An extreme sport growing in popularity worldwide, wallyball is similar to volleyball but is played using the walls of a racquetball court. Those tight quarters are what makes it so fun, said Alan Beckley of Rock Hill, who plays at Leroy Springs Recreation Complex in Fort Mill with friends three or four times a month.

"You have to be able to anticipate the ball bouncing off the walls. It adds a whole new dimension to it," he said.

Players risk slamming against the walls and each other as they dive for the ball.

The rules are similar to volleyball. Each team, made up of three or more players, has three hits to get the wallyball - a smaller, pink version of a volleyball - over the net. The opponent's back wall and the ceiling are out of bounds.

The game has a faster pace and is a little rougher than volleyball, Beckley said. "You're moving pretty constantly."

"You never know at what angle the ball's going to come," said Jonathan Tucker, who was playing with Beckley and four other friends at the complex Thursday night. "You have to be more aware."

And the game can be painful.

David Giardino was playing with Beckley's group when a bad landing on his foot slightly sprained his ankle. He toughed it out, though, and kept playing.

"You've got to be a little tough to be able to handle the walls," said Beckley, who started playing wallyball about 20 years ago when he lived in Ohio.

"It gets you into shape," he said. Muscle aches are felt a couple of days after a game.

Californian Joe Garcia came up with the idea for the sport in 1979 after rain canceled his volleyball game. He developed wallyball and traveled across the country promoting the sport from a motor home wildly painted with sport's name.

The game quickly caught on.

Rudy Morel, a founding member of the American Wallyball Association, said more than a million players around the world have signed up for the organization's free registration. More than 5,000 clubs offer the sport, including some in China, England and Australia.

Giardino enjoys playing wallyball because it's both a good workout and a way to spend time with his family. His son, Doug, and his grandson, Jared, played with him Thursday night.

The Leroy Springs Recreation Complex is the only place in South Carolina or the Charlotte area registered with the American Wallyball Association.

Dottie Horn, the building supervisor, said the complex has offered the wallyball and net for use for a couple of years.

It hasn't caught on, though. She said members of Beckley's group, including a friend who comes from Columbia to play, is the sport's only small but dedicated following in York County.

Jared Giardino, 13, has been a dedicated player for almost three months. "I like diving for it," he said. "Hitting off the walls makes (wallyball) really fun."

Want to know more?

The Leroy Springs Recreation Complex in Fort Mill offers wallyball equipment. The cost to play is $4 per person for non-members of the complex, and it is free for members. Call 547-4575 to reserve the court. For more information about the game, please see the American Wallyball Association's Web page: www.wallyball.com.

Jonathan Stanfield, middle, passes the ball to his opponents, David Giardino, left, and Doug Giardino, right. The teammates played Wallyball at the Leroy Springs Recreation Complex Thursday night. / Tracy Smith / The Herald