Feger

US pros try Saipan’s Rocball

Wednesday, 03 March 2010 00:00 By Emmanuel T. Erediano - Reporter

AVP professional players fed their curiosity on Saipan’s own sport—Rocball—by giving it a try with the local players over the weekend at the Marianas High School Gym.

During a question-and-answer session with students of MHS the day after they arrived last week, Jennifer Snyder admitted they are curious about the Rocball, which according to Jim Feger, is Saipan’s original sports.

The volleyball professional players, after making this year’s Marianas Cup another successful and explosive sports event in the Pacific, did not let go of the chance to try the Rocball.
Paul Baxter and Andrew Fuller came to the Rocball court and joined the local players for a Rocball game, Feger said.

Fuller was with John Nekaifes, Ben Lisua, Mariano Lisus, and Willy Aguilar of the Soul Rebels, while Baxter played with Bulls Eye’s J.R. Gechig, Jordan Mariano, Gabriel White, and Joemil Lisua.
According to Feger, Baxter and Fuller got the “on-the-job training in Saipan’s own sport and they couldn’t have chosen a better group of mentors to learn how to play Rocball.

In fact, Feger said the two U.S pros learned well enough to come in first and second in the heavy hitting category.
Baxter scored two aces, one xunk, and four kees to earn heavy hitter of the game.

On the other hand, Lisua and Fuller of the Soul Rebels tied for second place in heavy hitting. Ben scored two aces, one jam, two kees, and a goal. Fuller scored three aces, and two goals giving each player 12 heavy points apiece.

In all, there were nine aces, two xunks, one jam, 13 kees, and three goals scored in the game.
The Soul Rebels dominated the first three sets winning each set 15 to 12, 19 to 15, and 16 to 11. But, as the volleyball pros learned, this is not volleyball. Rocball games are won by the team that outscores their opponents in game points and wins the fourth set.
At the end of the fourth set, the Soul Rebels were leading 50 to 38. All the Soul Rebels had to do to win the game and juice-out was to win the fourth set.

The Bulls Eyes would have had to win the fourth set by 13 points to juice-out and win. They won the fourth set 15 to 6. They won the set but lacked the game points to win the game. At the end of the fourth set, it was the Soul Rebels 56 and the Bulls Eyes 53.
A team can’t win a Rocball game in a losing set regardless of whether they outscored their opponents in game points. However, by winning the fourth set, the Bull Eyes forced the game into overtime: Overtime sets are won with ten points or a goal, whichever comes first.

The Soul Rebels outscore the Bull Eyes in four sets but lost the fourth set. The Bull Eyes won the fourth set but scored less game points than the Soul Rebels.

In order to win the game in overtime, the Soul Rebels only needed to win one set. The Bulleyes needed to win two overtime sets to win the game.

And, the Bulls Eyes were at set point in the first set, but lost the serve, got xunked, which dropped their score to 8 points, and lost the game in first overtime set 10 to 8. In the post game conversations, Paul Baxter threw down the gauntlet, he wants to come back to Saipan for a shot at the title. And, the world’s best Rocball players, will be here waiting for him.

Feger

Rocball News Release

Saturday night at the Drug & Violent Free Safe Haven Program at the MHS gym, the Rocball Gorilla Games began their 2010 season. The first two teams to challenge each other in the winner take all game were the Never Back Down (DBD) and the Soul Rebels.

In the Rocball Gorilla Games teams play for a $50 cash prize. On Saturday night the NBD defeated the Soul Brothers in double overtime after losing the fourth set of regular play. NBD won the first three sets of the game 27 to 26, 25 to 20, and 26 to 15.

With a lead of 17 points going into the fourth set, NBD only had to win the set to win the game. But, the Soul Brothers jumped out to 12 to 3 lead with the help of Ben Lisua’s 4th and 5th goal of the game and went on to win set four 25 to 10.

At the end of four sets of play NBD had the game points to win the game but lost their chance to “juice-out” by losing the fourth set. In Rocball’s quarter/set system, the NBD couldn’t win a game in a losing set, regardless if they outscored the Soul Brothers in games points after four sets of play.

By winning the fourth set, the Soul Brothers forced the game into overtime. The NBD had the advantsge because they scored the most game points in four sets; NBD only needed to win one overtime set to win the game. The Soul Brothers who won the fourth set but scored less game points needed to win two overtime sets to win the game: Overtime sets are ten points or a goal, whichever comes first.

The Sould Brothers won the first OT 11 to 6 and brouht the game to a sudden death second OT set. All the points scored up to the 2nd OT set were worthless. Whichever team won 2nd OT won the game. And, NBD came out of their slump to hold off the Soul Rebels and the win the game 11 to 9.

Ben Lisua of the Soul Rebels was the “heavy hitter” of the game with 5 goals, and 5 kees for 25 points. Ben’s five goals in one game isn’t something that happens very often. Ben scored goals off the serve, from the “Kee” position as his team’s goalies scoring from the back court, and from within the ten foot line next to the net .

And, Ben is a threat playing defense. Ben is last year’s best player for scoring “jams”. A “jam” is when a player spikes down a served ball at the net. Ben jammed a serve playing in the exhibition game with the American Volleyball Pros in March.

Feger

Rocball creator Jim Feger named Rotary Club’s Citizen of the Year
Thursday, June 30, 2011 12:00AM

JAMES “Jim” W. Feger, the creator of rocball, is this year’s recipient of the Rotary Club Citizen of the Year Award.

Rotary Club of Saipan outgoing president Glen V. Perez presented The Citizen of the Year plaque of recognition to Feger “in recognition of his insurmountable vision and effort to the sports community in the CNMI, and for his vision, creativity and his burning desire to make a difference exemplifies the Rotary Club’s definition of an outstanding citizenship.”

Each year, the Rotary Club selects an individual in the community to honor as its citizen of the year. To be considered for the award, an individual must have made long-lasting and valuable contributions toward the improvement of life and the community.

Feger received his plaque during the club’s installation dinner in the Hibiscus Hall of the Fiesta Resort & Spa on Tuesday evening.

Feger said he is happy to have created a CNMI-owned sport recognized by the Public School System.

“Thank you Rotary Club for honoring me for creating something that we can call ours,” he said.

Feger invented and has had the sport of Rocball copyrighted with the Library of Congress, Washington D.C. He was honored in 1997 with a commemorative resolution by the Saipan & Northern Islands Municipal Council for his invention.

It was during the 1997 ceremony of the municipal council that Rocball was identified as “Saipan’s Own Sport”. And, Feger encouraged the community to continue playing rocball and get involved in the sport.

Rocball is a game derivative of volleyball with multiple point scoring techniques, goals at the end of each court; the three point score, and the first team net sport of its kind to develop offensive and defensive scoring.