Easterns 2010 – Saturday Night Showcases

UNCW captain Rusty Ingold-Smith narrowly misses a bid for a disc against Wisconsin in the Easterns showcase game. Photo courtesy of Jesse von Fange. http://unitesports.biz

As we experienced at the Tally Classic, getting an opportunity to play under the lights is a good opportunity indeed. Four teams got that chance at Easterns but they each had something more on the line as well. Easterns was putting up two sets of 15 VC jerseys to add to the pot, one set to go to the winner of each of the games.

From pool A, Pittsburgh En Sabah Nur squared off with Ohio State Leadbelly and from pool B the Wisconsin Hodags met up with the UNCW Seamen. Pittsburgh won handily by a score of 15-8 and Wisconsin clung to an early lead to win 15-11.

Wisconsin Hodags vs. UNCW Seamen

The game started with an expected opening. As the Seamen looked to graduate student captain Rusty Ingold-Smith deep to start the game off. Ingold-Smith had a couple of steps on his defender but the wind carried the huck too far. Wisconsin answered with their own star, as senior Evan Klane launched a huck of his own deep, the Hodags brought it down in the endzone after it was tipped by a UNCW defender, the Hodags started with an upwind break to take a 1-0 lead.

On the next point the wind got underneath an uncontested Seamen pass and the Hodags’ defensive line screamed down the field to get underneath it and get the block. Junior Jake Smart picked the disc up off the goaline and tossed a push pass in for a score to take a 2-0 lead.

UNCW got on board on the next point as Ingold-Smith hit senior Jarrett Bowen on a full field huck for the score, 2-1.

The Hodags took their time marching their next possession down the field, finding senior Cullen Geppert on the open side for a score. On the next possesion the Seamen had another unforced error and Wisconsin took advantage, Smart sent the disc to senior Jon Masler and Masler found graduate student Matt Young in the endzone on a huck. The Hodags now led 4-1.

After trading points, the Seamen closed the gap as Bowen skyed his defender to bring the score to 5-3 and the two teams would trade out until halftime from that point on to put the score at 8-5 at halftime.

Coming out of halftime the wind picked up even more which put the Hodags in excellent position to extend their lead after they brought down a floaty scoober in the endzone for the first point out of haltime to extend the UW lead to 9-5. From that point on the two teams traded until 14-10. Both the Seamen and the Hodags came up with plenty of blocks but neither converted until the Hodags finished with a break to win, 15-11.

Pittsburgh En Sabah Nur vs. Ohio State Leadbelly

The other showcase game wasn’t nearly as competitive. Ohio State jumped out to a lead as one of the Baumann brothers launched a huck to junior captain Josh Owens but it wouldn’t last long. Pitt answered right back with its own score to tie the game at 1-1 and on Ohio State’s next possession graduate student Bob Liu got a poach block and En Sabah Nur scored on the next throw to take a lead they would never relinquish, 2-1.

Pitt would get two more breaks and the teams would trade points until 7-3, Ohio State staged a minor comeback to close the gap to 7-5 but Pitt would gather itself and extend the lead to 11-5. Leadbelly was more or less out of the game by that point and En Sabah Nur would finish the game winning 15-8.