They run. They throw. And they're glad to be back at it.

This weekend, both the men's and women's Penn State ultimate Frisbee teams competed in their first tournaments since their one-year suspension.

"I'm just glad to be in the game again," co-captain Owen Ricciardi (senior-history) said. "I missed it."

In 2005, the clubs held their annual Spring Fling tournament the first weekend of April.

But they encountered unexpected cold and rainy weather and canceled the tournament after playing three rounds.

However, their games damaged fields behind the State College Area High School, and Judicial Affairs revoked the club's status a couple days before the college sectional tournament, said co-captain Keith Stern (junior-engineering sciences).

"We were in a good position to get to the highest level," Stern (junior-engineering sciences) said. "A lot of the senior members missed their chance."

The teams must also pay about $12,000 in fines for the damage to the fields and for the relocation of the high school's football team. Because the men's team is larger, they agreed to pay 75 percent of the fines, team president Kevin Richman (senior-international politics and economics) said.

The team held no functions last year, so they do not qualify for financial assistance through the university.

This year, the team plans on paying half of the fines with membership dues, fundraisers and donations from alumni, Richardson said.

Women's co-captain Stacey Janz (senior-bioengineering) said the team thinks twice before playing again in wet weather.

"We definitely don't want to damage any fields again," Janz said. "It's something we consider every time we go on the field."

But Janz said she expects the 25 members of the women's team to go far this season.

"We've recruited a lot of very athletic players," she said. "We should be one of the top teams this year."

This year, the biggest challenge is teaching inexperienced players, said members from both teams.

"We've been practicing for three hours every night and trying to get ready for this weekend," team member John Montelaro (senior-secondary education) said.

"We recruited a lot of sophomores who don't have as much experience," he said.

So far, the men's team has recruited about 50 prospective players, and no one is ever cut from the team, Stern said.

"Some people can't make it every practice, and I tell people to make it to as many practices as they can," Stern said.

"Teaching the game is a big thing for us. The sport is still developing, and we want to get people interested," she said.

Pittsburgh University men's ultimate Frisbee co-captain Stu Kellner said he's excited to have the chance to compete against the Penn State team again.

"They're one of our main rivals," Kellner said. "College sectionals was a lot less competitive without them."