NHS Hosts Annual Powderpuff Game to Benefit Thirst Project
Seniors Gabbi Wallace and Kendall George run towards the rest of their teammates to celebrate a touchdown. The blue team was on a roll and scored back-to-back touchdowns during the last two quarters of the game.
Bella Wendland ’24 runs towards Gabbi Wallace ’22 to pull her flag. Wendland was successful, and prevented Wallace from approaching the end zone. The blue team was unable to score during this play.
While performing a cheer routine, Eric Gao ‘22 shows his school spirit while being lifted into the air. The male cheerleaders performed many different cheer chants throughout the game.
Carola Fernandez ‘22 and the rest of K-Pop club perform a popular number during the halftime show. Their performance was directly followed by a performance from the male cheerleaders.
Standing on the sidelines, Joshua Lee’ 22 performs a set with the rest of the drumline. The members of the drumline were able to successfully engage the audience sitting in the bleachers.
Seniors Rachel Iyer, Lydia Harris, Elizabeth Joyner, Abby Sandlin, and Sneha Bhale converse on the sidelines before the start of the next play. The blue team made a comeback during the last two quarters of the game and wowed everyone with their great effort.
The Powderpuff cheerleaders join together for a special formation during the second routine of the halftime show. The cheerleaders had been practicing their routines for weeks in anticipation of performing at the Powderpuff game.
Elizabeth Joyner ‘22 celebrates with her team after scoring a touchdown. The blue team was quick to catch up with the pink team again after falling behind for a few plays.
Atlee Olofson ’23 blocks a player from the blue team from making a touchdown. The blue team was only able to advance a few yards before one of their players got their flag pulled.
Carson Turner ’22 performs to Justin Bieber’s “Baby” along with the rest of the Powderpuff cheerleaders. The cheerleaders also performed to Ariana Grande and Iggy Azalea’s famous song “Problem,” which also got a lot of cheers and applause from the audience.
Students look out onto the field before the beginning of the football game. Many students, parents, and staff attended the Powderpuff game to support NHS and the Thirst Project.
Ansh Patel ’22 performs alongside his fellow Powderpuff cheerleaders. The male cheerleaders blew the audience away with their halftime performance.
Cassidy Denton ’23 walks across the field with the rest of her teammates prior to the start of the football game. The pink team was seen practicing a few of their plays on the field before the big game.
Junior Luke Hagen, Seniors Joshua Lee, Zach Engels, and Carson Turner strike a pose at the end of their performance. The Powderpuff cheerleaders had many different formations and poses throughout their performance.
National Honor Society (NHS) hosted their annual Powderpuff game on Thursday, April 28 at the Kelly Reeves Athletic Complex (KRAC) to raise money for the Thirst Project, an nonprofit organization that raises money to build wells in Africa. Due to Covid-19, the project hasn’t taken place for two years, and finally made a comeback this year. The Powderpuff game is one of many various events during Warrior Fest, through which NHS hopes to raise money to aid the Thirst Project.
To increase the amount of money raised during the Powderpuff game, there were a variety of concession stands throughout the KRAC. In addition, NHS officers went around collecting spare change in empty water gallons throughout the entirety of the event. The stands were filled with students sporting Thirst Project shirts. This year, the shirts for freshmen and seniors were blue, while the shirts for sophomores and juniors were pink. The event began with all the players and cheerleaders lining up on the sidelines, and sporting their blue and pink shirts as they were introduced. At the start of the first quarter, the pink team was quick to score a touchdown, and maintained this momentum until halftime. After the first two quarters, the pink team was in the lead, with a score of 22-16.
“I learned so much from [this experience],” Natalia Sosa ‘23 said. “I had so much fun, I felt competitive and I wanted to win. I was putting in all my effort, and the other girls were so good it was crazy.”
While the game was ongoing, the volunteer male cheerleaders were seen cheering on the sidelines. During halftime, K-Pop Club and the male cheerleaders performed, taking to the field to show off their dance moves that they had been putting weeks of practice into.
“[The dances] were fun but I got injured a lot,” Eric Gao ‘22 said. “It was difficult actually practicing and getting flexible enough to do what was necessary for the dance, [but my favorite part] was getting to hang out with the friends I performed with.”
After a great halftime show, the game felt tense in the last two quarters. The coaches of both teams did their best to explain plays to their players and encourage their respective teams.
“The most difficult part of coaching was keeping a balance between making sure the girls were fully prepared for the game, but also making sure they were all having fun,” Brian Lee ‘22 said. “ I’m a competitor but I knew I had to ease off on the gas at times.”
The encouragement from the coaches and successful execution of plays put the blue team in the lead. The blue team was quick to score back-to-back touchdowns with Gabbi Wallace ‘22 starting the touchdown “streak,” followed by Elizabeth Joyner ‘22,
‘22, and McKayla Ross ‘22 joining in on assisting more touchdowns for the team. With great efforts shown from both of the teams, the blue team ended up taking the win at the end of the last quarter with a score of 24-22.
“Making sure we executed our plays in time to avoid getting a penalty was maybe the most difficult thing for us,” Wallace ‘22 said. “Winning was a super great feeling, the whole team was so happy including our coaches and it’s just such a unique experience. We all celebrated together, it was great.”
Class of 2022
I'm glad to be working on the yearbook again this year. When I’m not on Schoology you can find me sleeping, dancing, or stressing over...
