Who are the best players in the New England region? This is an open thread to discuss All-Region nominations, All-Freshman nominations, coaching awards, and more. Stay positive and keep it civil.
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Kai DeLorenzo (Middlebury) is very good, he and Dylan Salzman should definitely be All-Region.
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That tall, fast cutter on Amherst is really really good all around athletically, although I haven’t seen him throw much, but he doesn’t need to do be a lock for All-Region.
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Haven’t seen him play, but heard that Conor Chin (something like that) on Brandeis should be a lock for All-Freshman, probably All-Region too. Is he on u20 Worlds or did he just get a tryout?
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Someone on Bryant has to be really good, or maybe all of them are. Definitely one (or more) of them deserves All-Region, especially now that they actually got 10 games for once!
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For Williams, we got two freshman that play pretty big roles for us, so they deserve a shoutout. Kaizen Conroy is a plus defender who gets a good amount of d’s and scores a good amount, and messes up a minimal amount. Danny Ortiz starts as a handler on our offense, and has played very well as a possession handler who rarely turns it.
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More homer picks here, but Luke Passanannte (#69) is a great deep threat and a plus-defender, in addition to being a huge voice and leader for our team, and even though I love him I might have misspelled his last name.
I’ll add some more thoughts post-sectionals maybe
For all region I agree with the picks from Middlebury with Kai and Dylan.
From Amherst I think you are talking about Borun Sun and I would add the Zach Stern is very good as well and is taking on a new role as a handler with them instead of being a cutter.
From Brandeis I also haven’t seen Chin play, but I would add that Nacho is also decent and probably deserves some sort of recognition.
From Bowdoin it is more challenging because its hard to know their real names, however Summer (Frank Ahrens?) is their most dominate player on offense and defense. Jeevs is also a lock down defender and great cutter, so I would add him to the list as well however it would be a random guess on his actual name.
From Colby Bennett Allen is nasty and gets tons of layout Ds and has been sculpting his offensive game.
From Bryant it would be a crime to not include Alex Kenworthy, he has been our leading our team in points at nationals the last two years and we will be releasing his Donovan video later so get hyped for that, but he is hard to guard from both a handler and cutter space and is key to our offense and defense.
Austin Kelson also leads our defense and has been all-region before.
Justin Kunkel is following in a similar path as Alex and has dominated both offense and defense because of his athleticism and range of throws.
I would also shout out Ryan Donovan (coincidence? I think not) for all freshman, he has come in and been an excellent addition to our squad after losing 7-10 seniors last year.
Some less well known teams have quality players. Wentworth has Giles Holmes and Bentley has Joe Kane.
I would assume that Williams and Bates have quality players as well but I just haven’t played them enough to know.
I am not sure when this ends, but there should be more evidence after sectionals and regionals.
Post South New England Sectionals thoughts:
Impressed by #25 on Amherst, he’s a solid handler and does a lot for their team. Their coach though really needs some recognition: he’s crafted a rock-solid program and a lot of depth, which is hard to do in d3.
#36 (played in a #40 reversible for a bit) on Bryant was the centerpiece for them, with big throws and played a lot of points. Everyone else on Bryant was good and athletic but nobody else really stood out.
Ryan Turner, WPI Men’s Coach. I can only speak to who I have seen play, and that is pretty much just from Conferences (South New England) last weekend.
Amherst:
- Main handler dude, kinda short with black hair. Terrible with names so I don’t remember. Ran their offense. Game against Amherst got a little contested and he kept a cool head throughout.
- #4, cutter. Absolute work horse who dominated us in the second half of our universe point game in game-to-go.
- #2, cutter. Tall and athletic, was their usually their first go to cutter on offense.
Williams:
- #99, main handler, pink hat. Great throws and resets. Controlled the pace of the game for Williams. Seemed consistent throughout the weekend. Go-to guy.
Bryant (echoed from previous comments):
- Alex Kentworthy
- Justin Kunkel
- Austin Kelson
WPI:
We are in a bit of a rebuilding year after not having a coach for 3+ years, but these guys still deserve some recognition.
