I'm back, finally! Today’s episode is about the USA Ultimate D-I college championships, specifically the women’s division. The tournament took place May 23-26 in Burlington, Washington.

Note: this is explicit because I swore a couple times

Show Notes

• USA Ultimate

• Clip of trophy winning play in the finals from USAU Instagram https://www.instagram.com/p/DKIoF7ZuMhQ/ 

• Full results of women’s division https://play.usaultimate.org/events/2025-USA-Ultimate-College-Championships/schedule/Women/CollegeWomen/ 

• Game info page for the finals https://play.usaultimate.org/teams/events/match_report/?EventGameId=VT88axfTUSrZsFQcMRHXlLlmubCiz1ZSG2RCoo3YLdc%3d 

• Overview of college division https://usaultimate.org/college/ 

• Rulebook https://usaultimate.org/rules/ 

• BB5

• Full article recap coming soon

• D-III semifinal highlights from May 18, Haverford/Bryn Mawr vs Middlebury https://www.beyondthebig5.com/photos/usau-diii-college-champs-womens-semis-haverfordbryn-mawr-vs-middlebury

• D-I quarterfinal highlights from May 25 https://www.beyondthebig5.com/photos/usau-di-college-champs-womens-quarterfinals-highlights

• D-I finals highlights from May 26 https://www.beyondthebig5.com/photos/usau-di-college-champs-ubc-vs-carleton-womens-final 

Host/editor/producer: Mary Kimball

Theme music: Jeff McBride

Episode cover photo: Mary Kimball

This is a short recap of our watch guide from the previous week and a preview of what we’re paying attention to the following week. Today, we’re going to talk about quadball, softball, the Olympics, ultimate, and beach handball.

Show Notes

Host/editor/producer: Mary Kimball

Theme music: Jeff McBride

Episode cover photo: Kielan Donahue

Transcript

Read at beyondthebig5.com.

This is a short recap of our watch guide from the previous week and a preview of what we’re paying attention to the following week. Today, we’re going to talk about rugby, quadball, ultimate, softball, the Olympics, and the Paralympics.

Show Notes:

Host/editor/producer: Mary Kimball

Theme music: Jeff McBride

Episode cover photo: Mary Kimball

For Pride Month, we’re trying out something new! This is a short recap of our watch guide from the previous week and a preview of what we’re paying attention to the following week.

Show Notes

Host/editor/producer: Mary Kimball

Theme music: Jeff McBride

Episode cover photo: Sloth Jackson

This is Episode 9, the US Quadball Cup 2024 Recap. USQ nationals took place a month and a half ago, April 13 and 14 in Round Rock, TX. It featured 58 teams competing in 5 divisions: 16 teams in college D1, 15 teams in college D2, 2 teams in college open, 19 teams in club championship, and 6 teams in club open. 

For the recap, we’re joined by longtime players and coaches Michael Goldman of the Silicon Valley Vipers, Soleil Heaney of Seattle Sirens and Vanguard in Vancouver, BC, and Chanun Ong of Boom Train and Cal to discuss the results, what we think of the US debut of the 3 max rule, and what we’re paying attention to this summer and beyond with MLQ, Western Championship Quadball, and the next USQ season. 

Note that this interview was recorded on April 30, before MLQ dropped their rosters. 

Show Notes

Host/editor/producer: Mary Kimball

Theme music: Jeff McBride

Episode cover photo: Mary Kimball

Episode 8 of the BB5 podcast, featuring quadball player and coach Lulu Xu. Hailing from the Northeast, Lulu is one of the sport’s more influential beaters. She’s been playing since 2011. She’s a 5x national champion and 2x international champion. This interview explores the context around which Lulu's club team, the Boston Pandas, was created in 2020, a team that was the leader in the US in the adoption of the 3 max rule from its beginning, and also discusses Lulu’s experiences as a coach for both Pandas and Harvard and what’s next for her in the sport. 

Show notes:

Host/editor/producer: Mary Kimball

Theme music: Jeff McBride

Episode cover photo: Mary Kimball

Please note that this podcast and the advice given are meant for informational purposes only and should not be considered medical advice. 

Host Mary Kimball first met Joanne Lam during QuidCon in 2021, a virtual event that US Quadball and Major League Quadball hosted during one of the waves of COVID lockdowns. She led a great home workout session. She started following Joanne online, and came to really admire her approach to training, especially foundational exercises that prepare the body for movements commonly found in a sport like quadball.

In the interview, we discuss what kind of fitness and health care professionals can help athletes with training and injury recovery and how best to use them, how to approach training as we age, the impact of hormones and menstruation on athletic performance (and vice versa in some cases!), how to track workouts more effectively, and more. 

Before we get to links, a quick note about language. We used the phrase people with uteruses to refer to the health concerns that people with uteruses and menstrual cycles face. In the future, we might shift to different language, like women and people with cycles. If you have any feedback on this, please email [email protected]. Our goal is always to lead with inclusion, balancing accuracy with concision wherever possible.  

Here’s how to learn more about Joanne’s services and to get in touch:

Other show notes:

Host/editor/producer: Mary Kimball

Theme music: Jeff McBride

Episode cover photo: Eric Lynch

Hear from players and US Quadball co-gameplay department managers Thomas Chang-Davidson and Sarah “Phantom” Kneiling about USQ’s transition to 3 max. They discuss how their own history has shaped their approach with policy making around gender (and other areas), how they started playing and got involved with USQ gameplay, and what changes they hope to see this weekend at USQ Cup in the club championship division, and over the next 2 years as the rest of the league makes this change. They also go over how to report gameplay disciplinary violations, both online and in person. 

Host/editor/producer: Mary Kimball

Theme music: Jeff McBride

Episode cover photo: Duran Alison/Shirley Lu and Ana Sophia Acosta

Hear from player and photographer Aubrey Johnson about her time on Salt Lake City Hive, based out of Utah. Besides talking about her own experiences playing on America’s sweetheart quadball team, Aubrey also gives some flowers to retiring players and teammates Katie Ely, Danika Liou, and Nathan Liou. This episode is part of our April 1, 2024 exclusive day of Bee-yond the Big 5 features on sports and pollinators. 

Aubrey’s photo account on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/akj.photos

Special thanks to scientist Brandi Cannon-Force for some initial suggestions about under the radar pollinators. 

Host/editor/producer: Mary Kimball

Theme music: Jeff McBride

Episode cover photo: Mary Kimball

In three weekends, USQ club team the Warriors takes the pitch at US Quadball Cup 2024 in Round Rock, TX to defend their national title. How prepared are they for the shift to 3 max? What is it like to train on this team? What makes the Warriors such a successful program? Learn the answers to these questions and more in our interview with Ryan Davis and Molly Potter, two players with significant experience in quadball who are on the roster this coming April. While we talked a lot about the specifics of the Warriors, Ryan and Molly also shared their perspectives on player development more broadly, making this a must listen episode for any player looking to up their game. 

Host/editor/producer: Mary Kimball

Theme music: Jeff McBride

Episode cover photo: Mary Kimball