Gracie Hoidal stood in Royal Brougham Pavilion, dodge balls flying past her. Around her, students cheered their support for their favorite teams, some even acting as makeshift coaches, yelling instructions. The floor was speckled with sweat. Grunts and umphs came from students hit in the stomach, legs, arms, the occasional stray ball to the head.
And she loved every second of it.
βDodgeball is definitely the most fun,β Gracie says. βPeople get super intense. Itβs a great stress relief from classes.β
Gracie, a sophomore living in Emerson Hall, has worked for since winter quarter of her freshman year.
She has competed in volleyball and badminton, and has taken some yoga classes, but she notes how many people she has met as a result of competing and working with intramurals. For her, intramurals are a way to build friendships. βItβs a great way to get involved with people,β she says. βIf you donβt have a set team you can easily meet new people.β
Last year, SPU had over 1,200 different students compete in intramurals, with a total of 683 different games played.
For Intramural Director Adam Finch, itβs all about creating a great atmosphere for everyone involved. βFor me itβs very simple β [Itβs about] joy. That joy comes from Christ. Just creating communities and participating in a community with others is super important.β
Both Adam and Gracie stress that you donβt have to be athletic or good at sports whatsoever in order to have a good time. There are leagues for all sports, at all skill levels, for all people.
Each quarter, students can choose from around 15 different intramurals β competitive or recreational β including:
- Basketball
- Dodgeball
- Soccer
- Ultimate Frisbee
- Spikeball
- Volleyball
- Flag Football
- Badminton
- Settlers of Catan
- Yoga
- Zumba