For the first time ever, a group of York County high-schoolers are going to the state championships for Ultimate

Taylor Jordan, from left, Chance Rohrbaugh and Brandon Leschinskiy, all 17, leap for the Frisbee as the York Suburban High School Ultimate Frisbee team practices at Kingston Park in Springettsbury Township on Sunday. The team has qualified for the state championship tournament and is looking for sponsored to help pay for the trip. (John A. Pavoncello photo)
Frisbee.

But they might not make it to the event if they can't find a sponsor.

Team captain Brandon Leshchinskiy, a senior at York Suburban High School, said many of the other teams going to the competition are part of a school-sponsored teams with coaches and uniforms.

Leshchinskiy and about 20 other students from York Suburban are self-organized.

They got started by playing Frisbee in their neighborhood. Soon, their group grew so much they began playing organized games at Kingston Park in Springettsbury Township.

Record: The team's record this season was 7-3. To qualify for the state championship they played in five games, recording wins against Lampeter-Strasburg, Lancaster Country Day and Solanco, but losing twice to Downingtown East.

"People view it as a novelty often, but if you take away the Frisbee and replace it with a ball, it's really difficult,"

said Leshchinskiy. "And actually the Frisbee makes it even harder."

Most of the team members play other sports too, Leshchinskiy said.

"It's good to play other sports because all of them translate well into Frisbee," said Ryan Myers, a junior at York Suburban. "Ultimate Frisbee is a crossover sport."

Leshchinskiy said skills such as sprinting, jumping and endurance are all put to the test during a game of Ultimate Frisbee.

How to play: To play Ultimate Frisbee, two teams compete at getting points by throwing the Frisbee to a teammate in the end zone -- similar to football. Players aren't allowed to run while holding the Frisbee, but they may pivot.

During the state championships, games will be played to 15 points -- which are gained when the Frisbee makes it to the end zone. If they don't reach that mark, the game is capped after an hour and 15 minutes, said Leshchinskiy.

"You have to get the Frisbee into the end zone," he explained. "But you can't move when you're in possession of the Frisbee, and possession switches when the Frisbee hits the ground or the other team catches it."

They play with seven players in the competitions, he said.

Only seven teams from the region made it to the state championships, which will take place Memorial Day weekend in the Lehigh Valley. They are the only team from York County and will compete in four games of pool play on Saturday, and move into bracket play on Sunday, Leshchinskiy said.

For more information or to sponsor the team, contact Milana Leshinsky at 717-385-8222.

-- Reach Chelsea Shank at 505-5432 or cshank@yorkdis patch.com.