Hodag Highlight Reel:
Blue over Black for 2019
This year's Blue Black was a bit different than previous years. Usually, a reverse draft performed in secret by the captains and officers, but the coaches decided to split the team into O-line (Blue) and D-line (Black) this year. With much of Team Black containing rookies, they struggled to find connection and flow, especially on offense. Team Blue looked very crisp for the game. The first half was characterized by Team Blue imposing their will on Team Black and a score of 8-3. Team Black was able to step up a bit in the second half as Team Blue had less people and began to tire. Team Black was able to convert a couple breaks and played tighter, but Team Blue still had the obvious advantage and won 13-8 over Team Black. Looking forward to the many matchups to come in the Spring and the intense, inter-squad rivalry that is the Hodag O-line and D-line.
A Hodag Representing USA at U24s 2019
Hodag captain Nick "Tenorman" Vogt was offered a roster spot on the U24 Open team which he has accepted. We are proud that one of our own will be representing the USA in Germany the summer of 2019. Great work and congratulations Nick!
Also, congrats to Brittney "Coconuts" Kokinos from Bella Donna on making the U24 Mixed team!
Also, congrats to Brittney "Coconuts" Kokinos from Bella Donna on making the U24 Mixed team!
Five from Wisconsin at 2019 U24 Tryouts
Nick, Ted, and Rami from the Hodags and Brittney "Coconuts" Kokinos and Sarah "Say" Mondschein from Bella had the incredible opportunity to represent UW-Madison at U24 tryouts in California. We wish them the best of luck!
2018 Fall Hodag Newsletter
Below is the Fall Hodag Newsletter with rookie bios, alumni board and endowment information, and a word from the current Hodag board president Jon Gaynor '09. This document was created by Hodag alum Colin Camp '14.
Second North College Mixed Regionals
Group polaroids from the weekend (credit to Ultiphotos)
UW-Madison ultimate sent two combined mixed teams, named Wisco Mixco and Wisco Remixco, between Atropa, Bella Donna, the Fauxdags, and Hodags to compete at the 2018 North College Mixed Regionals. Wisco Mixco consisted of Hodags Ders, Cody, Logan, Jack, and Wham, and Wisco Remixco had Simon, Dan, Schewe, Jeff, Oscar, and (an injured) Kish. See the full rosters below.
Wisco Mixco went 3-1 on Saturday with easy wins over Cornell College and Central Michigan. They inched out an 8-7 win over Knox during pool play for the third win but took a bit of a thrashing against University of Chicago. On Sunday, Mixco beat Northern Michigan in prequarters handedly but went on to lose to Minnesota in quarters and then Knox in 5th place semis. Ultimately, Wisco Mixco took home 7th after Oberlin decided to opt out of the game due to injuries.
Similarly, Wisco Remixco went 3-1 in pool play, beating University of Illinois-Chicago, Oberlin, and Northern Michigan and suffering a devastating loss to Ohio State. In bracket play, they won over Wheaton but then went on to lose to University of Chicago (in a closer match than Mixco). Remixco went on to win the 5th place semi over Oberlin and then take 5th place after beating Knox.
As occurred last year, our two squads were able to participate in a discussion on equity Saturday night. The difference from last year was that the conversation was also open to other teams from the tournament, and a couple of teams made appearances. We were lucky to have our fellow hotdog Dan, Carly from Bella, and Trumoo from Atropa lead the entire body in conversation.
All-in-all, an incredible experience and tournament in which everyone enjoyed despite the cold and sloppy field conditions due the freezing and melting of the sod over the course of the day. We all had the opportunity to get to know people from the other UW ultimate teams and share a weekend of fun. Heartwarming stuff, I know.
UW-Madison ultimate sent two combined mixed teams, named Wisco Mixco and Wisco Remixco, between Atropa, Bella Donna, the Fauxdags, and Hodags to compete at the 2018 North College Mixed Regionals. Wisco Mixco consisted of Hodags Ders, Cody, Logan, Jack, and Wham, and Wisco Remixco had Simon, Dan, Schewe, Jeff, Oscar, and (an injured) Kish. See the full rosters below.
Wisco Mixco went 3-1 on Saturday with easy wins over Cornell College and Central Michigan. They inched out an 8-7 win over Knox during pool play for the third win but took a bit of a thrashing against University of Chicago. On Sunday, Mixco beat Northern Michigan in prequarters handedly but went on to lose to Minnesota in quarters and then Knox in 5th place semis. Ultimately, Wisco Mixco took home 7th after Oberlin decided to opt out of the game due to injuries.
Similarly, Wisco Remixco went 3-1 in pool play, beating University of Illinois-Chicago, Oberlin, and Northern Michigan and suffering a devastating loss to Ohio State. In bracket play, they won over Wheaton but then went on to lose to University of Chicago (in a closer match than Mixco). Remixco went on to win the 5th place semi over Oberlin and then take 5th place after beating Knox.
