HSNI Ultimate Frisbee

Upper Macungie, PA - June 14, 2025: The Lehigh Valley, and Upper Macungie Township’s Grange Park, hosted the High School National Invite (HSNI) Ultimate Frisbee tournament Friday and Saturday. Approximately 580 boys and girls, from 32 teams, representing 13 states, competed in the two-day event run by Competitive Ultimate Training and Ultiworld.

The “ultimate” high school championship tournament began in 2017 and has been held in a different state across the country since. In 2024, the tournament took place in Rockford, Illinois. In 2020 and 2021, it was not held due to COVID.

There were three teams from Pennsylvania. Strath Haven (Lancaster) had a boys and a girls team, while Wissahickon and Masterman (Philadelphia) had only boys teams. Masterman, actually Julia R. Masterman Laboratory and Demonstration School, was highly ranked nationally this year and was considered by some as the best team in PA. They list on their school website as being the “2025 PA High School State Champions.”

In 2024, the Green Canyon (Utah) boys and the South Eugene (Oregon) girls won the title. The Wissahickon boys tied for third in 2024 while the Strath Haven girls finished twelfth. The boys team from Pennsbury High School (PA) finished 14th last year while the Radnor High School (PA) girls team finished in 16th place. Masterman, a relatively newcomer, did not compete in the championship in 2024.

On Saturday evening in the finals, Arlington (Massachusetts) defeated Edina (Minnesota) to win the boys championship while Roosevelt (Seattle) defeated South Eugene to win the girls championship. In the past six events, a team from the Western U.S. has won the title. This year however, East teams stepped up their game and were actually seeded higher than in years past. The Arlington win marks the first time an East team has taken the title to the right coast.

This was the first time the event was held in Pennsylvania. “Hosting the High School National Invite underscores Lehigh Valley’s reputation as a premier destination for major sporting events,” said Alex Michaels, president and CEO of Discover Lehigh Valley. “Events like this inspire connection, foster pride, and create lasting economic benefits for our region.”

“The enthusiasm from the Lehigh Valley, Philadelphia and Pennsylvania’s ultimate frisbee community has been tremendous, “HSNI Director Juan Acosta said in a press release. “We look forward to showcasing some of the best high school ultimate frisbee in the country.”

Ultimate frisbee is a fast-paced, non-contact team sport that combines elements of basketball, football, and soccer. There are two teams of usually seven players competing on a field that is 70-yards long by 40-yards wide with two 25-yard end zones. The goal of ultimate frisbee is to score points by passing a 175 gram flying disc to a teammate in the end-zone. Players possessing the disc must hold a pivot point and cannot move their feet. The disc can be thrown in any direction but must be caught before hitting the ground. If it does hit the ground, batted away, or intercepted by an opposing player, it’s a turnover at that particular spot. A player can only possess the disc for ten seconds. One point is scored for each catch in the end-zone and the game is typically to fifteen points.

The majority of players pay their own way to travel so this makes it tough for some to join the sport. In Pennsylvania, the PIAA has not yet recognized ultimate frisbee as an official high school varsity sport but it has grown, with many club teams, and it is becoming more and more popular. In 2017, Vermont was the first state to recognize “ultimate” as a varsity high school sport. Numerous other states such as Georgia, North Carolina, Connecticut, Minnesota, etc. all followed. Admission to many of the events is free for spectators.

The International Olympic Committee has recognized ultimate frisbee as being “eligible” for the Olympics, but it has not been approved or included in the list of events for the 2028 Los Angeles Games. The NCAA does not currently sanction ultimate frisbee.

For more information on ultimate frisbee, you can visit the USA Ultimate website or the Ultiworld website.

An Arlington Pumahs player makes a catch during a preliminary round game at the HSNI Ultimate Frisbee tournament on June 13, 2025 in Macungie, Pennsylvania. The Pumahs won the title Saturday evening by defeating the team from Edina, Minnesota.