Truman State
Amanda Carron
Great player, fun to watch
Noelle Peterson
Does anyone have an answer for her?
St. Louis
Kira (sp?)
One of the sharpest cutters in the region.
At least one or two more that helped their team upset Texas
WUWU
Tracy Horner
Big bad throws
Kate Stambaugh
Abby
KU
Tasha Parman
Paige Blair
Texas
Becca Shelton (i'll admit the only reason I put her on here is because
she made all-region two years ago).
???
I want to hear about women at Vanderbilt, Tulane, Arkansas, A&M and
all the other women deserving of all-region consideration.
Gonna throw Jessica Hoppe, captain from the University of Oklahoma, in
the mix here. She was All-Region last year, and has come back even
stronger this year. I suppose there's only been one tournament to
draw an impression from, that being Frostbite, but from somebody who
has witnessed her play this season, I can say that she is most
deserving again this year.
Oklahoma State
Katy Brown
She is the spice in the Sauce for OSU
Oklahoma
Jessica Hoppe
Rock Star
Mary Hinson
Very quick and scrappy, always exciting to watch
Zero question, Annie Newton from Auburn. One of, if the best, players
in the region.
So hypothetical situation, there's this team, we'll call them "Lone
Star Brawl," and they've gone to Nationals from a one-bid region
approximately 456421 times in a row before last year. They might have
been a little bit upset about those results, and based on their season
would be the frontrunners in what once again appears to be a one-bid
region. Now, your nickname shows up as "Coach," so I could be going
out on a limb here, but if you had this hypothetical team in your
region, wouldn't you consider them your main competition for that bid?
Wouldn't you know ALL of their good players? Strengths and weaknesses,
things like that? Just curious. I play for a team, let's call it
"Austin MobileHome" and we duke it out every year at regionals with
"Atlanta Weather Phenomenon" and I sure as hell know every member of
that roster that can play.
Anyway, I've had a few opportunities to watch the Texas women this
season. I'm an open club player, so my view of things might be
different, ie. I do not award points for spirit fingers or dancing
skills.
- Michelle Ng is a very developed offensive player with consistent,
smart throws;
- Becca Shelton is an all-round player who has no one dominating
strength, but also no real weaknesses on either side of the disc;
- Marjo Manalang is one of the faster women that I've seen in college,
a defensive specialist who's added on some good offense this year;
- Katie Blyth is just really good and really young (and her older
sister is one of the best women's players I've seen, so good genes)
Those are the girls I noticed when I watched Texas play. Obviously
there are other good ones. I've only seen Texas play teams from other
regions, so I can't comment on anyone else from the South.
Keep hyping the South Women.
Loren
Coach KU Betty's
I don't care about Texas getting "love," I just thought it was strange
for a competing coach to be largely unfamiliar with the top
competition in the region. Obviously, I don't think everyone should be
familiar with everyone -- I didn't know anyone in the Ozarks, but
that's because I don't coach a South Region women's team.
Its good to get some exposure for those less famous teams.
And from the looks of the way the south women's region is panning out
its important that SLU and WUWU get their props because they are two
teams that look like they will be making a run at that top regional
spot.
Teams that have players who need to be recognized also
Vanderbilt : We played them our last game on sunday at Mardi Gras and
they had a great handler who could put it anywhere on the field
Rice : Again saw them at Mardi Gras, they had a girl who was wicked
fast with great field sense and good throws
Texas : Michelle has been very aggresive about building the south
region this year, regardless of her play (which is great), she
deserves all region simply for her devotion to improving the region as
a whole
Go South!
Denmark
Having read the opening post on this thread, I can say that yes, there
is a serious Ozark bias in that. So let me at least offer some notes
on the Bama Section.
I coach the Vandy Women's team, and I hate having to be a part of
"talking somebody up," as it's not very useful for team building and
is not usually productive. VUDU and any success they've had is first
and foremost a product of their team play. They're about tough defense
and aggressive offense, they play together as a unit and hold each
other up as such. They don't much care for individual accolades, they
work hard together, and they all have a lot of fun doing it. However,
as it would be a shame not to recognize any players from an excellent
team in the South, I'll go against my better judgment and point out
three players who lead the charge. If for no other reason, I nominate
these ladies as representatives of the greater team.
