With two consecutive second place rankings in the state championship, the boys ultimate team is striving to exceed previous benchmarks in the 2026 tournament. Head coach Sheryar Ali has been with the team for eight years and has watched the team steadily work towards its former national ranking.
“It’s been a couple years since we’ve won the state championship,” Ali said. “For a while, we rested our hats on the fact that we had always kind of been the best team in the state, but maybe came up a little bit short to make nationals. I think this season is really kind of trying to get back to the top of the state, being the dominant program that we’ve been in the past.”
Last season, the Knights were ranked in the top 25 nationally, but some players have begun to aim higher. Senior co-captain Grady Richman has set his sights on a top 20 ranking and believes the team is highly capable.
“A successful season in my opinion would be becoming nationally ranked again,” Richman said. “We cracked the top 25 a couple of times last season, but I think we can and should stay around the top 20 for as much of the season as we can. I really think that’s possible.”
The captains this season are Richman, seniors Calvin Li and Ayden Conlon, and junior Callan Meyer, who have led many captains’ practices before the season began. Ali explained that these practices have been a key component in preparing for the upcoming season.
“We typically have four captains, which is great,” Ali said. “It helps with our team building. We like to have those captains take a lot of the offseason help to train our players for tryouts and the season.”
This year, with two senior captains having played all four years of varsity – Richman and Li – the team is confident in their ability to succeed. Ali explains that having watched these players grow throughout high school has been inspiring.
“I think our biggest strength this season is probably the fact that we have a couple seniors that have played all four years,” Ali said. “It is not a very common thing to have someone play varsity entirely throughout their high school career. It’s really just exciting to kind of see how [Richman and Li] conclude their high school experience.”
To start the season, the team has put a large focus on defensive training, as they hope to take advantage of the players’ natural strengths.
“If we center some practices around defense and crucial throws involved in our offense then we would see lots of improvement from last year,” Meyer said. “A key focus of ours is defense this season because of the team’s athletic capabilities. Our team is tall and fast, meaning a coordinated defensive lineup would be even better.”
Despite the preparations, the Knights are guaranteed to hit a few road blocks. Richman explains that one of these difficulties will be focusing on the present, rather than looking hopefully into the future.
“I believe the main challenge this year will be focusing on one game at a time,” Richman said. “Since we have placed second at the state championship tournament the last two years, it is easy to look ahead at only that game. However, we have multiple tournaments ahead of the state tournament, and both are crucial for developing throughout the season.”
Meyer explained time is needed in order for the team to completely adjust to new additions to the team.
“I think we’ll have to play a few games before we get proper grasp, but right now the team should be really focused and understanding the basics,” Meyer said. “Once the team has gotten good at the basics, we’ll be able to develop our play and just keep improving.”
The team has taken on three freshmen to replace the graduated seniors. Despite the new additions, team comradery has remained a strong suit.
“Team chemistry is great even as a freshman; it’s a good, welcoming environment,” freshman Laith Duwaryi said. “Many captains have stepped up as leaders and done a massive amount to help the team in so many ways.”
Ali anticipates the quality of the players will only increase with the growing popularity of ultimate.
“Nowadays, it feels like it’s really common to have players who have played at least a year or two or played in middle school before they even get to high school, which is just like such a cool thing to see that change over time,” Ali said. “I can’t wait to see how the kids will improve.”
