Chatter from April 25-26 Regionals
Atlantic Coast: UNC-Wilmington (1), UNC (2)
Central: Wisconsin (1), Carleton College (2), Iowa State (3)
Metro-East: Ottawa (1), Pennsylvania (2)
South: Washington University (1), St. Louis University (2)
Southwest: UC-Santa Barbara (1), Colorado (2), UCLA (3), USC (4)
Robyn:
Atlantic Coast
This one played out exactly how I thought it would. UNC and UNC-Wilmington are really strong teams. The 3rd - 5th place teams are good, but still not on the same tier as UNC and UNCW.
Central
Maybe I'm a little biased, but Wisconsin Bella Donna will be in the semis this year. They are stacked top to bottom. Their big losses were at Centex, in heartbreakers. I think their team has pushed hard to improve since then, and they are looking better than ever. Georgia Bosscher, leading the way, is a Callahan Nominee at the head of the pack of skilled players. Supported by handlers Amber Sinicrope, Emelie McKain, Jenny Koll, and several others...with cutters like Frances Tsukano, Laura Bitterman, Sandy Jorgenson, and Jenny Gaynor playing ridiculous defense and scoring on you all the time. Carleton College...I guess they're peaking at the right time. Ana Snyder is pretty fly. Iowa State is going to surprise some really good teams this year. I think they were completely overlooked by a lot of teams outside of our region. They can play in the worst weather (i.e. Midwest Throwdown and Central Regions) and can hold their own in the good stuff as well. Very versatile, and deep roster. Melissa Gibbs rules the skies, and Jasmine Draper will layout D you with her eyes shut.
Metro-East
I'm really surprised how the Metro-East Played out. Maryland gave Ottawa such a great game in the finals, and lost in universe point to Pennsylvania. That's a real heartbreak. Maryland's Charlie Mercier is one of the best women in college ultimate, and a really great leader. She did a lot for her team this year, and last year. They finished 10th at Centex. Ottawa is one of the best teams out there. They've got some good height and can run for days. The Lady Gee Gees should be looking to finish better than they did last year, in their first UPA College Series and first UPA College Championship appearance, ending in the quarters (placed 5th). Pennsylvania? Where did this team come from. Yes, they won their section, and were seeded 3rd, but they have really been missing on the "upper" level tourney circuit this year. Excited to see how they place.
South
The real Cinderella story of the 2009 UPA College Championships is Washington University. WUWU has made huge strides of improvement that most other teams did not. When we saw WUWU in fall, I did not think they were nationals-contending at all. But when I saw them play at Centex, it was a completely different team. They won the South, and are ready to surprise some people, I think. They beat SLULU, who has challenged some great teams this season, and pulled lots of upsets at Centex themselves. SLULU is very physical, very scrappy, and a great team. My question, is what happened to Texas? They lost to SLULU twice in the weekend, which I think is crazy.
Southwest
Once again, UC-Santa Barbara is leading the pack. Heads and shoulders above every other team in their region (their closest game was in the semis, 16-7 vs. UC-San Diego). They have only lost three games all year; that is saying something big. I think this team is for sure semis, if not finals bound this year. Colorado is peaking at the right time this year. In the fall, they had two losses to UW-Eau Claire, which I'm super proud of. Granted, fall season isn't a huge indicator of a team. But this team is a totally different team from then. Having some strong cutters back in their line-up, they've got a veteran team full of ballers. UCLA...their win over UCSB in sectionals is huge, but I would say that UCSB must have had a bad game. It's not that UCLA isn't good, they finished 3rd in a ridiculous region, but I don't think that they're capable of pulling out that win nine times out of ten this year. Blu is an ultimate dynasty and perennial nationals qualifier. Let's see what they can do. USC Hellions of Troy, despite their pokey skills off of the field, is a great team. They have been putting up good scores against good teams all season, but have come out of the woodwork to get to nationals. They played 15 games within 2 weeks. Pulling out some key wins says that this team is in good shape.
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