ROCKPORT — A hardly highlighted spring sport is hidden in plain sight at Camden Hills Regional High School, a club sport called ultimate frisbee — or, simply, ultimate — played by co-ed members in a leisurely competitive manner, just how the sport is intended to be played. 

The scoring method of the game has similarities to football: Offensive players score points by passing the frisbee disc to a teammate standing in the end zone. 

Each team has seven players at a time on the field, and players cannot run while holding the disc. The disc can only be advanced when players pass it through the air to teammates in any direction. 

Incomplete passes result in possession turnovers, and unlike other sports there are no referees. Thus, allowing  players on both teams to upload the laws and spirit of the game in a self-officiating manner. No physical contact is allowed during play. 

Karl Hokkanen, a freshman, was drawn to joining the ultimate frisbee club team by the low time commitment the sport requires and the format of the game. 

“Ultimate frisbee is not like other sports, with practices every day, where if you don't go to one you won't get playing time,” said Hokkanen. “If you have to miss a practice, that's alright, just show up to however many possible. This way of formatting the club is really nice for those with a lot of work or other commitments because it means that you won't have to constantly miss practices and you still have time for your other things.” 

This season, the club held two to three practices each week with the first half dedicated to drill work and the second half for intra-squad scrimmages. 

“This was a really fun way to spend time in my day, rather than the competitive environments of other sports,” said Hokkanen.

Due to still being under some pandemic travel restraints, the club only participated in a small handful of matches rather than its usual slate of participating in several play days or tournaments. 

Ina Wolovitz, another Camden Hills freshman, opted to play the sport after falling in love with it during middle school. 

“The best part about Ultimate Frisbee is the atmosphere around the game,” she said. “It's a very chill sport — though not lackluster in any way — and the people who play it are so friendly and fun to play with.”

Games are seen as a means of being able to hone your skills against players you don’t play against on a regular basis, without huge emphasis on winning or losing. 

“We went to our games hoping to win, but mostly just to play,” said Hokkanen. “Instead of feeling like winning was the only good outcome, just getting to play ultimate for a couple hours was enough reward in itself.”

Gameplay, however, is what drew Hokkanen most to the sport. 

“The game itself is the other biggest factor that drew me in to ultimate,” said Hokkanen. “I had often played frisbee in my back yard, or played with friends, but it wasn't ultimate so much as pass. We would just toss it back and forth, which of course was fun, but it wasn't ultimate frisbee. I knew that I enjoyed playing pass with a frisbee, and I didn't feel like I had enough time to play school baseball, so I joined ultimate.” 

In fact, the highs of gameplay brings the most reward to Hokkanen. 

“Making a great throw to someone down the field or making a leaping catch is one of the most rewarding things you can do, especially when the only way to do it is besting your defender,” he said.

Seeing improvement in your gameplay throughout the season is just the icing on top, according to Hokkanen, who struggled early on with the forehand technique. 

“Catching the disc just takes some practice and athleticism, while throwing takes good form and a lot more practice,” he said. “I came into ultimate having a functional backhand, but my forehands were abysmal and died within a couple seconds of release.”

Despite his teammates grasping the concept, Hokkanen continued to struggle before grasping the concept. 

“After a whole season of playing, my forehand has now improved to partly functional, and my backhand is quite good,” he noted. “[T]he most challenging part for me was forehand, yet this was also a very rewarding part of the sport too. After many failed attempts, getting a forehand throw to the other person is quite a good feeling. Watching yourself improve is high on the list of the best parts, though it is still not topped by playing the game.” 

Both Wolovitz and Hokkanen encouraged other area schools to form ultimate frisbee club teams at their respective schools, calling it a leisurely way to be active without the pressures varsity and junior varsity sports yield.  

“Ultimate is co-ed, which differentiates it from most other sports; it's an anytime kind of sport, so people can just throw a frisbee around; and it's welcoming to anybody, even if they've never played before,” said Wolovitz. 

In fact, having more area teams playing the sport would help the Camden Hills squad fill its schedule easier. 

“The worst part is that [ultimate frisbee is] not better known and we have to travel to play other teams,” Wolovitz said. 

The sport, ultimately, is a great offering for students seeking a way to be active and participating in athletics without the full fledged commitments traditionally required. 

“Anyone can play ultimate, whether they've never touched a frisbee or have been playing since they were a little kid,” commented Hokkanen. “It doesn't take too much time, and it is an effective method of getting people who wouldn't otherwise play a school sport to get outside and exercise.”