By: Meagan So, Features Editor
As the Spring sports season comes to a close, the Mills community is filled with heartfelt goodbyes and well wishes towards our graduating student athletes. Each sport has spent their own way honoring these upperclassmen through senior nights to celebrate the bittersweet ending to their high school sports journeys. Let’s take a look at some of the unique ways each sport commemorated their seniors!
Track and field captain Miya Cheng (12) shared her sport’s senior night tradition, explaining, “We usually celebrate senior night by closing the meet with the seniors running a fun four-by-four relay and they usually dress up and also use different objects to use as the baton.” She continued, “This year people wore their costumes from the musical, dressed up as Pink Man, and used rubber chickens as batons and it was really fun to watch!” Cheng also added how she felt about the idea of having to leave Mills and high school sports, along with what she’d miss the most. She said, “Since I’m running in college, I don’t have much sentimental feelings for the sport itself, [however] I will definitely miss the people [on] the team because it’s really fun to be around them.”
Swim team member Abbey Li (12) commented on how her sport usually celebrates their senior night, sharing, “Our tradition is usually for our underclassmen to make posters and buy small gifts for us.” She continued, “ Then, during [our] 10 minute break, the seniors all [stood] by their posters and [were] acknowledged by Coach Christy.” When asked about how she felt about leaving her high school sport, Li remarked, “I feel sad that this is my last high school swim season because swim has been a really big and fun part of my four years of high school.” She finished by explaining, “I’m going to miss all the friends and new people I’ve met through swimming the most.”
Volleyball player Kent Lo (12) talked about how his sport celebrated their soon-to-be graduates. “Underclassmen made posters and decorated the gym with balloons for the seniors,” he explained, “[and] we also had a senior ceremony before the game.” When asked about any emotions connected to leaving high school and volleyball, Lo explained the situation as “bittersweet” but stated how he is “looking forward to graduating and going to college.”
To end it all off, thank you to all our spring sports seniors for all the time, effort, and dedication put into representing Mills through sports and the Thunderbolt wishes our seniors all the best; good luck class of ‘25!
