What keeps girls engaged in sport? Research shows that experiencing progress and development within their sport are key drivers that motivate girls to stay. Additionally, girls with strong social connections who feel they belong are and 70% of girls say friendships and team connections are a reason they keep playing. These motivating factors are areas where the sport of ultimate — and the concept of the Spirit of the Game — have an opportunity to shine in engaging girls and creating a path to lifelong participation. 

Coaches can play a key role in creating a clear path for skill development and progression within the sport, as well as a sense of community and belonging within a team. Coaches who see higher enjoyment and retention, and 80% of girls say a is a top reason they keep playing. One such coach, Cara Crouch, was nominated by her community as an outstanding example of someone who inspires participation, creates recognition, and supports a sense of belonging for her athletes.

“Cara was one of my first college coaches and the first Callahan winner in my direct orbit. She could have (even should have) had a huge ego, but instead was extremely humble. Right from the start she taught me that you can be competitive and intense, but still be kind and Spirited. I remember having to guard her when we were both playing in Austin and just knowing how completely incapable I was of containing her greatness. Later on I had the privilege of coaching with her, and I was unsurprised when she was inducted into the Ultimate Hall of Fame. She’s absolutely in my hall of fame too.”
– Libby Cravens, Outreach Director at Altitude Ultimate in Denver.

Interview with Cara Crouch

An elite athlete in her own right, Callahan Winner, two time World Games Gold Medalist, and Hall of Famer Cara Crouch has been a coach almost as long as she’s been a player. Coaching at nearly every level — from middle and high school teams through college and the National Ultimate Training Camp — Crouch brings a competitive edge while embodying the Spirit of the Game.

The following interview has been edited for clarity.

You’ve had a successful and varied career as an ultimate athlete, playing both nationally and internationally at the highest levels. In addition to developing yourself as an athlete and staying on top of your game, what first inspired you to invest your time and energy into coaching as well?

I was obsessed! Ultimate was all that I wanted to do or think about, and I wanted the world — and especially younger kids — to know about it. I also had the time, and had zero concept of life balance. So I started coaching the LASA High School team when I was just out of college. And then, as soon as I felt like I was far enough out from college to not be good friends with the players, I coached the University of Texas women’s team and the Kealing Middle School team concurrently. I think I was probably inspired by my dad, who had a demanding career and prioritized coaching my soccer teams all throughout my childhood and adolescence.

So much of ultimate’s sport development has been driven by passionate — you might say obsessed — players like you, whose love for the sport is contagious. What was it about your early experiences with this sport and this community that captured your interest and inspired that sense of belonging?

My experience with sports before ultimate was in competitive soccer, and it couldn’t have been more different in terms of team culture and community. My memories from soccer include being instructed how to pull jerseys without being seen by the referee and being told to pick up the ball when it went out of bounds, even if I kicked it out. While I know my experience doesn’t define the sport of soccer, and while I had good friends on the team, the team culture was not one based on respect, teamwork and a shared sense of purpose — because everyone was so focused on competing for playing time. 

I played pickup ultimate a few times in high school, and I felt confident with the field space and sprinting. I liked that it felt more collective. It made a strong enough impression that I came to the University of Texas with the goal of starting a women’s ultimate intramural team with people from my all-girls dorm, but I quickly found out that ultimate was not an intramural sport. One day I saw a few guys throwing in my dorm’s quad, and I went down from my room to ask to throw with them. It turned out they played for the men’s team, and they offered to bring me to practice that night for the newly founded UT women’s ultimate team. The tiny team was made up of older, wiser, inclusive, supportive and incredible women. Over the next couple of years, we built the UT women’s program together and the sense of building something meaningful with people I loved and respected was deeply fulfilling. In addition to training, and organizing all the logistics of a program, we grinded to recruit players and a coach, wrote a team constitution, established a governing board and hustled to raise funds — with little outside support. It was validating to achieve success together as the team grew and we won more and more games. 

The last thing that captured my heart was traveling to tournaments and meeting the larger ultimate community. Battling it out on the field, then writing cheers for each other after the game (and often playing games or partying together) was so wildly different from my previous perspective of “the opponent” and I loved how it prioritized relationships and respect over the result of the game.

