2014 Youth Club Championships: Day One Recap - Boys' Division
Nick Ryan, Charlie Enders
Posted: August 9, 2014 10:21 PM
Blaine, Minn. (Aug. 9, 2014) - In the U-19 and U-16 boys' divisions, day one of the 2014 Youth Club Championships featured as many as five rounds of pool play with nearly countless double-game point wins and plenty of high-level competition. Round-by-round recaps for each division are outlined below.
Photo by: CBMT creative
U-19 Boys
By: Nick Ryan
Round One
Minnesota Superior-A, coached by Dan Rydel, Ian Andre-Knudsen, Nick Simonelli and Josh Klane, faced off against South Dakota Sodak, coached by Dennis Servaty, Josh Gomez and Jeff Goldberg. Sodak came out of the gate hard and forced Superior to call an early timeout. Superior took the game away from Sodak with a lead of 8-4 halfway through the game. Sodak was not helped when one of their leaders, Jacob Servaty, got injured with Superior up 11-6. Superior came away with a win on a final score of 13-6.
Carolina Sky, the Triangle area's B-team, faced an east coast rival in Washington, D.C. Deadrise. Deadrise is composed of players from five different high schools in the Washington D.C. area, making for a shaky first game as the team worked to figure out their on-field chemistry. Carolina Sky led at the half with a score of 7-2. Both teams experienced some first-game jitters in the form of dropped discs and miscalculated throws. The score was 10-3 with 10 minutes remaining in the game. Both teams squeezed in one more score to make the final 11-4, Carolina Sky.
Texas Two Step, hailing from Dallas, Texas, faced off against Birmingham, Alabama’s Forge. This game started out with great back-and-forth play and a score tied at 5-5 early on. Texas then two stepped into the lead with a halftime score of 8-5. Forge fought back but could not get a rally going. With five minutes to hard cap, the score for Texas settled at 14, and Forge held onto 8. In those last five minutes, Forge was able to secure two more points, to make the final score 14-10, Texas.
Flying Pig, from Cincinnati, Ohio, took the lead and did not let up against the villainous Nashvillains from, you guessed it, Nashville, Tenn. Flying Pig ponied up to a 3-0 lead which became a 7-5 lead to take us into halftime. The Flying Pigs kept the pressure on through the second half and came away with a final score of 13-7.
Neuqua Valley Nightmare is a large program which has been spearheading the youth ultimate scene in Illinois for years now; Southeast Michigan's SEMI fielded a small team with just the minimum 12 guys for their debut at YCC. Despite having a smaller team, SEMI answered each Nightmare point with a point of their own before SEMI pulled away to take half at 7-5. Nightmare showed that they would not give up easily by making a comeback; the score at hard cap was 9-9, and both teams prepared for double-game point. With nothing to lose, SEMI strung together some good throws and catches to win the game 10-9.
With an early score of 6-4 in favor of Indiana INferno, their game against New York VolcaNYC could have gone either way. VolcaNYC didn't take no for an answer and hung with the boys from Indiana throughout the game but could never make the run they needed to take the lead. INferno took the game 10-8.
Portland, Maine's Rising Tide made a strong debut in their third appearance at YCC against first-year team Connecticut Insomnia. It was a battle with both teams trading points until Insomnia led at half 7-6. Insomnia must have tapped into some inspiration after halftime because they pulled away with a 13-10 win over the Tide.
Round Two
For this round, the power pool teams joined the fray in the U-19 division at the National Sports Center. The number one seed, Atlanta's ATLiens, played strong man defense throughout a very close game against Denver, Colorado’s Cutthroat. It was no easy task getting to halftime, but the ATLiens managed to get there with a score of 7-5. Not to be outdone, Cutthroat stepped up their game to tie the score at sevens. The clock dwindled and hard cap was called, but Cutthroat still had a chance at 7-8. Atlanta shut the door with a smooth score and a win at 9-7 over Colorado.
