Ultimate frisbee has often been associated with lackadaisical hippies, but it is one of the fastest growing sports in America.
Many have seen Brodie Smith’s trick shot videos or Andrew Fleming’s ridiculous layout (ultimate slang for a dive) at the World Ultimate Club Campionships in 2010. SportsCenter even recognized these acheivements, awarding them best plays of the week.
Although ultimate frisbee is gaining in popularity, a large portion of the population remains uninformed of what exactly it is.
Ultimate is best described as a cross between football, soccer and basketball – except of course with a frisbee. Each team has seven players on the field and the field is roughly equivalent to the size of a soccer field. Similarly to football, there are two end zones in which the teams tru to score. Teams pass the disc to each other and make their way down the field in a fashion similar to basketball and soccer.
Once a player has caught the frisbee, she/he must remain stationary. Similarly to basketball, the player is allowed to pivot on one foot while searching for an open teammate. If the disc hits the ground for any reason while your team has possesion, it is a turnover.
Games are played to either 13 or 15 points, with game time of approximately an hour.
Interestingly, what makes ultimate different from any other organized sport is that it is self-officiated. Players adhere to the “spirit of the game,” and are entrusted with making respectful calls, be they fouls, travels and so forth
“Ultimate, to sum it up, is as fun as a barrel of monkeys,” junior Captain Matthew Kortz said. “Everyone should be forced to play. It should be a law.”
While St. John’s does not have any mandatory Frisbee statutes, they do have a club team known as BAM.
BAM finished second in the nation last year at the D-III nationals. After a successful regular season which included tournaments in Georgia and Illinois, BAM hit the road in early May, bound for Buffalo, NY. BAM squared off against Wake Forest, Lehigh and Grinnell before meeting Claremont (CA) in the finals. Both teams were undefeated over the course of the tournament. In the end, Claremont proved too much for SJU, winning 10-8.
This season, BAM is looking to reload and make another run at the title. Despite losing big contributors Chris Battista, Ben Roske and Tyson “Grandma” Gerdes to graduation, many players on the team feel like a championship is a distinct possibility.
“If we play like I know this team is capable of, I believe that the D-III title is as good as ours,” Sophomore Ben Berthiaume said.
BAM does not have a coach and is led by three team captains: juniors Matthew Kortz and Patrick Kunkel, and senior Paul Dewenter. This trio hopes to push BAM even further than it went last year and come home with a D-III championship.