Nothing beats free boba, open pool, and cheering on Webb football athletes on an action-packed Saturday afternoon. On August 25th, the student government hosted the annual Webb Fest–but with a twist!–featuring a spirit game at Faculty Field during halftime and a visit from the boba truck at open pool for the first time.
Webb Fest is a back-to-school event that brings together students and faculty members to spend a fun-filled Saturday at multiple venues on our 150-acre campus. Though Webb is technically “two schools on one campus,” student-run events like Webb Fest bridge the divide between new and returning, VWS and WSC, as well as boarding and day students to highlight how our community is one cohesive school.
Unlike last year’s waterslide Webb Fest down on Chandler Field, this year’s version collaborated with the varsity football team to draw more students up to support the first home game of the season. The giant crowd of fans in the bleachers successfully cheered Webb to victory with a final score of 35-7 over St. Pius X-St. Matthias Academy.
Nick Johnson (‘19), captain of the varsity football team, elaborated, “The game went really well, but I think we still have a lot of potential for improvement. Because our games are all the way up on Faculty Field, the football team usually doesn’t get a lot of support from student fans. I think having the crowd support on Saturday definitely pumped us up to play better.”
Hopefully, Webb Fest helped students realize that the five-minute trek up Gym Hill is worth supporting football athletes and building school spirit. Nick plays a range of positions: wide receiver, quarterback, and defensive back. “My personal goal for my senior season is to win MVP in league, and my goal for the team to win CIF.”
In between hyping up the varsity football team, four teams of student and faculty member volunteers participated in the halftime spirit event and competed in a water bucket relay race on the track. Teachers and students from different grade levels and schools raced back and forth to transfer water between two larger buckets using one small cup. After the spirit event, student government class officers, commissioners, and execs handed out boba tickets and rewarded double-vouchers to all who participated in the wet n’ wild halftime fun.
Jeffrey Zhong (‘20), WSC all-school vice president, commented, “Webb Fest was really fun! I enjoyed every part of it, especially the spirit and enthusiasm we showed as a school: the cheering for our football team, the friendly competitiveness of those participating in the spirit game, and the high turnout for open pool and boba. Looking at the smiles everyone had made all the work student government put in for this event worth it, and I look forward to more in the future.”
Scout Zischke (‘22), a VWS freshman Webb Fest attendee, echoed, “I had a great time at Webb Fest! The crowd was so spirited that I couldn’t even hear anything. I also really liked swimming at open pool because it brought back some great memories from when I first came to Webb’s summer program two years ago.”
After Webb Fest, students attended the annual Back to School Dance at the Ruddick Room. This past weekend was surely a great opportunity for all students to make some new friends and catch up with old pals–all while getting a taste of some Webb spirit.