Whether you’re a student athlete looking for a good workout or you just want to get off the couch and have some fun with your fellow students, the QU intramural dodgeball tournament held on Sunday at 7 p.m. in the QU Health and Fitness Center provided something for all.
The event coordinator, Barrett Price, a second year graduate student at QU is in charge of the intramural program. He organizes the events for all QU students to come out and enjoy this social activity.
“We are holding the event as one of the many events on the intramural calendar. The intramural calendar exists to provide QU students with an opportunity to participate in organized recreational events at no charge,” said Price.
The students came ready to play Sunday night. A few of the teams were already assembled, while the remaining students gathered together to form the remaining teams. The tournament consisted of four teams with six players on each team.
All teams were to play each other in a form of round-robin elimination, the winners would have to defeat all opposing teams twice to collect their prize, an intramural T-shirt and of course bragging rights.
The rules of the game were explained to the participants by Price with cautionary advice no head shots, for safety reasons. For the official rules of the game click this link. http://bit.ly/2kTy8NP.
The students looked very excited and eager to get the action started. Freshman Ian Berry was there to play and help with the officiating. He gets very excited about playing the game.
“I think dodgeball is just a lot of fun, it’s a good way to blow off steam and have a good time. It’s not often you get a free pass to throw something at you buddies. It’s a really good way to get adrenaline and your heart pumping,” said Berry.
Although it is the same game you played in grade school, it sure didn’t look like it. The tournament started with six dodgeballs in the middle of the court and two teams on each side at the baseline. The competitors faced off like Roman gladiators at the Coliseum in front of Emperor Nero.
When the whistle blew the teams raced toward the middle of the court grabbing a ball and hurling it with precision at their opponents to knock them out of the game.
This is a fast paced game, the players were running and throwing the dodgeballs at their opponents while simultaneously trying to avoid being hit to stay in the game. As in all games there were some disputes between the teams.
An infraction of the rules brought about fighting and arguing between the teams until the referee stepped in to give the official ruling. Senior Samantha Goble, was one of those who officiated the games to keep things civil.
“It’s fun watching others get riled up during the games,” said Goble.
When the dispute is settled its back to the fierce competition. The dodgeballs are flying so fast, as a spectator one might need to bring some protective head gear just to watch.
The best part of the event for most is getting the chance for some physical activity and have some fun. One of those students who felt this way is Aloysius Cooper, a freshman at QU.
“The exciting thing about the whole program is that college students stress about a lot, this program is for the student to forget about school for a minute and focus on some fun,” said Cooper.
The dodgeball tournament is a very exciting social activity for QU students to participate and enjoy. Everyone had a good time and there were no injuries, except for the bruised egos of members on the losing teams.
The winners claimed their victory prize, then began to plan their strategy for the next intramural event.
The next QU intramural event is 5 on 5 basketball scheduled for Feb. 12th at 7 p.m. in the Health Fitness Center.
The students enjoyed playing dodgeball and were glad they added it to the event line-up this semester.
“Dodgeball is specifically on the calendar because it hasn’t been done in awhile and some of the students expressed interest in participating. There are many reasons for students to enjoy playing dodgeball. This activity helps to build campus unity, it brings about student engagement and helps to facilitate social inclusion,” said Price.
So when the next event comes around, grab some of your friends and head over to the HFC for fun intramural activities that provide exercise and a chance to socialize with your fellow classmates.
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