The Ultimate Challenge: RHS Alumnus to Compete in Frisbee Championship

Ridgewood's own Michaela Dudley is on her way to participate in the 2011 USA Ultimate College Championships this weekend, a sport that's sudden jump in popularity may only be eclipsed by Harry Potter's quidditch.

The senior will be throwing as a member of her University of North Carolina Frisbee team, Pleiades. (The name means “Seven Sisters” in Greek mythology, and is also a reference to the presence of seven players on a Frisbee field at a time.)

Over 12,000 student athletes playing on more than 700 college teams from across North America are expected to play in the competition. The tournament takes place in Boulder, CO, over the next four days, with finals taking place on Monday.

Dudley expects the tournament will be extremely competitive. “It’s all the top teams in the country, so there’s very little difference in skill level,” she said. “It’s going to be a very even playing field.” Dudley’s team beat the top two teams in the country in games earlier this year, which gives them hope that they may place in the top three at this year’s championships.

Dudley began playing ultimate frisbee in college, when the team’s table at a club fair caught her eye. She had no previous experience, having played soccer and softball at RHS. “I would always see the Frisbee players throwing on the field,” she said, “But I always had softball practice.”

She advanced through try-outs onto the Pleiades’ B-team. “At first it was really difficult,” she said, “But the A and B teams practice all together, and a member of the A-team coaches you individually, teaching you new rules and techniques every day.”

Elected captain of the B-team fall of her freshman year, Dudley was recently promoted to the A-team as a senior. The sport helped her build confidence, and she found it easier to balance alongside her schoolwork than sports in high school, when she had fewer hours free. It wasn’t until she had to complete her honors thesis on the War on Terror that frisbee became a conflict.

“On the night before it was due, I was freaking out about if I had time for practice,” she said. “But my team was really supportive, they told me ‘Let us help you, we’ll bring you coffee and stay up with you all night if we need to.’”

Dudley graduated this spring with honors and the highest GPA in her major, Peace, War, and Defense. She will be attending Cornell Law School in the fall.

“I’ve already emailed the Frisbee coach to let them know I’m coming to try out,” she said.

Dudley is interested in participating in the Ridgewood Frisbee program. “It’s a really under-recognized sport,” she said “We should have a stronger high school program so they can become prepared for competition at the college-level.”