Tonight's the night! The final night of Dodgeball Intramurals at my school.
I'm commissioner for the league, so it's going to be a heavy responsibility to make the best calls I can.
My old team is the first seed in the tournament, after an undefeated season.
We were an ok team, but would always lose in the final round.
three semesters running, we got into the top 2 and then lost!
They're all graduating in two weeks so this is the last chance they have to win the championship t-shirts!
The other teams in the finals are really good too! I'm going to record the games and post breakdown's of the teams/games here!
I'll add a cooler photo later
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Saturday, April 21, 2012
Aggressive Playing - Why the "Bad" Players Should Make the BIG Plays
Aggressive Playing - Why the "Bad" Players Should Make the BIG Plays
Lets be honest, Dodgeball is an aggressive sport. Many players have likened it to war. It is a battle of teams, but also an individual battle. You need teamwork, but many incredible plays come down between the skills of two opposing players being put toe to toe.
One of the most important things you can do while playing is being aggressive. Especially if you are one of your teams worst players, the best thing you can do for your team is make a really aggressive play. Now many players may find this to be a bit paradoxical. What I mean by this, is that the "bad" players, should rush at the line and try to take control of the court.
It really comes down to a game of numbers. If you look at a game of dodgeball based on balls having a value of 1 and players a value of 2 or maybe 3, you can calculate a rudimentary "score" that each team has. It's a good way to calculate who has the better advantage.
Here's a little story: I was running a dodgeball league, I had some pretty mediocre players on my team against a team who had one really good player, named Jeff. Jeff has abad habit of standing right at the line after he throws, making him a really easy target.
We had a girl on our team, and...she was pretty bad. Jeff threw a ball at her, and she deflected it. She was also standing right near the line.
Jeff and the girl couldn't have had more than 7' between them. After Jeff threw the ball, the girl motioned to throw at Jeff, but hesitated when a guy on Jeff's team ran up to the line to defend him. He threw the ball and she got out.
I went over to the line and asked the girl why she didn't throw. She didn't have a very good reason.
Jeff was obviously a lot better than she was. If she had gotten out, but still thrown the ball before getting hit, essentially trading herself for Jeff, we would have gotten a HUGE advantage.
By sacrificing a mediocre/bad player for their best, our whole team would have been in a much better situation.
Rush The Line.
It may be crazy, but it's actually a pretty decent strategy. If you stay slightly crouched over, and run, with a ball right at the line, when the opposing team has a player at the line, you are going to force them to make a play. Perhaps they'll throw the ball at you. Chances are, you'll block it. The odds are pretty high that you'll hit them. And if you don't, at least you got control of the main line, pushing the other team back.
If there is one player dominating the court with his presence, pick your lankiest, fastest player on your team, give him a ball, and tell him to run as fast as he can at the guy on the other players team the second he lets go of the ball. It's basically a guaranteed out. Everyone has something valuable that they can contribute in a game of dodgeball.
Think about it, if you keep the other team away from the middle line, how are they going to get any powerful throws? As long as you don't throw anything catch-able, you have control of the whole game!
Seriously, try this. Next time a good player is controlling the court, standing at the line, take a ball (if you want to be safe, have two players with balls run up together, so one can protect the other one) and run headfirst, and FAST at the line. Force the play. Be aggressive and take control of the game. Teams that play aggressively can be beaten, they aren't used to be taken advantage of, so just one play that shakes them off their game usually is game deciding. Try it out sometime. You'd be surprised at how sacrificing yourself to take their best player out works!
Lets be honest, Dodgeball is an aggressive sport. Many players have likened it to war. It is a battle of teams, but also an individual battle. You need teamwork, but many incredible plays come down between the skills of two opposing players being put toe to toe.
One of the most important things you can do while playing is being aggressive. Especially if you are one of your teams worst players, the best thing you can do for your team is make a really aggressive play. Now many players may find this to be a bit paradoxical. What I mean by this, is that the "bad" players, should rush at the line and try to take control of the court.
