Sean Meenaghan
With the enthusiasm of over 150 SCSU students, the P.E Club sponsored dodgeball tournament brought great excitement to the Moore Field House Tuesday night. Chris Knickerbocker, an exercise science major that helped organize the event was hoping there would be a large turn out.
“It is a fundraiser for us,” Knickerbocker said. “We’re trying to go to the national conference in San Diego. Hopefully we make enough money so we can go out there.”
Not only was the tournament supposed to be fun, Knickerbocker said, he wants the Southern community to stay dynamic.
“It is all about promoting self fitness,” Knickerbocker said. “We want students to keep active and do physical activities.”
Stephen Buckett, a physical education major and along with Knickerbocker, contributed greatly to organizing the event, said he wanted to get the word out about the tournament.
“We wanted publicity,” Buckett said. “The trip is more expensive this year. The past two years had good success but we want to get the word out to students that live off campus.”
And that they did, almost an hour before the tournament kicked off, the lobby of Moore Field House was already packed with eager students waiting to try and take home the trophy.
Dr. James Rauschenbach, a professor in the physical education department and head of the P.E Club said this is something Southern students look forward to every year.
“This is a great social event,” Rauschenbach said. “It’s one of the biggest events on campus and we take pride in that.”
Rauschenbach said this is the third year the tournament has run and students want it every year.
“There is unbelievable feedback,” Rauschenbach said. “There is always good attendance, this years event looks like a good one.”
Rauschenbach said even though the tournament has been going on for three years; he is already seeing team traditions.
“There is history made,” Rauschenbach said. “Past champions come back from the previous years to try and win back the trophy.”
Buckett said the club has gotten help from faculty as well.
“Eric LaCharity who runs the dodgeball intramurals helped a lot,” Buckett said. “Eric posted the tournament on their website.”
After the chaos of trying to register 150 students was over, the tournament got underway, as teams competed on two courts.
The atmosphere was exhilarating as the teams competed with all of the waiting teams looking on and cheering.
Students showed off their athletic abilities by making quick catches and enormous leaps to dodge the balls.
Originally a single elimination, an announcement was made an hour into the event stating teams have a chance to get back in if they have already lost.
Once eliminated teams found out, many rushed over to the tables to find out how to get back in.
Along with dodgeball, Rauschenbach said the P.E. Club organizes other events throughout the year.
“We have volleyball coming up in February,” Rauschenbach said. “We also have the second annual stair climb.”
Rauschenbach said last year they got a bigger turnout for the stair climb then they did for the dodgeball tournament.
Knickerbocker said the stair climb is a great way to advertise staying fit.
“In the spring, the junior class organized the first annual Stair Way to Fitness Challenge,” Knickerbocker said. “It is a free event and is a great way to promote health and fitness and it takes place during the same time as the health fair.”