- Jared Perkins, #42, Senior. Our best player. D-line handler but crosses over when there is a big point. Has the throws, has the field sense, has the athletic ability. If you played us this season, this guy was probably beating you. Absolutely deserves All-Region and it is a crime he hasn’t been nominated all 4 years at WPI. It will be hard to replace him next year.
- Tim Whitworth, #18 (I think), 5th year. D-line handler. Probably our second best handler behind Jared. Consistent and chilly. Rarely does anything stupid with the disc. Gets open for resets when they are needed and we depend on him for level-headedness near the endzone. Played 20 points in game-to-go and could have played 20 more.
- Nick Hernandez, #24 (i think), Senior. O-line cutter. Our go-to cutter on offense and D-line crossover when we need it. Great fakes, great cuts, and gets open. Threat with the disc in his hands too as he can put it deep. Isolation cuts in the EZ usually result in a score - if you tried to cover him on an endzone iso, odds are you got scored on. Deserves All-Region.
All-Freshman: - Ryan Shaw, #6 (I think). Short and quick, D-line handler. Ryan stepped in this year on the D-line and immediately became an anchor. Good throws, smart decisions (usually), and a workhorse on defense. Already a good player and dedicated to becoming even better in the coming years. More than deserving of an All-Freshman spot.
- Scott D’Atilio (sp?), #?, O/D cutter. Tall, black/brown hair. Much like Ryan, Scott stepped in this year and pretty much became a starter on O. Used his height on deep cuts, but still had speed and quickness to get open on unders. Dangerous thrower as well. We needed him to crossover to D-line more than once, and he always generated a layout block when we needed it most. Smart and consistent, he is going to be a threat in the region over the next few years. All-Freshman for sure.
Coaches:
- My boy Dello from Bryant (Mike Cardello)
- Myself and Alex Carli-Dorsey: WPI was without a coach for the past 3-ish years. This year, we basically had to start from scratch with the team and re-teach the fundamentals while trying to get them to understand some more advanced strategies and patience. Having not been to Regionals since 2015, WPI was one point away from a win over Amherst (lost 13-14) and advancing to Regionals (as well as the finals of the tournament). This team will continue to grow over the next few years, but I think the improvement from last year to this year and being a point away from Regionals can be attributed to our coaching.
Thanks for reading!
Disclaimer: Current Bates player.
Amherst: Zack Stern is not only an incredible athlete and ultimate player, but he is extremely level-headed and spirited even during intense, chippy games. He is in charge on D and once he gets his poach he’s running circles around you on O.
Brandeis: Nacho. Great throws, great mark, decent facial hair.
Bowdoin: Cosmo does it all, most consistent player in my opinion. Bison is fast af and low key can rip the disk as well.
Middlebury: After playing these guys for the first time this season, it is clearly the Dylan and Kai show. Asher is also an animal, roofed some kid on Dartmouth #DIII #SoftCall
Colby: Simba is raw on O and D. Airbud is a crazy good athlete too.
Bryant: Haven’t played them. The strong guy.
Williams: The ghost of Emmett Blau
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Williams College men’s coach. I’m terrible with names (and numbers), but here we go:
Amherst: #25 is their most well-rounded player. Impacts the game all over the field. Their freshman (#11?) is the future of the region.
Bryant: Tall handler is the most important cog in their machine.
Middlebury: Kai and Dylan – yup.
Bowdoin: Haven’t seen much of clown this year but I think #13 and #9 were the dudes. One was a short handler that played tenacious D, the other a longer cutter who was usually initiating.
Williams: As mentioned by WPI’s coach – #99 on Williams has been essential to our success this year. He probably has the most complete set of throws in the region and he’s only a sophomore. It would be silly if he missed first team. He’s about as committed to Ultimate as anyone I have ever met, and it shows through his play. Williams freshman #1 is also worth mentioning, as he is a huge plus defender who joins our offense when we need him most.
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Cameron Jack from Bryant deserves some recognition. He leads his team by example with great throws and excellent spirit.
Kai and Dylan from Midd have already mentioned, plus one for both.
