The Saint Joseph’s Universtiy women’s Ultimate Frisbee team is entering its second year of existence, but without its original group of senior founders. That means it’s a make-or-break year for the team.
Angie Negal, assistant director of Campus Recreation, said the key to making sure a club doesn’t disappear after its inception is strong leadership.
“Hopefully they have some strong sophomore and junior leadership,” Negal said. “Other clubs have had strong leadership that graduates, and then there is nobody there to take over the club. So this will kind of be their test year.”
Senior captains Erin McLaughlin and Emily Phalon both said they are confident they can lead the team through this important year.
“We had one leader who was a senior last year who did a lot of the behind the scenes stuff,” Phalon said. “But when it comes to practice and team-bonding and experience, that’s us. So I think if we could figure out how to set up a tournament, we are good to go.”
So far this year, the team has recruited 13 to 14 freshmen.
“We have more freshmen than upperclassmen I believe,” McLaughlin said. “Pretty much all of them are consistently coming to the practices and enjoying it too, which is great.”
Unlike other club sports that attract players who want to keep playing a sport in college without the pressure of performing at a division one level, McLaughlin said that Ultimate Frisbee is new to many team members. The game takes time for players to master. Therefore, Phalon said the team tries to make the first couple weeks of practice loose and fun, and foster an inviting social environment.
“The Frisbee team is known for its social aspect,” said sophomore Charlotte Schneider. “We will get together at people’s houses and hang out and play Kanjam or something like that. It’s basically like a big group of 30 people who are a bunch of friends. It is actually a lot bigger this year.”
That camaraderie is something Phalon said she wants to continue to foster with the women’s team.
The captains now turn their attention to the future of the club. They hope to create a group of leaders that can keep the club on the right path next season.
“It is important on our part to set the groundwork for the girls now because we didn’t have that as sophomores,” McLaughlin said.
Phalon isn’t just thinking a year ahead. She wants to start preparing the freshman to eventually become leaders.
“We have a decent group of juniors who are committed and I know they will probably take over for next year,” said Phalon. “It’s about making sure the freshman now want to keep going and recruiting. If they do that, the club will continue.”
