Atlanta Peaches Win Ballocki Bowl Sunday Championship

There's an old adage in sports that says "defense wins championships". In the championship game of Ballocki Bowl Sunday, the BCL's Atlanta Peaches proved that the old saying is just as true in the virtual world sport of ballocki as it is in real life.

In what was a stunning result, the underdog Peaches won Ballocki Bowl Sunday with a 57 - 40 victory over the New York Firemen in the tournament championship game. The Firemen led early, and even when trailing were never far behind until the final minute of play, but the Peaches were gradually able to take control of the game by double-teaming and defending heavily around the corner goals in between their own scoring opportunities.

The Peaches actually did the bulk of their scoring on their center court red goal, where each individual goal was worth fewer points yet easier to score and harder to defend against. Meanwhile, they defended heavily against the Firemen on the corner goals while the Firemen failed to take advantage of easier opportunities to score a few more points on their own green center court goal. The difference was 28-7 in favor of the Peaches for points scored on the center goals. Every goal scored by both teams was hard earned and contested in what turned out to be a low scoring and defensive oriented affair.

The Peaches reached the championship by way of an 82 - 38 first round win over the London Lions, and the Firemen defeated the Sydney Kangaroos in round one by a score of 68 - 35. For their victory playing for the Peaches team, DawnRose Ruby and waelya Tenk earned L$1000 in prize money along with bragging rights as the first ever champions of Ballocki Bowl Sunday. Hopefully, this will be the first of many years in which Ballocki Bowl Sunday will be held one week prior to the real life Super Bowl.

The Peaches actually entered the tournament winless in 5 previous BCL league games, so their championship effort in Ballocki Bowl Sunday was quite a surprise. The Peaches had been steadily improving of late, though, including a couple of close games and an overtime loss to the Firemen. Nevertheless, the Firemen were still the overwhelming favorite to win going into the tournament, especially after the formidable Glasgow Scots withdrew from the competition. When the games were played though, some recent practice and improvement combined with excellent teamwork was enough to turn the tables in favor of the Atlanta Peaches.

Players who participated in the tournament included a mixture of new and experienced players, and all of the Ballocki Champions League teams participated in the event except for the Glasgow Scots. Willis Loopen and Tanya Rubble played in one tournament game each for the New York Firemen along with Dude Gilruth who played in both games. The Peaches played with the same lineup of Ruby and Tenk for both of their games in the tournament. Meanwhile, Eleanor Balbozar and Danann Parx represented the Sydney Kangaroos, and August Lusch teamed up with Sante Klees for the London Lions. Along with the tournament games, the Kangaroos and Firemen also played a second game against each other early on Sunday morning.

--------------------------------------------------------------
2010 Ballocki Bowl Sunday Results:

New York Firemen 90 - Sydney Kangaroos 31 (pre-tournament game)

New York Firemen 68 - Sydney Kangaroos 35 (First Round)
Atlanta Peaches 82 - London Lions 38 (First Round)

Atlanta Peaches 57 - New York Firemen 40 (Championship Game)
--------------------------------------------------------------

As of Sunday's games, the league standings are as follows: New York Firemen 11-5, Glasgow Scots 4-3, Atlanta Peaches 2-5, Sydney Kangaroos 0-3, London Lions 0-1.

Thanks to everyone who came out to the stadium Sunday to participate in and watch the games!!!

Well, this year's Ballocki Bowl Sunday event is in the books, but don't forget that the Ballocki Stadium is now open 24/7 for free practice and scrimmages any time you want to stop by there to play. We will also be hosting more BCL league matches soon(mostly in the 8PM SL time frame nightly and at 12PM SL time on weekends), so we hope to see you soon at Ballocki Stadium in the Celestial Game Tower game park inside of the Second Life virtual world!

Scenes from the first annual Ballocki Bowl Sunday (1/31/2010):

New York Firemen Ballocki Team Blazes to 119 - 90 Win Over Glasgow Scots

Wed. 8PM PST Game 1: New York Firemen 119 - Glasgow Scots 90

It's official... the New York Firemen are on fire in the Ballocki Champions League! Tonight's victory over the Scots makes it 5 wins in a row for the Firemen! Tonight's hard fought BCL exhibition match was held at the new Ballocki Stadium located in the Celestial Game Tower game park inside SL.