You mention that in ultimate you found an inclusive and supportive environment. As a community we pride ourselves on that, but recent research from a Clemson University study of women matching players who have left ultimate indicated that not having an inclusive and supportive environment is a key factor in why women leave the sport. What role do you think coaching plays in creating inclusive spaces?

At the youth level, I think coaches have a lot of influence in creating inclusive and supportive environments for all players. As the age of the players increases I think the coach probably exerts less influence on team inclusivity in the social sphere since it’s a group of adults, but coaches still have important influence in the design of practices and game strategies that value both male and female matching players. 

In Austin, many girls from our middle school ultimate program would stop playing in high school when they got to a team where they were seriously outnumbered, or the team culture wasn’t inclusive, so we started a monthly all female matching pickup practice. Any female matching players were welcome, from elementary to high school, and some girls would drive from as far as San Antonio to play with us. It definitely helped our YCC U-17 girls team be more successful at the Youth Club Championships since they were developing their skills all year long and getting more touches than they traditionally did scrimmaging with high school boys. I believe it also helped retain female matching players on high school teams since they were building skills and confidence, and also building friendships with other female matching players across Austin. 

Our family moved to Costa Rica almost 2 years ago and my husband Mike and I started an ultimate program here at the school where we both teach, a half Costa Rican and half international school. We immediately had a large group of boys and a handful of girls sign up, and began to teach them the game in one hour a week sessions. By the second trimester, almost all of the girls had stopped coming. We tried multiple iterations — focusing on a smaller group who were really interested in learning the game, adding an after school extracurricular program, opening up the age range — and still by the end of the year there were zero girls still playing. 

After a year of building relationships, targeted recruitment, and bi-monthly informal beach pickup games, we started over this year and about a third of the kids are female matching! I think the small successes we’ve had can be attributed to setting high expectations for Spirit/sportsmanship and intervening when those expectations aren’t being met, designing practices where everyone can improve and feel successful (not just scrimmaging the whole time, when our younger female matching players don’t get thrown to as often) and providing the female matching players with opportunities to use their voice and lead. 

As a coach, how do you balance the desire for competitiveness with the need to allow everyone on the team a chance to develop as athletes?

I think it depends on the age of the players. At the youth level, up until late middle or early high school, I think it should be almost entirely focused on development since their bodies are still growing. The reality is that many of these kids are not going to play ultimate as their only sport, so I think the focus should be on developing basic athleticism, healthy habits around exercise and lifestyle, and fostering teamwork and self-esteem. I picked this up from my dad, the most competitive person I’ve ever known, because when he coached my soccer teams from age 4 to 13 he always prioritized equal playing time to foster development. Even as I entered the more competitive levels of Division I, he advocated for the players to play equally. 

Lastly, to manage the emotional toll of balancing development vs competition on a team, it’s important for the coaches to communicate expectations that align with the team goals at different points throughout the season. When I coached the YCC U-17 girls team in Texas, the coaches would communicate with each player before nationals about their strengths, what roles they were likely to play, and give them an idea of what kind of playing time they could realistically expect (shout out to my incredible co-coach Katie Herbers who was so good at doing this clearly and kindly). 

You’ve experienced almost every aspect of the sport of ultimate — from coaching kids to playing at an elite level. What aspects of the sport keep you coming back, and what changes do you hope to see for the next generation of players?

Have you ever done ‘dog drill’ with a group of kids? It’s the favorite drill of every team I’ve ever coached because, like ultimate, it involves competition, speed, spatial calculations, failure, perseverance and absolute elation when the disc is finally caught or a beautiful throw is made. Or have you ever been traveling somewhere unfamiliar and brought out a disc to throw, only to find yourself throwing with a gaggle of kids within a few minutes? Mike and I have traveled to nearly 30 countries, most of them with a disc in tow, and ended up throwing with dozens of children who don’t speak the same language but are drawn to the collective action of launching a disc in flight. Ultimate is collective, it’s fun and it’s fulfilling — that is why I keep coming back, as a player and coach. 

