 Bonnie McPike at the SB Invite 2005 |
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 McPike throwing at Sean Ryan 2004 |
Bonnie McPike was selected to be the player featured this month because she is one of the players that helped lead her team to a first place victory at the recent Santa Barbara Invitational. One of the purposes of the IC Ultimate player profiles is to recognize un-heralded, yet deserving, players. Playing on a team with her twin sister, Jamie, and two former players on the USA Junior National team, Claire Meneely and Lilian Berla, it can be tough to make a name for oneself. Nonetheless, McPike has proven herself as a top-notch competitor and is a player to watch as UC-Santa Cruz competes this season. Read below to find out more information about her ultimate beginnings, history, skills/profile, and upcoming college season.
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Where and when did you first learn to play ultimate? I learned my freshman year at UCSC. Before I started playing I went to one practice, literally one practice, of rugby and decided to try ultimate instead (good decision I'd say). I've been playing ever since. What about the sport has made you continue to play it since then? My teammates. You might say that I am obsessed with SOL. I have never played on a team that shows so much compassion and caring towards one another. They all manage to play hard while still having tons of fun. Outside of SOL, I'd say that the ultimate community is the next draw. I've met some really great/entertaining people since I started this sport. Who would you describe as your main mentor(s)? SOL coaches and teammate Stacey Schoemehl, Maggie Mathias, and Claire Meneely. These are the three women who taught me the fundamentals and how to perfect/consistently improve my game. They are still driving me to be a better player. |
 UC-Santa Cruz at Centex 2004 |
 McPike v. Stanford at Sean Ryan 2004 |
Ultimate Skills/Profile: What position do you play? Has this differed on different teams you may have played for? On Sol I primarily handle. I've been working towards the back of the stack making deep cuts, which is a nice change. While on Fury I was a deep cutter and played point in the cup (made me appreciate how much work points have to do!). What do you view as your strengths on the field? I would view my speed and my determination as my top two strengths on the field. I utilize both of these to do whatever is needed to catch the disc...needless to say, I love laying out. What are you working on most to improve? Currently I am working to improve my decision making (on offense) and my fitness. What is your role on your college team (include leadership roles on and off the field)? On the field I am labeled as one of a few team "strategists" where I work with others to help decide what top secret frisbee strategies will help us in particular game situations. On the sidelines I try to stay upbeat and positive to raise team morale. What type of pre-game or pre-tournament rituals (if any) do you have? Before tournaments I work on my mental game. I try to get good rest, visualize, and get excited about the weekend. I think about my goals and how I will go about achieving them. Oh, and I also try to eat tons of meat and/or pasta to fuel me up! Pre-game I enjoy a gooood cheer to fire me up. |
Upcoming College Season:
Describe your experience at the recent Santa Barbara tournament.
In a few words, it was sick. It was as if I was in a glass case of
emotioonnnn! In addition to SOL having tons of fun, we rocked every team we
played and ran hard through every point. I believe that we proved ourselves
as a force to be reckoned with. Santa Barbara is just the beginning.
How strong do you think your college team will be this year?
This might be slightly biased, but I believe we have more than enough
potential to take us to Nationals this year. We've been building for so
long that its about time to unleash the beast that is SOL! In addition to
our solid core of returners, we've compiled a list of all-star rookies who
will without a doubt help us along the way.
How does this compare to previous years that you have been on the team?
My first two years of college ultimate were a rebuilding stage. My
freshman year we had a core of seniors, including Tasia Balding, but the
team was mostly a bunch of rookies. This made it hard the following year
when those seniors graduated and the second years (myself included) were
forced to lead the team and recruit a new squad. We had an all star team
last year, but were unable to make it to nationals. However, we did managed
to place 11th in the nation.
What are your personal and team goals for the season?
My personal goal is to perfect my mental game. My team goal is to make it
to nationals...ideally we would win nationals, but that is a ways down the
road.
What do you most look forward to during the upcoming season?
I look forward to watching my teammates improve and grow over the course of
the season. I also look forward to the President's Day tournament, which is my favorite of the season (next to Regionals).
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What makes college ultimate different than club ultimate for you? I think both college and club have great aspects. In college I learned the fundamentals of ultimate and will always look to that as my starting point, while club was a time to improve/master my own game. What is it like to play on a team with your twin sister? In Jamie's words, "It's the best damn experience of my life. End of story." I mean how can you argue with that? Seriously, I'd say its great, but not as unusual as people might think. We've been playing on the same teams virtually all of our lives and it just happened that we went to the same college where I got her hooked on ultimate. When I have the disc, I sometimes have the problem of just looking for her cutting while forgetting about my other teammates (oftentimes it's easier since I often know exactly what she's going to do, and not in a weird twin ESP sort of way, but just cause we play so similarly). |
 McPike bidding at Regionals 2003 |
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