2024 D1 Nationals Semifinals Deep Dive Part 2

Ruckus and Superfly deliver a classic that wouldn't be matched for 30 minutes!

Jun 08, 2024

Announcements

This is part two of this series, rewatching and diving deep into the 2024 D1 women’s semifinals, which took place over Memorial Day weekend. If you missed part one, check it out here.

Coming up from The Breakside: I still have an interview that I am working on editing, and now that the season is officially over, I have a handful of different articles to do over the summer about more WUL stats (congrats, Alepnglow!). Let me know if there is anything statistically you are curious about that you’d like to see me tackle. I already plan on doing a similar piece on player performance per game like I did last year, as well as some work on clock management and end-of-quarter situations. Let me know what else you want to see!

As always, liking and sharing this post and this publication is incredibly helpful to its growth. So, if you like what you’re reading, please consider sharing it with a friend and subscribing.

Superfly Upset Ruckus in Wild 14-13 Comeback Win

What’s so amazing about the middle of the afternoon on Sunday, May 26, 2024, in Madison, Wisconsin, is that it delivered two triumphant and heartbreaking D1 women’s semifinals back-to-back. In fact, the games were played mostly simultaneously thanks to just half an hour separating their beginnings. Last week, we dove deep into the context and moments that defined North Carolina’s stunning comeback against Colorado. And this week, Vermont and Stanford provide us with an equally compelling story.

Once again, it’s important to know where we are going before the journey begins to fully appreciate the highs and lows we experience. This game ends with Vermont Ruckus dropping a reset in their own red zone and giving up a break to lose on universe point 14-13. It ends with the Stanford Superfly zone forcing a turnover deep in enemy territory and the offense converting on their first possession, one of the only times they could do that all afternoon.

And yet, just like last week, there is so much more to this game before, during, and after those moments at its climax. So, let’s look at each team, the game, and what it meant for their programs.

Heirs to the Throne

It was hard not to look at Vermont Ruckus as the favorites to win the entire tournament entering pool play, and even harder once the semifinals rolled around. Ruckus stormed through the regular and postseason, riding a 31-1 record into this game. Their sole loss came at the hands of Carleton Syzygy, who had been eliminated already. Their resume included four wins over the three remaining semifinals, including two over North Carolina (you should know how impressive that is by now). They also had two wins over the only team seeded above them in this tournament, British Columbia. That includes one round prior, where they knocked the #1 overall seed out in the quarterfinals.

They had momentum building on a program-wide level, too. In 2022, they made it to the quarterfinals, 2023 to the semifinals, and in 2024, their eyes were set on winning it all. Why were they so good? Well, they built strong organizational depth (this year, they sent their A, B, and C teams to college regionals), recruited some talented freshmen, and had the best player on the field at nearly all times this year in Kennedy McCarthy.

Mission Impossible

Entering this weekend, the top four seeds (British Columbia, Vermont, Carleton, North Carolina) lost two games to teams that were not each other all year1. And now that North Carolina’s four-year undefeated reign of terror had ended, they’d all beaten up on each other to varying degrees. Stanford helped lead the charge of tier two contenders, seeded sixth, but lacked a win against any of those top programs this year. There were signs that they were a dark horse, however. They had played Oregon, the five seed, tight all year long. Their one earlier matchup against Vermont was a tight slugfest that ended in a 10-7 Ruckus win.

And so far, through five rounds, they’d already avenged losses against Washington, Oregon, and Carleton from earlier in the year. Superfly hit their stride through the peaking play of their key pieces. Ultiworld’s 2023 Breakout Player of the Year Sage McGinley-Smith led the charge with a very deep squad of contributors in their own right (special shoutout to Rookie of the Year candidate and Chapel Hill High School’s own Harper Baer). Another reason for their success was their amorphous, flexible zone defense that, as far as I could tell, resembled a 3-3-1 but was perfect for the constantly fluctuating, challenging weather conditions on Friday and Sunday at nationals.

What is 91 Divided by 27?

What’s special about this game is how often everything hung in the balance. And it wasn’t always apparent when one of those moments came along. Knowing the outcome, it’s only on a rewatch that we can fully appreciate the drama this game provided. Part of the appeal of this experience is appreciating just how many moments there were where everything could have ended up differently. This is why it was important to contextualize everything that happened in the build-up.

