Sofia Ardon and Elissa Yick also contributed to this article.
Friendly competition arose among the Class of 2030 as students from Boyle, Brunelli, Holland, and Jenkins participated in different challenges. From arts and crafts to heated physical challenges, it was clear that every freshman who participated gave it their all.
Science teacher Shauna Campbell, who organized the event, explained that “it’s three main categories, and the goal is that it allows everyone to participate in some way that they might be interested in because not everyone loves sports, and not everyone likes to be active or do stuff in front of people, and so that inspired us to have the trivia and artistic category.”
“I think the Holland kids this year are actually into it more than last year in terms of competitiveness,” math teacher Shu Tan explained.
In the arts and crafts challenge, the freshman were told to design posters with unique designs for their house along with slogans like, ”Holland aint fallin,” “Second to none, Boyle leads the run,’’and ”Brunelli takes no elli’s, BRUNELLI FOR THE WIN!!” Their efforts highlighted students’ pride to be a part of their house.
With all these colorful, neatly done and detailed posters, the arts challenge ended in a one-point difference between Brunelli, taking second place with 9 points, and Holland, taking the overall win with 10 points.
Beginning the Olympics was the Trivia game. The questions were randomized, consisting of multiple topics and allowed people to show their quick thinking skills. After a round of unexpected questions there was a three-way tie, leaving Jenkins in last place.
After the trivia event concluded, the physical challenges commenced, which included the box relay, mattress relay, free throws, over-and-under, and lastly tug-of-war. Students were chanting cheers like “Let’s go, let’s go Holland”, and stomping their feet.
The physical challenges started with the box relay where students went into round boxes and raced to the finish line. Brunelli took a rapid start, quickly moving with Jenkins not far behind. Concluding the box relay, Brunelli took first with the others falling behind.
Afterwards, students proceeded with the long-awaited mattress relay. Freshman Zaylin Jones, who participated in the challenges, shared, “My favorite challenge was probably the mattress relay. It was really fun just because I got to bounce on the mattress.” As more people slid onto the mattress, the more people screamed from the stands. The energy radiating from the bleachers became more and more competitive as Jenkins slid into first place.
“The physical challenges were for people that like to do athletic things, but we made them kind of weird, non-athletic challenges. Like the mattress slide and the box thing, kind of fun and silly tasks,” Campbell highlighted.
After a big win from Jenkins, it was time for the next challenge to commence. A free-throw challenge was introduced, and as everyone lined up, it was clear that this would be quite a competitive one. From the most talented basketball players, stepping up with confidence, hoping their experience would give them an upper hand, to people trying for fun, it was clear this was not going to be an easy win for any of the houses.
The crowd watched with anticipation as each basketball went up in the air. The competition had many misses and many clean shots with a swish after it went through the hoop. Ultimately, it was Brunelli who stood out with the most successful shots and took the win home.
Following up with free throws, the over-and-under challenge began, where students lined up and passed a basketball, alternating over their heads or under their legs. After they did so, they ran to the back of the line and did it again. Before the round started, teams were allowed to practice before the actual round. Many balls slipped out of hands. Some balls were aimed inaccurately.
Yet there was no room for mistakes in the actual round. It started off with Boyle moving with precision and quick hands without a single mistake. Jenkins was neck and neck with Boyle, moving swiftly to catch up. Hearing the crowds in the back cheering on their house to claim victory motivated them to want it more. Overall, with all the efforts of all teams, Boyle claimed victory over this challenge.
Freshman Annie Tan, who was a part of the winning team, expressed that what really mattered to her was “as long as we all have fun, that’s a win for me.’’
While the timer was ticking closer to end, Brunelli sat with a one-point advantage over Jenkins. This faced Jenkins with a challenge. In order to win, they needed to take the final win and make sure Brunelli didn’t get second. However, it was obvious to many that Brunelli was a strong opponent.
Kicking off the event with Jenkins against Boyle, lots of pressure from the crowd kept Freshman Genesis Hernandez encouraged. “My heart was beating out of my chest, my hands were sweaty, and overall I felt like there was a lot of pressure for us to win, so it motivated me to try my best.’’ As gym teacher Dan Jurkowski took his hand off the rope, Jenkins immediately sprang into action, tugging with all their might as Boyle tried to keep their ground with perseverance, but despite all their effort, Jenkins won over Boyle and moved on to the finals.
The competition continued with Brunelli against Holland determining who would claim a spot in the finals against Jenkins. Brunelli looked to get the early advantage. Holland matched them and kept the rope still. As time went by, Brunelli slowly gained momentum, tugging harder before finally claiming victory.
Before the final round, Boyle and Holland battled for third. Both teams fell short of a spot in the finals they wanted to win. From the start, Boyle slowly pulled back, gaining the upper hand while Holland struggled to keep up. As the pressure began building, Holland broke, allowing Boyle to use the last of their strength to secure victory and claim third place.
Now came the event everyone had been waiting for, the final showdown between Brunelli and Holland. Both teams lined up on each side of their rope with determination in their eyes. Freshman Bradley Merant from Jenkins explained how he “felt nervous at first,” but after the last match against Boyle, he had “more confidence,” showing his faith in his team’s capability.
With the crowds cheering on their team through chants and cheers, both teams were ready to give it their all in pursuit of the win. As the match began, Jenkins quickly took the early lead, forcing Brunelli on their toes as they fought to hold their ground. Despite Burnelli’s effort to try to take the lead back, Jenkins kept control. After a hard-fought battle, Jenkins were the winners of the tug-of-war.
As the Freshmen Olympics came to a close, all the final scores were counted. Through all the efforts along with teamwork of all participants and motivation from the crowd, there was only one winner at the end of the day, and for the 2026 Freshmen Olympics, Brunelli claimed the win they haven’t seen in years.
About the Author
