Congratulations to SWS Graduate, Declan Miller ‘22 on receiving the most prestigious, “D-I Men’s 2025 Player of the Year” award from Ultiworld, acknowledging his place at the very top of the nation’s collegiate ultimate scene. A rising senior at Carleton College in Minnesota, Declan has been one of the most inspiring ultimate players since his start in middle school at SWS, where his unbeatable combination of grit and enthusiasm had him labeled as a rising star from the earliest days on the field. You can read the full Ultiworld article here.
Declan Miller playing for Team USA
Declan Miller is credited with the turnaround of Carleton’s men’s ultimate team (CUT.) Following a several-year slump, this fabled team once again holds the National title for collegiate ultimate. Reflecting on Declan’s influence on CUT as a new-arrival in 2022, Edward Stephens on ultiworld.com writes, “Enter Miller, the human embodiment of an inflection point. Dauntless, high-spirited, and technical from the moment he put a cleat on the line, his attitude and on-field prerogatives immediately rubbed off on the rest of CUT. A hyperbole that rings with truth: Miller remade CUT in his image from the start. CUT never gave up on a play because their star freshman never gave up on a play; they never passed up promising scoring opportunities because the rookie would never let the moment escape without a try; they never wasted a possession because Miller kept setting an example through the stubbornness of his own reset cuts and throws; they continued to press on defense because Miller never gave it a rest. With Miller as the spark, the program was poised for a turnaround.”
Declan was also among four Seattle Waldorf School alums to represent the USA on the U-24 (under 24) teams at the World Championships this past June in Spain. Declan and Cedar Hines (‘24) played on the Open team; Chagall Gelfand (‘23) and Zsa Zsa Gelfand (‘25) played on the Women’s team. The Women’s, Open and Mixed teams all brought home gold! Declan shared, “I am very grateful to my teammates and coaches from the SWS ultimate community who taught me the values which propelled me to become the player I am today. It is so exciting to see all of the other Waldorf grads doing big things too.”
Chagall Gelfand on the field in all weather!
Which brings us to other SWS teammates who are also excelling in the sport!
Chagall Gelfand attended SWS through 8th grade and now is also a star on Carleton’s women’s ultimate team, Syzygy. Ultiworld recognized Chagall last year as Rookie of the Year and this year she was voted the D-I Women’s 2025 Offensive Player of the Year and the 1st runner up for Player of the Year. Ultiworld writers, Edward Stephens and Graham Gerhart describe Chagall’s offensive play this season: “She was always there, always ready: moving the ball, moving her defender, moving her receivers, finding the reset space, leaving her feet, attacking, attacking, attacking. If there was a play to be made, you could be sure Gelfand would make it. If there was a yard to be gained, you could, in perfect serenity, bet your life savings Gelfand would gain it (and then some).”
Other SWS graduates making a name for themselves in the sport are Elijah Diamond (Western Washington class of 2025) who was the 2nd Runner-Up for Offensive Player of the Year. In his first year playing for Western Washington, Cedar Hines (class of 2028) was voted 2nd Runner-Up for Rookie of the Year this year and we can expect more accolades during his college career as well! Together, Elijah and Cedar helped Western Washington reach their first nationals appearance in a decade and their first ever quarterfinals ever.
Congratulations to our alumni players! We are so proud of the hard work that you’ve put in and we celebrate your successes!
