Rochester native Hannah Johansen joined the women’s frisbee team as a way for her to blow off steam from her heavy course load and possibly make some friends. After three semesters on the team, with this semester being her fourth, she has reflected on how this simple decision will be one she carried with her through her entire life, as being a highlight of her college experience.
Johansen had learned how to throw a frisbee prior to joining the team from her older brother, Nicholas, who played on a team while she was in high school. She even shared that while he was a tough teacher she always loved the shared interest and quality time frisbee gave her and Nicholas.
“He gave me a really good flick [ frisbee slang for forearm throw]. He would make me sit in the backyard with him for hours every day teaching me how to throw the disc properly,” Hannah Johansen says.
Her brother had even showed up to one of her meets with the Cortland team, in their hometown, Rochester, NY. This specific meet was a combination of current and alumni members from the SUNY Cortland men and women’s teams. One of the alumni members was a childhood friend of Nicholas and upon seeing him there, invited him to play with the rest of the alumni. This presented a very unique opportunity for Hannah and Nick, as she got to not only watch him play but also got to play against him which she described as a very special and comical experience due to her background in high school track and field making her just a little bit faster than her brother.
While her brother did not teach her the rules and regulations of frisbee, after joining the team at the beginning of her sophomore year she felt that her previous experience in high school on the track and field team would aid her in areas such as speed, agility and stamina. After learning all the regulations of the sport, she quickly excelled in the cutter position. This position requires the most running due to cutters having to constantly make short maneuvers to lose guarding opponents. One key difference Johansen pointed out on why she favors frisbee over track was that while both require a lot of running, frisbee allows her to take breaks, something that could never be given during a race.
Johansen’s first experience playing with the team, was surprisingly not a practice but a full blown one-day tournament against Ithaca. This meet was especially tough for her due to the men’s team making the sudden decision to split their team, while only having five girls in attendance. Due to the team split, the presence of the women on the field, which was already diminished compared to the men, became completely scarce with only two or three women on the field at a time.
Despite the rockiness of her first tournament, Johansen has persevered and raised through the ranks of the team, with her current position not only being a cutter but also being a co-social media manager alongside Grace Galarza and Nuala Seabrook. These three empowering women do so much to promote the team including, recording practices / tournaments which also aids the team by allowing the members to reflect on their performances and conjure practices to hone the skills that might need some improvement.
Johansen admits she has personally struggled with making quicker cuts which she has worked and improved on over her previous three semesters, and with this semester being her fourth, more improvement is anticipated. She has also attempted the handler position and while it is uncomfortable for her, she continues to persevere, by attempting and learning more about the position each practice.
Frisbee has become so much more than a club to the members, especially the women’s team. Johansen has spoken extremely highly of her fellow women, often referring to them as the most amazing, kindhearted group of women she has ever encountered. She has also met tons of other frisbee athletes while traveling for meets in places as far as Myrtle Beach, SC.
“You meet so many different types of people and so many different types of people come to the tournaments and through that I have met some amazing and so many cool personalities,” said Johansen.
The people that this sport has allowed Johansen to meet are truly the reason she enjoys the experience so genuinely. Since the beginning of her frisbee career, each and every woman she plays with have become her dearest friends, and her co-social media manager, Grace Galarza being not only her roommate but such a bright light in the lives of everyone she encounters. The friendships formed on the team have made the atmosphere of practices and tournaments so welcoming and calming for all the women involved.
“I really enjoy bonding with the women’s and men’s teams,” Johansen explained. “It has been a great experience for me to be able to make friends who have become more like a second family.”