Contrary to The Gregory School and high school/collegiate sports tradition, the school hosted a homecoming event on January 17 at the start of the spring semester. Due to the lack of attendance to a homecoming based around one sport, it was mutually decided over the summer between the student council and the Family Association that a TGS Homecoming would instead take place during the winter season. Because of last year’s change of soccer season to winter, and the recent success of the basketball team, its reasoning has been clearly justified. The choice is an obvious one to make and the student body seems to be pleased, not resisting or fighting back against the switch.
In previous years, the main focus of the Homecoming event was its pomp and circumstance. There were rides, food trucks, a dunk tank, and soccer under the lights, which required a lot of additional planning, set-up, and most importantly, money. With the seasonal change comes a greater focus on sports rather than the slightly gimmicky fanfare.
Before the games began on Friday, January 17th, there was a pep rally during E3 featuring Jordyinadaze in concert, a three-point basketball contest, meet and greets with Jordyinadaze and basketball player Nico Mannion, and the finals of a school-wide ping pong tournament. Unlike previous pep rallies, students weren’t locked into the exploration, despite it featuring events that had never been seen on campus before. While some students did choose to forgo the event, a majority of both middle and upper school students still attended.
The main goal of Homecoming- to increase attendance and spirit at games - succeeded at its job, and even surpassed expectations. The soccer team was pleasantly surprised by the number of fans at their game. Attendance this season had been consistently sparse up, especially students, until Homecoming.
The energy at Homecoming continued throughout the evening. The stands of El Mirador gym were full for both the girls’ and boys’ basketball games. The pep band was in full swing, the Gregory student section battled for cheering-noise against the full visiting section, and the varsity team finished the night cap of the three games that evening with a close and exciting win.
Friends encouraging friends to come, excitement to support students as athletes at games, and school spirit all helped bring together students to make a Homecoming with high spirits and high attendance. All this happened with limited planning and preparation compared to previous years. Homecoming did its job as advertised and had a much greater turnout than last year.
Written by Leo Gruenstein, business manager
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