Sports Spring Sports Ultimate

Andover Rallies After Double Header

Kieto Mahaniah ’16 lept forward, swatting the incoming disk away before it could reach his Concord-Carlisle opponent’s expecting hands. With the help of Mahaniah’s strong performance, Andover Ultimate Frisbee defeated Concord this Wednesday with a final tally of 13-7.

In addition, last Saturday, Andover Ultimate faced off against both Hotchkiss and Northfield Mount Hermon (NMH) in an away game at NMH. In the first match of the double-header, Andover played against Hotchkiss, coming out on top with a winning score of 10-3. Andover later fell 10-8 to NMH.

Against Concord, Andover improved its offense, a focus point of the team’s weekly training. Andover also maintained its usual shut down defense.

Isaiah Lee ’19, the only freshman on the team, said, “This game was really [exciting]. I think [this] atmosphere can largely be attributed to the leadership that we had. Our Captains – Darian and James Wolfe – really rally the team. The game created a feeling that we weren’t playing for just this school or for the sport, but almost more for each other and ourselves.”

Co-Captain James Wolfe ’17 said, “For the most part, we worked the disc up the field pretty well, and that created a lot of opportunities.”

In its doubleheader on Saturday, Andover started the day off strong with its win over Hotchkiss.

In an email to The Phillipian, Reuben Philip ’18 wrote, “I think one of the reasons we won was because of our defense. Our team did a really good job holding the force and keeping cutters sealed in the live space, which was something we have been working on. We also played very well against their zone defense. We kept the disc moving well using crashes, dumps, and swings, making it difficult for Hotchkiss to execute their cup zone.”

In the second game, NMH proved to be a difficult matchup, beating Andover 10-8. The wind also proved to be a factor in Andover’s performance, as only one point was scored against the wind throughout the whole game.

“The outcome of the game was determined by one upwind point in which our defense lost its intensity,” said Philip. “Other than that point we were able to win every downwind point. [We] lost because of [our] lack of practice playing against the wind. What we lacked in the game was possession going upwind with the disc. Wind is always a factor in ultimate games, so it is something we need to work on for future games.”

Andover looks to display its training at the Andover Invitational this coming Saturday.

Editor’s Note: James Wolfe is a Photography Editor for The Phillipian.