The Saint

Story by Luke Muvrin, Guest Writer

A major hit in 2022, costume dodgeball returned last week in Alksnis before Saints Slam. Team Dennis took home the 1st place prize after dominating the competition and going undefeated in all 5 games.

Team “Dennis” holding up their target gift cards after beating team “Tourists” in the final.

Dodgeball kicked off at 8 p.m. with ten teams entering in an assortment of different costumes, everything from The Wizard of Oz cast to a group of students dressing up as cops and robbers. 

Even though the costumes were humorous, the tournament was not. Jake Pearse, a resident assistant who reffed the games commented on the level of competition. Pierce said, “It’s funny how college students are this wildly passionate about a game we grew up playing in middle school.” 

Spectator Connor Eilar stated, “Team tourists put up a good fight, and there were some controversial calls, I am not sure if they deserved the win tonight.”

The controversy over the poor calls was echoed through the losing side’s captain Chase Richards. Who said, “My team was not expecting to do well, but when a possible win gets stripped away from you by something out of your control it hurts the soul.” 

In an interview with Ethan Barker, a resident assistant who referred to the games, he stated, “I understand the losing side is upset, but there are not many of us, which makes it difficult to see every hit.” Mr. Barker faced some angry fans and players throughout the event but handled it well. He stated, “It doesn’t get to me, I understand their concern, but I am doing my best with the tools I have.”

The event was not taken over by this controversy, as many students were able to enjoy the unofficial pre-party to Saint Slam. The environment was enjoyable as described by Richards. When he said “Dodgeball is exciting, mixed with the music and free pizza made an overall good experience. It was nice to see so many students gathering to watch the dodgeball games on the mezzanine and around the track of Alksnis.”

In addition to dodgeball, the students had access to a video booth, a DJ and dance floor, and of course, free food. The video booth was sponsored by 131 Entertainment company and provided the fun of photo booths but with an added twist. A large camera would spin around the participants, a clear crowd favorite as the line was wrapped around the mezzanine. 

Aquinas student Femi Ojutalayo was DJ’ing the event and kept the party moving. Ojutalayo also DJ’d Saint Slam which took place later that night. Many students enjoyed the event, one junior even stated “I hope dodgeball becomes an annual thing, I think we need some good competition.”