James Hagerman heard a knock on his door and opened it to find three people looking for a fourth battleship teammate. He signed up without hesitation and had a blast playing Battleship H2O on Nov. 6 with his friends.

“It’s kind of like a battleship in real life but you can move instead of sitting in a certain spot and you just toss water in the other boats,” Hagerman said.

Ansel Brenneman, an environmental studies and sustainability major, first heard about Battleship H2O from friends, watched one of the competitions and is now hooked. Brenneman formed a team with three of his friends last year and they joined again this year after having a great time.

“I thought it sounded kind of fun,” Brenneman said. “Came out here for the first time and saw how much fun it was, and I’ve been addicted ever since.”

Brenneman said that having unique events like Battleship H2O increase campus morale and allows students to have fun, relax and have a good time. Brenneman believes that the event brings people closer and creates an atmosphere that makes people feel welcome and where they can be themselves.

“It really brings a little extra life, a little extra joy to campus, something to be able to talk to your classmates in the hallway about … ‘Are you excited for water wars this weekend?'” Brenneman said. “It just adds a little extra bit of fun.”

Brenneman encourages other students to partake in H2O Battleship because it is a great way to meet people and further the bond with your current friends.

“It’s great to get in the water every now and then to have some fun with your friends,” Brenneman said. “But you know, it’s a great way to meet other people as well. We’re really becoming more in tune with the greater student body as a whole.”

Amber Wager, a forensic biochemistry major, hopes to improve this year at H2O battleship with her friends after doing it for the first time last year and having a blast. Wager recommends using knee pads for when you compete in the boats.

“I did it last year and I wanted to try and do better than I did last year, but it’s really fun,” Wager said. “Last year my roommate told me about it, and I thought it was really fun because I’m a swimmer.”

Hagerman and Brenneman recommend Battleship H2O to anyone that may be interested in the event to have larger competitions between the teams. This will bring more people together and allow for more students to connect with each other that normally would not otherwise. To take part in H2O Battleship next time, you can join through the NMU Rec Sports website or find one of the many fliers around campus.