World Cup Diary: Jeffrey Sherman

by IQA Staff | May 6, 2013

Editor's Note: The IQA is pleased to publish another World Cup diary, where players from around the world tell us their story. If you want to share your tale, send it to editorial@internationalquidditch.org and you could see it in this space.

There's something to be said about being underestimated.  About walking into a tournament knowing the expectation is that you're going to fail.  To be a team that is only known by those who have played you, and yet not a major name in this community.  It's also something to be the captain of such a team.

Pre-Florida

Walking into the North East Regional Championship, Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) was expected to not qualify for the World Cup.  The region didn't know a lot about last year's D2 runner-up, and as such let us fall by the wayside in their thoughts.  At most, some players knew me from over the summer - being a GM of Northeast fantasy and running Champagne Cup - and a few of our players from mercenary teams, most recently being the Hoth Rebels.  As we approached that first test of our merit, the team did me and themselves proud by using that low expectation as fuel to push ourselves.  And while we had a few hiccups, we did the best any team could against the Regional champs BU, but more importantly, we qualified for the World Cup.  We went home proud of how we played and conducted ourselves, beating expectations and showing what the quality of players this town in upstate New York can produce.

Then it started all over again.

In the predictions for the World Cup, only one analyst had us even qualifying for Day 2.  Most had the order being Penn State, Skrewts, Florida for those who would qualified.  Some recognized that our pool was one that could break brackets as it was a group of relatively level teams.  Yet RIT was flying either under the radar once more or just was written off.

Facing Expectations Head On

That first day in Florida for RIT was one - when looked at by expectations - of decreasing difficulty: Penn State, Skrewts, Florida, and finally Loyola of Chicago.  It was the opposite of how the random drawings have worked out for us in the past, where we ended our day with the “toughest” team in our pool, but I actually liked this.  It allowed us to have our hardest-fought games earlier in the day so we wouldn't be walking into a game against the top tier teams dealing with injuries/exhaustion from the Florida heat.  As anyone in the Snow Belt Conference can tell you, that heat is not something we're used to at all.

Our game against Penn State was one where I felt like we could start turning heads.  They are a very efficient team and do what they do very well.  Our biggest asset against them was that a group of our players - those that were on Hoth - had seen and played against their full team, while they only knew a few of our faces.  That allowed us to have some better knowledge in preparing for that game, and it led to being up in quaffle points until we were on the wrong end of a snitch pull.  And while I didn't play at all that game, I was happy to not have been needed because the quality from our team was amazing.  It was also our first game with Sammy as head ref - I'll touch on him later. The game against the Skrewts was probably the best game of quidditch I've ever been a part of.  We started out that game slow and lagging, and the Skrewts - as they should have - made us pay for it with a 60-0 run.  Then something clicked, and the team focused themselves and we pushed back hard.  When the snitch got back on the pitch, we were 30 points down.  It then started to fluctuate between a 10 and 20 point deficit for us before the Skrewts got the pull.  After that game, both teams came together and really bonded.  I should've known that would happen when we set up camp in the team village less than 20 feet away from them, but it also shows why I love staying in this sport.  Even with this push to become super competitive and complex and “legitimate” once a game is over, no matter the results, two teams from opposite sides of the country can show one another respect and become friends.  Again, Skrewts, we kinda love you guys.

So with an 0-2 record, we needed to win the game against U Florida to have a chance of qualifying.  It was the game of both 2nd place finishers from World Cup V.  Dre Clements has done a lot with that team.  While he's still a powerhouse on their squad, I can say it's no longer a one-man show.  It went to overtime and we were able to get the second pull and thus the victory.  The moment after that game was mixed because we had a few players get hurt - rendering them done for the day - and while we had won, we realized that we had sent another team home.  Knowing how scared I was about that possibility and how hurt I would've been if it was RIT eliminated is why I tell my team to never rush the field after a game.  Yes, we celebrate every win, but not right after a hard fight.  We've been on the wrong end of it before and it's stung our wounds, so we don't like to risk doing that to the other teams we face.

Finally, Loyola of Chicago.  It was a game that was closer than I had thought it would be, again coming down to a snitch pull.  They had a strong offense and played an unrelenting style which is what I think helped them.  But once it was over and we knew we were going to the second day, a huge weight was lifted.  It didn't matter what seed we were in because RIT had already beaten expectations.

“Congrats, You're The Florida Killers.”

We found out that we were the 35th seed, and that with the way the brackets were made, after the play in game we'd have to face #1 UCLA.  So with a bit of a chuckle and a prayer to Herb Brooks, I arrived with the now clad in black RIT Dark Marks to face USF. It was a game where we fired on all cylinders.  In that game, our passing was better than I had seen in a long time, the beaters were where we needed them when we needed them, and our keepers were on their game.  We were able to win outside of snitch range before the pull, and during the team line ups one of the USF players said the above quote.  It was said with a laugh, and that's why I put it here.  Not as a sign of pride, but again as something that stands out to me in the attitude of the quid-kids I had the pleasure of meeting that wonderful weekend.

Then came UCLA.  What more can I say about them that hasn't been said?  We looked up articles about them Saturday night for a refresher, and their strengths were basically that they can do everything well and that they adapt to whatever comes their way.  And, well, that's what they did.  It took 9 minutes and a score of 40-20 in their favor before they assimilated our strategies and broke all of them.  They carried away with the score and pulled off an unsurprising 130*-20 win.  They are truly a top tier team, and that adaptability is something I hope every team strives to have in the future.

Done playing, Now What

RIT has grown so much over the past three years.  From a team that didn't have practices to D2 runner up to making to the bracket in D1, I cannot say enough how proud I am of this team, and while I will still be playing with them next year, I won't be their captain.  So it's not saying goodbye to the team for me, but looking to help them move forward for when that day comes. One thing that the new captain, Kenny Radzyminski, did this year that I really liked and hope to see happen again was that at every game we played, we gave the other team an RIT flag with all of our names signed on the back.  He used to play soccer and thought it would be a good thing to have in our sport, and I agree with him.  I felt like it helped keep things in perspective for our team and that no matter what happened in the game or how passionate people will be, they still respect one another.

And with respect being a priority, I come to Sammy the head ref.  I said it to his face, but I want everyone to understand what a phenomenal job this man does as a head ref.  If there's any issues in the game he'll listen to the captain/coaches, but follows the rules by the book.  More importantly, he's even with his calls on both sides and doesn't hesitate to call someone out on disrespecting him, his assistant refs, the other team, or their own team.  As I said earlier, I'm not a fan of people rushing the field right when the snitch is pulled, and Sammy actually carded players that preemptively did that in our game against Penn State.  That was the first time I've seen a ref make that call, and by the rules it's the right one.  The rest of my team was so thankful to him that when they found out he hadn't had a break at all that first day, they went and got him a smoothie, again showing the mindset that keeps me around despite all the debates, rule changes, costs, and physical pain.  It's that when off the pitch, everyone realizes that this is a sport we all share a passion for, and in the end, why squander that?  If you want everyone who doesn't play quidditch to join in the festivities, then one thing we can do is make sure that these bonds we have with one another are strong and as hard as we'll fight one another during the game and that they'll be how hard we should party with one another after that snitch is pulled.