Barry Wright
It's become commonplace for Sarnia and its amenities to be referred to as best kept secrets, but perhaps one of the best is found Wednesday evenings at the Ecole Catholique St-Francois-Xavier gym.
The Dodgeball Sarnia Adult League has been quietly flourishing the past four seasons, with 16 teams playing at The Rapids Parkway location.
The season runs from September to April with each team playing 44 games, followed by a year-end tournament.
The games are all refereed by two paid officials, a suggestion that came from the teams themselves, said co-organizer Dan Potvin.
He and wife Theresa were handed the reigns after the previous organizer of a league at Huron Oaks Golf Course moved out of town.
“It's gotten huge,” said Potvin.
Each team has a roster of 14 players that’s generally split between men and women. The age of players ranges from teens to seniors.
“We have players that are 18 and one who is 61 playing with us,” Potvin said
So why are grown men and women playing a sport many of us remember only from school days?
“Honestly, I think getting out frustration would be number one on the list,” said Potvin with a chuckle. “I also think it's a cool sport. It doesn't cost a fortune and anybody can do it,” he added.
“We've got some extremely athletic people and we've got some people who just want to come out and have some fun and socialize.”
This year the Potvins also started the Sarnia Kids, Tween/Teen Dodgeball League for players aged seven to 16. Games are played Thursday evenings, also at St. Francois-Xavier.
“We are affiliated with Dodgeball Canada and (the kids’ league) is the first of its kind in Ontario,” said Potvin.
The league has ten teams and 90 players and is growing fast, according to organizers.
Though extremely busy running the two leagues the husband and wife team are also preparing for their second annual charity tournament in support of the Noelle's Gift Foundation.
We Dodge is an all-day event on Saturday, April 2 at SFX beginning at 9 a.m.
“Anybody's welcome to put a team together,” said Potvin. “We have a team coming in from London and we've had interest from Chicago and other locations in the U.S.”
For more, contact Dan or Theresa Potvin at 519-331-0081 or [email protected]