Recognizing the top seven performers of the 2024 season.
November 11, 2024 by Alex Rubin, Graham Gordon, Laura Osterlund and Josh Katz in Awards with 0 comments
Ultiworld is pleased to announce our annual Club Awards, starting with the All-Club First Team and Player of the Year finalists in each division. While we consider both regular season and postseason performance, because of the nature of the Club division, we weight success in the Series and at Nationals above all else. This year, with an uneven regular season, the postseason emphasis is perhaps greater than ever. The Club Awards are voted on by Ultiworld reporters, contributors, and editors.
Our All-Club teams recognize the top performers across the division. Our First Team and Second Team display the top seven and next seven players who had the best seasons. As our voting process is ordered, the top vote-getters for All-Club honors function as the ordered list in our Player of the Year voting — our highest individual award. The seven players listed here are finalists for the Player of the Year.
Player of the Year Award
All-Club First Team
All-Club Second Team
Defensive Player of the Year Award
Offensive Player of the Year Award
Breakout Player of the Year Award
Coach(es) of the Year Award
Club Awards Voting Breakdown
Snubs and Superlatives (Coming soon)
All-Club 2024 First Team
Aaron Bartlett (Hybrid)
After three years with Truck Stop in the men’s division1, Aaron Bartlett joined Ann Arbor Hybrid and made a seamless transition into their offensive system. Usually starting downfield as an initiating cutter, Bartlett was often quick to find his way to the disc and make his presence known on each point he played. A particular menace in the red zone, Bartlett was the only player on his team to post a double-double at Nationals (12G/10A). Perhaps most impressively, he did that on just one turnover, making himself the perfect complement to some of his more aggressive teammates.
Erica Baken (Drag’n Thrust)
Last year, Drag’n Thrust celebrated the homecoming of one of their dynasty mainstays, Erica Baken.2 It took the season to (re)gain chemistry with her teammates. This year, Drag’n reaped the rewards of her return as she became a high-touch, sometimes-every-other-throw center handler. This season, Baken was the most trustworthy player on the field with the disc in her hands and was always one of the safest reset options. The confidence she had with her full arsenal of throws was indisputable. Whether with an upwind dime of a flick huck, or a cheeky high-release backhand, Baken always knew when and where to place the disc for her receivers.
Jade McLaughlin (shame.)
Thanks in large part to her 2023 Player of the Year award, Jade McLaughlin has had something of a target on her back all season long. Every good defender wanted a chance to guard the un-guardable. And yet, not many could get close. The O-line staple always seemed to find herself wide open and became the biggest deep threat whenever she stepped onto the field. Even in her quieter games3, she still managed to make commotions and put up impressive performances. Whether it’s catching anything in her vicinity or serving as a release valve to make big, game-saving plays4, she always gives her all every time she is on the field.
Lukas Ambrose (BFG)
It takes someone of incredible skill to take last season’s Defensive Player of the Year and kick them over to the O-line, but that’s exactly what Lukas Ambrose did in his first year on BFG, freeing up Conor Belfield to play for holds. A two-way threat, Ambrose paired his 11 blocks at Nationals (second in the division) with 10 goals as one of eight players in the division to post a double-double. Often matching up against his opponent’s top threat, Ambrose was one of the rare defense-first players to stay in the Player of the Year discussion all season long as his athleticism, playmaking, and energy set the pace for BFG from game one all the way to the national semifinal.
Nathan Champoux (Hybrid)
Evaluating defense in ultimate is always a tough task. Accumulating blocks is one thing, but how do you account for those defenders who are so good that their matchups never get thrown to? Nathan Champoux is the rare blend of defender that does both of those things at an elite level, making him arguably the best defensive player in the sport. Most impressively, he’s capable of and willing to shift his mentality from game to game, depending on what the matchup dictates. One day, he’ll focus entirely on shutting out a single player. The next, he’ll be roaming around downfield, hunting for blocks. And he’s no slouch on the turn either, adding four goals and ten assists to his division leading 12 blocks at Nationals.
Robyn Fennig (Tower)
If any player can be described as the Swiss Army knife of elite ultimate frisbee players, it’s Robyn Fennig. She’s a jack of all trades, and somehow a master of all. The 2022 Player of the Year5 did everything that was asked of her, and more: she played on O-line and helped her team get the disc back in the case of a turn, and played on D-line (in the same games) and helped her team convert into scores when her team gets the block. Despite being a career handler, she easily fit into the role of a cutter whenever her team needed. The fact is, greatness follows wherever she goes, after all, it was not a complete coincidence that Tower made their first Nationals appearance this season, her first as a rostered player on the team. With her incredible work ethic and skillset, she helped empower her teammates and was one of the big factors that brought Tower to the next level.
Tannor Johnson-Go (Sprocket)
Sprocket’s run to the national final may have been somewhat of a surprise given the regular season, but Tannor Johnson-Go’s performance at Nationals should come as no shock to anyone who’s watched him play at any level of the game over the past decade. His 6’5” frame allows him to be a downfield force who no defender should ever front, but he also uses his length very well in the handler space, breaking marks and getting open craftily with aplomb. To anyone who watched Boston play at Nationals, it should be no surprise that Johnson-Go led the team in both goals and assists, with his 24 of the latter ranking second in the division.
