Who are the best players in the Great Lakes region? This is an open thread to discuss All-Region nominations, All-Freshman nominations, coaching awards, and more. Stay positive and keep it civil.
Collin Rassel (Indiana) is a force. He is the do-it-all man for IU. Rassel plays nearly every point in close games, charged with both being the primary ball mover and guarding on the other team’s top cover. He is an elite break thrower and frequently goes every other for their offense. Rassel also catches everything thrown to him, it’s a little ridiculous. He frequently makes highlight plays while still being an absolute rock for the team. He is absolutely all-region caliber.
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Nick Amamo coach of da year baby
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All-Region
Collin Rassel (Indiana): This dude runs the show for IU. Locks down the opponents best offensive guy and plays every point when it gets to crunch time.
Jack Galle (Indiana): Almost always the shortest dude on the field, but always touching the disc. He gets crazy layout D’s and runs the D-line’s offense. Also the best ISO cutter in the nation.
Eric Palia (Purdue): Always takes the toughest matchup on Defense and often crosses over to O.
Sean Miranda (Notre Dame): The main guy on their offense, gets open tons and has great throws.
Owen Woodward (Kentucky): A sophomore that pretty much goes every-other for a young Kentucky team.
Freshmen
Mario Bellavia (Indiana): Immediately inserted himself as a starting O-line cutter. Has great poise with the disc in his hands and plays well beyond his years.
Coaches
Connor “Pretty” Regan: Head Coach of IU, a guy that all players love and can get behind.
Dan Clement: Defensive coordinator at IU, another guy that the players love.
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All Region:
Nate Astrom (Illinois): long arms. Does it all for the Rise. Best thrower and best receiver on the second best team.
Big County (IU): Idk what his real name is but he’s the truth. Layout Ds all day and runs the offense. Plays almost every point and rarely fucks up.
Aaron Bartlett (UM): Best player in the region. Regularly makes insane throws and apparently he’s a better receiver
Eric Palia (Purdue): The most undeniable cutter in the region and one of the most imposing defenders, while also acting as one of Purdue’s primary handlers/deep throwers
James Hill (UM): Bro plays defense.
Owen Edwards (Purdue): May have the longest arms in the region, plays like it at least. Undeniable in small spaces and a constant threat to throw or go deep. Bails out the offense with so many clutch finds and grabs
Jack Gall (IU): Shortest player on the field but still winning almost every matchup with his speed and skill. Bro is too fast it’s not fair. Best defender on IU.
Matthew Imm (Purdue): Throws it really far. Seems like he gets every D after a Purdue Oline turn. Big body in the air and comes down with anything thrown into his zip code.
All Rookie:
Filip Icev (UM)
Tristan Ferguson (Purdue)
Max Devine (UChicago)
All Sophomore:
TaGrantula
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Coming from a magnum perspective -
All region:
Will Zamsky (MSU): lots of release points and angles, opens up the field for MSU when he has the disc in his hands. A big part of our game plan against MSU was to deny him the disc as much as possible.
#45 on msu (i think his name is aidan rudy): really good thrower, gave the MSU d line some steam during tough upwind points.
Ian Falck (Northwestern): is also a great thrower, Northwestern’s main driver.
Nate Astrom (Illinois): he was tweaking out about every call but he is crazy good. Echoing previous posts about Illinois being the second best team, insane lack of ball knowledge to not have them in the preview article.
Simon Perez (Illinois): boomed lots of hucks to their big receivers.
Kai Tang (Illinois): he never stops running and is very annoying and difficult to guard.
Conner Blalack(Indiana): big driver for Indiana and made big plays. Indiana had some other hoopers too but I honestly don’t remember that many of them.
Aaron Bartlett, James Hill, Filip Icev (Michigan): 3 core members of an o line that gave up 3 breaks the entire weekend. Easily all region, enough said.
