Rival frisbee teams band together to send one to national tournament

Two Seattle High School Ultimate Frisbee teams are working together to raise funds to send one of them to a national tournament.

Cleveland High School and Roosevelt High School have an Ultimate Frisbee rivalry. Their players claim each is the other’s biggest competitor.

“It gets really intense,” Amanze Oleru, a Cleveland High senior, said.

Even in a sloppy scrimmage this Sunday, they battled, flying around the field, across wet grass.

This season, Cleveland had a clear edge over Roosevelt. They finished second in the Washington State Tournament. They also took down the Roosevelt High team along the way. In a few months, they’ll head to Nationals.

The problem is getting to the tournament. Cleveland High School is located in Seattle's Beacon Hill neighborhood. Many families at the school aren’t well-off.

“So we don’t have the money some other teams have, quite frankly,” Cleveland High’s Ultimate Frisbee Coach Clay Dewey-Valentine said.

That’s where their rivalry with the Rough Riders gets interesting. Last year, some of the Roosevelt parents invited the Cleveland players up to wealthier Ravenna to fundraise together. The two teams have been selling fruit, coffee and more, in part, to help finance the Cleveland team’s trip to Nationals.

“We know how badly they want it,” Roosevelt Junior Joshua Kutz said. “This helps them and it really makes us feel good.”

Both teams acknowledge this is just part of what it means to play Ultimate Frisbee. The sport relies on something called “Spirit of the Game.” It refers to the sportsmanship, fairness and respect that players demonstrate as they self-officiate the game.

Players from the two teams have become fast friends. Some have played on club teams together. Others met through this effort they’ve shared.

Each team has raised about $1600 this season.

“It’s special,” Coach Dewey-Valentine said. “Guys who don’t know each other, who have never played together, are high fiving each other.”

It’s the ultimate show of sportsmanship.

To learn more about Cleveland’s fundraising efforts, click here.