By Stephanie Huynh | Contributor | smh2026@jagmail.southalabama.edu
Dodgeball is a unique sport that involves throwing, dodging, aiming and a tiny bit of running. I’m not the greatest at any of these things, but that didn’t stop me from registering my own team for the Spring 2022 season of intramurals.
South uses IMLeagues to create teams for all of the intramural sports, schedule games, keep scores throughout the season, vote for MVPs of each game and more. I was somewhat familiar with IMLeagues from playing flag football last semester, but I hadn’t used the site as a captain, so that required a bit of an adjustment period.
Dodgeball is one of the new sports that was added this semester for intramurals. I’ve chartered a co-rec team, meaning there must be three girls and three guys on each team in order to play. If you’re wondering, our team name is “Balls N’ Dolls.” I thought it was clever.
The games are played at the Student Rec Center in the indoor soccer court. If you’re like me, and you forgot where that was, it’s downstairs near the ping pong tables and the rock wall entrance. (Fun fact: there are also secluded punching bags down there!)
Luckily, I don’t have to head the team by myself. I’ve got a great co-captain named Daniel, who I met in high school during – get this – a dodgeball game. Other than that, our team is composed of friends that I met during my first semester of college, and I’ve loved getting to play dodgeball alongside them. The games don’t get too competitive either, so the experience is very pleasant with low stakes.
Since each team is on opposite sides of the court, we didn’t need specific jerseys or colors to identify us. We check in with the referees before each game with our Jag IDs and start playing once both teams arrive. Sometimes, teams will forfeit by default if they don’t show up on time.
So far, we’ve played four games, and each of them has been very quick. Dodgeball is set up to have five matches per game, best of three. All of the rules are the typical ones that you find in grade school gym class: if you’re hit, then you’re out, balls that bounce before contact are dead, try not to hit people in the face and don’t argue if you’re out.
For me, dodgeball has been very exhilarating. Each game gets my heart rate up, but I also get tired very quickly. It’s both physically and mentally draining. I’m not the strongest thrower, so my shoulders feel worn out by the end of the second match. You have to stay on your toes and watch the entire court at all times; otherwise, you’ll get taken by surprise and be hit out.
As classes progress and get tougher, I can only hope that the Balls N’ Dolls are able to finish the season strong. If not, then we’ll definitely make the most of our time together and gear up for the next season of intramurals.
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