Vanderbilt
Katie Patterson - anyone who's played Vandy knows the offense runs
through her, and she inspires her teammates with gritty layout-riddled
defense. The hardest working player on VUDU, she's captained the team
since its inception, and her leadership and talent are critical to
Vandy's success.
Sarah Edmonds - transfer student from Oregon, and the ladies on Fugue
always tell me what a steal it was for VUDU. She's long, fast, an
exceptional thrower, and I haven't found a woman in college who's
better in the air (admitted coach bias). Anyone who plays Vandy has
figured out which one she is.
Sara Gibson - as a sophomore, she performs like a senior. Our pick for
FOTY last year, and if there was a SOTY nominee, she'd be ours. She
never stops working, never stops smiling, and never ceases to amaze.
Other teams I know something about:
Tulane
Allison Douglas - Played in the mixed club series for Deliverance, all-
star throws, great hands, and can play anywhere on the field.
Auburn
Annie Newton - Though VUDU hasn't played them this year, they were at
CCC and by all accounts she's still the focal piece of their offense.
Plus she's got a serious cannon.
Ole Miss
We haven't seen these ladies yet, but I'm sure they've got some go-to
players as well.
Out of our region but still in our hearts
Texas
A team we've seen a number of times this year, and I thought I would
mention two of their players who I've seen play well. Texas is really
deep, and has skill everywhere on the field, but the two I've seen are
Gina (Phillips?) and Rebecca Shelton. Gina, who I'm told played for
Chewbacca Defense in Mixed Club looked to me like a pretty clutch
handler at CCC and Centex. Rebecca, who by most accounts is their best
player, is aggressive and fast and makes things happen on offense and
defense.
To SLULU, WUWU, arkansas, TSU, Missouri, and UNT, all these teams had
great players, and unfortunately I didn't get my stuff together enough
to be able to make a good recommendation for all region-type players.
I don't think I've left off any team we played this year (who I saw),
but if so, I'm sorry.
Keep up the good stuff and hopefully we'll see you all at regionals!
Mary, as stated, is one of the quicker players I've seen. Scrappy is
also a good word to describe her, as I've seen her make some of the
most unlikely catches against all odds. If she doesn't get the
recognition this year, she should definitely be in the running next
year if she continues to dramatically improve year-to-year as she has
previously displayed.
Annie Newton has to be on this list... I taught her everything she
knows.
Truman State : Mona Baucom = game ready hammer
thanks Jibb and Terrell for the shoutout, and I'm especially glad my
strongest description is akin to scooby doo's obnoxious nephew, but my
last name is spelled Henson. anyway, Jessica Hoppe = more than a
rockstar, game ready hammer and excellent leader.
The Rice girl aptly described as "wicked fast with great field sense
and good throws " is Johanna Sanchez-Adams, who plays for Showdown
during the club season.. She was All-Region last year and definitely
deserving again this year.
-Rafa
Christina Wirkus Senior Truman State
Kate Sanders Senior Truman State
Katie Sullivan Senior Kansas
Jessica Hoppe Junior Oklahoma
Sarah Blyth Senior Texas
Lorig Hawkins Senior Texas
Vikki Lyda Sophomore Arkansas
Johanna Sanchez-Adams Grad Rice
Alison Douglas Freshman of the Year Tulane
5 of the 7 (I believe) have graduated or run out of eligibility.
Leaving Jessica Hoppe and Johanna Sanchez-Adams from last year's all-
region. Looks like there will be a number of new all-region
candidates showing up.
I've noticed that people mainly post about people on their own team or
people they've been teammates with. Is there anybody out there that
wants to enlighten us with some great play from an opponent?
I'll start.
Noelle Peterson-I think she has a switch in her body that goes from
1st to 5th gear. She's either relaxing or playing inspired ultimate.
When that switch is on, she's scary good.