Here are the real names of the Bowdoin guys you have mentioned above. Frankie Ahrens (Summer), Conor Belfield (Jeeves), Phil Galonsky (Cosmo), and Yuta Kobayashi (Bison).
Thanks,
-Mike Pistrang, Bowdoin Coach
Post-Regionals Thoughts from Williams #99 (Pink hat and no pants ever)
-Middlebury: Kai and Dylan are still good, but its really their depth that gets you, and not to chirp them but neither of them played lights out from what I saw. Also #23(maybe #28 hes called Conor I think) is a really good handler defender and gave me fits on Saturday in pool play, may have been responsible for turning the tide of the game (Mid turned a 2 point halftime deficit into a 13-9 win).
-Bowdoin: #9 with red hair is very good, works well grinding out handler sets and takes good shots. #18 (their big thrower/center handler I might have the number wrong) is also good. Well-deserved nationals spot for these guys.
-Brandeis: Conor Chin deserves all freshman: very consistent on offense working swings and breaks. Nacho is good, but probably second team. Mango (#9) was impressive as well.
-Bates: Tall blonde cutter was athletic and came down with a lot. They also had another very fast cutter who stood out.
From Williams, I would like to repeat that #69 Luke Passanante was crucial to our success as a deep threat and a distributor, while #2 Ari-Ball Burack went off this weekend playing a power-cutter role. Especially impressive after he missed his sophomore year due to a brutal ACL tear. Also, #1 Kaizen Conroy should be an absolute lock for All-Freshman team, and in serious contention for FOTR: he racked up d’s on some of the best cutters in the region and was a rock solid cutter all weekend, and caught a layout callahan that turned the tide against Brandeis this morning.
Congrats to Bryant, Bowdoin and Middlebury for clinching the bids, they were clearly the three best teams imo, and its a travesty that New England got stuck with only three bids this season.
Hey all, my name is Dylan and I go to Middlebury.
I usually don’t post on these forums but I have some strong feelings here:
Kees Humes (or whatever his actual name is) is a super dynamic and talented thrower. Ran WUFO’s offense.
The curly-haired handler on Bowdoin is also a very impressive thrower.
Matt Goldberg is Bates’ best player.
Zack, the Amherst guy, ran their offense–made big plays when their whole team was tired.
Briefly, on Middlebury; Asher (96) is an incredible athlete and defender. Ian Hanson (lefty D line handler) is only a freshman.
Bryant: The tall guy that played in the cup (I’m bad with names and numbers) had super quick hands and played with good spirit. The rest of the team did not. Bidding into our players while they are popping or catching hammers and can’t see/evade contact is downright dangerous. Also, contesting everything is never a good policy. Their coach said, on the sideline, after one of our players called a strip, “it was probably a foul. But he doesn’t know the rules.” That should not be something that a coach of a top-tier team laughs at; it should be something that he works with the team to rectify. I’m not trying to take anything away from Bryant–they’re a very good team–but we should hold a team that represents our region every year at nationals to a higher standard.
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Just want to echo the shoutout to Asher - he murdered both myself and Harris Cannon at EastUR.
Also, Dylan is a fantastic handler in his own right. He makes quick people look… not quick - and his footwork is unreal too. Very nice break throws as well.
Middlebury was a super nice and spirited team, loved playing against them and hope to see them at Nationals. Bummer to hear about poor spirit, but I trust Dylan’s word.
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Disclaimer: current Brandeis player.
Don’t have much to add that wasn’t already said.
To respond to some comments by Kees, Connor Chin did make the U20 worlds team, fully deserves to be All-freshman, and arguably deserves to make an All-region team. He anchored our O-line as a freshman, combining great break throws with dominant cutting in the handler space, and often go the block back when our O-line turned the disc. Second, Nacho (Ben Rosenfeld) played Sunday of regionals on a pulled groin, and could not run above 70%, but still had monster pulls, got open on resets, and scored a couple times.
I think Sonic (Jordan Kaufman #99) on Brandeis also deserves some recognition. He was our initiator cutter, and while other teams often put their best defender on him, he was always open. He could catch huge unders and turn to throw the assist, or could toast his man deep for the quick score. The man never stops running on the field.
