Erik Zander

College Dodgeball Championship Belt

The following was written by content writer Matt Gonzalez (UNL). Throughout the history of the NCDA, there have been a variety of methods used to determine who the best team in the league is. The league has come a long way from the power rankings of its early years to the current hybrid system of the Gonzalez and Champ systems. One thing has remained constant though, there have always been critiques of the rankings systems. What if there was a simpler solution? What if there was a way to track an undisputed best team at any given time?

Thus, the concept of the College Dodgeball Championship Belt is born. A lineal championship belt, one that only exchanges hands when one person wins a head-to-head matchup, is used in sports like boxing and mixed martial arts. What would the history of the NCDA look like if this is how the top ranked team was determined?

Zanderthon Throw-Down 7 Recap

The annual Zanderthon Throw-Down took place on February 25th at the Univeristy of Wisconsin Platteville. It was an event between current members and some familar faces from the alumni. Even though it was just Platteville and its alumni, it made for a fun and exciting day of competitive dodgeball. Let’s take a look below at the results on the day.

Zanderthon Throw-Down 7 Preview

It is another weekend of dodgeball and Platteville is hosting the the 7th annual Zanderthon Throw-Down on February 25th. Although, this time around it will just be the current players vs the alumni, we are still expecting to see some exciting matchups and some entertaining dodgeball. The day will start out with a full NCDA match between the current team and alumni followed by mixing up teams to compete in a 6v6 round robin tournament that will end with the top two teams in the championship match! Let’s take a look at each of the teams below and the schedule for the day.

Grand Valley Gauntlet IX Recap

On February 4th, Grand Valley State University held the Grand Valley Gauntlet IX. The teams in attendance were Grand Valley State University, Michigan State University, and the University of Wisconsin-Platteville. The day gave us a glimpse into what we can look forward to from these teams this semester. Below are the results for the day and a breakdown for each team.

Grand Valley Gauntlet IX Preview

On February 4th, Grand Valley State Univeristy will be hosting the Grand Valley Gauntlet IX. The following teams in atttendance will be: Grand Valley State University (GVSU), Michigan State University (MSU), and University of Wisconsin Platteville (UWP). Below is the schedule for the day and a breakdown of each of the teams.

Northern Invasion- Dodgeball Outside the NCDA

On December 10th and 11th of 2022, NCDA alumni players Joeseph Walsh and Kris Haas hosted the Northern Invasion at Cleveland State University. Joe and Kris are currently part of the Spartans USA Dodgeball Team and this team participates competitively in the USA Dodgeball premier circuit league. For this tournament format, the USA Dodgeball ruleset was used. This is a different format on smaller courts that have other ball types besides 8.5 rubber (foam, no-sting, and cloth). It was an event put on to provide an opportunity to play some more dodgeball before the end of the year and for NCDA players to experience a different format and meet former NCDA players and players outside the league.

The weekend consisted of four divisions: No-sting, 8.5 open, cloth, and 8.5 pinch. No-sting and 8.5 open were played on Saturday and cloth and 8.5 pinch were played on Sunday. There were 12 teams for the no-sting, 10 teams for cloth, 8 teams for open 8.5, and 7 teams for pinch. On the weekend, there were roughly 95 participants: a total of 38 current NCDA players, 31 NCDA alumni players, and 26 Non-NCDA players (a total of 13 NCDA teams were represented). 29 out of the 38 current NCDA players played in all 4 divisions, and 16 of the 31 NCDA alumni players played in all 4 divisions. The winners of each division are as follows: open 8.5 and cloth DMV Grizzles, no-sting Windy City Corruption, and 8.5 pinch the Spartans. Let’s hear some of the thoughts on the event below.

