Category: Baller of the Month

March 2026 Baller of the Month

The Baller of the Month award is an award given monthly to a player voted on by their teammates to recognize all the hard work they have put into the team throughout the month. March’s winner is Ben Breidenbach! Here are his responses to some brief interview questions.

Q: How does it feel to be recognized by your teammates for this award?

A: It feels great to be recognized. I’m glad my efforts are being noticed and appreciated by my peers.

Q: What skill or skills have you been focusing on this semester?

A: I’ve been focusing on my ability to play with intensity and to be more of a presence on the court. As well as my ability to command my team and keep them playing hard and fast.

Q: What goal(s) do you have for yourself going into nationals this year?

A: This time around, I’m hoping to keep my thrown catches to a minimum to help my teammates.

Q: What is something you hope to see the team achieve or accomplish at nationals?

A: I’m hoping that my team can play together and keep the energy going. We have put in so much work this year and I’m really excited to see them against high level competition.

February 2026 Baller of the Month

The Baller of the Month award is an award given monthly to a player voted on by their teammates to recognize all the hard work they have put into the team throughout the month. February’s winner is Ethan Schmeling! Here are his responses to some brief interview questions.

Q: How does it feel to know that your teammates recognized you for this award?

A: It’s great to be recognized for how much work I put into getting better and how much it paid off for this month when I played.

Q: What skill or skills have you been focusing on this season?

A: I focused a lot on aim of where I throw and just my throws in general, along with my blocking to be way better than it used to be,

Q: What goal do you hope to achieve before the end of the season?

A: My goal is to be seen by other teams and for them to respect me in a way that they can’t just ignore.

Q: What are you looking forward to most going into nationals this year?

A: I’m looking forward to giving it my all at nationals and seeing what we can do as a team. I hope to get as many outs and wins as a team as possible.

December 2025 Baller of the Month

The Baller of the Month award is an award given monthly to a player voted on by their teammates to recognize all the hard work they have put into the team throughout the month. December’s winner is Griffin Johnson! Here are his responses to some brief interview questions.

Q: How does it feel to be recognized by the team for this award?

A: Good! It feels nice to be recognized on my way out the door.

Q: What advice do you have for everyone going into second semester?

A: Study hard. The feeling once you’re through feels amazing.

Q: What is your favorite memory from playing on this team?

A: My favorite memory is our win at nationals last year in the consolation bracket.

Q: Do you have plans to continue playing dodgeball in the future?

A: Absolutely! Just want to get adjusted to true adult life first.

November 2025 Baller of the Month

The Baller of the Month award is an award given monthly to a player voted on by their teammates to recognize all the hard work they have put into the team throughout the month. November’s winner is Dylan Fabry! Here are his responses to some brief interview questions.

Q: How does it feel to be recognized by your team for this award?

A: It feels pretty good being recognized for baller of the month and I definitely think I earned it at WMU by stepping up and being a leader.

Q: How do you think this season has been going so far?

A: So far this season feels a little slow as we haven’t been playing many games out of our region but over all things are starting to look pretty great.

Q: What are you hoping to see next semester?

A: For next semester I’m hoping that we as a team don’t forget too much and can hit the ground running once we are back.

Q: What advice do you have for the rookies going into second semester?

A: Keep up the hard work rookies and don’t be afraid to ask us vets for any advice/ ways to improve.

Congratulations Dylan for winning this award!

October 2025 Baller of the Month

The Baller of the Month award is an award given monthly to a player voted on by their teammates to recognize all the hard work they have put into the team throughout the month. October’s winner is Ben Breidenbach! Here are his responses to some brief interview questions.

Q: What are your thoughts on winning this award? How does it feel to know your teammates recognized you for this award?

A: It is a great honor that my teammates recognized me as Baller of the Month. My teammates have been putting in the work and playing well, which has allowed me to excel in my own ways.

Q: In what ways have you seen the team change since the beginning of the year?

A: Since the beginning of the year, I have seen my team grow as both individuals and as a group. We have been playing well together, which has allowed us to home in on the issues that have arisen. 

Q: What skill have you been focusing most on?

A: This season, I have been focusing on my court awareness and dodgeball IQ. I need to be able to see outcomes and plays to aid in play calling or controlling the court.

Q: What is a goal you hope to achieve by the end of the semester?

A: By the end of the semester, a goal I aim to achieve is placing my team in the top 20 standings and sending our winter graduates off with a few wins under their belt for the year.

Congrats to Ben, for winning this award! He always brings a positive attitude and has made a huge difference in our team’s dynamic.

September 2025 Baller of the Month

The Baller of the Month award is an award given monthly to a player voted on by their teammates to recognize all the hard work they have put into the team throughout the month. September’s winner is Ian Westrick! Here are his responses to some brief interview questions.

Q: What are your thoughts on winning this award?

A: It feels good to pick up where I left off last year. Trying to be the best I can on and off the court as a member of the team. 

Q: How do you think our first tournament went?

A: I feel like it went pretty well. It was good to see the rookies playing as well as they were.

Q: What team skills does the team need more work on?

A: We need to work on our court communication a lot more. While we played well, it could have been even better. It will come as the year progresses, but it would be nice to see a lot of it at UNL.

