Owls Open Season With A Hard-fought Draw Versus Leviathan Cougars

 

It is April 23, 1910. Former-President of the United States, Theodore Roosevelt is delivering a speech in Paris, France entitled “Citizens of the Republic.” In the speech, Roosevelt delivers the following declaration.

These words speak to the importance of showing up, of leaning toward resilience and courage, rather than lethargic passivity. 

Fast-forward 114 years. To. The. Day. 

It is April 23, 2024. 

The Country School’s Junior Varsity Ultimate Frisbee team has assembled on Salgar Field on their home campus in Madison, Connecticut. There are eleven teammates on the field. Some are wearing cleats, while others wear sneakers. Some are eager and excited, while others are anxious with nerves. Still others are unsure whether they’ve made the right decision. Yet the bond they share is this: they are teammates. They have showed up, and they are poised to step into the arena.

And what an arena it was! Beautiful on one hand, with the sun shining down and a light breeze creeping in from the south; yet simultaneously terrifying as the team of eleven 4th-6th Graders looked at their opponents: twenty-three 6th-8th Graders from OLM Prep who cast towering shadows over their half of the field.

Nevertheless, when the opening frisbee toss commenced, the young Owls were ready. 

Masterfully marching down the field, the experience of the sixth Grade starters paid off, with Jonah M. finding Veronica S. for the game’s first score. From there, though, the “dust and sweat” would enter the arena. Over the next ten minutes, the OLM Cougars would claw their way back, utilizing the wind to secure strong field position and score four straight goals. The endzone would open up, however, for the Owls, with Harper M. using his whip-quick forehand to zip a pass into the eager grip of Emily A.. Moments later, Emily would be on the passing side, in one of the day’s highlights. Emily knocked down a pass deep in the opponent's zone. Ben N. confidently took the lead, initiating the play by passing a lofting and angled toss to Quinn C.. Pivoting for a minute, Quinn showed great patience, deftly waited for an opportunity, before launching it to a cutting Emily who quickly dished a brilliant forehand assist to Emmy L. for a well-timed score to draw the team within a point at 4-3. 

From that point, the Cougars took advantage of some back-and-forth turnovers in the midfield, scoring twice by using their massive size to out-box the small-but-speedy TCS squad. 

Facing a 3 point deficit, knockdowns in the opponents’ zone by Simone Nelson and Ben N. enabled Jonah M. to loft a floating disc to Emily A., then find a streaking Veronica S. in the back of the endzone to cut the deficit to one just before the halftime buzzer sounded.

Just a mere 2:30 into the second half, Jonah tried to pick up where he left off in the first half, securing a fumbled pass by the Cougars, then barely missed threading a needle of a pass to his younger brother, Gideon M.. Two plays later, though, he’d get another chance, and this time the decade of backyard passing paid off as Gideon secured the disc for the tying score.

Shortly thereafter, Gideon repaid the favor by making an assist of his own, this time finding the outstretched grip of Jimmy O. for a 7-6 lead.

After OLM scored again to tie it 7-7, and with TCS buried deep on the left side of the field, Quinn C. saw an opening and dashed into the endzone, securing another pass from Jonah M. to again take the lead. A short while later, after more midfield mayhem being caused by her sixth grade defensive stalwarts, Emmy L. and Simone N., Veronica S. sent an endzone pass that caught in the wind and drifted toward a gaggle of players from both teams. Rising above the rest, Jimmy Ogenesky went for the grab, only to have his arm knocked by an OLM Cougar. Not to be defeated, however, Patrick B. made the catch of the day as he dove headfirst into the fray, trapping the ricochet and reclaiming the lead. Certainly, anyone in attendance will agree it was a play future generations will not tire from watching on SportsCenter’s Greatest Frisbee Snags and Catches of 2024.

Tremendous midfield play from the zipping passes of forehand handler Harper M. led to another Jonah-to-Veronica score which pushed the Country lead to three before an OLM score brought it back to two with under five minutes to play.

The final TCS score of the day came from Emily A., making a beautiful pass to Gideon M. whose sticky-fingered ability to corral many an overhead pass showed great things for the future. 

In the final frantic minutes, a number of controversial moments marred what was an otherwise clean and well-played game. In a sport policed by the players (instead of a referee), this is always a testament to the players. Unfortunately, a self-pass caught in the wind enabled another OLM score, then a debate at the goal line after a dropped pass led to another which tied the score 11-11 in the final minute.

The final furious rally by TCS fell short and the game ended in a tie.

As the team walked to the bench, we knew they were tired. And we knew they were upset. They wanted to win and something that felt unfair had transpired. 

But as the team sat there and received congratulations from their proud coaches, they let the sun dry their sweat, and they looked upon one another with a sense of satisfaction. In that moment, they realized there are some things more important than winning. They had entered the arena, not alone, but together…and as a team. They had competed, sure, but more importantly, they had lifted each other up when they made mistakes, they had rallied together when they were losing, and they had felt the joy of being–not just teammates, but friends. 124 years later (to the day, which is still insane to me), they did right by President Roosevelt’s challenge. They had sought a worthy cause, and they had dared greatly.