2011 D-I College Championships: Team Info

•           Virginia
  
  
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  Virginia Charlottesville, VA   Team Name: Night Train

  Night Train is the men's ultimate team at the University of Virginia. Founded in 1978, Night Train is a member of the USA Ultimate College Open division, playing in the Virginia Conference of the Atlantic Coast Region. Night Train strives to compete with the best college ultimate teams in the United States, and is consistently ranked UPA College Open Top 25. The team won the Atlantic Coast Region for the second time and is making it’s second Nationals appearance.

•           Illinois
  
  
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  Illinois Champaign, IL   Team Name: Illinois Coach: Walden Nelson

  Over the last few years Illinois has consistently proven itself as one of the top college ultimate programs in the country.  We are a program that prides itself on developing players who come to Illinois with no experience playing competitive ultimate. We teach all levels of ultimate, from the basics of throwing a forehand all the way to throwing bombs in the worst of weather. With a record 3 straight Great Lakes Regional wins and an appearance at the College Championships the past four years, Illinois hopes to improve on its finish from last year and have a good showing at this year’s tournament.

•           Cornell
  
  
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  Cornell Ithaca, NY   Team Name: Buds Coach: Colin Gottlieb
  Founded in 1973, the Cornell Buds are one of Ultimate’s oldest programs.  Making our 16th appearance at Nationals, the Buds are looking to continue our tradition of success at the national level.  After a semi-finals appearance in 2010, we are excited to again show the nation why we are one of the top teams in the college Ultimate.

•           Wisconsin
  
  
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  Wisconsin Madison, WI   Team Name: Hodags Coach: Hector Valdivia

  The UW-Madison Ultimate Frisbee club was founded in the 1977. Upon creation, the team immediately began to establish a great winning tradition with 9 sectional championships and 5 final four finishes at regional play. Between 1977 and 1988, the team had an overall record of 347 wins and 189 losses.   The Dave McClain Athletic Facility, opened in 1988, offered the club an opportunity to cleat-up during the winter season. Coincidence or not, it wasn’t until after 1988 that the club first qualified for Nationals.   In spring of 1994, the "Hodags" team name was implemented, and has been held to this date. Tryouts were conducted for the first time in the fall of 1988.  Since 2001, Wisconsin Hodags have 3 National titles and have made 5 Finals appearances.

•           Iowa
  
  
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  Iowa Iowa City, IA   Team Name: IHUC Coaches: Mike Denardis, Jake Bradley, Andrew Edwards

  The core of this years team has been through a lot to get to the point we are at today.  Three years ago the leader and captain of IHUC tragically died in a car accident.  After the death of Brian Gleeson, the players that he recruited set out to continue his mission of restoring IHUC to prominence.  In the 08-09 season IHUC battled into the game to go before being defeated by Grey Duck.  Last year IHUC took the fourth and final bid to nationals before finishing tied for 9th place.  This year, IHUC put it all together to finish 2nd at regionals and is primed to turn a few heads at nationals.  This years core has laid the foundations for IHUC to build on for years to come.

•           Carleton College
  
  
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  Carleton College Northfield, MN   Team Name: CUT Coach: Phil Bowen
  Founded in the early 80s, CUT has been one of the nation’s premier programs for a long time.  Qualifying for nationals for the first time in 1990, CUT proceeded to qualify for nationals for the next 16 consecutive years until the streak was broken in 2006 when the Central Region had just 1 bid.  CUT won nationals in 2001, and 2009, and finished 2nd at last years championships.

•           Luther
  
  
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  Luther Decorah, IA   Team Name: LUFDA Coaches: Reid Wilson, Dan McAdam

  Luther Ultimate Flying Disc Association (LUFDA) was founded in 2003 on the library lawns of Luther College in Decorah, IA. In eight short years, LUFDA has become one of Luther College’s most successful club sports. LUFDA took their young program to the next level in 2009 competing in the National Championships in Columbus, Ohio, where they finished in 11th place. LUFDA looks to continue their success here in Boulder. Taking advantage of their youth, speed, and athleticism should make for an exciting championship series.

