RecapWinter 2019After Party vs. Lunch Break

Lunch Break was the first team to get to 5 wins, but it seems they likely won’t be the first to 6.  After Party goes above .500 and they’ve been pretty streaky.  Two wins to start the season, then three straight losses, and back to two wins in a row.

Here’s the report from After Party’s Chris Walthers:

Winter League always has a lot of surprises – you don’t know your schedule, and sometimes you play a lot of A division teams, and sometimes you play a more even schedule. Everyone on After Party was looking forward to the game vs Lunch Break because we are very familiar with their players from years of pickup and leagues and we know they are a challenging matchup and a spirited group of players.

Last night was pretty chilly in temperature and vibe. We traded points for a bit early on and got up a break, but LB kept storming back to tie it. Eventually we worked ourselves to an 8-6 lead for halftime, and we were a little more consistent in the second half. I think we won 15-9 but it might have been 15-10.

Both teams had serious cases of the dropsies and throwaways from the cold air throughout the game. At one point in the second half, there were 4 drops on 4 consecutive throws – each one seemed like a routine catch but was bobbled and dropped. That point finally ended when AP’s Thomas Pineda got a handblock on a goal line dump that caused the disc to hang up in the air and Matt Theologidy skied for a Callahan. Pretty sweet, and of course it couldn’t end with someone completing a pass to their own team! Matt also had maybe the best catch I have ever seen in a Winter League game in the first half. Armand got the disc about 30 yards out from the endzone and threw a blady flick to Matt in the endzone that didn’t float as much as it needed to. Matt was making an S-cut and planted towards the disc. As soon as the throw went up I thought “nope, that won’t happen” but then Matt burst out from his plant and I thought “well he actually got a good jump on that so it’s closer than it looks, but still no”. He covered about 20-30 yards in a flash and then Matt made what can only be described as a dolphin dive layout – he dove up and out before landing so smoothly on his chest fully outstretched just far enough to reel in the throw with only his palm between the disc and the ground. His body hit the ground first and the drive from his momentum slid him under the disc just in time to get it – most bids usually dive to reach the disc in the air, but Matt actually hit the ground and slid head first into an impossible catch. At that point the game had been pretty back and forth but that huge play seemed to really turn the tides for AP. I can’t say enough about Matt – Steph and I picked him in the first round of Summer League with something like the 12th overall pick and I can’t imagine he drops below #2 or #3 this summer if he plays. He makes huge plays, helps everyone get involved, always has a positive attitude, and has a great mind for the game. When Matt makes a mistake he can just laugh about it which has helped Steph and I keep an easy-going, fun environment the past few seasons and I think that feel-good vibe prevents that stressed-out, nervous type of ultimate that can quietly hurt teams and make playing kind of a drag.

At halftime we talked about taking “Matt’s Medicine”. That’s what we have been calling the patient, “dump swing” offense that has helped us overcome some of our “jam it down the jamside” turnover struggles earlier in the season. Our team has some great depth and everyone can cut and handle, so spreading the field really incorporates everyone’s best talents. Matt Theologidy, wise beyond his years, made it a point to bring it up in a huddle a few games back and said he needed to take a dose of his own medicine, so the name kind of stuck. Laura Schultz has been so fantastic for us – she kept up with Scrappy on a deep cut a few weeks back vs Squirtles and nearly got a D, which is saying a lot because Scrappy is probably the fastest person I have ever played with. Anyways, last night our team worked it near the endzone a few times but had these moments where everyone seemed to be waiting for someone else to make the big cut for a goal. At one point Laura got to the front of the stack and made a powerful cut to the near side cone for a goal even though her defender was close. Laura attacked the disc for the goal to take half and it broke that passive mindset, so we said we need to take “Laura’s Liniment” in the second half. Sarah Kibler mentioned something else in the huddle, and it was a great point, but I forgot what it was because someone said we need to take “Sarah’s Suppository” and that just broke my concentration.

Armand made his case for Breakout Player of the Year, which we all joked about because he has been a Broken Out all-star for quite a few years to some of us. He had probably 7 or 8 combined goals or assists, several sweet hucks, and made a few Ds himself. Everything I said about Matt is true for Armand and we owe a lot of our success to their great spirit and consistency.

Lunch Break deserves a lot of credit for coming out hot. Tahlia had a great game in particular and really worked the unders well all night. At one point we tried to force her out more and she scored a few deep. She really had everything clicking last night. Jason should be a lumberjack I’ve decided. The whole team did a great job making big, hooking break throws to work the breakside of the field well and I see them pulling off some big moves in the tournament in two weeks.

