New Spikeball Club Serves up Success

Stressed from direct studies and bored from academic study halls, students at Southern Lehigh were looking for an alternative to how to spend their time during free periods. Founders of the Spikeball club Josh Garges and Sammy Kholer quickly got to work planning the Spikeball Club, allowing students to learn more about an up and coming sport and relax from the tough school day.
The Spikeball Club meets every day three in the auxiliary gym and uses spikeball nets provided by the school’s gymnasium. Members can relax and watch a game or hop in and play spikeball during Spartan period. Many students are ecstatic about this newest addition to Southern Lehigh’s wide array of clubs.
“[Our] goals are to have everyone in the club improve at Spikeball and learn more about it,” said Co-President Joshua Garges,“Also, we have talked about possibly doing some sort of tournament.”
Physical Education teacher Mr. Matthew Hummel decided to take on the role of Spikeball club adviser because of his interest in spikeball and proximity to the auxiliary gym.
“I took on the role of advisor for Spike Ball last Spring when several students approached me at the end of PE class,” said Mr. Hummel. “It sounded like an interesting idea and after speaking with Mr. McConnell about the feasibility of starting the club, we decided to move forward with the idea and see how much interest it would garner.”
After the club rush earlier in the school year, the interest which followed the club skyrocketed. Over 100 people signed up and the club gained almost 100 followers on Instagram.
New members of the club agree the club should invest in more Pro Spikeball nets to boost the club’s success. Luckily, Co-President Sammy Kholer has a plan for the club’s future.
“[The club is planning to hold ] spikeball tournaments to raise money for the club,” said Kholer.
In this tournament-style charity similar to the Mini-THON basketball tournament, teams will comprise two players with an entry fee that goes towards charity and more supplies for the club. The pro-nets cost a lot of money so the club cannot solely rely on the school’s equipment. If the club is to grow, there needs to be more nets.
If the interest is there, the club could expand into multiple spartan periods allowing more playing time for the members.
“I would like to see the club grow and possibly expand. As of now, we are only holding the club one out of the six Spartan days. Depending upon the interest level of the students, and the participation level during the club we may expand to adding more days in the schedule next year,” said Mr. Hummel.
Prospective members of the club might wonder why they should join the club and not any of the other copious amounts of clubs at Southern Lehigh. With many clubs involving physical activity, how does the Spikeball club stand out?
“Playing tons of Spikeball,” said Kholer. Spikeball is a competitive and fun game for everyone to play according to students. If you are a prospective member, sign up!