Yale University is home to many Cups (Tyng, Tang, and Gimbel, to name three), but this weekend the men's ultimate frisbee team takes center stage as it hosts its annual Yale Cup tournament.
This year's Cup action will provide the usual gritty competition and a certain extra flair as the weekend will also serve as the Ivy League Championship.
This weekend's play provides an opportunity for everyone to witness some of the best ultimate frisbee teams in the Northeast. The Northeast is a particularly evenly-matched region this year, boasting such talented teams as Cornell, Harvard, Princeton, Brown, Wesleyan, and Tufts.
All of these teams, along with Yale (whose team is called Süperfly), can lay a claim to being the most talented around and they will all come swaggering into New Haven for the Yale Cup. Having the teams stacked so closely together in talent level should make for one of the most exciting Yale Cup tournaments in the history of the event.
Unique to this year's tournament is the absence of a team from the University of Pennsylvania. All other Ivy League schools are represented and taking the place of the Quakers will be a Yale alumni team. The Eli graduates have affectionately named themselves 'Losers' and look to add excitement to the weekend's action. "They probably are out of shape, but they still have the skills and the knowledge of the game," Yale captain Josh Cott, ES '96, said.
Whereas the fall season is a club season, the spring season is comprised solely of collegiate teams made up of players with remaining eligibility. The Elis have put a lot of work into hosting a top-of-the-line tournament and welcome the chance to be gracious hosts. Yale will enter two squads in tournament play, both an A squad and a B squad. Between 15 and 17 Yalies will make up each roster.
The Yale Cup action should provide an arena for the Blue's teams to build on last year's success and solidify their position as one of the best club teams in the nation. The national ultimate polls are determined by a power rating similar to those compiled by college basketball. At one time last year, the Yale team was ranked third in the nation and, after becoming the first team in school history to travel to the National Tournament in Chicago, finished the year in eighth.
Twenty-five teams and two days of competition will decide the disc champion. The Yale ultimate team hopes to be the toast of New Haven this weekend by raising its Cup after a grueling tournament. Student support could make the difference for the home team in a tournament where the squads are so even. "Having student fan support would be exciting, terrific. It is rare that we have lots of fans out to games so it would be great," Cott said.
Games will be played starting at 9 a.m. and ending around 7 p.m. both Sat. and Sun., Apr. 13 and 14. So, take a trip out to the IM fields and catch a glimpse of the team known as "Süperfly."
Copyright 1996, The Yale Herald, Inc. All rights reserved.
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