Prefect Council held Fanatic Fest on Sept. 27 in Taper Gym. It was an assembly that highlighted the school’s pride and showcased the athletic teams competing the day after in the school’s annual Homecoming.
The pep rally started with the team captains of field hockey, volleyball, water polo and football running out to music, along with other team members. Immediately after they split into their designated teams and started a game in which the team members popped their balloons against the Head Fanatics’ laps. Then Cafeteria Cashier Phairot Janthep and President Rick Commons came out to join the captains in a game of musical chairs. This was followed by the announcement of all the Homecoming opponents and the destruction of pinatas depicting the opponent’s mascots.
Yari Milakin ’27 said the prep rally made him excited and encouraged him to watch Homecoming.
“The pep rally truly showed me what team spirit can accomplish,” Milakin said. “As a result of this, I was excited to watch more of the Homecoming games than I usually do.”
Leading up to Homecoming, Senior Prefect Victor Suh ’25 said that Prefect Council wanted to spotlight the teams themselves and focus on the athletic events showcased during Homecoming.
“We knew that we wanted to highlight the team captains,” Suh said, “ We also wanted to highlight the representatives from each of the four sports teams that were playing on Homecoming, that being field hockey, volleyball, water polo and football.”
From there Prefect Council decided on activities such as balloon popping and musical chairs. Head Fanatic Julian Cortez ’25 said that he loved being a part of the activities, and although he got knocked down during the balloon-popping game, it was still worthwhile.
“Being part of the games was really fun as well,” Cortez said. “We didn’t get to practice with the balloons at all in advance, so what everyone saw was our first run-through of it. Roen [Beiley] and I spent some time knocked to the ground but it was lots of fun. Plus me and the football team won so it was all worth it.”
Suh said he believes that Fanatic Fest was a success due to students’ excitement and willingness to interact with the event.
“There were certain moments here and there when I heard the crowd screaming and the level of noise in the gym increase,” Suh said. “ I thought to myself, ‘Yeah, you know what? I think we did a pretty good job this year.’”
Varsity field hockey player Margaux Schlumberger ’27 said that the pep rally helped her feel excited for the upcoming game especially since it highlighted field hockey.
“The school spirit makes me even more excited for the game tomorrow,” Schlumberger said. “Seeing all of the support from students is really exciting, especially for a less well-known sport.”
