The crowd roared across the field as speakers burst to life with jellyous by ILLIT on Wednesday, Sept. 17 at the Homecoming Pep Rally. Lilting voices singing “Boy, you make me jellyous…” in unison drifted into the evening air as the K-Pop Club snapped into formation, each move sharp and synchronized. For a moment, the event felt less like a school performance and more like a Seoul stage as an American high school rite collided with global pop culture.

For the dancers, the spotlight was more than entertainment — it was a statement. Taking the field meant proving K-pop belonged in the school’s tradition. Their choreography was an opportunity to bring the vibrant mix of style, energy, and artistry into the heart of Homecoming, letting audience members depart from misconceptions and witness the pride driving the music.

“[Our performance] led people to appreciate K-pop more, because I feel like some people that aren’t familiar with K-pop have a very biased view,” Siya Majumdar ’27 said. “Our performance really showed the different types of K-pop there is.”

The club’s musical mashup of jellyous by ILLIT, ANTIFRAGILE by LE SSERAFIM, and Gnarly by KATSEYE captured K-pop’s energy and global appeal while still attracting an audience that may be unfamiliar with the genre. K-pop is often dismissed as a fad, yet to the members, it represents passion and pride. Performing the cultural fusion of music and fashion on the field showed classmates K-pop is worth celebrating.

“It’s important [to have a K-Pop Club] to highlight all sorts of genres,” Diane Kim ‘28 said. “K-Pop Club is looked down upon when it’s really a fun club.”

The performance symbolized continued evolution of Westwood traditions. Once defined by football cheers and marching bands, pep rallies now regularly feature K-Pop Club, whose energetic routines have become a school staple. By finding their niche, K-Pop Club represents how global culture and American traditions coexist and enrich each other.

“I wanted [the crowd] to be more familiar with [the] K-pop style,” Majumdar said. “Appreciating this form of music and seeing how we can hype up the audience [was what it meant to perform at Homecoming to me].”

For many audience members, it was their first time seeing K-pop live. The performance proved that music and movement can bridge cultures, reminding the school that Homecoming consists of both tradition and growth.

“I have a lot of friends in Cheer, Warrior Pride, and SunDancers, but they don’t really know anything about [K-pop],” Kim said, “It’s so cool to see them become hype and hype us up.”

In an intense match, Freshman Volleyball fought against the Cedar Ridge Raiders on Tuesday, Sept. 16. Even with aggressive kills and valiant saves, the Warriors ultimately met defeat after a two set match.

“Without your team being encouraged, it’s gonna be hard to get the next point,” Julia Kushnirsky ‘29 said. “Celebrating is what brings us up and keeps up the good energy so we can continue to do good.”

Launching into the first set, the Raiders took the lead off the first point with an out of bounds serve. However, the Warriors fought back with a point earned by Sloane Martin ‘29, tying the score early at one. Consistent steady serves from Daisy Segura ‘29 and quick save from Gissel Gavina ‘29 secured Westwood’s dominance. Despite the strong head start in points, the Lady Warriors’ defensive blunders and out of bounds hits allowed Cedar Ridge to quickly catch up, with the lead constantly switching between the teams. Motivated by the encouraging chants from the bench, Westwood was fired up to take back points. Strong spikes from Ellie Silkey ‘29 gave Westwood the spirit needed to gain the momentum back needed to push ahead. Despite the Warriors’ fiery energy, their mistakes quickly caught up to them and allowed Cedar Ridge the perfect opening to sneak in and steal the first set 25-19.

“I have a method [to reset after errors] where I [tug on my shirt] when I’m in my head,” Grace Kinnison ‘29 said. “It resets my brain, so I get out of whatever loop I’m in.”

After a team huddle, Westwood was pumped up, hoping to make a comeback against  Cedar Ridge. However, the Raiders exonerated the same, and were fired up stealing three points before the Warriors could score. Cedar Ridge’s missed serve allowed Westwood to break the streak and get back in the game. A fierce spike from Kushnirsky combined with a powerful ace from Layla Guerra ‘29 sent the Raiders into a miscommunication mess, allowing Westwood to take the lead. Keeping energy high throughout the rest of the set, the Warriors kept up, neck and neck, with the Raiders.. The Lady Warriors were relentless in their attacks, however in a devastating final point, Cedar Ridge won the second set 25-23 and the game 2-0.

“It’s a big accomplishment when you fully trust your team,” Kushnirsky said, “and know that they’re there for you to get the balls.”

The Warriors will take the court again in their next home game against the Stony Point Tigers on Friday, Sept. 19.

“[Homecoming and float-building] is really important because it’s a really great time to build community, spend time with your friends, and show school spirit,” volunteer Isabelle Martin ‘28 said. 

Over the course of nine hours, the group painted colorful butterflies and planets and attached stars and streamers to the float. In addition to the decorations, the class decided to incorporate a playful reference to one of Coldplay’s recent headlines, with Ma and StuCo Event Supporter Akshara Reddy ‘28 dressing up as the infamous affair caught at the concert. 

“We came up with the float theme by assessing not only popular artists, but what recent events had happened in pop culture,” Ma said. “Due to the humorous nature of Andy Byron’s affair, as well as popular songs by Coldplay, we chose an intersection of both.”

Despite working for six hours on Saturday in the blazing sun, due to the lack of volunteers, the class had to continue their preparations on Sunday. The volunteer team, composed mainly of StuCo members, rose to the challenge with preparation and teamwork.

“We had a major challenge of not having enough people,” Reddy said. “There was so much ground to cover, and we were a little short of supplies. We overcame [these challenges] by having a plan and helping each other out.”