The men’s Ultimate Frisbee team has had a good spring season, but the players think they could do better.

The team is heads into its competition this weekend 6-12. The team will have the chance to add more wins to its record as it faces Division I opponents.

Team president Sam Engels, a junior, said the team lost quite a few games by one point, but there are teaching moments in those types of losses.

 “It’s good to lose close games, especially with younger guys,” Engels said. “It teaches them how to lose close games.”

 The team is home to a lot of younger players this year, all of whom got acclimated during the fall.

Engels said ultimate can be unique because most of the players who come out have never played it before. This allows all of the players to gain experience as a group and grow together.

“Everyone on the team has really improved,” he said.

The team has also grown close due to all of the time they spend together.

 “It’s been a great experience,” Engels said. “It’s like a family away from home.”

 The team spends time together outside of practice and competition. They get together to play sports in the Recreation, Fitness, and Wellness Center and often times have dinner as a team.

 The support on the team is strong, but Engels said they also find support from different areas of the University.

He said some university officials have pushed for more funding and the team has received strong support from the RFWC.

The student body is another story.

 “We get a lot of support from the RFWC and from the people in charge of club sports,” Engels said. “But outside of that, I don’t think a lot of students know what we do.”

Senior psychology major Eddie Rodriguez said one thing students should know is that Ultimate is a competitive sport.

 “The sport is not just a sport for a bunch of hippies that just want to toke it up, get drunk and toss a frisbee around,” Rodriguez said. “This is actually a competitive sport and we are very serious about the game.”

Despite this competitiveness, and the possibility of it becoming heated on the field or sideline, Rodriguez said the camaraderie in the sport is strong.

 “The sportsmanship in Ultimate is very good,” he said.

 The team will compete against teams from both Indiana and Kentucky in the East Plains Conference Championships, starting at 9 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday at the Goebel Soccer Complex on N. Green River Road.

“We definitely would love to have people come out and support us,” he said.