MBy Kyle Burgess ’17

Members of the Class of 2017 found themselves dodging, ducking, and diving from a barrage of dodgeballs on Tuesday, February 23 at Chaminade’s annual Junior Dodgeball Night.  Donning a wide variety of costumes such as stockings, decorated t-shirts, ghillie suits, face paint, and wigs, students displayed enthusiasm throughout the course of the evening.  

The event began with a delicious dinner of fresh salad, exquisite penne alla vodka, and homemade chocolate chip cookies for dessert in the school cafeteria.  

“The food was amazing, and I was glad to crack some jokes with my friends before having to face off against them in the tournament,” said Paul DeMasi of homeroom 3C.

After satisfying their physical hunger, the students began to crave some athletic action in the form of bombarding their best friends with dodgeballs.  Homerooms battled it out in a chutes-and-ladders style tournament, with each team playing three rounds of dodgeball before the semifinals.  The students, 325 in total, were soon met with a hail of  dodgeballs in the crowded, boisterous gymnasium. Those students who were knocked out of their games cheered on their classmates to victory as the night progressed.

As the number of remaining homerooms thinned, the atmosphere was only electrified by the announcement of the semifinals.  The junior class rocked the entire school building with the shouts of encouragement directed towards friends on the court.  Eventually, the finals came down to homerooms 3F Firestorm and 3K Kodiaks battling it out for the ultimate bragging rights.  After an intense, nail-biting match, the Kodiaks came out victorious as the champions of the night.  

Despite only one homeroom coming out on top, all of the students who participated in Dodgeball Night enjoyed a fantastic evening filled with food, fun, and friends.

Emmet Chapey, member of the 3C Convicts, fondly remembered the night as one he would not forget.  “The atmosphere of the evening was like no other. To be surrounded by a sea of extravagant outfits in the midst of controlled chaos was a truly unique experience.”  

Junior Dodgeball Night event has set high expectations for the junior trip to Six Flags Great Adventure later this spring.  Many juniors are already marking their calendars in anticipation for another fun-filled class event with their fellow Flyers.

Congratulations to the 3K Kodiaks, the 2016 Junior Dodgeball Night Champions!