STORY BY THOMAS CHAVEZ
PHOTOS BY KENDRA STANLEY-MILLS & ERIK HOLLADAY
VIDEO BY DARIUS MATHIS
Winning is something of a tradition with the Grand Valley Dodgeball Club .
Since joining the National Collegiate Dodgeball Association in 2005, the Lakers have won 11 national championships and 10 Michigan Dodgeball Cup Championships.
The team entered the 2025-2026 season ranked No. 7 in the NCDA. GVSU is the second-highest rated team in Michigan, behind Michigan State University, the NCDA’s No. 1 team.
Alex Welscott, left, and Noah Berner scrimmage with the Grand Valley Dodgeball Club as they practice at the Recreation Center September 16. The team will play in their first tournament of the season at Michigan State University on September 20.
Alex Welscott, left, and Noah Berner scrimmage with the Grand Valley Dodgeball Club as they practice at the Recreation Center September 16. The team will play in their first tournament of the season at Michigan State University on September 20.
The state’s top two teams opened the season against each other during the Red Cedar Rumble on September 21 in East Lansing.
The Lakers and Spartans have sparked a rivalry between each other in recent years, with the teams combining for three of the NCDA’s past four national titles. The drive to win against an in-state rival is not lost on the Lakers.
“Every time we match up against them, we know they’re the best team in the league, and we’re the best team in the league,” said Ryan Paddock, a senior and one of the team’s captains.
“(Grand Valley) and MSU have been the two powerhouse schools in dodgeball,” said Christopher Kiewicz, a senior in his second year on the team. “Every time we play them, it’s always a great match.”
“Since I was 18 years old, it’s been a big part of who I am, and I value it. I am not at Grand Valley without dodgeball.”
Connor Picard, Grand Valley State Dodgeball Club team captain
The budding rivalry continued on the court of MSU’s IM West building as the teams played both a sanctioned and an exhibition game against each other.
A strong second half from the Spartans forced overtime and a 4-3 loss for the Lakers.
A disappointing early loss is not sinking the Lakers’ championship hopes, and the team will have more matchups against the Spartans as the season progresses.
Team captain Connor Picard said there is plenty to learn from the loss, but that he saw a lot from the team’s play that gives him confidence for the rest of the season, including getting out to a 2-1 lead heading into halftime.
“We got a little too chaotic towards the end. We just have to hone it in, and that comes with time. It’s the first tournament,” Picard said. “I know we’re going to be a serious competitor in this league.”
Picard called the team a crucial component of his college experience over the past four years.
“Since I was 18 years old, it’s been a big part of who I am, and I value it,” he said. “I am not at Grand Valley without dodgeball.”
Picard and the team have reason to be confident. Since joining the NCDA, each four-year class has won at least one championship before graduating, the most recent coming in 2021-22. The Lakers will need to win a title this year to keep that streak alive.
Developing new players is at the core of sustained success
Paddock said a big part of building a championship-quality team is building a culture where the team’s players are passionate about getting better, starting with first-year players, referred to as rookies by the NCDA.
“We want these rookies to get hooked on it and say ‘Hey, this is something I want to do for the next four years,’” Paddock said. “It’s not your elementary (school) dodgeball. It’s so much more.”
Rookie Alden Schulte said the upperclassmen’s efforts to build a culture is felt by first-year players.
“The atmosphere is great. All the guys are really nice and easy-going, but there’s a lot of new information you have to learn,” Schulte said.
He added that the tradition of winning is not lost on the rookie class either.
“We have a lot to uphold,” he said.
Early-season tournaments like the Red Cedar Rumble are valuable for rookies to gain experience in competitive dodgeball play.
“It’s a learning tournament for them,” said Paddock. “I make sure that I talk to them on the court or pull them aside while we have a break and just talk them through what they need to be doing.”
GVSU Dodgeball is a team
on and off the court.
Many of the members of the team call their relationship with each other a brotherhood.
“We compete here in practice, we talk a little smack and have our fun here. But then we go back and, after that, we’re a family,” said Kiewicz.
It is key to the team’s culture that their relationship extends beyond practices and matches. The team has a tradition of hanging out at Main Street Pub in Allendale after their Tuesday practices to get five-dollar burger baskets and stay until close. That bonding experience is just as important to the team as the work they put together on the court.
GVSU’s Matthew Budai talks to team members during a huddle in between games. In dodgeball, like other sports, players get injured. Being hit in the face with a ball is a common and bloody noses happen.
GVSU’s Matthew Budai talks to team members during a huddle in between games. In dodgeball, like other sports, players get injured. Being hit in the face with a ball is a common and bloody noses happen.
“We just create chemistry and bond with each other,” said first-year rookie Logan Marshall. “They started off as just people I didn’t know when I joined the club, and now they’re some of my closest friends.”
The commitment to passing down the team’s tradition, culture and unity has had a profound impact on the upperclassmen. Many of them have been playing with the team since they approached its table at Campus Life Night during their first year at Grand Valley.
GVSU teammembers share a laugh on the sidelines during their tournament game against MSU on September 20.
GVSU teammembers share a laugh on the sidelines during their tournament game against MSU on September 20.
Picard said the camaraderie is a key component of how the team continues to be competitive from year to year.
“We are there to protect each other on the court. We are there for each other off the court. We help each other out. We hang out outside as a team. We love each other, and that’s how we get better,” he said.
“We just create chemistry and bond with each other,” said first-year rookie Logan Marshall. “They started off as just people I didn’t know when I joined the club, and now they’re some of my closest friends.”
The commitment to passing down the team’s tradition, culture and unity has had a profound impact on the upperclassmen. Many of them have been playing with the team since they approached its table at Campus Life Night during their first year at Grand Valley.
GVSU teammembers share a laugh on the sidelines during their tournament game against MSU on September 20.
GVSU teammembers share a laugh on the sidelines during their tournament game against MSU on September 20.
Picard said the camaraderie is a key component of how the team continues to be competitive from year to year.
“We are there to protect each other on the court. We are there for each other off the court. We help each other out. We hang out outside as a team. We love each other, and that’s how we get better,” he said.