Finally, Joxer’s had their live band karaoke again last night. Rooks and AP showed up in force, and while AP did more songs, Rooks stayed past midnight and definitely won the bar. It should be pointed out that the live band, Casual Encounters, is not always the same cast of musicians. I’ve seen at least 6 different people rotate through. There is definitely an A-team, and from what I can tell the best group has the dude with the full beard and long hair playing bass. They were there the first night and I hadn’t seen them since until last night.

At the risk of going on and on, I want to give an equally important karaoke recap.

I think Sam won for the night with a saucy rendition of Oh Darling! by the Beatles. She must be a plumber with pipes like that!

Second place for me was Kirkham with You Oughta Know, which you oughta know was written about Dave Coulier aka Uncle Joey from Full House, and that will really fuck up your childhood memories when you listen to the lyrics. Also it was on the 1996 Grammy Nominees CD which was in heavy rotation in my family’s minivan in my formative years and my dad would always turn down the volume when Alanis Morissette sings “AND ARE YOU THINKING OF ME WHEN YOUUUUU FUCKKKK HERRRR!?!” I never knew what she said in that line until many years later.

Castro always comes in hot with Flagpole Sitta and Tearin’ Up My Heart. He might have done a third song, the kid has moxie

Thomas also double dipped, with What I Got by Sublime and Since U Been Gone. Sam did SUBG earlier in the season and I will let the people decide who did it better.

I managed to break out The Distance by Cake – with a live band you gotta think about songs that give a little bit of jam time to each instrument and I gotta say The Distance is underrated for karaoke.

Props to Christi Betz who spit some hot disco fire with I Will Survive.

Links to some clips from karaoke here. That is all!

“She must be a plumber with pipes like that!”  Priceless.  You may pat yourself on the back for that one.

Excellent choice of “Oh, Darling”.  Especially timely with the “Yesterday” trailer dropping last week.

Interesting that this is a totally different band than the one from last Thursday.  I assumed it was the same band over and over, but I guess not.  These guys seem way more into it than last week’s, where the bass guitarist basically never once smiled and mostly just looked off into the distance, but as I right this, I’m realizing, oh yeah, it’s a bass guitarist, so…. duh.

Great explanation of the Matt Theologidy play. I’ll try to keep this recap in mind when we do Amazing Play award next year. Although admittedly videos do tend to trump non-videos on that award.

(Passage of time)

I just got back from lunch.  I found myself singing Flagpole Sitta in the car.  I was like “why is this in my head?”  Castro!!!!

And how appropriate I’m back from lunch and we have another recap, from Lunch Break.  Well played timewise Robbie Adler.  I like what you did there.

What is bravery? To me it is purposefully placing yourself in a dangerous or scary situation despite your fears or hang ups. It is lacing up those cleats and taking the field against a formidable team; one that has defeated us time and again. So I’d like to commend the brave womxn and men of Lunch Break for showing up last night. We were missing both our captains, working through some injuries, and I even heard someone had McDonald’s for dinner, but that didn’t stop us from giving our all. Jason stepped up into the leadership position and gave us a good pep talk to start the game, even commending us on our zone D last week and suggesting we do it again.

We pulled to After Party and the game started with them dodging the pull. Yup, their player jumped out of the way of the disc as it came down. I saw their yellow bellied colors and I thought, this year is our chance. And we brought it that first half. Sure they took it 8-6, but we played hard and were right on their tails. Special shout out to Theologidy of After Party with a spectacular layout catch in the endzone that had both teams applauding. To dive and slide on that Rancho turf is the epitomy of brave, although I feel Matt didn’t even think twice. We never did run that Zone D our captain-in-absentia suggested so I had hopes it would turn the tide for us in half dos.

It didn’t. We never ran zone until we were down 13-8, but when we did finally run it, it worked giving us a break and an extra point. However, it was too late. After Party just out played us. Again. Thalia, Becca, Nessie, and Cierra ruled the field for us. I also loved Matthias’ (i think) grab in the end zone and Dave’s over the top throw to Cierra for a point. Highlight of the second half, though, was when an After Party player made a great run for the disc that was going out and caught it while trying to toe the line. Everyone down the sideline on both teams pointed out, and then there was Joel, with his arm outstretched, pointing in. Brave.

So the game didn’t turn out how we wanted. After Party is a fun spirited team that makes the game enjoyable no matter who wins. And 3rd captain Jason brought delicious cookies so there’s that. And, there’s always next year.

I love that bravery is analogized here by facing After Party, the least threatening, most fun team in all of Winter League.  I see what he was saying, but it’s still funny when you think about it.

Eating McDonald’s before your Winter League game.  Now that’s TRUE bravery.