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Singing the National Anthem, the Westwood Choir gathers around a microphone. The choir’s performance announced the beginning of the pep rally.
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Executing their routine with energy, the Westwood Cheer team performs. Dancing to an upbeat song, the team maintained the hype of the evening.
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Smiling, Homecoming Court Nominee Amelia Spielman ’24 walks across the field with her escorts. Spielman was escorted by her friends, a common theme of the night.
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Creating formations, Warrior Pride dances to “Hot Stuff” by Donna Summer with poms. Continuing the myriad of pep rally performances, Warrior Pride dazzled the audience.
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Energized, the SunDancers create formations during their hip-hop routine. The team spent weeks perfecting their homecoming pep rally dance before their performance.
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Animated, K-Pop Club performs a routine during the pep rally. One of three dance performances, K-Pop Club brought energy to the evening.
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Beaming with her escorts, Annetta Davoli ’24, a member of Homecoming Royalty, walks across the field. During the pep rally, Royalty members walked with friends and family before the audience.
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Showing off their hip-hip skills, the SunDancers execute a routine to the song “Woodwork” by Vic Sage. One of the last performances of the night, SunDancers sustained the evening’s energy.
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With precision, Allen Liu performs for Chinese Yo-yo Club. Chinese Yo-yo Club dedicated weeks into perfecting their elaborate routine for the pep rally.
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Excitement and energy flooded from the Homecoming parade and into the Homecoming Pep Rally at the Warrior Bowl on Wednesday, Oct. 11.
The pep rally began with the Westwood Choir singing the National Anthem before varsity tennis Coach Travis Dalrymple energized the student body. Coach Dalrymple praised varsity football for their well-fought game against Vista Ridge and their shutout against Cedar Ridge before allowing the varsity cheerleaders to take the stage.
“I think this was one of our best performances because we spent countless hours preparing it,” Jenna Hallidy ’25 said. “The atmosphere was very encouraging between all of the clubs which felt really good.”
Shortly after the cheerleader’s routine, the varsity volleyball and football captains updated students on recent wins and upcoming games. Most notably, football rallied the audience to join and support them during the Homecoming game.
“The pep rally was really fun and everyone was enjoying themselves,” varsity football player Cooper Case ‘24 said. “People were very supportive of the football team and the community in general with events like the parade.”
Following the sports updates, the Warrior Pride drill team performed to the song Hot Stuff by Donna Summer and Kygo to maintain the energy of the night.
“There were a lot more people than usual, there was a lot of school spirit, a lot of energy,” Warrior Pride member Alicia Kanazawa De Figueiredo ’25 said. “Performing in that atmosphere, showing off [Warrior Pride’s] work was incredible.”
Celebrating success, additional sports teams such as varsity tennis, swim, and water polo gave updates on their recent victories and approaching season before the SunDancers dazzled the audience with their hip-hop number to the song Woodwork by Vic Sage.
“The pep rally went pretty good and [the Sundancers] were overall very excited to perform at the pep rally,” SunDancer Vivian Toney ‘26 said. “It was really fun hyping everyone up for Homecoming and celebrating all the sports teams.”
Clubs like the Chinese Yoyo Club and K-Pop Club showcased skill in routines before Coach Dalrymple announced the Homecoming court nominees, who were escorted to the front of the field by their friends and family.
“It was really exciting to be [nominated] on the Homecoming court,” Charlotte Stidvent ‘24 said. “Walking on the field with all the people who are important and close to me made me [feel] really happy.”
After all Court nominees were announced, Coach Dalrymple closed the pep rally by announcing the parade float winners and giving his thanks to the various programs that helped make the pep rally possible.
![Blending her bilingual skills and journalistic abilities to share the stories of American culture, Lena Boas ‘25 crafted a video package documenting American life for German audiences. “[A German TV station] wanted me to do this video diary so that I could show my personal life and what it's like going to school here [US].”](https://westwoodhorizon.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Copy-of-Copy-of-Pink-White-Watercolor-Colorful-Landscape-Label-13.png)
![In one of the newly made garden beds, Christopher Li '25 sets a plant in the soil. He collected a variety of plants and seeds to include in the garden. "I also collected [a lot of the seeds I sowed] outside in neighborhoods, parks, and sometimes on the side of the road," Li said.](https://westwoodhorizon.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/DSC_0037-1200x795.jpg)