Other Magnum members that deserve a shout -
David Braden - OSU transfer who has great break throws and never messes up on the O line
Julius Cohen - Locks up any matchup and drives the Michigan D line offense on a turn
Jose Dasilva - Smart defender who provides a much needed X factor to the Michigan D line.
Josh Solomon - Will sky any player on any team, provides bailout unders and deeps and is frequently crossed over.
All Freshman:
Filip Icev and Gabe Dowd are the two best Freshman in the region and it is not close.
Best players in the region:
Aaron Bartlett (Michigan) - Best player on the best team in the region
Nate Astrom (Illinois) - Best player on what seemed like the 2nd best team in the region
Collin Rassel (Indiana) - Led Indiana to the final, hooper
Will Zamsky (MSU) - Dynamic player, huge for MSU’s success
James Hill (Michigan) - Unguardable and got huge D’s on just about every player on this list
Honorable:
Ian Falck (Northwestern) - Raises Northwestern’s level significantly
Indiana #38 - Animal, plays hard both ways and very well
Filip Icev (Michigan) - ROTY, on any other team would be a top 2 player crossing over regularly
Didn’t watch much Purdue/Chicago, but these were best players on semis teams
Best 7 players:
Aaron Bartlett(Michigan) - Best player on the best team
James Hill(Michigan) - Monster on defense and has D on the rest of the list
Collin “Big Country” Rassel - Main mover on offense and defense for IU
Jack Galle - Main Cutter for Iu, and also takes some of the toughest match-ups on defense, like Bartlett
Nate Astrom - Best Player on 3rd place team and amazing defender
Eric Palia (Purdue) - Main mover for them, amazing deep cutter and thrower. Also very frustrating on defense
Will Zamsky(MSU)- Best player for MSU and one of the biggest reasons for their success
Honorable
Aidan Rudy(MSU)
Ian Falck(Northewestern)
Connor Blalack(Indiana)
Freshman
Mario Bellavia(Indiana) - Stepped into the IU O-line as a freshman and became a mainstay in the offense
Filip Icev(Michigan) - One of the 3 main movers on Michigan’s offense, enough said
Tristan Ferguson (Purdue) - Takes tough match-ups on both sides of the ball and is willing to do anything
Max Devine (Chicago) - Saw very little but was impressed with what was showcased
Ladies and gentlemen, scholars and sky gods, I am here to submit the only name that should be carved into the side of a mountain: Nate Pascale.
This man doesn’t play ultimate frisbee—he transcends it. I once saw Nate layout so hard the Earth rotated an extra degree. His hucks bend spacetime. The last time someone tried to mark him, they retired mid-point and became a Buddhist monk to find inner peace. When he calls for the disc, it levitates into his hands like it’s answering a divine summons.
Opposing teams have filed emotional damage claims after guarding him. Birds change their flight paths to avoid his pulls. One time he hit an inside break so sharp it caused a minor rift in the fabric of reality—two timeline versions of the mark now exist and both are still getting roasted.
He doesn’t wear cleats. The grass just agrees to move faster under his feet. The wind? His teammate. Gravity? Optional. Strategy? He is the playbook. This man once threw a full-field hammer upwind, blindfolded, while solving a Rubik’s Cube and quoting “The Art of War.”
In conclusion: All-Region is not enough. Build him a statue. Name a constellation after him. Nominate him for President of the Spirit Realm.
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All Region Nominees:
Nate Astrom (Illinois): plays way to nonchalantly
#19 (Illinois): athletic and has good throws
Big country (IU): O line runs through him, he runs through on D line
Jack Galle (IU): Really good deffender and has cool layouts
Filip Icev(Michigan): Already very impactful and deserves all region from what I saw in the couple of points I watched
Aaron Bartlet(Michigan)
Walsh #23(Purdue): Great deffender, has that dog in him
Matthew Imm(Purdue): Great handler
Sean Miranda(Notre Damne): seems like a hard worker
ROTY: Filip Icev
Purdue player perspective here. I know mostly about IU and Illinois so that’s pretty much what I’m gonna talk about.
