Beyond the Big 5 Issue 10
covering nontraditional, emerging and niche sports with a focus on women and LGBTIQA+ people
Hello and happy third week of Pride month!
BB5 Pride Challenge
Have you found a local LGBTQIA+ service org in your area to support yet? If you need inspiration, here’s what LGBTQ SAVES Program director Bertinard Gardne said about the work his organization does in Fort Worth, Texas: “With LGBTQ youth, and youth of any kind honestly, finding that one affirming adult can make such a big difference. And when you come to SAVES, you’re not just finding one adult, you are finding a family.” If you want to support LGBTQ SAVES, here is their donation link.
What’s Out Now
Quadball
“Series Review: Kansas City vs. Houston Legends” by Fast Break News’ Brandon Borges
Last weekend, Kansas City Stampede swept the Houston Legends in MLQ’s opening weekend series to watch. Borges is one of my favorite writers at FBN, and I love this detailed analysis of each team’s performance, including that of Stampede coach and chaser Lauren Smith. Here is the schedule of MLQ games for Saturday, June 14:
Charlotte Aviators vs Boston Forge at 4pm ET
Minneapolis Monarchs vs Detroit Innovators at 5pm CT
Beater Celine Richard is back playing for the Aviators this season! And long time Aviators manager and co-founder Hanna Reese has traded in her spreadsheets for cleats as she makes her on field debut with the team in today’s game.
Watch MLQ games on YouTube.
Interview with Phil Cain from the Brazilian national team and MLQ’s New York Titans
Phil Cain has been playing quadball for over 10 years, starting with Rutgers University. They made a big splash in 2023 in the reality TV series adaptation of Squid Game as Player 451. This past spring, Cain was on Saturday Night Live playing drums in the ‘Goth Kid on Vacation’ sketch with actor and SNL host Jack Black – they’re also a musician in the band Six Ways to Saturday. Cain is finishing their final year playing quadball with MLQ’s New York Titans and Brazil's national team. “Very excited to be a part of this team again, this will actually be my final MLQ season so really hoping we can win the title one more time!” they said. I’m hoping to interview Cain and two of their best friends who are playing for other national teams. Crossing fingers it works out!
I asked Cain some questions about their performing side for the newsletter.
How long have you been playing music and been in a band?
I’ve been playing music since I was 12, I was in a band with the same people at Rutgers when I was also playing for RUQ. We took a break for a while and we came back two years ago as Six Ways to Saturday.
How did the SNL opportunity come about?
Ever since Squid Game I’ve been getting into acting/voiceover and through that I met a friend that works for SNL that convinced me to apply, and they just so happened to be needing someone to play an emo musician that week!
How long were you on set? What was it like?
SNL shoots are very rushed because they only have a week to write/record/perform everything, so that entire music video was made in one day. I was there for almost 12 hours that day I think. It was so much fun to be a part of! Getting to jam with Jack Black was an epic once in a lifetime opportunity, he was just as funny and cool as you’d imagine.
When/where are you performing next?
Six Ways is actually going to take a little break from performing because we’re working on some new songs! Hopefully will be able to share more soon.
Ultimate
“USAU D-I Champs: Men’s Division Final between Carleton College and Colorado” Photos by Me!
I have to be honest, men’s ultimate is more fun than I expected.
“WUL Championship 2025” Photos by Me!
Last weekend, San Diego Super Bloom defeated home team Bay Area Falcons 12-10 at the WUL Championship in Oakland, California to earn their first national title. Photos from both semifinals, the 3rd place game, and the finals are now up on the BB5 website. I recorded a bunch of interviews onsite that will be released as a podcast soon.
“PUL Championship 2025 Preview” by Me!
This weekend, the Premier Ultimate League has their championship in Madison, Wisconsin. Indy Red Assistant Coach Jackie Lai and New York Gridlock Coach Brittany Taylor chatted with me via email about their team’s rosters and what fans can expect from them at champs.
Here is the game schedule:
Saturday, June 14 at 4pm CT: Semifinal One - DC Shadow (S1) vs. New York Gridlock (N2)
Saturday, June 14 at 7pm CT: Semifinal Two - Indy Red (N1) vs. Raleigh Radiance (S2)
Sunday, June 15 at 2pm CT: the Final! (the PUL doesn’t have a third place game like the WUL)
All games are watchable on YouTube.
What’s Next
The U-24 World Games for ultimate take place in Spain June 21-24. Players on Team US I’m looking forward to watching include Jolie Krebs and Lily Terpstra on the women’s team and Tori Gray and Abbii Shilts on the mixed team. MLQ has three series next weekend. And in preparation for the IQA World Cup, which takes place July 18-20 in Belgium, I’ve started interviewing for my podcast preview series… episodes might come out in the next week; we’ll see what I can get done with everything else in the queue!
In Closing
June is still chaotic but great! Hope y’all are doing well. If you’re protesting this weekend, stay safe. And don’t forget to find a LGBTQIA+ org to support in your community – let me know who you end up giving to/volunteering for!
Beyond the Big 5 is written by Mary Kimball.