On Wednesday, the Upper School crowded around the Red Gym as they watched the highly anticipated Eliminator competition and cheered on their fellow classmates. This intense relay race usually concludes all of the Spirit Week lunch time festivities, but due to the conditions of the field, the Tug of War event was pushed back to Thursday, making the Eliminator challenge the headline event for Day 3 of Spirit Week. 

For Eliminator, each grade enters a team of six to compete in the four events that comprise this challenge. Teams begin by having one member walk to half court while balancing a Wiffle ball on a spoon. Players then tag their teammates, who wheelbarrow to the end of the court. Upon reaching the endline, another team member crab-walks back to half court. In the next leg of the event, another participant sprints to the endline. Once they cross the endline, the last member of the team finishes off the event with the tricycle challenge. For the tricycle aspect of the race, the cyclists must pedal to the cone, turn around, and return to the endline. After the cyclist crosses the endline, the relay is complete.

For the first match up, the seniors competed against the freshmen. The seniors’ experience showed as they easily defeated the freshmen. Next, the sophomores went head-to-head with the juniors. The juniors suffered an early setback after the Wiffle ball fell off the spoon, forcing the team to start over. The sophomores capitalized on this mishap and created a distance between them and their fellow competitors. During the tricycle event, juniors made up for lost time. Kian Canelas (’21), the cyclist for the Juniors, ferociously pedaled and surpassed sophomore cyclist, Danya Weinstock (’22), to capture the win. 

Competing for third place, the sophomores edged out the freshmen in an intense match-up. Despite coming in last, freshman Eliminator team participant Bella Dawson said she still sees this event as a memorable experience, explaining,“It was hectic, but also fun.”  

The crowd became electric as the junior and senior Eliminator teams took their positions for the championship match. The seniors got off to a strong start and were consistently one step ahead of the juniors. Once more, the juniors relied on Canelas’ tricycle talents to bring them back into the race. Canelas’ hard pedaling brought him within one wheel length of senior cyclist Lizzy Geyer (‘22). However, Geyer kept her stride and sealed the senior’s victory. 

Geyer said she was enabled by her friends and the motivation she received from her teammates to focus amid the chaos that ensued during the tricycle event: “I just saw my friends and my teammates cheering me on, and I knew I could push through.” 

Geyer’s mental fortitude gave the seniors their second consecutive first place finish in a Spirit Week event. This victory allows the seniors to retain their position atop the leaderboard. 

Eliminator Teams: 

Freshmen: Ali Benjamin, Andrew Mercantini, Collin Montenegro, Vanya Weinstock, Cooper Greer, and Bella Dawson

Sophomores: Danya Weinstock, Evan Kolaris, Ava Parker, Ishaan Shah, Caleb Kelly, and Wes Simpson 

Juniors: Mitchell Desman, Kian Canelas, Hannah Wilson, Harry Kelly, John Limjoco, and Bella McCollister 

Seniors: Henry Powell, Jack Bader, Jackson Fox, Lizzy Geyer, Alden Burke, and Calvin Bell