Under the stadium lights, the Cypress Creek Coyotes honored seniors at the Creek’s annual Senior Night. Before the game was underway, the senior students on football, cheer, and band walked with their family and friends, honoring their hard work and commitment through their years at the school. The football team went first, as the announcer called their names. Once the players had made their mark on the field, the Cypress Creek Band of Coyotes started walking.
Drum Major Javier Quiles, who walked out with his family, shared his love for the music department and the opportunity to lead as a senior. He detailed how he was nervous becoming the Drum Major, but feels that he, “grew into my leadership position. I was always jealous of the seniors and how easy they made everything look, but now that I am a senior, I find myself even surpassing them in some areas.”
To conclude the festivities before kickoff, the senior cheerleaders walked the 50-yard-line, the underclassmen cheerleaders cheering for them as each of their names were read off. Senior Kate Frederick stated how this was her first year in cheer, but loves it so much. Her favorite part has been meeting the girls and learning all the stunts, especially with her being the lead stunt. Her biggest challenge was, “trying to catch up to the more experienced flyers, but I believe I have overcome it.” She loves all the support from each girl on cheer, and wants to pursue it later in life.
Once all the pomp and circumstance completed, the game was underway, with the 8-0 Cypress Creek Coyotes kicking off, letting the 7-1 Zephyrhills Bulldogs receive first. The Bulldogs were all over Cypress from the beginning of the game, putting up the first two touchdowns. Before the first quarter could end though, senior Shawn Smith caught a touchdown pass, and with the extra point from senior Cameron Canard, the Coyotes were on the leaderboard, 14-7.
Going into the second quarter, Zephyrhills and Cypress traded points. Even though the Bulldogs scored first, Cypress responded with a touchdown, closing the gap to 21-14. On the Bulldog’s next drive, a fumble recovery was recovered by junior Andrew Pope, which quarterback Jack Niemann ran in to tie the game. Following the touchdown, Canard made a successful onside kick, giving the Coyotes back the ball, which senior Milton Gracia was able to turn into a touchdown, letting the Coyotes go into the half with a 28-21 lead.
During halftime, the Coyote band played their signature songs, and as a homage to the seniors, many seniors in band played solos. Maddison Risch, one of the trombone players, stated that this was her seventh year playing, and she loves being with band, as it is like a family to her.
“The sense of belonging I feel every time I am with my band is so fulfilling. I never feel excluded and there’s always people there to lean on.”
The second half proved to be difficult for the Coyotes, as Zephyrhills scored multiple touchdowns on them. Cypress was only able to score one more touchdown during the second half, giving the Bulldogs the win with a final score of 63-35. Even though the Coyotes experienced their first loss of the season, bringing them to 8-1, the night was still bittersweet, as many seniors voiced their love for the school.
“Your whole life you want to grow up,” started senior Lily Trent. “But whenever you’re a senior and it hits you, you want to be a kid again.