The conglomeration of players from the Delaware Valley area came together again as DEVYL and were lined up across from Pittsburgh's Impulse. The game began, and the teams immediately started trading points. Pittsburgh played loose defense on the DEVYL handlers, which allowed DEVYL to take the game to halftime with a score of 7-5. DEVYL paired a tight man defense with some excellent break throws to maintain a small lead and eventually closed out the game with a final score of 10-9.
To continue with the trend of very close games, Seattle's Salvo didn't give an inch to Boston's BUDA; BUDA answered with equal tenacity. Salvo played an effective man defense against BUDA's horizontal stack, which forced BUDA into risky hucks early in the game. These two teams spent the first half of the game trading points until Salvo took half at 7-5. BUDA stepped into the second half with some beautiful red zone offense and tied the game at 7-7. They kept rolling to take a lead at 8-7. But Salvo found their stride and went on to win the game 12-11.
The Triangle Area's A-team, Triforce, played Chicago's U-19 Elite in their first game of the weekend. There were no break points in this game until the point for halftime which came at 7-5 with Chicago in the lead. Triforce managed to come back and tie it up at 10-10 at the horn for hard cap. Both teams fought hard on the final point, but Triforce squeezed out a win of 11-10.
The Cincinnati Flying Pigs made moves against Neuqua Valley Nightmare. The Flying Pigs scored point after point until after halftime, which they took at 7-0, but Nightmare did not get discouraged. They fought hard to put five points on the board before the Flying Pigs put the game away at 13-5.
The Nashvillains shut down SEMI with an efficient and effective zone, alongside an offense that could not be stopped. Halftime was sealed by Nashville at 7-2. Nashville didn't slow down in the second half and finished the game at 13-3.
VolcaNYC and Maine's Rising Tide both utilized strong cup-zone defenses, and the game stayed close until 5-5. But Tide's offense eventually found their way around the cup defense to win this one 13-9.
INferno played a tight zone defense which made it easy for Connecticut's Insomnia to tire them out and eventually break them. In contrast, Insomnia put out a loose and poachy zone defense, which worked to their advantage as they took the game away for a final score of 13-4.
Round Three
Carolina Sky received the pull, put up a big huck and scored the first point. Despite leading for most of the first half, the Carolina Sky darkened as the Superior A team rolled in. Most of the points in the second half were long and arduous, with Superior usually coming out on top, leading them to an 11-9 win.
The first half of the Sodak v. Deadrise game leaned heavily in favor of Sodak at 5-3. Deadrise didn't take that score lying down and got four straight breaks to take half at 7-5. Long points reigned supreme, and so did Deadrise, with a final score of 9-6 over Sodak.
Texas brought out the big guns with a defense that Superior B’s offense could not beat. Texas took the lead after some points were traded and never gave it up. Final score: 10-4 Texas.
SEMI's smaller squad may have been worn out by the time they got to what turned out to be a low-scoring game against the Flying Pigs. Halftime came early for the Pigs at 7-3, and they showed no signs of slowing down. 13-4 was the final for this game.
Neuqua Valley's Nightmare looked like they were reveling in the competition and having a large amount of fun, despite their low scoring game against the Nashvillains. The Villains took the game convincingly, 13-3.
Effective defense can spell disaster for even the best of teams; that is exactly what happened to VolcaNYC when they matched up against Insomnia's cup defense. A contentious point occurred which would make the score for Insomnia 10-2; no matter the score, VolcaNYC discussed the issue with Insomnia in a very calm, collected and spirited manner. The game ended soon after that point with a score of 13-3, Insomnia.
Maine's Rising Tide and Indiana INferno aired out huck after huck in a very exciting point-for-point first half which INferno took at 7-6. Rising Tide couldn't seem to get the disc off the line, and INferno took advantage of their strong defense to snag the game with a score of 10-9.
