Gentlemen players giving it the old college go...
... bocce playing. Oh, the life of the Gentlemen students! Taking advantage of the break in the weather, RAs Johnny Welsch and John Swift organized a round robin bocce tourney for the freshmen of the 1st and 2nd floors. New to the Hall, these Gentlemen must be acquainted with an old past time of the Hall, bocce. Played often in the park, St. Edward's Park, bocce is not only a great diversion but also a great way for the competitive spirits of the Hall to find expression. And so, the day started learning and playing the basics, but it quickly turned into experimenting and mastering advanced techniques. The tourney saw highs and lows, victories and defeats, and great jubilation and disappointment. In the end, the tourney saw freshmen upstarts Patrick "Paddy" Burns and Anthony Kafel take on the tourney organizers and old guard, Johnny Welsch and John Swift, in championship play. Who won? The young bucks.
On their coup, Burns stated, "My partner and I had never played bocce before but that wasn’t going to hinder our desire to win the tournament! We started off slowly, but we got the hang of it after our first game. We were glad to meet the two RAs in the final. But with an incredible performance from my Philadelphian teammate, Anthony, we were carried to victory. Something tells me the RAs will want a rematch soon so we’ll celebrate our success when we can. The bragging rights are ours, for now!"
Still, Kafel said, "This victory was just the first of many victories to come for intramural competitions among the Hall here at Notre Dame. We plan to bring home many more victories to honor the St Edwards name, and we look forward to the many challenges that are to come our way in the future."
... with some winners...
BUT THERE'S MORE...
The day also saw heartbreaks too. One such heartbreak was suffered by Matt Vawrink while playing Fr. Ralph. After Fr. Ralph tossed his red ball and making a bocce, kiss, with the marker ball, Vawrink felt the pressure, but it clearly didn't phase him as he threw his greenball. It was a prefect toss, but sadly, it wasn't enough. On missing out on the win by millimeters, Vawrink said, "My shot ended up a few inches from the white ball, probably my best ever shot in Bocce Ball, but ultimately that wasn’t good enough to match the sheer precision of Father’s shot. It was nerve-wracking to watch for sure."
Fr. Ralph said, "I never want to play that kid again. His first game? Oh my God... Vawrink had me throwing everything I had, even the kitchen sink, at him to win the game. I am getting too old for this!"
... and some losers.