It really comes down to a game of numbers. If you look at a game of dodgeball based on balls having a value of 1 and players a value of 2 or maybe 3, you can calculate a rudimentary "score" that each team has. It's a good way to calculate who has the better advantage.
Here's a little story: I was running a dodgeball league, I had some pretty mediocre players on my team against a team who had one really good player, named Jeff. Jeff has abad habit of standing right at the line after he throws, making him a really easy target.
We had a girl on our team, and...she was pretty bad. Jeff threw a ball at her, and she deflected it. She was also standing right near the line.
Jeff and the girl couldn't have had more than 7' between them. After Jeff threw the ball, the girl motioned to throw at Jeff, but hesitated when a guy on Jeff's team ran up to the line to defend him. He threw the ball and she got out.
I went over to the line and asked the girl why she didn't throw. She didn't have a very good reason.
Jeff was obviously a lot better than she was. If she had gotten out, but still thrown the ball before getting hit, essentially trading herself for Jeff, we would have gotten a HUGE advantage.
By sacrificing a mediocre/bad player for their best, our whole team would have been in a much better situation.
Rush The Line.
It may be crazy, but it's actually a pretty decent strategy. If you stay slightly crouched over, and run, with a ball right at the line, when the opposing team has a player at the line, you are going to force them to make a play. Perhaps they'll throw the ball at you. Chances are, you'll block it. The odds are pretty high that you'll hit them. And if you don't, at least you got control of the main line, pushing the other team back.
If there is one player dominating the court with his presence, pick your lankiest, fastest player on your team, give him a ball, and tell him to run as fast as he can at the guy on the other players team the second he lets go of the ball. It's basically a guaranteed out. Everyone has something valuable that they can contribute in a game of dodgeball.
Think about it, if you keep the other team away from the middle line, how are they going to get any powerful throws? As long as you don't throw anything catch-able, you have control of the whole game!
Seriously, try this. Next time a good player is controlling the court, standing at the line, take a ball (if you want to be safe, have two players with balls run up together, so one can protect the other one) and run headfirst, and FAST at the line. Force the play. Be aggressive and take control of the game. Teams that play aggressively can be beaten, they aren't used to be taken advantage of, so just one play that shakes them off their game usually is game deciding. Try it out sometime. You'd be surprised at how sacrificing yourself to take their best player out works!
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Field Advantage - Why Catching is the Most Important Thing
Alright, this'll be a little tough to explain. It should be easy to understand for anyone who plays games like chess or checkers or trading card games like magic the gathering or yu-gi-oh.
Now, this is basically a rule of thumb, but, the team with more players and more balls on their side of the field is more likely to win. I think just about everyone can agree with that.
Lets take a look at some numbers.
Lets say each person has a value of 2. and a ball has a value of 1. The balls are important, but having players on the field is even more important. They have the real potential to get people out.
Right now, blue team has a "score" of 10. 8 for the players and 2 for the dodgeballs.
Green has a score of 9. They have a lot of balls, as they should. Even though the numbers are so close, they are clearly losing, since they only have 2 players to their opponents 4. They don't want to give their opponents free range with throws.
But now, BLUE makes a throw and Green catches it!
All of a sudden, the score is Blue - 7 and Green - 11! They got a player, and a ball. and the opposing team lost a ball.That's a +5 advantage off one catch!
In an earlier post, I mentioned the importance of momentum. Since Green team has almost all the balls, they should easily throw one or maybe even two players out at this point, which would more or less result in winning the game
I'll post some videos explaining field advantage some more later. Comment below what you think!
Now, this is basically a rule of thumb, but, the team with more players and more balls on their side of the field is more likely to win. I think just about everyone can agree with that.
Lets take a look at some numbers.
Lets say each person has a value of 2. and a ball has a value of 1. The balls are important, but having players on the field is even more important. They have the real potential to get people out.
