Kristen Ye
Senior Class President Blake Johnson rallies the seniors before the game on Oct. 17. “Today's senior spirit was off the charts, and the hard work that the girls put in showed in the amazing game they played," Johnson said. "I am so honored to be a part of this amazing and talented group of people. My message to the class is that seniors stay locked in and the juniors stay geeked."
The senior Class of 2024 storms the field as Principal Burt Clark watches the end of his first powder-puff game at West Shore on Sept. 27, 2024. In his mind, he wonders how he can make the moment even grander.
“I found myself wanting more with homecoming [last year], I found myself longing for a more traditional homecoming that celebrated the whole school,” Clark said. “I felt like powder-puff was this amazing thing, and then we had a dance, and it just didn’t have the pomp and circumstance, it didn’t have what I felt it deserved with powder-puff. It was always going to be second fiddle.”
Instead of taking place in the same week, homecoming and powder-puff are separated: powder-puff took place on Oct. 17, and homecoming is scheduled for Nov. 8. Additionally, there will be a varsity soccer game before the homecoming dance, acting as a replacement for the standard flag football game that takes place the week of homecoming. Other schools in the county also celebrate powder-puff.
“I think [the spring] layout for powder-puff is the most common,” Clark said. “[At other schools, it] was a part of the senior events, near prom, grad bash and all of [those activities].”
There will be additions to the new homecoming soccer game to create a more engaging experience.
“We’ve got Corvettes coming [to the Homecoming soccer game], [which] our homecoming court ladies can ride in,” Student Government Sponsor Sarah Scott said. “We’ve got the band to come out, we’ve got cheerleaders that are going to come out, food trucks. It’s going to be a really fun time.”
Athletic Director Tony Riopelle was the first faculty member to suggest these changes.
“I brought the idea about the changes to Mr. Clark,” Riopelle said. “I get [that] we don’t have football, but we do have a major outdoor sport. And a lot of people go to those games, so why don’t we just give [the changes] a try? If it isn’t great, we can always go back.”
The homecoming dance is relocating to the gym, with the theme being “A Night in Miami.” The gym will be decorated to imitate a nightclub.
“All of the high schools that I know are all having homecoming back on campus,” Clark said. “People started saying [that we could] have this [event] on our facility, keep it safe and controlled, [decorate it] really nice and still save money and apply that savings on our students.”
Since homecoming will not take place in the Melbourne Auditorium, the school will have more flexibility in scheduling the dance and pricing entry costs.
“I know we were one of the highest in the county for [ticket prices] … You should not have to pay [$40 for the dance],” Riopelle said. “If tickets are super expensive because of the venue, and this venue doesn’t even let us pick when we can have this, why be held hostage to that event?”
Junior Samantha Kervin said she appreciates the benefits that separation will bring to upperclassmen.
“The pros of [separating homecoming and powder-puff] would be [that] the seniors and juniors like myself wouldn’t have to scramble to prepare for homecoming right after all the [powder-puff] events,” Kervin said.
Despite her positive opinions towards the change in separation, Kervin said she does not support the venue change.
“[Having the dance in the gym is] mainly just a space problem,” Kervin said. “[The school does] not have a big enough gym to properly accommodate [all high schoolers on campus].”
Sophomore Aiden Cartagena said he does not hold the same concerns about hosting homecoming on campus.
“I think that our student government has homecoming in the gym handled,” Cartagena said. “Personally, I don’t think [the dance] should change that much.”
Scott said that she hopes the changes will bring more excitement toward the updated events.
“We really hope for the student body to be excited for another fun event. It’s adding on to their experience here at West Shore, [and] maybe more people [will come] out to the opening game,” Scott said.
Clark said the event will unite the student body for a better homecoming experience.
“I want [homecoming] to be a unifying event,” Clark said. “I want to provide everyone that’s involved with that opportunity to be a part of a homecoming event, and [students] still get powder-puff … It’ll still be amazing like it always has, but now we’ll have a real, true homecoming.”