Forget Cancun, Daytona Beach or the unfortunate Spring Break destination of “just going home.” The members of the Northwestern men’s ultimate frisbee team happily spent their break in Savannah, Ga.
Winning Savannah’s High Tide tournament with a perfect 10-0 record didn’t take the wind out of the squad’s proverbial sails. Competing against schools like Dartmouth, Chicago and MIT, the tournament’s lineup bore an eerie resemblance to the upper-echelon of U.S. News & World Report college rankings.
With no classes to worry about, the Wildcats focused on frisbee, dominating pool-play and the elimination rounds before besting St. Olaf’s for the title. Co-captain Dave Cesa was named tournament MVP, capping off an eventful week.
“We threw a party the night before the final,” co-captain Brendon Desrochers said.
The 18 team members who made the trip crammed into a beach house on nearby Tibee Island, which Desrochers said is similar to Cape Cod.
Last weekend at Purdue, NU went 7-1 in sectionals, capturing second place and earning a trip to regionals in May. The Cats’ match for second place went to sudden death with the score knotted at 16. Throwing against gale-force winds, Stukel completed a pass to Jeff Mercer for the winning point. NU will be the no. 5 seed in the regionals, where only two teams will advance to nationals.
While the stakes at regionals will be higher than in Savannah, the locale will certainly not be as hot, unless assembly lines and transmissions really turn you on. Yes, Detroit will play host to the regionals.
Comeback Cats: On the eve of the 108th Boston Marathon, the NU men’s lacrosse team had to go the extra mile to beat Kansas, to defeat the Jayhawks in double-overtime. Senior Gareth Hayes netted the goal that tied the score at 7-7 with seven seconds remaining in regulation. Hayes then capped the affair, breaking free from his man and scoring early in the second extra period.
Trailing 6-1 at intermission, NU’s hopes of upsetting No. 8 Kansas looked grim. Did a rousing locker room speech propel the Cats to their second-half surge?
Not exactly.
“We just decided we should start playing,” club president Doug Dresser said.
After spending a restless night in what Dresser described as a “tiny” hotel room in Columbia, Mo., the Cats again came out lethargically on Sunday.
They entered the break tied with No. 25 Kansas State before scoring four unanswered goals in the second half.
Players on unranked NU said they are confident the victories will vault them into the national rankings.
Row, Row, Row Your Boat: In the Midwest’s riff on the famed rowing rivalry between Harvard and Yale, the men’s varsity crew team swept Notre Dame at a dual meet Saturday, including a 24-second margin of victory in the “B” four-man boat.
The varsity squad wrapped up an undefeated weekend with a victory against Chicago the following day.
The novice men lost to Notre Dame on Saturday and Marquette on Sunday before defeating Chicago.
The varsity women edged Butler by 35 seconds but endured a sweep by the Maroons the next day.
