Staff beat the seniors 25-11 in the annual Winter Rally basketball game during lunch on Wednesday. During the rally, ASB also revealed this year’s Prom venue: the San Francisco Design Center Galleria.
Senior Nate Robinson said he enjoyed playing in the game despite the loss.
“I feel pretty good,” Robinson said. “I made a three and free throws, but some of the shots just weren’t falling since it’s a lot of pressure. The referees were very biased towards the teachers, so that made it very difficult to win. But it was very fun, and I really enjoyed it.”
ShQuil Green, a student assistant, said the rally offered an opportunity for the Paly community to connect with one another.
“It brought us all together as a school, so I love it,” Green said. “We all came together as a team from different departments and it was an amazing time.”
Senior Tsion Amanuel said playing in this game reminded her of her past experiences playing basketball with her school teammates.
“Since we weren’t cooperating during warm-ups, we were a mess,” Amanuel said. “It was obviously harder because we were playing against mostly men, and they were big. But it brought back memories of playing basketball.”
Campus Supervisor Mayerly Short said she wasn’t surprised the staff won this year, and plans to participate again in the future.
“We had a very tall team this year, so we could pass, and I think all of us were more energetic than we usually are,” Short said. “It’s a fun way to do things with the students where we can be a little bit more aggressive in a sporty way and still have fun.”
Senior Kishor Rajmohan said playing during the rally as a senior felt special and different from watching the game in previous years.
“I thought it was really fun to play, especially after watching the games as an underclassman,” Rajmohan said. “It was somewhat nerve-racking, but after we kind of internalized it, it became all fun and games and way less stressful. I would say the most memorable moment is between Ms. Short falling and the refs having to call a jump ball.”
Rajmohan also said the inability to handle challenges in the game and a lack of overall strategy led to the seniors’ demise.
“Actually scoring points was more challenging than expected,” Rajmohan said. “We completely lacked organization, didn’t have any game plan or strategy and I think we fumbled the game because of it. I think our players were good enough to win, but our lack of strategy really messed us up.”
Senior and student team coach Kacey Washington said coaching the team was a unique experience that he enjoyed.
“When it comes to the team, we can’t select the team, so we’ve got to talk to a lot of people that you may not talk with, may not interact with, or may not have classes with,” Washington said. “If you look at that from that perspective, it’s really fun. And you also got to coach people that you’re friends with and to have this experience that is quite unique with all your friends and seniors in the stands. It makes it a really fun experience.”
