Recaps: Crimson Cup VII, Battle of the Mon, Hawkeye Invitational, Business Bowl, MQC Round Robin 3
Contributors: Naresh Edala, Grant Hillyer, Fiona Wisehart
Crimson Cup VII
Photo Credit: Michael Vong Photography
Crimson Cup VII featured a multitude of teams. In attendance were the Salt Lake Quidditch Club, University of Utah, and the University of Northern Colorado. Salt Lake Quidditch finished in first on the day, as one would expect from a club team playing against college teams.
This team has a number of new additions on it thanks to recent graduates joining from the University of Utah and Utah State Quidditch Club (USQC) programs. Standout players include Mikey Powell, Amber Zehner, and Anthony Snapp. While they were missing other key players, the team has depth in all positions and is excited to get some away tournaments under their belt in preparation for nationals. Keep an eye out for the all-Williams lineup and the all-USQC lineup.
The University of Utah came in second on the day, featuring seven new players including Hannah Winslow, a physical point chaser, and speedy new beater Josiah Johnson. Be on the lookout for head coaches Danika Liou and Porter Birchum to continually shape these rookies into a well-oiled machine with functioning knees. With new players hitting the field already playing at a high level, Utah has a lot to be excited about.
Northern Colorado made its debut appearance in the West region with a roster of 12 people. Despite the 8-hour road trip spanning 3 states, they came hungry to play. Captain Valeria Dominguez played just about every position throughout the tournament, seeing success whether there was a quaffle or bludger wrapped around her fingers. The team saw great ball movement around the hoops and their communication was key to keeping them focused as games went on. Despite minor setbacks in injuries, the team finished strong and are looking forward to a strong run at Regionals in Arizona.
Scores:
UofU 160 - 55* UNC
UNC 70 - 245* SLQC
UofU 215* - 50 UNC
UofU 70 - 185* - SLQC
UNC 45* - 260 SLQC
UofU 95* - 220 SLQC
Battle of the Mon
Pitt, UVA, WVU, and RIT all showed up to the Battle of the Mon ready to play. Pitt went 0-2 on the day, despite getting out to a fast start against WVU. Ben Raymond at beater had a strong performance, as did chaser Wes Lombardo who had a number of goals on the day. WVU finished the round robin 1-1, with a win over Pitt and a loss to UVA. Sean Mihalik had an efficient day as a keeper and caught one of two snitches on the day for WVU. UVA went 2-0 on the day with wins over both other teams in attendance. UVA got off to a fast start against Pitt, and entered the 20 minute mark with a 50 point lead that they never gave up on the way to a 145-40 win. Standout performances came from keeper Byron Bleuze and (fill in position) Mayu Ovando. It seems that UVA was the top team at the tournament though each team was able to show strong offense and the ability to catch the snitch.
Hawkeye Invitational IV
Some of the Games Were Filmed Here
Creighton cruised to a 3-0 record at this round-robin featuring two dominant wins over Illinois State and Iowa. Physical play from rookies propelled Creighton to their record, as Jonah Jea, Matt Gulick, and Kawena Abrigo all had strong days. On Iowa’s side, freshman Noah Beem had an impressive debut performance and other quaffle players helped Iowa stay competitive with Illinois State. Illinois was led by keeper/chaser William Roscher, who has a strong mid-range shot and caught in both of the games they played in. The team was unable to capitalize on Creighton’s twelve penalties and only turned four of twelve of their power play into points, while Creighton was still able to put up 150 quaffle points despite going down players at various times, a sign that their offense might be truly hard to stop throughout this season, even under tough circumstances.
Scores:
Creighton 150 - 75 Illinois
Creighton 265 - 30 Iowa
Illinois 145 - 90 Iowa
Iowa 140 - 85 Illinois State
3. Baby Steps @ Business Bowl
Even with many teams sporting limited rosters, GMU, UMD, UVA, WVU, and UNC got down to business. GMU was unofficial on the day and played the entire tournament without subs. They had a standout performance from returning beater Abby Lloyd.
UMD came with a small squad of returners, but a large squad of talented rookies. They played a player down at times due to being unable to meet gender requirements but dominated in spite of their handicap.
UVA was led by chaser Hannah Rollins, one of the few returning players. UVA’s playstyle has always been characterized by strong ball movement and great passing. They showed glimpses of it at the tournament, but if past seasons are anything to go by, they will be passing around everyone by Regionals.
WVU’s seeker comes from a wrestling background and it shows. With some fine-tuning of their skills, WVU will have 35 points coming their way in most of their matchups.
UNC looked like a relatively inexperienced team, but possessed a drive to improve. They could be positioned for some upsets at Regionals if they stay on track.
Massachusetts Quidditch Conference: Round Robin 3
This tournament was characterized by incredibly close games. Each team at MQC Round Robin 3 proved their mettle. Brown continued with their strong start to the season, going 2-0 on the day. They were driven by their ability to capitalize on fast breaks and their zone defense that other teams had a hard time cracking. Andrew Steinberg posted another big day in quaffle points, following up a big first weekend of unofficial MQC games.
Brandeis proved it could hang with D1 teams with new recruit Eli Fighter stepping up at seeker and strong chaser lines led by Dawson McNamara-Bloom. They ran into a few issues with injuries and exhaustion due to running a smaller roster, which is something they will fight throughout the season.
Boston University showed off a deep beating group that rotated talented players all day and was able to create advantages and win beater battles throughout the round robin. Boston University also continued to rotate in a large number of new players throughout the day as they hope to develop their large recruitment class.
Each team has room for improvement before Regionals. Brandeis will play at MQC Round Robin 4 while Boston University will head to the Oktoberfest Invitational. Brown’s next tournament will be with the Southern New England Quidditch Conference (SNEQC).
Scores:
Brown 140 - 125 BU
Brandeis 195 - 180 BU
Brandeis 145 - 170 Brown