Champagne Cup Returns to the Hamptons
For the second summer in a row, the Champagne Cup will bring quidditch to eastern Long Island on Saturday July 27 at the VFW in Quogue, NY.
Photo by Michael E. Mason/IQA Staff.
Tournament Organizer:
Jeff Sherman - Rochester Institute of Technology
Tournament Format:
The tournament will feature eight randomly drawn and assembled teams, with names being themed after the popular sci-fi thriller Ender's Game. Teams are divided into two pools of four, with Pool A consisting of Dragon Army, Phoenix Army, Tiger Army, and Rabbit Army, while Pool B will house Griffin Army, Leopard Army, Salamander Army, and Rat Army. Each team will play all members of its pool once, and then be seeded from 1-8 entering bracket play, where single elimination will crown a champion.
The Teams:
Dragon Army
Samy Mousa, Beater, University of Kansas
Alex Leitch, Beater, Hofstra University
Ariel Chasen, Beater, Brandeis University
Tera Watson, Beater, Tufts University
Laura Hossenlopp, Chaser, SUNY Cortland
Andrew Hollenbach, Chaser, Rochester Institute of Technology
Dave Plisky, Chaser, New York Badassilisks
Frieda Haerter, Chaser, Rochester Inistitute of Technology
David Markakis, Chaser, University of Rochester
Jessica Klein, Chaser, New York Badassilisks
Max Desmond, Chaser, Rochester Institute of Technology
Jason Rosenberg, Chaser, Pennsylvania State University
Brian Stieglitz, Chaser, Hofstra University
Jeff Sherman, Keeper, Rochester Institute of Technology
Aaron Pinzer, Keeper, Rochester Institute of Technology
Aref Afshar, Seeker, SUNY Binghamton
Dragon Army looks like the early favorite, with a tremendous defense led by Alex Leitch, Jason Rosenberg, and Jeff Sherman. These three alone should cause nightmares for opposing offenses, and scoring will be at a premium against them. The chaser line should feature some potent offense as well, with Team USA chaser Jessica Klein and Andrew Hollenbach, who has been very impressive in Boston pickup games, leading the charge. Not to be overlooked is Samy Mousa, whose leadership and intelligence will serve the team well. This team should be in every game, and most likely out of snitch range for a bunch of them, based solely off of the fact that scoring more than a few goals against them will be very difficult. As long as seeker Aref Afshar can make one or two important catches, this team should be too big a match for the competition.
Phoenix Army
Amanda Salvucci, Beater, Hofstra University
Alex Amodol, Beater, Philadelphia Honey Badgers
Navid Safaie, Beater, No Affiliation
Amanda Dallas, Beater, New York University
Robby May, Beater, NYDC Capitalists
Mike Iadavaia, Beater, Hofstra University
Martin Pyne, Chaser, Silicon Valley Skrewts
Jake Parisi, Chaser, University of Rochester
Michael Bufardici, Chaser, Hofstra University
Justin Brown, Chaser, New York University
Leeanne Dillmann, Chaser, Boston Riot
Mo Haggag, Chaser, New York Badassilisks
Kelly MacDougall, Chaser, SUNY Geneseo
Michael ‘Yada' Parada, Keeper, Pennsylvania State University
Michael Mayor, Keeper, University of Rochester
Kyle Sanson, Seeker, University of Rochester
At first look, Phoenix Army appears to be one of the stronger, well-balanced teams. Tough at all four positions with players like keeper Michael Parada, chaser Mo Haggag, beaters Amanda Dallas and Robby May, and seeker Kyle Sanson, the name recognition on this team alone places them as a clear early favorite. The rest of the team is solid as well, with backup beaters Amanda Salvucci and Mike Iadavaia bringing their shared Hofstra chemistry to the field, and chaser Leeanne Dillmann providing a good female chasing presence. With Parada and Dallas anchoring the team's defense, they should not be counted out from any game, and they will likely rely on Sanson to win games for them, which he should be able to as one of the better seekers in the tournament.
