Kylie Bridenhagen/Winonan

On a chilly Friday in November, the Winona State University Ultimate Frisbee Experience Club and fans gathered at Jaycee Pavilion near the east lake in Winona for the first annual Red v. White Scrimmage.

The basics of the game started in 1968 when the “founders” of the sport—John Silver, Bernard Hellring, and Johnathan Hermes were playing Frisbee at Columbia High School. After experimenting with rules, Ultimate was born.

Spreading across the country in the mid 1970s, colleges began participating in the sport, and the first unofficial National Championships were held during this time.

The Ultimate Players Association was formed in 1979. Now known as USA Ultimate, college, women’s, mixed, masters, and youth teams, or divisions, have been created and there are over 30,000 nationwide members.

One Ultimate college team is Winona State University.

The WSU Ultimate Frisbee Experience Club has been around for 34 years, and in those past years, some teams have been close to the top in the nation.

Team captain, Luther Buhr, says that this year is going to be a bit of a rebuilding season.

“Last year, we didn’t do too great, but that has fueled the fire for this year,” he said.

This year’s team, a mix of younger athletes as well as seasoned returning players, will work hard to try to prove themselves.
Buhr said this year, “The freshmen are studs!”

After the game was completed, the Red team won 15-13 against the White team. A team’s roster can have as many players as a team wants or needs, but only seven players can be on the field at one time. For the Warriors, there are two seasons to be considered.

“The Fall season is when the players get ready and are practicing. The Spring season is the more intense of the two,” says Buhr.

Nov. 10 and 11, the Warriors will be traveling to Columbia, Missouri to play at the Missouri Loves Company 2012 tournament, the first of their busy schedule.

Cody Rondeau, an Ultimate member, said, “This club is the one that travels the most among all clubs at Winona State. We have gone to Chicago, Illinois, and Louisiana, and next year we hope to travel to Las Vegas for a tournament.”

The MLC tournament will play host to various Division I and III teams whose skills are at a national caliber.

Eleven of the Division I teams participated in the National Championships last year, including the University of Minnesota, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Iowa, and Pittsburgh.

The other participating teams, “always put up a fight and jockey for the limited amounts of spots to the National Championships,” Rondeau said.

The Warriors hope to be ranked nationally this year.

They will start their season off in “Pool H”, which includes Arkansas, North Texas, and Washington University.

On Saturday, Nov. 10, the Warriors will play their opening game against Washington University at the Cosmo Park Recreation Complex.

This tournament is “highest caliber competition as the pinnacle of fall Ultimate,” according to the staff of the MLC tournament.

After the MLC tournament next weekend, the team will have an idea about how the rest of their season will go. The team is always looking for more players to join. Soccer, basketball, football, and any other ex-high school athletes are encouraged to join.

If interested, you can contact Buhr at [email protected].

Contact Kylie at [email protected]