John Jay Team Wins State Ultimate Frisbee Championship

Whiz Kids: Air Raid Ultimate Frisbee Team

School:  Students at John Jay High School

Whiz Kids' Accomplishment: Winning the state championship for ultimate frisbee for the second time in four years. The team played eight games over the weekend and went undefeated.

Whiz Kids' Key to Awesomeness: The team is unique because it has no official coach, said Richard Lipari, a senior and the team's co-captain along with Zach Pozniak. "We are the captains, coaches and players," said Lipari. "Zach sets up the games and tournaments and I coordinate out on the field. We have a great system of upperclass students teaching the younger athletes."

If you think it's just a friendly game of tossing the frisbee on the field, think again. The non-contact sport mixes plays and rules from basketball, football and soccer. Points are scored in an endzone, similar to football, said Lipari, noting the athleticism—a lot of running, jumping and catching—required to play it well.

The team started five years ago as a club, and has since grown to include about 40 players on a "B" team, or junior varsity, and varsity team—a distinction just achieved this year. The team has drawn new members from many other sports, like baseball and lacrosse.

"I think kids are drawn to it because it's just a great group of nice people, in a relaxed atmosphere. We're competitive but friendly," said Lipari.

2011 New York State Ultimate Frisbee High School Champions

Florian Perret
Zach Pozniak
Richard Lipari
Erik Perry
Ryan Fischer
Mike Weiss
Kyle Pascullo
Ronny Mraz
Travis Winter
Dylan Leitner
Warren Lockwood
Anton Boutkov
Justin Ennis
Charles Tetelman
Jared Robinson
Danny Katz
Justin Andrews
Brian Cohen
Chris Jones
Rob Blake