Kaira Carter gets up for the continuation. (Photo by Women Scorned)
20 Days of Nationals and the 2012 College Tour are presented by Spin Ultimate
In the beginning, Woman Scorned started much like many of the teams. By branching off of the existing open team and increasing recruiting efforts, the team exploded into the elite level in just a few years.
Iowa State’s journey was not one without struggle. The team made the difficult choices required to turn players into real students of the game with a passion for ultimate. For the players on the team, it has been a journey that meant so much more than qualifying for nationals.
Last year, Iowa State had some of the best players in the game, yet decided to build the bottom of their roster rather than only relying on the top players to perform. ISU players gained big game experience against elite competition. Now, the team just might have the deepest team in the College Women’s game in 2012.
Iowa State's Sarah Hoistad at Centext 2012. (Photo by Adam Lerman)
Woman Scorned’s captains, Sarah Hoistad and Magon Liu, describe, “It has really been the whole team that has stepped up to bring this team to success. After Jasmine Draper and Jessy Erickson, our two top players from 2011, graduated, we did not think we were going to be this successful. Many of our ladies played club this past season, which helped them and our team improve greatly. Overall, it was not just one or two people that stepped up after last year, but the majority of the team that has stepped up and made this team successful.”
Because so many of the players had played together in the off-season, they built strong chemistry for the regular season. “Woman Scorned has really been working to become a cohesive team. That is, for everyone to know their roles that they need to play on and off the field and to be able to do them as best as they can. We have been working to know each other and our playing styles flawlessly so that in high pressure games, we can rely on what we know,” explain Hoistad and Liu.
The team can focus solely on their performance during games, because they have an extremely dedicated coaching staff: Lana and Kevin Seiler. The Seilers, largely known for dominating in the Mixed Club Division with the Chad Larson Experience, bring poise and strategy to Woman Scorned. After working with them for two full seasons, Hoistad and Liu credit the Seilers’ ability to mesh with the team’s personalities. “They have brought great leadership and strategy to our team. They have not only thought about strategy for the team, and what type of offenses and defenses will work best for our players, but they have also worked to make each individual player better and has given them direction on what they need to work on,” say Liu and Hoistad. They add, “They have definitely become a part of Woman Scorned, our ‘Mom and Dad.’”
Daisy Velasco snags the disc from a SLU player. (Photo by Women Scorned)
Driven by the goal of qualifying for nationals, the team has brought their A-game throughout the regular season. “Our goals have been to make it to Nationals. We knew that we had the potential coming into the Spring season and we just simply had to act on it.”
When you ask them what the defining tournament of their season has been, the answer is easy. Hoistad and Liu credit winning Centex as a huge impact on their team as they move closer toward the Championships. “This whole Spring semester has been a surreal dream for us with our current game record and it wasn’t until Centex that we saw competition from other regions and saw how we played against new offenses and defenses. It is interesting to see two teams play together for the first time and see which team can adapt the most to overcome a certain offense or defense. Centex was the ultimate challenge for us.”
Iowa State, expected to win the North Central Region, lost a close semi-final game to Wisconsin. This set them to play Carleton in the backdoor finals for the final bid to Boulder. The backdoor finals game really showcased the grit and determination that this team is made of. Though they went down to Syzygy, they never gave up and picked up the intensity, challenging every play on O and D. Iowa State led a huge second half charge to take the game and secure the third bid to Boulder.
Woman Scorned looks to the future to showcase their hard work since Regionals. They say, “The focus will be on making sure we know each other inside and out, on the field and off. We will be making sure our plays, offenses, and defenses are ready to be enforced in a game at any time no matter who is on the field.”
Liu and Hoistad reveal that Woman Scorned is looking forward to playing Washington in bracket play of the College Championships. “We are looking forward to the great competition at Nationals. We are excited to see Washington at Nationals, since our teams have been tweeting back and forth, and think it would be not only a competitive but fun game as well.”
Even though they have secured several big tournament wins this spring, we may see even more from them in Boulder. The captains describe, “Each tournament this season Woman Scorned has grown and improved. We have never reached our ‘peak’ and have always found this to improve on after every tournament.”
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