Reflections on a Season

Wolfpack update: Read about the PWS Ultimate team being ranked the #15 team in the United States and playing at the 2023 YCC National Championships.

Editor’s Note: Over the past 18 months, as COVID began to ease up and the PWHS Ultimate team started playing once again, Coach Jay Cohen began a journey with our athletes that is still unfolding. Here are his reflections on an Ultimate Frisbee season like no other.

“I remember when one of the parents started harassing me as soon as the COVID tunnel started to show some light. He was relentless. Now that I think about it, he was a pain. He knew I didn’t want to coach and knew I couldn’t say no. That’s how enablers work. So it began…

I started by asking the players some basic questions like what were their goals, how hard they wanted to work, and if they preferred Offense or Defense. We eased our way into the COVID era by practicing three days a week at PWS, while competing in the Portland Ultimate 5v5 Fall league each Sunday, ending with a league championship followed up by a tournament trophy.

After taking a month off, we started 2022 by traveling to Eugene for our first OYU (Oregon Youth Ultimate) state tourney. It gave us a good look at the competition we would be facing throughout the season. We felt lucky to have our full roster of 11. We did well enough, easily beating both Bend schools on our way to the finals where we would meet the hometown favorites and top-ranked powerhouse, the South Eugene juggernaut. They quickly went up 6-1, easily shredding our zone, and joyfully kick-spiking the disc after each score followed by their trademark cheer (?) “WHOOOOOOOOOSE HOUSE?” I looked around at their turf practice field surrounded by the rest of their incredible sports facilities and their tables of food and drink provided by their legions of dedicated parents—and quickly realized that they may have a point. We never gave up and fought to the end but lost 11 - 7. Regardless, they’re right, it’s their house.

We followed by traveling to Seattle to play in the 7 Hills tourney. This was a huge step for PWS and a very necessary and fruitful experience. It set the tone for the rest of the season. The first thing we learned was that regardless of how hard we had been working, we were not in shape (yet). And most importantly, we learned that we could compete with anybody. Every team we played was an all star team from a major city, from PDX to SF to SEA, and every team had more players.

We continued our OYU journey with a trip to Corvallis followed by a local Portland tourney with basically the same results. In the 8 games we went 6 - 2 playing 6 of our games with only 8 players, losing again both times to the South Eugene juggernaut. In the final game against South Eugene we lost a heartbreaker 11 - 12, only to be informed that they didn’t play well (of course, not that we played well). So it goes.

Next up: the Oregon State Championships. We heading down to THEIR HOUSE early for some team bonding. This strategy proved effective, as we outscored our opponents 45 - 17 during pool play on Saturday. We had a great team dinner and prepared for Sunday. We ended up facing a PDX high school team in the semis, and knowing that the team had three U20 YCC players on it, I made sure they were prepared and they were…13 - 2 Wolfpack and on to the finals to meet the South Eugene juggernaut.

I remember back in November when I explained to the team how this would unfold. In THEIR HOUSE with their fans. We knew. We knew they would have their cheer, but if you think about it it’s really a taunt, and we tried to prepare the best we could. The juggernaut has 1,466 students with close to 40 in the Ultimate program, all of which were patrolling the sideline showing their support. We played hard and never gave up but we fell short of our goal. Second place at the State Championships was not our goal. Yet we handled the adversity with class. We shook hands and did our trademark lap around the field.

We circled up for our customary team debriefing. This time we focused on the entire season, not the day. It was raw. It was emotional. It was real. It was their house, but it was our moment. Then it grew. After the circle, four different athletes came to me and cried in my arms. Probably something that they haven’t done since they were kids. Having any young athlete have that much trust, love, and faith in me is something I will cherish.

I cannot express how proud I am of these 11 athletes and how hard they worked the last few months. They did everything I asked without a complaint. Their commitment was unparalleled and their trust in me was absolute. So it goes.