•           Harvard
  
  
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  Harvard Boston, MA   Team Name: Red Line Coaches: Josh McCarthy

  A consistent presence in the Northeast ultimate scene since the early 90’s, Harvard Ultimate donned the name Red Line in 2000 and over the course of the decade has evolved into a perennial regional contender. After an appearance at the Championships in 2001, the program grew hungry for more and added Coach Josh McCarthy for the 2004 campaign.  Since then, Red Line has made an impressive five Nationals appearances in the last seven years.   Red Line 2011 features a strong mix of experience and young talent.  Harvard’s offense, featuring Callahan shortlister George Stubbs, boasts an impressive array of firepower.  Meanwhile, the D Line is anchored by several veterans now playing their final year of college Ultimate.  Harvard went undefeated through the Series en route to a repeat New England regional championship, and has high hopes and expectations for its performance in Boulder.   Like many Red Line teams before us, we are on a Vision Quest—a journey to climb that wall, date that drifter, and grab our share of the glory. All we’ve ever known was that we were born to live and then to die and we’ve got to do it alone, each in his own way. And I guess that’s why we got to love those people who deserve it like there’s no tomorrow. Because when you get right down to it…there isn’t.

•           Tufts
  
  
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  Tufts Boston, MA   Team Name: Elephant Men Coaches: Dan Forester, Mike Zalisk, Mike Bright

  One of the original college ultimate teams, the Tufts Ultimate Frisbee team was founded in 1972, with the motto Pax et Frisbus, or peace and frisbee.  Its current name, the Elephant Men was first recognized in the 1980’s. With one of the first ever teams, Tufts ultimate began its history with a game against Clark University, winning handily. Tufts began to start establishing its dominance in the Northeast, winning competitions throughout the 70’s and early 80’s. In 1984, Tufts hosted, and qualified for, the first ever collegiate Nationals. Since 1984, Tufts has qualified for Nationals in 1989, 2000-2002, 2004, and most recently, 2009. Home to Callahan winner, Mike Zalisk, 2002, and numerous past and present elite Club players, Tufts’ history portrays it for what it is, one of the most storied and successful programs in college ultimate history.

•           British Columbia
  
  
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  British Columbia Vancouver, BC   Team Name: Thunderbirds Coaches: Kevin Cheung, Russell Street

  UBC put Vancouver on the college ultimate map in the mid-2000s with a number of strong teams led by current Furious George standouts Oscar Pottinger, Nick Menzies and Morgan Hibbert. They led the T-Birds to a number of great finishes during regular season tournaments and in 2005 qualified the T-Birds for Nationals where they disappointingly lost in pre-quarters to regional rival Washington. Since then, UBC has fielded a strong team almost every year, seeing success during the regular season but continually falling short at regionals and not making it back to Nationals. This year a strong in-coming class of freshman as well as a number of graduate students added to the already senior heavy squad to give UBC arguably its best team ever.

•           Oregon
  
  
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  Oregon Eugene, OR   Team Name: Ego Coaches: Jay Janin, Morgan Cilburn, Sam Brickwedde
  We are a team that enjoys to win, but knows how to have fun doing it. We won two tournaments last year and we went into nationals as the number one seed.

