Two tournaments left

The Firedogs last two tournaments of the fall are set. We will be traveling to Denison this weekend for the originally named, “Denison Fall 2008 Tournament,” and to Bowling Green next weekend for their, “2 Discs, One Huck,” tournament. Both tournaments will be jam packed with East Plains talent and will be a great indicator of the talent all the teams in the sections have going into the spring.

The Dogs have been practicing extra hard to finish out this fall season. Monday’s practice saw a great turnout in 35 degree weather. The team ran drills and had two scrimmages despite the cold, all with great intensity. Maintaining this intensity in practice is vital for the Firedogs for the rest of the season, as the qualities they show in practice will carry over into the field. We all need to push one another to get better.

The section is looking very strong this year. Ohio State is on top as usual, and Dayton, Miami, and Ohio look to be just as good as last year. It seems like every team that made regionals has the ability to repeat again this year, while other teams are coming out of the wood work as stronger than ever. It’s going to be an exciting spring.

Denison Fall 2008 Tournament

This tournament will be the first all fall that the Dogs have close to a full roster. Senior cutter William Tappan Kenny will be returning to the team after an ankle injury, and the close proximity of the tournament to OWU means no on can claim to have too much school work to attend. The team will only be missing three players for this tournament, Junior Cutters Jake Barnett and Zak Gomes, as well as sophomore Will Conditt.

The Dogs are seeded right in the middle of the pack for this one. It will be interesting to see what match ups will come from it when the pools are released. If it is five pools of four then the Dogs will likely be the third seed in a pool with Kenyon, Case Western and Denison B. If its four pools of five, the dogs will be the third seed in a pool with Ohio X, Denison, Bluffton and Xavier B. Either way the team will have some good sectional match ups this weekend.

2 Disks 1 Huck

OWU has always done well at BG’s fall tournaments, and we hope to continue the tradition this year. The Dogs will however be short on players this weekend due to grad school tours, GRE exams, and other ‘responsible stuff.’

The Dogs have a very tough pool, headed by the very talented Dayton Ghettoforce. Dayton has grown stronger every year and looks to make a run at sectionals and regionals this year. Also in the pool are the vastly improved Denison DFUC, and Wright State Air Strike. It should be a good test for the Dogs while playing undermanned, and a good way to finish a solid fall season.

No Wisconsiquences

It was the trip the team had been waiting for all semester. The Firedogs all crammed into the university van and headed northwest for 9 hours, they were Wisconsin bound. Having only played in small in-state tournaments for the past several years, the veterans on the team were hungry to go to this huge Cultimate tournament. Well organized and packed with talent, No Wisconsiquences was exactly what the Firedogs needed.
The team preformed well overall on the weekend, breaking seed to finish at 31st in the talented 45 team field. Highlights included an upset win over division I school Missouri and the slaughter of Wisconsin B. In the team’s losses they learned a lot about high level competitive ultimate and everybody on the team grew from them.

Here are some clips.


Firedogs at NoWisconsiquences from Yard Yoder on Vimeo.


Layola from Will Yoder on Vimeo.


OWU vs Northwestern from Will Yoder on Vimeo.


Untitled from Will Yoder on Vimeo.

Fall so far

The fall season so far for the Firedogs has been successful but slow. The team has seen quite a few very close games against very good opponents, and has worked hard in practice and games to implement new offensive and defensive strategies. The team as a whole is growing with both its abilities on the field and its knowledge of the game. It’s been a new approach for the Firedogs, but the ultimate goal is still the same, a Regional birth.
The Dogs have really taken a step back early on this year and have decided to use the fall as a learning experience for their younger players. Seeing how far the freshmen and sophomores have grown already in the first two months of the year, it’s looking like it is paying off. The freshmen’s forehands are far more advanced than classes in the past, and the sophomores are learning how to contribute at a high level.
Opportunities for the youngsters to step up into new roles have been plentiful as injuries have marred the firedog veterans all fall. Junior cutter Jake Barnett was lost for the fall after a terrible ankle injury at Wright State, Senior Will Kenney hurt his ankle early on at the Miami tournament, and sophomore Will King Condit broke his wrist. While it is frustrating to not have been able to put the entire Firedogs team on the field together yet this fall, the team hopes to be fully healthy and ready to go by the spring.

