Boston Qualifier College Recap
Authors: Christian Barnes & Jacob Ehrlich
PC: Kielan Donahue
Middlebury
Even without their best player in Hayden Laster, Middlebury was able to come away from the weekend with a D2 bid. With Laster absent, the scoring load was primarily picked up by first-year chaser Jason Wu. Wu has the athleticism to match the best in the region, and when Laster returns from injury, the two will form a fearsome tandem. Joining them is Kate Petty, who not only showed excellent poise with the ball in her hand, but proved she was able to hold her ground as a point defender.
Middlebury’s beater core, led by Josh Harkins, attempted to overpower their opponents, but this feat proved to be a huge hit or miss at times. When they had control, their beaters were athletic enough to create chaos where a player like Wu could thrive. However, this inexperienced core needs to work on their offensive gameplan without dodgeball control - specifically when they should be engaging in battles (maybe shifting toward a more conservative single beater on offense). Middlebury’s opponents were able to pull off far too many fastbreaks on them as they struggled to get a dodgeball back on defense. While Middlebury, arguably, had the weakest performance out of all the teams that received a bid, they have the pieces they need to repeat a deep D2 run at nationals, similar to last year.
RPI
Recent seasons have shown that RPI tends to hit their stride in the spring. The 2023 season has not proven to be any different. On Day one, this young RPI squad lost to a short-rostered Penn State team and barely managed to clinch wins against Emerson and Tufts. The one silver lining for them this weekend was their quarterfinal game against Brandeis. This matchup proved to be no joke as RPI was down a whopping seven goals and managed to slowly claw their way back up. Although they were not able to secure the win, this is a team that, like previous years, seems to come together the more they play.
Notable standouts for this team are Sean Patch, Ad Ojo, and Vivana Estrada. Ojo is the one true constant for this RPI team. He can shorten games or act as a catalyst in a comeback effort with his ability to get quick catches on the flag runner. Estrada is often in the right positions on offense and is tough as nails on the defensive end. Sean Patch, as a core beater for the program, has gone through multiple iterations of RPI, and has been able to update how he should play to suit the team around him. Supporting Ojo and Estrada are Emily Lardizabal and Isabelle McCall, key contributors with their high energy and decision-making skills, while new beater Jacob Shaz adds a physical element to the beater game to bridge the gap between himself and veteran opponents. RPI also has hope in new recruit Anson Decker, who with a little more experience should be able to wreak havoc through teams with the sheer raw power he can bring. Overall, RPI is a team that will continue to grow and with the young talent on the squad, there is no question the weekend’s results are just a stepping stone for the spring.
Penn St
With limited games played and an even smaller roster, not much was known about this Penn State team coming into the weekend. The team ended up being one of the biggest surprises of the tournament, and shows how joining a conference can help a team get their season going. After an early loss to Brown on Day one, the team rebounded by defeating Emerson and upsetting RPI through high physicality and fierce endurance. The Nittany Lions’ gameplan was simple but effective - sellout with the beaters on each offense to create no dodgeball opportunities and use your physicality on defense, using tackles to turnover the ball. In the Northeast, where collegiate play is not known for its physicality, Penn State showed it’s uses on both sides of the ball, ultimately snatching a D2 bid as the Mid-Atlantic “invaders” of the Boston Qualifier. At the center of everything this team does is Kenneth Peterson and Connor Morrow. Morrow in particular, is a lethal driver from behind the hoops and can draw the attention of any defense. Penn State has always been a scrappy, hard-fighting team and this weekend proved to be no different, and with a little more recruitment this will be a tough out come nationals.
Boston University
THE shocker of the tournament, without a doubt, was Boston University. After not coming away with a bid at regionals last year, the start of this year looked mostly the same with some of their early MQC results. However, a competitive game against Brandeis two weeks before regionals proved to be a preview of what was to come for this BU squad. The star from last year’s team, Ethan Dillon, has continued to develop into one of the best ball carriers in the region. Playing at a very high level, Dillon’s improvement can be attributed to his attention to detail. This team is not all Dillon, though, as we saw big performances throughout the weekend from Sebastian Sachs, Imalay Checo, Kai Suyama, and Logan Packard. The beater core is anchored by Cleo Brooks who puts their share of work into the team. They are the perfect partner for first-year player William White, who has the speed and raw athleticism to keep up with the other high-level beaters in the region. With a good mix of experienced veterans and raw first-year players, this BU team is one to watch in the spring heading into nationals.
