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With the elimination of yet another teammate, team Nelli’s Deli grew desperate for a comeback in the face of a barrage from their dodgeball opponent, Los Capitanos. Noise from the spectators grew amplified and the buzzer rang, and Senior Class co-President Brian Chander knew instantly that Los Capitanos had beaten his team in the final round of dodgeball. Yet, Chander said he felt no sorrow in this moment; only gratitude for being able to be in the company of his peers, face-to-face, once again.

ASB hosted a dodgeball tournament for the class of 2021, inviting six teams of seniors onto the stadium turf to enjoy friendly competition, May 21. The event followed the current COVID-19 restrictions, enforcing the wearing of masks along with social distancing.

“Getting the chance to see my peers laugh and smile for two hours was a great change of pace in this wacky year,” Chander said. “With the school year ending, it’s hard to ignore the fact that our class isn’t going to have many more of these moments together.”

Senior Class co-President Brooke Gorman said she was relieved that the event came into fruition this month, as the events like these had been impossible to host in prior months due to harsher COVID-19 restrictions.

“Dodgeball has always been an annual event that ASB hosts, and although it wasn’t open to the entire student body as it normally has been, I know [Brian] and I were happy to have a shared experience with our class that possibly provided some normalcy into their lives,” Gorman said.

Each team, consisting of seven to eight players, played each other in a round-robin style tournament, where every team played every other team in the tournament before determining who moved onto the further stages. Chander said that this style of tournament, as opposed to the traditional elimination-style tournament, allowed each team to play more games. In order to compete, teams had to register before the day of the event with ASB.

With the current COVID-19 restrictions, ASB had to host the event outside on the field, as opposed to the gym in prior years. According to Gorman, the outdoors setting brought about several factors that would have to be taken into account to ensure a fair experience.

“We measured the size of the basketball court in the gym and replicated the size onto the field using cones,” Gorman said. “To account for the wind, we used the goals and fences that usually surround the field for sporting events and moved them to surround the dodgeball court.”

ASB students came onto campus to ensure the event ran smoothly. Competitors and spectators had to check in with ASB students before entering the stadium. While games were in session, ASB students collected any balls that flew out of boundaries. Another group of students worked a timer on the scoreboard and played music from the booth. ASB Adviser Shannon Parker, Principal Tina Ziegler, and Administrators Teri Heard and Darcel Glover supervised the event, while Kevin Ashwell refereed for the tournament.

According to Chander, a Dodgeball Recap video will be posted on the senior Instagram account @westview2021 and on the senior class website in the coming weeks. In the near future, clips of the dodgeball tournament will also be included in ASB’s yearly Westview Experience video.

Rohan Kumar (12), a competitor for team Airbenders, said he felt refreshed as his peers were able to enjoy each other’s company once again.

“We’ve all been deprived of social interaction for a long time and having the chance to still play a dodgeball tournament on campus this year was really awesome,” Kumar said. “It was really nice to see all my fellow seniors competing against each other and having a blast.”

Kumar’s teammate Jean-Pierre Ciotta (12) expressed gratitude towards ASB for hosting the tournament, leaving him with a good experience before his time in high school comes to a close.

“The games themselves were perfect because everyone was playing at a fast pace keeping the momentum and energy alive,” Ciotta said. “I was bummed out that we couldn’t have [Prom or the harbor cruise], but I am so thankful that our school was able to host this event.”

With the school year nearing its end, Chander said he urges his fellow seniors to make the most of the rest of the year as much as possible, as the time to enjoy the company of their high school class  ticks away.

“We only have about a month left together,” he said. “I know everyone is looking forward to what’s coming next, including myself, but take a second during this month to live in the present. When I look back on my high school experience so far, the things I remember the most are little moments with our class, like the dodgeball event this past weekend. So [to fellow seniors], I ask you to cherish and take advantage of those last few little moments we have together throughout this month because we will miss them when they’re gone.”