All Region:
Nate Astrom (Illinois): really fast, extremely problematic when he goes every other with someone, wins in tight and contested spaces a lot, and when u think he’s about to drop it he doesn’t
Eric Palia (Purdue): been the guy for us for 2 years now, beats people in the deep space a lot and has great deep throws, can’t be guarded by 1 guy, takes the toughest matchups on D and can switch well to help teammates who were beat, will be missed
Big country #27 Rassel?(IU): He came up with a huge layout D against us and he threw the disc at an extremely high level all game. Also a very patient player I think, a very underrated quality, which really allowed IU to walk down the field calm and collected on offense when they were not running a deep pull play
Jack Gall: stupidly fast, caused an absurd amount of problems for Purdue’s O line and I’m sure everyone else’s. He’s always looking to poach, and because he’s so fast he can poach a lane and get back to where needs to be so fast. Shoulder high layouts led to him getting some layout Ds and the acceleration, speed, and diving combo he has makes people he’s guarding look open when they are not because he can close gaps better than any defender I saw in the region.
These were the heads from IU, Purdue and Illinois that I think are all region or deserve to have their names considered. Michigan deserves probably 2, maybe 3 all region players but I never saw them play.
HM:
Kai Bowen (Illinois): I’m told this was his name. Put up an upwind flick huck Saturday full field for the break( I think it landed on the one but you get the point). Kid was a pure thrower and maybe only 5 players at the tournament could have made that throw, Illinois help me out on what his name was if that’s wrong
Owen Edwards (Purdue): hard to deny in the handler space, wins in the deep space a lot, throws very well in close-mid range throws, gets his hands, and feet, on a lot of discs playing defense as well
Blalack (IU): damn good deep thrower, didn’t mess up, diming people all morning, and took the free swing when it was given playing into a strong IU offense
Illinois Player perspective, we played everyone in quarters except Indiana, so I cannot speak for them. Also, the Illinois player you are thinking of jbhbsbl is most likely #19 (Griffin Kelley).
All Region:
Nate Astrom (Illinois) - our best player and a difference maker both directions with athleticism and throws.
For a second Illinois player I would mention Simon Perez, our center handler and also a strong defender, put up lots of good hucks and shepherded our offense.
Other Teams
Eric Palia (Purdue) - put up some really nice hucks and is very dangerous in the cutter space as well. Tough guard.
Aaron Bartlett (Michigan) - best player we played this weekend, we did not have a matchup for him. Threw some amazing hucks as well.
James Hill (Michigan) - is really good, though Bartlett still definitely the star of the show.
Sean Miranda (Notre Dame) - Their main guy
Ian Falck (Northwestern) - he is their whole team, really good thrower who gets them holds single handedly
Will Zamsky (MSU) - MSU’s best player
Some other good players - Aidan Rudy (MSU), Tuhin (UCHI), Kai Tang (Illinois), Hunter Latson (Illinois), Griffin Kelley (Illinois), Will Voss (Illinois)
All-Freshman
Filip Icev is really good and did a lot for Michigan’s O-line
Sam Astrom (Illinois) - Nate’s little brother and Illinois’ best freshman. Essential part of the Oline and some feisty defense as well.
Congrats to Magnum on Nationals again. Well deserved and good luck. I think that from an outside perspective, it can feel like the same old story, but imo, this has been the deepest and most competitive the region has been since pre-COVID. Both at the team level and the individual level I think the play is elevating every year. Shoutout to the captains and team leadership that had to deal with some difficult years for rebuilding communities at their schools. I know a lot of that generation is starting to age out and hopefully some will transition to coaching so we can keep seeing ya’ll around!
Michigan
Aaron Bartlett #14 - POTY in the region. Commands the field like no one else. Obviously the most skilled and talented offensive player in the region. Despite a hiccup at Easterns, is actually conditioned well enough to crossover to defense at a pretty impressive clip. Their break conversion rate with Bartlett on the field is wild.