Right now, blue team has a "score" of 10. 8 for the players and 2 for the dodgeballs.
Green has a score of 9. They have a lot of balls, as they should. Even though the numbers are so close, they are clearly losing, since they only have 2 players to their opponents 4. They don't want to give their opponents free range with throws.
But now, BLUE makes a throw and Green catches it!
All of a sudden, the score is Blue - 7 and Green - 11! They got a player, and a ball. and the opposing team lost a ball.That's a +5 advantage off one catch!
In an earlier post, I mentioned the importance of momentum. Since Green team has almost all the balls, they should easily throw one or maybe even two players out at this point, which would more or less result in winning the game
I'll post some videos explaining field advantage some more later. Comment below what you think!
Momentum is EVERYTHING
A game of dodgeball isn't like building a house of cards. You don't do it one piece at a time. In a typical game, the course of a game is usually decided within a few seconds.
Similar to a sword fight, or a game of chess, the field gets built up to a tense situation. but the big play of the game will usually happen with multiple players getting out within a matter of seconds. This play is 95% of the time, game deciding.
Usually it begins with a catch. After the initial catch, a player on the same team makes a throw and gets another player out. All of a sudden, the court changed by a factor of 3. (One player in on the catching team, and two players out on the other team.) In my experience, I've been involved win momentous plays garnering field advantage of as much as 7 (maybe more. more on this later.)
When looking back on a dodgeball game, you can usually see the exact moment where the game is won. It is usually within a ten second window where one team capitalizes off their plays.
The prime example of this can be seen in this video at 2:04. We are down 6-2 at 2:04.
Similar to a sword fight, or a game of chess, the field gets built up to a tense situation. but the big play of the game will usually happen with multiple players getting out within a matter of seconds. This play is 95% of the time, game deciding.
Usually it begins with a catch. After the initial catch, a player on the same team makes a throw and gets another player out. All of a sudden, the court changed by a factor of 3. (One player in on the catching team, and two players out on the other team.) In my experience, I've been involved win momentous plays garnering field advantage of as much as 7 (maybe more. more on this later.)
When looking back on a dodgeball game, you can usually see the exact moment where the game is won. It is usually within a ten second window where one team capitalizes off their plays.
The prime example of this can be seen in this video at 2:04. We are down 6-2 at 2:04.
My team is almost out of the game, and within 20 seconds we turned the whole game around and won.
It's all about capitalizing off of one play. Any moment can be the turning point in a game of dodgeball. The important thing to remember is that a team almost always becomes weaker the second one of their players gets out. If you get a player out the split second after another player gets out, you expand the teams weakness. Literally cutting the wound wider and wider until you bleed the other team dry. It's good stuff.
I've also been on the other side of this phenomenon as well. There's nothing worse than your opponents riding the momentum of a game right into your face. Like when a player on one side of you gets nailed with a ball, you turn to look at them and then you get hit and then a player throws one and it gets caught and then they throw another ball and get another player out. At this point, its basically gg.
The point behind this post is this: If any player on your team makes a big play, NOW is the time to go balls to the wall, it's time to shift gears and play really aggressively. You will completely dismantle the opponents defense and get the win.
Friday, December 2, 2011
Pro (Throw) Tips #2 - Backhand Throw
Hey everyone, coming at you with another throw tip post. Check this video out!
It's definitely a smart strategy to use alternative muscles after your primary ones get tired.
I gave this throw a try, and it worked out great! (Maybe its because I play frisbee but the throw motion was very natural for me.)
I'll give you guys more links over the next few days to other sites with valuable dodgeball tips. My hope is that this blog becomes the hotspot for Everything Dodgeball on the internet!
Shoutout to frgt10drgn for letting me use his video!
It's definitely a smart strategy to use alternative muscles after your primary ones get tired.
I gave this throw a try, and it worked out great! (Maybe its because I play frisbee but the throw motion was very natural for me.)