November 2022 wROTM – Abby Emery

Since September 2019, the NCDA has been recognizing rookie players that make a statement on the court through their skills, leadership, and ability to mobilize a team. For the first time in NCDA history, there is a Women’s league and with comes another opportunity to recognize the women in the league for their accomplishments and stellar play. Our Women’s Rookie of the Month goes to Abby Emery of the University of Akron. She has improved considerably as the season has gone on and will continue to be an asset for her team going forward. Ethan Lehmkuhl (Ohio State) took some time to interview this exceptionally talented player. Take a look at the interview below:

Fiscal Year 2022 Mid-Year Results

As a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, we would like to invite all of our organizational members to look at our Fiscal Year 2022 finances to see the year that the NCDA is having up to this point. Our fiscal year runs from 7/1/2022 to 6/30/2023.

Falcon’s Ladies Invitational

We are very excited that in one month, on Saturday, January 28 2023, Bowling Green State University will be hosting the first ever Women’s Only College Dodgeball tournament featuring the new women’s no-sting division ruleset. Modeled after the USAD rules with a little NCDA flare (yes, there will be soft boundaries), we are ready to get the women of the NCDA the attention and gameplay they deserve.

Dr. Peter Broe Classic Recap

On December 4th, Western Michigan University held the inaugural Dr. Peter Broe Classic. This tournament was named after Dr. Peter Broe, the founder of the club, to say thank you for all the hard work he put in to get the club up and running. Broe provided several students with a great way to make friends and take a little stress out of college life, and instilled his love of dodgeball in them. This tournament was great for getting the Wisconsin teams involved with the Ohio and Michigan teams, below are the results.

Dr. Peter Broe Classic Preview

On December 4th, Western Michigan University will be hosting the inaugural Dr. Peter Broe Classic. This tournament was name after Dr. Peter Broe, the founder of the club, as a way to say thank you for all the hard work he put in to get the club up and running. Peter provided several students a great way to make friends and take a little stress of college life and instilled his love of dodgeball in them. This tournament will see the nine following teams in action: WMU, GVSU, CMU, SVSU, CUW, Kent, OSU, UWP, and MSU. Below is the schedule for each court and a breakdown of each team.

Pioneer Classic III Recap

On November 12th the University of Wisconsin Platteville hosted the following the following teams at the Pioneer Classic: University of Nebraska Lincoln, Cleveland State University, Western Michigan University, and Concordia University Wisconsin. The Pioneer Classic saw a lot of matches that normally don’t happen outside of nationals so it was a great weekend for the different regions to compete against each other. Concordia University is now officially a part of the NCDA! Below are the results and thoughts from the day.

Pink Out VII Recap

This past weekend the University of Akron held the 7th Annual Pink Out tournament and it did not disappoint! There were several good games and a lot of surprises that most were not expecting. This tournament gave us a better idea who the top teams are in the league and what we should expect at future events. Let’s take a look on how each team did on the day as seen by Kathryn Mays (OSU) and Ethan Lehmkuhl (OSU).

Pioneer Classic III Preview

This Saturday, November 12th, the University of Wisconsin Platteville (UWP) will be hosting the follow teams at the Pioneer Classic: Cleveland State University (CSU), Western Michigan University (WMU), University of Nebraska Lincoln (UNL), Concordia University Wisconsin (CUW), and some washed up alumni. This will be the first time ever that a team from the Michigan or Ohio regions will have ever traveled out to play at the Pioneers’ home court. This will also be CUW’s first ever tournament and another team joining the league! Below is the schedule and highlight of the teams.

October 2022 wROTM – Annie Larson

Since September 2019, the NCDA has been recognizing rookie players that make a statement on the court through their skills, leadership, and ability to mobilize a team. For the first time in NCDA history, there is a Women’s league, and this is the first month women are receiving their own individual spotlight. After a stellar performance at the Cornhusker Clash on October 8th, the first Women’s Rookie of the Month ever goes to Annie Larson from the University of Wisconsin – Platteville. Annie impressed teammates and spectators alike with game-changing catches, leadership skills, and overall dodgeball IQ. Caleb Newell took some time to interview this rising player; take a look at the interview below: