Arcadia High School’s (AHS) ASB held its annual Winter Pep Rally on Jan. 26 in the North Gym. The assembly featured many of AHS’ academic teams, winter sports teams, Pep Squad, Orchesis Dance Company, and was filled with high energy and excitement from the audience.
ASB’s Academic Teams Commissioner Emily Chien kicked off the rally by introducing all the academic teams on our campus. Out ran Ocean Science Bowl (OSB) with a cheer showing their love for marine life. Destination Imagination and Speech and Debate displayed all their achievements and awards as their turns came. Other teams such as the Physics Team, Robotics Team, Math Team, and Science Olympiad also brought unique aspects of themselves to show their pride in what they stand for.
Science Bowl member Avani Athavale shared her experience at the rally.
“We were all excited to be there representing the academic teams at AHS,” she shared. “Beforehand, each team plans a song and a cheer, and we coordinate clothing and accessories. For example, for Science Bowl, our slogan is ‘Buzz fast, not last,’ and we ran out to the Bill Nye the Science Guy theme song.”
The applause was thunderous as their fellow Apaches cheered them on, expressing their appreciation for all the individuals who contribute to AHS.
Aside from academic teams, there were also winter sports teams to be honored. Boys Basketball leaped out animatedly, smiling and waving at the crowd. Girls sports did not disappoint either, with Girls Soccer, Basketball, and Water Polo coming to the spotlight soon after.
To boost everyone’s spirits even further, Pep Squad’s Cheer section grabbed everyone’s attention, with an impressive performance full of jumps, kicks, and leaps. Their dedication and effort were clear as they ignited loud cheers from the audience.
“The performances that I adored the most were the ones where the Pep Squad showcased their amazing dancing skills and stunts,” shared freshman Arielyn Luo when asked about her opinion on the performance. “Personally, I just love watching performances that have a lot of action.”
ASB still had a lot more in store, with a game of musical chairs–but with a twist. When the music stopped, players had to run to the audience and gather a required item from them, such as a hair tie or a pair of glasses. Whoever failed to return with the item and sit down was eliminated. The participants had everyone roaring with laughter and motivating them to go in for the win.
Another game included the ASB members, who were divided into teams based on grade level. One member from each team would lay flat on a skateboard and be rolled into a pit of plastic balls. They aimed to gather as many balls as possible in a container within a limited time. Although the results were close in the first assembly, the juniors swept everyone away with a score of 48 balls collected. In the second assembly, the juniors and seniors were at a tie of 83 balls. Ultimately, the seniors won the tiebreaker of rock-paper-scissors. This was freshman ASB Historian Nicole Kim’s favorite activity, and she shared why.
“My favorite part was the Hungry Hippos game. It was so chaotic and visually interesting. I had a lot of fun watching/photographing the people in the games,” Kim said.
Afterward, Orchesis took center stage with a dazzling routine that showcased their talent. The dancers’ skills were evident, and they didn’t fail to impress.
The final activity was a bottle flip tic-tac-toe activity. The red team consisted of freshmen, while the yellow team consisted of upperclassmen. Every time someone landed the bottle upright after flipping it, one member of their team could claim a place on the tic-tac-toe board. The red team captured the win quickly after their bottle landed upright three times before the yellow team’s bottle landed twice.
Pep Song closed the rally off, with another wonderful and engaging performance. AHS honors all the teams on campus making a difference, and we are proud of what you do. Go Apaches!