Ha. :) Actually, 2002 was the first year Texas ever made Nationals.
just FYI...5 years is still a long run though.
Much love to Melee for raising the competitive bar every year since
then.
South All-Region Standouts:
(From an admitted die-hard AC Regioner)
Becca Shelton (Texas)
Annie Newton (Auburn)
Katie Patterson (Vandy)
FOTY Award has got to be between either Ashton Wollett from Auburn or
Janel Venzant from Texas. They are sick.
--Katherine Wooten
Get well soon!
p.s. guys, "the fish hate it when you tap on the tank" -Karl Doege.
Definitely the worst post ever featuring the hallowed name of Karl
Doege.
FOTY:
Rachel Massey- Texas
Just in case you were wondering who was on the receiving end of Gina's
hucks. She plays like a vet, could play any point against any team.
On Apr 22, 12:02 pm, WilliamWatson <mcarn...@ou.edu> wrote:
> On Apr 19, 8:23 am, caseybo...@gmail.com wrote:
>
> > Every girl who plays deserves to be All-Region... I have no idea how
> >womendo it... it has to be tough to play underwater! It impresses me
Alison Douglas, last year's freshman of the year should definitely be
up there on everyone's lists. Just because her team is pretty terrible
doesn't mean that she is still not a complete baller. Her throws are
phenomenal and her defense is fierce. She could have been a dominant
cutter on Tulane but then nobody would've been able to throw to her.
Talk about Annie Newton this year.
Talk about Blair Druhan, Tracey McClure, Stacy Taylor and Ashton
Wollett next year.
I can't speak of all of the Auburn girls, but I have played Club with
and against Annie Newton. She is simply a dominant player. She is
also an integral of Ozone from Atlanta, if you had any doubt about her
worth as a player. I can't imagine any all-region list without her on
it. I'd like to hear what Texas A&M thought of her in their game.
Is that the girl who had the orange sleeve/headband on her head? That
girl looked like a pretty solid player for Truman as well.
You are refering to captain Aman "Duh" Carron. A lights out defensive
player, with great vision and no regards for her body. Truman States
go to handler. A fearce competitor and a clear all region candidate.
Having said that, here's what I've got.
Amanda Carron (TSU) - Put our best speed defender on her and she still
had an exceptional game.
Katie Patterson (Vandy) - Maybe the best hucker in the South, great
speed, and intense gritty D.
Sarah (Eddie) Edmonds (Vandy) - Probably the best receiver I saw all
weekend, and loaded it up on D as well.
Natalie (Balls?) Espino (UT) - Made all the throws look easy for
Texas, as she was usually open by ten yards.
Alexa Tang (A+M) - Great cutter and thrower and just a very solid
performer, really elevated A+M's game
Allison Douglas (Tulane) - Exceptionally talented, and unfortunately
on a team still rebuilding, but great O, D, and a great all-around
player
Stevie (Arkansas) - Even though they struggled to win and brought a
tiny squad, this girl really shines and is certainly one of the best 7
in the region.
(FOTY) Janel (UT) - The best athlete on Texas, has a ton of D, plays
extremely fast and will be great for years to come.
I know these are all players on teams who Vandy has played against,
and so that may be a bias, and there may be a player from Oklahoma or
St Louis who might have a claim to a spot, but these are the best,
from my view, of what I saw with particular weight on player's
performance in the series. No question that Melee had a great Regional
performance, but it was hard to pick out individuals who were head and
shoulders above the rest.
-Rob
-Vandy Women's Coach
Amanda Carron, Truman St. - I don't believe Truman's offense could be
as efficient as it is without her. Not only does she deliver a good
amount of those hucks that end up going for big scores, but she's also
their main safety valve if the offense happens to stall. I tried
multiple defenders on her to stop her from getting open on dumps.
Obviously it wasn't easy. She also plays shut down D with no regard
for her body, as somebody mentioned earlier. One of the best two-way
players in the region.
Kara O'Malley, St. Louis - Vocal and physical leader of her team.
Seems to always be around the disc both on offense and defense. She
seems to be one of those players that knows how to get the most out of
her teammates.
