Daisy Chain Ultimate Frisbee pictured above
Photo courtesy of Garrett Clay, Williams College head frisbee coach
BY BAYA JAISWAL ’27
STAFF WRITER
After wrapping up their fall season, Mount Holyoke College’s Ultimate Frisbee team opened the spring with the No Sleep Till Brooklyn Tournament.
The tournament was held from Saturday, March 2, to Sunday, March 3, in Brooklyn, New York’s Prospect Park Parade Grounds. The college women’s division in this tournament hosted 12 teams: The Bates Cold Front, Buffalo Lorax, Columbia Baewatch, Columbia Chimera, Cornell Wild Roses, Mount Holyoke Daisy Chain, NYU Purple Reign, Rutgers Nightshade, Stony Brook Smash, Wellesley Whiptails, Wesleyan Vicious Circles and Williams Nova.
Lara Gao ’26, a cutter for Daisy Chain, discussed the dynamic of the team. She said, “Many people graduated and we have many new players, the team is different but we still have [a] very [team-like] vibe and [are] keeping it up.” Despite being a new group of teammates, Daisy Chain reached the quarterfinals of the tournament.
On the first day of the tournament, Mount Holyoke played SUNY-Buffalo and prevailed 12-4. That same day, Mount Holyoke went on to play Rutgers in a close game but came out ahead with a final score of 8-6. In their third match of the day, the third seeded Daisy Chain took on the fourth seeded Cornell Wild Roses and had a narrow 7-9 loss.
Despite this loss, Mount Holyoke’s high performance in their prior matches advanced them to the quarterfinals as the team ranked second in their pool. On the tournament's final day, Mount Holyoke took on eighth seeded Columbia. After a tough fight, Columbia eventually won, 7-4.
According to Gao, as Daisy Chain approaches the National Division III College Championships, they plan to change their offensive strategy and switch from playing vertical stalk to horizontal stalk.
Gao also shared the team’s goal for the season. “Our goal is going to National[s] and doing well there,” she said. Daisy Chain’s hard efforts and commitment brought them to seventh place at the 2023 USA Ultimate Division III College Championships last May.
Next, the Daisy Chains will compete against Williams College and Temple University in the Free Tournament held in Princeton, New Jersey, on Saturday, March 16.