MIDDLESEX TWP — It's family fun. It's Christian camaraderie. It's keenly competitive.

There is no one way to describe a little-known game called angleball that happens twice a week in the summer at Gospel Fellowship Presbyterian Church.

The game can be as laid back as you like or as fierce as you can handle, but everyone who has become acquainted with this sport agrees: It's fun.

For decades now, angleball has been a part of the community outreach of Gospel Fellowship on McFann Road. The church hosts two nights of angleball. A game for those age 14 and up starts at 7 p.m. on Mondays. On Tuesdays, all ages play beginning at 7 p.m. Games are followed by a brief devotion.

Angleball originated with former Penn State football coach Rip Engle, who developed the game in the early 1960s as a way to keep his players in shape during the off-season. Involving a great deal of running, passing, throwing and teamwork, the game combines aspects of several different sports.

The rules are simple, according to Eric Dugan, director of youth ministries at the church. A large ball is perched atop a 10-foot metal post at each end of the field.

Players throw a handball in an attempt to knock the larger ball from the opposing team's post. Two concentric circles surround the post and one or two points is awarded depending on the distance of the shot. The ball must be passed or thrown, not kicked, and teammates must learn to work together to move the ball down field.

If a player is tagged while holding the ball, he or she has 3 seconds or three steps to pass the ball to another player to avoid a turnover.

The game can be played with any number of players per team, and rather than a time clock, players simply knock off when the sun goes down.

"The nice thing is that if you have nine or 10 people show up, you can play half court," said Jon Snyder of Mars.

"You can play with as few as 10 or as many as 30. Whoever shows up, that's how many play that night."

Despite the lack of rules regarding number of players necessary, Snyder said there is a strategy to playing the game.

"It's not random," he explained. "When someone from your team is shooting, you want to have someone on the other side to mirror them and get the ball if they miss. ... You need some offense and some defense, and if you're really energetic, you play both and run the field the whole time."

While the Monday night games can be intense, Snyder said players "slow it down" on Tuesdays, which are geared toward families.

"The intention is to pass it off to the kids. The adults don't shoot too much," he said.

Snyder and his wife, Jill, belong to the congregation and began playing because it seemed like a good way for the kids to get exercise. Now, their daughter Kalie, 14, and sons Jake, 12, and Kyle, 6, all play as a family.

"They like it," he said. "It's more of a social event for them. They go and see friends. If you told them they were going to go and run like crazy, they wouldn't want to do it. But they go and have fun."

Denise Tabacchi of Jefferson Township described Tuesday games as "generation night." She began playing when she met her husband, Darryl, and has now introduced son Noah, 9, to angleball.

"He loves it," she said, adding that daughters Krista, 7, and Sarah, 4, are still more interested in "chasing butterflies in the field. They'll get into it when they're bigger," she laughed.

Ken Gray of Bairdford, Allegheny County, who organizes the games, has five sons who play or have played angleball: Jordan, 21, Zackary, 20, Bradley, 18, Lucas, 16, and Brycen, 8. His wife, Amy, also joins in the fun.

"This year, he's able to shoot outside the circle," Gray said of his youngest son. "If the kids are too small, we'll even pick them up on our shoulders."

There is no such assistance offered in Monday games.

"Monday night is going to win, going to play hard. It's two totally different games," Tabacchi said. "The one is family fun night. Monday is fun, but Monday's fierce."

Still, she says, the underlying principles of teamwork and integrity remain. Fouls are self-called on the honor system, she notes. She said she recently made a shot that appeared to be worth two points, "but my foot went over the white line. No one saw that but me. Even though my team was saying 'two points,' I held up one finger."

Players are also expected to fess up when if the ball hits their leg below the knee. That's considered a kick and results in a foul.

Gray agrees the game offers much more than a good workout or the chance for victory.

"When I started, that's what I thought you have to do," he said. "You play sports to win — win at all cost. But this game taught me the spirit of teamwork and it doesn't always matter if you win."

"Everybody brings something different to the game," Tabacchi agreed. "You might be injured and not able to run, but you might be a good shot, or you might be a good passer."

Because the game involves tagging, rather than full contact, injuries are relatively rare.

"We pray at the beginning that no one gets hurt, and that seems to work," Tabacchi said.

"It's a good place to spread the word," said Dale Parsons of Valencia, who plays with daughters Rebekah, 16, Lizzie, 14, and Abby, 9. "Everybody is in a Christian atmosphere and it's a fun game, win or lose. Just like when you were a kid in a backyard football game — that type of atmosphere. You always want to win, but you play a fun, fair game."