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The Wild World of College Sports

The Wild World of College Sports
7/15/2011
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Kara Coleman

Do you think that just because you’ve never scored a touchdown or hit a home run you can’t have the student athlete experience? Think again! There is a whole world of collegiate sports opportunities awaiting you. Here are two of the most unusual:

Underwater Hockey. Though these two words typically aren’t used together, schools ranging from George Mason University to the University of Florida have underwater hockey teams. Teams consist of 10 players, with only six players from each team in the water at once. The puck, which weighs about three pounds, is pushed along the pool floor by 12-inch hockey sticks. Players wear water fins for mobility, masks for sight and, of course, snorkels for breathing. This might be a fun sport to try if you like swimming but since the game is played entirely underwater, it’s not much of a spectator sport.

Quidditch. Quidditch, the game invented by J.K. Rowling for her Harry Potter book series, has become a hit among college students. Each team is composed of seven players – one keeper, one seeker, two beaters and three chasers – who score points by knocking a ball through hoops and the game ends when one of the seekers captures the “snitch.” In the books, the snitch is a flying ball that tries to evade the seekers; in the Muggle version, the snitch is a person with a ball in a sock hanging out of his or her pocket and the seekers try to snatch it while running with broomsticks between their legs. The first intercollegiate quidditch match was held in 2007 at Middlebury College in Vermont, now home to the Quidditch World Cup. More than 100 schools in the U.S. have quidditch teams, including LSU, Purdue and the University of Washington.

These players may not be nominated for ESPYs any time soon but they’re definitely having fun. You can, too: Check to see if your school offers these teams or start one of your own!

Kara Coleman lives in Gadsden, Alabama, where she attends Gadsden State Community College. She received the school’s Outstanding English Student Award two years in a row and is a member of Phi Theta Kappa. She plans to transfer to Jacksonville State University in August 2011 to study communications with concentration in print journalism. Kara’s writing has been featured in Teen Ink magazine and she is a children’s book author through Big Dif Books. In her spare time, Kara enjoys reading, painting, participating in community theater and pretty much any other form of art.

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