Women’s Ultimate fifth at regionals
Teammates plan to continue to compete throughout the summer
Although sMITe, MIT’s Women’s Ultimate, finished the season placing fifth at Division I regionals, they are not done with the sport. Many team members plan to continue playing during the summer, and next weekend a few will volunteer at the Northeastern High School Regionals.
Last weekend, sMITe attended regionals at Dartmouth College. Losing only to Middlebury College in a four-team pool and beating University of Massachusetts 15-4 in crossover, sMITe solidified their position in the Championship bracket. In quarterfinals, MIT played against Dartmouth, and despite losing the first three points quickly, MIT improved their defense, forcing Dartmouth to earn every long point.
This upcoming weekend, five sMITe players will volunteer at Northeastern High School Regionals. Like many of her teammates, Monica Isava ’13 has the attitude that she “seriously can’t get enough of ultimate.” Team member Becky A. Vasquez ’12 are also intrigued by the growth of youth ultimate. “I think it is cool that high school ultimate is becoming more popular and I want to be a part of it,” she said.
Meanwhile, other players have begun investigating summer leagues so that their skills stay fresh while away from MIT. Rookie Charlotte Zhu ’15 and others will join Booosh!, a mixed-gender Boston team co-started by sMITe alum Claudia G Vasquez G. Unfortunately for those staying in other cities, tryouts for club teams finish up before MIT finals end. Still, Captain Michelle A. Rybak ’13 hopes that she “can be a practice player for a club team, and if [she] can’t [she] will try to be diligent and workout out several times a week, throw a lot, and find pick up wherever [she] can.”