Ashleigh Heaton
Entertainment Editor
At its core, the rules are simple: throw the Frisbee, catch the Frisbee, win the game. It is these rules that open up a world of intense competition and comradely known as Ultimate Frisbee – a game some Coppell High School seniors helped make the staple of intramural sports.
Ultimate Frisbee was first introduced to CHS in the fall of 2008, when the intramural program was formed. Though most students were reluctant to join the strange and unknown territory, a large group of junior students formed teams and signed up – giving Ultimate Frisbee the push it needed to get rolling.
Some of these teams still play today as nearly all-senior teams, such as the Monstars and Abusement Park. The same goes for the team headed by senior Chris Scoular, though the team’s name has fluctuated with the years – from Ewoks in Reebok, The Scrubs and, now, The Village People, this group of players has proven both its fierceness and its humor throughout its run.
“My team changed names a lot, but we basically have the same people,” Scoular said. “We have a lot of fun with it.”
Because of their experience, the senior teams have proven to be rather intimidating for other Ultimate Frisbee teams, as proven by Abusement Park’s two-season sweep of the championships.
“I think they [the seniors] are extremely fierce competition – they’re dangerous,” junior Weapons of Mass Seduction player Evan Hawman said. “When you’re playing man to man, you tag them, you watch them like hawks because they’ll eat you.”
But, competition aside, the true reason why intramurals is implemented is to allow people to bond in a place they would not otherwise. This sentiment has been upheld by these seniors, despite being prone to win.
“My favorite part is playing,” Scoular said. “I don’t really care if we win or lose, I just have a lot of fun playing. That’s the greatest, for me.”
To ensure Ultimate Frisbee’s survival after their departure from CHS, the seniors of Ultimate Frisbee have been reaching out to friends and family in order to gain involvement in the program. Based on the fact 12 teams are currently active in the program, their efforts can be counted as a huge success.
“We really spread awareness and involvement,” Scoular said. “We’ve got a lot of our little brothers and sisters and underclassmen friends in to it, which helps.”
On top of recruiting, these seniors have brought forth an awareness of Ultimate Frisbee through their pronounced love of the sport – from designing and wearing team shirts around the school to talking it up as if it was professional football, they have made sure everyone at CHS knows what Ultimate Frisbee is all about.
“I think they’ve definitely nurtured it [the intramural Ultimate Frisbee program] along,” Hawman said. “They’ve brought the interest, they’ve brought the passion, and they’ve just sort of encouraged everyone else to follow along.”
However, with senior year coming to its close, these senior players must leave CHS as well as their Frisbees behind – for now, at least.
“It’s going to be weird not playing Ultimate here [at CHS],” senior Monstars player Kevin Rutledge said. “I’m going to miss it a lot. I think I’ll try to play it in college, but it’s not going to be the same.”
