In somewhat last minute form, the Varsity boys came together so that we could fulfill our commitment to sending 2 teams up to the St. John's one day indoor tournament.
Under the coaching direction of Greg Arenson and Robbie Shapiro, the JV boys also attended.
The Varsity boys faced Southwest High for their first game. The JV boys watched from the sidelines as they were in another pool and not scheduled to play until the next round. The game got off to a quick start for us and we were quickly ahead 13-2, but the Southwest coach (Chris Van Holmes) and I (coach Lou) agreed that we shouldn't waste the time and space, so we continued to play until our time was up. The boys finished with 20+ points and were primed to play another 5 games.
Next, the Varsity boys faced Eden Prairie. Defensively, the boys had some adjustments to make since the EP squad was much tougher. EP made some great plays and had a few lucky bounces go their way and finished with 5 goals, compared to Hopkins' 13.
Up next was Cretin Derham Hall. The Varsity boys had faced them a few weeks earlier in Duluth and were victorious. The boys rallied together this time and came out with some serious fire and energy, on the field, on the sidelines, and between points. Before we knew it, it was halftime and we were ahead of a very frustrated CDH squad 7-1.
The second half, however, belonged to CDH, scoring the first 3 points out of half. And then just a few points later, it was 11-10, Hopkins still leading, but barely. We called a timeout, relit the fire, and came out the next point and scored in just 3 throws -- the last being a huck to Simon Gottlieb. Recharged, the defense forced a turn on the second throw of the next point and punched it in for the game winning score. Hopkins wins 13-10.
We then went into bracket play and the two Hopkins teams were forced to face each other in the quarterfinals. Lou took the coaching reigns of the JV team for this game. The JV team looked AWESOME! They hucked it successfully several times, regularly got open downfield against Varsity defenders, and even skyed a some Junior and Senior Varsity players! Half time score was 7-4 and the JV put up one more in the second half. The JV team scored as many points against the Varsity as the Eden Prairie team did.
That was the last game for the JV team, finishing without a victory in the standings on the day, but it was a huge victory in terms of team progress. The improvement throughout the day was not only noticeable, but impressive! If this team can continue to make such great strides, then the future of Hopkins ultimate is incredibly promising!
We then had a rematch with EP in the semifinals with similar results. EP is a good team with some great leadership -- both in players and in coaching. We have some close friends on that team and enjoy the games we have against them. The final was 15-4.
In the other semifinal game, CDH had fallen behind Cathedral 9-4, but were storming back when time ran out, so we would face Cathedral in the finals.
It was the best game Hopkins has played this season. Cathedral is a team that doesn't turn it over. We were forced to come up with big defensive plays to get the disc. And that's just what we did. Greg Arenson's amazing downfield D, Mat Grewe's great dump D, and just an overall great team performance were just downright inspiring. The excitement was contagious and we took half 8-4.
The second half included a few missed opportunities, including a couple miscues in the endzone, but it did not slow down the massive momentum we had going for us. This is a sign of the progress this team has already made this season. Despite the setbacks, no confidence was lost and we just marched forward toward our goal. We put up point after point until we had won 15-8.
After the game, I spoke with a few of the Cathedral parents, who were numerous in attendance. They are a great group of people and they remind me of the great support group we have here at Hopkins. I look forward to the contribution the Cathedral community will provide to the ultimate community in the near future.
A few other things worth noting:
- Eli Leonard and Nate Wexler had a great showing at their first Varsity tournament
- Sam Brickwedde's and Gregg Milbrath's leadership skills improve every day
- Robbie Shapiro always makes a great positive impact on every level of our game
- The Got(t)lieb supernatural connection is something special to watch
- Steve Finn can sky!
- The progress by Smalter and Ethan is to be admired
- To the JV team: we couldn't have done it without your support!
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