The primary players involved tonight included some of our league's all-stars. Willis Loopen and yours truly Dude Gilruth participated for the New York Firemen while the Glasgow Scots played with their regular lineup of Devyn Smythe and Deirdre Faulds. DawnRose Ruby was also on hand for the Atlanta Peaches who had the night off. Special thanks to DawnRose for taking some action photos during tonight's Firemen vs Scots match.

The game was well contested and hard fought. The Scots scored first and were leading 14-13 after the first minute. But the Firemen quickly rallied and had gained a 24-22 lead with 8 minutes remaining and then pushed out to a 35-24 lead with 7 minutes to go. From there, the Firemen built and maintained a steady lead while playing tough defense and held on in the end for the win.

As of tonight's games, the Glasgow Scots are 4-3 during our pre-season exhibition matches while the New York Firemen are 6-4 and the Atlanta Peaches are 0-3. The London Lions team has yet to play.

Thanks to everyone who came out to the stadium tonight to participate in and watch the games!!!

Well, tonight's main event is in the books, but don't forget that the Ballocki Stadium is now open 24/7 for free practice and scrimmages any time you want to stop by there to play. We will also be hosting more BCL league matches (mostly in the 8PM SL time frame) soon, so we hope to see you soon at Ballocki Stadium in the Celestial Game Tower game park inside of the Second Life virtual world!


Dude Gilruth scores 4 points for the Firemen.

Devyn Smythe scores on the blue corner goal for the Scots.

Devyn Smythe and Deirdre Faulds playing Ballocki for the Scots.

Willis Loopen Leads New York Firemen in 99 - 88 Win Over Glasgow Scots

Tues. 9PM PST Game 1: New York Firemen 99 - Glasgow Scots 88

Once again tonight, two of our BCL teams got some action in and played a hard fought exhibition match that was held at the new Ballocki Stadium located in the Celestial Game Tower game park inside SL.

The primary players involved tonight included some of our league's all-stars. Willis Loopen and yours truly Dude Gilruth participated for the New York Firemen while the Glasgow Scots returned from a few days off and played with their regular lineup of Devyn Smythe and Deirdre Faulds.

The game was an epic battle, full of great offensive and defensive plays. Willis Loopen showed enormous improvement from his previous matches, and his efforts were key in the Firemen's victory over their nemesis the Scots. The Scots took an early lead in the game, but the Firemen took over at about the 5 minute mark, and held a slim advantage all the way to the final buzzer.

A friendly, yet extremely intense rivalry has started to develop between these two teams, and the level of competition is improving with each match they play. DawnRose Ruby, one of our ballocki players for the Atlanta Peaches, was on hand to watch tonight's game from the bleachers and described it afterward as having been "exciting to watch." It was certainly fun to play in such an intense and well contested match.

As of tonight's games, the Glasgow Scots are 4-2 during our pre-season exhibition matches while the New York Firemen are 5-4 and the Atlanta Peaches are 0-3. The London Lions team has yet to play.

Thanks to everyone who came out to the stadium tonight to participate in and watch the games!!!

Well, tonight's main event is in the books, but don't forget that the Ballocki Stadium is now open 24/7 for free practice and scrimmages any time you want to stop by there to play. We will also be hosting more BCL league matches (mostly in the 8PM SL time frame) soon, so we hope to see you soon at Ballocki Stadium in the Celestial Game Tower game park inside of the Second Life virtual world!

Monday Night Ballocki

Mon. 8PM PST Game 1: New York Firemen 120 - Atlanta Peaches 54

Tonight, two of our BCL teams got some action in and played a major exhibition match that was held at the new Ballocki Stadium located in the Celestial Game Tower game park inside SL.

The primary players involved included some of our league's all-stars: in both matches, Willis Loopen and yours truly Dude Gilruth participated for the New York Firemen. The Atlanta Peaches, meanwhile, played with an improving and enthusiastic lineup that consisted of DawnRose Ruby and s2katies2 GossipGirl. Moon Calamity showed up for a bit during the pre-game warmups, but sat out instead of playing for her team, the Peaches. Judging from the score, the team might have used her help.

