Freshmen Council will take a stab at establishing a new springtime tradition to benefit Youth and Shelter Services, a local nonprofit organization, this week.

The first annual Volleybrawl tournament will be held April 17 at the Lied Recreation Center. Volleybrawl is played like regular volleyball, but with a ball that is about 40 inches in diameter, said Kay Adamski, freshman in genetics and publicity co-chair for Freshmen Council.

“We’re giving all of the money to Youth and Shelter Services in Ames, but it’s also kind of a big community builder,” Adamski said. “It’s one that requires a lot of people to get involved.”

Originally, the tournament was scheduled to take place April 17 and 19, with teams having the option of participating on one or both days, but low interest resulted in a cancellation of Saturday’s tournament.

Brian Garrido, sophomore in philosophy and president of Freshmen Council, said the organization has faced multiple problems getting the Volleybrawl tournament going.

“In the fall, we have Jingle Jog, and that’s something the entire council rallies around and is kind of established as an Iowa State tradition,” Garrido said. “This being a completely new concept and a new event on this campus has been difficult, and it’s certainly been a challenge.”

Garrido also said there is a big difference in the organization’s registration process for the event. Jingle Jog registration is done on an individual basis, but Garrido said that in registering for Volleybrawl, the responsibility of filling the 6-10 person requirement of a team is out of Freshmen Council’s hands.

“The format that we’re pursuing for Volleybrawl is kind of an intramural format, so you have a team captain, and you’re counting on them to talk to their friends to get five more people involved,” Garrido said.

Adamski said the original goal was to raise $900 for Youth and Shelter Services and to get 26 teams to participate.

Entrance fee for the tournament will be $5, but students have the option of purchasing a T-shirt for $10 in addition to that. The Inter-Residence Hall Association agreed to cover the entrance fee for the first 80 residence hall students to register for the competition.

“We’re really excited, because in the end, we’ve gotten a lot of positive feedback from people on campus,” Garrido said. “People are wondering, you know, what’s this huge ball?”

Students wanting to participate can register on the Freshmen Council student organization webpage or register at the door. The competition will be held from 6-10 p.m.

Tournament winners will be awarded championship t-shirts, as well.

“I’m really looking forward to making this a piece of the fabric here at Iowa State and certainly a big part of Freshmen Council in future years,” Garrido said.