Heather Morris Raker

Handler on offense; Deep in zone defense.

I believe I was a good teammate as well as a good teacher to many young players throughout the years. I prided myself on being able to deliver in times of pressure and enjoyed being a player that teammates would look to in tight games and important points. I tried to be honest and “clean” as a player and had very few (if any) altercations with opposing players. I believe I gained the respect of both my teammates and adversaries through the years. I played many other team sports in high school and college, but enjoyed the purity of Ultimate more than all the other sports.  As a ball golfer in my retired years, I miss the camaraderie of Ultimate more than I would have imagined, but have carried with me the lessons of integrity so necessary in a self refereed sport.  Fortunately, I have started to convert some old Godiva players to my new game.

I believe I was probably best known for being an accomplished thrower. In my early years of playing, I was consumed with the beauty of the disc’s flight path and spent untold hours practicing my throws. I still love the freedom of throwing a disc and being able to play the angles and spin to control trajectory in ways a ball cannot attain.

I played handler and strategist on all of the women’s teams on which I played. I suppose that in hindsight, Lady Godiva was the most over-achieving team I played on from a historical perspective. But, I believe that all the teams I played on were great in their time. I am lucky to count all of my best friends from the many teams I played with. I tried to avoid controlling subs to keep my focus on the rhythms of the game, but would be involved in personnel choices dependent on what offense or defense I thought was appropriate at a given moment.

I am not sure what I would consider the peak of my career. I believe I was a very strong and integral part of every team and every year in which I competed. I stopped playing in 1998 to spend more time with my husband and because my knees were beginning to hurt more and more with the rigors of a field sport.

I consider myself to have been an integral part to the growth of Women’s Ultimate from the very early days. I was both an accomplished player and more importantly a teacher to many of the young players who learned to play, enjoyed the sport and became successful as players. I believe that every time I stepped on the playing field, I was a factor in helping my team to compete at the highest level of Ultimate.