The gymnasium is buzzing with energy, a prismatic space of red, white, orange, and green. Each class shouts a chant to uplift their respective team as Mr. Giblin announces the play-by-play of the Scooter Race, the first event of many. The 2022 BOTC begins with a thrilling excitement and ends on a celebratory, bittersweet note. 

The event started with the Freshmen at 1 point, Sophomores at 6, Juniors at 5, and Seniors at 10. Maintaining the same pattern, the Seniors are victorious in both the Scooters and Egg Toss, earning them 7 points each. Down the totem pole, the earned points correlated to what grade the team was in, sticking Freshmen in last. However, a shift occurred during the Dance Moves challenge, typically knocking out the Freshmen and Sophomore teams first but resulting in triumphant Juniors. A similar sequence took place in the relay when the Sophomores (literally) dropped the ball and landed in last. The Freshmen ended up in third, their first of the event, and after lots of discourse between the teams and referees, the Juniors won once again. 

It looked a bit drab for the Seniors but that didn’t stop them from giving their A (+) game in the next challenge: Thinking. Reliant on the entire student body, each team melded their minds and worked together to solve various trivia questions. The Freshmen fell back to 4th, the Sophomores following suit, but everyone was at the edge-of-their-seat watching the Juniors, led by Pooja, and Seniors, led by Camryn, consistently neck-and-neck throughout the round. Ultimately, the Seniors remained the champions but the Juniors put on a valiant, intelligent fight.

Are you strong? I’m not, so I certainly admired the abilities of the teams as they took on tug-of-war. Separated by boys and girls, the Seniors mightily upheld their 1st place position, outperforming the rest of the grades dramatically. The Freshmen consistently stayed last, the Sophomore girls out-tugged the Junior girls, but the Junior boys evened the playing field in their round. However, one could argue that they only succeeded due to the encouraging cheers of Cassidy Corcione, who was there for her team throughout the event despite her injury. Moving on to the Balloon Pop, the Juniors were able to pop all of their orange colored balloons in record time, despite Mr. Tepedino’s attempt to add more as time progressed. The Seniors came in second, the Sophomores third, and the Freshmen last. Before the final activity, the pressure was on with the scores as the following: Seniors- 53, Juniors- 45, Sophomores- 26, and Freshmen- 10.

I think I can speak for everyone when I say the last challenge is a fan-favorite. Not only is it the most entertaining, but the effort of each class is evident in their performance. Last, but definitely not least, is the Lip Sync Battle. With judges lined up and Mr. DiGuiseppe balancing on a chair for the best photos, the Freshmen are up first. They began with the Pixar opening, a member bouncing like the famous desk lamp we all know and love. Even though their music cut off mid-dance, they held out for as long as they could until the technical issues could be resolved, coming back in rhythm with a wonderful cameo of Abby Lee Miller, everyone’s favorite dance teacher. They pulled all the moves they could but was it enough for the judges? 

Enter the Sophomores, who began their performance with the bopping “Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now)” by C+C Music Factory. It featured Cameos from Kim K, Teen Beach Movie, and Malibu Barbie, getting the entire gymnasium progressively hyped. I was saying prayers during their impressive stunts in “Living on A Prayer” by Bon Jovi, which they landed with ease and precision. Their time on the dance floor was amazing, but the Juniors quickly took over with features from iCARLY and High School Musical 2 (that baseball scene is too iconic). With Nyla owning the dance movies left and right, it was hard to beat their performance, or was it?

Fueled by the desire to make their Senior year the greatest, the class of 2023 owned the gymnasium floor with their dance skills, props, and special guests. It started off phenomenally with Dr. Dow getting on the “loudspeaker” to introduce their dance. It quickly shifted to choreography Fiona, our Homecoming Queen, owned like she did last year. Max showcased his ability to do incredible flips throughout the piece and beautifully “played” the piano, and Camryn did the splits like her life depended on it. Of course, I can’t forget to mention Jake rocking heels as Arianna Grande, Blake becoming Vector, who commits crimes with both direction and magnitude, and the Mean Girls bus scene. As laughter ensued and cheers erupted, the Seniors ended on a bittersweet note, playing “All in this Together” in their graduation gowns while holding up baby photos, walking through fake superlatives, and throwing their graduation caps into the air. 

The Seniors were the reigning champions of 2022 BOTC, ending with a score of 60. They were followed by the Juniors, then the Sophomores, and lastly, the Freshman. The entire Patriot community put heaps of effort to make this event possible and every student put in their best effort. Congratulations to the Seniors!