Cast your mind back to the 2021 men’s club final. Ring of Fire beat PONY 13-12 in a tight game that featured 12 total turnovers. While it was undoubtedly an excellent showcase of offense (in excellent conditions, by the way), much of the viewing public felt the game lacked a touch of intensity and drama as the teams rarely forced turnovers or blocks, and the game finished on serve after getting capped.

If there was ever an antidote to that viewing experience, this game was it. We started off scorching hot with an 11-turnover Stanford break that immediately set the tone for the zone-filled day Vermont had ahead of them. Then, miraculously, Ruckus held cleanly and forced an 11-turn break of their own on the next point. It took nearly 18 minutes to finish the first three points of this game. And by the end of the third point, back on serve, the critical narratives were already established.

While Superfly had very clearly imposed their will on the pace of play in this game, they couldn’t capitalize on the work their zone was doing to generate chances for them. On that third point, they went 0/4 in the red zone on offense. Vermont, meanwhile, struggled for a long time to get the disc into dangerous spots offensively. But as we saw in the other semifinal, when one team gets to hang around a point they really should’ve lost several turnovers ago, bad things can happen, and it only took two red zone possessions for Ruckus to show Superfly how it’s done.

Stanford and Vermont combined for 22 turnovers in three points to start the national semifinal on serve. That was quite a dramatic beginning. Both teams wouldn’t keep that pace up for an entire game…right?

No, they wouldn’t. However, they combined for 91 turnovers in 27 points throughout the game. And that’s why this game is almost even better on a rewatch as a neutral third party. Knowing how it ends only lets you see every moment the game hung in the balance throughout.

The Most Important Moments in the Game

Vermont Builds a Lead

After the first three points, Stanford held with an uneventful (for this game) four-turnover point. Then Vermont continued the half on a 4-0 run to go up 6-2 and look to be in complete control of the game. How did that happen? Well, as you know, three of the first four points finished with at least four turnovers (and five total possessions). In the following four, no point took more than three turnovers. Vermont needed just six possessions to score four goals and ruthlessly punished Stanford’s inefficiency.

In my experience, it's much better to be the hammer than the nail when playing a zone-heavy opponent or in bad weather. You’d rather come out on defense in your own best look and make your opponent play 70 yards of perfect offense, all while you run around trying to force a mistake high up the field. And for Stanford, in their zone, they want to front run and roll breaks on teams. And Vermont did not let them do that. No, Vermont’s defense stole the show in the first half.

Ruckus didn’t even run a zone. They just matched up on Superfly and dared them to win matchups in awful weather, which they couldn’t do. Superfly tried to isolate a cutter in between a layer of three handlers and cutters, and their spacing was a little off for pretty much the entire half and that look did not work very often.

And after getting the turnover, Ruckus did not have to work against a zone for 70 yards. Often, it was closer to 30 or 40 yards, which was much more manageable. They even had a couple of fast-break hucks through the zone as well.

Stanford Barely Avoids a First-Half KO

Many teams would fold at 6-2 when their main defensive strategy fails to slow down their opponents, and their offense is completely out of whack. Those teams don’t make the semifinals at nationals on a revenge tour, though.

And Stanford doesn’t even climb back into the game in the first half. Their big achievement is that they simply avoid getting completely blown away. But it’s a great look into an incredibly tough team’s ability to understand that every point matters. And, a study in keeping sight of the ultimate goal to win the game despite the bad start.

They show that by, for the first time in nine points, scoring on their first possession. They’ve gotten the disc on all but one of those points, too, so after this score, they’re rocking a cool 1/8 on “first opportunity” possessions. It’s not a pretty possession either, featuring tight reset windows, an under that sails high, and the receiver tip drills to ensure completion. It finishes with a difficult crossfield backhand that is visibly getting battered by the wind but somehow finds its target for a score.

But don’t get confused. They haven’t figured it all out yet. Just because they eventually win does not mean they’re ready to make their comeback yet. On the next point, Superfly’s d-line offense turns in multiple red zone turnovers (again), and Vermont scores, extending the lead back to four points at 7-3.

At 7-3, we arrive at the biggest “what-if” moment of the half. In a six-turnover point that ends with a Superfly hold to stave off halftime, Ruckus gets the disc three times. All three times, they make it within yards of ending the half at 8-3, with a five-point lead, on a break, while they are set to pull to start the second half. But all three times, their execution or decision-making lets them down, and Superfly denies them. After the third time, there’s an excellent shot of McCarthy coaching up the mark as the teams get ready to resume play. It’s a deeply relatable shot for anyone who’s taken an on-field leadership role trying to will their team to finish off a point while they’re supposed to be getting a quick breather.

