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Updated 04/23/2010 07:03 AM

Beyond the Game: High schoolers take on Ultimate Frisbee

By: Russell Wilde

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When you think of high school sports, Ultimate Frisbee probably isn't what comes to mind.

Team captain Zane Rankin said even though Ultimate Frisbee is completely non-contact, it's still really intense.

That intensity breeds passion in its players.

"It's like you have a favorite sport. One of my favorite sport is Ultimate Frisbee," player Frank Lenoir said.

The game is played on a football-like field with teams pushing to get the disk towards the goal.

"It's fluid and fast moving. It's not like football where you stop every time you get a few yards. Basically at any point you can huck it long, run all the way down to the end zone and score," Rankin said

The team from the Liberal Arts and Science Academy, in the Austin Independent School District, just competed in the state high school tournament in Round Rock.

<span style="color:#990000"><em>Beyond the Game: </em></span>High schoolers take on Ultimate Frisbee
"We're the Verti-kills. It's like vertical and skills put together. We jump up and down, like on our shirts," player Nathan Jordan said pointing to his shirt.

They go up and down and all over the field.

"I'm pretty competitive. I just enjoy the experience to play and have it at such a high level," Lenoir said.

"I like the uniqueness of the sport, because it's sort of a mixture of football and soccer and these other things, but just with a Frisbee," Jordan said.

It's that Frisbee that sets it apart and what make the game so accessible.

"It might seem a little odd because we're running around throwing Frisbees at each other, but if you just get into it, it's actually a whole lot of fun," Jordan said.

It’s fun with a healthy dose of competition.