I'll give you guys more links over the next few days to other sites with valuable dodgeball tips. My hope is that this blog becomes the hotspot for Everything Dodgeball on the internet!
Shoutout to frgt10drgn for letting me use his video!
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Pro (Throw) Tips #1 - The Two Ball Throw
Hey, YOU! Take a look at this throw:
Neat stuff, huh?
If you want to take this throw to the next level, try to not bounce the first ball, or try to hit two people.
Let me know if you tried this out!
(I'm the guy on the right in the electric blue t-shirt)
Neat stuff, huh?
The cool thing about this throw is that you don't necessarily have to be ambidextrous to try it out. (I was taught how to throw with my right hand at a young age).
The first ball should be thrown near the opponents feet so that it bounces in front of them. This would serve as a distraction for you to throw the second ball with your dominant hand.
The first ball should be thrown near the opponents feet so that it bounces in front of them. This would serve as a distraction for you to throw the second ball with your dominant hand.
Now you might ask, "why not just make two throws with the same arm?"
Well, first off, the first throw is a great bluff, but the better reason is for speed. After making the first throw, your body is almost perfectly set up to make the second. Your opponent also is a little more focused on the first ball thrown. Having the ability to pretty rapidly fire two balls at an opponent gives you a huge advantage in the game - not to mention it's pretty unexpected.
Well, first off, the first throw is a great bluff, but the better reason is for speed. After making the first throw, your body is almost perfectly set up to make the second. Your opponent also is a little more focused on the first ball thrown. Having the ability to pretty rapidly fire two balls at an opponent gives you a huge advantage in the game - not to mention it's pretty unexpected.
If you want to take this throw to the next level, try to not bounce the first ball, or try to hit two people.
Let me know if you tried this out!
Monday, November 7, 2011
Formation Analysis - "Staggered Formation" vs. "Flying V"
We have all heard it before; "There is no "I" in TEAM." A team must work together if they want win. If you help your team mates out in a game, you are much more likely to stay in a lot longer. There are many ways to go about this and one way is by standing in a formation with your teammates.
Location is crucial to staying in the game for a long time. Where you stand on the court affects the efficiency of your throws as well as the moves your opponent makes.
For Example:
Standing at the line will probably push your opponent to move back. (it also improves your chance of making a good throw- you're wasting energy throwing from mid-way)
Standing next to a teammate with a ball will deter your opponent from throwing at you.
A player is at their most vulnerable state immediately after they make a throw. Their center of gravity is thrown off, making it difficult to dodge or catch. This weakness is remedied by having a teammate with a ball nearby. If one player makes a throw, all the nearby player has to do is take a quick step forward. This move, simple as it is, will make the opposing players hesitate, giving your teammate just enough time to recover.
It is so easy to do: before you throw, make sure you have a teammate with a ball to watch your back.
Alright, onto the formations:
Stagger Formation
Probably the most commonly used strategy in the game. A team spreads out on the court, not only horizontally, but also vertically. Every player is able to see the entire court and has plenty of room to dodge and retrieve balls. Having players spread out across the whole court, a teammate can move to a spot that is most advantageous at the moment.
Despite being an incredibly easy formation to use as it requires little to no communication- the Stagger has its downsides. Theoretically, it works out. But my experience with this formation is that players invariably get in each others' way (especially when backing up). Because of a lack of communication or order to this strategy; players can get distracted, or one player can become isolated from a group-making them an easy target.
"Flying V" Formation
A slightly more complex formation, where two players each stand up at the front line in the corners and the rest of the teammates line up further back until they converge about back-mid court creating the shape of a V. Using this formation puts a lot of pressure on the opposing team.
How This Works: Basically, the players in the front always have a ball. The players in the back of the "V" retrieve them and pass the balls forward. Having players stand at the front line may sound ridiculous if not downright stupid, but if the players in the 1 and 2 spots on the Left and Right sides have balls, one player winds up defending the other. If the front player on the left side (we shall call him/her 1L from now on) makes a throw, player 2L has a ball, and is ready to defend if an opposing player attempts to make a move.
