The success of the ultimate frisbee teams at Carleton College and St. Olaf College has positioned the city of Northfield as a definite hotbed for the sport, as both college’s teams have placed themselves among the nation’s best.
There was no exceptions to the rule in 2024.
At the 2024 Division I championship tournament, which was held in Madison, Wisc. on May 24-27, the Carleton Syzygy team advanced to the quarterfinals of the women’s bracket with a 4-2 record that included wins over Utah, Penn, Washington and Michigan. On the men’s side, Carleton’s CUT team advanced to the national tournament and has been a regular nation qualifier since 1990.
At the Division III USA Ultimate Collegiate Championships May 18-20 in Milwaukee, the Berzerkers from St. Olaf College won the Division III men’s national championship and the Eclipse team from Carleton placed second in the Division III women’s championship, with the St. Olaf Vortex women’s team placing third. Of note, Carleton’s CHOP team finished in 10th place at the DIII men’s tournament this year.
“I think one of the biggest things about our team this year is that we have so many players,” Berzerker’s team captain Matt Kompelein said about his team’s success in 2024. “We are taking a much bigger roster than we have taken in previous years but that has allowed us to have a lot of strong development and play better throughout the long weekend.”
The St. Olaf squad listed 32 on its roster this season, which is up from the previous squad size of 25. The result was a perfect 3-0 record in pool play of the national tournament, which was followed by a 15-10 win over Whitman in the quarterfinals, a 15-10 win over Oklahoma Christian and a 15-12 victory of Williams in the championship match in Milwaukee. Carleton’s CHOP team finished the tournament with a 2-4 record to place 10th.
In the women’s tournament, both Carleton and St. Olaf posted 3-0 records in pool play. St. Olaf then advanced to the semifinals with an 11-8 win over Macalester and Carleton moved on with a 15-6 win over Wellesley. The Eclipse continued its run with a 15-10 win over Middlebury before falling by a 15-13 margin to Portland in the title match.
Carleton’s Syzygy squad posted a 3-1 record in pool play of the women’s DI tournament and advanced to the quarterfinals with an 11-8 win over Michigan. Eventual national champion North Caroline edged Carleton 11-10 in the quarterfinals. On the men’s side, Carleton’s CUT team went 1-4 at the national tournament.
Heading into the national tournament, Carleton’s DI women’s team was ranked third, while the men’s team was ranked 10th in the DI national poll. At the DIII level, St. Olaf’s women’s team was ranked first and Carleton’s Eclipse team was ranked fifth in the women’s national poll. On the men’s side, St. Olaf was ranked third nationally.
Local history
The history of Ultimate Frisbee at the two colleges dates back to the fall of 1977 when Carleton played it first match against the University of Minnesota at Bell Field. The Carleton Ultimate Team (CUT) quickly established itself as one of the nation’s top teams and qualified for nationals for the first time in 1990.
The CUT team continues to compete at the highest level of collegiate Ultimate competition (Division I) and it has appeared in the national semifinals 16 times, in the national finals seven times and has won national titles in 2001, 2009, 2011 and 2017. Carleton’s CHOP team (Carleton House of Pancakes) was founded in 1995 and competes at the Division III level each season.
Carleton’s Syzygy team started as The Marines back in the mid 1980s and in 1989 adopted its current name. The team also established itself as one the nation’s premier programs and won a national title in 2000. The success of the team also created a demand for the sport on campus that saw the creation of Carleton’s Eclipse team in the 1990s. Syzygy has been a regular player at the national DI tournament and placed second in 2004 and 2013 along with third place finishes in 2015, 2022 and 2024.
At St. Olaf, Ultimate Frisbee had its start in 1993 and the school’s “A” team eventually took the name Berzerkers in 2001. Prior to 2010, there was only one level of competition for Ultimate Frisbee at the collegiate level and things changed that year when Division III level was created for schools with enrollment under 7,500 students.
The Zerks made a fast impact at the DIII level and placed fifth at the national tournament in 2012. The team continued to improve before COVID halted intercollegiate competition in 2020 and 2021.
The Vortex women’s team at St. Olaf also competes at the Division III level and has been an Ultimate powerhouse in recent years as it won the DIII national crown in 2018 along with third place finishes in 2019 and 2022.
