This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page . (Learn how and when to remove these template messages)
|
Founded | 2012 |
---|---|
League | American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL) |
Team history | Bluegrass Revolution 2012 Cincinnati Revolution 2013-2016 |
Based in | Cincinnati, Ohio |
Stadium | Sheakley Athletic Center |
Head coach | Todd Grace |
Website | http://cincinnatirevolution.com/ |
The Cincinnati Revolution was a professional ultimate disc team, based in Cincinnati, Ohio, which competed in the American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL). It was one of the eight charter teams in the AUDL, having competed in the league's Midwestern Conference since its inception in 2012. Originally based in Lexington, Kentucky, and playing as the Bluegrass Revolution, the Cincinnati Revolution moved to Cincinnati before the 2013 season. They played their home games at Sheakley Athletic Center, at the University of Cincinnati. As The Bluegrass Revolution, they played at Henry Clay High School in Lexington KY.
The Revolution made the AUDL playoffs once, in 2012, while playing as the Bluegrass Revolution. Its team colors were black and green, and its logo was a fleur-de-lis.
With the growing popularity of the sport of ultimate, [1] the AUDL was formed in 2012 by Josh Moore, [2] with eight teams in the East Coast and in the Midwest. One of the AUDL's inaugural franchises, the Bluegrass Revolution, was based in Kentucky, playing its home games in Lexington, at Henry Clay High School's Jack Bell Stadium. [3]
In its first year, the Bluegrass Revolution was composed of ultimate disc players from Kentucky and the surrounding area. [4] After starting the 2012 season 3–0, with wins over Western Division rivals, the Indianapolis AlleyCats, Columbus Cranes, and the Detroit Mechanix, the Bluegrass Revolution finished second in the Western Division with a record of 9–7, behind the AlleyCats. [5] [6] In the 2012 AUDL playoffs, the Revolution played against the AlleyCats for the Western Division title, but lost by the score of 24–20. [7]
After the 2012 season, the Bluegrass Revolution relocated from Lexington to Cincinnati, Ohio. [8] Despite the Bluegrass Revolution's strong play and playoff berth in 2012, attendance at the Revolution's home games in Lexington, KY, was lackluster throughout the year. [9] The Revolution's relocation was also influenced by the folding of the AULD's franchise in Columbus, Ohio, the Columbus Cranes. Other factors involved in the move northward was Cincinnati's youth ultimate scene, which is one of the largest and most successful in the country, [10] with one of the top high school teams in the nation, [11] and the strong culture of the sport of ultimate in the area. [12] Additionally, the Revolution were able to play its home games at the University of Cincinnati's Sheakley Athletic Center, which is regarded as one of the top stadiums in the league. [13]
Despite its 9–7 record in 2012, the Cincinnati Revolution entered the 2013 season as an underdog. [14] "Everybody has already said that Madison or Chicago is going to win our division," Raymie Younkin, the Revolution's General Manager, admitted before the season began. [15] However, he disagreed with the previews, which had the Revolution ranked fifth in the six-team Midwestern Division. [16] He stressed the Revolution's focus on team-chemistry over star players, claiming that "teamwork is our big thing. We know that we don't have the names like Brodie Smith and Goose Helton [of the Windy City Wildfire]. But that's not who we are." [17]
Nevertheless, it was Smith, Helton, and fellow Wildfire star A.J. Nelson that put on a clinic to hand the Revolution a steep 26–15 defeat in their season opener in front of the home crowd. [18] A similar loss to the Wildfire, [19] a tight victory against the Wind Chill, in which the Revolution fought off a vicious comeback attempt, [20] and a sloppy loss to the Detroit Mechanix in difficult weather conditions [21] left the Revolution at 1-3 and in last place in the Midwestern Division after four weeks of play. [22] Continued strong play from handler Chris "Fudge" Powers, and deep cutter Isaac Jeffries, however, gave the Revolution back-to-back victories over the Mechanix, bringing them back to .500 and moving them up to the third in the division [23] [24] and fourth in the season's power rankings. [25] However, the Revolution dropped three straight games against their division rivals, the Indianapolis AlleyCats, [26] [27] and then lost its next two matches, against the Minnesota Wind Chill and the Madison Radicals, to fall to 3–8. [28] A 23–21 win in a daunting matchup against the Madison Radicals kept the Revolution's playoff hopes alive, [29] but another bad loss to the Wind Chill in week 12 eliminated them from playoff contention. [30] The Revolution's inability to consistently beat teams of lesser or equal caliber in their division resulted in a 4-12 finish for their 2013 campaign, leaving them in last place in the Midwestern Division. [31]
Despite the disappointing finish, the Revolution's roster included several of the AUDL's top performers, such as Powers, who lead the league with 74 assists [32] and made the All AUDL First Team, [33] Jeffries, who, together with Ryan Gorman, tied for the team lead with 36 goals, [34] and Mark Fedorenko, who established himself as a solid deep defender with a team-leading 29 blocks. [35]
