Air Squids LITE traveled to UC Santa Barbara to kickstart the New Year with a weekend-long tournament.

Saturday began with a game against UCLA Smoke. A sluggish start got LITE behind early in the match, finding themselves down 2-7 at the half. LITE started the half with an aggressive huck that set them up for a score. However, it was a combination of a lack of urgency and miscues running our system that ultimately led to the 5-13 loss. Even after a disappointing loss to start, LITE was warmed up and ready to compete with UCSB Blackout next. Blackout ran a patient horizontal stack that continuously found open-side undercuts. However, energized and prepared, the team was ready to take it to them. Excellent handler movement by Ben "Casa" Cohan-Schiff, Oliver "Yaps" Wachtel, and Arda "Baby Maz" Gurel set the pace of the offense for critical end zone situations. With a strong showing from Nick "Yermo" Palmieri, on both Offense and Defense, the game went back and forth. Scores from multiple Squids capped off a team-oriented attack, with a perfect end zone execution that led to KJ "Jamba" Jamakhandi scoring. Despite a hard-fought effort, LITE found themselves down 9-10 at the hard cap, and was unable to keep their hopes of winning alive. The team had to move on from their crushing defeat to play UCSB Crashout. From the start of the game, it was clear that both teams were exhausted. Points had multiple turns with dropped endzone catches, missed throws, and discs sailing out of the venue into the neighboring aquatic center. The game was bafflingly sloppy. Crashout was able to outlast LITE, resulting in a 4-8 defeat. 

The final game of the day was against USC B. USC B moved the disc up and down the field with little resistance due to LITE’s slow-moving defense. The game started off with many injuries to the USC B team, but due to a quick lunch break, the Squids avoided the dreaded leg cramps. The one highlight from the 4-10 loss was winning the final point with a line consisting of mainly rookies. Overall, Day 1 of SBQ had flashes of good, but a lack of discipline in sticking with our offensive and defensive systems along with slowly getting the gears turning for the first tournament of the year showed. The four games were taxing on the team, but it was obvious the team had the potential to keep games more competitive than the score suggested.

On day 2 it was clear to everyone on LITE that they would not accept another loss. However, the team would start their day against the sole undefeated team in the tournament, SB Flow. This time, LITE showed up bright and early to prepare for the high school team. LITE set the tone to start the match and it was obvious that they wanted the win more. The game started with four consecutive breaks, capped off by a nutty no-look flick assist by Ryan "TiDo" Wang. Having already defended against the horizontal stack the previous day, LITE forced multiple errors by Flow’s offense. After the quick start, Flow fiercely responded, stealing the momentum and the lead by halftime. Thanks to efficient handling by Vivek "Yuti" Gadicherla, Baby Maz, and Ryan "Wabac" Kuoch, LITE hung on with a 12-10 win.

LITE ended the tournament with a pool-worst 1-4 record, but they were not going to carry the struggles of the previous games into the 5th-place tie breaker match. The final match of the tournament was set against SB Crashout. The team started the game off with two breaks, but this game was a story of runs. The Squids went on a three point run, and then Crashout went on a three point run. After halftime, the Squids went on to win the last two points capped off with a great endzone set. At 7-7, a well-placed pull and quick defensive setup forced a critical turnover near the goal line, setting up an endzone opportunity. In this endzone set, the defender on Ruben "Eeyore" Gonzalez called out our play, forecasting the cut to the break side. However, with quick thinking, Eeyore ran to the open side. This allowed Wabac to have a free cut to the breakside, while his defender was left twiddling his thumbs. Yuti threw a meticulous inside to land the disc just at the tip of Wabac's hand right inside the endzone line, securing the win for the Squids. 

Our tournament may have started with a four game losing streak, but the boys brought it together to end on a high, with a two game win streak. This streak was infused with the camaraderie of the Squids working together to secure the dubs.