The Atlanta Peaches showed a bit of improvement in tonight's game, mainly due to the emergence of DawnRose Ruby as a solid Ballocki player. Nevertheless, the Peaches still fell short of victory against the more experienced lineup of players for the Firemen. Look out for the Peaches though, they are getting better quickly and may soon become a force to be reckoned with in the Ballocki Champions League.

As of tonight's games, the Glasgow Scots are 4-1 during our pre-season exhibition matches while the New York Firemen are 4-4 and the Atlanta Peaches are 0-3. The London Lions team has yet to play.

Thanks to everyone who came out to the stadium tonight to participate in and watch the games!!!

Well, tonight's main event is in the books, but don't forget that the Ballocki Stadium is now open 24/7 for free practice and scrimmages any time you want to stop by there to play. We will also be hosting more BCL league matches (mostly in the 8PM SL time frame) soon, so we hope to see you soon at Ballocki Stadium in the Celestial Game Tower game park inside of the Second Life virtual world!

Ballocki Champions League Sunday Night Main Event Recap

Tonight, the BCL returned to action with 2 major exhibition matches that were held at the new Ballocki Stadium located in the Celestial Game Tower game park inside SL.

The results of the games are as follows:

Sun. 8PM PST Game 1: New York Firemen 158 - Atlanta Peaches 22
Sun. 9PM PST Game 2: New York Firemen 144 - Atlanta Peaches 35

The primary players involved included some of our league's all-stars: in both matches, Tanya Rubble and yours truly Dude Gilruth participated for the New York Firemen along with relative newcomer Willis Loopen who made a good show of himself in his first official game for the Firemen. The Atlanta Peaches, meanwhile, played with an inexperienced yet enthusiastic lineup that consisted of DawnRose Ruby, Moon Calamity, and Marylou Goldrosen. In the second match, Scott Carpaccio played for the Peaches in place of Marylou.

The games were both intense matches as usual in our Ballocki Champions League weekend Main Events. However, the Atlanta Peaches took the worst of it and were unable to mount a serious challenge against the more experienced lineup of players for the Firemen. In spite of the blowout on the scoreboard, the Peaches all had fun playing in their first competitive league game of ballocki and vowed to seek victory in their future BCL matches.

The softer competition was a welcome respite for the Firemen who had been struggling lately against the BCL juggernaut Glasgow Scots. As of tonight's games, the Glasgow Scots are 4-1 during our pre-season exhibition matches while the New York Firemen are 3-4 and the Atlanta Peaches are 0-2. The London Lions team has yet to play.

Thanks to everyone who came out to the stadium tonight to participate in and watch the games!!! Don't forget, fearless sports reporter Senban Babii was on hand a couple of nights this week to document the action for the SL newspaper the Alphaville Herald (formerly the SL Herald). That article should be coming soon, so be sure to check out their website for the paper.

Well, tonight's main event is in the books, but don't forget that the Ballocki Stadium is now open 24/7 for free practice and scrimmages any time you want to stop by there to play. We will also be hosting more BCL league matches (mostly in the 8PM SL time frame) soon, so we hope to see you soon at Ballocki Stadium in the Celestial Game Tower game park inside of the Second Life virtual world!

Ballocki Champions League open for FREE play DAILY in SL

The Ballocki Champions League (BCL) is currently hosting daily games, scrimmages, and open court practice time at our new Ballocki Stadium in the Celestial Game Tower game park inside of the Second Life virtual world!

The league will be hosting these and other events throughout the winter and spring leading up to this summer's 2010 World Cup. Ballocki (TM) is a wildly exciting and fun sports game that combines elements of football, soccer, billiards, and tetris using avatars as the athletes. The game is extremely fun and easy to play. Ballocki can be played by a single player, or teams of up to 5 players (5 vs 5).

The game court in Ballocki Stadium is open 24/7 inside of the Second Life virtual world, and our BCL league game sessions currently take place during the evenings in SL time (USA Pacific time), usually between 4pm PST and 12am PST (midnight) DAILY. These games are open to veterans and rookies alike. You do not need any experience to play. Stop by and check it out! You can join in and play or watch the exciting action.

Currently, the best ballocki game action is usually on the weekends at around 8PM PST - 10PM PST, but we will be hosting games during other times soon for our players from all around the world.