This is risky since you are always leaving 2 players right at the line of fire. The formation is absolutely deadly for an aggressive team with really good arms and should be used when one has the lead in the game. Having players at the line on both sides of the court makes it difficult for the opponent to know where a ball will come from.
The biggest weakness of the Flying V is ball control. The opposing team is very very unlikely to throw at you while in this formation, so once you run out of balls, you might as well say good-bye to players 1L & 1R.
Both formations definitely have their benefits. Above all, a strategic formations purpose is to help your teammates out and I strongly endorse the 2 man ball defense strategy I described at the beginning of this article.
What we learn is that there is a time and place for different formations. The Flying V can be very effective at the beginning of the game if you have the majority of the balls as a way to quickly whittle down your opponent.
The Stagger Formation is a good strategy if you need to make a recovery, and should be used as such.
Well, that's all I got for now. Check back for discussions of more strategies later!
Location is crucial to staying in the game for a long time. Where you stand on the court affects the efficiency of your throws as well as the moves your opponent makes.
For Example:
Standing at the line will probably push your opponent to move back. (it also improves your chance of making a good throw- you're wasting energy throwing from mid-way)
Standing next to a teammate with a ball will deter your opponent from throwing at you.
A player is at their most vulnerable state immediately after they make a throw. Their center of gravity is thrown off, making it difficult to dodge or catch. This weakness is remedied by having a teammate with a ball nearby. If one player makes a throw, all the nearby player has to do is take a quick step forward. This move, simple as it is, will make the opposing players hesitate, giving your teammate just enough time to recover.
It is so easy to do: before you throw, make sure you have a teammate with a ball to watch your back.
Alright, onto the formations:
Stagger Formation
Probably the most commonly used strategy in the game. A team spreads out on the court, not only horizontally, but also vertically. Every player is able to see the entire court and has plenty of room to dodge and retrieve balls. Having players spread out across the whole court, a teammate can move to a spot that is most advantageous at the moment.
Despite being an incredibly easy formation to use as it requires little to no communication- the Stagger has its downsides. Theoretically, it works out. But my experience with this formation is that players invariably get in each others' way (especially when backing up). Because of a lack of communication or order to this strategy; players can get distracted, or one player can become isolated from a group-making them an easy target.
"Flying V" Formation
A slightly more complex formation, where two players each stand up at the front line in the corners and the rest of the teammates line up further back until they converge about back-mid court creating the shape of a V. Using this formation puts a lot of pressure on the opposing team.
How This Works: Basically, the players in the front always have a ball. The players in the back of the "V" retrieve them and pass the balls forward. Having players stand at the front line may sound ridiculous if not downright stupid, but if the players in the 1 and 2 spots on the Left and Right sides have balls, one player winds up defending the other. If the front player on the left side (we shall call him/her 1L from now on) makes a throw, player 2L has a ball, and is ready to defend if an opposing player attempts to make a move.
This is risky since you are always leaving 2 players right at the line of fire. The formation is absolutely deadly for an aggressive team with really good arms and should be used when one has the lead in the game. Having players at the line on both sides of the court makes it difficult for the opponent to know where a ball will come from.
The biggest weakness of the Flying V is ball control. The opposing team is very very unlikely to throw at you while in this formation, so once you run out of balls, you might as well say good-bye to players 1L & 1R.
Both formations definitely have their benefits. Above all, a strategic formations purpose is to help your teammates out and I strongly endorse the 2 man ball defense strategy I described at the beginning of this article.
What we learn is that there is a time and place for different formations. The Flying V can be very effective at the beginning of the game if you have the majority of the balls as a way to quickly whittle down your opponent.
The Stagger Formation is a good strategy if you need to make a recovery, and should be used as such.
Well, that's all I got for now. Check back for discussions of more strategies later!
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