On Aug. 25, UHS hosted the first pep rally of the school year, featuring UHS fall sports, the pep squad and the song team. 

The pep rally began with cheers from each grade led by the Associated Student Body’s Spirit and Rally Commissioner, Ayden Agahi, and the Student Activities Coordinator, Alec Apelian. 

“The experience of planning my first pep rally was really fun,” Agahi said. “But, it was harder than I thought because it was planned with the Student Activities Coordinator and Sports Commissioners without a lot of guidance.”

ASB Sports Commissioners Riley Hertstein and Eithar Takesh announced the varsity fall sports teams. For the first time, UHS Girls’ Flag Football was introduced as an official CIF sport. 

“I’m so excited to see and play with the UHS Girls’ Flag Football team,” Herstein said. ”We have a lot more younger girls on our team than last year so I’m excited to watch us grow and improve!”

Following the team introductions, varsity captains participated in a relay race on skateboards, using plungers to push them to the finish line. This race fostered school spirit among all the sports teams involved. Ultimately, the UHS Boys’ Cross Country team won the first-ever pep rally game trophy. 

To mark the end of the pep rally, the UHS Band led students in performing the Alma Mater.

With the conclusion of the pep rally, ASB is already looking at what can be improved for the next rally. 

“I’m super excited to incorporate more aesthetic things into the pep rallies like lights and also just doing things that haven’t been done before,” Agahi said. 

For many, pep rallies can be an important moment to acknowledge the hard work of the sports teams and foster a stronger bond between students. The fall pep rally was a successful beginning to another school year and created a welcoming atmosphere filled with school spirit.