The Grand Valley State University dodgeball team once again reigned over the collegiate dodgeball world.

The team traveled to Bowling Green University for the National College Dodgeball Association Championships last Saturday and Sunday, where the Lakers won their fourth national championship in a row.

“I’m just ecstatic because this is the first time in a long time that we have actually played as a real cohesive team,” said GVSU senior captain Jimmy Stokes. “We were battling issues with teamwork the entire year and that was probably the biggest reason why we lost at the beginning of the season.”

That loss was the club’s first since 2006 and came at the hands of Central Michigan University.

The team opened the tournament against the University of Wisconsin-Platteville and came away with a 6-0 victory. The Lakers then advanced to face rival Ohio State University in the semi-finals, where they defeated the Buckeyes 3-0.

In the finals, GVSU got the chance for revenge on Central Michigan. Facing the team that handed the Lakers their first loss was motivation for senior Jeff Olsen.

“We didn’t really know what to expect,” he said. “We played them earlier in the year and that was the first loss that I’ve ever suffered in my four years, so it was kind of a rivalry and it was pretty exciting.”

GVSU jumped out to an early lead and headed into halftime up 1-0, a perfect reflection of the last time they faced the Chippewas. But senior Kelvin Koster said he refused to repeat the ending.

“We knew we had to come out in the second half strong and we really did,” he said. “That second half was probably the best I’ve ever seen us play. We finished that point with only two or three guys out. We got a lot of catches and coordinated our throws well.”

After giving up the first and only point lost in the second half, the team fought back to go up 2-1. Afterward, the Lakers found themselves taking a more conservative approach, a style of play vastly different from their usual run-and-gun tactics.

“I like to play aggressive and fast, but strategically, holding out was probably the best option,” Stokes said. “The final point, there was only five minutes left in the game, so all we had to do was be smart, and we won it.”

Koster said GVSU’s teamwork set them apart from Central Michigan.

Many of the seniors who brought the first championship to GVSU in 2007 will graduate at the end of this year, which made the victory even sweeter. Those seniors will graduate having won a national championship in every single year of their college dodgeball career.

“I’m glad my last game was a win,” Koster said. “It was a very good game, and I really couldn’t be happier with the way we played this weekend.”

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