Written by Nydia Ramos, Editor in Chief
It’s the summer of 2018. Indian Trail High School & Academy’s Key Club is having the first meeting of the school year and an idea strikes the mind of one its members: a student-run dodgeball tournament in which the proceeds go towards Kenosha’s Shalom Center.
Nearly a year later, the student, Cory Sparks, stands at the forefront of the event, handing the mic over to senior Emily Zank to sing the national anthem, kicking off the tournament once and for all. Nine teams of students from IT and other Kenosha Unified School District high schools would compete for first place and a trophy in their honor.
The tournament was set up with a round robin style first half and competitive bracket style in the second, a structure participants indicated they favored.
“I think it’s pretty organized for a first dodgeball tournament… I think it’s come together pretty well,” said Taylor Zorn, a Communications Academy senior at Indian Trail.
According to Indian Trail’s Key Club adviser Kate Martin, in order to make the tournament run as smoothly as it did, a lot of work was put into the planning and organization of the tournament.
“It took a lot of work. We started talking about it actually last summer… and for whatever reason, things fell through, like other sports tournaments, but Cory still held out hope that eventually we could have it and he kept pushing for it,” Martin said.
All of the work paid off, according to most participants who claimed to have had a lot of fun and enjoyed the vibe of the entire event. Matt Wendling, an ITA General Studies senior, shared his favorite part of the tournament: the audience. The onlookers made up of friends, IT staff members, and Key Club volunteers, consistently cheered on team members as players competed throughout each game. “It really brings a different aspect to the game and makes it more interesting. It makes it like a real sports event,” Wendling said.
Fun and games aside, the core reason behind the event was widely appreciated amongst the crowd of event-goers. The proceeds of ticket sales, concessions, and team sign ups were all donated to the Shalom Center. In total, Key Club gave the center a $560 contribution.
“I also really like that we’re donating so much money to the Shalom Center, it’s an organization that I really believe in,” Martin said.
As the tournament neared its end, things heated up on the court, setting the scene for an intense one-on-one blitz. Logan Dempsey and Alex Wajerski faced off in the last match that would decide tournament champion. As audience members drew in their breath watching closely to see who would prevail, Dempsey threw his ball first and richeted it off of Wajerski’s shoulder. This was the winning throw of Indian Trail’s first ever student run dodgeball tournament. Other students on the winning team included Fred Ferati, Dylan Connel, Argjent Ismaili, and Alex Jarvis.
All in all, the tournament was a success amongst its participants, volunteers, and audience members. Although the question of another one next year is still up in the air, it is certainly encouraged amongst the students.
“I think it’s a really good idea and we should keep the tradition going,” Wendling said.