•           Washington
  
  
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  Washington Seattle, WA   Team Name: Sundodgers Coaches: Pay McCarthy, Gabe Pederson

  This is the first trip back to Nationals since 2005 for the Sundodgers. This incarnation draws upon many of the aspects of past Washington squads, much of the good with out some of the bad. A solid but senior laden team in 2009 got to the game to go in the old Northwest region. A rebuilding year in 2010 saw the Sundodgers overachieve but still fall short.   Much in the same way a good steak sandwich comes together so did the 2011 Sundodgers: Any good sandwich always starts with the bread, its what holds everything together and without the structure provided by coaches Pat McCarthy and Gabe Pedersen; this sandwich wouldn’t be a sandwich. A well aged steak is the key ingredient, the returners from the ’09 and ’10 teams would be the tender steak seasoned with the rub of returning captain and Fish Phil Murray, this steak is capable of being delicious on its own but much better with an assortment of compliments. Add to these green peppers and onions of transfer students who’ve been there, to give just the right amount of crunch. Slapped on top is the cheese of the rookies who bring the taste of enthusiasm and joy to the sandwich. And finally the sauce brought to the sandwich by the UW fans and supporters who bring a little bit of zing to each bite. Put them all together and the 2011 Sundodgers are DELICIOUS.

•           Whitman
  
  
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  Whitman Walla Walla, WA   Team Name: Sweets

  On April 2nd, 1989, a child by the name of Jerome Destiny Norden entered the human world. On the fifth day of his life (April 7th, 1989) Jer began to walk, and by the summer he was executing textbook dump cuts.  Jer-Bear also mastered most of his throws within his first year on this planet.  Believe it or not, but J’s first throw was a no-look, eighty yard, up-wind, from the top of his shoestrings, low-release forehand dime.  He threw it when he was three months old; since then, it has become his signature throw.   From that point forward, Jeremy dedicated his life to two tasks: accumulating as many ultimate jerseys as humanly possible, and getting the Whitman College Sweets to the USA Ultimate College Championships.  Now that Jerome has accomplished the later task, he will be focusing even more of his mental and physical strengths on the fine art of jersey hoarding -- beware!

•           Pittsburgh
  
  
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  Pittsburgh Pittsburgh, PA   Team Name: En Sabah Nur Coaches: Josh Suskin, David Vatz, David Lionetti
  Pittsburgh En Sabah Nur was founded in 1998 by a group of friends playing pick-up on Pitt’s campus. The team has since grown into a group of athletes driven to compete and succeed at college nationals. The Pitt team has been to nationals the past five straight years and is in its sixth year ready to compete for a national title.

•           Colorado
  
  
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  Colorado Boulder, CO   Team Name: Mamabird Coaches: Jim Schoettler

  This season Mamabird captured their 11th straight Regional crown, and extended their streak of consecutive Nationals appearances to 13, the longest active streak in College Ultimate. Mamabird enjoyed another successful season in 2011 winning South Central Regionals, while finishing second at Florida Warmup, and third at Stanford invite. This years team represents one of the deepest, most prepared Mamabird squads in school history. With an exceptionally strong senior class, explosive young talent, and an experienced coach, Mamabird has their eyes on the title in 2011.

•           Colorado College
  
  
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  Colorado College Colorado Springs, CO   Team Name: Wasabi

  Colorado College Wasabi was founded in 1998 by people we don't know, and has grown a lot since then. Until this year, Wasabi's best finish was 5th at regionals in 2009. When I think of the team three years ago, an image of Rob Andre, our lanky captain, in a white painters suit smoking cigarettes sprinting down the field comes to mind. It was a great bunch of guys, who loved the game and were completely untainted from the viles of RSD. The team has come along way, but has stayed true to it's sloppy roots.   Last year Wasabi finished 7th at regionals. It was not a fortuitous spring season for Wasabi. Defensive stud Henry Konker had torn his acl. Nicky Spiva had a broken finger on his right hand, so he was playing lefty. We were only able to muster 11 players to drive to Fort Collins for the tournament.   This year Wasabi boasted a roster of 24 people. Henry Konker was back in action with a clunky new kneebrace. Captain Ezra Siegel had returned from the east. And we had two new freshmen studs, Gavin Nachbar and Conor Crowley, who ended up anchoring the o-line handler set.    Wasabi tried to get into Prez Day and Centex to no avail. Luckily, other teams dropped out and we were given the chance to compete. Wasabi lost to UBC in the quarters 15-13, which was later revenged in Centex Finals. This is the first time in Wasabi has ever qualified for Nationals.