Round Four
A nail-biter of a game emerged from the clash between the ATLiens and Pittsburgh's Impulse. Both teams aired the disc out throughout the game. Pittsburgh commanded the whole field with long handler swings and good up-field looks to cutters coming out of their vertical stack. 1-1 became 2-2, became 4-4, became double-game point at 11-11. An ATLiens handler picked up a turned disc, looked downfield, liked what he saw and put up a potential game-winning huck. The Pittsburgh defender stayed with his cutter streaking deep step for step while reading the disc well enough to get a clutch D. But Pittsburgh let the offensive opportunity slip through their fingers, and the ATLiens smashed in the point for the win at 12-11.
Cutthroat struggled to utilize the whole field with DEVYL's cup zone confining them to working it on the sidelines. The DEVYL squad really showed their athleticism in this game as they pulled into the lead after halftime. DEVYL shined on the sidelines and, like Colorado, were constantly forced to work it straight up the line. Consistency came out on top, and DEVYL beat Cutthroat 12-5.
Salvo held Chicago to a close game with a tight zone defensive look and a patient zone offense which tended to find holes in Chicago's loose zone. Chicago's handlers swung the disc well and put up a good fight against Salvo's dominant zone. In the end, Salvo came out 12-9 over Chicago.
A team with handlers that can work well together in the backfield and on their strike cuts will be able to break down almost any defense; that's exactly what Triforce took to BUDA. Triforce held the lead the entire game, never letting it out of their sight. Triforce won 11-8 after the hard cap went off.
Superior A paired a wide vertical stack on the open side with accurate, calculated hucks to handily beat Deadrise 13-2.
Carolina Sky took advantage of holes in Sodak's three-man cup and worked the disc up the field to gain and keep the lead. Sodak struggled to come back from a deficit and defaulted to a huck-heavy offense. Carolina Sky put a second W on the board with a final score of 13-5.
Low-scoring games with long points will often go to the team with the most physical stamina and the most mental patience. Forge held a lead for most of their game against Superior B, but the Minnesotans were not discouraged and never looked entirely out of the game. Unfortunately for Superior B, Forge would not let go of their lead and won the game 10-6.
Round Five
The ATLiens got the drop on DEVYL and jumped out to an early 6-1 lead. Both teams needed some time to get their defensive legs early in this game, but the ATLiens eventually got it under control and pulled away. DEVYL fought until the end but couldn't recover from the early deficit, and the ATLiens closed out the game 11-8.
Pittsburgh put up two quick points on Colorado. Colorado answered with good field vision combined with smart decision making, despite a cluttered horizontal stack. With a score of 13-9 Colorado put this game in their W column.
Triforce and Salvo came together with many players who, three years ago, faced each other in the U-16 division finals. This rivalry and the accompanying history made for a high-pressure match. Triforce relaxed into a patient offense against Salvo’s cup, utilizing smart hucks to demoralize the Seattle defense. Salvo used a tight and fast cup which did not make the journey an easy one for Triforce. The game stayed within a point, with both teams trading, all the way to double-game point at 10-10. The Seattle handlers are to thank for their win in this game; because of their relaxed play, Salvo edged out Triforce and took the game 11-10.
BUDA tightened the screws on Chicago with strong defense. Chicago could not seem to get the disc off the line. When defending in the red zone, Chicago got one-upped by quick cuts. Chicago did force BUDA into risky hucks on more than one occasion, but it wasn't enough as BUDA won 13-6.
Forge got into a run for their money with Deadrise. Forge maintained a clean offense despite constantly being stuck on the line by Deadrise’s zone defense and pulled out a win in yet another double-game point situation in the division, 11-10.
Carolina Sky took the lead and refused to give it back to Superior B. Despite Superior B's best efforts, Carolina Sky won 13-7.
Nashvillains zigged and zagged through Rising Tide's loose zone defense and held a lead, albeit sometimes a small one, for the game’s entirety and finished out at 13-10.
INferno hucked up a storm and came away with a 13-8 win over SEMI.
All bracket play in the U-19 boys’ division happens tomorrow, starting with the pre-quarterfinals at 9:00am CT.
