March 19, 2021

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On Saturday, the Hispanic Student and Vietnamese Student Associations held a themed cross-cultural dodgeball tournament that included themed outfits, free food and intense competition. The proceeds go straight to The Waco Immigrants Alliance.

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One of the fan favorite groups, Dodge McStuffins, consisted of four VSA students and their roommate. The reasoning behind the scrub uniforms and team name was because their "leader" thought of the cartoon TV show, Doc McStuffins. While they said their dodgeball confidence was only a six out of ten, they were excited and glad to participate in such a meaningful event.

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"I think it's just a cool thing to be able to participate in a cross-cultural philanthropic event. There's not a lot of those that happen on campus, so to kind of promote unity is a huge thing for us," Dylan Huynh, a Dodge McStuffins member and VSA treasurer, said. 

Alpha Delta Chi, one of two all-female teams, is a Latina based service sorority. Their philanthropy consists of the American Breast Cancer Society and volunteering at La Vega Jr. High, where they mentor the 7th and 8th graders. 

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"We really wanted to be involved in this, try to get more involvement among different Latina groups," Brianna Sanchez, who's also on HSA, said. 

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The winning team was Jimmy and the Jimettes, which was lead by Jimmy Tran, the president of VSA. Two of their players, Dylan Doremus and Nathan Nguyen were the MVP's of the team, both had lots of strong shots and stealthy dodges. Both said they weren't there for the prizes, but for the game and to have fun.

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"The sport is good, but it's the friendship that matters, and it's going to a good cause," Nguyen said. 

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During their final game, Doremus was being supported by his friends on other teams. He said that he came with the Baptist Student Ministries team, but became a walk-on for the Jimettes. 

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"It was cool to have people cheering on each other. We were able to cheer on each other, even though we didn't play each other," Doremus said. 

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Abraham Balderas, the president of the Hispanic Students Association, said that the planning for this event took over a month, but they're excited about partnering with the Waco Immigrants Alliance, a community organization that works to make Waco a safe and welcoming place for immigrants. HSA hopes to have their annual fiesta on April 16 from 6:30-8 p.m.