USA Ultimate

Open Division North Central D-III Regionals Recap

Event recap by St John's Charlie Enders, as a part of our 2013 Regionals coverage.

As the weather in the Midwest took a turn for the better, so did the spirits of the region’s ultimate players. This was especially true for the D-III men of the North Central, many having played a tournament just the week before with snow on the ground. The three favorites, St John’s, St Olaf and Carleton College-GOP, cruised through pool play on Saturday only to violently collide in elimination play the next day. With only one bid to Nationals, the competition was fiercer than a caged hungry wolverine.

Pool Play

Since every team automatically made the championship bracket on Sunday, Saturday play was simply for seeding purposes. But that doesn’t mean games were any less competitive. Games of note included St John’s versus an always-competitive Grinnell squad, and GOP versus St Olaf. Grinnell has a great program that stays competitive year in and year out, and St John’s had to grind out a 15-11 victory. GOP managed to squeak out a win over Olaf 15-13, in a game that turned out to be a teaser for what was to come the following day.

Bracket Play

If wind was minimal the first day, it was non-existent the second. Athleticism was on full display in both the semifinal matchups. GOP took care of business against Grinnell (13-8), but the real action was on the adjacent field between St John’s BAM and the St Olaf Berserkers. The teams were pretty much even up until half, when Olaf broke to take an 8-7 lead. Despite excellent handling from sophomore Matt Berthiaume, BAM couldn’t quite close the gap in the second half, and Olaf broke again to take the game 15-12. After taking second at Nationals in 2011 and fifth in 2012, BAM failed to qualify in 2013.

Championship

The championship game marked the fourth time St Olaf and GOP had met this season, with GOP holding the edge in the series 2-1. GOP has a fantastic system that is partly based on positivity. Even when the other team scores a point, the GOP sidelines will stay loud and confident, encouraging each other to greater lengths. With players like Rhys Lindmark, Scott Graber and Niko Duffy leading the team, GOP has been a pillar of D-III excellence for the past few years.

GOP managed to gain a lead and take half 8-5, using it’s extremely tight zone defense to great effect. However, St Olaf eventually clawed its way back to make it 14-13, riding the strong defensive play of Mark Emmons. "Every single point was a battle," said sophomore GOP handler Matt Godfrey. However, the comeback proved to be too little too late, as GOP took the game and the region’s lone bid to Nationals 15-13.

GOP certainly proved they were best team this weekend, not losing a single game. However, it’s a shame that Olaf and BAM aren’t also attending Nationals in a tough year for bid allocations in the region. Here’s one BAM player hoping that next year the North Central will have ample bids!

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