Michelle Ng, Texas - Amazing handler with breaks unlike any I've seen
in my short coaching stint. Honestly, I didn't get to see much of her
in the game we played against Texas, but from what I observed in other
games, she's a good reason why Texas cutters are so successful.
Tasha Parman, Kansas - This girl has killed us every time we've played
Kansas since I've been coaching. She always brings the disc down in
one-on-one situations, especially when it comes to hucks with
difficult reads. I didn't get to see them at Regionals, but I know
from experiences past that Tasha causes fits.
Annie Newton, Auburn - Despite only having one sub all weekend, Annie
kept firing on all cylinders on Sunday when we played them. She found
ways to get open with enough separation to put up some beautiful hucks
that looked effortless and hit her cutters in stride.
Shameless hype:
Jessica Hoppe, Oklahoma - All she's ever done in the two years I've
coached her is amaze me. She's more than the glue that holds this
team together; she's the duct tape, solder, Velcro, Zip-Lock, zipper,
etc.. In my opinion, the best all-around player in the region.
Julia Garossino, Oklahoma - When faced with having our only sub of the
weekend hurt her ankle in the midst of Saturday play, Julia stepped up
big time. I often had her on the other teams' best handlers to take
away easy dumps and force tough throws. She was often the first girl
down the field off of a pull to play defense. And she runs one of the
tightest weaves in the region.
Mary Henson, Oklahoma - Although she hates being called it, she is all
that is scrappy. Despite being one of the shorter girls in the
region, she creates separation for hucks to be a lethal deep threat
while keeping the defense honest on her in-cuts. I don't keep stats
anymore, but if I had to guess, I'd say that Mary leads our team in
goals caught.
Other noteworthy girls:
Mona Baucom, Truman St.
Noelle Peterson, Truman St.
Meg Welsh, St. Louis (St. Louis' other captain)
Tricia Wong, St. Louis
Paige Blair, Kansas
Kate Stambaugh, WUWU
Finally:
St. Louis' dance instructor should get some All-Region love. This is
my attempt.
Unfortunately, I didn't get to see much of Texas besides the game we
played them, so I don't know much about them. Obviously they're a
very skilled team, but I can only write about who I know. Best of
luck to Texas at Natties, get some Ws for the South.
Also, I remember Katie P. being good when I played pickup with her
back in South Cacalack, but I also heard she is a loud drunk when
swimming in my backyard late at night and that she doesn't take well
to hard liquor. What kinda captain is that? :) Hope you had a good
ride back Katie.
I was impressed with Alexa Tang from A&M. She never stopped hustling,
make some really hard grabs, had some sick bids on O and D--overall
she was a fun challenge to guard. She also threw confidently and SkyU
seems to benefit greatly from her presence on the field. I know KS
was impressed with her attitude, effort, and talent.
Also, I didn't see her play much and have never played against her,
but Michelle Ng from Texas comes into my mind. It depends on what all-
region means to you, whether it's the best athletes, the best spirit,
the game ready hammer... ;) To me, all-region should be someone
should stands out on all-aspects of the game, not just a one-
dimensional player. That said, again, I haven't seen Michelle play
much. Playing-wise, my impression is that she is a solid handler and
defender. What stands out however is a desire to better women's
Ultimate and the South region. Texas put on Elite 8 and Texas
Throwdown this season, and held those tourneys out of Texas in hopes
of attracting more teams. She worked to get more of those nationally
recognized teams to come in with multiple goals, including putting
women's ultimate more on the map and making the South a more
competitive region. Ultimate doesn't stop with us in 2008. The
leaders of this sport are working to contribute to the future of
Ultimate, and that is something about Michelle that sets her apart
from others for me.
What about more FOTY talk? I know of some good young players, but
honestly I'm not sure if they are true freshmen or not. Forgive me,
but help us all out--if you know of them, sell em, let's hear who is
going to be in the spotlight for their teams in the upcoming years.
Go south!