•           Texas
  
  
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  Texas Austin, TX   Team Name: TUFF Coaches: Calvin Lin, Stephen Presley

  Texas Ultimate was born back in the 80's and rose to a finals finish in '88 and semi-finals in '89 under the leadership and big throws of G.C. and huge grabs by Bagger. Texas continued to compete at Nationals through the early 90's under strong teams lead by Homey and Chris Stone. Unfortunately, Texas went missing throughout the mid to late 90's.   The new millennium brought a new team name, SLUT, and the renewed goal to compete at Nationals again under the guidance of Skippy, Scotty B, and Bchill. After a loss in the finals at Regionals in 2000, in the following season (2001) the program was born when UT established their first ever B team, Virgins. The focus was to grow stronger by bringing in new talent and developing returning players.   After UT RecSports threatened to cut team funds if the name wasn't changed, the team agreed on TUFF (Texas Ultimate Frisbee Friends) just before the 2002 spring season. Focused training earned TUFF their bid to Nationals after the Regionals Championship in Little Rock, Arkansas. Since then, the team has qualified for Nationals 7 out of the last 9 years and has become one of the premier teams in the country.

•           Florida
  
  
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  Florida Gainesville, FL   Team Name: Gators Coaches: Phil Hansen, Dustin Travaglini, Cyle Van Auken
  Florida Ultimate made its name known in 2006 when they shocked everyone winning a national championship.  Ever since, they’ve been a national powerhouse, including winning a championship in 2010.  The Gators are here to defend their championship.

•           California-Santa Cruz
  
  
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  California-Santa Cruz Santa Cruz, CA   Team Name: Slugs Coaches: Daryl Nounnan, Joaquin Nagle, Danny Karlinsky

  There are 4 members of the current Slug team that were there for our last Nationals trip in 2008. Since then this group of guys have been playing together every year all year round. As the team rebuilt from the departure of 10 seniors in '08 we grew closer as friends and players, adding new faces, personalities and skill. This years return to Nationals as timely as could be asked for and were here to make some noise.

•           Stanford
  
  
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  Stanford Menlo Park, CA   Team Name: Bloodthirsty Coaches: Neale Mahoney, Krishna Rao, Dan Silverstein

  The Stanford Men's Ultimate Team has a long and illustrious history, dating back to the team's founding in 1980. SMUT soon joined the ranks of the nation's top teams, and won the first-ever National Collegiate Championship in 1984. Since then, the team has finished as runners-up 5 times, and finally added another championship trophy to the case in 2002. Along the way, the team has won hundreds of games and scores of tournaments, and is known as one of the most consistent powerhouses in college Ultimate. Over the years, hundreds of young men have been members of the team, each contributing their part to the creation of an Ultimate program that provides a wealth of experience for each new generation of players. In the Stanford Men's Ultimate Team, players find athletics, competition, opportunities for learning, and close, lifelong friends. With each passing generation of players, the team's elders instill a sense of the importance of having such a robust, self-sustaining program. This type of long-term view of the legacy of Stanford Ultimate is what has made SMUT both a powerhouse in competition, and a compelling life experience for its players.   Since 2003, the team has made the final four 5 times and is back at Nationals after missing the big dance in 2010.

•           North Carolina-Wilmington
  
  
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  North Carolina-Wilmington Wilmington, NC   Team Name: Danny Wrenn, Nikki Zeldin

  In 1989, a small group of ultimate enthusiasts formed a club women’s team at UNCW aptly naming it Seaweed due to the coastal location.  In a few short years, Seaweed climbed to the top of the women’s College Nationals scene winning their first championship in 1992.  Four years later, they claimed the title again after an undefeated season.  Led by fifth years Kelly Tidwell and Sara Casey, Senior Jessica Patrick and Junior Claire Chastain, Seaweed is back for the third year in a row and looking to end the season on top.  A combination of grit, athleticism, and heart has lead to their past and current success, not to mention the coaching styles of two Seamen/Seaweed Alum: Danny Wrenn and Nikki Zeldin.

