TIMELINE OF EVENTS JANUARY 2009: Marcellino and Marisa D’Ambrosio come up with the idea for Dorm Wars on their flight back to Ave after Christmas Break. FEBRUARY 2009: The first annual Dorm Wars takes place. OCTOBER 2009: The Megadorm opens this year, just in time for the newly minted female dorms, JPII and Mama T, to compete in the second annual Dorm Wars. “Siena Hall,” now no longer a women’s dorm, changes its name to “Sebastian.” OCTOBER 2010: This year introduced into the competition the Synchronized Swimming Contest and the Tricycle Relay race. The synchronized swimming has remained a staple in the games, but the tricycle race was tossed.
Traditionally, the winning dorm gets to keep and display the trophy until the next Dorm Wars. In 2013, the trophy was stolen from Goretti Hall by the legendary and elusive “Banana and Gorilla Suits.”
You’ve been judged. The Student Activities Board (SAB), which sponsors and organizes Dorm Wars, is also in charge of selecting a panel of judges to score and evaluate the competitions. They always choose judges from the University faculty and staff. Some of the judges revel in the day of madness and mayhem; others finish with a sense of relief that their own days of college are safely behind them.
Opening Ceremonies One of the revered Dorm Wars traditions is the Opening Ceremonies. Each dorm enters onto the field according to their custom—whether it be marching, sailing, running, or even riding horses. Once assembled, each dorm must each present a fight song. They are awarded points based
on the fear and awe they inspire.
Show-stopping Entrances October 2010 was a big year for entrances. JPII brought some laughs by marching on to the field as the “Women of the Revolution,” sporting bloody aprons, a line of drummers, and led by Christa McMahon and Samantha Donohue dressed up as George Washington and Martha—or was it Marie Antoinette? It seems they had identity confusion between the French and American Revolutions. Joe’s decided to commit to their third year as “Men of Sparta” by designing custom shirts for battle. The Sebastian “Indians” looked fierce, though a number of men had grievously irregular sunburns after washing off the war paint. We won’t say anything about the distasteful “teddy bear” sacrifice… Goretti Hall, which was half graduate student housing at the time, made up for their small numbers by riding out on horses. And Mama T blew everyone away by the most elaborate entrance into battle yet: a pirate ship float.
FEBRUARY 2013: This year marks the first time that a male dorm has won since the first year of the competition. Congratulations, Goretti! READING KEY FEBRUARY 2014: The 3-month-old son of former Resident Director, Pete Van de Voorde, leads the troops of Goretti onto the field as a crusader-in-training.] FEBRUARY 2015: Erin Krajewski bravely took a seat in the Trivia Dunk Tank with a prayer that the competing students have been keeping up with their studies.
“Goretti” = St. Maria Goretti Men’s Hall “Joe’s” = St. Joseph Men’s Hall “JPII” = St. John Paul II Women’s Hall “Mama T” = St. Mother Teresa Women’s Hall “Sebastian” = St. Sebastian Men’s Hall (formerly, “Siena”)
NOVEMBER 2015: Mama T takes the cup again. Each of “Xavier” = St. the other dorms has 12.5% Francis Xavier of the wins, while Mama Men’s Hall T has a whopping 37.5%. They are the only dorm to win more than once—let alone three times!
DORM WARS HALL OF FAME 2008-2009: Xavier
2012-2013: Goretti
2009-2010: Mama T
2013-2014: Joe’s
2010-2011: JPII
2014-2015: Sebastian
2011-2012: Mama T
2015 -2016: Mama T
ave ma r ia maga z i ne | ave ma r ia.edu
Victoria Antram (‘17, center), representing Mama T Hall, leads a tribal-themed synchornized swimming routine in 2015
FEBRUARY 2012: After switching back and forth, Dorm Wars is moved to the Spring semester. This luck lasts for another three years, and then it’s moved back to Fall in 2015. Rumor has it that the war might be delayed until Spring this year… It seems the organizers can’t decide whether they want Dorm Wars to be a springsemester bonding experience, or a fall-semester affirmation of loyalty!
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