This zone is a take on the 3-3-1 that uses the 3-man cup to trap on the sideline, while the downfield defenders play man defense within their assigned areas. The primary goal of the cup is to trap once the disc on a sideline. Defender 1 is 10-15 feet off the mark, guarding the breakside. They should be aware if a handler is in their area and deny the break throw. Defender 2 is playing a loose no I-O mark and stalling. Defender 3 is taking away the immediate upfield space (between the lines) and should make sure no throws go between them and Defender 2. The 3 downfield defenders (mids) are playing man defense on any cutters that come into their areas. Their primary goal is to deny the NEXT throw. They're responsible for guarding players within their space. The last person is the deep deep. Ladies you will be the 1, 3 and 5.
In this setup, Defender 5 starts guarding anyone on the left side of the field behind the cup, similar to a hammer stopper. Defender 6 will play man D in the middle of the field and deny continuation throws when the disc is swung. Defender 7 will guard anyone on the right side of the field and deny continuation throws to their side until the cup sets the trap.
Once the disc is swung to the open side like this, the wall's primary job is to keep the disc on that sideline and deny any I-O throws through the cup as they set the trap. The downfield defenders on the open side (in the case 6 and 7) should be denying the immediate continuation throws to the open side by taking away any cutters in the open space until the wall can trap the sideline. It's important for the cutter defenders to communicate and switch off as cutters enter and leave their areas. REMEMBER: cutter defenders are taking away an area first and playing man D second.
As soon as the disc is dumped backwards and a continuation throw is made, the force of the wall switches to the other side. The middle and left downfield defenders (5 and 6) are now responsible for denying the continuation cuts when the disc is swung.
Defenders 5 and 6 should anticipate the continuation throw as soon as the disc is dumped and look to take away the next upfield throw as the wall moves to trap on the other sideline. REMEMBER: As soon as the disc is swung from the sideline or broken over the cup, the cup begins forcing to the other sideline. The Defender 3 (the upfield defender in the cup) is going to have to run a lot. Good luck Morgan!
Then it's rinse and repeat.
It's imporant to be aware of where the poppers are downfield. If the middle gets flooded, the 3rd downfield defender may have to swing to the middle to help until the wall is set again.
2 ladies will be the break side and upfield defenders in the cup, with a guy on the mark.
The middle defender and open side defender need to communicate when the disc is swung, to ensure 1 of them is taking away the short open side throw. The downfield cutter defenders are interchangeable, as long as communication occurs and everyone knows what area they are responsible for.