Roundnet, often referred to as spikeball, is a ball sport that has become popular in the last decade. It shares similarities with four square and beach volleyball. The sport is largely popular with college-age athletes, with many participating in tournaments and other events across the country. Despite the sport’s recent success, the player base is largely male-dominated. 

For the sport to grow, it is necessary to find ways to reach out to women and encourage them to join these spikeball communities. One way that this has been done already is through the introduction of women’s divisions in Spikeball Tour Series tournaments around the United States. Having a dedicated division for female players to compete amongst themselves is a great opportunity. Also, the same organization held a series of female-only tournaments properly named “Queen of the Realm,” inviting lady Spike-ballers far and wide. Another effort to draw women to the sport is the “Women’s Roundnet” movement started by Spikeball employee Joelle Nguyen. This includes multiple social media pages dedicated to sharing content and videos of female players in the sport.

Here at CWU, the club team’s demographic is no different from the typical Roundnet scene, as I am one of the only women involved. Due to this, I practice with almost exclusively men, but look forward to opportunities to play in women’s divisions in certain tournaments. It is important to be an ambassador and foster a welcoming environment for girls to join this great sport.

Overall, the sport is fun, engaging, and easy to learn and the community around the sport is nothing but kind, welcoming, and supportive. This is a great sport to get into, it can help you with your physical fitness and staying active, while also giving you the opportunity to build great relationships and meet new people. It is such a wonderful community to be a part of, no matter your skill level or athleticism, this community embraces and supports you through it all.