Penn's best underdog story of the year had to wait until after graduation.
With several seniors fresh out of cap and gown, the women's Club Ultimate Frisbee team ventured to the Midwest for the UPA College Women's Championships last weekend.
The team, known by its members as Team Venus, didn't leave Columbus, Ohio with the trophy. But it didn't disappoint, racking up three victories and an unexpected No. 5 national ranking.
The Quakers snuck in the back door as the last seed of twenty teams to make the big dance.
"The East Coast is not really known for being that strong at ultimate," rising senior Kate Anthony said before the tournament. "Out of the 20 teams, if we beat four or five of them . that would be amazing."
Though the team fell short of four wins, most would still consider their performance "amazing."
Penn notched a 2-2 record in pool play, falling to No. 4 Ottawa and No. 5 Stanford, but topping No. 9 North Carolina and No. 16 Iowa State to advance out of its pool.
In the championship bracket, the Quakers beat No. 12 Carleton College, 15-9, and ultimately lost to eventual runner-up No. 2 Washington in the quarterfinals, 15-12.
"I think we broke the most number of seeds anyone has ever broken, going from No. 20 to No. 5," senior co-captain Rachel Shah said.
Penn stuck with the same game plan that got them into the tournament: no crazy plays and good defense.
Team Venus also employed another strategy that may have helped them reach the quarterfinals. Entering their final pool play match with a 2-1 record, they knew they were overmatched by No. 5 Stanford.
The team decided to intentionally underperform in order to save its energy for the next round. Stanford took the game, 15-3, but a fresh-legged Penn squad coasted past Carleton in its next match, executing the plan to perfection.
The weekend began with a caravan ride from Philadelphia, after which Team Venus stayed in a hotel with all the other players, meeting teams from California and the South - areas where they rarely travel for competition.
The team's appearance in the national tournament was its first since 1996 - Team Venus was started in 1989 - but there is sure to be more noise from this group in the future.
"The team will definitely be really strong next year because they're a great [recruit] class." Shah said of the largest group of recruits ever to come through Penn's ultimate club. "The upperclassmen took it relatively seriously . and I think they grabbed onto that."
Ultimate may not be a varsity sport, but Penn's team garnered a lot of respect over the course of its season. And deservedly so, as it bested teams like Boston College, Maryland, Pittsburgh, West Virginia and UNC.
Is women's ultimate the most successful team sport to represent the University this year? Ask its other captain, senior Whitney Viets.
"I don't know . I know we have a great women's lacrosse team," she said. "I think we were the biggest Cinderella story of all the teams at Penn, and probably of all the teams that play ultimate in the country.
"It was really a dream come true and then more." Viets added. "It made me believe that anything is possible .. We didn't really have a lot of experience, we just went in there and played with heart."
This article has been updated to reflect that Washington was ranked No. 2. The original version stated the team was ranked No. 13.
