Pre-Series Record: 11-11 Series Record: 9-2
End of Season Standing: 7T at New England Regionals, lost to Brown in Backdoor bracket.
Coaches: Brook Martin, Matt Mackey, Misha Sidorsky
Recent History:
2010 Tournaments: Williams Turf, Trouble in Vegas, 5T Terminus, 3T Yale Cup, 1st East New England Sectionals, 7T New England Regionals
After qualifying for pre-Quarters at Nationals in 2008, Dartmouth had a rough go of it in 2009, posting a record of 1-2 at New England Regionals and falling out of contention before Sunday. In 2010, Pain Train returned much of its roster in hopes of moving back toward the top of the region, and after a decent regular season that was heavy on in-region competition (the team went 1-1 against Middlebury, 2-0 against Massachusetts, and lost to Harvard 11-14 in the Semifinals at Yale Cup), Dartmouth entered New England Regionals as the 4th seed overall. After beating MIT, Pain Train suffered its first 2010 loss to UMass, who had been missing big thrower Robin Stewart-DeMartino in the teams’ first two meetings, 14-15. In the backdoor bracket, Dartmouth defeated Wesleyan but fell to Brown, 11-13.
Roster Turnover and Offseason Club Experience:
Dartmouth’s main loss from 2010 is 6’7” captain Graham Baecher, who was the focal point of the Pain Train offense both as a deep and as a thrower. In 2011, Pain Train is returning grad students Robin Meyers (former captain) and Ian Adelstein, along with big contributors Chase Raines, Scott Sottosanti, and former captain Robin Meyers. In total, the team is bringing back two grad students, seven seniors, three juniors, and three sophomores.
Dartmouth adds a six-member freshman class that includes five juniors players and features Spencer Diamond, a graduate of Amherst Regional High School and a member of the 2010 Junior Worlds Team. While he’s not huge, Diamond brings explosive speed that he uses to guard cutters effectively, and he has quality throws to boot. Pain Train has also added Brook Martin to coach full-time alongside assistants Matt Mackey (whose knowledge of the game is showcased on his Ultimate Thoughts blog [http://www.ultimatethoughts.com/]) and former captain and current Ironside player Misha Sidorsky. As a coach, Martin took the Seattle Open team to a YCC Championship in 2009 and Washington to a 5th-place finish at Nationals in 2005, and he won championships while playing with Oregon, Sockeye, and Throwback. Martin brings a knack for seeing and bringing out the best in each individual player and a history of designing and implementing a number of different zone looks.
Dartmouth was relatively active on the club scene in 2010, with Raines and Adelstein playing with Replicants, Diamond and Johnson with Dark or Light, and several others with Chuck Wagon, 7 Express, and Enough Monkeys.
Strategy:
Dartmouth’s offensive goal is to stay patient while seeking out deep throws, using Meyers and Sottosanti to find talented downfield deep threats. The team’s defensive offense relies heavily on long cuts down the breakside that then plant and run horizontally across the force side.
Fall 2010:
Dartmouth put together its most successful fall in recent memory, compiling a 24-5 record while playing in the UOA Ivy League Championships, UOA Nationals, and Huck a Hunk O’Burning Pumpkin. The team’s losses were to Tufts, UMass, Cornell, and Pittsburgh, but aside from Pitt, Pain Train also beat each of those teams.
2011 Schedule:
Dartmouth plans on travelling to Terminus and Centex on top of Yale Cup and the Series.
2011 Outlook:
Dartmouth appears to be very driven to improve on last year’s early exit from Regionals, and its blend of experienced veterans (who last saw Nationals as freshmen in 2008) and eager freshmen should balance well. Martin has a fantastic coaching resume, and Dartmouth’s talented and experienced roster is likely to benefit from his services. Look for Diamond to lead the Freshman of the Year discussion, and for Pain Train to reach the New England Region Semifinals. From there, much will depend on where Pain Train is seeded and whether or not New England has earned extra bids to Nationals.
Comments Policy: At Skyd, we value all legitimate contributions to the discussion of ultimate. However, please ensure your input is respectful. Hateful, slanderous, or disrespectful comments will be deleted. For grammatical, factual, and typographic errors, instead of leaving a comment, please e-mail our editors directly at editors [at] skydmagazine.com.