New Image for Ultimate Frisbee

By Tom Schreier

The club Ultimate Frisbee team, also known as Santa Clara Altered Beast, has a reputation on campus, known by many as the "drinking team with a Frisbee problem."

This year they are determined to change the team's culture.

"I'd say that phrase is more indicative of the former team," junior Charles McArthur wrote in an email. "Last year we recognized our potential and really got serious about Frisbee, and that mentality has carried through into this year."

Junior Travis Duncan acknowledged that the mindset of the team has begun to change.

"The commitment is much more to Ultimate than to getting drunk and partying," said Duncan. "Part of that is, they say Ultimate is the fastest growing sport in America, and we definitely have seen a much higher level of play from the freshmen."

High schools across America have adapted structured Ultimate Frisbee teams, which means that freshmen come in with significantly more playing experience.

"My freshman year, it definitely was like (a party atmosphere)," said Kyle Casey, a senior last year who admitted that things got out of hand with the team when he was younger.

"We partied a lot more... because people were coming in not knowing anything about Ultimate, and that was how we could keep people."

Last year the team made a run to the regional tournament with only 15 (as opposed to the usual 24) players on their roster. Santa Clara fell to better competition at the tournament, but said that they believe a more serious mindset will merit to better results.

"It comes from the captains and the leadership who say, ‘We're not just out here to mess around and stay in shape,'" said Duncan. "Our goal is to make regionals. Our goal is to win games, not just have a good time.'"

SCAB took an unconventional route to regionals last year.

A fifth place finish in the sectional tournament was not good enough to advance to the next round, but Santa Clara caught a major break when a team from Arizona had to drop out of the California-based regional tournament due to proximity.

SCAB had made it to regionals.

"We didn't get there the most normal way," said Duncan, "but we got there and we played really, really well, so we're trying to go back."

If they are going to go back to regionals, they will have to defeat Sonoma State, a perennial Ultimate Frisbee powerhouse.

"I would say our biggest rivalry is Sonoma State," said Casey. "It is one of the friendliest rivalries we have though. They are a team that always brings out the best in us."

That doesn't mean that Santa Clara won't play them tough.

"When we play (Sonoma State) at tournaments, we try our hardest to beat them," he continued. "They're not a team that we would ever get up in their face or get upset at."

The team will square off against Sonoma State in the Santa Clara Carmen Classic, which will take place on the Bellomy and Stanton Fields during the weekend of Nov. 5.

As a way to prepare for the Carmen Classic, SCAB participated in two local tournaments this month — one in Chico and one in Sonoma. In the annual Sonoma tournament, the team came away with three wins and three losses. SCAB was able to defeat the University of Nevada at Reno, Oregon State and Oregon, which forfeited its contest against Santa Clara.

 Although SCAB did not face Sonoma State, the team did have to compete against other traditional powers in Stanford and Chico. Santa Clara lost to both teams as well as Las Positas College, but SCAB is hoping that the weekend in Sonoma will be a learning experience going forward.

Santa Clara will have to defeat Sonoma State and Sacramento State, along with other local rivals such as Santa Cruz and Cal, in order to fulfill their goal of reaching the Division III national tournament this year.

Defeating well-known Californian schools at Ultimate Frisbee will go a long way to changing their reputation on campus.

Contact Tom Schreier at tschreier@scu.edu or (408) 554-4852.