Dominic Lucisano
Alexis Osborne (12) and San Pasqual student Chris Bagdy cover for each other. They are part of a three-person paintball team, “Pandamonium.”

There wasn’t much Alexis Osborne (12) could do as she saw her teammates go down one by one. As much as Osborne wanted to help her teammates, it is illegal for spectators to coach the team. Soon, her entire team was tagged out by hostile paintballs.

It was the 2007 Velocity Summer Series (VSS) at Velocity Paintball Park, and team Pandamonium had just lost the qualifying round, meaning that they would not be able to proceed to the finals.

Osborne is the founder of this three-person paintball team, Pandamonium.

Two years ago, Osborne began to paintball with some of her friends until they departed for college, but her love for the sport has compelled her to start a team with Marshall Fice (11), and Christian Bagdy, a student at San Pasqual High School.

Although the team comprises of only three people, it is sponsored by Gogged Paintball Store and determined to be the best, practicing every Sunday from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. in Ramona.

“We used to play a lot more on weekends, but with schoolwork and everyone’s busy schedules, we just play on Sundays now,” Osborne said.

Being such a small team can at times be a disadvantage.

“When you’re playing with only three people, you lack the extra firepower of larger teams,” Osborne said. “It’s easier for the whole team to be tagged out all at once.”

At the 2007 VSS, everyone was out except for one of their back players. But because he was not accustomed to playing offense, he too was quickly tagged.

“Right now, we’re looking for extra people to join our team because we cannot compete in certain tournaments at all without enough people,” Osborne said.

Osborne really wants to compete in the Extreme Paintball Sports League (XPSL), but they require a minimum of five people per team, and Pandamonium only has three.

“We’re always there for each other, and we always keep in mind that we’re a team and whatever we do, we keep the team’s interest in mind,” Osborne said. “For example, sometimes we will sacrifice ourselves to put the other team in a vulnerable position.”

Osborne herself goes by the nickname “One-girl team”.

“I always play forward positions in addition to being the only girl paintballer at Velocity who actually competes in tournaments,” Osborne said. Paintball tournaments are usually like a game of Capture the Flag, where each team tries to take the opposing team’s flags and “bunker” the other team by running right up to the opposing team and shooting it at point-blank.

Team Pandamonium was not created based solely on its players’ paintball expertise.

“We’re a really close-knit group, and our main purpose is just to have fun,” Osborne said. Although Pandamonium was not able to play in the finals of last year’s VSS, they made sure that every player was able to collect a flag to take home.

“We made sure that every single one of us would have a flag, and good memories to take home, since it was our first time playing in a team tournament,” Osborne said. Although the team wasn’t able to make it to the finals, Osborne said they kept a positive outlook, even after their defeat.

“None of us were disappointed at all; I think we did great, this being our first time and all,” Osborne said. “[But] it definitely gives us a goal for next year.”