Whirling winds, freshly bladed grass, and a wide-open expanse: all of these elements come together in CWU’s Spikeball club. 

For those not initiated, the official Spikeball website describes the game as, “The sport of roundnet, also known as ‘that yellow trampoline game,’ also known as ‘if volleyball and foursquare had a baby.’”

Bryce Jaco, a junior in business administration and CWU Spikeball club founder, said he is passionate about introducing people to the game. Even if you have no background playing sports, Jaco encouraged people to come and participate.

“Just come out and talk to some people and play. It’s a very low cost and investment of entry,” Jaco said. “It’s a fun new game to learn and a lot of times, a great way to meet people too.”

According to Jaco, spikeball is appealing for the competition it has provided him long past high school sports but more importantly, its unique culture.

“With spikeball being such a niche thing, most people don’t really have egos, they just want to see people get better,” Jaco said. 

On Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4-6 p.m., the club practices using the McIntyre Music Building lawn and has casual pick-up-and-play days. However, there’s also a competitive environment too, if that’s of interest. 

According to Jaco, even though the club is small, they have the opportunity to compete against schools such as University of Washington (UW), University of Oregon (UO) and Whitworth University.

UW held a tournament last fall and shortly the spring events will be inbound. 

“We went over to Seattle for a weekend and competed in that, that was good,” Jaco said. “We’re going to go to at least two this spring, one of them being the spring sectional and then another one being a smaller local [tournament].” 

Ethan Cook, a sophomore in business, has been an active member of the club since its inception last spring, and is currently sticking it out through the winter conditions. 

“While we’re waiting for the spring, our numbers are a little bit down,” Cook said. “Usually a lot of our members like to stack up on credits during this time because they’re stuck inside anyways.”

However, Cook said he’s motivated to keep pushing through for his friends and the fun that goes on at practice. Whether it’s in scrimmages or drills, he said there’s always something to improve on.

“It gets really active and when you get a good rally going, it’s really hard to find another sport that has a feeling like that,” Cook said.

For beginners, Cook recommended taking things slower than he did when he first started, which involves learning the basics of the sport.

“There’s no point in trying to rush into all the crazy serves,” Cook said. “Once you get a little more specialized, then you can move into the really crazy stuff that you see Bryce doing out there.”

The CWU Spikeball club anticipates a return to form after everyone has finished their extra-credit loads and survived the chilled grass, hoping for new members with tournament aspirations. 

For more information about the Spikeball club, visit their page on the Recreation Center’s website, or follow their Instagram @CWUSpikes.