NBW’s Crystal Ball took place on February 15^th, 2014.  But the event that still has people talking alongside the dance is the pep rally the previous day on Friday, February 14^th.  This pep rally was a much greater success than Homecoming’s simply because it was more entertaining, and exciting.

The band began the rally by welcoming everyone with a few energizing, pump- up songs as students began piling into the gym.  As soon as the school was seated, Dom Ropella and Jackson Wannamaker, the two leading the pep rally, started things off on the humorous side with a very entertaining dance off.  Quickly following the comical performance was the miracle minute in support of the Pennies for Patients, sponsored by NHS.  The Pennies for Patients competition among the classes throughout all of spirit week ended with the seniors coming in first, also taking the spirit point, followed by middle school, juniors, sophomores, and with freshman coming in last.

Next, NBW was in for more excitement and intensity as the cheer teams worked together to perform the school’s legendary battle cry.  Again, the seniors picked up the spirit point for being the loudest out of all the classes.

It was then time for the crystal ball court to perform their skits in front of the school.  Up first was Emily Rogala and Connor Davis.  Their performance was very entertaining as it ended with Davis being splashed in the face with water.  Following them was Tyler Brandt and Ruthann Behrendt.  Let’s just say this was a performance most of the boys at the school could probably relate to as it involved the theme of video games and donuts.  My personal favorite was Elise Menden and Brett Connors’ performance with a show- off contest as to who had the better skill set, front and back flips, or playing football.  Following them was Eileen Herbers and Nate Gale who did a small performance showing their exciting dance moves.   Kat Daigle and Connor Hels created a unique performance involving soccer and candy.  Last to perform was Erin Simpson and Nathaniel Henrichs, however Henrichs was not present, and was filled in by Dom.  This involved showing off strength and many pushups.  The court couples then immediately split into a game of leap frog, as they raced to one end of the gym to pick up a plastic bat and hit the corresponding ball only after spinning around numerous times.  The winners of this amusing challenge were Elise and Brett.

The pep rally continued on with performances by both the girls’ and guys’ poms teams.  The girls began with their amazing routine, gaining immense popularity among the students.  The guys’ team then came to the floor, accompanied by the girls’ team members.  This performance was one of the best of the pep rally as well as one that will forever be remembered.

After the dances concluded, a scavenger hunt was then taking place among the students.  This was enjoyable because it allowed for the whole school to participate.    The hunt involved the following: having on two different shoes, whoever wore the most yellow, best animal noise, whoever were triplets, and whoever could do a handstand the longest.

After the scavenger hunt, it was time for the sweethearts to come to the floor.  For seniors, the sweethearts were Anna Dineen and Calvin Bush.  Juniors were Brittany McClellan and Brennan Grossman.  Sophomores were Raechel Anderson and Bibhav Shrestha, and freshmen were Morgan Henrichs and Joey VerHaagh.  While the sweethearts were getting ready for their challenge, it was time for the varsity cheer team to take the floor by completing an astonishing performance.

The sweethearts were then given the challenge to match a teacher with his/ her correct baby picture which was quite amusing to most students because of their favorite teacher’s adorable pictures.  The next step was to wrap the correct teachers in toilet paper until they were entirely wrapped.  The seniors won again as they furiously worked together to wrap Mrs. Schwane and Mr. Moroder in yards and yards of toilet paper.  As the contest was finishing up, Mrs. Kader was brought out to recognize the sports and activities that have been going on since the start of the winter season.

As the pep rally was coming to a close, Dom ended the day with the “We Believe” cheer, famous among many schools for its energy and intensifying skills.  As students were released for the day, there was still an abundant amount to cheer, spirit, and energy in the air.