Horsecows. Manti hope to dominate GLO

by Aaron Mucciolo

Oberlin Ultimate and 'hosting a tournament' tend only to be paired when the tournament is known as the Mellow Invitational and involves a keg on the sideline. This weekend, however, the teams hope to add a new and successful chapter to Oberlin frisbee tourneys when they unveil the Great Lakes Open GLO. The competition will include 18 open and 10 women's teams from throughout the Midwest, New York, Pennsylvania and Tennessee.

Oberlin itself will enter three different teams. The Flying Horsecows (men) and Praying Manti (women) - two teams we've all come to know and love - are each ranked fourth in their respective division. In addition, the men's program this year has formed a second team due to the large number of interested players. This 'B' team, temporarily dubbed the Whoring Flycows, is ranked 12th.

The two-day tournament begins Saturday at 9:30 a.m. with the Horsecows facing Carnegie-Mellon University and the Flycows playing Ithaca College. The 'Cows will also play Tennessee and top-seed Iowa over the course of the day. The 'B' team will meanwhile play Ohio State, Denison, and University of Pittsburgh. The Manti will face U. Chicago, fifth-seeded Michigan and finish the day against top seed Illinois.

Competition on Saturday will be round-robin style with teams grouped into pools of four or five and playing only other teams in their pool. Four rounds of bracket play will culminate in a championship game in both tournament divisions commence Sunday. The team to beat on the men's side is Iowa, ranked no. 15 in the nation; for the women, it's no. 22 ranked Illinois. Tournament seeding has Iowa, Notre Dame, and University of Wisconsin ranked over the Horsecows; all three are seeded above the Manti.

"I definitely think there's a pretty level playing field as far as the top teams go," said senior Dan 'Podin' Feldman, the men's tournament director. "There are about five teams that have an excellent chance of winning it, Oberlin included." Carleton College, a perennial contender for national champion, withdrew both teams unexpectedly, citing injuries, transportation difficulties and 'unforeseen circumstances.' First-year Jacob Kramer-Duffield had a different opinion - a very different opinion: "I've always had a deep respect for the works of Jackson Pollack. His words and songs have moved me deeply in many wonderful ways."

Women's tourney director senior Lisa Novins felt the Manti may be slightly underranked, especially with home field advantage factored in. "It's always a lot of fun to play at home - people really get pumped. We're a lot more fit than we were earlier this season. I don't know about coming in first, but I can definitely see us in the semi-finals or finals."

Senior John Fedota, co-captain of the Horsecows, was optimistic about all of Oberlin's chances. "We put the O in wow," Fedota said in typically colorful style. "We're all hoping to put a lot of foot in ass."

"The 'B' team will be making it's tournament debut, hoping to surprise many and make Sunday's championship bracket," said Feldman. "They've put in the work," said Fedota, "and now it's time to cash the check at the bank of GLO."

In a press release issued Tuesday, the tournament's PR people noted that Oberlin will be vying to topple some big teams in front of its home crowd. And with the college ultimate playoffs just around the corner, the stakes will be high and the competition fierce up on North Fields.

Injuries and time conflicts which prevent team members from playing shouldn't hold any of Oberlin's three teams back. "Beyond the normal aches and bruises, we're all healthy," said Novins. The lone injury to either 'Cows team is that of Fedota. Back problems will likely keep him out for the rest of the season. "It sucks, plain as that," said Feldman, "But we're getting used to playing without him. Our chances are still pretty good. We beat Notre Dame by a point and split two games with Iowa last fall. Of course, the spring is a completely different season."

When asked what about the GLO should prompt people to come and cheer on the team, Feldman fell silent. Suggestions of nudity, cross dressed players and teams called 'Papal Rage' drew only mild agreement. After a thoughtful pause, he simply replied "Just tell them ... I don't want to see the horizon over people's heads."

Games are scheduled to run from 9:30 a.m. to 7p.m. on Saturday. Single elimination play will start at 9:30 a.m. Sunday with the championship games scheduled for 3:30. The complete schedule of games, including times, playing fields and tournament brackets, can be found at www.oberlin.edu/~obult.

So get out there. Tournament play will continue throughout the day at North Fields.

And it's not like you're really going to study the day after Drag Ball.

T H E O B E R L I N R E V I E W