Taking a look at each team’s performance and who we expect to shine in bracket play tomorrow.
June 13, 2026 by Delaney Higgenbottom in Recap
SALEM, Oreg. — On a beautiful day one of High School National Invite, the pool play matchups in the Girls’ Division saw unexpected upsets, wild tiebreakers, and superb competition. With the heat rising on day two, which of the remaining 12 teams will persevere and win the title?
The Victors
South Eugene (OR) executed an unsurprising dominance in their pool, easily defeating every team they faced on Friday and averaging a +9 point differential. The team’s stars include Kyla Hurt shooting the disc to anyone and everyone downfield and Aria Bear holding down the defensive front, aptly named “Tight Mark” on her jersey. Sonja Dorsch and Dana Herrman were other significant players heavily involved on the team’s offensive line. South Eugene is clearly the most formidable opponent moving into bracket play tomorrow.
Washburn (MN) also vanquished everyone they faced in pool play, with no team scoring more than seven points against them, even as they opened lines in some games. Charlotte Eskola was continuously open on offense and did not hesitate to punt it deep when the opportunity arose. June Albertson and Riley Gage displayed unrelenting endurance on defense, while Claire Jorgenson was a connective force to the Washburn end zone. Despite scoring high point differentials in each of their victories, they did not seem as untouchable as South Eugene; Nathan Hale, for instance, still put up a battle, often forcing Washburn into long points with lots of turnovers. Will they have the ability to hang with South Eugene when they tighten their rotation and get Kumari Okamura more involved? A major question for Saturday.
Garfield (WA) delivered one of the grittiest performances of the day – while no win came easily, they didn’t give up any spare points either. Seattle Riot’s Nora Luloff took the field by storm, playing at a skill level usually reserved for people much older than her in a way that can only be described as “holy cow.” She was accompanied by Elizabeth Muss and Ella Kimura as the team chopped through their opponents’ defenses, with Muss notably scoring a Callahan in their game against HB Woodlawn. Garfield lost on universe point to El Cerrito in their final game of the day, a brutal ping-pong match with 65 turnovers, but they narrowly won the pool on point differential. They went +1 in the three way tie at 2-1, with El Cerrito finishing at 0 and a plucky HB Woodlawn at -1.
Lincoln (WA), the Washington state champs, finished with an undefeated day of pool play in a clean and disciplined way. Julia Coco, Nell MacGregor, and Sabrina Kehl showed off nifty throws against zone defense. Their closest match of the day came against #16 seed Cambridge Rindge, after a hole in the field delayed the first pull by over 20 minutes. Lincoln went on to clutch up with a big blowout win against Holy Family Catholic, ending the game with a score of 13-6.
All four of the pool winners get the typical advantage of advancing straight to quarters. That’s even more advantageous in this year’s format, as the Girls quarters don’t start until 1 PM. With temperatures expected to reach 93 degrees, any extra time out of the sun is going to be a big plus.
The Survivors
Roosevelt (WA) came into HSNI as the defending tournament champions, but the team is clearly still finding its feet in the wake of the Hakimi/Gelfand legacy. However, the future looks bright: Kelsey Matz and Amelia Welsh stand out on the field with most offensive movement running through them, while Sonia Snyder proved to be a quick and slippery cutter for opponents to defend. Roosevelt gritted out a win against a scrappy Strath Haven on universe, but took a tough loss against South Eugene — but who didn’t?
Strath Haven (PA) also snagged a spot in prequarters, ending Friday’s pool play with two losses and only one win against Alameda. The Pennsylvania state champs are led by the Mansor twins, Keegan and Sadie, and the impressive USA U20 player Alice Rieger. Jules Loyd was another key handler with speedy cuts and a wide wealth of throws. Strath Haven is fueled by raw talent and frankly…stubbornness. They displayed a level of incessant dedication that even the tournament’s top contenders didn’t seem to contain. However, this also led to moments of frustration, especially in the chippy game to universe against Roosevelt.
Nathan Hale (WA) finished the day 2-1 and showed off a perfect example of well-spirited, high-effort frisbee. Lily DiGioia and Helen Golden were consistent playmakers and often put their bodies on the line to save the disc. Downfield, Meredith Geiger was an intimidating cutter for opponents to defend. The team is mainly led by its sophomore class and has the potential to become a title threat in future years. Nathan Hale refused to let Washburn walk away with an easy win and showed off attention-grabbing dedication during their one loss of the day.
Four Rivers (MA) took their one win of the day against Ingraham-Lakeside. In a game of endurance and consistency on the blazing-hot turf fields, Sylvia Guillaume and Penelope Peters maintained confident possession of the disc to bring the team to victory. In a wild twist in their game against Washburn, they gave up seven straight breaks to start before getting two breaks of their own to start the second half. Though they were clearly outclassed, they started to find their footing in the second half and played even (though admittedly against a more open rotation from Washburn).
El Cerrito (CA) finished closely behind Garfield in the pool despite winning their game against them on universe point, due to their previous universe loss to HB Woodlawn. Roxanne Ransdell was a consistent set of hands for the disc to fall into while Nora Draut showed off impressive marking skills. Jaylin Liu was one of the fastest players on the field and extremely dominant during the Garfield game, while Rani Millstein defended Garfield’s Nora Luloff in one of the most exciting matchups of the day. If EC can play more like they did in the second half against Garfield, they have a chance to make a bracket run on Saturday.
HB Woodlawn (VA) played a great day of frisbee, winning their matches against Eastside Prep and El Cerrito but suffering a close loss to Garfield. The team’s offense is led by yet another set of twins, Leah and Katie Butler, who coordinated passes and assists like it was a game of catch. Eddy Drake was the team’s other standout player, boasting quick downfield cuts and bold defense during their game against Garfield. Woodlawn looked notably underseeded at #15, hanging right there with two top-class western opponents. Their matchup with Nathan Hale in prequarters should be tremendous: watch it on the showcase broadcast.
Holy Family Catholic (OH) destroyed Lakewood/CA and Cambridge during their first two games in pool play, looking like they might cruise to a pool win. Then they got blown out by Lincoln! Perhaps their small roster was running out of gas at the end of a hot day. Despite playing with fewer players than most teams at the tournament, they moved like a well-oiled machine on offense, with Genevieve Regala and Jaden Schlosser delivering impressive plays throughout the day.
Cambridge Rindge (MA) went 1-2 during pool play and took a tough loss against Holy Family Catholic. The team still managed to annihilate Lakewood/CA 13-2 and put up an exceptional fight against Lincoln in their opener. Frida Greene, Helena Demissie, and Cecilia Lubetsky were the main forces behind the Cambridge charge. The team is overloaded with young talent and hardworking spirit that will likely carry them far in future competition.
The Fallen
Alameda (CA), Ingraham-Lakeside (WA), Eastside Prep (WA) and Lakewood/CA (CO) finished in last place in their respective pools and were eliminated from the tournament. A young and short-handed Alameda team faced a very tough matchup against South Eugene even with Violet Yap leading the charge, as did Ingraham-Lakeside against Washburn. Eastside Prep put up an honorable fight against El Cerrito, with Julia Stewart putting incredible and aggressive commitment into saving the disc for her team; Eastside was hurt by missing their best player, Sydney Belfiore (USA U20), on Friday. Look out for Eastside in ninth place bracket, though: Belfiore is cleating up on Saturday. Lakewood/CA wrote history as the first team to represent Colorado at HSNI, but they failed to meet the standard of the more competitive teams they played in pool play today. Nonetheless, Hazel Sankovitz and Isla Yoshihara showed a level of effort and on-the-field leadership that will be worth watching for in the years to come.
Team Performance
