Ultimate Warriors: Henry Sibley's Frisbee Teams Thrive as Participation Grows

On a windy day like this one last week at Henry Sibley High School, it’s clear why it’s so important to throw the Frisbee correctly–flat, without arc. As the school’s Ultimate Frisbee girls club teams warm up before practice, many throws get caught in the swirling winds, fluttering to the ground. Yet plenty find the hands of a waiting teammate, settling in after a smooth forehand or backhand toss.

“A lot of people don’t think it’s a game of speed and athleticism,” said Heather Wobig, the Warriors’ head coach of five years. “A lot of people confuse it with Frisbee golf.”

Yet after seeing it in person there is no question that "Ultimate," as the sport is officially called because Frisbee is a trademarked name, involves significantly more action than Frisbee golf.

Although it is non-contact, Ultimate is similar to football and soccer in many ways.

Two teams of seven players compete to reach the end zones of a 70-yard-by-40-yard field by passing the disc forward.

The game starts with a "pull," with one team throwing the disc to the other, similar to a kickoff in football. The offense has a "handler," who has ten seconds to pass to her teammates, the "cutters," who are covered by the defensive players, called "markers." An incomplete pass, interception or failure to throw within 10 seconds turns possession over to the defense. The handler may not run with the disc and a point ends when one team completes a succession of passes that reach the opponent’s end zone, which is 25 yards deep.

Each point begins with a pull, and games are played to 15 points.

Fouls, which are called by the players, happen when one player initiates contact with a player on the opposing team. The offending player’s team gives up possession.

The Minnesota High School Ultimate League began in 2001. The Warriors first fielded a team in 2007, competing in the League’s open division, where both boys and girls are allowed on the same team. Last year was the first year the school fielded a separate girls’ team. This year the Warriors have two girls’ teams and two open teams comprised of boys.

The sport is still at the club level in Minnesota, meaning the teams get no official funding from the school for coaches, equipment, travel, etc.

But that doesn’t bother Wobig, who has led the Warriors’ program since its inception.

“Anyone can play,” she said, contrasting Ultimate with most varsity sports, where athletes with little or no experience may never get to play.

Last year 20 girls played for Sibley. That team finished eighth in the state tournament.

 This year, there are 40 girls split between two teams (15 on the “A” team, 25 on the “B” team). As of May 8, the girls “A” team has a 2-1 record and the “B” team is 0-3, according to the Minnesota High School Ultimate League website. The Warriors will compete at this year’s state tournament, held in Blaine on June 4 and 5.

“I think a lot of the girls heard from their friends that it was fun, so they joined,” said Wobig, who as a math teacher at the high school also spreads the word about the sport she first started playing in college.

“I don’t think any of them have really played much,” Wobig said.

“[But] a lot of the same girls who have played soccer seem to do well [in Ultimate],” she added, comparing the similarities in the games’ cuts and other movements.

The girls have seven returning players from last year, including senior co-captains Sami Amatuzio and Briana Mork, who both play on the “A” team.

Mork, whose father played competitively at Carleton College in Northfield, is in her third year playing at Henry Sibley, but she said she has played Ultimate all her life.

“We all play when we get together at our cabin,” Mork said of her family. “It’s a bonding thing.”

Mork convinced Amatuzio to take up the game last year, and Amatuzio fell in love with it.

“It’s so easy to pick up the rules,” said Amatuzio.

“It’s a team sport,” Mork said of her favorite thing about Ultimate. “You can’t do anything by yourself.”

The teams play their home games on the field south of Henry Sibley High School along Warrior Drive. For updated game information visit the Henry Sibley High School website and click on the “Activities” tab and then select “Activities, Clubs,” and then “Ultimate Frisbee.”