Author: Lizeth Castillo
For those who don their Tiger stripes for four years, the end of the season can be highly emotional. Senior Night, sometimes held on the last regular season game of the year, is a time to celebrate seniors on the team who have dedicated years of their college career to Oxy Athletics.
Underclassmen teammates go out of their way to ensure that senior team members know how invaluable they are to the their respective teams.
Although each Oxy sport has a different version of Senior Night, the senior team members usually get some kind of gift from the team that highlights their participation over the last couple of years.
Senior Night for the football team was held before their game against Cal Lutheran, and each senior member was commemorated with framed individual pictures from a game of the season. The cheer team also participated in recognizing this year’s seniors with cupcakes and posters.
Defensive linebacker Jesse Fischer (senior) said that his most memorable moment of the season was making a comeback to beat Redlands in overtime on Patterson Field. “With the defense on the field to end the game, and seeing our team (and a couple fans) rush the field. Unforgettable. Cloud 9,” he said in an e-mail interview. Wide receiver Chris Washington (senior) shared similar memories and related that his best moment of the season was also beating Redlands in overtime for the fourth straight year.
Senior Night for the football team was especially bittersweet, given that they lost to Cal Lu 24-14. As wide receiver Trevor Deussen (senior) said, “It hurt because we lost. But it really put things into perspective when the seniors waited together to be announced before the game.”
For Deussen, memorable moments included celebrating with his teammates each time they beat Redlands or Cal Lu.
Ashly Rosenbaum (senior) was commemorated on Senior Night for her contribution to the women’s volleyball team. Although Rosenbaum started her athletic career as a member of the women’s basketball team, she has been an incredible asset to her teammates in the last three years.
On the sidelines at the team’s last game against the CMS Athenas were enthusiastic teammates and a huge “12” balloon for Rosenbaum’s number. Friends and fans also came by to cheer Rosenbaum on and sign the oversized card the team made for its sole senior.
In addition to football and volleyball, men’s and women’s soccer also held their own Senior Nights in which they, too, celebrated the seniors on their team.
So what advice do these graduating seniors have for underclassmen or future athletes?
Defensive back Trace Wallace (senior) had this to say to his fellow teammates: “Hold no regrets, laugh often and cherish every little moment because in the end, they all add up together to form an enduring memory,” he said.
Deussen and Washington both advocate relishing the passing of time. “Cherish every moment and work hard. You will never get such an experience ever again,” Deussen said.
“Work hard and cherish every moment because it is done before you know it,” Washington added.
Fischer had these inspirational words to say: “Never doubt what you can achieve. Work hard and good things will happen,” he said, adding an emphatic “BEAT CAL LU!”
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