Ready, set, spike! For more than a decade NIU’s faculty and staff have been getting together to play volleyball on their lunch breaks.

No one is really sure why the weekly games got started, but according to Steven Lux, University Health Services health educator, it started when a division of Student Affairs sponsored a volleyball event in the sand court between Neptune North and Central.

“We played outside in the nice weather and inside the [Campus Recreation Center] in the winter,” Lux said.

The group meets every Monday and Thursday at noon at the Rec center. According to Transportation Manager Bill Finucane, the group consists of about 20 faculty and staff members who organize weekly games through a mailing list which lets the group know who will be available each day.

“We usually have enough people to play,” Finucane said. “It’s not just faculty and staff that play either; there have been students who have joined our games over the years.”

Geology professor Jim Walker said the group readily welcomes students to join and fill out teams.

“We always welcome students, so long as we have room,” Walker said. “Every year there are students who play – a few have played regularly, but we welcome people to just walk on.”

Walker, who posted flyers around campus to promote the group, also said that while no one new has showed up to play this year, they are always trying to recruit new members.

“[Yesterday] we had 10 people, which was pretty good,” Walker said. “When some of the injured parties return we’ll probably have 10 to 12.”

It is common for people to get injured while playing, even though the games are not very competitive. Most injuries, Walker said, are the result of just falling awkwardly.

“I used to play volleyball and I broke my foot about 20 years ago, and then I think I broke it again a couple of years ago,” Walker said. “I never got it X-rayed, but it was just the result of an awkward fall.”

As people have come and gone, the group has evolved and carried itself onward. Lux has been participating in the intramural games since 1990 and Finucane has been playing regularly for the past nine years.

So what do they account the group’s success to?

“I think the reason people keep playing is simply because it’s fun,” Lux said. “It seems that the game has been able to accommodate a wide variety of skill levels and competitiveness.”

Finucane also thinks the midday games can be a good way to relieve the stress of the day.

“I’ve always been one who enjoys physical activity, but it’s a good way to relieve the stress of the day,” Finucane said. “There is a camaraderie [with the other players], too.”

The games can also be a great place to network and get to know other faculty and staff outside of class or work.

“I have gotten to know many staff whom I probably never would have gotten to meet otherwise,” Lux said. “We try to have an end-of-year luncheon as well which helps make another fun, social event.”

The group is trying to get more people to play this year.

“It is good exercise and the group [that] plays are really fun to be around, and we don’t take it that seriously,” Walker said.

Anyone who is interested in joining or finding out more information is welcome to call Walker at 753-7936. Games are usually held on Court 1 in the Rec center around noon on Monday and Thursday.

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