After a week at the beach, and a practice held on grass for the first time all season, the Brown women were hungry to win at Ultimaxx, held the next weekend in Greenville NC. Disco Inferno came out strong early on Saturday morning winning their first two games by over ten point margins. Rookie Rachel Weston '03 began what would become the greatest series of games of her ultimate career so far by playing amazing offense, running all the plays as if she herself had invented them. Weston remained fired up for the rest of the tournament and helped to keep the team's next game against number two seed UNCW a tight one. Brown again played great defense against Wilmington, but had trouble getting their offense running after half time. Alexa Engelman '03 helped get Brown going though with great continue cuts, getting some amazing flow going. Allowing UNCW to get 3 unanswered goals after half proved to be fatal, however, to the Brown women.

Sunday, however, Disco Inferno decided that things were going to be different. After a slow start against NC state in the quarters, Brown faced UC San Diego. Brown had already lost to San Diego twice this season, but Disco decided that this game would be different. Under the supervision of injured teammate Adelaide Egan '01, Brown put together a game plan, and a response to San Diego's skills. When San Diego shot out to an early lead, Brown responded by playing the greatest defense it had played all season and would continue to play it for the rest of the game. San Diego had traditionally used its zone defense to strangle Brown, but this time would be different as Brown patiently worked the zone, tearing it to shreds. To make this game close, Disco needed to force the turnovers when they were on defense, and then play solid offense on the turn. Kate Leslie '01 and Jamie Olson '02 both played huge defense, forcing a number of turn overs, only to be aided by Courtney Wilson '04 on offense after the turn with her amazing cuts and great decision making. All three captains also played phenomenally well and served to motivate their team into their best play all season, with great D-Blocks and catches by all three. Brown scored three points on UC San Diego's game point only to lose 14-11. San Diego's attitude when encountering Brown later this season is bound to be different. Disco Inferno, never having practiced on grass this season, has still managed to prove itself to be among the top teams of the nation, with its amazing skill level, ability to work as a team and phenomenal spirit. Brown Women's Ultimate is a force to be reckoned with.
--Jamie Olson '02