Tenafly’s annual Fall Pep Rally, a vibrant celebration of the fall season’s sports teams, took place last Friday. The event contained an array of entertaining performances from each sports team, as well as from the Marching Band and Cheer Team, each lasting a few minutes. Some teams preferred to represent by showcasing their swift moves to music, while others gave a playful demonstration of their respective sport skills.

From the crowd’s spirited cheers to the displays of talents by the teams, the Pep Rally was surely a memorable event that truly captured the Tiger spirit. 

This year, the SO, Tenafly’s Student Organization, planned to celebrate Tenafly High School’s 100th anniversary with a special “glow-in-the-dark” theme for the Pep Rally. As a demanding theme that the SO has never tackled before, the leaders and student representatives worked tirelessly to execute their plan properly. 

Their work paid off, as many students displayed appreciation for the uniqueness of the theme, with several enjoying the glowing elements incorporated into the event, such as glow sticks and other luminescent props such as hula-hoops. These new materials all contributed to creating a more radiant ambiance to the event, and roused the excitement of students.

Here were some of the entertaining skits that the different teams performed:

Cheerleading: As always, the cheerleading team launched the pep rally with a dance and impressive stunts. Flyers were flipping midair as the team set an energetic mood early on in the Pep Rally.

Cross Country: The XC team performed laps around the gym in colorful shorts and gathered in the middle, hyping up the crowd with loud music and enthusiasm.

Football: The Boys Football team simulated a kick return play with a giant inflatable football. The comical aspects of this performance riled up the crowd.

Gymnastics: The Gymnastics team displayed immense talent with performances from each of the six athletes. Cartwheeling and flipping all over the gym, the athletes impressed the crowd with their abilities.

Boys Soccer: As the iconic commentary of Lionel Messi’s famous “ancara Messi” goal played in the background, the Boys Soccer team recreated his dribbling masterclass and made a dance ring afterwards.

Girls Soccer: The Girls Soccer team made a fighting ring in the middle of the gym and showed their impressive fighting skills as punches and kicks were thrown.

Girls Tennis: The Girls Tennis team jogged a lap around the gym waving their rackets in the air and stirring up the crowd as they met in the middle to pop some confetti.

Girls Volleyball: The winners of the “Most Spirited Team Award” of this Pep Rally, the Girls Volleyball team performed a rendition of this year’s Super Bowl LVII halftime show done by Rihanna.

Marching Band: Stationed at one side of the gym, the Marching Band played background music throughout the Pep Rally and also performed a cowboy-themed piece with the Color Guard.

Generally, the students seemed to have positive thoughts after the Pep Rally. “Making up our own dance and recreating [Rihanna’s] halftime show was so fun… [especially] to do it with the rest of my team,” said Brianna Vougiatzis (’25), a member of the Girls Volleyball team. “This pep rally is something that we will all remember, and we all loved it.”

James Jung (’26), a part of the varsity Boys Soccer team, expressed similar delight. “The Pep Rally this year had a lot of energy and there were many great performances from each varsity team,” he said. “I also thought the theme was very creative and overall, it was a great way to start the year.”

“The set up is always really nice for the Pep Rally and the theme definitely made things more fun, but the Pep Rally could’ve been better performance wise,” Sophia Tapia (‘24), a varsity volleyball player commented. “I think our performance was really good and deserved the dub. We had fun planning it and performing, and I think the crowd had just as much fun watching.”

The 2023 Fall Pep Rally was once again a hugely successful event that roused the crowd to the maximum. By introducing the various sports teams that Tenafly showcases and offers, students were able to build a unified voice of Tenafly pride, and “rally” their teams with full support.