Hybrid take on red-hot XIST in Sunday’s National final
October 26, 2025 by Alex Rubin in Preview
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.
SAN DIEGO – Defending champions #1 Ann Arbor Hybrid will take the field on Sunday afternoon looking for their second straight title and the mixed division’s first triple crown since Seattle Mixtape’s 2017 season. No team in the mixed division has won two straight championships since Philadelphia AMP’s double in 2018 and 2019.
Across from Hybrid will be first-time finalists #6 New York XIST, who lost in semifinal appearances in 2022 and 2023 before finally breaking through this season.
Fresh off a heater of a semifinal over #3 Minneapolis Drag’n Thrust, XIST are one of just two teams to defeat Hybrid this season, a 13-10 victory in the fifth place final at June’s Pro Elite Challenge East tournament. For what it’s worth, Hybrid returned the favor with a 15-6 takedown at Pro Champs in late August, but both teams have grown and developed since then setting up a unique rubber match.
Since their consolation appearance at PEC East, Hybrid are undefeated. Running the table at the US Open, Pro Champs, and the Series so far, Hybrid have a way to defeat every challenge thrown their way. A balanced offensive group produced a breakout season for Maketa Mattimore, who makes contested catches look routine. Rachel Mast’s sharp cuts and nose for the end zone have her in the Player of the Year conversation, though Aaron Bartlett is Hybrid’s statistical leader so far at Nationals. Jon Mast has taken control of the backfield, and his penchant for making and executing the right decision–whether that’s a 65 yard bomb or a nifty inside break–can break through even the toughest defensive schemes Hybrid have seen this season.
On Saturday, Hybrid gritted their way through a defensive battle in their semifinal takedown of #4 Fort Collins shame. With reigning Defensive Player of the Year Nathan Champoux joined by Kat McGuire, Maddy Simko, Sara Nitz, and Dalton Smith on the D-line, Hybrid make even simple passes challenging for their opponents with an advanced poaching and switching scheme. The downfield trio of McGuire, Nitz, and Simko are among the best lockdown defenders in the division while Champoux is a block-getter who loves to bait hucks and relishes the chance to match up with the opponent’s best player.
McGuire or Simko are likely to be two of the defenders tasked with slowing down XIST’s star handler duo of Jolie Krebs and Sadie Jezierski. For most of the season, Krebs has drawn praise for her calm poise, throwing prowess, and ability to get open for resets at will. At Nationals, though, defenses have keyed in on stopping Krebs, and Jezierski stepped up to the tune of 21 assists so far (nobody else on the team has more than eight!), including six in Saturday’s semifinal takedown of Drag’n Thrust.
This final matchup will show a contrast in styles and approaches to the game. Hybrid are happy to air out the disc, confident in their defensive ability to get the disc back. They’ll launch hucks and trust athletic receivers like Mattimore and Ben Lewis to track them down. XIST meanwhile strive to limit turnovers with possession-oriented handlers like Krebs and Axel Agami Contreras spending the bulk of their time behind the line of scrimmage. Hybrid like to start games on defense, applying pressure from the first pull, while XIST prefer to let their O-line cook up a hold to settle into a game. In the pressure-cooker of a National final, whichever team can ride their preferred energy (Hybrid’s frantic energy compared to XIST’s calm confidence) will benefit from an emotional advantage that is challenging to quantify but nevertheless palpable on the field.
In a division that historically is friendly to the chaos of a lower seed upsetting their way into the final, this matchup features the top two teams in the USA Ultimate rankings. With their legacies on the line and a coveted championship at stake, Sunday’s championship match is sure to be a highlight-filled battle worthy of the biggest stage our sport has to offer.
