The cheer emanated from the west bleachers. “Cap and Gown!” It grew in volume. “Cap and Gown! Cap and Gown!” The crowd began to clap. “Cap and Gown! Cap and Gown! Cap and Gown!” It grew into a roar and dissolved into raucous cheers.
On the court, the remaining members of Cap & Gown Club’s squad regained their energy and began to pick off members of the football team, beginning with senior safety Kevin Kelleher and ending with junior wide receiver and 2008 tri-captain Adam Berry.
“I think the turning point was the final Cap and Gown chant,” Cap member Will McEachern ’08 said. “It inspired us to get a couple big catches and took us to the win.”
Cap took the 2008 dodgeball championship, and the associated $1,000 prize, after soundly defeating the JV tennis team. Though the tennis squad demonstrated its quick footwork and put up a fight for a while, the Maroon and White triumphed after senior running back Ray Simnick made a spectacular catch while scooping up a loose ball near the restraining line. The catch was the final nail in JV tennis’ coffin, as it gave Cap an insurmountable man advantage.
Simnick’s stellar play was all the more notable since he had played for the football team in his club’s semifinal match against the football team.
“At first I was bewildered, but [senior fullback Evan O’Reilly] and Ray Simnik showed their true Maroon and White colors in the end,” Cap president Rob Finley ’09 said.
The football-Cap contest was tightly contested. Cap was led by tall athletic guys, while the football team’s 20-man squad consisted mostly of upperclass receivers and members of the secondary. The turning point in the match came after a controversial call was made. A ball thrown by the football team was deflected by Cap, but the ball used to deflect the throw was dropped. Football advocates began citing the rules, but tournament organizers confirmed the call made by the on-court referees. The Maroon and White did not lose a player from the court. The call seemed to deflate the remaining members of the football squad.
Conversely, the Maroon and White squad came out of the ensuing timeout fully energized, mostly due to its members’ cheers. The first to go down was Kelleher, who instinctively laid himself out and reached for the ball, but was only able to deflect it, removing him from the court. Now outnumbering the football team two to one, the Cap squad coldly put the football team away and moved on to the finals.
“It was a disappointment,” Berry said. “Even though we won our bracket, especially after winning last year, it was a little bit of a setback. We’ll definitely be back in the championship next year.”
The JV tennis team was a true underdog story. Facing the varsity basketball team — who took the costume contest seriously and all dressed as Tom Cruise in “Risky Business” — in the semifinals, the tennis team whittled the basketball squad down until only sophomore guard Marcus Schroeder remained. Facing three JV tennis players, Schroeder launched a shot at junior captain Jake Gutwillig. Gutwillig made a fantastic catch, eliminating Schroeder and the basketball squad from contention. The group let loose with a chant, “JV! JV! JV!” and shamed the varsity athletes off the court.
Though in the movie the underdogs came out on top, however, it was not the case at Dillon Gym last night.
“It feels unbelievable,” Finley said. “Last year we had unfortunate circumstances with our lineup, but we came through this year.”
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