RPI — Trudge

Dave Liepmann

Union's last tournament was also among its best. The nearly canceled Trudge: RPI Ultimate tournament was held the day before Halloween 2004, with wonderfully grey skies. The team woke up probably earlier than ever before in their life; some players were thrown in cars without their knowledge, and woke up at the hazard-laden fields—football posts, ready to fall at the drop of a hat, were mere inches from the end zone.

In previous years, the tournament was named "Danse Macabre," every team sported coordinated costumes. This year was a little more threadbare. Union turned from Electric City Plastic into a horde of bloodthirsty, plunder-prepared East Coast Pirates—and arrived to discover nary a soul had dressed up. Our spirit soared; we were already victorious! Our plastic cutlasses, scantily clad men, barbarous women, and glut of bandanna and/or skull-encrusted headwear seemed to herald, like a war cry, our day's success. The eldest among us guzzled rum, and the newcomers stretched. First victim ship on the horizon: Williams.

Although a worthy opponent, the effete students of Williams College were not ready for the raw speed of Union pirates armed with flying discs. With wind in our sails, few of their passes made it further than mid-field, and their one attempt at a zone defense was crushed soundly. Many 66 Union Ave residents were spotted catching passes deep in the end zone (right), defenders left with salty seawater in their eyes. Our offense was zealous and swift, and after a lengthy halftime to regroup, we took them <>.

RPI's B team, captained by a plucky upperclassman, proved to be an exciting battle. Their team had several newcomers to the game, and their intrepid leader divided his endless energy between coaching and directing the others and his own handling of the disc. Highlights included hippie-pirate Dave Liepmann's spontaneous defensive bid after setting up an apparent—but covered—opening in the cup, and pirate-of-pirates Char George nearly killing one of Trudge B's wenches in the midst of not catching a hospital pass (left).

Our next opponents included no newcomers—the RPI alumni team was a ragtag band of graduates from the area. Our future looked bleak when we realized we had no way to stop them from putting the disc wherever on the field they pleased, due to their superior throwing ability. Their ship held only enough for one substitute, however, and Union capitalized on their weakness by running them constantly—passing deep, running full out on a man defense, and substituting often. Their inability to rest reduced the effectiveness of their superior throws, and their lack of a telepathic hive mind such as ECP's meant they lost several crucial passes due to simple miscommunication. Their height and experience was trumped by devious strategy and pure physical ability. Union won <>.

Two teams remained, however, only one would witness firsthand the wanton destruction Union Ultimate brought that day. Shenandoah High School, a totally new team, was spared annihilation, and the best of RPI trudged—no pun intended—out to meet us in the finals. RPI's A team was ripe for boarding. With a cry of "Avast! Mape, raim, killage and pill!" Union Pirates readied the cannons. Our unflinching cup-style zone defense played the wind to our advantage, and only a Union line of six freshmen and one senior allowed them to score even once. Freshman-pirate Maureen Hsiao brought the pain to the RPI women, showing them what true Ultimate athletics are, tossing three passes into the end zone and shutting down their dames entirely on defense. Bids and hucks from Captains Erik Lageroos and Evan Patisteas brought the game to a close at a near-shutout at 13-1. Union's first tournament win was sealed, and we sailed off into the sunset to swig more rum, abscond with the opposite sex, and eat candy...after pillaging the high school team to within an inch of their lives.