Q: What is a personal dodgeball goal you want to focus on?

A: I want to focus on my growth as a player. I want to try and improve every part of my game and grow more as a leader on the court.

Q: Do you have any advice for the rookies?

A: To just keep pushing themselves. They all got good potential.

Congrats again to Ian Westrick! Your hard work and dedication shows and is paying off!

April 2025 Baller of the Month

The Baller of the Month award is an award given monthly to a player voted on by their teammates to recognize all the hard work they have put into the team throughout the month. April’s winner is Jalen Sims! Here are his responses to some brief interview questions.

What are your thoughts on how the season ended?

I thought the season ended on a high note and I’m proud of our team.

How do you think Nationals went this year?

I thought nationals went great even though we fell short during Saturday to get to the championship bracket, I’m happy we managed to win the consolation bracket.

What growth have you seen in the team over the last year?

I’ve seen are team grow in every aspect from throwing to blocking and I hope our team continues to keep growing next season.

What do you hope to accomplish next year if you choose to continue with dodgeball?

If I return to Dodgeball next year, I hope to improve my throwing.

Jalen’s skill and knowledge has really helped move our team in the right direction. He is extremely competitive which helps keep the team moving, and his fun attitude during practice reminds us to have fun. Whether or not if he decides to continue his last year of college as an active player, we are proud of how far he has come and can’t wait to see where he’ll go.

April 2025 Rookie of the Month

The Rookie of the Month award is an award given monthly to a player voted on by their teammates to recognize all the hard work they have put into the team throughout the month. April’s winner is Ian Westrick! He is a currently pursing a degree in Marketing and expects to graduate in 2028. Here are his responses to some brief interview questions.

What improvements have you made over the course of the season?  Did you achieve any of your personal goals?

I was able to massively improve my knowledge of the game, along with other things such as throwing velocity and catching ability. I achieved most of, if not all, of the goal that I set of myself. 

What was your most memorable moment from the CSU national tournament?  Favorite moment of the season?

My favorite moment from nationals was either winning the consolation bracket or finally starting to put all of my ability together during the first GSU game. My favorite moment of the full season was probably one of my catches against UC.

What impact do you want to have in the NDA this summer?

I want to show what I can truly do while (hopefully) healthy against the highest levels of opponents. I also want to be someone that can be relied on to constantly be an important contributor to the team.

How do you hope to further develop your skills for next season? 

I want to improve my court awareness, throwing form, and stamina on the court to become my best self during games. 

Ian has shown insurmountable support for both our co-ed team and women’s team, and he has an incredible ability to connect with his fellow players. He has made great strides over the season while battling a previous elbow injury and developing his current throw. We are looking forward to the impact he will have on the new members we hope to recruit next season!

March 2025 Baller of the Month

The Baller of the Month award is an award given monthly to a player voted on by their teammates to recognize all the hard work they have put into the team throughout the month. March’s winner is Griffin Johnson! Here are his responses to some brief interview questions.

What aspects of the game have you improved most on since last season?

Overall, my throw has improved the most. There has been improvement in every facet of my skill as a Dodgeball player but I am definitely showing the most growth there. 

What are you most excited about for nationals this season? 

This will be my last nationals, so I am yearning to prove to the other teams that Platteville is a force to be reckoned with no matter our opponent.

What is one goal you hope to achieve by the end to this season?

I want to get a fully accurate throw that i can place anywhere; a bonus would be having it at 70 mph. I’d also like to get a catch in every game at nationals, but that’s more of a side goal.

How do you hope to impact the team for your shortened season next year?

Even though I’ll only be here in the Fall, I’m going to make it my goal to help with recruitment and helping the newer players, who will become our top players eventually, grow. 

We are incredibly proud of the improvements and leadership Griffin has displayed this year! He has shown great dedication and effort in the growth of our club and women’s team.

March 2025 Rookie of the Month

The Rookie of the Month award is an award given monthly to a player voted on by their teammates to recognize all the hard work they have put into the team throughout the month. March’s winner is Alison Draxler! She is a currently pursing a Mechanical Engineering degree and expects to graduate in 2028. Here are her responses to some brief interview questions.

What aspect of the game do you think you’ve improved most on since the beginning of the season? 

I have significantly improved on providing pressure for the rest of the team. I’ve learned that playing the center of the court and staying ahead of the rest of the team is a necessary part of our strategy. My biggest issue from my first tournament was my lack of confidence. I stayed back most of the time and was unable to pump fake at the opposing team. Now, my confidence has improved greatly, I am able to help the rest of the team, and I feel like I belong on the court. 

What is your proudest accomplishment of the season thus far?

My proudest moment this far is getting on the starting 12 for Pinch nationals. I still can’t believe how far I have come and how much I have learned in one season.

What is one goal you have for Pinch nationals?  No-sting nationals? 

A goal I have for Pinch nationals is to get at least one catch per game, even though I would be happy with any catches. And a goal I have for No-sting nationals is to increase my number of thrown outs per game. 

How do you hope to impact women interested in the no-sting team next year?

I hope to inspire the women interested in our no-sting team next year and show them how much fun dodgeball can be. 

We are immensely proud of the growth Alison has displayed both in technique and confidence. We can’t wait to see what she does next year after both national tournaments and as an RA!