Laughter and screams of Shippensburg University students filled the Ship Rec center during the Activities Program Board’s (APB) first Battle Ball and Bongo Ball Mania event. From noon to 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 17, students had the opportunity to play one or both of the free fast-paced, sports games.

“Your adrenaline really hits you for both games,” said APB President Karley Eberhart after participating in both games.

Eberhart discovered Battle Ball on YouTube last year and thought that APB should bring the excitement to SU. Entertainment for the event was provided by CEP Inc. Battle Ball, a modified soccer game, provided a maximum of eight players with the opportunity to run the soccer ball around the gym and into the net for a score. Participants were given an informational brief about the objective of the game and safety rules from one of CEP’s professionally trained referees. Students played this game in huge bubble balls that covered most of their bodies.

Bongo Ball Mania, on the other hand, is a game very similar to other elimination games such as paintball and airsoft. In these types of games, opponents attempt to shoot each other in an attempt to eliminate other players. A maximum of 10 players had that chance to storm the gym with defender air cannons loaded with Nerf footballs. The objective of the game was to capture the other team’s flag. Participants were given a 15-minute brief about how to safely operate the guns and win the game. Each round had no time limit and players would be out of the round if they were shot twice. Students had to wear face masks to participate and were given the option to wear more protective armor at their discretion.

“It was a lot of fun loading the gun and running to keep from getting shot,” SU freshman, Chris O’Conner said after playing Bongo Ball Mania.

Students also had the ability to play Bongo Ball Mania in an “every man for himself” manner. In this case, students could play the game until there was only one player remaining. The goal, in this case, was to eliminate every other player and capture the flag for the solo win.

All students that participated in the event were required to fill out a participant liability waiver. By filling out the waiver, all participants were entered to win a free APB T-shirt from the event. The winners are set to be announced via email. 

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