Also, there is no HUD or equipment needed to play, just show up and all you need is a SL avatar to play. It's the most user friendly sports game in SL. All of our regular players are friendly and will be glad to show you how to play. We'll even give you free clothes and uniforms!!!

If you like what you experience, you can also contact Dude Gilruth and ask to be invited to the "Ballocki Champions League - BCL" group, or simply find the group in search and sign up for the group free. There is no fee to play.

Come visit us anytime at the new Ballocki Stadium!!! You can also read about Ballocki in a 2008 CNN feature article on CNN's iReports website: CNN article about the new sports game Ballocki in Second Life.

If you have any questions, please contact Dude Gilruth inside of Second Life. Come out and join in the fun at Ballocki Stadium in the Second Life virtual world!

Ballocki Champions League Saturday Night Main Event Recap

Tonight, the BCL returned to action with 2 major exhibition matches that were held at the new Ballocki Stadium located in the Celestial Game Tower game park inside SL.

The results of the games are as follows:

Sat. 8PM PST Game 1: Glasgow Scots 104 - New York Firemen 83
Sat. 9PM PST Game 2: Glasgow Scots 80 - New York Firemen 79

The primary players involved included some of our league's all-stars: Deirdre Faulds and Devyn Smythe anchored the Glasgow Scots while Tanya Rubble and yours truly Dude Gilruth participated for the New York Firemen. The games were both intense matches, especially the nail bitingly close 80-79 defensive struggle that closed out the action for the night.

In that game, the Firemen broke out to a slight early lead, held sway for most of the 10 minute game, but fell behind just during the last minute of action. The Firemen made a last second attempt to score a 2-point goal to retake the lead, but Deirdre Faulds made a huge defensive play for the Scots which sealed the victory in the closing seconds. It was truly an epic match. Well played on both sides.

As of tonight's games, the Glasgow Scots are 4-1 during our pre-season exhibition matches while the New York Firemen are 1-4. The London Lions and Atlanta Peaches teams have yet to play.

Thanks to everyone who came out to the stadium tonight to participate in and watch the games!!! Don't forget, fearless sports reporter Senban Babii was on hand a couple of nights this week to document the action for the SL newspaper the Alphaville Herald (formerly the SL Herald). That article should be coming soon, so be sure to check out their website for the paper.

Well, tonight's main event is in the books, but don't forget that the Ballocki Stadium is now open 24/7 for free practice and scrimmages any time you want to stop by there to play. We will also be hosting more BCL league matches (mostly in the 8PM SL time frame) soon, so we hope to see you soon at Ballocki Stadium in the Celestial Game Tower game park inside of the Second Life virtual world!

Ballocki Video - New York Firemen vs Glasgow Scots - Game Demo

Tonight during our regular 8PM PST session of Ballocki games in Second Life, I recorded some video of an exhibition game between two of our BCL league teams, the New York Firemen vs Glasgow Scots.

You can watch the video here.

Thanks to all of the Ballocki players who played during tonight's session of games and practice, especially Devyn Smythe, Deirdre Faulds, and Kemo Chau who all participated in the videotaped match along with yours truly, Dude Gilruth.

Kemo is new to Second Life as well as to the virtual sport of ballocki, and even though he wasn't exactly competitive against our more experienced players, he proved that ballocki can be learned quickly and enjoyed even on your first few days in Second Life. In fact, playing ballocki is actually a very good way to learn how to maneuver your avatar in the world of Second Life, whether you are on your first day in Second Life or have been playing in the virtual world for years.

And yet, the game is so exciting that it never gets old, especially when you have some good competition to match up against on the ballocki court. There is quite a bit of strategy involved in a team game of ballocki, and some of the basics of that is on display in the video of tonight's exhibition game.

You can see players matching colored balls with the appropriate colored goals for their team, going on offense, as well as a couple of solid defensive efforts where goals are denied by the opposing team's players. You can also see a bit of the scoring system as the different types of goals are counted on the scoreboard (blocks, balls, center goals, corner goals, lucky balls, etc). Last, but not least, there is some great teamwork that takes place near the end of the video where you can see Devyn and Deirdre working together to score some goals together for their team the Glasgow Scots. Hope you enjoy the machinima video!!!

Video footage from tonight's Ballocki Champions League match featuring the New York "Firemen" vs Glasgow "Scots"