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The Moorpark Marauders took second in Muggle Quidditch’s Southwestern Cup, losing to Arizona State in overtime of the championship match.
The tournament was the first of its kind at Moorpark and schools weren’t fooling around.
“I feel like everybody is here to compete,” said Southwestern Cup organizer and Moorpark Muggle Quidditch President Harrison Homel.
University of California Los Angeles, Occidental College, Arizona State University and Moorpark College met Saturday, April 24, at Moorpark’s soccer field to compete in a Quidditch tournament.
“[This] models the college’s ambition [of] fostering student life on campus,” said Sharon Miller, advisor of the Moorpark Associated Students.
The Snitch is played by a person, typically a track runner, who has a ball in a sock on his pants which the Seekers attempt to grab; the Snitch is released some time before the Seekers can attempt to find him.
“It’s difficult,” said Snitch Tony Poleto, “I did track in high school, [and] at least in track, you can pace yourself.”
For the Moorpark Marauders, the tournament was the first time they used their new brooms.
“They’re the Quidditch standard broom,” said Scott Gago, a 20-year-old engineering major and Moorpark player. “It helps you connect to other players. It makes you feel like you’re a part of something instead of just running around with brooms.”
The visiting teams also felt the difference of playing in a tournament, as opposed to playing for fun.
“It was a little more physical than we’re used to,” said Wesley Rose, a 19-year-old computer science major at ASU.
After the preliminary rounds Arizona State looked unstoppable. With a 3-0 record they sat atop the standings, with Moorpark, UCLA and Occidental all at 1-2 going into the playoff.
“ASU is in a league of its own, they’re a machine,” said UCLA captain Tom Marks.
In the first game of the official tournament, Moorpark defeated UCLA to lock a spot in the Southwestern Cup match and in the second game ASU defeated Occidental.
After a third place game where UCLA defeated Occidental to take third, Moorpark and ASU squared off to determine who would go home with the Southwestern Cup.
With ASU up 80-50, Moorpark caught the Snitch, creating a tie at 80-80, and sending the match into overtime. It was at this point, Europe’s “The Final Countdown” was played. The three minutes of overtime were not needed, however, with ASU getting a quick goal and catching the Snitch defeating the Marauders in overtime 40-0.
“They’re a solid team,” said Gago. “[It’s] a little hard being that close.”
The Monday after the tournament Homel was interviewed on KROQ-FM’s morning program “Kevin and Bean,” who took a humorous look at Muggle Quidditch.
“It was exactly what I was anticipating, it’s Kevin and Bean, that’s what they do,” said Homel. “It’s a powerful platform for the sport, [and] everyone makes fun of Quidditch.”
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