After fielding a coed ultimate frisbee team last spring, a new offering, the administration nixed the sport this year.

“With so many difficulties securing coaches, I could not justify offering [ultimate frisbee] again,” Head of School Judith Guild wrote in an email to The Gator, adding that last year’s team consisted of 10 players. “If we had a higher interest level, then I would reconsider.”

Middle School Math teacher Andrew Beal, who coached the team last spring, said that most of his players lacked experience. “We didn’t win any matches but we went from being blown out at the beginning of the season to actually being a super competitive team toward the end, even though we had no wins,” Beal says.

Beal also says that while several players graduated last year, returning students were excited for another run.

Samantha Vingers ’17 says that she enjoyed playing the sport, which allowed her to bond with her male and female classmates.

“It was a good time for anybody who just wanted to learn something new, have some fun and make friends,” Vingers said. “That’s the most important aspect that will be missed—the time getting to know each other even better.”

For his part, TC Ye ’19 says that ultimate frisbee was a “cool sport and a terrific experience,” but that the popularity of lacrosse and tennis depleted the team’s roster and talent pool.

With few players to begin with, injuries throughout the season made competitive play difficult, according to Katheryn Maynard ’18, who hurt her ankle early on. “This made me question if continuing to field a team made sense,” she said.

“If last year’s season was measured solely by wins and loses, it was a failure,” says Beale. “If the season was measured by student-athlete experience, it was a successful first step in building a program.”