In terms of changes for the next generation, I hope to see more kids playing, and more female matching players and people of color playing and coaching. And as it becomes more “mainstream” with the increased visibility of professional leagues and broadcasts, I hope that the sport continues to remain in the hands of the players on the field (to make most of their own calls) and that the concept of Spirit of the Game, or sportsmanship, continues to be emphasized in the rules and practices.

Coaching HER^®

The found that organizations with trained coaches see a 40% higher retention rate among girls. To help ensure coaches in the ultimate community have access to the latest research and training modules on how to coach girls for success, 91���� has partnered with The Tucker Center, a research center and global thought leader seeking to accelerate change for girls and women in sport. Through this partnership the program Coaching HER^® was made available on 91����’s platform late last year. 

“The partnership with the Tucker Center Coaching HER^® program provides resources for 91����U coaches to better serve young female matching players,” said Sam Callan, 91���� Manager of Youth & Education Programs. “Traditional coaching methods may not support the issues young girls face in sports and the Coaching HER^® content can provide guidance on how to make ultimate a great experience for the girls, and the coaches.”

Coaching HER^®, a global program powered by Nike, is a toolkit that educates parents, teachers and coaches on how to better support girls in sports. Coaching HER^® also works hand-in-hand with organizations, researchers and advocates, to transform coaching environments and systems.

“Girls and boys experience sport differently, and that’s ok,” shared Alicia Pelton, Director of Coaching HER^®. “Understanding how girls experience sport is really important. Then you can start to educate coaches on what it’s like. Most coaches go off their own experiences, but sport was built a long time ago, by men for men. Now sport is evolving. Because many coaches lead from what they personally experienced in sport, they may not always see the game through girls’ perspectives. That’s why educating all coaches on girls’ experiences is so important.”

Common gender stereotypes held by coaches about girls in sport include believing girls are less competitive, less strong, and more emotional compared to boys. Research also shows coaches and parents often perceive girls as socially unsuitable to sport, compared to boys. These gender stereotypes can lead coaches to unconsciously undermine girls and their abilities.

“By building an understanding of existing stereotypes and biases in sport we can start to recognize what ours are,” Pelton added. “Think about how emotion might be coached in the case of crying vs aggression. It’s the coach’s job to support players in handling all emotions, but when some emotions are seen as more acceptable than others it can affect a player’s sense of belonging. Once you become aware that a bias exists, there is thought involved. You see where you fall and start to reflect and think differently. You move one step forward.”

So what does it look like to coach in a way that provides athletes both belonging and growth? Pelton shared a few Coaching HER^®  tips:

• First, recognize athletes as individuals. Girls will perform better when they feel valued and respected. Meet them where they are, and help them build on the strengths and skills they already bring to the team.
• Create an environment based on kindness and respect, where each player has a role and can build respect among her peers. Girls tend to want to be in a more cooperative environment, so it is important to make sure everyone has a role within the team.
• Girls want to see their progress, so focus on effort and improvement. Create an environment where effort and skill development is valued vs. winning as the only metric for success. 
• Embrace mistakes as part of learning. Coaches often miss what happens in a girl’s life outside of sport, where society and social media can create heavy pressures. Make sports a safe space where she is allowed and encouraged to make mistakes.
• Finally, and perhaps most importantly, listen. Girls play because they want to play, and they love the sport. Recognize the girls who are participating and ask them why they’re there, and what they need. When you understand what your team wants, you can remove the barriers to getting that.

Additional Coaching Resources

From Coaching HER^®

From 91����


Long Term Athlete Development

Coming back to sport following a severe injury is no easy feat, and one that many athletes decide not to attempt. In a recent Clemson University study of former women matching ultimate athletes, injury or fear of re-injury emerged as a decisive factor in why they left the sport. These athletes are not alone. Following ACL reconstruction surgery only 55% of athletes . But this changes at the highest levels, with 83% of Elite athletes returning post-reconstruction. 

To learn more about what drives athletes competing at the top of their sport to rehab and return, we reached out to Olympian and World Champion Stacy Gaskill to discuss how she overcame injury to stay among the best in the world at both snowboard cross and ultimate. 

