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FADED
ORANGE COUNTY/LA, CALIFORNIA

Players
00 Reggie Ullrich, 6’2”
03 Lance Larson, 6’1”
06 Sam Nichols, 5’10”
11 Mike Bell, 5’10”
13 Curt Caprine, 5’7”
16 Mike Phan, 5’9”
21 Paul Swanson, 5’10”
22 Mark Ross, 6’1”
29 Kevin Easter, 5’8”
31 Nate Inada, 5’10”
34 Steve “Earl” Espenschied, 5’9”
37 Pat Kelly, 6’0”
40 Tony Koselka, 6’1”
43 Kevin Foster, 6’3”
44 Dean Porter, 6’4”

Team History
FADED is a last minute, thrown-together team of cagey veterans from Southern California.  We had 2 practices before Sectionals, and it showed.  With little time together and some key players out to injury, we had no real expectations coming in.

The Regional’s squad included LA Iguana vets Rich Gallagher and Randy  “Bean” Sanchez, members of 1998 finalist Tempus Fugit’s Long Beach contingent, notably Kevin Easter and Curt Caprine, 2004 Beach champion Mark Ross, as well as vets John Worden and Haynes Brookes.

At Regionals we drew Old first.  Their conditioning and cohesion won out, but we found that our skills weren’t completely FADED, and took a positive attitude into the next game against Ironwood.  They won, but we hoped to see them again in the playoffs.

Sunday, we “upset” a short-handed NNG team playing savage seven due to injury and a small roster.  Then, we gelled in time to stage a furious come-from-behind win against Ironwood in the back door game to qualify for Nationals, 14-13.  Gallagher’s steady handling against the zone, Bean’s scores, all-around solid team D highlighted by Easter’s layout D on their goalline at 12’s, it was topped by Worden’s full field huck for the win to our sole under-35 player, Lance Larson.

Since we were a surprise qualifier, many of our big guns aren’t making the trip, but with several newcomers to the Nationals scene we decided that the experience will be worth the trip, regardless of outcome.  Next year, we’ll make better plans.