With the SCIAC playoffs rapidly approaching, Pomona-Pitzer and club athletics had one thing on their mind this past week: Senior Day.
For all the work senior athletes do as role models and mentors, the final week of the regular season is a time to give thanks and celebrate through one of the best traditions 5C athletics have to offer.
Whether through an inordinate amount of confetti or a bold on-field celebration, a team’s choice of festivities can often give a glimpse into the culture and relationships within their squad. Summer Hasama PO ’24 gave some insight into what Senior Day looks like for the Sagehens women’s soccer team.
“The seniors get special announcements before the game and get to walk out with their family with a bouquet of flowers,” Hasama said. “There is a post-game picnic and celebration with all our families. There’s some good food and sentimental speeches for each senior.”
For seniors on the P-P women’s swimming team, Emmie Appl PO ’24 said the team decorates the pool area with blue and orange streamers.
“We have faces of the seniors posted up around the pool and on popsicle sticks as well,” she said.
The P-P volleyball team also takes its party aesthetics seriously.
“We make posters to hang up in the gyms, decorate the stands and our locker room and have little gift baskets to give to the seniors,” Chloe Gill PO ’24 said. “We also write notes to each of the seniors and announce their accomplishments, which really makes the experience heartfelt.”
The Serpents, the 5C club field hockey team, will be hosting their first ever senior game this Saturday, and captain Carolyn Coyne PO ’25 is eager to inaugurate the tradition.
“We are celebrating our seniors during our last home game through speeches, posters and a team brunch in the Village with alumni players,” Coyne said.
A favorite among players from every team is the tradition of bringing families and loved ones to cheer everyone on.
“Parents come and bring gifts for the seniors, such as this year they got flower crowns and leis!” Hasama said. “They just bring their good vibes and make the day very special.”
Gill acknowledged how parents of the seniors have enabled them to reach this milestone.
“The parents walk across the gym with their daughters to help honor their achievements,” Gill said. “I know that parents play a huge role in allowing the seniors to be at the level they are at now and becoming the amazing people they are today.”
Senior Day also facilitates a reflection on the relationships athletes have built with their older teammates. For Appl, she recognized what these connections mean to her as an athlete and a person while appreciating the short time she has left with the seniors.
“Senior Day last year was the first time where it really sunk in that they’re not going to be here next year,” said Appl. “I think it’s important to slow down and recognize that this is their last year and really savor those moments for what they are.”
Gill brought everything together with a heartfelt response encapsulating the impact that seniors leave not just on the court or field, but off it as well.
“[Our seniors’] leadership and hard work do not go unnoticed. They have set our program up for success in so many ways and have been such great role models for the rest of our team. I have no doubt that we will be friends for the rest of our lives. Senior Day is just a small way that we can honor them and all they do for us,” Gill said.
Facebook Comments