Powderpuff energizes school

Touchdown! The crowd exploded as the senior girls scored the only points in the championship game, sealing their victory on the evening of April 5. The senior guys didn’t disappoint either as their thrilling cheer routine enthralled students during the April 6 rally.
Roles were switched as girls played flag football and guys performed cheer routines for Powderpuff during Spring Fling Week, an annual tradition in which each day of the week is a different spirit day and classes compete in Powderpuff.
The result of each football game was similar to that of previous years: the juniors beat the freshmen 14-0 at lunch on April 3, the seniors beat the sophomores 7-0 at lunch on April 4, the sophomores tied the freshmen 0-0 at lunch on April 5 and the seniors beat the juniors 7-0 in the night game on April 5.
No class scored as many points as crowd members would have liked, but the games were nevertheless packed with energy and athleticism.
“The games were very physical and the development of the ground game was sick to watch,” junior Parth Shah said. “The intensity every year is awesome, and I can’t wait for senior year.”
Because the football games were a class competition, the atmosphere was rough. One student, freshman class president Dani Bruno, received a concussion.
“I didn’t get hit in the head super hard, but after the game, my vision was blurry, so I went to the doctor, and he told me I had a concussion,” Bruno said. “Since I was playing line, I think it was from getting shoved hard over and over again.”
After the last Powderpuff game on April 5, spirited guys in each grade became the class cheerleaders as they performed choreographed dances during the rally on April 6. The juniors were criticized by some teachers for their suggestive moves, and the freshmen didn’t have a polished dance, but the rally attendees were impressed by the energy of all the performers.
“They were extremely fun to watch and it was funny to see the guys in our grade and guys of all classes doing some unusual yet entertaining  moves,” sophomore Kristie Lin said.
Members of cheer in multiple grade levels felt the routines were a good way to show class spirit and let loose after a long six weeks without break.
“I liked the dance because it was very seductive,” junior Powderpuff cheer member Amin Mirzadegan said. “I feel like we got the crowd involved, and it was enjoyable for the whole school.”
Some students, like sophomore Manini Desai, feel that school spirit is declining in general, and evidence of this could be seen throughout Spring Fling Week in the lack of dressing up on spirit days.
“Though our school is unfortunately really low on school spirit, I was really glad to see a large group of girls participating in Powderpuff,” Desai said. “Also, a large chunk of each grade came to show support during the games, which was awesome.”