James Hill #33 - Top 5 player in the region. Not quite as all-rounded as the other guys in consideration but an elite defender at the club level, and a matchup problem with no solution at the college level.
David Braden #27 - Great reset handler for Magnum, really understands spacing well, when called on to play defense, is also a great handler defender. Feels like Magnum’s offense is missing a 3rd big piece, and David’s the closest to filling it imo.
HMs from Michigan: Jose Dasilva #6, Julius Cohen #37, Josh Wang #55 and Gabe Scheck #28. All great opponents, fill their roles on Magnum’s dline well, all great candidates for 2nd team. Also Filip Icev #10 for ROTY. Has the talent to be a top player in the region soon, and is already asked to do a lot for Magnum. Needs to work out the consistency but really high ceiling as a rookie.
Indiana
Collin “Big Country” Rassell #27 - Was playing out of his mind at regionals. Top 3 player at the tournament. Massive bids, pressuring every under it felt like, and then was a rock on the turn, he could go every other until he found the right huck opportunity. Lots of range on his throws and seemed like a great opponent to boot. Played a ton of points and led Indiana to a great regional performance.
Jack “Moon” Galle #38 - So squirrely. So fast. Incredibly solid with the disc. A really important piece to Indiana’s oline. They have a ton of confidence in him and it’s definitely earned.
HMs: Will Quigley #00 and Conner Blalack. Solid defenders, and really great complementary pieces to Moon and Big Country on offense. Indiana ran tight lines and those 4 played a ton.
MSU
Will Zamsky #33 - Will was so critical to MSU’s success this year. He drew the best matchups every game but was still the rock our oline looked to play through. His break throws really opened up the field for us and his presence with the disc was a calming influence on the whole line. He was often the player getting the disc back for our oline after a turn and could crossover to d and cover a bunch of different matchups for us. He had a great senior year, I’m excited to see where he goes with his game at the next level.
Aiden Rudy #45 - Our dline quarterback. When the moment called for it, he took some of the hardest matchups and then was the focal point of our dline o. He grew up as a player a ton this year and really understood his role, he pushed the pace and hit a ton of tough hucks for us in big moments. When we were shorthanded on our oline at regionals, he was one of the first to cross to oline and filled a completely different role and did it well.
Joe Sogno #2 - Maybe the best player in the region that no one knows. He played more points than anyone else on the team at regionals, playing both ways all Sunday. Unassuming in stature, but quick and incredibly smart player. He was racking up ds, assists and goals. He was our matchup for Jack Galle, Max Devine, and other key guys, and then would have to stay out there to play oline. Plays near the disc as a handler mostly, but understands spacing and anticipates play so well that he punishes out-of-position or poaching defenders for goals all day. Hey-Ho, throw it to Joe.
HMs: James Kloss #25 - before breaking his throwing hand and moving to dline, was our oline’s primary cutter. Still had a great regionals playing lefty. Elliot Davis #32 - oline big man, scouting report was out on him as a deep threat this year, but still was a tough matchup, Noah Sawyer #81 - Noah stepped up into the center oline handler role by the end of the season. His break throws initiated a lot of our offense. That allowed Will to move downfield a lot more and really raised our ceiling. Joey Flynn #21 - one of the smartest defenders in the region and one of the best marks despite his size. Has taken a lot of tough matchups over the years and added a backhand huck to his bag this year as well.
Adding, for all of the MSU guys I mentioned, other than Elliot, they’ve been part of a 4 year stretch where MSU finished 9th, 7th, 5th, and then 3rd at regionals. I like our trajectory if we can get them all to come back for a 5th year.
Illinois
Nate Astrom #12 - didn’t get to play against him in person since he was out of cleats by the 3rd place game, but I’ve seen the tape. The guy is an absurd athlete. He makes some of the most jaw dropping plays in the region. Crazy competitor.
