Following the previous two indoor rallies, students were surprised to hear that the upcoming rally would be held outdoors last Friday. Due to construction of the gym outskirts, the Winter Wonderland themed rally was to be on the field, which caused many students to miss the indoor rallies with loud music and excitement filling the gym. 

Despite this, the United Student Body (USB) class also shared that they were a little bit saddened by the news of the rally not being able to be held indoors.

“As a USB student, we were very disappointed because our first rallies as freshmen were all outdoors and when we went indoors it was a lot more fun,” sophomore and USB Secretary, Anaya Widjaja said. “A lot more people liked being involved, there’s a lot more cheering, a lot more involvement, and a lot more interactions between students and the rally itself so it made it a lot more spirited.”

From the rainy weather to sunny days, everything was very unexpected in what could happen with the weather. As a result, the rally had been moved to be after 4th period instead of 2nd period, which caused confusion between students and staff for the correct bell schedules and period times. 

With the rally being back on the bleachers, it came as a surprise for the freshmen class as they weren’t sure what to expect from this new setting. 

“I honestly enjoyed the outdoor rally. It was a bit hot at times, but I liked the open space and how everyone was able to see the same angles” freshman Leah Ines said. 

Nonetheless, this Winter Wonderland highlighted our Ayala Winter Sports including Varsity Sports: Boys Soccer, Girls and Boys Basketball, Wrestling, Competitive Cheer, Girls Waterpolo, and Girls Soccer. The performing arts department also included and showcased their students of the month, including choir’s William Widjaja (12) and colorguard’s Bianca Perez (11). 

As a recurring event participated by all grade levels, the rally most certainly did not disappoint in terms of the class competitions that proved to be yet another success. With performances from Sophomore Class President Jeremiah Park to an incredible rendition of Interstellar by Junior Lucas Cao, these acts blew away the crowd as students listened to their classmate’s talent. However, technical issues with sound systems made students feel as though the songs weren’t put to justice.

“Even when the performances themselves were great the sound system actually made it painful to listen to,” sophomore Terran Chu said.

Even so, colorguard and choir students were recognized for their performances at both the beginning and end of the rally. With the mesmerizing flag performance from colorguard, it proved to be yet another amazing performance from the team here at Ayala. The freshman choir members performed Silent Night at the beginning of the rally as it also fit the ‘Winter Wonderland’ theme following the holidays while students prepare for the second semester. 

“The class comp was a fun yet scary thing to do because not only am I performing in front of a bunch of people, but I’m also a freshman, which means I’m more prone to get booed at” said Ines, who sang during the rally. “I still had fun though!”

The Winter Wonderland rally featured the following students: 

Student of the Month in Drama:

David Bhatt, Hailee Walker, Milan Bonilla

Student of the Month in Choir:

William Widjaja, Milena Leonis, Jimmy Holguin, Leah Ines

Student of the Month in Spirit:

Monique Alfaro, Rylie Alarcon, Emma Pazzulla, Audrina Cerda

Student of the Month in Band:

Nicholas Miyasato, Angelina Chien, Rebecca Moon, Dominic Lee

Student of the Month in Colorguard:

Bianca Perez, Kiana DelaCruz, Yemaya King, Lindsay Shen

Student of the Month in Dance Production:

Makayla Gonzalez, Isabella Liang, Lindsay Shen, Delaney Hovey

Best Attitude in Choir: 

Rapharl Doromal, Ethan Heim, Samantha Frausto, Jen Resclusado

Best Attitude in Spirit: 

Laila Ervin, Samantha Cerda, Chloe Elizarrez, Bailee Moore

Best Attitude in Band: 

Dominic Lee, Faith Medina, Ian Rubio, Riley Mendoza

Best Attitude in Colorguard: 

Magnus Loriso, Ashley Heather, Sophia Torres, James Lam

Best Attitude in Dance Production: 

Jake Hirose, Olivia Pluma, Penelope Lasmarias, Hailee Walker

Girls Varsity Soccer: 

Sabrina Abu-Wishah, Roseanna Ashak, Ashlyn Banowetz, Abby Bassett, Mikayla Benavidez, Kaylee Bergeron, Haylee Dean, Sophia Dinh, Greta Amanda Genie, Jaelynn Hillenbrand, Sienna Hopple, Sydney Kao, Mariana Kera, Preslee Malavenda, Isabel Nevarez, Grayton Normand, Savannah Parker, Blake Parks, Victoria Perez, Linda Prudencio Mata, Mia Setlich, Summer Sibbrel, Khalea Turingan, Ava Uresti, Danielle Weik

Boys Varsity Soccer: 

Frankie Bachofner, Vinny Bachofner, Julian Chavez, Henry Correa, Isreal Deleon, Gerardo Elizarde, Caryden Haines, Jayden Llamas, Connor Kilde, Chinomso Nwadike, Nicolas Quintero, Matthew Velasco, Tyler Crismier, Richard Milam, Nick Lane, Brondon Lee, Aaron Cervantes, Landon Stevens, Jason Halabi, Nick Dinh, Joshua Mata, Christian Ramirez, Caden Kilde, Spencer Shuler, Adrian Chavez, Cristian Colemenares, Andre Simicic

Girls Varsity Basketball: 

Lilianna Acosta, Jasmine Cerasuolo, Liliana Craig, Emily Cruz, Megan Diep, Lily Fawzy, Addison Gonzalez, Aaliyah Gregory, Malia Ishibashi, Priyana Jhaveri, Angelysa Thomas

Boys Varsity Basketball: 

Dylan Victorio, Christian Martinez, Emilio Varner, Gavin Wolf, Michael Chung, Joel Gorospe, Jaydin Maddox, Linus Lo, Luke Williams, Joshua Townsell, Jeremy Serrano, Josiah Yang, Jadan Gamez

Varsity Competitive Cheer: 

Emma Anderson, Jessica Burgarin, Mia Gabriel, Monique Alfaro, Morgan Saccone, Emma Hernandez, Kennedy Jauregui, Savannah Anderson, Isha Lee, Chloe Elizarrez, Angelia Castillo, Rose Ann Aure

Varsity Girls Waterpolo: 

Bethany Dougherty, Madelyn Argumosa, Reagan Barrera, Clare Baty, Ari Carrera, Allison Cho, Isabella Cocks, Angelina Hernandez, Riley Ogilvie, Sabrina Trout, Victoria Rivas, Kristen Linton, Braxtin Sotomayor, Gigi Gonzales, Madison Medel