-tasha parman
betty
First, Noelle Peterson. Last year, Noelle killed us in the Regional
finals. She is dominant in the air, reads the disc well, and makes
ridiculous grabs in traffic like it's no big deal. If you want to
beat TSUnami, you have to game plan around Noelle. She is the South's
best receiver in the air. When Noelle wants the disc, you are going
to have a very hard time stopping her. She played a great game
against St. Louis in pool play on Saturday, ripping down everything
thrown in her vicinity and getting some huge Ds. She also helped
TSUnami close out their semis game against Vanderbilt and played well
in the finals against us. I can't imagine a top 7 list without Noelle
on it. At some point in the finals, I turned to one of her captains
and said "Man, I wish Noelle was on my team." It's true. Noelle is a
mad baller.
Second, Amanda Carron. Amanda is THE best leader in the South Region
and having watched TSUnami closely all year along, I would assert that
she is their best player. She is calm and collected with the disc,
has great hucks and breaks, and just makes her cutters look good with
her perfectly-placed throws. Amanda takes on a huge part of the
handling burden on a young TSUnami team and she does so with
confidence. She is also a shut-down defender and her ridiculous bids
have made my jaw drop on numerous occasions. Amanda is one of the
most complete players in the Region. While All-Region discussions
usually center around physical abilities, I think that Amanda's
contributions to TSUnami's mental and emotional game need to be
highlighted. There are many captains in this Region whom I respect
greatly and Amanda is at the very top of this list. Amanda plays with
so much heart-- you can see it in the way she gently encourages her
teammates and in the way she lays it on the line every single point.
She is always positive and makes everyone around her want to play
harder. You can't help but be inspired by Duh. While many people may
have doubted TSUnami after some speed bumps (including a 3rd place
finish at Sectionals), I felt sure that TSUnami would play outstanding
ultimate come Regionals, if only because of my confidence in Amanda's
captaining abilities.
I also want to shout out three other TSUnami girls who are all
returning next year- Mona Baucom (Amanda's co-captain, who is an
amazing leader in her own right), Morgan Shahan (one of the most
underrated players in the South), and Emily Tobias (who simply wants
it more than most other people out there). They will be three of the
best players in the Region next season and you should have them all on
your radar-- Mona with her throws (including a game-ready hammer!);
Morgan with her great cuts, sick grabs, and tough defense; and Emily
with her all-around intense play on both sides of the disc. All three
of them for All-Region '09.
TSUnami-- thank you for a spirited, competitive game-to-go. We've
come a long way since our tenuous game last year and it's been a
privilege playing against you guys all season long. Knowing how hard
you guys work makes me want to work even harder.
As for Tasha's comments about the future of the South, I have nothing
but faith that all of you younger players are going to keep building
this Region to make it something we are all proud of. The three
TSUnami players I named above, Tasha Parman (Kansas), Kate Stambaugh
(Wash U), Abby Stephens (Wash U), Kara O'Malley (St. Louis), Sarah
"Eddie" Edmonds (Vanderbilt), Sara "Gibbs" Gibson (Vanderbilt),
Katherine Choeffel (A&M), Ashley Greiwe (A&M), Blair Druhan (Auburn),
Stephanie Redfern (Texas), Katie "BS" Blyth (Texas), Lauren "Ralphie"
McKinney (Texas), Rachel "Chump" Massey (Texas)... ALL returning next
year. The list could go on and on-- I guarantee that these people are
going to turn some heads. Do us proud, kids.
South Region Love,
Michelle #10
Berkeley Ultimate '04-'06
Texas Ultimate '07-'08
Natalie "Balls" Espino
Texas #54
Also, I want to plug WUWU's Sam Huo for freshman of the year. She is
sneaky, fast, and fearless on the field, skying discs like whoa and
defending with a smile on her face. Please, give her a thought. It
sounds like Tulane's got a good candidate, but I haven't seen her, so
I thought I'd give people another contender to consider.
Good playing at Regionals, everyone. And good luck to Texas in
Boulder!
Traci Horner, #9
WUWU (Washington University)
PS - I'm moving to the Bay Area next year, so if anyone is interested
in getting into some ultimate out there, let me know (I know you're
down, Michelle)!I