U-16 Boys
By: Charlie Enders
The under-16 division at the Youth Club Championships has given multitudes of young(er) players a championship to aspire to and strive for since its inception in 2011. While many of the players don’t yet have their licenses, they definitely have the drive to take home the coveted U-16 crown. Here’s a brief recap of today’s action.
Pool A
DiscNW returned this year to defend their title with a new name (Doomsday) and a thirst for a repeat. They mauled Chicago Deep Dish 15-1, but ran into a stubborn Bay Area team in their second game of the day. Although head coach Reid Koss could not be with the team this weekend due to the World Ultimate Club Championships (and his silver-medal finish with Seattle Sockeye), coaches Khalif El-Salaam and Eddie Feeley provided steady heads and helped captain Ivan Lee guide the team to a 12-10 victory over Aftershock. Aftershock, led by Jeremy Dolezal-Ng’s five assists, had earlier defeated Chicago to claim the two spot in the pool.
Pool B
North Carolina Hammer was far and away the best team in Pool B, winning each of their games by at least seven points. The Triangle Area’s youth scene has really amped up in recent years, and unsurprisingly, the success trickles down to the youngest among them. Tyler French was a monster all day, tallying five goals in addition to five assists, while Teddy Randby (six assists) deftly distributed the disc. Elsewhere, Neuqua Valley Nightmare took care of business against Cincinnati and South Dakota to clinch the second spot in the pool (although they needed a double-game point to defeat the Storm), and the Flying Piglets, led by Kane Gormley (who finished the day with eight assists, good to tie for first in the division), took third.
Pool C
New Jersey DeVYL was never really challenged in this pool, defeating Maine and Pittsburgh by 11 and five points, respectively. Six foot, three inch Connor Russell was an aerial force all day, using his length to sky others, often without jumping. Meanwhile, Pittsburgh’s Casey Mann helped Impulse seal up the pool’s second spot by defeating Maine Neap Tide 9-7.
Pool D
Much like Pool B, Pool D featured a team that was head and shoulders above the others. Atlanta ATLas annihilated their competition, giving up no more than four points in any game. Captain Mack Hodges may be the best player in the U-16 division, notching eight assists on the day, and U-19 Worlds player Sebastian Di Francesco’s little brother Drew showed that disc talent must be genetic, with four goals. Minnesota’s Adam Grund matched Hodges’ eight assists with eight goals, but that didn’t prevent ATLas from beating them 10-4 and handing them a second-place finish in the pool. DeVYL-B defeated Colorado 10-8 to seal a third-place pool finish for the New Jerseyites.
Crossovers!
All teams, regardless of pool play, qualified for prequarters. But some match ups meant significantly more than others. Since there were only three teams in pools A and C, the two pool winners met in a game to figure out which side of the championship bracket they would be on. Seattle and DeVYL had both already qualified for the quarterfinals; this game was simply to find out who they would play. In a very back-and-forth game, Seattle pulled out a squeaker 11-10. Amanze Oleru was fantastic for Doomsday, often going deep from the handler position and pulling down hucks. Tomorrow, Seattle will face Neuqua Valley, who managed to defeat DeVYL-B 9-7 in a time-capped affair. Meanwhile, DeVYL-A was shipped over to the other side of the bracket, where they will play the Flying Piglets of Cincinnati in the quarterfinals. Cincy defeated hometown team Minnesota Superior 9-5 to advance.
The first-place teams from Pools B and D, on the other hand, received byes into the quarters. Both Atlanta and North Carolina will have tough match ups in the morning against Pittsburgh and the Bay Area, respectively. Pittsburgh reached the quarters with a 9-7 victory over Chicago, while the Bay Area played like they had against Seattle to vanquish Portland 13-8.
While the semifinal favorites have to be Seattle, Atlanta, New Jersey and Carolina, don’t be surprised if at least one is stunned in the quarterfinal round. The Bay Area has looked good, and at times unstoppable, this weekend. They’ll have to play that way for an entire game to defeat NC Hammer.
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Photos (by CBMT Creative)
2014 YCC - Day 1 Highlights
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