Rand Insurance Has Unique Ties to The New York Empire
At the end of the American Ultimate Disc League season in 2017, Barbara Stevens, President of Rand Insurance, and her family, made a commitment to become the majority owners of the NY Empire team. Since that time, the ultimate disc team has become a dominant force in the league with two undefeated seasons and winning their second Championship in three years this past weekend in Madison, WI by defeating the Chicago Union 22-14.
“When we decided to become the majority owners of the NY Empire at the end of the 2017 season, our family made a commitment to strive to make the NY Empire the best franchise in the American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL) says Barbara Stevens, Owner + President of the NY Empire and President of Rand Insurance based in Riverside, CT. “Our original goal was to provide the players a professional experience, and to do that we had to build an organization that would support them in that manner. We immediately set out to put the best infrastructure and organization in place, as we could, with coaches, trainers, food, and equally important, back office staff, consisting of operations, logistics, marketing, etc. We work hard to improve every day, both for those team members on the field and those in the supporting roles. This weekend showed us, we are on the right path, as we have had, since 2018, four Championship weekend showings, one runner up finish in 2021, and two undefeated seasons, resulting in winning the Championship in 2019 and 2022. We will not rest on those laurels. We are just getting started!”
Barbara’s son Matthew has been on the Empire since inception in 2013 and was a key factor in their decision to take over the team. Matthew currently holds the following league designations; #4 Goal Scorer in League history, with 311, #2 in league history of games played with 130, and #14 in league history in plus/minus, a stat used by Ultimate as an overall indicator of performance; with more to come!
“We brought our best game,” AUDL finals MVP Jack Williams, and Rand Insurance employee, said after the game. “That’s what great teams do; they bring their best game at the most crucial moments. Really all the credit goes to our defense. I think it’s the best defense of all time.” Williams had five assists and two goals and led the team in total yards committing just a single turnover. Jack was named the MVP of Championship weekend.
Following their dominant Championship Weekend performance, the 2022 Empire will go down in the history books as the fourth undefeated champion in league history and have cemented themselves in the discussion for the best team all-time. After following up their 2019 title and 2021 second-place finish with another championship, they can credibly claim to be the greatest dynasty in the league’s young history. With no signs of slowing down, the Empire might have more history to make in 2023. (this paragraph is from article on Ultiworld.com by Alex Rubin)
The American Ultimate Disc League is an ultimate frisbee league in North America with 25 teams in the US and Canada. The AUDL was founded in 2010 and played its inaugural season in 2012 with eight teams. Regular season games are played April through August and can be watched on AUDL.tv, with many on Fox Sports.
Ultimate is a fast-paced, exciting sport that combines rules and playing styles from many of the most popular competitive sports. Ultimate is played in many formats around the world at all competitive levels. For many years there have been middle and high school leagues, D-I and D-III college competitions, as well as Club National and International championships. The American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL) is the premier professional Ultimate Disc League in the United States. The link below provides more information and video that describes how to play ultimate disc.