Newbies help Wits team to win half of matches played
Wits Ultimate Frisbee Club ranked 11th out of 16, at the South African Mixed Nationals tournament in Stellenbosch on April 26-28.
Wits Ultimate Frisbee captain Ross Bentley told Wits Vuvuzela that he was proud of the team’s progress since 2011, when it was formed. He said the team had gone from struggling to get out of last place to becoming a squad that consistently challenges all opponents.
“This club is made special by its legendary people, those who got us to where we are today and those who are part of our family now,” he said.
In Stellenbosch, out of the eight matches played, Wits won four. They were victorious against Maties 2 with a score of 15-3, defeated the Eastern Skies 13-10 and beat Ultitude 12-11.
The highlight for Bentley and Wits Ultimate Frisbee chairperson Merete Goosen was the last match they played on Sunday against Potch Elevation, with the final score of 13-12. Although there were injuries by then, “each individual showed true grit and passion”, Bentley, a third-year BA student, said.
Both Bentley and Goosen felt that the new team members learned a lot from the tournament.
“The improvements from all of our ‘newbies’ exceeded all expectations and made sure that the future of this club is in good hands,” said Bentley.
However, Goosen, a third-year BSc student, said that the team could make some improvements.
“We should have slightly trained more for [the tournament]. Making sure we kept up a good spirit was also something we needed to work on,” she said.
The overall winning team, The Long Donkeys from Pietermaritzburg, won all seven games they played and scored 15-9 against UCT Flying Tigers in the finals.
Petro van Eck, the lead coordinator of the tournament, said the tournament was highly competitive, and that the highlight for her was “seeing how the participants in the tournament enjoy playing Ultimate Frisbee”.
“The tournament was definitely challenging! More experienced players pushed themselves to play harder against teams amongst the best in South Africa,” said Rubina Valodia, a Wits team member and a fifth-year MBBCh student.
FEATURED IMAGE: Wits Ultimate Frisbee chairperson Merete Goosen (in red cap) plays in the match against Potch Elevation at the 2019 Mixed Nationals tournament. Photo: Provided
RELATED ARTICLES:
- Wits Vuvuzela: Frisbee make national team, March, 2019
- Wits Vuvuzela: Wits Frisbee team set to soar for the season , March, 2019