WEB EXCLUSIVE

On April 4, the annual Oviedo High School student-faculty basketball game initiated an intense battle between faculty members and senior students, who were ready to upset their teachers for the first time since 2010. The faculty team continued their winning streak, however, topping the student team with a narrow 64-60 victory.

Although this was the closest the student team came to winning in the last seven years, the faculty team was in control the entire game. Faculty coach Jason McDonald compared his team to a cat, toying with the seniors as a cat would with a mouse. The faculty team was led by history teacher Ryan Hennessy, who gave a dominant performance on his way to being named MVP of the game.

“My performance was good as long as I could get from one end of the court to the other,” Hennessy said. “The game is always an amazing experience and a great memory. I don’t interact with a lot of seniors academically, but the game lets you get to know the kids a little bit more.”

The seniors that played also had the opportunity to interact with teachers and faculty that they might not have the chance to interact with on a regular basis. Senior Owen McNamara played in the game, and enjoyed his experience.

“It was fun being able to put it all out on the court and give it your all against teachers and administration,” McNamara said. “Everybody’s playing to win, but they’re also having a good time, so it’s fun for everybody.

The student-faculty basketball game is organized by senior english teacher Kati Hansen, as well as students in the senior class. Each year, Oviedo faculty members form a team to square off against a group of seniors that pay to get the chance to beat them.

“We do it as a fundraiser to raise money for things like awards ceremonies and school events that we have to pay for throughout the school year,” Hansen said. 

The seniors set up the game, including asking teachers if they would volunteer and coming up with sign-ups and commercials. They also had to arrive at the game early to take out chairs, get the music ready and make sure that there was enough time for warm-ups.

“I think they did a great job,” Hansen said. “They talked about it, they really pumped it up, and they worked really hard to organize it and get it put together.” 

According to Hansen, the game was well-organized and created a fun interaction between students and faculty members. The faculty team made it known that the game was a success–as long as they were victorious.

“We won,” Hennessy said. “That’s the only thing that matters.”