The Spartan Spitfires were set to advance to single-elimination matches Sunday after playing each of the teams in their respective groups.

The cup’s championship match was scheduled for 6 p.m. Sunday night.

In its Saturday games, MSU beat Stony Brook University 130-80 before taking down Virginia Tech 90-60.

The Spitfires continued their winning ways against Villanova University, beating the Wildcats 120-60 before losing 130-60 to Big Ten rival University of Minnesota.

Quidditch is a sport first popularized in the Harry Potter novels, written by Rowling. In the books, teams of seven players compete on flying broomsticks.

Three chasers attempt to score goals in large hoops guarded by a keeper. Two beaters aim to dislodge and distract opposing chasers by hitting Bludgers — speeding balls that target players.

Throughout the game, a seeker attempts to catch the Golden Snitch — a small, flying ball whose capture ends the game.

In the “muggle” — or non-magical — version of the sport, seven players still compete, albeit by running around with broomsticks between their legs, not flying in the air, and the Snitch is replaced with a person carrying a ball.

Quidditch first gained popularity in the U.S. at Middlebury College in 2007.

The game now is regulated in some areas by the International Quidditch Association, a nonprofit organization which sets rules and releases news updates about the sport.

The competition was fierce throughout, said anthropology senior Bailey Reidinger, the team’s headmistress.

“During our third game, we lost a player to a hard collision with a Villanova player,” Reidinger said in an email.
“Otherwise, we’re pretty happy with how (Saturday’s) games went.”