“We had a pretty strong class come in after COVID and because of the COVID stuff the same team was able to practice together for almost two years before we finally had a series together. That team was very strong and it was the first time we made it to the national semifinals,” Kompelein said.
Competition resumed in 2022 with St. Olaf placing second at the DIII nationals and third in 2023…only to be followed by the national title in 2024.
In order to qualify for nationals each year, teams play a schedule of games starting in the early spring. Typically these games are played at tournaments located around the country with early season games being played in warmer locales such as Missouri and Kansas along with trips to further destinations such as Texas and Virginia as school demands allow. Ultimate Frisbee is a club sport on each campus and does not fall under the direction of the NCAA.
In the winter months, the area teams stay in shape by practicing indoors at campus facilities as they prep for the spring campaigns.
The reason for Northfield’s status as an Ultimate Frisbee hotbed can be attributed to the sport pioneers at Carleton.
“I think the early Carleton players who developed that program have a lot to be thanked for. They laid the groundwork for a program that is sustainable and is going to continue to thrive. I think St. Olaf benefits from being able to have that type of competition across town, so they can scrimmage each other as well as compete as crosstown rivals,” said Michael Lehmkuhl, an Ultimate fan and parent of St. Olaf athlete Owen Lehmkuhl.
Kompelien added, “Carleton has always had a very strong culture of frisbee. Their top men’s team has won DI nationals a few times and they’ve always a really strong culture with three men’s teams and at three women’s teams. For some reason the student body just seem to gravitate towards the sport.”
In fact, a Carleton tradition is that every incoming first-year student gets a frisbee at the school’s orientation program.
About the game
The sport of ultimate frisbee is played on a field that is similar in size to a football field. There are seven players on each side and the goal of the game is catch the frisbee in the end zone, which results in a point. Players are not allowed to run with the frisbee and they must stop where they are at an establish a pivot foot once they catch the frisbee. The first team to reach 15 points is the winner (or whoever is ahead at the end of 90 minutes of play).
The game includes many aspects of sports such as soccer and football and it attracts a wide variety of participants from former high school athletes in other sports to those new to team competition.
“When we are recruiting we really go for any athlete who wants to keep playing a sport. If you have an athletic background it is not too difficult to pick up the basics of Ultimate Frisbee,” Kompelien said.
One unique aspect of the sport is the lack of on-field officials during games.
“One of the big things about ultimate is that we don’t have official referees. It is self-officiated and it always come down to talking on the field about what we think was a foul and what wasn’t…and then we reach a conclusion. Teammates help out with what they saw. With any type of sport it can get a little dicey once in awhile but for the most part it stays very spirited,” Kompelien said.
Lehmkuhl noted, “One of the great things about ultimate frisbee is that it is a really friendly sport. The competition level is quite high, but rule No. 1 is called spirit of the game, which means that ultimate frisbee is self-officiated, so there are no officials on the field making calls, and the players officiated themselves. Negotiation is a skill of the game.”
Team spirit is another prized aspect of the game, with squads receiving points and recognition for lively spirit on the field and sidelines. In turn, this attitude toward the sport makes for a fun and laid-back atmosphere.
“I would say our culture is that we try to have as much fun as possible. We are always cheering on the sidelines and have a bunch of organized cheers that we do at certain times during the game,” said Quinn Munson, who is the Zerks spirit captain.
“It is also a very intense sport. We work our butts off in practice and play really hard but we like to have integrity and fun and I think that is the culture of the sport that draws people in. Watching the discs fly, makes people fall in love with the sport…it is something that is completely different and really awesome.”
Lehmkuhl also added his thoughts about the sport’s merits.
“Ultimate has a real open and welcoming vibe to it and it attracts a lot of athletes who might not be as comfortable in a more traditional sport,” he said. “As well as being players, on the sideline, they are their own fanbase or cheering squad … so there are some creative cheers that come out of the sidelines. It has a quirky, alternative aspect to it, but at the same time, some of the athleticism that comes out is just amazing.”
The two school have also made an impact in the Ultimate Frisbee Association, which is a professional ultimate frisbee league that includes 24 teams across the United States, including the Minnesota Wind Chill that features Will Brandt and Gordon Larson from St. Olaf along with Noah Hanson and Mickey Walsh from Carleton.
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