Interview With Stacy Gaskill

Stacy Gaskill, of Golden, Colo., is a two-time Olympian having competed in snowboard cross at the 2022 and 2026 Winter Olympics. She is also a three-time Ultimate World Champion — taking gold as part of the 2018 World Juniors girls team, as well as the 2019 and 2023 World U-24 women’s teams. 

The following interview has been edited for clarity.

Coming back from injury isn’t a new experience for you, and it isn’t always a smooth road. Can you tell us about your latest recovery, any setbacks you experienced, and how you deal with an uncertain recovery timeline?

“This last rehab that I went through was definitely the hardest one of my career. I blew my ACL completely in December of 2024 and then had it reconstructed just before New Year’s, but it wasn’t straightforward.

Four months in I was lifting the heaviest I ever had and felt really strong. But it turns out my rehab had been mismanaged a little bit, so by the time we caught it I ended up with almost a 55% quad deficit and asymmetry to my right leg. Then I had a second surgery in May to clean up scar tissue, address pain and extension, and give me a better chance of making the timeline I needed for the Games.

I spent six weeks relearning how to walk with proper movement patterns and then the next 8 to 12 weeks relearning how to move in all the ways I’ve moved my whole life. It was really challenging given the timeline I had and the strength deficits I faced. I also dealt with some nerve stuff that was hard to diagnose and then to treat.

We finally got to a point in September where we kind of had to fast track the essential parts of rehab to give myself a chance to get on snow with enough time before the Olympic qualifiers. Come the beginning of November I had not finished all the elements of my rehab, but it was enough to be back on snow with restrictions and limitations — to do the best we could to try and make the Olympic team.

So I got back on snow mid-November and then have been doing my best to maintain strength and find the balance of performance and pushing myself, without putting myself in unnecessary risk. 

As far as an uncertain recovery timeline, I think that sums up the entirety of this last rehab. What grounded me on the really hard days when I found out I was set back months or wasn’t making the progress I needed to, I was able to hold myself to a high standard of effort. I would say ‘day by day’ and just remind myself that the work could be intentional. Each day was really important and it did make a difference. Even if it wasn’t super tangible, it was slowly getting me to where I needed to be. 

An uncertain recovery timeline is really challenging, especially when you have deadlines and you’re not sure if you’ll make them. But I had an amazing team around me who did everything in their power to get me to a point where I was safe enough and strong enough to compete and have a chance at the Olympics. And I got that chance, and I’m so grateful for that and for my team. Having that mantra and intentional presence made that uncertainty just a little bit more manageable.”

What keeps you motivated to not just heal from the injury, but to push to get back to elite performance in your respective sports?

“I’ve faced enough hard days and days where I wasn’t motivated and I didn’t have that excitement to show up and put in the work, that I’ve had to be really intentional about practicing discipline and learning that skill — because it very much is a skill. So while there is motivation sometimes and other times it’s a little bit harder to find, I rely on my practice of discipline and recognizing that the bigger picture holds more weight than the daily feelings and desires.

At the end of the day, I know that I can be the best in the world. I know that I have the physical attributes and that I can work just as hard, if not harder, to get to a point that gives me a chance to contend for that position. Knowing that I have an ability and opportunity to be in that position makes the discipline easier — to show up every day, even when I don’t feel like it. So I don’t know if it’s so much about motivation, but more about intention and awareness of the bigger picture. I love playing and I love competing whether that’s in snowboarding or ultimate and I love the opportunity to showcase the very best that I can be. Fighting every day to be better than I was the day before is really everything that I need.”

Recent research from a Clemson University study of former women matching players showed they didn’t leave ultimate because they had lost interest in the sport. Instead, injury and fear of re-injury are among the significant themes for why these players no longer compete. There is a certain level of injury risk with most competitive sport. How do you deal with the mental aspects of returning to competition after a major injury, knowing the risk is still there? 

“That’s a really interesting question. I have dealt with my fair share of pretty significant injuries, most of them are snowboard related. And so when I think of ultimate, I think there’s definitely not as much trauma associated with returning to sport because I wasn’t injured in that sport as severely, but I think it does translate across when you are considering the mental aspect of returning. 

