“A lot of people seemed interested by seeing us in our bathing suits and wondering, ‘What are you doing here?’” said Anthony. “So that’s how we got a lot of interest.”

From the sight of confident smiles, and half naked bodies, a student was then prompted to take a flyer, look down, and ask themselves a question most don’t know the answer to. What in the world is underwater hockey?

Anthony, the MSU Underwater Hockey president, said that the image of long hockey sticks slowly pushing through water on the bottom of the pool is one of the first assumptions people tend to get wrong. But, they are close.

“The stick is only about a foot long,” Anthony said. “Most people picture this big hockey stick in the water. That’s not how we play.”

Underwater hockey is a co-ed, non-contact sport that plays teams six against six. Anthony said that people here at MSU may not know much about it, but it is popular in Europe and other countries.

Just like ice hockey, the goal is to score a goal, and instead of ice skates, a player uses fins to propel themselves through the water and past their opponents. The three pound puck is guided by the stick and glides easily across the floor of the pool. For many, the difficult part is learning how to breathe with the snorkel.

“If I had unlimited breath supply, I feel like I would be really good at this,” said human geography sophomore Samantha Wells, a first time player. “I’m constantly having to come up for air.”

The team hosts a tournament every February on campus, drawing in teams from around the country to compete. They also compete in an annual national tournament against teams all over the U.S. and in Canada.

The next Nationals tournament in 2015 will take place in Los Angeles, Calif., at the end of June. This will be the farthest the team has traveled to a National tournament and the fee could range from $1,000 to $1,500 split between 10-12 teammates. Unlike their typical travel budget for gas, this year, they need enough money to purchase plane tickets. Anthony said that they will need help from ASMSU, MSU's undergraduate student government, to cover airfare aside from the money they pay out of pocket to compete and support the basic needs of their trip.

Despite the hefty cost, Anthony is still hopeful for a successful year with many new recruits who decide to stick around.

“Our goal is to have the biggest team possible, because the more people we have, the more fun it is,” Anthony said. “One of our biggest goals, I guess for our tournament, is to have 10 or more teams come to our tournament this year. It’s just a lot more fun when you have more teams, and more competition.”

For nationals, Anthony said that she hopes to have enough students to take a separate alumni team and student team to compete. Typically, there have only been enough people traveling to make up one team of alumni and students.

Anthony added that the team is always looking for new members and that it is not too late to start. Practices are Tuesdays and Thursdays from 7:30-9 p.m. in the IM-Sports Circle Pool.