Beach Diaries, Mixed (Regnier) 8/23/11
Sam Regnier
Posted: August 23, 2011 11:42 AM
Day 2 thoughts
Midnight here, just got back and cleaned up after watching the showcase game in the arena (US Masters vs.Canada) and I gotta say: our masters team is SICK. Featuring a collection of DoG and Surly guys, they mixed some huge layout D's with big hucks to run away with the game 13-5. Most of our mixed team walked down to watch (the arena is about a mile down the boardwalk) and joined with a sizable contingent of U.S. players cheering them on.
On to our games: we had a weird schedule today, with games at 4 and 7 allowing us to watch the U.S. ladies dominate (combined 26-2 score in their two games today).
4 PM: USA vs. UAE
We started out against United Arab Emirates, a game that pitted the #1 seed against the last seed. We dedicated ourselves to remaining focused no matter what opponent we face, though we generally are not the type of team that underestimates opponents. This team has a really interesting persona; by and large we are populated with unassuming, workmanlike players. This does mean that we can be an interesting challenge to pump up, but it also means that we play with consistency and resolve.
Once again, we started by fronting the downfield cutters and forcing our opponents to force difficult throws over the top. UAE had trouble with the wind, and we raced out to an early lead and carried through to a 13-0 victory.
7 PM: USA vs. Austria
This was our first real test of the tournament, and came in front of a big crowd in front of Frisbee central. Both teams came out strong, with Austria feeding off the crowd's energy to cut the deficit to 4-3. The charged atmosphere went both ways, however, as both Sally Mimms and Lisa Pitcaithley notched bookends in the next few points, and Adam Raty made a brutal deep cut to beat his defender by 20 yards for a score. Suddenly we were up 9-4 en route to a 13-7 victory, withstanding a late burst of energy and a huge hammer from the Austrians.
Three big games tomorrow - starting in eight and a half hours against the Russians. Visualizing Rocky IV already.
Team USA Beach Diaries
Some members of Team USA will be submitting diary entries during the event to keep everyone posted on their experience in Italy.