It’s different from one person to the next. For me, I love to compete. I have always been the most competitive person in my family, the most competitive person in the room. I think that I’ve found myself with a lot of injuries because I do try to push the limit and I try to find just how much I’m capable of. I’ve overshot that a couple times or just found myself in the wrong place at the wrong time, and it’s kind of what happened with my knee. 

Coming back, I’ve had this drive to showcase what I’m capable of. Because I know it’s more than I got to show last time. It comes down to each person’s individual motivations and why they show up in a space. For me, I love snowboarding. I love ultimate. I haven’t yet gotten back onto a field, but the idea of running again and having the chance to be the best version of myself and make an impact in a space where my team counts on me is really exciting to me, and that is stronger than the fear of reinjury. 

The way I always look at it, and I’ve tried to practice a lot of intention in this, is that fear is always present and I think that it’s necessary. So I’m never trying to get rid of fear. I recognize that it’s there and it’s natural. And the more I fight it, the less presence I have to give to what I’m actually doing. Instead, I imagine I’m driving a car and fear is sitting in the passenger seat and it’s there, but I’m still the one driving the car. And that is this metaphor that has held true throughout most of my career. Recognizing that it’s present and it’s going to be no matter how much I fight it, but I’m still the one in control. And I think that applies to reinjury. There’s always a fear of doing it again, of doing it worse, of not coming back at the same level you were and not being better. But I’m still the one driving and I know what I’m capable of.“

What would you say to these women who are struggling to return after an injury?

“I would say spend some time with yourself outside of sports. Spend some time realizing what it is that drove you to be there in the first place. Something that I really focused on through this rehab was presence. Learning how I wanted to show up in spaces, how to be the person I wanted to be in those spaces.

I’m in sport because I love to compete. It’s an amazing outlet and I have these amazing communities and I love to see what I’m capable of. Those were my intentions to focus on and remind myself to be where my feet are — as opposed to worrying about what might happen, whether I make the team, whether I’m in this competition, whether I win. All of those things were distractions to why I showed up in that space in the first place. So that’s what I would say — spend some time with yourself without all of those distractions and learn what it is that drives you. And yeah, the risk will always be there, and I think that’s a great question that can apply to so many aspects in life outside of sport — is this worth the risk to be where I want to be?” 

You’ve had some big moments this past year with returning to the Cervinia World Cup course, qualifying for and competing in the 2026 Winter Olympics, and now continuing on with the World Cup circuit. Are there moments that stand out where you feel like “this is why I came back, this makes it all worth it”?

“Returning to Cervinia was a big moment for me because that is the course that I blew my knee on. The course actually holds a lot of significance in my snowboard career — it’s the first World Cup I was ever at, it’s the first time I ever raced heats in the World Cup. I ended up blowing my knee there last year and then that was the very first race back exactly a year later, and it was an Olympic qualifier.

So, showing up there — I definitely was overwhelmed with emotions and as much work as I tried to do with mindfulness and mental prep, there was still a lot sitting in the back of my head. Showing up and realizing that there was the same feature that I blew my knee on, on this course. And it turned out that qualifying day was exactly 365 days after I had done that. Even trying to block all that out, I was definitely  holding it as well. I ended up qualifying 11th and was able to run heats and finish with a top 10 which actually put me in a really good position for the Olympic team selection, on a course that holds a lot of emotional weight for me and that was huge.

Tenth place is not necessarily something that I’m striving for, in my normal World Cup dreams, but it was really significant in that it validated all the work that I did and all the moments where I was like ‘is this even what I want to be doing because I’m exhausted and the idea of coming back into this space feels like more than I can handle’. So, being able to put down a top 10 and be healthy and know that it was just the tip of the iceberg of what I was capable of this season was really big for me.

That moment of finishing and realizing that this is just the beginning is part of the reason why I came back. So far I have chosen not to give up and to continue to push those limits and see exactly what I can do. There was definitely a moment of release, realizing this is still reasonable after my knee and after what I’ve been through. I still have so much to give, and that moment being there really reminded me of that.