Tiger Army
Harry Clarke, Beater University of Rochester
Hagar Tamir, Beater, Hofstra University
Arlene Rosenberg, Beater, Tufts University
Marina Montenegro, Beater, Horn Tailed Horcruxes
Michael Sanders, Beater, Tufts University
Bryan Hall, Chaser, New York University
Konstantinos Plakas, Chaser, Stony Brook University
Emily Pertz, Chaser, New York Badassilisks
Hannah DeBaets, Chaser, Tufts University
Arman Afshar, Chaser, Not Affiliated
Alex Linde, Chaser, Macaulay Honors College
Kyung Jeon, Chaser, New York University
Rafie Karen, Chaser, Skidmore College
Jamie LaFrance, Keeper, University of Ottawa
Max Curran, Keeper, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Casey Sabal, Seeker, New York Badassilisks
Tiger Army has the potential to be the most bruising team in the tournament with Bryan Hall, Konstantinos Plakas, and Jamie LaFrance all bringing an intimidating physical presence to the quaffle game. With Harry Clarke and Michael Sanders, Tiger Army could choose to employ a two-male beater lineup, which would guarantee them beating supremacy immediately. However, this would force them to use two female chasers, and with only two in the lineup, they would soon face the worry of exhaustion. The biggest question mark for Tiger Army is Casey Sabal as their primary seeker, as she is both untested at the position and coming off of major ACL surgery. This team should do well, but its seeker game will be the difference between success and failure.
Rabbit Army
Ricky Nelson, Beater, University of Maryland
Rebecca Alley, Beater, University of Ottawa
Shirley Lu, Beater, Wellesley College
Michael E. Mason, Beater, New York Badassilisks
Jessica Warne, Chaser, Ithaca Hex
Tim Keaney, Chaser, Hofstra University
Stevie Borrello, Chaser, Macaulay Honors College
Jenna Melvin, Chaser, University of Rochester
Tom Skudlarek, Chaser, Rochester Institute of Technology
Frank Tamburrino, Chaser, University of Rochester
Kristin Lamont, Chaser, Macaulay Honors College
Katie Pieper, Keeper, University of Rochester
Sean Sullivan, Keeper, Horn Tailed Horcruxes
Matthew Zeltzer, Seeker, Vassar College
Rabbit Army, despite being led by Ricky Nelson and Tim Keaney, appears to be one of the weaker teams. While Keaney is a chasing force, he is used to playing off the ball, with less attention garnered to him. He will be relied upon as their primary offensive weapon however, and it will be interesting to see how he fares out of his comfort zone. The support is decent, with Tom Skudlarek and Stevie Borrello, and they will need to work hard to get open for passes when the defense inevitably collapses on Keaney. Behind Nelson, the beater core is credible, but with only four beaters on the team, they may have some concerns late on in the day. Lastly, seeker Matthew Zeltzer may be relied upon heavily as a utility player, and his contributions could prove vital for this team's success.
Pool B
Griffin Army
Shenuque Tissera, Beater, Macaulay Honors College
Anna Parker, Beater, University of Rochester
Alvin Arnold, Beater, Philadelphia Honey Badgers
Jenna Jankowski, Beater, Macaulay Honors College
Corey Kientz, Beater, Horn Tailed Horcruxes
Skylar Crossman, Beater, Rochester Institute of Technology
Josh Stone, Chaser, SUNY Geneseo
Ryan Smythe, Chaser, Boston Riot
Walter Makarucha Jr, Chaser, New York Badassilisks
Chris Cabeza, Chaser, New York Badassilisks
Rowan Baluta, Chaser, New York University
Emily Eisenberg, Chaser, Alfred University
Rich Martino, Chaser, New York University
Dan Hanson, Keeper, Lost Boys
Brian Dorfman, Keeper, Brandeis University
Joey O'Connor, Seeker, SUNY Geneseo
Griffin Army appears to be another strong team, and should rely heavily on its chemistry. Anchored by Shenuque Tissera and Jenna Jankowski, both of Macaulay, the beater core is solid, and also large, with six total on the team. On the quaffle side, this team is deceptively strong, both literally and figuratively, with Josh Stone and Walter Makarucha providing a physical presence. The wild card for this team will be the addition of Dan Hanson, who, while a celebrity out West for his management of the upstart Lost Boys, is a relatively unknown commodity on the pitch in the Northeast. Whether he can influence the strategy of this team may be a deciding factor in games, and if not, they will look instead to the combined leadership of Tissera and Jankowski to push them beyond expectations, as they have done this past year with Macaulay.
