UPA Westerns

I realized recently that this blog makes a lot of announcements, but doesn't communicate the progress and results of all of our hard work. So, sit back and enjoy a rundown of a boys-centric experience at UPA Westerns (a.k.a. "High School Nationals", though there ARE two "Nationals" tournament for high school).

Friday, arriving at the airport was a bit of a mess, complicated by trying to organize synchronized carpools to the hotel, despite having several folks on different flights. Once we hit the road, however, it was smooth sailing. Checking in to the hotel went well and people had time to relax, even swim, before the team meeting at 9:00 p.m.

We reinforced some team goals and reminded everyone to act in a manner that made us want to attend and to be wanted as an attendee next year. Mama Brick's note speaks volumes to the behavior of everyone.

Saturday morning, we were the first or second team to the field. A cool calmness filled the air, as an eerie overcast sky shielded us from the sun. In the first boys game, we faced Churchill High School, the (deserved) number 2 seed in the tournament. Our defense amazed even ourselves in this game. Big layouts, hand blocks, interceptions, a lot of big plays. But as good as our defense was, our offense was equally weak. Uncontested drops and throwaways let this game get out of hand early. A 15-8 loss and we were 0-1. Churchill would go on to lose a close game in the semifinals and finished tied for third.

We faced the 7 seed (Lakeside High School) in our second game. You might recall we had a huge game against them in semifinals last year, coming out on top 12-9. This year, and like our first round game, our offense made unforced mistakes while our defense dominated, allowing our opponent to take a 6-2 lead right away. As soon as we stopped making mistakes, however, it was our game. We charged back to tie the game 9-9. With the time cap on, it was a game to 10 with Lakeside receiving. Our defense intensified, but so did Lakeside's offense, who managed to score the game winner. We were now 0-2.

To stay in contention of a top 8 finish, we had to win our last game against Cherry Creek High School, who had lost to Lakeside 14-9 in round 1. They had a smaller team and not much experience. By this time, we had our offense and defense running well and we coasted to a 15-5 victory, putting us in the prequarters.

To make the top 8 (quarterfinals), we had to go through Seattle Academy (10 seed). Their team loved to launch long throws every chance they got and took off to an early 4-1 lead. We scored, put on a clam (type of zone) defense, and Greg "Snuggles" Milbrath caught a callahan (an interception in the opponent's endzone) for perhaps the highlight of the tournament. Our opponent called a timeout, regrouped, and took back control of the game to win 13-8. Captains Greg Arenson and Carl Peaslee both injured their shoulders in this game. Seattle Academy would go on to tie for fifth.

After Saturday's games, we enjoyed an exhibition game between the 2004 mixed (co-ed) UPA Club Champions, Shazam, and a merged mixed team from the 2006 UPA Club Champion open team Sockeye and womens team Riot, being billed as "Rockeye." We also ate tournament supplied pizza, which might have been our downfall, as 4 players from the boys team became ill (possible food poisoning) and were unable to play on Sunday.

Sunday morning, now playing for ninth and in much cooler weather (55 degree high), we faced Junction City High School, who had not yet scored 6 points on anybody. Our younger/newer guys got a lot of playing time and showed that they were able to play at a very high level in the game as we cruised to a 15-4 victory.

Our next game, we had a rematch against Lakeside. Our defense excelled in this game. No doubt one of the best defensive efforts of any team that was at the tournament this weekend. But again, our offense was slipping and not taking advantage of opportunities. We kept it close throughout the whole game, but found ourselves down 11-9 with the time cap approaching. Suddenly, our offense began executing solidly and we maintained our defensive intensity. The effort resulted in us scoring the final 5 points of the game, winning 14-11 and guaranteeing we'd finish top 10 in the tournament (we were seeded 11th going in).

Our last game was another rematch, this time against Cherry Creek. The result would again land in our favor in a 15-7 victory. The boys then finished with a 4-3 tournament record, basically with losses just to the third place and fifth place teams.

The girls finished tied for 5th, with a 3-4 record in the tournament, with their four losses going to the four teams in semi finals. The highlight for them was the 1 point loss to the team that would go on to win the championship in a 15-3 game.

Carl Peaslee and Angela Lokken-Hopkins were our individual spirit award winners.

All in all, both teams had very tough draws, having to go through some tough teams just to make it to a place for a shot at top 4 finishes. We proved decidedly, however, that we belonged there and, having brought such relatively young teams, that Hopkins has a very prosperous future.

An ENORMOUS thank you to the parents who helped plan, organize, shuttle, feed, comfort, attend to, provide caffeinated stimulants to, and support the players and coaches. Without you, these amazing events would not be the same, let alone even take place. Thank you thank you thank you.