Don’t be intimidated by the term “caged” sports. Starting this spring, USC Recreational Sports will expand its intramural programming with caged soccer and hockey, which promise to be a lot more fun than the adjective suggests.

The events will be played on the university’s new, multipurpose sports court, located directly behind Dedeaux Field. The term caged does not refer to any type of wrestling or mixed martial arts-style fighting but rather the fence that encircles the sports court.

“There has been a lot of explaining on our part in terms of what exactly caged means,” said Danika O’Neill, graduate assistant for intramural sports. “We are trying to come up with a new name to increase participation, and I expect us to have 15 to 20 teams signing up to play both sports next semester.”

The new court reflects the emphasis the university places on physical activity for all students. It also provides needed facility space for USC Recreational Sports, which lost one of its main intramural fields due to the ongoing construction of the John McKay Athletic Center.

“We wanted more space to program our sports, and to have another field is great,” O’Neill said. “We have excellent athletic facilities for Division 1 sports, but to see the university also put more effort and more money into intramural sports for the student body is a good sign.”

To gear up for the launch of the two new sports, USC Recreational Sports currently is working with resident advisers and residence hall representatives to get the word out to on-campus residents. In addition, the department has begun to rely on online resources such as IMLeagues.com, Twitter and Facebook to promote its programs.

For the spring semester, the new sports will be played during a one-day tournament, as opposed to the traditional league-style format.

The sports court also will be open during the Lyon Center’s normal business hours to students interested in playing basketball, volleyball and tennis.

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