From 1999-2001, a women’s ultimate team at New York University did not exist, and the women had to play with the men. In 2002 however, the first NYU women’s team, then known as Bust, was founded by Karen Lee. Bust made it to Regionals its first year and won two games. The very next year, newly-dubbed Violet Femmes won another game at Regionals. Often struggling for numbers, the early leaders of the team, former captains Elizabeth “Slamm” Lamm, Georgia Pappas and Julie Sussman, did a superb job recruiting players and building a small but successful program at NYU.
In
the fall of 2005, despite only having those few wins in Regionals history,
the Femmes recognized that something very special was in the works. This talented, determined group of athletes
committed themselves to a two-year plan to qualify for Nationals in
2007. They took their first steps on that journey in the '05-'06 season
by revamping the program with new coaches, a restructured playbook,
an intensive conditioning program, and a fresh sense of urgency at practices.
The new-look Femmes not only won games at Regionals last year, they
placed fifth, putting the rest of the Metro East on notice that NYU’s
program was on the rise. This year, with every player returning, and
a few new faces in the mix, the Femmes beefed up their schedule to prepare
for the Nationals run, adding scrimmages against elite club teams and
trips to Trouble in Vegas and Southerns. The Femmes compiled a 37-10
record this spring, beating some of the nation's best teams along the
way. Not bad for a team that has no fields to call their own and little
practice space in the New York City’s overcrowded parks. Yet banding
together to overcome these obstacles has brought this already tight-knit
family even closer together. Instead of bemoaning their surroundings,
the team has embraced New York's "work hard, play hard" attitude
as part of their team identity.