Brandeis
Even though this Brandeis team finished in the same position as it did last year, any suggestion that this is the same team would be unfounded. Last year’s team relied too heavily on the scoring ability of Eli Fighter, and while Fighter is still the focal point of the offense, he now has a full foundation behind him. Beginning with his offensive partner in Shakthi Kodeswaran and excellent supporting options in Andres Zalowitz and Caitlyn Pennie, taking the ball out of Fighter’s hands won’t save you from being scored on. The additional talent now surrounding Fighter on offense allows Brandies to spread the ball more effectively. However, despite the improved chaser depth, the biggest difference between the team last year and this is the loss of star beater Adrian Koretsky. Without their presence and ability to slow down the pace of play, the team has really struggled against athletic beater cores and strong pressing teams such as Harvard and Rutgers. At beater, Ben Lambright provides solid play in set offenses and defenses, but to reach the potential the team shows at their peak, they’ll need to elevate their other beaters on their core fundamentals. With more time and reps to grow the team as a whole,we expect the beating core to match the chasers and a strong run at nationals, considering their evolving sliding door of seekers.
Rutgers
The start of the season for the former reigning Northeast Regionals champions was a rough one. After getting blown out by short-rostered Creighton and blitzed by Harvard at Oktoberfest, it didn’t look like the Boston Qualifier would be competitive at the top. However, by the time the weekend began, we saw the essence of the team that won last year’s NERC. Not playing a close game until the finals, they showed that they were still in the running as a national title contender, and it starts with their US National Team Developmental Academy players. Jason Ng’s Boston Qualifier performance showed he can take over any game and be the primary pacesetter for the Rutgers team. Byron Ng, fresh off of a breakout summer with the Chicago Prowl, might be in contention for the most dynamic chaser in the college scene, while Annika Kim who showed what she can do all of last year as a ball carrier is now excelling as an off ball threat. Lastly, Jahved Cole (who was not at Oktoberfest) continues to prove himself as a consistent playmaker for the Rutgers offense. Behind a solid core of USNTDA players, Rutgers’ depth showed many talents who don’t get as much of the spotlight. In the chasing game, Hudson Reiter and Frank Puchalski provided physicality for a team that desperately needed it last year. During Flag Runner floor, Handell Quiros, who was often overshadowed by Jason Ng, shined with his 5 catches in 6 games at the Boston Qualifier, close to being automatic for Rutgers after being asked to play a much larger role this season in the pre-20 chaser game. The biggest question mark for this team has been who would step up at beater after Jason Ng and second-year beater Gabrielle Aguilar has answered the call, making monumental improvements to her game. While this team is a lot of fun to watch when they are playing well, their offense and defense require a high degree of execution and precision. When the pieces aren’t coming together (as was the case at Oktoberfest), they look lost; yet, when they do execute, they can put on a show against any team in the league.
Harvard
After a second-place finish at Nationals last year and with almost the entire roster returning, this Harvard program began the year with expectations of competing for a national title. However, even with a roster full of returners,, the playstyle and composition of this team in the Boston Qualifier is quite different from the one that played at USQC 2023. With last year’s team,, the offense was run almost entirely through US National Team’s Leo Fried. While not always the primary ball carrier, the offense was generally looking to get the ball in his hands or he would be the go-to pass when his teammates were being pressured. While Fried is still the star and the unsung Anna Blanchfield helps to anchor the offense up top though, they are now accompanied by a handful of up and coming chasers in Lance Bae, Aidan Higgins, and Max Semegran. This newfound chaser depth has meant that Harvard no longer requires a quick flag runner catch from Fried, as evident in their comeback win in the finals against Rutgers. On the beater side, David Chen and Jess Lee continued to show why they are the best beating pair in the college division, employing a variety of different strategies and looking to their opposition. Even during this tournament, this pair grew and improved, with both Jess and David playing the role of pacesetter, a position that last year Chen usually deferred from his partner. Harvard showed at this tournament that they were the most complete team, walking away as the best team from the Boston Qualifier and solidifying themselves as an early favorite going into nationals.
