VVHS Homecoming Vegas Style!

By TYRA LUDVIGSON & HECTOR RUIZ

The Progress

It was a monumental week for Virgin Valley High School. The Bulldogs celebrated Homecoming last week with a whole lineup of activities and events highlighting the VVHS student body and involving the entire community.

On campus the theme for the week was ‘Viva Las Vegas!’ The school brought the party-filled spirit of Vegas to its students. From dress up days and dodgeball tournaments, to drive in movies and pep rallies in the quad, the energy of the school was at an all time high.

The week started on a surprisingly drowsy note with PJ day. Students rocked their pajamas on Monday, making for a cozy yet energetic school day.

Tuesday brought in the famous Mandalay Bay resort, with a Beach-out day. Beach shorts, flowy shirts, and shades were seen throughout the building, After school a dodgeball tournament was held in the gym and the student body hosted a drive-in movie night playing “Lemonade Mouth.”

Wednesday was a fun day to dress up and dress out for Celebrity Day. Students got creative. One student dressed as Chris Pratt, while a friend came as his dinosaur friend from the film “Jurassic Park.”

The annual Homecoming Parade was held on Wednesday night through downtown Mesquite. The local American Legion led the parade along with student volunteers. One of those volunteers, Barrett Lamirand, was excited about marching alongside local veterans. “I was stoked to be leading [the parade],” he said. “Felt even better knowing I was with the American Legion.”

Grand Marshalls Charlie and Sharon Hurley followed next. Sharon shared that the couple “felt so honored” to be chosen as Grand Marshalls this year.

The parade had over thirty floats and featured numerous VVHS athletic teams and clubs. The VVettes Drill Team, led by coach Erica Garrett, left the onlookers enthralled with their moves. The Virgin Valley Marching Band did not disappoint with their rocking cadences from the drumline and beautiful tones from the full ensemble. The VVHS Cross Country team showed off their speedy running skills and jogged the whole length of the parade.

After the parade, the crowd assembled at the Dawg Pound to watch the junior and senior girls face off against each other in the annual Powder Puff Football game. This gender swapping event has the the girls out on the football field while the boys become the cheer and drill stars.

VVHS senior football star Isaiah Frieling coached the senior team to a 32-12 victory against the juniors, coached by Nehemiah “Nemo” Flatt. The junior’s coaching staff included a 2-to-1 coach to player ratio, and included just about every junior on the football team.

Basketball star Brooklin Montoya led the seniors with seven receptions and three touchdowns. Her biggest highlight, however, was not in her magic receiving hands. Rather it came on a reverse pass that went thirty five yards completed to the senior quarterback Aracely Lopez.

The juniors had a spark in the fourth quarter with a 54-yard bomb to Alexia De Santiago, thrown by junior quarterback Natalie Plancarte.

The boys’ drill and cheer took the crowd’s breath away with their half time performances. The “Bullfrogs” shaked their booties and rocked the Dawg Pound with their moves. Senior Drill star Jayci Johnson choreographed and taught the boys their dance.

The crowd also ate up the boy’s cheer performance as they boogied it up with assistance from senior cheerleader captain Shanna Vasquez.

Questionable style choices were made on Thursday as students dressed in all sorts of crazy mismatched clothing, referencing the craziness of the Circus Circus Casino dress up day.

VVHS’ year theme of “Dawgs United” was well portrayed on Friday with the Dawg Out dress up. All students at the school were given matching shirts to show their school spirit. This was thanks to an anonymous donor in the community who gave funds for the shirts.

A pep rally was hosted in the quad with performances from the VVHS Band and the Drill Team showcasing the spirit and making sure the school heard their “Bark.”

A community tailgate party was held prior to the Homecoming Football Game on Friday evening. Special thanks to Security National Mortgage Company and the Mesquite Fire Department for donating and preparing free burgers and hot dogs for all in attendance. The tailgate was jam packed with fun carnival games, free snowcones, and a cakewalk.

Fans then packed the stands to watch the ‘Dawgs dominate the Valley Vikings. The ‘Dawgs did not disappoint their loving fans as they obliterated the competition, 59-0.

The Homecoming Royalty for each class was announced at the game. The senior royalty was Tyra Ludvigson and Leonardo Calleros. Junior royalty included Sara Murri and Jorje Jimenez. Royalty chosen by the sophomore class was Valerie Trujillo and Jacob Nelson. And the freshman royalty went to Valentina Salaverry and Viktor Cu.

With the utmost excitement and lots of glamour, the VVHS student body showed up and showed out at the 2022 Homecoming Dance on Saturday night. It was the first time in a long time that the dance was held at the high school in their gym. Students were skeptical, but the energy of the night proved that skepticism unfounded.

“Homecoming was definitely a night to remember!” said Paola Trujillo. “The gym looked completely transformed and the decorations fit the theme perfectly.”

It was for many, their last high school homecoming dance and for the majority, one of their most memorable.

The VVHS student council and administration would like to thank the wonderful tight-knit community for all the love and support they have received.