Kai Tang #9 - been a fan of Kai’s play for years. He has an endless motor. Felt like we had no answer for him at the end of the weekend. Has been one of the best defenders in the region for years and still was doing it this year. His offensive bag keeps improving too, hit a wild cross-field shallow huck that I haven’t seen a college player find that fast before.
HMs: Simon Perez #25 - big throws. Super calm and collected. Carter Rodgers? #10? I think they were calling him Bugs. Hopefully an Illinois guy can help me out and I’ll edit. Blonde kid, he was pulling usually for them and they were great pulls. Was an athletic defender too. Daniel Sawai #30 - great defender in small spaces.
Purdue
Eric Palia #13 - Such a solid all around player. Athlete who can play 1v1 with almost everyone in the region, and shoulders a big load as a disc-centric focal point for their offense.
Owen Edwards #32 (I think) - he never seems to be wearing a numbered jersey, so apologies if I got the name wrong. But he’s a lankier defender who could patrol a lot of the field and on a turn was always involved in the offense. For a tall guy, he played really well near the disc on those d points but could cross to oline and fill a cutter role as well.
I didn’t see Northwestern or Notre Dame in person this year, but from last year - Ian Falck #8 from NW and Sean Miranda #4 and Patrick Schwartz #8 from ND are all probably in discussion for at least 2nd team.
Chicago
It’s unfortunate that both Grant Harris and Max Devine weren’t playing at 100%. I think if that pair is healthy, they could give Magnum a really good game. They had more depth than I knew about going into the weekend. Even though Grant wasn’t able to play many points, I think for the breath of his resume in the GL region he’s still deserving of all-region.
Cory McCormack #20 - big body, great disc skills, made very few mistakes. Could play in both big and small spaces and was a very tough matchup.
Michael Hlavaty #19 - athlete, competitor. Good anticipation and understood spaces well. Had a more passive role it felt like but I’m guessing will shoulder a bigger role next year.
HMs: Joe Sifakis #0 - really hardworking defender. Good athlete and played smart offense on a turn. Tuhin Ghosh #96 - super high volume center oline handler. Not sure if that was his role all year or if that was in reaction to Grant and Max being out, but was definitely the focal point of a lot of their offense.
My all region squad:
Aaron Bartlett - UofM
James Hill - UofM
Collin Rassel - Indiana
Will Zamsky - MSU
Nate Astrom - Illinois
Eric Palia - Purdue
Grant Harris - Chicago
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Illinois perspective here:
Top players:
Nate Astrom (Illinois): Did everything for rise, great thrower as well as an unguardable player in the deep or under space.
Aaron Bartlett (Michigan): Seemed to do everything for Michigan, very similar to nate in his throwing bag and cutting ability. He’s able to utilize give and go more for Michigan though.
Ian Falck (Northwestern): The entire offense of NW, has every throw in the bag, with or without wind.
Eric Palia (Purdue): Only guy on Purdue we were scared of. Difficult to guard and a solid thrower.
Will Zamsky (MSU): Didn’t see a whole lot but he seems to be a consensus all region pick and best player for MSU
HM:
Simon Perez (Illinois): Center handler for rise, crossed over constantly, big hucks and great defense.
Hunter Latson (Illinois): Limited at regionals due to an ankle sprain but still made huge plays and is a near impossible guard in the deep space.
Tuhin Ghosh (Chicago): Center handler on a top team, great throws, limits mistakes.
#4 on GVSU: The guy for them
Will Voss (Illinois): Great composed d line handler, ran the offense off a turn, solid defender.
#71? On Notre Dame: Athletic player and solid throws, one of the guys there.
James Hill: Great tall player, hard to guard and Michigans guy to guard nate
Rookies:
Sam Astrom (Illinois): One of the main movers on offense as a freshman, quick and fast and solid throws. Streaky player, can take over but also ghost. Illinois ROY.
Filip Icev (Michigan): Also a main mover on the best team in the region as a freshman. Physical player and good defender, decent throws, has lots of potential.