Club Championships 2025: The Middle Class Keeps Growing (Women’s Div.)

With the dust settling on day one of Nationals, we aren’t talking about the aristocracy (Fury); we’re talking about the Proletariat.

October 24, 2025 by Graham Gerhart and Alex Rubin in Recap

Ultiworld’s coverage of the 2025 Club National Championships is 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.

For years now, women’s ultimate has been plagued by one constant: #1 San Francisco Fury. Dynasty feels like too soft a word for them. They’re an institution, a powerhouse, a dynamo, a — dare I say it — monarchy. If 2025 is anything to go by, Fury will retain their royal status.

Their regular-season results were reinforced on day one of Nationals. San Francisco dismantled Parcha, Nightlock, and Schwa in short order. They posted +32 point differential, never allowing more than five goals. The next closest team to that dominance is Brute Squad, all the way back at +19. But as with any royal class, there are plenty of teams plotting their demise. With the dust settling on day one of Nationals, we aren’t talking about the aristocracy; we’re talking about the proletariat.

Before we can understand how to get all “French Revolution” on Fury and overthrow this oligarchy, we first have to acknowledge the real truth of the women’s division this year: the floor is considerably higher than it’s been in the past. Heist might have struggled, but most fourth seeds in their pools had a real shot at winning a game in pool play, and Grit… shoutout to Grit… actually did it.

The only reason we can even hope for an overthrow of the institution that is San Francisco Fury is that there are now a ton of teams right on their heels, and the number of teams with a real shot at making semis keeps growing. It used to be a given that the top four seeds would make the final four, with a few exceptions scattered in to keep the masses happy. Now, it really seems possible that the 7th, 8th, and even 9th seeds have a real shot at going the distance.

So who are these teams that have so broadened the middle class of women’s ultimate, and what has carried them so far that the race to the finals seems wide open? Well, let’s dive into it.

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Boston Brute Squad

If there’s any team that has been able to cast a shadow as long as San Francisco’s, it’s #3 Boston Brute Squad. They’ve been the primary foil of Fury for over a decade now. This year, their resume has been dotted with losses that keeps them from claiming royal blood, but it’s safe to call them the “first citizens” of the women’s division. Before Nationals, the knock against Boston was  they spent the season trading wins and losses with the other top teams without earning a statement win that set them apart. Sure, they beat Scandal 15-11, but they also lost to them 13-11. Same story with Phoenix. These were the teams they had to beat in order to put themselves in the same echelon as Fury.

So what changed for Boston on day one? Well, not much. They look every bit the team that they’ve been advertised to be all year, and took care of business. Boston was already one of the teams slated to make semis in most everyone’s eyes. In Ultiworld’s staff picks, they were the only team outside of Fury that was a lock for semis on everyone’s board.

The team already had a strong history of beating every team in their pool. Boston’s dominated the matchup between them and their northern neighbors in Canada, so wins over Toronto and Iris were to be expected. Flipside weren’t scheduled as a favorite in their game, either. Boston already had two wins over them in the regular season, and completed the trifecta despite going down a few breaks in the first half. Levke Walczak is playing like the world-crushing talent we’ve come to expect, Lia Schwartz, Angela Zhu, and Tulsa Douglas make for an intimidating backcourt no matter the line they’re on, and the BENT transfer Ximena Montaña has fit in seamlessly.

For Brute Squad to make semis and give themselves a shot at winning it all, they just have to stay the course. They haven’t had the chance to play Schwa or Traffic in the regular season, which could provide some spice in quarters, but it’s hard to see Brute Squad as anything other than the favorite against either of those opponents. This is a new iteration of Brute Squad that still has a lot to prove. Luckily for them, they’re in the perfect position to prove it.

Raleigh Phoenix