I met Lang a little less than three years ago as a graduate
student, when I joined Pleiades to play out the last 2
seasons of my college eligibility. Lindsay was at the start
of her sophomore year and we despite a nearly 5-year age
gap, I quickly realized she was exactly what I was looking
for.
A pinpoint, outside-in, flick huck that I would spend the
next two college and one club season chasing after.
Certainly Lang belongs in the top echelon of college players
this year. Yes, but Callahan? Let me explain.
The Callahan award isn't an MVP award, as so many have
previously argued. So, for me to argue that she is the
single most talented player in college women's ultimate is
unnecessary.
On top of living together and playing Pleiades and Phoenix
together, Lindsa y and I started something else about a
month after I met her in 2009. We, along with Heather
Zimmerman, Matt Koh and Paul Corbett started to coach a
brand new high school ultimate team in Carrboro, aptly named
the Carrboro Clams (yes, we're land-locked, yes, screaming
GO CLAMS from the sideline is as much fun as you are
imagining).
That year we believed in a 1:2 coaching ratio and took our 5
coaches and 11 players to North Carolina HS States and
placed 6th, it was a blistering weekend in Charlotte but we
were hooked, players and coaches alike. Lindsay, Heather and
I wanted nothing more than for the essence of what playing
on Pleiades means to carry over to the Clams...but we
weren't sure how exactly it would translate a team of 14-17
year old boys (we didn't have any girls until year 2).
Turns out, the spirit of the game translates pretty well to
high school boys...and the cuddling? Even better. [We found
them on the sideline at States this year playing 'human
jenga'].
We returned to states in 2011 with a couple more people and
continued to improve; however, it wasn't until 2012 that the
Clams really hit their stride.
With Lang and Heather by my side we watched as each Clam
fell in love with Ultimate and then recruited 2-3 more Clams
to the team. We attended Queen City Tune Up this spring
(er...winter, if you're from Florida), a tournament that
Lang was running while playing with Pleiades and captaining
the team. Heather and I held down the fort with frequent
visits from Lang during her byes. The Clams, with a roster
of 23 (and 3 girls!) rose from 6th seed to win the
tournament.
We won something. We called subs. We HAD subs. Mind = Blown.
Did I mention the 40mph winds that weekend? That I had
parents asking me at what point the game would be called on
account of wind?
Turns out, winning is awesome. Crazier still, winning isn't
everything. This year the Clams placed 3rd in the State with
Lindsay and I switching off clipboard/sub-calling duty and
line-calling duty with Heather.
Common coaching sideline chatter:
pull goes up
Lang: I told them to go man, backhand. What are they doing?
Heather: Looks like a zone with a box and one
Britta: What are they DOING??
Lang: Oh my god. They got a turn. Whatever. I called Max as
an endzone iso.
Britta: Max is back handling
long tense pause
Heather: WHAT ARE THEY DOING!?
gasping noises
Lang: Oh. Wow. They just scored. Ok, someone else go call
the line.
Playing ultimate is pretty awesome. Coaching ultimate with
sub-2 minutes between points to tell the line what defense
and offense to run is challenging. Watching from the
sideline as your plan doesn't always work out...or even get
put into effect requires a great deal of patience.
If you have ever covered Lindsay on the field you probably
remember a couple things
1) Your coach told you not to get broken by her IO flick
2) She never stopped running
3) If there was a call she always handled it calmly and
respectfully.
4) You probably got broken. If not by her IO flick, then by
her high release backhand.
In all honesty, what sets Lindsay Lang apart from some of
the other deserving nominees this week is that she is more
than just a good player and a good teammate. Lindsay is a
good opponent. She doesn't call fouls in the off chance that
the observer will rule in her favor. She doesn't raise her
voice to argue a call. She genuinely wants to be able to
play high-level Ultimate without compromising the Spirit of
the Game.
Anyone can play with a team, win tournaments and have a
blast. Lindsay has done that and won with a number of
different teams, beginning in high school. I personally
believe the Callahan award should go to someone who goes
beyond a teammate you want to win with; Lindsay Lang is a
teammate and co-coach I would chose over anyone else to lose
with.
How many of the nominees this year are people you would
really want to experience defeat alongside?
Together we have taken our HS team from losing nearly every
game at NC States to placing 1st at QCTU and 3rd in the
State.
So here's the crazy thing, last night we had our awards
ceremony and end of the year party with the Clams. You all
know what these are like, lots of talk about the season,
highlight reels, awards, tears, hugs, promises that next
season will be even better, etc. We drove home last night
and I realized something, not once during the four-hour
celebration did anyone mention our accolades from the
season. No one talked about winning our first tournament. No
one talked about losing in the semis to CHUF. Not one Clam,
coach or parent mentioned the actual outcome of our season.
Instead we talked about how much certain players had
improved, what our rising seniors have to look forward to,
the ridiculous potential in our freshman class, new goals
for recruiting, new tournaments to attend.
Somewhere in the past three years, Lindsay helped create a
team that went from losing all the time to winning big
games...and simultaneously created a team that cares more
about one another than either winning or losing.
Lindsay doesn't need to win the Callahan award to validate
her success as a teammate, captain and coach. However, there
is no other nominee this year who better embodies everything
this award is meant to represent than Lang.
I simply want her to be able to bookmark this thread and be
able to come back to it and remember the lives she touched
while playing and coaching Ultimate in Chapel Hill.