New Paltz students, faculty turn out for an unforgettable game of ultimate frisbee

Welcome Week 2024 brought hundreds of new students together for a variety of fun-filled activities, but one major highlight was an evening of their own ultimate frisbee game. 

More than 40 first-year and international students showed up on Aug. 23 to the West Recreation Field for two hours of competitive ultimate organized by four faculty members — Associate Professor of Political Science Daniel Lipson, Associate Professor of Engineering Heather Lai, Assistant Professor of Mathematics Moshe Cohen, and Visiting Assistant Lecturer of Engineering Graham Werner — and the student-run GUNX ultimate team.  

True to its name, the sport takes a popular recreational activity and transforms it into a high-octane non-contact game, with two opposing teams throwing the disc like a football. Despite the competitive nature, the game is often self-refereed. 

“Ultimate is a sport where the ‘spirit of the game’ is important, and oftentimes it doesn’t matter what the score is as long as everyone has fun,” said Cohen. 

Indeed, the spirit of the game left a strong impression on SUNY New Paltz’s newest students. 

“The concept of doing it competitively had never occurred to me before, and I had the most fun time,” said Aleksey Olkhovenko ’27 (Undecided). “It was my first time opening up on campus and showing genuine excitement.” 

The success of ultimate frisbee has generated support for future student-faculty bonding experiences. 

“Professors who wanted to get to know their students organized a clinic for new students that would hopefully inspire them to try out an alternative, college-town sport,” said Lipson. “I fully believe that it will play an important role in the initiation of many of these new and international students’ welcome to the University.” 

Follow @npultimate on Instagram for more on the student-run GUNX ultimate frisbee team and visit Engage for more on upcoming events from student clubs & organizations.