Playing in their first tournament of the season April 10, JV Park Ultimate finished with a record of 2-1. 

According to newly appointed sophomore JV captain Tommy Walsh, he was proud of the performance of the team in the tournament and as a captain he would like to continue that trajectory.

“In the tournament today, I was really happy with how we did,” Walsh said. “I hope to elevate the JV attitude to a varsity level, and to have fun on the team this year.”

Going into the tournament, since it’s early on in the season, junior Josh Madigan said the team hoped to get to know each other better, a goal that will hold true for the remainder of the season.

“(Our focus) was to work together and to get to know each other’s playing styles and complete passes,” Madigan said. “We would absolutely like to work on this going forward as well – we have a lot of new players this year and so we’re really excited to see how that goes.”

According to Walsh, while the decision for him to be JV captain came as a surprise, he is happy with the choice.

“It is an honor and a pleasure to be chosen as the JV captain,” Walsh said. “I wasn’t expecting it, but I appreciate the coaches picking me and I hope to do my best this year.”

Head coach Spencer Hagen said, specifically in tournaments, that ensuring that everyone is getting an equal amount of time on the field is a focus.

“The biggest difference (in tournament play) is making sure that playing time is as even as we can make it,” Hagen said. “From the roster, top to bottom, making sure that everyone gets a good amount of reps in and, especially early in the season, the goal is just to get better with each game.”

According to Madigan, because of this emphasis on play-time, there can be improvement throughout the day as games progress.

“We did great. There was lots of improvement throughout the whole day – and really good team work,” Madigan said. “Everyone stepped up and played well, and it was a really fun time.”

Going forward, Hagen said the team has a goal of improving the confidence of the players and the team as a whole.

“The biggest thing for us is just confidence,” Hagen said. “With the JV team, they just need to be more confident in their abilities. They all have the skills, they all have the ability, but they don’t always trust themselves out there.”

Park’s next game will be at 6 p.m. April 14 at Edina High School against Edina.