Also wanted to mention that Joe Kane (Bentley #80) is their go-to guy on both offense and defense and is the reason Bentley was able to win the Metro Boston Conference and make it to Regionals.
Writing is Bennett Allen (Taz, #26) from Colby.
Bates: Taz and Dreams are unreal
Bowdoin: Cosmo #9 is a vital cog for their offense and is real quick. Summer #3 is a great all around player who contributes on both sides of the disc, also grade - A chiller.
Midd: Dylan, Kai, Asher.
Bryant: Cam Jack #34 has gotta be All - Region yeah? Echo “He leads his team by example with great throws and excellent spirit.”
Williams: #99
Amherst: #25 (?) I think he’s their captain and does a lot on the field for them. Also an EMT and came to the rescue of members of our team both before and during our game against them. A+
Colby: Jacob Adner (Simba #9) has been vital for the offense all year as a cutter and came up huge with layout stops to get the disc back when we needed. Matt Sabin ( Titan #10) should be a lock for All - Freshman. A sickness kept him sidelined for a lot of this weekend but don’t sleep on this guy, seriously. Will be in the all region conversation next year.
One more: Zeb (Cricket #33) was pretty much unstoppable in the deep space this weekend and had some great battles with Asher during our Midd games.
Go Celtics.
Zack Stern, #25 on Amherst here
I want to reiterate a lot that has already been said about the talented guys in our region.
Middlebury: Dylan Salzman and Kai DeLorenzo are incredible players. They’re both very skilled and play with a ton of spirit.
Bates: Matt Goldberg is the heart of their team. Great throws and fantastic presence on the field.
Bryant: Cameron Jack plays a vital role on his team on O and D, setting an excellent example of sportsmanship.
Brandeis: Ben Rosenfeld (Nacho) has some of the best throws in the region and is central to Tron on both sides of the disc.
To shout out a few guys on Amherst, Erik March (#11) is a first year who dominated defensively and was a huge scorer on turns. Borun Sun (#2) is our go to deep threat who made huge plays in the air all season. Fawzi Itani (#54) was one of our top players all season long, but was unfortunately out for regionals due to an injury in the first game
Current Brandeis Player, Sabre #19
Lot of accurate S/Os so far, I’ll add my two cents
Bryant- Cameron Jack really anchors their team, his pulls help set their zone especially well. Alex K is a great athlete- had one filthy grab over one of our players
Bates- Lots of athletic players none in particular I remember. Chef’s a good guy… but his calls are questionable lol
Amherst- Their coach deserves a shoutout. He seems kinda quiet observing on the sideline but builds a great system for a small Amherst team.
Wentworth- Biff and #2 (jumpy quick handler) are big for their team and have helped build their program as I think both are seniors
Williams- Kees (pink hat, no pants) is a great player on both ends of the field. As a whole Williams is another team that has a bunch of good athletes that play hard.
Middleberry- Didn’t get to play this weekend but watched a bit and know Dylan is their guy. Also seems like a great leader for their team.
Brandeis- Ben “Nacho” Rosenfeld lead our team this year. His knowledge of the game and teaching abilities have been big for our program. Connor “Ice” Chin is a freshman and was already a top handler for us. He is the U20 player and will be leading the team in years to come. Jordan “Sonic” Kaufman is one of our top cutters- not the tallest but gets open with ease and is great in the air. Lastly, Steven “Mango” Chen anchored our offense this year and has buttery throws
Best of luck to Bowdoin, Bryant, and Midd at nationals. Hopefully we’ll get four bids next year!
Jeeves from Bowdoin here.
I think people pretty much have it down. I’d like to mention Blues (Rein on his jersey) from Bates. He’s a crazy athletic cutter that messed us up every time he played.
I’d also like to bring up our first year Higgins (mentioned once earlier, he’s #13). He walked onto our O-line this year primarily as a handler and has been phenomenal for us. Excellent throws, very athletic, never makes stupid mistakes. I think he should be a lock for all-freshman. They nominated him under “Tenzin Choezin” for some reason.
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