Drama punctuated the second game in the Oct. 28 match in the top women’s catchball league between the team from the Druze village of Daliyat al-Carmel and the Hod HaShahar team from Hod HaSharon. The women from Daliyat al-Carmel had handily won the first game, earning them the praise of their coach, Bian Nasraldeen, but the second game went into overtime. A play by Anaia Halabi, the captain of Daliyat al-Carmel, resulted in her team ultimately winning the game and the match.
The average sports fan in Israel isn’t too familiar with catchball — also known as Newcomb ball or Kadureshet in Hebrew — a game similiar to volleyball. The Israeli national league, which began about eight years ago, in 2006, consists of 12 teams. The team from Daliyat al-Carmel is the league's only non-Jewish team.