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Pittsburgh Ultimate Home Summer League 1993 (pre-draft) Summer League 1993 info
Teams
League Archives
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Summer League 1993 General Information:
Champion:
From David Lionetti of Flying Buttress:
From Stu Snodgrass of Can Ram:
From Marty McElligott of Can Ram:
Summer League 1993 Finals as recalled by Troy Gavazzi Back when I was spending my summers as a rafting guide and only playing Ultimate part-time I had some fun times with the original Neon Spiders. The .93 Finals bring back some vivid visual recollections and remind me why I eventually started to play more Ultimate. It was a typical 90 degree/90% relative humidity Summer day at O.Hara. Our first game against the Flying Buttresses. I remember it being close at half and then the Spiders won by 4 or 5 at the end. I remember being happy that we won and scared because we were to next play Beagley, the undefeated (or nearly so) league powerhouse. As we walked toward the track at Lower O.Hara I could sense a disturbance in the force, something... We approached the tree line on the far side of the track from the School and I noticed someone lying down writhing in agony. It was Jeff "Pappy" Humes. He had apparently separated his shoulder and his face was the shade of a freshly scrubbed porcelain bathtub. Steve "Sonny" Mueller was happily drunk, while Iron Mike and Chuckie were stumbling around in shock. Chuckie was quietly mumbling "I can.t believe we lost. I can.t believe we lost." So we weren.t to play Beagley. We would be playing the suddenly ringer filled Frick I laugh now as I recall the wide-eyed Dave Lionetti complimenting me on a bender backhand I threw during my team.s warm-up. Frick had mysteriously added Rich "Gloves" Berger, Eric Kaufmann and Rachel Noble to their lineup, but vengeance would be ours. Bob "Dirt" Wharton was fired up and it was the first time I ever heard him call anybody a "F#*&er". The game was filled with many layouts. I remember throwing some crazy-ass blade type thing which Dirt laid out for and caught in the endzone. I remember laying out for a goal and being run into by EK. Hell, there were people laying out all over the place. The most memorable and most crucial layout took place when the game was tied. I believe it was 11-11. Rachel Noble was cutting deep following a complex set of glove signals from Rich Berger. Frankie poached off his man and began running deep. The throw went past her at high velocity. At some point when the disc was a good 10 feet past both of them and a mere few inches away from its imminent impact with the lunar surface that was called "The field" Frankie launched himself into the air. The subsequent impact with Rachel drove her forehead into the "turf" where it met up with a lunar rock. I remember a lot of blood. I remember Rachel not crying. Frankie got up and clearly stated "I was going for the disc! I was going for the disc!" It was decided that Rachel should be taken to the Hospital for stitches. "Gloves", who wanted to play Doctor with her, decided that he should be the one to take her. Thus, Frankie took out 2 for the price of 1. We went on to win the game and advance to the Final. During the extended break between the Semis and the Final most of my teammates gave me money and I went to the store to purchase fruit and drinks. When I returned I was privileged to witness the big Red-Shoed one, Sam "Abba" Corcos, pull a 64 oz Ocean Spray Ruby Red from the cooler. He then sat on the same cooler - which must have been made of the latest Space-Age polymer, because it did not collapse . and down the bottle in 3 gulps. Sam, you still owe me money. Seemingly recharged we went to battle vs. Pittsburgh.s hard bunch, the Throbbers. Led by Todd Williams and a younger and faster Evan Schmidt, they were complemented with speedster Dave Kelly and steady throwers like Jim "Judo" Tullio. Their Iron Women Amy Moesta and Pam Wolford were more than a match for the Spiderwomen. We were equally hard for most of the first half and played them close for a while but did not have their staying power. Going flaccid in the second half we succumbed to their superior talent. The Tie Dyed bunch took home the trophy. Afterward, I remember the even more drunk and seemingly even happier Sonny jumping down from the goalpost crossbar and offering me a beer. Already dehydrated, I made the mistake of drinking it. Minutes later by entire lower body seized up. Somewhere I have a picture of myself laying covered in a blanket surrounded by teammates pointing to my calves. They look twice their normal size. After convincing my girlfriend at the time, a lovely Psych Grad student at Pitt, not to take me to the hospital, a was given sips of Gatorade and water along with grapes throughout the evening until my headache faded. Overall, it was an extremely fun and memorable day. Sure, it was 10 years ago and some of the events may be slightly embellished or distorted, but the part about Frankie is true. Do you have any memorable stories, pictures, or information about the 1993 summer league season and finals? If so, please contact Matthew Bourland so that this section can be complete. |
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