After nearly two years, gallons of gas, and plenty of last-second cancellations, the streak of 13 consecutive road games for the Western Dodgeball team will come to an end.
On Saturday, March 21 at 3 pm, fans at the Preston Center will be treated to the team’s first-ever home game.
And what a sweet relief it is.
As the captain and founder of the Western dodgeball team, it is with great excitement and joy that I look forward to a game without the worries of traveling.
The streak of road games has finally ended, and we now have a chance to start the proud tradition of defending home court and become a place where teams want to come play.
I always knew this day would come. But I never wanted to act prematurely.
During our first year, it was difficult to justify a home game when we didn’t have nearly enough guys to field a full team.
Road trips were preceded by dozens of phone calls as I tried to find people who were willing to play a game they’d never tried with guys they probably didn’t know.
It was a nightmare.
Then a new school year rolled around, and God decided to smile down on our pitiful little team.
I’d trimmed away some of the dead weight before the summer. Now, I was hoping our fall recruitment fair could bring the fresh faces our team needed to rebound after an 0-7 season.
It did. And then some. And then some more.
After a year of trials and tribulations, my team had finally come together just the way I had always hoped it would.
It was after we picked up some nice wins against in-state rivals UofL and UK that I knew the time was right for us to finally host our first game.
My good buddy Benjamin Sobczyk scanned the forums and found out that Miami University was looking to play some of the Kentucky teams this semester.
A couple phone calls later and it was official: on March 21, our team would make history.
The Facebook events we have put us at over 200 fans attending the game. I didn’t even know 200 people knew about the dodgeball team!
In order to make the game special, I’ve made arrangements for a cameraman and an announcer to be present at the game.
We’re even going to try a blackout among our fans!
Needless to say, my players are pumped at the opportunity to show their friends and family what college dodgeball is all about.
Come Saturday, we’ll have our chance to make history.
I never thought I’d see the day!