•           North Carolina
  
  
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  North Carolina Chapel Hill, NC   Team Name: Pleiades Coaches: Lindsey Hack, Heather Ann Brauer, Raju Prasad

  Pleaides was founded by Emily Larson in the fall of 1995 when she split from Darskide (now UNC’s men team) to form a women’s team.  After several name changes, the team settled on Pleiades for its meaning: "Seven Sisters."  According to Greek mythology, Pleiades was originally the name for the seven daughters of Atlas and Pleione.  The hunter Orion chased and courter the daughters until the gods transformed them into stars for safekeeping.  The Pleiades known today is an open star cluster which makes up part of the constellation Taurus.  Pleiades has recently become one of the most successful women’s programs on the East Coast, consistently bringing in and growing strong, athletic ultimate players.  This will be our 4th straight year attending College Nationals and we fully intend to continue the tradition in years to come.

•           Virginia
  
  
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  Virginia Charlottesville, VA   Team Name: Hydra Coaches: James Burke, David Allison

  Virginia Women's Ultimate is a program that has been around since at least the early 80s when current captain Devon Ericksen's mother played for the team. More recently, the Virginia women last attended College Nationals in 2004. Since that time, the team has undergone a number of changes, including a name change from Agent Orange to Hydra in 2007, and the adoption of coach Dan Perry in 2008. In 2009, the Hydra ladies were inspired by watching the Virginia men's team attend Nationals for the first time under the leadership of Greg Ericksen and Robert Runner, and in a circle on the Columbus fields on Sunday they decided to make Nationals a goal. Captains Brittany Taylor and Hannah Green took the team to new levels in 2010, as Hydra attended Women's Centex for the first time and finished 4th in the AC Region, up from 7th the previous year. In 2011, James Burke and David Allison took over for Dan as coaches, and a 12th place finish at Centex and 3rd place finish in the AC Region under the leadership of Shannon McVey and Devon Ericksen have led to the realization of Hydra's goal of making Nationals.

•           Michigan
  
  
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  Michigan Ann Arbor, MI   Team Name: Flywheel Coaches: Naomi Warren, Julia Weinart
  Our team was formed in 1989 and since then has been competing nationally.  We have made it to Nationals 4 out of the past 4 years with our highest finish as 5th in 2008.  We were originally named Wanda’s Binge and finally adopted the name of "Flywheel" for the 1997/1998 season.

•           Northwestern
  
  
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  Northwestern Evanston, IL   Team Name: Gung-Ho Coaches: Ron Kubalanza, Marty Wasserman

  Two girls, orange camo jerseys, and big dreams started Northwestern's women's Ultimate team in 1998.  The team adopted the name Gung-Ho in 2000, which means working together with heart and spirit. After struggling for a few years to get our footing in the Great Lakes region, Gung-Ho took 9th in our first appearance at Nationals in 2001, and repeated the performance in 2002.  We took 11th in 2005 and were the first Great Lakes team to make it to quarters in 2007, finishing 5th.  Last year Gung-Ho picked up a new coach in Ron Kubalanza and a 17th place finish at Nationals.  With an underclassmen-heavy team and an unparalleled work ethic in the blustery Chicago wind, we're ready to bring our game to the championships.

•           Ottawa
  
  
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  Ottawa Ottawa, ON   Team Name: Lady Gee Gees Coaches: Ken Alexander, Viviane Bartlett

  The Lady Gee Gees were founded in 2004 by Amy Richardson, Julie Holsworth, and Andrea Cardin. Over the years we’ve been fortunate enough to attract players from juniors team, as well as athletes from other sports, and the team has been growing ever since. The team has been participating in the Canadian series since it’s’ inception in 2004, winning each University tournament title we are able to attend. With the success in Canada, the team expanded it’s experience down south, first appeared in the USAU scene in 2007. The Lady Gee Gees try to attend several tournaments in the USA each year in order to lengthen our season and increase the experiences of the team to further player development. Each year shows drastic improvements in the team as a whole, from the beginning of the year to the end, and we’re always excited to see how many new players to the team continue playing ultimate after our college season ends.

•           Iowa
  
  
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  Iowa Iowa City, IA   Team Name: Saucy Nancy Coaches: Mikey Lun, Steven Hanson, Dan Kresowik

•           Carleton College
  
  
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  Carleton College Northfield, MN   Team Name: Syzygy Coaches: Elise Rasmussen, Anna Snyder
  What’s Syzygy, you might like to know? Three heavenly bodies, all in a row We’ve got the bodies, we’ve go the flow, so come on Syzygy, let’s go! Let’s line those bodies up, 1 – 2 – 3, We’ve got hucking O, we’ve got diving D, we’re going to launch that disc astronomically, So everyone knows we’re Syzygy! S – Y – Z – Y – G – Y GO!

•           Iowa State
  
  
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  Iowa State Ames, IA   Team Name: Woman Scorned Coaches: Kevin Seiler, Lana Seiler, Memo Hinckley

  Usually misquoted to Shakespeare, it is the English playwright and poet, William Congreve, that really said "Heaven has no rage like love to hatred turned / Nor hell a fury like a woman scorned." Iowa State University's "Woman Scorned" was founded by Rachel Derscheid in the year 2002. The history of Woman Scorned is varied: from barely fielding a team in its inaugural series competition, to harvesting stellar players who have competed on the national club scene with regularity. While a College Championship appearance remained elusive to this tough squad until 2009, Scorned has made small steps towards more competitiveness each year. Facing tough Central Region teams this season, Iowa State has fulfilled their ultimate goal, earning a bid to the 2011 Championships, and is anxious to improve upon their 2009 finish.

•           Tufts
  
  
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  Tufts Boston, MA   Team Name: Ewo Coach: Sangwha Hong

  The Tufts Women’s Ultimate Frisbee team was founded around spring of 1982 under the name of Rollicking Ultimate Disc, and made their first nationals appearance in 1991. Though always faced with challenges posed by the stormy northeast, Tufts has managed to stay present on the national scene (later renamed Tufts Elephant Women or Ewo), returning to the college championships in 1994, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2006 and 2007. Tufts’ Johanna Neumann became the youngest player to win the Callahan as a junior in 2000, and Caroline Chow came in 5th place in 2007.     Fueled by a disappointing 2010 season which ended with an 8-9 loss to Middlebury in the finals of regionals, the Ewo worked hard throughout the fall and winter seasons to get in shape and develop the skills that would enable them to reach the 2011 national championship. The Tufts Ewo surprised everyone at their first tournament of the 2011 season, Centex, with big wins against UNC, Carleton, and University of Washington to come in 3rd.  Tufts secured their return to the national championships this year by winning the New England D-I College Region!

•           Oregon
  
  
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  Oregon Eugene, OR   Team Name: Fugue Coaches: Lou Burruss, Ryan Crowley

  One of the elite teams of the Pacific Northwest Region, Oregon Fugue has made their talents felt over the past decade.  With a history of Callahan winners and nominees, a forceful presence at pre-season tournaments such as the Stanford Invite, Pres Day, and Centex, and a growing record in the college season, Fugue is a solid team with an undeniable talent.  As last year’s Nationals Champions, Fugue has an insatiable desire for their second national title.   What will fuel Fugue to accomplish such a feat?  Their fierce athleticism, rowdy defense, high-speed play, and above all, their unshakable love for Ultimate and for each other.

•           Washington
  
  
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  Washington Seattle, WA   Team Name: Element Coach: Danny Karlinsky

  Since their first Nationals appearance in 2005, Washington Element has been a dominant competitor in Womens Ultimate. This year, Element returns to the Show armed with a special type of ammo: Coach Danny Karlinsky and Charlie Sheen. Element has developed an unusual appetite for Tiger Blood and Winning. In fact, many Washington players have recently been diagnosed with a unique disorder: ‘Biwinning.’ We’ve taken up additional sports to fulfill our winning needs, mainly competitive street dancing and half-court basketball, where travels are encouraged.

•           British Columbia
  
  
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  British Columbia Vancouver, BC   Team Name: Thunderbirds Coaches: Tasia Balding, Ashley Welsh

  UBC Ultimate was founded in 1997. Throughout the years many talented players have gone through the Thunderbird program; it has become a breeding ground that attracts from players across the country. We have had the honour to be coached and taught by some of the best players in Vancouver.   Our first showing at UPA nationals was in 1997 when the team came 2nd. The team qualified three years in a row starting in 2006 and made it back the next year, which led to our big win in 2008. We have 3 players on the team that are attending Collage Nationals for the third time; Alannah Johnston, Jenny Lo, and Geneva Locke. Hannah Epperson, Maria Chau, and Katie Berezan were also present in 2008 for the victory. We are all excited to be back and able to share this experience with the rest of our team.

•           Ohio State
  
  
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  Ohio State Columbus, OH   Team Name: Fever Coaches: Deanna Ball, Brent Reed, Rdger Oakes

  In the busting city of Columbus, OH, an epidemic has been gathering strength and heating up as OSU’s ultimate team, Fever, set its sights on one monstrous goal for the year: to qualify for the 2011 College Championships and make history as Ohio State’s first women’s ultimate team to qualify for Nationals.  Starting out small in 2002, Fever Ultimate has had a long road to travel en route to the national tournament.  The team qualified for Regionals its first year together, but it was not until the 2007-2008 season that Fever really began to set its sights on Nationals, placing 1st at Sectionals and qualifying again for the regional games.  Over the next seasons, the team truly began to heat up its game, making regular appearances at the Sectional and Regional competitions, but falling just short of the national bid.  The temperature reached an all-time high this season, however, as captains Janine Walker and Cassie Swafford led the 20-person team to snag both the Ohio Conference and Ohio Valley Regional titles, a first in Fever history.  The team set its goals high, keeping a Nationals bid in sight year-round as they trained under the mad coaching skills of Deanna Ball, Brent Reeb, and Rodger Oakes.  So don’t sweat it if you’re a little worried about OSU Fever’s rise to the national competition...perspiration may be a sign that a bodily fever is dropping, but in ultimate it just means that one team is getting hotter and hotter!

•           Colorado College
  
  
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  Colorado College Colorado Springs, CO   Team Name: Lysistrata's Tools Coaches: Emily Anderson, Justine Crowley, Michelle Grosscost

  In 404 B.C. the unabating Peloponnesian War came to a sudden and grinding halt when Lysistrata, wife of the leading general, decided she'd really had enough.  After denying the goods to her ever-loving husband, she convinced the town's female cohorts to do the same for their spouses.  Viola, war no more.  Chalk one up for the female sex!  Following the tradition of our namesake, we love to deny victory to our opponents, and we like to do it in epic, athletic style.  As a new team on the scene, we on 'Strata don't have a great deal of recent history to draw upon, but we make up for it in heart, soul, athleticism, intensity and rive.  Lysistrata's Tools was created in 1981 by one of our current coaches, Justine Crowley.  While we've been inexistance off an don since then, it has only been in the past three years that Strata has emerged in the competitive Ultimate scene.  Due to the hard work, enthusiasm and dedication of our players, captains, and coaches over the past three years, we have finally solidified our program.  We are incredibly excited for our first appearance at nationals.  Watch out ladies, 'Strata is coming to town!

