The countdown ends. Everyone runs towards each other, falling forward and ripping peoples’ dodgeballs right out of their hands. After immediately sprinting back, sometimes empty-handed, they get pelted with dodgeballs.

The yearly dodgeball competition, coined “The Snowball Fight,” was held in the old gym on Dec. 7 at 6 p.m., with eight competing teams of six students each. The winning team, and last year’s runner-up, was Bishop Sycamore, with the United Nations team scoring second place and Team Men scoring third. Bishop Sycamore was made up of juniors Blake Henson, Jacob Donovan, Tanner Grebey, Alex Watson, Caden Chapman and senior Porter Williams, who were led by junior Aden Kennedy. 

“It feels great for me and the guys to go out there and win, especially after getting second place last year,” Kennedy said.

The teams had very different ways of preparing. the Red Team prepared by having their family members chuck miscellaneous items at them and running 40-yard dashes. The Dodgefathers’ team leader, junior Grant Smith, stated he watched the movie “Dodgeball,” hoping to learn strategies from it. The Onesies team had the most extensive preparation routine, organizing time outside of school for friendly dance battles each day, a week in advance.

“Our preparations (dance battles) help to boost morale and increase team coordination and synchronization,” Onesies team leader, junior Nathan Dye, said.  

Some teams struggled to find members to recruit, such as the Red Team and team Iron Deficiency, which had around a 25% success rate in recruiting players. 

“I gave these guys all pep talks and prayed they all knew how to throw a ball, because if they don’t, it’s not going to be good,” Iron Deficiency team leader freshman Thomas Dean said. 

Though Bishop Sycamore won the event, the Snowball Fight has always been more of a way to spend time with friends than a strict competition. No matter how they place, it is still a ‘win’ for every team.