HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. — Getting hit square in the face with a rubber ball may not sound like a ton of fun, just based on that description. But that’s just part of the unabashedly chaotic joy that comes with playing the game of dodgeball.

What You Need To Know

  •  Wes Peters started the dodgeball club at the University of Cincinnati, then came to start the one at NKU two years ago.

  • NKU competes in the National Collegiate Dodgeball Association, which focuses on university-based clubs throughout the country

  • They are actively looking for women to play on the team and also trying to raise money to get to the South Cup

  • For anyone who’s never played, the game is also best explained by Patches O’Houlihan: “Dodge, duck, dip, dive and dodge"

Some may think dodgeball playing days are over once high school ends, but for a squad at Northern Kentucky University, they’re just getting started.

Patches O’Houlihan once famously said in the movie “Dodgeball,” “If you can dodge a wrench, you can dodge a ball.” Head Coach Wes Peters isn’t that cruel to his team NKU, but he doesn’t take it easy on them either.

“It’s a kids’ game, right? So making it competitive, I think a lot of people find fun in competitive sports, and making dodgeball competitive in my mind is like the coolest thing ever,” Peters said.

It’s been a dodgeball life for Peters. He played in high school and college.

“Dodgeball has always just been a thing for me. I can’t really say why. I’ve just always loved it,” he said.“Dodgeball has always just been a thing for me. I can’t really say why. I’ve just always loved it,” he said. “All the way from elementary school to latchkey after school, we had dodgeball. And then all the way through high school, dodgeball Fridays were a big thing.”

That’s why he started the dodgeball club at the University of Cincinnati, then came to start the one at NKU two years ago.

“Starting new clubs can often be a challenge unless you have a student who’s interested in doing it already,” Peters said. “Finding Will here was a big catalyst in making that happen.”

Will Strong, a senior at NKU, is a former baseball player.

“He got my baseball coach’s contact information. And then my baseball coach sent him my stuff,” Strong said. “He just kind of introduced it as, ‘Hey, do you want to play dodgeball?’ And it sounded fun enough for me. And I was looking to play competitive sports.”

Strong helped get others on board.

“He just asked me to come one day, and I’ve been hooked ever since,” Hunter Theissen said. 

It was a similar story for Sean Cancel.

“Hey, I used to play this in elementary school. I had fun doing this. So I’ll try it out again, and it’s got me hooked. I’ve been here ever since,” Cancel said.

Strong plans to go to law school. But before life gets too serious, he’s going to keep having fun.

“It’s good that I know I’m gonna get to see my friends at least twice a week and do something other than school. You can de-stress and not have to worry about, ‘Oh I got an assignment’ or ‘I got a test this weekend’ or whatever. You can just go out here and play dodgeball,” Strong said.

NKU competes in the National Collegiate Dodgeball Association, which focuses on university-based clubs throughout the country. There are currently about 40 teams in the association, all of which are student-run. The season runs the length of the academic year, and the teams compete in regional sub-divisions; NKU plays in the south region. Each year culminates in regional and then national championships. They are actively seeking women to play on the team and also trying to raise money to get to the South Cup.

“The brand of dodgeball that we play here in college and this NDA league is pound for pound the most intense, competitive, exciting brand of dodgeball to play and to watch,” Peters said.“The brand of dodgeball that we play here in college and this NDA league is pound for pound the most intense, competitive, exciting brand of dodgeball to play and to watch,” Peters said.

For anyone who’s never played, the game is also best explained by Patches O’Houlihan: “Dodge, duck, dip, dive and dodge.”

“I really like dodging. I love dodging a team throw, four or more players. That gets me really excited. And I also like getting people out, too,” Cancel said. “I like the strategy that’s involved. There’s so many different thoughts that run through your head on the court at all times.”

Braylon Patton, another former baseball player, prefers to throw.

“I’m a big thrower. I think I’m a pretty good thrower on the team, I hope,” he said.

Despite the growth of the sport, in the eyes of many, it’s still a kids’ gym class game. Rather than fight against that, players at NKU embrace their inner child, but are also confident more and more people will start to take it seriously.

“I can definitely see the sport getting more and more popular. I feel like more people are starting to look at it more. And I really think this club will be pretty good,” Patton said.

Peters feels the same.

“Being in a more niche sport, dodgeball has its unique challenges with recruiting… and quirks and lovable things,” he said. “We have to kind of sell it to people as like a fun social aspect as well as: this is something that’s competitive, and you can come and really make a lot of friends, and really spend your whole collegiate life being a part of.”

It’s also good for letting out a little frustration.