As occurred last year, our two squads were able to participate in a discussion on equity Saturday night. The difference from last year was that the conversation was also open to other teams from the tournament, and a couple of teams made appearances. We were lucky to have our fellow hotdog Dan, Carly from Bella, and Trumoo from Atropa lead the entire body in conversation.
All-in-all, an incredible experience and tournament in which everyone enjoyed despite the cold and sloppy field conditions due the freezing and melting of the sod over the course of the day. We all had the opportunity to get to know people from the other UW ultimate teams and share a weekend of fun. Heartwarming stuff, I know.
Rosters for the two Wisconsin teams at North College Mixed Regionals 2018
Saturday Sweep at MLC 2018
Simon and Harry bumping chests. Thanks for the photos Carol Roan (Schewes' Mom)!
Our only showing as a team this Fall as well as roster debut was at MLC 2018. We started off the day with a 12-6 sweep over Texas and another 13-6 win over Kansas. Our third game against Colorado was a very physical game but kept good spirit. JT had a huge, bone-crunching collision which left a Colorado dude pretty shaken up with a knee injury; that's always hard to see. A stall 9 flick huck from Tenor followed by a less-than-exciting two-handed claw catch next to the pack in the endzone by Ders was the game-ender; we inched out a 10-9 universe point victory over Mamabird with that grab. The cap and highlight of the day was our game against CUT. Nick won the flip for jersey color and told CUT to go dark, despite them only bringing their fresh white roundball jerseys. On the first point, CUT turned the disc on a first throw turnover giving our D-line a chance to attack. Veteran Ham Sebert (who somehow has another year of eligibility (we asked the big man (Tom Crawford))) goes to set the stack as Chody picks up the disc to begin our defensive lines attack. Sam, in a shear moment of panic after not beating CUT in three years, makes a "T" with his hands to set the stack instead of the standard fist... veteran move. Cody sees the "T" from Sam and calls a timeout on stall 4. There has not been a completed throw in the game, yet we've already won the mental game with the jersey flip and the early timeout. From there, it was easy money beating CUT 12-10, a first since MLC 2015.
As normally happens in the Fall of 2018, Sunday got rained out, and we went home early and undefeated. Played 3 of 4 possible tournament days this Fall, and we've definitely had better odds of not getting rained out in the past.
Mixed Regionals is the following weekend, but that wraps it up for Fall tournaments for the Hodags as a whole. We'll see you all in Tampa!
As normally happens in the Fall of 2018, Sunday got rained out, and we went home early and undefeated. Played 3 of 4 possible tournament days this Fall, and we've definitely had better odds of not getting rained out in the past.
Mixed Regionals is the following weekend, but that wraps it up for Fall tournaments for the Hodags as a whole. We'll see you all in Tampa!
2018/2019 Roster
After a 4-week long tryout process unfortunately without No Wisconsequences to conclude due to constant rain, the Hodags' 2018/2019 roster has been finalized. Congratulations to our rookies!
2019/2019 Rookies:
Oscar Felcan - Freshman
Jacob Wham - Freshman
Kevin Tan - Freshman
Rafi Moskowitz - Freshman
Simon Brooks - Freshman
Henry Goldenberg - Sophomore
Jack Mallmann - Junior
Anders "Ders" Shropshire - Senior
Jacob Wham - Freshman
Kevin Tan - Freshman
Rafi Moskowitz - Freshman
Simon Brooks - Freshman
Henry Goldenberg - Sophomore
Jack Mallmann - Junior
Anders "Ders" Shropshire - Senior
Tryouts Round 1 and Done
The first round of tryouts, which lasted one week, has concluded. There were 135 athletes who tried out for the Hodags this year. 60 were cut and 75 moved onto round 2. Round 2 is a two week process consisting of four practices. Check out the behind the scenes of Round 1 below:
Open Tryouts for the 2018-2019 Season
It's that time of year again! Tryouts for the 2018/2019 Hodags, the University of Wisconsin-Madison Men's Ultimate Frisbee Team, will be Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4:30-6:30 PM beginning Tuesday September 11th. The tryouts will be held on the southside of the University Bay Fields next to the Waisman Center. Subsequent practices will be held during the same time slot along with weekend practices which will be from 10-1 on Saturday and/or Sunday.
Follow us on social media for more information as tryouts approach (click on the sidebar social media icons to get to our pages). If you have any questions, feel free to contact us at [email protected]
See the tryout flyer below for more information:
Follow us on social media for more information as tryouts approach (click on the sidebar social media icons to get to our pages). If you have any questions, feel free to contact us at [email protected]
See the tryout flyer below for more information: