[ot-caption title=”The seniors and juniors duel it out on Banks Field during Homecoming Week 2015. (via, Sydney Aronberg, sophomore)”]

On Thursday, October 22, the annual powderpuff game brought unbelievable excitement to campus!  Per tradition, the Junior Class faced off against the seniors on Banks Field.  Both sides engaged in extensive preparation for the much anticipated showdown.  Coaching the juniors were football players Sam Wurth and Sofia Caro.  The Class of 2017 was new to powderpuff this year, and it took a big effort to train the girls, teaching them a game plan that would hopefully overthrow their older counterparts.  Eddie Soto ran the show, leading the charge as Senior Head Coach.  Both squads came out firing, but someone had to take the victory, and the seniors’ experience in the game and strategy took over quickly.  Quarterback Bianca Tedesco hooked up with Sophie Danielsen for a number of long passes and a pair of touchdowns as well.  Defensively, Autumn Clark reeked havoc all day for the juniors and wound up with an interception and a handful of disrupted plays.  At the end of the first half, the score was already a dominant 18-0 with the Pine Crest seniors in the lead.  That score would hold and give the seniors a convincing victory in their last appearance in this game.  The orange and black in the stands made their voices heard as well and were a large part of the win, cheering on the girls play in and play out.

The game was a blast, but for many, the highlight of the event and Homecoming week in general is the Powderpuff Halftime Dance, a halftime show performed by a group of boys in each grade. The halftime show began with the Freshmen Class taking the field. The newcomers showed guts and potential in their first try; their dance was impressive and entertaining to start the show.  Next up was the Sophomore Class. The Class of 2018 definitely redeemed themselves this year. Sophomore Hayden Norris leaped into the arms of his fellow dancers to begin the routine, and the performance included many extraordinary flips and combinations throughout.  The eventual victors, the Junior Class, were ready to show the stands what they had planned.  They weren’t intimidated one bit, as shown when the boys ran onto the field from the side of the bleachers barking right at the seniors, showing the favorites that they were in for a fight.  Every junior on the sidelines cheered their team on, in hopes of taking home the competition.  The boys put on a really incredible performance that was in sync, hysterical, and worthy of a win.  Andrew Bell, Andres Soto, and Leo Malhado were some of the juniors that showed that they were a force to be reckoned with this year.  Finally, the Senior Class of 2016 took the field.  Given it was their fourth attempt at the title, the seniors took the opportunity to get creative and show what Powderpuff was all about.  The dance featured, along with solid combinations and moves, a slip ‘n slide, a shower, a minions costume, and a lot of baby powder.  The stands jumped up and cheered as loud as they could for their fellow classmates, and the dance finished with the Senior boys running to the stands to be embraced by their classmates on the fence and smothered by a cloud of baby powder.  The performance was rock solid, but it wasn’t enough.  The judges awarded the juniors first place with a perfect score. The juniors in the stand went crazy, cheering and clapping for their male classmates who performed.

The Powderpuff Game and Dance Competition were huge successes, and the Junior girls will look to avenge their defeat in next year’s game.  Jackie Procacci, a member of the Junior football team, stated, “It was a good effort by the juniors but we will definitely redeem ourselves next year!” Next year, the Junior Class will be ready to take the field for the last time and take the win, but for now, Orange and Black reign supreme.