ULTIMATE
YEAR BY
PINE-RICHLAND BOYS ULTIMATE FRISBEE TEAM CAPTURES 2017 CITY TITLE .
JENNIFER BROZAK
Last year , Pine-Richland ’ s Boys Ultimate Frisbee team earned an ultimate recognition : they were named 2017 City Champions in the Pittsburgh High School Ultimate League . During the 2016-2017 season , they also were named both the Pittsburgh / Western PA Winter League champs and the Pittsburgh / Western PA Spring League Champs .
Now , as they look forward to the 2018 season , the team hopes to build upon their success of the past few years and capture a second consecutive PHUL win and perhaps even the state title , after coming in second at the state championship in 2017 .
The Pine RIchland Boys Ultimate Frisbee team after they took 2nd at the PA State Championships last May .
The team was founded as a club sport with just 10 to 15 players during the 2005-2006 school year at Pine-Richland , and has competed in the PHUL since its inception , says head coach Marcus Ranii-Dropcho , 25 . Today , the team has a roster of approximately 25 players , and hopes to grow .
“ The team has continued to grow and improve since I began coaching them in the fall of 2014 ,” says Ranii-Dropcho . “ In PHUL , we have improved our city finish each year : tied for third in 2015 , runner up in 2016 and city champion in 2017 .”
The team also attends the Neuqua Knockout tournament in Illinois during the spring season , where they compete against teams from different states . Last year , they finished 9th out of 42 teams at the tournament .
For those not familiar with Ultimate Frisbee , the game its often characterized as a “ non-serious ” casual sport . In fact , nothing could be further from the truth , says Ranii-Dropcho .
“ The stigma about ultimate is slowly changing from its counter-culture roots to a game of peak fitness , grueling endurance and spectacular spectator-worthy plays ,” he explains . “ Players must have the long-distance speed of wide receivers or cornerbacks , and they must have the small-space agility possessed by point guards in basketball or strikers in soccer . They must possess the stamina and endurance of midfielders to have the ability to expend energy on defense and offense in a single point , and they must be able to leap high and dive to save possession from errant throws .”
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