Leopard Army
Aidan Wilcox, Beater, Vassar College
Jared Rohrer, Beater, New York Badassilisks
Hannah Sugarman, Beater, SUNY Geneseo
Lauren Wexler, Beater, Arizona Wildcats
Heather Knoch, Beater, Not Affiliated
Ethan Sturm, Chaser, Tufts University
Junghune Nam, Chaser, Rochester Institute of Technology
Devin Sandon, Chaser, University of Rochester
Adam Robillard, Chaser, University of Ottawa
Toby March, Chaser, Ithaca College
Anjoly Ibrahim, Chaser, NYDC Capitalists
Lisle Coleman, Chaser, University of Rochester
John Bridstup, Keeper, Philadelphia Honey Badgers
Patrick Callanan, Keeper, University of Rochester
Megan Nugent, Seeker, Hofstra University
Leopard Army is a very intriguing team. With names like Ethan Sturm, Devin Sandon, and Heather Knoch, this team appears at first glance to have some firepower. Yet behind these three, players such as Junghune Nam and Aidan Wilcox will have to play well in order for the Leopards to maintain their edge and live up to their potential. Sturm has proven his worth in knowing the recipe for winning tournaments like this, which is strong female beater and seeker play, yet this team appears to only have one half of that formula. Seeker Megan Nugent never was able to crack the tournament roster for Hofstra last year, and thus the seeker game must be considered this team's biggest weakness. Its tournament will be made or broken on whether it can get out of snitch range early, with an early exit seeming likely if this does not happen.
Salamander Army
Daniel Pecoraro, Beater, Macaulay Honors College
Lisa Nitzsche, Beater, Philadelphia Honey Badgers
Aaron Roth, Beater, New York Badassilisks
Kerri Donnelly, Beater, New York Badassilisks
Namita Gubbi, Beater, New York University
Joe Monoenko, Chaser, SUNY Geneseo
Clay Dockery, Chaser, New York Badassilisks
Dante Close, Chaser, New York University
Indiana Kuffer, Chaser, Macaulay Honors College
Matthew Savery, Chaser, Not Affiliated
Luke Espina, Chaser, Macaulay Honors College
Joey DiStefano, Chaser, Syracuse University
Rob Clifford, Keeper, Rochester Institute of Technology
Taylor Crawford, Keeper, Hofstra University
Justin Kieber-King, Chaser, University of Rochester
Salamander Army is a very hard team to read. On the one hand, keeper Taylor Crawford is one of the best two-way athletes in the tournament, and has a solid core around him consisting of Kerri Donnelly, Dante Close, and Indiana Kuffer. This team is nearly wholly comprised of players from New York City teams, and their ability to work together to become more than the sum of their parts may push this team into contention. Yet despite Donnelly, this team appears to be relatively weak beater-wise, and will thus have to rely on Crawford and Close to lay some hits, or else goals will start flying in and they may not be able to claw back into games.
Rat Army
Kyle Leslie, Beater, Rochester Institute of Technology
Ryan Sebade, Beater, Stony Brook University
Paula Garcia-Salazar, Beater, Macaulay Honors College
Alejandro Gomez-del-Moral, Beater, New York Badassilisks
Ralph Palmieri, Beater, New York Badassilisks
Kyle Savarese, Chaser, Rochester Institute of Technology
Marilyn Tourangeau, Chaser, University of Ottawa
Howie Levine, Chaser, Tufts University
Alicia Caruso, Chaser, New York Badassilisks
Samuel Ravelo Jr, Chaser, Loyola University New Orleans
Josh Miller, Chaser, Not Affiliated
Michael Pascutoi, Chaser, University of Rochester
Rob Walsh, Chaser, Hofstra University
Nick Murray, Keeper, New York Badassilisks
William Messner, Keeper, Philadelphia Honey Badgers
Andrew Zagelbaum, Seeker, Macaulay Honors College
Rat Army, like many others, will rely on its stars, who in this case are chaser Howie Levine and seeker Andrew Zagelbaum. Zagelbaum is perhaps the best on-paper seeker here, but his recent collarbone injury leaves questions to be answered. If he is not scared of re-injuring himself, Zagelbaum is lights out, but his aggressive style is what got him hurt in the first place, and he may have trouble getting himself back to that level of play either mentally or physically. Levine is one of the top-five players at this entire tournament, but is used to having strength around him and not needing to accomplish everything on his own. If Levine's chasers back him up, Rat Army will succeed, but if he is forced to run the offense, he may get overwhelmed, or end up neutralized by good defensive strategies. The wild card on this team, as it is on any team on which he plays, is Ralph Palmieri. Mercurial as they get, Palmieri is impossible to get a read on, and many think a brilliant quidditch mind hides behind his unique personality. If this is the case, he could unite this team towards a singular goal better than most other teams, and their heart may yet prove their biggest asset.
Pool Predictions -Team, Record, (Overall Seed)
Pool A
Dragon Army, 3-0, (1)
Phoenix Army, 2-1, (3)
Tiger Army, 1-2, (7)
Rabbit Army, 0-3, (8)
Pool B
Griffin Army, 2-1, (2)
Leopard Army, 2-1, (4)
Salamander Army, 1-2, (5)
Rat Army, 1-2, (6)
Finals Prediction
Dragon Army over Phoenix Army
