The Rookies. (In alphabetical order.)

They look gooood.

Neale "Bologna" Mahoney - 5th year, grad student transfer from Brown - Dude is about 6'3", fast and good. He lays out extremely well for a big guy. I like his throws, but so far this year he's been forcing it a bit. I think he is simultaneously trying to impress us (not necessary), and frustrated with the level of play (understandably). Things are pretty grim for a while when we are still in the tryout phase. Things will be much better from now on and Neale should fit in well. He and Lebron seem to be able to communicate on a level that no one else does, and we can only hope that it will translate onto the field.

Chris "Lovechild" McCarty - freshman, no previous experience - Chris is athletic without being overwhelmingly so. He has good height (about 6'), good speed, good hops, and amazing hands. His throws are good for a rookie, and he has developed a great field sense in a short period of time. He gets up well and reads well also. To be honest, not only does he look like Tom James, he is pretty much the same player that TJ was last year (except he doesn't have the monster throws that TJ had/has).

Mac "Cheeeese" Parish - freshman - no previous experience - Mac is also blazingly fast. His lacrosse experience is translating well to ultimate, although it has led to some interesting idiosyncrasies. His defense looks good, and it will only get better as we teach him to layout and remind him that he doesn't have a six foot stick in his hands anymore. He manages to break the mark surprisingly well, and little work on timing will have him looking deadly in the open field.

Steven "Mary-Kate" Scardato - freshman - no previous experience - Steve is an excellent soccer player and has made the easy transition to ultimate like many soccerites before him. His speed and field sense have more than made up for his lack of height. His fiery attitude on the field also won him a lot of supporters. He may well follow in the foot steps of Josh Wiseman as a deadly 5'8" deep threat. Strong layouts and good field sense have led to a number of D's for Steve, and experience should improve that.

Alan "Ashley" Shaw - freshman - no previous experience - Alan may prove to be the third fastest player on the team, not too shabby for a team full of speed. Alan is picking up the game quickly for a guy moving to a field sport from swimming. He is spirited and very supportive from the sidelines (I mention this because Stanford has lacked strong sideline support as long as I've been here and Alan stands out). A willingness to layout combined with big time speed has led to quite a few Ds and with some tutelage the number should rise quickly.

Nate "Peach Fuzz" Young - sophomore - played in high school - Nate made the team for his throws, which are buttery. He plays the handler position well and keeps the disc alive and moving. He breaks the mark very well. His defense is good enough. He might have made the team last year except for an injury that held him out of tryouts. This year he was injured again but managed to pull it together long enough to impress us at a few tournaments. It remains to be seen where he will be most effective for the team.

There were a couple more guys trying out that we all thought were worthy of making the team, but unfortunately we didn't think it would be fair to the players already on the team to take any more players. As it is, we are a large squad. With the injuries that we are facing we may never reach the full 27, but we can always hope.

Let me just throw in a note to say how grateful I am to have James coming out to practice. He manages to see things that I don't, and his never ending confidence allows him to speak forcefully about any topic. I think that we should be able to work well together this year, with each filling in the blanks that the other needs help with. In addition, there are too many guys for them all to get the attention that might be necessary from just one coach.

Things are looking good. Now, if we can just get healthy...