•           Washington University
  
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  Washington University St. Louis , MO   Team Name:  WUWU Coaches: Abby Stephens, Melissa Gibbs

  WUWU has experienced an enormous amount of growth the past few years, this year being our third consecutive Nationals appearance. Our program has recently developed into a team with a much more competitive focus, with truly dedicated members that are working hard to turn our program into a nationally recognized women’s ultimate team. With an almost entire line of graduating players, this year’s WUWU is more invested, more excited, more experienced and more polished than ever before. We’re excited to be a part of the growth of women’s ultimate and the 2011 Championships!

•           Florida
  
  
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  Florida Gainesville, FL   Team Name: FUEL Coach: Joe Crinkley

  Since its inception in 2001, FUEL has grown from a ragtag group of 9 ultimate loving ladies into an elite squad of over 20 of the best female ultimate athletes the state of Florida has to offer.  FUEL has qualified for Nationals twice in its herstory; first in 2006 and then again the following year.  Having dominated the southeast all season and competed well against other Nationals qualifiers at the President’s Day Invitational, FUEL’s goal this year is to top their best Nationals performance, which was a quarterfinals appearance in 2006.  Much like previous years, FUEL has built their reputation this season on speed, depth, and a fun loving attitude that embodies the spirit of ultimate.  FUEL plays a fast paced exciting style of ultimate that is sure to shock more than a couple teams in this year’s Championship series.

•           California-Santa Barbara
  
  
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  California-Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA   Team Name: Burning Skirts Coaches: Andrea Romano, Kaela Jorgenson, Tyler Bacon

  The Santa Barbara women’s college ultimate team began in the fall of 1984, a team which by 1988 dubbed themselves the Burning Skirts. Under the guidance of the founder Liz (Stoltz) Allen, the Skirts made their inaugural appearance to the College Championships in 1988. The Skirts won their second and third College Championship titles in 1990, and 1991. After a thirteen year hiatus from the national scene the Skirts returned to the Championship game again in 2007 and 2008 falling just short of the title. In 2009 the team brought home its fourth title. After appearing in the finals game for the last four years the Skirts look to continue the streak as they head to Boulder for the 2011 College Championships.

•           Stanford
  
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  Stanford Stanford, CA   Team Name: Superfly Coaches: Robin Davis, Jamie Nuwer

  No other team in the history of college ultimate has as storied a past as Stanford Superfly.  Since the Stanford women’s team first qualified for the College Championships in 1995, it has made the final game eleven times en route to winning seven championship titles (including a three-peat from 2005-2007).  Our program has always achieved great results, but those on the team this year would probably say they’re most proud of how strongly Superfly 2011 has bonded away from tournaments.  We’ve held each other up through 40-yard ladder sprints in the sprinklers at 7:00am and focused for endless hours on defensive strategy; we work incredibly hard for each other and yet we’re always laughing.  Led by veteran coaches Robin Davis and Jamie Nuwer, we have built an athletic, scrappy team that only improves with each game we play.  It’s been a long four years since Stanford made an appearance in the national championship finals, but this team has the willpower and strength to fight our way back to the top.

•           California
  
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  California Berkeley, CA   Team Name: Pie Queens Coaches: Joy Chen, Corey Lee, Ethan Schlenker

  The Berkeley Pie Queens have a long history of playing with utmost respect for our opponents and ourselves. Named after a diner in Oakland, California, we pride ourselves on our pie-making abilities and our commitment to challenge ourselves to be the best teammates we can be. Despite our continuous struggle for field space, we have been to Nationals in 1991-93, 1996, 2003-05, 2007 and 2010. As a program, we have grown from winning Regionals with a near-savage squad in 1996 to sending three teams of spirited and talented athletes to the 2011 Norcal Conference Championships.