Springfield, Ohio — You won’t hear "C3" or "miss" in this version of Battleship. However, you might hear, “You’ve sunk my battleship!”

Wittenberg students held a friendly competition, March 23, with plenty of opportunities to sink opponents – literally - in this real-life version of the popular Milton Bradley game.

Teams of four set sail in canoes in the Health, Physical Education and Recreation (HPER) Center Natatorium and attempted to sink each other’s boats by filling them with water. Colored bandanas designated the teams, and each had a different strategy for winning. Some teams formed alliances, some tried to coast around the edge of the pool unnoticed, and others went after any boat within splashing distance. Game plans were open to whatever “floats your boat.”

Each spring, the Office of Student Involvement sponsors this event, typically with the support of other campus organizations. Union Board members worked together to set up and ensure the event ran smoothly. All members of the campus community are welcomed and encouraged to register a team to participate.

For each round, six teams, with names such as "Canoe Knot," "Angry Pirates," and "Snakes on a Boat," attempted to sink each other’s boat. Each team had two plastic buckets to use to flood the other boats with water. No paddles were allowed (only hands), and lifeguards helped maneuver the canoes around the pool. Points were awarded in the order the boats sank within the round. The process continued with semi-finals and finals until a winner was determined.

The 2016 Battleships winner was “Fore Golfers.” The team included Maxim Boone, a sophomore from Lancaster, Ohio; Sam Geise, a senior from Springboro, Ohio; Sam Stilwell, a junior from Sterling Va.; and Mark Wright, a junior from Westerville, Ohio.

A unique Wittenberg tradition, Battleships is a highly anticipated event for students, whether they battle in the water or cheer from dry land.

"It is entertaining to see which allies form during the competition and how it ends (if it gets down to the two allied teams),” said Carly Bockhold, class of 2018 from Fairfield, Ohio, co-chair of annual events for Union Board. “[It is] nice to see all sorts of different students from different backgrounds coming together to just have fun!"   

-Story and Photos by Rachel Tennison, ‘16, Office of University Communications