After only returning four members of their 2012 roster for the 2013 season, [36] the Revolution's 2014 squad boasted many of their top players from years past, including Jeffries, Powers, and defensive captain Kevin Kula. [37] In addition to retaining their core group from 2013, the Revolution also brought back several of its key players from its 2012 playoff run, including Kentucky natives Ben Blatz and Ben Sever. [38] The Revolution also drew players from their rival Indianapolis AlleyCats' roster, including defensive handler Mike Ford, and offensive Mike Ames. [39] Other additions to the roster included Patrick Kaufmann, from the University of Dayton, and players from area club teams, like Columbus Madcow's Phil Cherosky, Dayton Enigma's Matt Muhlenkamp, and Cincinnati Steamboat's Joe Mozloom. [40] [41] However, the roster was also without several key pieces from 2013, such as offensive Ryan Gorman, and versatile players like Ben Sage and Ryan Sitler. [42] The remaining roster spots were filled by players who competed for a place on the team in a combination of open and closed tryouts and practices beginning on November 9. [43]
After a series of scrimmages against the Indianapolis AlleyCats, [44] [45] the Revolution opened their 2014 campaign at home against last year's Midwest Champion Madison Radicals. Despite a strong first quarter, which ended with the Revolution in a commanding 5–3 lead, Cincinnati faltered in the second and third periods, and the game ended with a 25–16 loss to open the season. [46]
The Revolution collected their first win of the 2014 season the next week, however, beating the heavily favored Chicago Wildfire in Cincinnati by a score of 23–22. [47] In what was arguably the biggest upset in franchise history, Revolution relied on Nate Botti throughout the game, as he collected 8 assists and 5 goals, [48] staving off an impressive offensive performance by the Wildfire's A.J. Nelson, who caught 11 goals in the game. [49] Botti would go on to have a breakout year for the Revolution, leading the team with 47 assists, while placing second on the team with 19 goals, one behind team leader Matt Muhlenkamp. [50]
The Revolution sat at 3-2 after the 5th week of the season, but proceeded to lose their next 8 games, falling out of playoff contention after losing a tight game to the AlleyCats in Indianapolis, 23–22. [51] [52] A final victory over the Detroit Mechanix ended the Revolution's 2014 season at 4–10, good for 5th place in the AUDL's Midwestern Conference. [53]
Despite the poor final season record, the Revolution saw improvement from young players, such as Alan Huels, who developed into one of the league's best pullers and deep defenders, and Nick"High school"Bissonnette, who graduated from high school in May 2014, but ended up playing 88 points for the Revolution over the course of the season. [54] The Revolution was also the first team in professional ultimate disc to use a GoPro camera to record video from a radio-controlled helicopter during games. [55]
The American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL) is an ultimate disc league in North America. The AUDL was founded in 2010, and played its inaugural season in 2012 with eight teams. Regular season games are played April through July. The playoffs consist of three rounds: divisional wild card round, division championships, and finally culminating in a final four style showcase known as AUDL Championship Weekend in August. The winner of each division's championship game advances to Championship Weekend, with semifinals on Saturday and the championship game played on Sunday.
The Philadelphia Spinners were a professional ultimate team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They were founded in 2012 by Katrel Kelly and David Fitzgerald as a team in the American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL), but then moved to Major League Ultimate (MLU) in 2013. They played in the MLU until the league was suspended in 2016. The team played in various stadiums throughout the Greater Philadelphia region.
The Detroit Mechanix are an American professional ultimate frisbee team based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The Mechanix compete in the American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL) as a member team of the league's Central Division. The Mechanix began play in 2012 as one of the eight charter teams of the American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL). The team is owned by Brent Steepe and was founded in 2010.
The 2013 American Ultimate Disc League season was the second season for the league. Each team played a 16-game schedule. The Toronto Rush won the AUDL Championship II over the Madison Radicals in Chicago, IL. The Rush completed the first undefeated season in AUDL history, going 16-0 in the regular season and winning both playoff games.
The 2012 American Ultimate Disc League season was the first season for the league. Each team was scheduled to play a 16-game schedule. The Philadelphia Spinners won the championship over the Indianapolis AlleyCats at the Pontiac Silverdome. After the season all but three teams left or folded.
