Preview
West Wednesday: Fliers Friday
Utah is the site of the West's first tournament of the season and so we bring you a special edition of West Wednesday to get you ready: Fliers Friday.
After the West Region’s dismal Sunday performance at World Cup VII, many players and teams are hoping to set the record straight this season. The region will boast a completely different look this year as many players have transferred, and new ambitious teams are joining the competition. Last season featured one juggernaut team, a surplus of World Cup bids, and a fall West Regional Championship that arguably established the West’s World Cup slots too early. The end result was that teams in the West didn’t have as much reason to train throughout the entire season, and the effects were apparent in North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The West Regional Championship tournament this season will be in February, and the competition for World Cup VIII bids will be fierce.
Each team will be discussed in five installments of sub-areas within the region (Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles, Northern California, Arizona, and Utah). Utah is the site of the West's first tournament of the season and so we bring you a special edition of West Wednesday to get you ready: Fliers Friday.
CRIMSON ELITE & CRIMSON FLIERS
2013-14 Finish: Round of 48, World Cup
Key Departures: Dakota Briggs, George Williams
Key Returners/Recruits: Edgar Pavlovsky, Zach Holley, Ben Reuling
Strengths: Physicality
Weaknesses: Seeking, Beater depth
Star Wars Character: Crimson Elite is a tauntaun from Hoth, and that should be self-explanatory.
After a surprisingly strong showing at World Cup VII, there is little reason to doubt that Crimson Elite is going to pick up where it left off. The squad will be captained by Ben Reuling, an experienced chaser and beater, and Edgar Pavlovsky, a quick and physical chaser. Aside from the two captains, Crimson Elite will also benefit from physical keeper Zach Holley, now entering his second season. The Crimson Elite offense will likely center around Holley and Pavlovsky.“Edgar comes from a lacrosse background, so he is very physical and very fast,” said Reuling. “It meshes really well with Zach’s ability to throw when they are on offense together.” Crimson Elite will also benefit from the reliable support of Gina Allyn and Kristin Jakus at chaser.
“So far it’s looking stronger than any of the years I’ve been with the team,” Reuling said.
Despite this, there are substantial reasons to believe the Fliers may dip in performance this season. George Williams and Dakota Briggs, two veteran players who may as well have been the face of the Fliers, are leaving Utah’s only community team to form their own squad. Williams, an aggressive staple of the former “Murderer’s Row,” revitalized Utah with his return last season. Briggs provided reliable utility talent, often playing all positions in a single game. Their departures will leave Utah with major holes. However, Reuling has an answer: due to its storied quidditch history, Utah has no shortage of potential recruits. Over 50 players attended tryouts, allowing the Fliers to split into two teams. The Crimson Fliers will now be a “B team,” while the Crimson Elite emerges as Utah’s “A team.”
One problem Crimson Elite must face is its lack of beater depth. Crimson Elite doesn’t have an arsenal of well-known beaters, and beater Lexi Harrison is unavailable until World Cup (that is, if Utah qualifies). Reuling will be a valuable anchor at beater, but the Crimson Elite will need to strengthen its beater rotation with new recruits. Training new players to integrate into the quaffle game alongside Holley and Pavlovsky will likely be much easier than quickly building a beater foundation, so expect Crimson Elite to rely on its chaser athleticism. Still, with such a promising recruiting month, Crimson Elite could become the best official Utah team in the state’s history.
Will they qualify for World Cup?
Utah will combine a strong returning foundation with an unprecedented recruiting class. This is very similar to the Fliers team that qualified last season, where new players like Holley contributed to the Fliers’ success. Those new players are now leading the team, and they have a great chance to qualify again, regardless of the eventual World Cup bid allocation.
UTAH STATE UNIVERSITY
2013-14 Finish: N/A
Key Departures: N/A
Key Returners/Recruits: Dakota Briggs, George Williams
Strengths: Experienced and credible founders
Weaknesses: Recruitment
Star Wars Character: “Luke Skywalker. He's an underdog. He's young and needs some work, but in the end, he goes for gold and achieves his dreams. And he kisses his sister, which is kind of weird…” Dakota Briggs, captain.
Two illustrious quidditch personalities have left the Fliers to take the next step in their quidditch careers by forming a brand new team at Utah State University (USU). While many new teams struggle, USU will benefit from both the skill and knowledge that Dakota Briggs and George Williams bring to their new club. They may even acquire Matthew Williams, who had an extremely successful showing at West Fantasy where he played a key role on the championship team. Still, fans of the newborn team should not get overly excited. Two or three experienced players signifies a good start, as well as the 30 recruits who attended the first practice, but the team is starting from scratch and will need time to acclimate.
There is no animosity between USU and the Utah Crimson Elite, for whom Briggs and George Williams formerly played.
“The Fliers, plus Utah, need more teams if we are ever going to thrive,” said Briggs. “That's just simple. Look at any team that has at least two surrounding teams; their development is exponential compared to the isolated teams.”
Will they qualify for World Cup?
The short answer is probably not, as this team will need time to grow. Yet, the Santa Barbara Blacktips and Long Beach Funky Quaffles both received World Cup bids in their first seasons, and USU has a better foundation than either of those teams did. So, it’s too soon to count the new Utah team out.
