Bonjour Dragon Coalition fans! This past long weekend was of course President’s Day weekend and your favorite UCSD Womxn’s Ultimate was once again hosting their Pres Day Tournament. It was a long, long-weekend with nine games played over the course of those three days. But it was a great time filled with lots of glitter, temporary dragon tattoos, newly tie-dyed sweatsuits, and high spirits all around! So, bright and early Saturday morning, the DCOs trekked over to our very own RIMAC fields to head into a beautiful (although a bit rainy) day of games. For our first game of the tournament, we faced off against the University of Oregon. It was a competitive, high-level game with awesome scores by Ananya “Pulse” Shaligram and Kaitlyn “Chego” Straight. We put up a good fight, but unfortunately lost the game 9 to 14. But we kept our heads up into our next game against University of Denver, which we then won 15 to 2!! This game was filled with incredible offense and lots of success with our zone defense! So, with high spirits, the DCOs headed into their final game of the day against UC Davis. This game featured some amazing handler movement in zone offense, with an incredible cross-field throw by Abbi “Pierogi” Shilts. With this awesome offense and some epic team defense we grabbed the victory 12 to 9. After a successful day, the DCOs headed home to rest up (in our own beds!) for a long day of games on Sunday!

The second day of the tournament started off strong with the second-years premiering their freshly tie-dyed sweatsuits, as is tradition. Gorgeous! Looking very stylish, we headed into our first game against Western Washington. This was a super competitive game, full of amazing zone defense and we grabbed the win on universe point, winning the game 13 to 12!! Next, we faced off against Stanford where we unfortunately lost 6 to 12. But we kept spirits high into our next game against UC Santa Barbara. This was a super tight game and featured some amazing zone offense by our O line handlers, Emma “Capwn” Ellefson-Frank, Jessie “Saber” Finkelor, Abbi “Pierogi” Shilts, and Margot “Sigma” Nissen. It was a head to head battle for the whole match but we snatched the victory 10 to 9, winning on Universe point!! We finished the day with a final win against University of Utah 12 to 4, putting us into the semi-finals!! This game was full of incredible points, with Sophia “Aera” Fitch scoring back to back points! After a long day of games, the team had a potluck with all of the DCO parents who had come to watch us play!

Monday morning, we woke up bright and early, hyped for another day of exciting games! In the semi-finals, we once again faced off against the University of Oregon. They always provide a challenge and we lost the game 4 to 15, but we came out of the game with some great experience playing against a worthy competitor. Our final match of the tournament was once again against UCSB. During this match, we really showed off our zone defense, especially Emma “Gaia” Toussaint. Although we unfortunately lost the game, we finished fourth place in the tournament!! What an exciting tournament and I can’t wait to see what the DCOs bring to their next tournament in Stanford. DCO, you know!!

UCSD’s Berserk Coalition (B-Co) was absolutely hyped to also be playing at home for Pres day weekend! The day started with a foggy, early morning with the B-Cos energized after a good night’s sleep in their own beds. They had an intense day ahead of them, with highly rated teams – B-Co was the underdog. But that was when they performed best. Their first game of the day was against Colorado, who was the top seed. B-Co kept it chilly and their resolve earned them several scores. The final score was 5-14, and despite losing it was still an impressive effort. B-Co’s next game was against UCB, and they carried the intensity they had from their first game. Their offensive chemistry was on point, and their aggressive defense got them much needed breaks. They were able to hold Cal to universe point, but the game ended with a loss and a final score of 9-10. Their last game of the day was against Western Washington, and B-Co played the best they could even though they were tired. The game ended with a final score of 1-15, and B-Co was happy to not get bageled. It was an overall exciting day, and it was only just the start to an exhilarating weekend. Notable players were Bella “Chila” Ely, who threw dime after dime, Emma “Scobi” Rourke who made great catches despite the pressure, and Amita “Pesto” Stowitts who did great all around. 

After seeing an amazing shoutout from Ultiworld about the intense competition that UCSD’s Berserk Coalition (that’s right, the B team) gave their opponents on the first day of the tournament, B-Co was ready to fight for a win in Day 2 at Warren Field. Starting off with an intense game against Southern California (USC), B-Co fought hard and kept close scores throughout the game. Although B-Co ultimately lost 8-11, USC definitely had to buckle down in order to beat B-Co’s intensity. The next game was against Davis, the toughest opponent of the day. Working hard against a surprising zone defense and a fast offense, B-Co adapted and continued to stay in competition with Davis. Unfortunately, B-Co lost this game 6-11. Ending the day playing UCSD’s rivals, UCLA, B-Co kept the intensity and energy high. B-Co worked hard throughout the aggressive game, but ultimately lost 5-9. Despite a rough second day, it’s important to remember that scores did not reflect the amazing play and intensity shown by B-Co (the BEST B team EVER).

For the final day of the tourney, B-Co had 2 last games to cap off a great experience. Claremont had gone home early since they had school on Pres day (*Boo*), so B-Co knew they would be playing USC and Denver no matter what. Their first game was against USC, and B-Co was ready for a shot at redemption after losing to them the day before. B-Co put up a tough fight, but they unfortunately lost 8-10. For their last game of the tourney, B-Co was hungry for a win against Denver. They tried to keep their throws chilly and make smart decisions in the face of the wind, and it paid off. They ended the tourney with a 9-6 win. Ashley “Brisk” Duong threw some crazy hucks, and rookies Sophie “Flo-Rida” Toussaint and Angela “Ese” Zhang had some great throws and killer defense. 

Overall, it was a fun tourney that showed B-Co that they could do anything!