Athlete Benchmark – Katie Johnson, Iowa Saucy Nancy

by | January 11, 2011, 10:00am 0

Katie's record shattering vertical jump of 28" last year in Madison

“Rage-Kage” has been training for speed, agility and power since high school.  Some of her favorite power and speed development lifts include squatting, the clean & jerk, and dead lift. For agility KJ recommends agility ladders.  This winter she is training under CLX standout and Saucy Nancy coach Mike Lun. Katie says Coach Lun’s resistance training program will put Saucy Nancy a step above the competition this spring as they compete to earn a bid to Boulder.

Name: Katie Johnson aka KJ or Rage-Kage
Team
: University of Iowa Saucy Nancy
Number
: 7
Position:
Cutter

Stats:

40 Yard Sprint: 5.26 s
10 Yard Acceleration:
1.85 s
Vertical Jump:
28”
Zig Zag Agility:
9.89 s
300 Shuttle:
58.53 s

Rage Kage is NOT afraid to leave her feet and get dirty

Chose One:

Sky  –  D-Block  –  Lay Out Snag

Callahan – Greatest

Ocean – Mountains

Jerry Garcia – Trey Anastasio

Stair Workout – Heavy Front Squats – Plyos/ Agility Workout

Agility – Quickness – Speed – Power

On to the next one (Jay-Z) – All My Life (Foo Fighters)

Foot – Block

Katie toes the line

Describe your playing style in one word.

Opportunistic

What are your strengths as a player?

Probably my raw athletic ability: speed, agility and vertical jump.

What are your weaknesses as a player/ what part of your game are you working hard to improve?

My hucks are nothing to be desired so I’m working on improving them as well as learning how to slow down, because there have been several times I’ve run too fast toward the disc and it ricochets right off of me.

Katie soars above the competition

I’d say I’m a balanced teammate.  I know when to lead and when to follow, when to give constructive criticism and when to accept it.

What drives you to play at the top of your game?

My teammates. I don’t want to let them down.

Where and at what level do you see yourself playing ultimate in 5 years?

Wherever I go, I’d love to see myself playing on either a club women’s or mixed team that plays at Worlds in 2014.

What sorts of things do you do for off-season strength training?

Our Coach Mikey Lun has us on a program that consists of a lot of leg and core strengthening, so we do quite a bit of squatting, lunge jumping, dead lifting, etc.

Who are your heroes and influences in Ultimate?

Teammates Chelsea Twohig and Robyn Fennig are two amazing ultimate players.  They’re so smart and incredibly skilled with the disc.  I wish I were half as good as they are!

Did you play any sports in High School/ College?

I played basketball my freshman and sophomore year and ran track all four years, primarily running 100s, 200s and hurdles.

Agility – Quickness – Speed – Power Endurance

Easy grab

Which quality (s) do you excel in?

Agility, quickness and power.

Which quality (s) are you working on improving?

Endurance most definitely!  I can be quick and sprint down the field for a huck but I get pretty tired after doing that a few times. 

If you could share one tip with players striving to play at your level, what would it be?

Be fearless when it comes to laying out and going up for a disc.

What is your favorite “let’s go!” jam (song)?

Any mix that Pharm DJ put outs.  Currently it’s his Tramadol and Fentanyl mixes.

What are your goals concerning the upcoming college season?

This is most likely my last season with Saucy since I graduate in May so I want to end it on a high note, which would be to play at Nationals in Boulder, Colorado.

KJ demonstrates explosive triple extension (as seen in during training with Olympic lifts)

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