TRU witnessed a surge of school spirit that transformed TCC into a sea of orange face paint and echoed with thunderous cheers during the first-ever Hype Night for the TRU WolfPack basketball teams.
First-year guard for the women’s team, Olivia Randal, expressed her delight at the overwhelming support.
“It was really good to have a good turnout. All the teams came out to support us. We don’t always have that many people at our game, so it was fun to have that energy in the gym. I think it helped us play better. I think it’s really good, and I’m looking forward to the other teams’ hype nights and stuff that we get to go to. I think it does actually help with performance.” Randal said.
Senior ‘Pack member Daniel Bost shared Randal’s enthusiasm, describing the night as “amazing” and highlighting the rare occasion where conflicting schedules allowed athletes from various sports to unite in support.
“It was a unique situation because usually schedules are conflicting. So we can’t go to volleyball games because they’re either away or at home. But this kind of just happened to work out where all the athletes can come to the game and support to support the men’s and women’s basketball teams,” Bost said.
The roaring cheers from the athletic community added an extra layer of intensity to the game, with Bost admitting to feeling the nerves but acknowledging the boost in energy.
“It definitely helped with the energy. You want to feed off the crowd a little bit. It was just going crazy. [The crowd] made the night.”
Bost remembers the hype night fondly.
“I mean, even bigger than that, just everybody coming together and hanging out. It was a great atmosphere,” Bost said. “It was loud; it was rocking. It took me back to my high school rivalry days. It [created] a good atmosphere.”
“It definitely helped with the energy. Like a lot of times, you want to feed off the crowd a little bit. They’re right there making a whole bunch of noise. [For example, during] the first half when the team was shooting free throws. I know it was [distracting for them] because when I was shooting free throws, it distracted me. So, like it was just going crazy.”
Marques Scott, one of the representatives from the WAC, shared sentiments similar to Bost’s about the event, telling the Omega that all those involved in planning for the hype night thought it was positively executed.
“I think everyone’s pretty happy with how it went. [All of the council members] are happy about it, [and] the feedback we’ve got from both teams seems to be super positive,” Scott said. “Hopefully, we can just build off the first one.”
As the regular basketball season concluded on Feb. 10, the ‘Pack players and those on the WAC look forward to the future.
“It’s sad, but I’m only in my first year, so I know that there are many more [games] in the future,” Randal said.
The Feb. 10 game was special for Bost, as it turned out to be his final home game as a ‘Pack member.
“It’s a bittersweet feeling, being a senior. [This was my] last home game playing on the court,” He said. “It’s definitely a moment I really got to think about.”