Could we finally see UNC take a loss?
February 7, 2024 by Bridget Mizener, Grace Conerly and Alex Rubin in Preview with 0 comments
Ultiworld’s coverage of the 2024 college ultimate season are presented by Spin Ultimate; all opinions are those of the author(s). Find out how Spin can get you, and your team, looking your best this season.
Queen City Tune Up is one of the most important early season college tournaments, and with a heavy dose of top 25 teams in the women’s division and a large group of bid-earning hopefuls in the men’s division, that’s more true than ever. This will be the first real test for both of the back-to-back-to-back collegiate champs from the University of North Carolina, but Pleiades will have the much tougher battles with two other top five teams — Vermont and Carleton — hoping to be the first to knock off the title favorites in more than four years.
Two games will be livestreamed every round from just south of the Queen City proper, so you can follow along with all the action!
Tournament Profile
- Date: February 10-11
- Location: Rock Hill, SC
- Weather: Low 50s to 60s with mild wind Saturday and a good chance of showers on Sunday
- Top 25 teams: 11 women’s division, 5 men’s division
- Schedules & Results
Streaming Schedule
All Ultiworld Standard and All-Access subscribers will have access to watch the live broadcasts from this year’s Queen City Tune Up, where we will have two games in each broadcasting round.
The broadcast schedule can be found below:
All times are ET.
Saturday, February 10
8:30 AM: Northeastern vs. Minnesota [W] | UNC Wilmington vs. McGill [M]
10:15 AM: Michigan vs. Ohio State [W] | Ohio State vs. James Madison [M]
12:00 PM: Notre Dame vs. Washington University [W] | William & Mary vs. Case Western [M]
1:45 PM: Georgia vs. Pennsylvania [W] | Alabama-Huntsville vs. South Carolina [M]
Sunday, February 11
8:00 AM: Prequarterfinal [W] | Prequarterfinal [M]
9:50 AM: Quarterfinal [W] | Men’s Div. Quarterfinal [M]
11:40 AM: Semifinal [W] | Men’s Div. Semifinal [M]
1:30 PM: Final [W] | Final [M]
Tournament Preview
Women’s Division
Can Pleiades Stay Undefeated?
After rolling their competition at Carolina Kick-Off, #1 UNC Pleiades will attempt to keep their record clean in their first real test this spring. Callahan winner Dawn Culton will lead the charge along with Erica Birdsong, Theresa Yu, Emily Przykucki, and Caroline Spencer (Culton’s club teammates on Raleigh Phoenix), plus U20 selection Bella Russell and grad student Macy Hudson. All that to say, they have talent and depth… but perhaps less so than in previous years.1 The target on Pleiades’ back grows ever bigger with each win — will someone finally notch a bullseye this weekend?
Contender First Looks: Vermont, Tufts
Good things come to those who wait. That’s what we’re hoping, anyway. Fans of good ultimate should be eager to get a first glimpse of #3 Vermont Ruckus and #11 Tufts EWO, who have yet to see any action this spring but who could vie for a national title come May.
2023 semifinalists Ruckus are coming off a banner offseason, picking up coach Liz Leon and adding a crop of hungry YCCers to the already-fearsome combo of Caroline Stone, Kennedy McCarthy, Emily Pozzy, and Mae Browning. Tufts, on the other hand, will attempt to navigate the losses of Hazel Ostrowski, Olivia Goss, and Leija Helling — the duo of Lia Schwartz and Emily Kemp will probably have something to say about that. A win against each other, UNC, or Carleton will help establish the pecking order going into the heart of the season.
Carleton Seeks to Build on a Strong SBI
The question for #5 Carleton Syzygy this weekend is — as in so many years — how deep can they continue their early-season success into the spring? It’s still just February, but another look never hurt anyone. Aria Kischner, Tori Gray, and Naomi Fina have been tearing up the cutting lanes for Syzygy, while Mia Beeman-Weber and Chagall Gelfand anchor the backfield. Their 5-1 record at SBI2 is impressive, but they’ll need to do more to break into title contender conversation, and a victory over Ruckus or Pleiades would certainly do the trick.
Winta Binta Sanity Check: Ohio State and Virginia
Coming off a win over Virginia Hydra to take the Winta Binta Vinta crown, #23 Ohio State Fever are showing signs of life after having trouble getting out of the Ohio Valley region in the last handful of years. Virginia, on the other hand, have been Nationals mainstays of late but fell out of our top-25 with that loss. It’s still early, but in order to make their postseason lives easier, both squads would love to win games against good teams this weekend. Notching wins over the likes of Michigan or #16 Georgia Athena3 would solidify OSU as a top-25 team; pool two-seed UVA will aim to make a bracket run and return to form in a post-Kira Flores universe.
Men’s Division
Like the women’s division, #1 UNC Darkside are the heavy favorites to take home the men’s division title. Following their dominant performance at Carolina Kickoff last month, Darkside should have no trouble making it through the tournament unscathed. The contest might be for second place, but the battle to be the next-best team is actually quite exciting as Nationals hopefuls from multiple regions vie for prime algorithm results and positive momentum on the field.
Following their successes at Carolina Kickoff, #16 NC State Alpha and #25 Penn State Spank are top seeds in their pools. Both experienced disappointment at this tournament last season (NC State missed the final they were expected to play in and Penn State didn’t make it out of pool play), and expect to do better this time around. Challengers like #18 Alabama-Huntsville Nightmares, who are fresh off of a quarterfinals appearance at Florida Warm Up; #24 South Carolina Gamecock Ultimate, who used this tournament as their breakout last season; and UNC-Charlotte Skyrise, last season’s controversial bid earners, are all pushing to be considered with NC State and UNC in that Nationals tier. The game between UAH and South Carolina is one of the streamed games on Saturday and will show which team has the inside track on a semifinal appearance…and perhaps whether a strength bid ends up in the Southeast or the Atlantic Coast.
Beyond the top tier, there is still plenty of intrigue. Are McGill MUT once again a legitimate challenger in the deep New England region? Has UNC Wilmington Seamen’s sophomore class developed the kind of consistency needed to lead the team back to at least a top spot at Regionals? How far can Langston Lee and Ben Greenberg carry William & Mary Merry Men?
With many Regionals level teams making their season debut, QCTU will be the moment when an offseason full of hard work, speculation, and excitement becomes real, on-field results.