CRIMSON CUP PREVIEW
Courtney Savage decided that the Crimson Elite should host a regular season official tournament in addition to its famous winter Snow Cup. As a result, the Crimson Cup on Saturday, Sept. 20, will help kick off the 2014-15 USQ season. The tournament will feature two pools of three teams each, followed by a double elimination bracket with each pool winner receiving a bye. The tournament will boast a lot of gameplay with 16 or 17 total games and each team playing anywhere from four to eight games in a single day.
Pool A will feature the Utah Crimson Elite, the Northern Arizona University Narwhals (NAU), and the Colorado State Boggarts. Colorado State will likely be a step behind its competitors in Pool A, as both Crimson Elite and NAU are established programs that advanced to bracket play at World Cup VII. The Crimson Elite-NAU match should be the most exciting game in pool play. Spectators can expect high-level play early in the tournament because both teams are returning with most of their players from last season. Both teams are physical, but Crimson Elite generally plays cleanly while NAU isn’t afraid to earn cards in its efforts to control the pitch. NAU is favored to win the match and the pool since it returns with multiple solid beaters, and seeker Porter Marsh will almost certainly catch the snitch if the game is close.
Pool B contains the Los Angeles Gambits, the Boise State University Abraxans (BSU), and the University of Northern Colorado (UNC). The Gambits will not bring their full roster to the tournament, notably missing Ren Bettendorf and multiple female players, but they will still have enough firepower to handily win the pool. BSU will be interesting to watch; it was outclassed at last year’s West Regional Championship, but the team has both grown and improved since then. UNC is somewhat of an unknown, but it has never been the strongest team and will likely rely heavily on keeper De’Vaughn Gamlin.
Bracket play will greatly favor the deep rosters of Crimson Elite and NAU. If the Gambits were playing with their full roster, they would be an easy favorite to win the tournament. However, considering only a portion of the team can make the trip, stamina could become a huge factor as the tournament wears on. The Gambits will rely heavily on Duston Mazella and Steve DiCarlo to retain bludger control and create lanes for Tony Rodriguez to drive and score. One saving grace is that if the Gambits win their pool, they will have a two hour break after pool play to rest before they need to finally play a team that could give them issues.
Crimson Elite will benefit from playing with a full roster on its home turf. The fact that Crimson Elite practices consistently in the weather conditions of Salt Lake City will give it a true home field advantage. Crimson Elite could utilize its endurance to will its way into the finals, or even win the tournament. Facing a rested Gambits team early in bracket play could doom Crimson Elite to an early loss and dampen its championship hopes, so Crimson Elite will desperately want to win its pool. One rivalry faceoff everyone could appreciate, though, would be an injured Dan Hanson, now with Crimson Elite, trying to outwit former Lost Boys teammate DiCarlo if Crimson Elite does indeed play the Gambits.
NAU will have the best combination of talent and experienced players at the tournament. The Narwhals will have the most veterans on their team, but they lack a true star quaffle talent. A methodical beater performance combined with physical contributions from Luke Sanchez and Nate Olsen and elite seeking from Porter Marsh gives them a good chance of winning Crimson Cup. However, they likely must face either the Gambits or Crimson Elite multiple times to do so, and it remains to be seen if they’ll have the endurance to outlast Crimson Elite or if even a reduced Gambits roster would be too strong.
Predictions
Pool A Winner: NAU
Pool B Winner: Los Angeles Gambits
Championship: Los Angeles Gambits vs. NAU
Champion: NAU
WEST REGION PRESEASON POWER RANKINGS
This is a modest attempt at ranking the top ten teams in the West Region. These rankings are based on current lineups and expected performance as opposed to expected growth or improvement.
1. The Lost Boys
This ranking depends on all possible returners committing to the Lost Boys. If that happens, this team still has a good amount of depth.
2. Los Angeles Gambits
Their ability to win the West Regional Championship will hinge on the performance of Ren Bettendorf.
3. Silicon Valley Skrewts
Kevin Oelze’s impact on this team is monumental; his performance at the 2013 Sunshine Bowl testifies to that. If Oelze were healthy, the Skrewts would be No. 1.
4. University of California at Los Angeles
UCLA has legitimate hopes for a West Regional Championship, but it will still need to improve on last season’s team to do so.
5. Northern Arizona University Narwhals (NAU)
NAU returns with all of its beaters and most of its quaffle players. After splitting its season series with UCLA, we can expect close matchups between the two teams again this season.
6. Utah Crimson Elite
Dan Hanson’s strategic insight will give Utah a huge boost.
7. Arizona Quidditch
Arizona has a strong incoming chaser line, but little is known about its beaters.
8. Arizona State University (ASU)
ASU is weaker than last season after mass departures, but its stable beating corps should keep it afloat while it recruits and trains players.
9. Thundercat Quidditch
The Thundercats barely missed World Cup last season, but they’ll qualify this year if the West is awarded enough spots.
10. Santa Barbara Blacktips
Brian Vampola is returning, which will boost the feeble beater rotation.
