After clinching their spot for the high school national frisbee invite, Park’s ultimate team is working towards success for the nationwide battle coming up on June 7 and June 8. The team is fine tuning their skills and bonds as a team, with goals to win big this summer.
Senior Henry Salita said Ultimate is working on their team spirit to support good frisbee.
“I want our team’s energy to be high throughout the tournament — sidelines and on the field,” Salita said.
Senior Tommy Walsh said he wants the enthusiasm to continue throughout this month of preparation to keep heads high going into the Rockford, Illinois tournament.
“My goal is for us to continue playing our game and continuing the intensity and energy we have this season,” Walsh said.
Salita said the team is practicing how they play during their time before the tournament, so everyone can be prepared for live gameplay.
“We play intensely during practice just like we do during games so we can have the same intensity on and off the field,” Salita said.
Coach Taylor Vanoosbree said the team is specifically working on their field awareness, and making sure every possible pass and play is executed to result in the best outcome.
“We’re trying to get as many different looks in as possible, and getting our conditioning up is a big focus,” Vanoosbree said.
Walsh said the team came back from an early setback with great strides, giving him hope for what’s to come in the national tournament.
“We had an early loss to a team that set our ranking back, but we went on to beat them twice and continued to prove ourselves as a nationally qualified team,” Walsh said.
Salita said the pride the team has is a driving force for UltimateOrange Crush, and he has a positive outlook for the upcoming games.
“We’ve always had a lot of confidence in our ability to play ultimate, we (have) a positive headspace,” Salita said.
Vanoosbree said the ultimate goal for nationals is to continue to have fun and work around any challenges that arise as a team.
“We always have the mindset that the game is always tied at fun-to-fun, (even if) we’re down by two, we don’t quit until it’s done,” Vanoosbree said.
Orange Crush Ultimate’s next game will be against Maple Grove May 16 at Park’sthe Orioles Stadium.