But Ruckus won’t get another opportunity to end the half on defense. A huck, dangerous play, and a yellow card for said play help Superfly move the disc into the red zone and finally convert. Ruckus cleanly ends the half the next point, but Superfly has held on where they really needed to and got ten minutes to regroup.

This is Why You Run Zone All Day

And wouldn’t you know it, Superfly staying just within distance of Ruckus paid off once the second half began. Stanford began the second half on a 5-1 run, matching the 4-0 Ruckus run in the first half on their way to tying the game at 9-9 for the first time since 2-2. How’d they do it?

Well, it wasn’t for lack of opportunity to score that Vermont started off slow in the second half. Stanford threw their first pass of the half away deep in their own territory, only for Vermont to again be foiled in the red zone by the Superfly zone. Then, despite another turnover in the attacking red zone, the zone began to pay dividends. Pinned deep, Ruckus couldn’t make it to midfield before misfiring and allowing Superfly to convert.

The zone was the story of the second half. Ruckus began to misfire, mentally and physically, throwing deep shots that were guarded, turning resets, or throwing into spaces defenders were baiting. When a team plays as disciplined and patient as Stanford does, eventually, it wears you down. And it wore Vermont down so much that Stanford’s offense still took three tries to score for their first break of the half. It took their offense six possessions to hold and keep the pressure on after a Vermont hold made it 9-7. But slowly, methodically, through the relentless nature of their defense and a slight uptick of improvement from their offense, Superfly clawed back to 9-9 and set us up for an incredible finish.

The Finale

Unlike the other semifinal, this game cannot contain three tight acts, with a clear tragic hero and a complete narrative arc. The order in which everything happens is important. It informs the high-stakes decisions the players and coaches make as the game hurtles towards its conclusion. But instead of the completeness and finality of the Quandary vs. Pleiades, Ruckus vs. Superfly reminds me of the scene from Avengers: Infinity War in which Doctor Strange views 14,000,605 possible futures for the group. There are so many twists and turns, possessions that almost scored, blocks that weren’t, that the game could’ve taken 14 million different turns.

Less the theater that was being performed in the other game and more a painting or a tapestry. This game is woven with all that could have been, and nowhere is that more prevalent than in the conclusion. There were three breaks in the last nine points, swinging the lead to Stanford for the first time since 1-0 at 11-10, back to Vermont at 12-11, and then back to Stanford 14-13 at the end of the game.

Every single point brought new twists and turns. Ruckus seemed to lose their nerve and trust in their system and began trying to force-feed McCarthy the disc to make a play. It even worked a couple of times when everyone knew what was coming. They pulled a zone out for the first time on offense to prevent Superfly from breaking twice in a row and then used it to take the lead back. Every point from 9-9 until universe had multiple turnovers. The game was balanced on every throw, catch, cut, and turnover. By the time the game concluded, the teams were exhausted. Mentally, a game dictated by zone defense (or offense) and bad weather is the most draining experience in the sport. Not to mention the added tension and drama of a national semifinal. Vermont even seemed to have won the game when the broadcast soft cap timer expired early, leading us to believe briefly that the game was over at 13-12 after a Ruckus hold.

The viewers were literally experiencing the same infinite possibilities of this game’s conclusion in real-time with the players.

But the game wasn’t over. They had to keep playing. Vermont’s hucks began to look desperate. They started having the communication errors and drops Stanford had earlier in the game. The toll of that zone finally paid off at the final moments that it could. And when the end came, it was more a gasp for air and a final grasp at any of the other possible ways the game could have played out but didn’t.

Ruckus got two possessions with a chance to end the game: once on offense and once on defense. Each lasted exactly one throw. The first was a huck deep into the second layer of the zone with no clear target, the second a dropped dump. Both results of the incredible mental toll this game took on all its players. Vermont simply ran out of steam just before Stanford did. And that was that.

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About the Author

My name is Noam Gumerman (he/him). I am from Chapel Hill, NC, and studied Journalism and American Studies at Brandeis University. I am a journalist by trade and have been playing ultimate for over half my life. I love nothing more than combining those two interests. Contact me for discussions, feedback, story suggestions, and more on Twitter (@noamgum) or email (noamgumerman@gmail.com).