Players lined up at the fields by Xfinity Center on Wednesday afternoon, set to practice their “cuts” and “flicks,” weaving in a four-line figure-eight formation.
A scrimmage followed the drill, highlighted by fast-paced play and shouts of obscure terms such as “early bird,” in which this university’s club ultimate players move with designed precision to work the play back to the middle of the field.
Twenty years after ultimate, a game in which teams aim to move a flying disc down the field and into end zones, was founded at Columbia High School in Maplewood, New Jersey, it’s found its way to the fields in College Park.
“It looked like a fun group of people, so I went to a couple practices and it was a nice, not super competitive way to get exercise,” said freshman aerospace engineering major Logan Gibb, who started playing this year. “[Playing] was a little confusing at the start because I didn’t know what any of the terms meant, but after a while at practice it starts to become second nature.”
Junior English major Shane Pratt has been playing ultimate for seven years. He joined this university’s club team after picking up the game in high school and playing at community college.
“I like the competition on a friendly level,” Pratt said. “It’s never too serious; it’s the best sport there is.”
Ultimate is a hybrid game, combining aspects of football, soccer and basketball. It’s not uncommon for players to have some sort of background in one of the three.
“It’s the same amount of running as soccer, you’re playing on a football field, and when you have the disc in your hands, it’s essentially like picking up your dribble in basketball,” said Max Katz, a junior community health major who played soccer growing up.
Sean Reischel, a sophomore civil engineering major and a member of the club’s Space Bastards “A” team, played football in high school. He said the transition was effortless.
“I’ve always played Frisbee with my friends and it was loads of fun,” Reischel said. “I figured, why not try and play competitively? It’s been great; they’re a great group of guys.”
The club team is split into two squads: the Space Bastards and the “B” team, Solar Flair. Both hold two-hour practices four days a week.
While the Space Bastards, with about 28 members, are more competitive, Solar Flair tends to play more for recreation. In total, they have about 40 members.
Though both groups operate under the umbrella of club, the Space Bastards and Solar Flair practice separately and play in different tournaments. Both teams will play three to four tournaments throughout the season.
“It’s basically the same as Glee where they have Sectionals, Regionals and Nationals,” said Nathan Prior, a Space Bastard captain and senior economics and government and politics major.
Last season, the “A” team finished ranked No. 28 in the country, while the “B’ team ranked No. 190, according USA Ultimate, the sport’s national governing body.
The other captain of the “A” team is Issac Kinton, a second-year graduate student studying geographical information and systems. Players have five years of competitive eligibility, per USA Ultimate regulations. Ben Slade played at Clemson University and now works at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, coaching the “A” team in his spare time.
The three Solar Flair captains, including junior computer engineering major Colin Versteeg, serve as teachers for newer members, running drills and organizing scrimmages like the one on the field Wednesday.
“If you came back tomorrow and you wanted to play with us, we would welcome you with open arms,” Versteeg said.
