University of Georgia football coach Kirby Smart is not the only person in Georgia with his eyes set on a national title. The University of North Georgia men’s and women’s frisbee teams are prepared to do whatever it takes to bring home a title for their school.
Both teams are coming off stellar seasons, with the women’s team making their first appearance in the national tournament and the men’s breaking into the Spin top 25 rankings for the first time in school history. Both teams understand the pressure of a title run and they believe they are prepared for such a task.
Photo credits to Pam Shriver and Katie Cooper
Alexis Poole, captain of the UNG Women’s Frisbee club, shared the mindset of the team moving forward.
“Having been to Nationals, our mindset since day one has been what do we have to do to get back? Once we knew what the competition was like we wanted to do whatever we could to go back,” said Alexis Poole.
While the women’s team aims for another title run, the men’s team is aiming for their first shot at playing for a championship. Apparently, frisbee runs in the Poole family – as another member, a sibling, aims to lead the team.
Austin Poole, twin brother of Alexis Poole and Captain of the UNG men’s frisbee team, discussed the road to the team’s first appearance in the top 25.
“When I first joined the club we were the bottom of the barrel. We always finished last in regionals. In my second year we finished 3rd in regionals and started getting recognition from different frisbee media. This past season we finally broke the top 25, which was a huge step for this program.” Austin Poole said.
These teams believed the only way for the club to go was up.
Then, the pandemic hit nationwide. It delayed, and eventually caused the cancellation of the national tournament.
“I like to think we had an easy path to Nationals. We had two teams guaranteed a spot from our region, plus we were already ranked one in our region. Then everything shut down,” Austin Poole said.
However, Poole also claimed that the pandemic did have some positive effects. He explained that “all of us have been trying to keep each other accountable making sure we are going to the gym and staying in shape. We try to meet in small groups and work on throws. We have been aiming to grow and develop our team chemistry.” The team chemistry development was noticeable even to those outside of the program.
Collin Cassidy, first year coach for the UNG men’s team, described the reason for joining the club as a coach.
“I have played all different sorts of competitive frisbee, but my coaching has been very brief. One of the reasons I decided to join UNG is because I saw so much potential. So I thought I could use some ideas and systematic game plans to help this club reach that next level of Ultimate.”
A former player at Georgia Gwinnett College, Cassidy saw the chemistry of the team while competing against them and wanted to be a part of that chemistry. “I think it all starts with the communication, and growth of a team.”
He continued, “I think growing a friendship within the team is a big step towards success, and I saw that with this team.”
Everyone knows the struggles that the recent pandemic has caused. However, the University of North Georgia frisbee teams claim they are ready to move past this pandemic and focus on their title goals. When asked what she would do after claiming a national title, Captain Alexis Poole had one simple response; “I’m going to Disneyworld.”