And then, getting to the Olympics. I don’t feel like I did what I would have liked to have done there, but I definitely went into the Games with a lot more perspective than I had last time. And that alone was such a win for me. I might not have put up the result that I wanted, but I had such an awareness of the opportunity and the fact that I worked really hard to get to that moment. It would have been a waste not to enjoy it, and so I did enjoy it. To be able to enjoy that moment regardless of the outcome was big for me — in my mental progression and my career and why I choose to be in the spaces I choose to be in.”

You had a tight timeline to recover and return to elite competition ahead of the Olympics. Now that you’re fully back to snowboard cross competition, do you have any plans regarding ultimate you can share? 

“I’m really not fully back. I probably still have 8 to 12 weeks of rehab to finish when I get back from the season, but we’ve done enough of the progressions where it’s a safe enough risk-to-reward ratio — or it’s a risk that I choose to take — to be able to finish the season. So I still have rehab to finish, which includes a return to run and sprint, change of direction, lateral progressions, and repeated impact, which is all pretty necessary for ultimate. So because of that, I unfortunately will not be ready for the club season this year. My goal was to be out in the Pacific Northwest and have the chance to try out for some of the women’s teams there. But I chose to prioritize the Olympics, which means that now I have to finish this rehab and I won’t be ready for those tryouts.

So, no club for me this season. I will start to work back into playing, getting up to full speed, feeling good through my knees and in cleats, getting a disc back in my hands. Then I’m really hoping to be back on the field and in the club division playing with my community next summer. And I don’t know, maybe PUL, maybe WUL. I’ll consider it, but it kind of depends how it lines up with our year. There’s a lot I still have to give in ultimate and I had to take a step back to prioritize these Games and then an even bigger step back with my knee. But I’m not done with ultimate and I am still so fired up just at the idea of playing whether that’s mini in the park or on the club stage or the national stage. So I am definitely going to fight for the opportunities to be in those spaces and to show up the best version I can be.“

Best of luck with the World Cup circuit, we’ll be watching and hope to see you return to the ultimate field soon!

Tips for Injury Prevention

According to a 2023 article from , there are four key steps female athletes can take to reduce the risk of ACL injury or reinjury.

• Train consistently. Stay active during the off-season. Use this time to work on strength and flexibility exercises that improve balance and coordination.
• Practice landing skills and direction changes. Proper mechanics are essential. When athletes make directional shifts or land without bending their knees this increases the chance of an ACL injury.
• Warm up before playing. A good warm up should incorporate sport-specific exercises and include time for stretching which helps prevent muscle strains.
• Strengthen muscles. Focus on strengthening muscles in the lower body and core. A strong core and hips can improve balance, while strong hamstrings and quadriceps work together to move and support the leg.

In addition to strengthening muscles it is also important to improve the coordination and control of the leg muscles so the athlete’s body is prepared to respond more effectively to the demands of the sport.

“A key consideration to keep in mind for athletes, coaches and parents when creating or participating in injury prevention programs is that they shouldn’t focus on just one type of exercise, but rather categories of exercises. There is strengthening, balance, core and lower extremity exercises and then progressions within each of those categories,” says Mary K. Mulcahey, MD — an orthopaedic surgeon and Director of the Women’s Sports Medicine program at Loyola Medicine. This program focuses on injury prevention and treatment for female athletes, as well as supporting them in maintaining a high level of athletic performance.

In a 2024 article on the importance of the ACL, why female athletes are at a higher risk for these injuries, and how to prevent and treat them, Dr. Mulcahey also calls out the importance of proper footwear. states that:

“The right footwear can make a significant difference in reducing ACL injury risk. Athletic shoes that provide adequate support and fit the sport’s specific demands can help in maintaining proper leg alignment and stability.”

Should an ACL injury occur, early diagnosis is key to preventing further damage and starting the path to recovery. A doctor can assess the extent of the injury — which can range from a mild sprain to a complete tear — and help ensure timely and appropriate care.

Learn More

91���� is committed to supporting the overall health, safety and well-being of the ultimate community. Understanding injury prevention strategies and signs of a potential injury can help athletes be proactive about their health. For additional information and insights on this topic, visit the Injury Prevention course on .