Brodie Smith is a former American Ultimate Disc League player, and current professional disc golf player and YouTube personality best known for his frisbee trick shot videos.
The Seattle Cascades are a professional ultimate team that competes in the Western Division of the American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL) with an open roster. They also compete as a mixed squad in various exhibition games. The team is named after the mountain range that runs through the Pacific Northwest and their mascot is a sasquatch (bigfoot) named Casey. The team's stated core values are integrity, community, and athletic excellence.
The Carolina Flyers, formerly the Raleigh Flyers, are a professional ultimate team from Durham, North Carolina playing in the South Division of the American Ultimate Disc League. The team was founded in 2015. From 2015 through 2018, the Flyers played most of their home games at Crusader Stadium on the campus of Cardinal Gibbons High School in Raleigh, with some home games at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary. In 2019, the team has played home games at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, and other venues. After the 2020 AUDL season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the team moved their home games to Durham County Stadium beginning in 2021. In 2022, the team announced that it was changing its name to the Carolina Flyers. The team had won the national title once in 2021.
The Madison Radicals are a semi-professional ultimate team that competes in the Central Division of the American Ultimate Disc League. The Radicals play their home games at Breese Stevens Field in downtown Madison. Since the team's inception in 2013, they have won five regular season divisional titles in eight seasons. After losing in the AUDL championship games in 2013 and 2015, the Radicals claimed its first championship in 2018. Madison also hosted AUDL Championship Weekends in 2016 and 2018, the latter of which coincided with a championship win.
The Pittsburgh Thunderbirds are a professional ultimate team that competes in the Central Division of the American Ultimate Disc League. In July 2015, the Thunderbirds reached the playoffs in their first year of existence and beat the Chicago Wildfire before falling to the Madison Radicals in the divisional final. Standout player Tyler DeGirolamo, who set the AUDL season record with 89 assists in only 11 games played in 2015, was only able to play a few points against the Radicals before withdrawing with an injury.
The Chicago Union is a professional ultimate team that competes in the Central Division of the American Ultimate Disc League. The team was originally branded as the Windy City Wildfire. In their first year, the Wildfire had the best record in the then-Midwest Division and qualified for the playoffs in its first three seasons. They play home games at De La Salle Institute, in the South Side of Chicago.
The DC Breeze is an open professional ultimate team based in the District of Columbia, competing in the East Division of the American Ultimate Disc League. The team first played in the 2013 season. The Breeze play at Carlini Field.
The 2015 American Ultimate Disc League season was the fourth season for the league. Each team played a 14-game schedule. The San Jose Spiders won the AUDL Championship over the Madison Radicals at Avaya Stadium in San Jose, California. The Spiders won the championship despite entering the final four with the lowest seed after a regular-season finish of 10-4.
The Atlanta Hustle is a professional ultimate frisbee franchise based out of Atlanta, Georgia, United States. They compete as one of 25 teams in the American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL), playing in the league's South Division.
The 2017 American Ultimate Disc League season was the sixth season for the league. The San Francisco FlameThrowers won the championship, the team's first title. The league featured twenty-four teams in four divisions, and for the first time, teams played interdivisional games. Eleven Sports Network joined the league as a broadcast partner for the first time, broadcasting a limited slate of games.
The 2019 American Ultimate Disc League season was the eighth season for the league. It began on April 5, 2019, and concluded on August 11, 2019, when the New York Empire defeated the Dallas Roughnecks to earn the team's first title. Ben Jagt of the Empire won his first league MVP award after the season. The season marked Steve Hall's first as league commissioner, and was the first with an all-star game for the league.
The Los Angeles Aviators are a professional Ultimate team that competes in the West Division of the American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL). The Aviators played their first season in 2015.
The San Diego Growlers are a professional Ultimate team that plays in the West Division of the American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL). They played their first season in 2015.
The Premier Ultimate League (PUL) is a professional women's ultimate disc league that formed in 2019. The mission of the PUL is "to achieve equity in the sport of ultimate by increasing accessibility to the sport for, and visibility of women, transgender, intersex, non-binary, genderqueer, and genderfluid people through high-quality competition, leadership experiences, and community partnerships". The league strives for gender, racial, and economic diversity in the sport of ultimate frisbee. PUL players are paid $40 per league game.
The Columbus Pride is a professional women's ultimate team based in Columbus, Ohio which competes in the Premier Ultimate League (PUL). The team joined the PUL for the league's inaugural 2019 season. Their stated mission is to "increase the visibility of elite female ultimate players in Columbus and surrounding areas, provide role models to young athletes, and compete at a high, spirited level."