Miami Boogie Summer Cooldown

The Dogs first game was against a Miami split squad, the “Miami Dolphins.” OWU came out hard and took the early lead with good handler play from their seniors and conservative cutting from the younger players in the stack. With solid play through the first points, the Dogs looked to run different offenses then their traditional ho-stack. For the first time all year OWU showed a side stack with two Iso’s, along with two handlers. The Dogs were able to use this look to work the disc up the field, isolating their best players, and score with ease.

Things were going the Firedogs way until Senior cutter Will Kenny went down with a sprained ankle attempting to make a D on a deep throw to someone else’s man. With this score, and the crushing blow of the Dogs losing one of their senior leaders Miami went on a 8-5 run and took the game 15-12.

The Dogs played sectional powerhouse Ohio University in two games over the weekend. Both were incredibly close, highly contested games that eventually went down to universe point. While the Dogs inevitably lost both these games, it was the best offense and the most heart the team had shown since their D-III nationals run in 2007. Everyone from the seniors to the freshmen played huge and while they ultimately came up short, they all had a lot to be proud of. Senior Will Yoder and freshman Eric Charett came up huge on D all game, while Junior Jake Barnett scored 8 of the teams 15 points.

The team finished the weekend 2-4 with wins over Denison and Earlham, and close losses to OU twice and Miami X and Miami Y.

Case Western North Coast Open

Due to injuries and illnesses, the Dogs were only able to muster up enough to have a savage roster the morning of North Coast. The Dogs sported 2 seniors and 5 freshman in what became a learning experience to say the least. While the freshman improved tons, it was not a pretty weekend in the win loss category.

No Wisconsequences

The Firedogs are pleased to announce that we have been accepted, and plan on attending our first ever Cultimate tournament, No Wisconsequences. For our mid-semester break we will be making the 8 hour hike to Milwaukee to compete in what is likely to be the biggest tournament in college ultimate for the fall.

Other teams planning to attend include:
-Wisconsin
-Carleton
-Michigan State
-Illinois
-Michigan
-Wooster
-Bowling Green
-Dayton

The start of 2008-2009

The Firedogs are back on campus and already are practicing hard to make the 2008-2009 season a successful one. With a very solid core of returning players the Dogs hope to bounce back from what was a disappointing finish in 2007-2008, and make the Great Lakes Regional Tournament for what would be the fourth time in six years.

The Fall season this year will be a unique one for the Dogs. For the first time ever the majority of the team's returning players will be participating in the club series as well as playing for OWU. There are Dog's on the roster for Columbus's Joyce and All-Ohio's OWNDU, as well as Washington D.C's Eastern Motors FB. Hopefully this extra experience and effort in the fall will help the team reach their goal .


The Dogs are returning:

4 Seniors
-William Kenney
-DPD
-Pepsi Paya
-Yoder
5 Juniors
-Jake “Shit Phace’” Barnett
-Zak Gomes
-Zach Taft
-Rob Pence
-Andrew White
3 Sophomores
-Pirate
-Jeff GB Brauning
-Aaron Riley

This is the Firedogs fall schedule, as of today:

September 20th, 21st- Indiana Hoosiermamma
October 4th-5th- ONU Warm up
October 11th-12th- North Coast Open
October 18th-19th- No Wisconsiquences!
November 1st, 2nd- Denison Open

Firedogs Recruitment Video:

Firedogs to attend Bucknell Shroomfest this weekend

The Firedogs are set to make the long trip to Bucknell to try and gain some extra experience before sectionals. The Bucknell tournament boasts a small but talented collection of teams, none of which OWU has ever played against. We’re hoping that getting out of Ohio will help spread the Firedog name and help us learn to play against different and better teams.
It will not be an easy go around for the Dogs either as Captain Conor Browne and senior Jay Farro will not be able to make the trip due to Easter commitments. Combine the loss of the teams best thrower and a veteran cutter with being put in a power pool, it will prove a tough challenge for the Firedogs. It’s a challenge we’re up for though, as we hope it will be a learning experience on our way to sectionals.
Our pool will have us face Harvard-B, Syracuse and then Bucknell the number one seed. Based on our seeding we will then be placed in a crossover game for our 4th game Saturday. It looks to be a competitive tourney all weekend with no Gimmies, and the Dogs are ready to go.

Arizona Sunburn is Nasty

Arizona University is making some noise





A scubber better then even dpd's

Hard Cap came on, and Arizona lost on their final score 12-13, much like the Firedogs against Cast at EMR

Firedogs 100th Career Victory

With a 13-5 win over Hope College at OWU's Home Evan Matthew Reas Memorial, the Firedogs notched their 100th career recorded spring victory.

Firedogs Career Record
1999: 6-6
2000: 6-5
2001: 2-5
2002: 4-5
2003: 9-14
2004: 19-15
2005: 10-12
2006: 16-13
2007: 20-9
2008 : 9-2

Total: 101-86 .540%

Evan Matthew Reas Memorial Tournament-3rd Place

The Firedogs held host to the first tournament at Ohio Wesleyan in years this weekend as 14 teams competed in the Evan Matthew Reas memorial tournament. All team’s endured extremely cold and windy weather playing on either snow or slush the entire weekend. The production of the tournament was a great success despite the weather and the Dogs were able to make a lot of money for themselves.

The first game of the tournament for OWU put them up against Oberlin’s B team. The two teams were playing on a field covered in snow, with the temperature slightly below freezing, and a steady wind. The Dogs were able to use their experience and athleticism to control the short game and work the disc down the field. A couple early layout D’s by Will Kenny and Jake Barnett got the team pumped up as the Dogs wanted to represent on their home fields. The Dogs finished their first game with a 13-1 win.

The second game of the day for the Dogs would pin them against the second seed in their pool, Denison and promised to be their biggest challenge Saturday. Denison DFUC came out strong in windy, snowing weather with their zone defense. It was the first time the Dogs had seen zone all spring and DFUC used it to roll to a 2-0 lead. The Dogs however refused to go out quietly in the tournament dedicated to their former captain, and after regrouping and talking over some strategy took a 7-0 run to take half 7-2. The Dogs rode their run all they way to the end of the game destroying Denison’s cup and denying all of their huck attempts, going on to win 13-4 over the NCAC rivals. Seniors Conor Browne and DPD were crucial in breaking the cup and making the throws necessary to take the wind out of Denison’s sails.

The next two games in pool play were against Dayton B and Hope College. The Dogs continued with their momentum as Captain Willy Yoder’s cuts helped spark the Firedog offense. With the sun a little warmer, and puddles on the ground now instead o snow, the dogs worked it up the fields with continuation cuts and utilizing their great speed. It was evident the off season conditioning had paid while at the end of the day the Dogs legs were fresh and other teams weren’t. The Firedogs won 11-2 over Dayton B and 13-4 over Hope.

The Dogs finished 4-0 the first day of the Evan Matthew Reas Memorial and won the A pool putting them in good position Sunday with a first round bye in bracket play. Cold and wet the team was happy to only have a 5 minute drive back to their rooms. The Dogs dried off, changed, and all met up at DPD, Conor, and Jay’s house for a team pasta dinner.
Day 2 to come later….

