Oregon powered through wind and rain to avenge last year's national semifinal loss
February 19, 2026 by Matt Fazzalaro in Recap
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#3 Oregon Ego ran the gamut at Presidents’ Day Invite, putting #2 Colorado Mamabird to bed and tucking them in for good measure in a dominant final showing hampered by wind and rain. We’ve got a breakdown of the weekend’s most anticipated matchup, as well as notes from around the complex.
Rain Comes to San Diego
Normally San Diego is heralded as America’s Finest City. Known for its beautiful weather and scenic views, it’s quite the place to hold a frisbee tournament. Unfortunately, as is the case with many coastal cities and towns, the weather can turn rather quickly. A weekend that started off with clear skies and minimal wind crescendoed during the men’s final with gusty breeze and constant stream of rain. The national semifinal rematch between Colorado Mamabird and Oregon Ego was plagued by slippery throws, frequent drops, and frustration-filled decisions.
Oregon was the team to rise above it though, and in honestly impressive fashion. They went up 3-0 on Mamabird and only increased their lead from there. Oregon was crowned Presidents’ Day Invite Champions roughly an hour later by a score of 13-6, completing their revenge against Mamabird for last year’s semifinal loss.
From the moment the horn blew to start play for the final, these teams just looked different from one another. Mamabird came out on defense and set a 3-3-1 style of zone against Ego, perfect for these conditions. Done well, this zone forces an offense to break through two distinct walls of defenders if they wish to gain yards quickly and incentivizes swinging the disc, as it is the only fully open look.
The flags atop the poles at the fieldsite were absolutely whipping in a constant yet gusty wind. but with Mica Glass quarterbacking an Ego squad that was locked in, it would not prove to be much of an issue, at least at the start.
Ego found their first hold with a tasty scoober, making it Colorado’s turn to prove they could find the end zone. Ego opted for a person defense look early in this contest to force Colorado to beat them with their legs, a good choice as a tightly contested throw to Zeke Thoreson gave Ego the disc and, only a handful of throws later, the break.
Now this is when things really started to turn. On top of the wind it began to rain, and Colorado’s Tucker Kalmus sent one a bit too high for even Elliot Hawkins to rein in, resulting in a second-throw turnover and another break for Ego. If you’re counting along with us at home, that brings the score to 3-0 in favor of Oregon.
Mamabird, in desperate need for a hold and some confidence, threw yet another first-throw turnover before the half-field mark. Thankfully, they got several more chances and eventually a point on the scoreboard as this would be a near six minute long point. The adverse wind and rain found its way into both teams’ heads as many discs floated just out of reach and slipped out of tight grasps.
Mamabird continued to try and win this with their throws as their decisions devolved into punt and pray than shooting for an actually viable deep option. Their super power of Saturday and Sunday turned into their downfall on Monday. Without the ability to stretch the field and take viable, high-percentage deep shots, Colorado’s offense crumbled.
Now I am not one to say I told you so, but if you look back at Sunday’s Centering Pass article, I voiced this exact worry. Frequently you see teams that can crush you with their big throws but forget that games must also be won with their legs. That was the difference in this contest. Ego said, “hey, let’s fight for the under cuts and win this thing the hard way,” whereas Colorado was looking far and wide for some semblance of their deep game to no avail. Mamabird mustered a bit of momentum and found the end zone a few more times before Ego took half 7-4.
Out of half, Colorado’ Tobias Brooks turned over yet another huck attempt to Nanda Min-Fink, who in Brooks’ defense was very open. Oregon took the disc slow and steady against the Colorado zone and punched in their third break of the game. This is really when Ego started to separate themselves from both a playing and strategy perspective.
Instead of coming out in a zone on defense they went with a person look, no doubt thinking that if Colorado was going to keep turning over the disc on deep looks and drop the disc on unders, then Ego would let them have at it. Play-wise Oregon looked much more adjusted to the weather: they kept play close, watched the disc into their hands, and valued possession. Don’t get it twisted, they had their fair share of downfield turnovers, but most were execution rather than decision errors.
After many, many more turnovers by both sides, Oregon Ego eventually dotted the i’s on this one by a score of 13-6, one of their biggest point margins of the weekend. Is this a sign of things to come for Colorado? Most likely not. This final definitely exposed a weak point in their game I am sure they are already hard at work to remedy.
One aspect they can hang their hat on is that despite the turnovers, Elliot Hawkins looked sharp on offense. He showed off a bag of throws that we didn’t see last year, hitting gorgeous elevator backhands and flick blades with ease. Nonetheless, the Oregonians will return home as Presidents’ Day Invite champions and will no doubt claim the #2 spot in the country from the vanquished Colorado Mamabird.
Results from Around the Tournament
- #6 Oregon State Beavers bested #11 UC Santa Cruz Slugs in the third place match by a score of 5-3, and yes you read that right. I wouldn’t put too much stock into this game, as the weather only worsened as the day continued. UCSC and Oregon State split games on the weekend and each by a two-goal margin, so look forward to next time these two programs meet, whether it be in the regular season or beyond.
- #18 Cal Poly-SLO SLOCORE finished the weekend in fifth, breaking seed by a solid margin and proving they still belong in the Best in the West conversation. UC Santa Cruz seems to have their number though, so keep your eyes peeled for both these teams when it comes to the Southwest Region.
- In a similar light, Washington Sundodgers showed some promise. They finished seventh but throughout the weekend played some tight games against good teams, taking 13-10 losses to Oregon State and Colorado. With more time practicing and playing together, could they play spoiler in a very stacked region? Time will tell.
- Regaining some confidence and dignity was #16 Utah Zion Curtain, as they went undefeated in the ninth place bracket, beating familiar faces Utah Valley in a match that went to double game point.
