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September 26, 2006

Oozeball 2006

The 17th tournament coats students with a layer of mud, school spirit

Story by: Alexandra Crosby

The Shorthorn staff

Sounds of mud flying filled the air as students dove to save the ball Friday at the 17th annual Oozeball tournament.

Before the tournament began, teams sat on the bleachers covering their shoes with duct tape. One of the rules of Oozeball requires that students play while wearing their shoes, so the tape is for protection.

The Student Alumni Association and Campus Recreation, which started planning the event in July, sponsored the mud-filled tournament. Proceeds from the tournament fund scholarships through the association.

Jordan Jones, the association’s special projects director, said this was her first year to help plan the event.

“It was a lot of work planning for it,” the marketing junior said. “Looking out here and seeing everyone playing makes it all worth it.”

Teams rushed to the portable showers after finishing their matches to rinse layers of mud out off their clothes, shoes and hair.

The Shorthorn: Megumi Rooze

Psychology freshman Beth Waibel, left, and nursing junior Amy Rodriguez wrestle in the mud Friday.

Biology senior Lorena Campos said her final goodbye to the mud, celebrating her last year playing Oozeball on the team Estrangeiros, which means foreigners in Portuguese.

“The mud feels awesome,” she said. “It’s squishy, and then the mud dries, and it cracks on your face. I remember the first year I played Oozeball. It was very exciting because I didn’t know what to expect.”

Advertising senior Ryan Hoopes, who played on the Ambassador team, said Oozeball is one of the university’s most memorable traditions.

“I come out here every year,” he said. “This is my fourth and last year playing one of my favorite events I ever played in my college life.”

Even those who weren’t playing on a team had a chance to get muddy during the tournament.

Mechanical engineering junior Brian Waugh attended the event to support his fellow Sigma Chi fraternity brothers. Waugh, a recent transfer student, had never seen an event like Oozeball and said he will participate next year.

“I just got cleaned up, because I got tackled by five of my pledges,” he said. “I’m pretty sure I got close to the center of the earth, because I got stuck in the mud pretty good.”

The Mudder Effers and the Sigs & GDIs were the last two teams competing in the championship round. The Mudder Effers were crowned champs of the mud volleyball tournament.

Industrial engineering junior, Erin Partee, who had never played Oozeball before, played on the Sigs & GDIs team, finishing in second place.

The Shorthorn: Dominic Bracco

Nursing junior Zack Gonzales reaches for the ball Friday during Oozeball. Rally scoring and regular volleyball rules applied to the games that constantly ran on four courts.

“I didn’t expect it,” he said. “We played a lot better than I thought we would. The mud feels really cool until it dries, and then it hurts. It wears you out whenever you are caked in mud.”

Biomedical engineering senior Mustafa Shinta was on the winning team. After the first game, he said the team knew they were headed toward the championships.

“We won, of course, and it feels great,” he said. “I’ve been playing every year since my freshman year and never won it all before.”

English senior Jeff Bethkey was shocked when he won the tournament’s first-ever award for most valuable player.

“The best part of Oozeball is I get to be a kid again,” he said. “A 21-year-old five-year-old.”