ONU Indoor Tournament-2nd Place

The Firedogs rolled into their first spring tournament short handed as they traveled to Ada, to compete in Ohio Northern’s indoor tournament. The Dogs were ranked second in a field of 8 and held the top seed in the B bracket. The format was simple enough for indoor; 5X5, 7 stall count, timed hour long games, and annoyingly low ceilings.
The first game pinned the Dogs against ONU B. We put out our first line of the season, a collection of vets: Yoder, Conor, Jay, Jake, DPD. Receiving the first pull of the year the dogs decided to make a statement, working the disc up the field effortlessly ending in a C-Brown to Jake huck to let people know that last season wasn’t the only year of the Firedog.
The Dogs took a 7-1 lead within 10 minutes and never looked back. This game was a great opportunity to let freshman in the game and see what they could do, and they all excelled. Pirate Will, Dan O, Jeff, and Ted all took it upon themselves to polish and define their roles in this game. The success of the team this year depends on the development of our freshman. The Dogs went on to win 17-3.

After a hour long bye, the Dogs played Chicago B. The year before at Regionals the Dogs played a heated game against a talented Chicago A team resulting in the Firedogs first ever Regional win. This game however was close itself as it was 7-7 half an hour into the game. The Dogs could not get any offense going and were plagued by turnovers everywhere. The lack of flow in the offense was directly a result of lazy practices in the weeks leading up to the tournament.
The Dogs needed to gut check. They put on the clutch line from the first pull of the ONUB game and switch Conor to hands and Yoder to cut. This seemed to work as the team looked like the Dogs of old rallying past Chicago B to win 15-9.

The Firedogs next game was one they had circled on their calendar since they submitted their bid for the tournament. Kenyon had thrashed them, 15-5, in the championship of the 75th F.R.E.D in the fall. Kenyon in the past had been considered a pushover to much of the section, but this year that has completely changed as they are tooled by an incredibly talented team.
The Dogs came out and scored first on a Conor to Yoder huck immediately off the first pull. This wasn’t enough to spark the Dogs however as the Kenyon Serf went on a 3-0 run by capitalizing on defense and playing smart offense. Every disc that was in the air the Serf was claiming, and the Dogs were starting to see flashbacks of the 10-0 run that gave the Serf the huge win against them earlier that year.
Again the Dogs had to gut check. Yoder and Conor switched places again as a threesome of Conor, Yoder, and DPD used their experience to protect the disc and work it up the field. Great defense from the whole team especially freshman Dan Ott and sophomore Zak Gomes kept the dogs in the game. A 3-0 run led the dogs to take the lead 10-9 with 2 minutes left. The Serf would tie it up as time expired on a breakmark throw in the endzone. This would cause a 1 point, winner takes all situation.
The Dogs received the pull and worked it to half field before a C-Brown to Dan O huck to seal the victory. The win was a huge motivator for the Dogs after the trashing they received earlier in the year. It proved to them that they were going to be a team to be reckoned with at sectionals and that they had the heart they needed to win. The Serf were a great opponent and had great spirit for such a close heated game. The Dogs look forward to playing them again.
With the win, the Dogs took the pool with a 3-0 record and would be matched up against Eastern Michigan in the Semi’s. The Kenyon game took a lot of energy out of the short handed Dogs team however and in order to beat the EMU Hellfish, the Dogs would need help from their freshman.
They delivered. All of the freshman on the team stepped up and played as well as the vets of the Hellfish. Pirate Will made some good soaring D’s and Dan Ott had about 7 scores in the Dogs victory 16-11 over the Hellfish. Despite the high score this was some of the best defense the Dogs had played all year, they were hardly ever beaten to the force side, and most of the passes that were completed were ridiculous break side blades.
With the win in the Semi’s the tired, undermanned Firedogs were pinned against the hosting ONU Darkside. The Darkside had more then 20 men on their sideline and while the game was close for the first five points, the Darkside pulled away winning 11-16 of the Firedogs.
The loss to ONU showed a lot to the Firedogs about how important practice, conditioning, and flow can be especially in championship games. While the team did not get the first place finish they were looking for, they learned a lot about how good they are with the big win over Kenyon, and how much more they have to do with the disorganized loss to ONU.

Next weekend the Dogs will host 16 teams in its first Evan Matthew Reas Memorial Tournament.