Quads are Back; Lady Vikings Dominate

Friday the 13th would mark the frst quad of the 2022-23 season for the Mills Vikings. An away game in Burlingame Panthers territory would capture the attention of many local students from schools all over the district. Each row of seats was squished with as many students as physically possible. With each side of the gym screaming and shouting for their representing team, you could barely hear the person next to you. This week’s theme for Mills was an all blackout theme, while Burlingame represented their spirit with camo themed clothes. To show school pride, each side of the gym would constantly battle each other in chants and cheers. By the third quarter, students have already lost their voices from pouring an almost endless amount of school spirit. As the season goes on, the crowd will only become louder and more creative. As quad games are spoken about throughout the campus, new ideas are being presented by supportive students on how else we can cheer on our athletes.

With the resurrection of our beloved quad games, the question has been foating around campus: “Why were they gone in the frst place?” Due to the sudden pandemic that started January of 2020, indoor sports had to be regulated to ensure the safety and health of athletes. One of these regulations being that games were not to have any sort of crowd or audience. This would guarantee social distancing, but deprive students of the privilege to represent their school during basketball games.

John Huang (12), boys varsity basketball player, stated that playing his last quads felt bitter sweet. In other words, with every laugh and feeling of enjoyment, comes a worry of stepping onto the court for the last time. Not only has it been a mental battle for players on the court, but also playing through injuries throughout the team. Due to constant injuries, the team is currently 5-9. Regardless of the lack in size, the boys continue to work on their physicality and aggression towards the game. Huang explains that aggression may be their missing piece in the team.

On the other hand, it seems as if our girls varsity basketball team has all of its pieces fgured out. Dominating their season, the girls varsity team beat the Capuchino Mustangs to make their record 4-0 in the league. Throughout the frst and second quarter, both teams were neck and neck. Struggling to prevent turnovers, Mills lost their lead by the end of the third quarter. For a short while, an opposing player was tearing through the defense to keep the Mustangs with a slim lead. However, during the fourth quarter, our Vikings showed their inability to be discouraged and completely took over the game, ending the game on a 20 point lead.

Both of our boys and girls teams have shown that they will not back down without a fght, and will continue to cherish the opportunity of quads fnally coming back. Go Vikings!