Saturday, April 26, 2014 Story and photos by Will Murnan
The annual dodgeball tournament returned Thursday as nine teams fought to become 2014 dodgeball champions. The rules were simple. Two teams of twelve would battle for five minutes. Whoever had the most players on the court at the end of regulation would move on in the double elimination tournament.
As the tournament moved on, one by one, teams were getting eliminated and the two strongest teams, Mystery and Bailey’s Army went toe to toe in the finals. It was a back and forth game with both teams eliminating opposing players. As time ran out, the game was tied 3-3. Danny Hobbs, a sophomore on Bailey’s Army, would come up in the clutch in overtime to help Bailey’s Army come out as champions.
“I just kept getting people out. It was a great team effort,” said Hobbs. Bailey’s Army had a simple yet effective strategy: “We wanted to get their best player out every game. We would always double and triple team their best player and it worked out,” he said.
The money raised for the event will be donated to the Cancer Walk for Coach Brenda Adams. “We raised $328.00. We were very happy for that.” said Michael Miller, a teacher and Student Council advisor.
“This was a great event for charity” said Hobbs. “It was a great idea and we raised a lot of money.”
“What I liked about this year’s tournament was the sportsmanship and the high level of competition,” said Miller, who has helped run the tournament for the past six years. “Seeing how much the students enjoyed it really stood out to me. This is a thing that will always be here at Saratoga.”
Will Murnan is a senior and The Lightning Rod‘s social media manager. He also covers sports.