Increased participation in UTD intramurals has proven to be both a blessing and a curse as several recent tournaments have been rescheduled to accommodate many more teams and participants than intramural organizers expected.

Two tournaments that were delayed from the fall semester -indoor volleyball and 3-on-3 basketball – are set to resume, according to Intramural and Club Sports Coordinator Steve Anderson. Volleyball begins Jan. 20 while 3-on-3 basketball has been delayed until the end of March when the UTD men’s and women’s basketball teams will conclude regular season play.

“In the past (volleyball) has been a two-day tournament before exams, but in order to give the students a positive experience and a product that would complement their education, we felt postponement was a good choice,” Anderson said.

Based on last year’s participation, volleyball was expected to have only 35 registered groups but more than 50 signed up for this year’s event. Likewise, 3-on-3 basketball attracted 30 more teams than initially anticipated.

“The 400 percent increase in participation over (the past) three years is incredible, but it makes (tournaments) very difficult to schedule with limited facility space and limited supervisory resources,” Anderson said.

Given the increased participation, the recreational sports department would like to use a league format to ensure that each team gets to play more than just one game.

“There was no way this (format) could have been completed before the end of the semester,” Anderson added.

Next year, in anticipation of further increases in participation, the plan is to divide court usage between basketball and volleyball by overlapping volleyball with football earlier in the semester. Also, intramural organizers have discussed extending hours of play and lengthening tournaments by a few more days. Either way, Anderson says, “This should not be a problem in the future.”