At Sentinel High School last week there was an amazing presentation of spirit. The week started off with setting the mood for our school with all the hall decorating. The participation in it this year, especially for underclassmen, was impressive. Teachers were even mentioning how pleasantly surprised they were with the hallways presentation from the Spartan-themed freshman and Outer Space-themed sophomores.
The verdict on the win from the staff ended up being the seniors with their pink explosion for Barbie.
On Monday we started off our homecoming events with the annual powder puff football game. The junior-senior rivalry didn’t disappoint this year. Though the teams had a pretty even set of players, the juniors weren’t quite ready for the speed the seniors were bringing. The amazing quarterback on the juniors’ behalf (Nina Sammory) couldn’t quite bring the defensive heat they needed.
Now on the spectator’s behalf this was an interesting game. With all the normally spirit-filled junior and senior girls on the field, the student section was lacking. Do football boys not know how to cheer? I guess not, but they do know how to talk football. There was screaming and yelling not on behalf of cheering for our spartans or trying to get “Rowdy”, but rather what the refs were doing wrong. One student even claims, “It was a coaches game, the teams were all equal.”
On the other hand, there were claims from many sophomores that say they are really excited to be on the field next year. However, they do truly hope for a stronger student section to make the game just that much more exciting. There is even talk of trying to incorporate the boys in cheerleading next year, as some tried but failed with their lack of pep.
The next day we got to once again support our senior and junior girls in our volleyball game against Flathead; just like the football game the previous week, Flathead was taken down. One of the highlights of this game was when in the third set the points kept bouncing back and forth until 29 points were finally won by us!
One sophomore claimed that the spirit we brought to the homecoming volleyball game was out of this world, topping the “attempted” Flathead student section by miles.
On the wonderful Tuesday, we also got to see spatulas and aprons alongside the dynamic duo of Lululemon and Stanley cups. Our students did not disappoint on this theme!
Not only that, but the spirit and outfits of the dodgeball teams the next day were also well organized. We got everything from secret service agents, camo, U.S.A., to… singlets?
Though the dodgeball crowd outside of the teams themselves was lacking, those participating brought lots of noise. The event started off strong with a relatively fast game featuring the freshmen versus the seniors. Could you guess who won?
Though, arguably the best moment of the night was in the game to follow. Kaitlyn Hammet (jr) got on the court and brought her best. This girl’s whole team had gotten out and it was up to her to get out five other kids to take the win, and man did she bring her A game. She pulled it off! After getting those five sophomores out, her team rushed onto the court in celebration and the crowd went crazy.
Those on the sidelines of the game expressed their excitement for the years to follow.
After such great times and competitions, we mellowed it out with our bonfire on Thursday night. This year after making a decision to end the stack of pallets to burn with a total of 20… Mr. Beck proved he couldn’t be stopped. He ended the pile with around 40 pallets topped off beautifully with a paper mache eagle that burned in seconds.
There were some students who were worried about the fact that it was on a Thursday instead of the usual Monday. Did this limit the participation and the spirit through the rest of the week? Maybe. Either way, the fire this week complimented the weather well and encouraged students to stand next to the fire.
And what about the assembly? There is definitely something to say about the alumni Hall of Fame members who came from many miles away to be here for us. Another memorable moment that is hoped to be brought back, was the heartwarming senior boys, and mom dance. Lots of people seemed to enjoy this moment more than any of the previously minimally practiced senior boy dance routines.
An exciting moment for all people within the walls of Sentinel was the finale of the dodgeball bracket. This was a match-up of the U.S.A themed junior team (previously talked about team with Kaitlyn Hammet) and the staff. Though the staff failed to pull it through with a win, it was an accomplishment being up there in the first place, considering they’ve never made it that far in the homecoming dodgeball tournament before.
What was up next then of course the homecoming football game. We were all lucky enough this year to go to the Washington Grizzly stadium for such a great time! There was a lot of energy and thankfully a lot of heat in the student section. We cheered on our Spartans right to victory, winning 35-21 against cross town rivals the Big Sky Eagles.

An honorable mention worthy of adding is that of the sophomore homecoming prince. Not only was he in the homecoming court, he was on the team, and in the marching band! Any activity you could participate in in this event, he did! So props to Drew Sundburg for the dedication, support, and participation. He is a true spartan!
And finally, to end it all, we had the hoedown. There have been a lot of complaints about this annual theme, and finally they announced that next year will be different. There seemed to be lots of positive feedback surrounding this idea. The theme of a hoedown seemed to be one of the biggest complaints about the homecoming week as a whole. Nonetheless, there was a lot of good to be said about this event. There are claims that it was definitely better than last year, but of course, there are always improvements to be made, like that of the DJ which seemed to not be as loved this year.
All in all, homecoming was a success! With two wins under our belt and lots of energy and participation, it’s hard to say much more could have been better.