Assembled into four teams outside of the Merovick Gym, students each gave a team cheer as they prepared to participate in the third annual Laguna Blanca Field Day.
Four Teams – the Red Tide, the Blue Foo / Blue’s Clues, the (Green) Money, and the (Grey) Killer Whales – competed in head-to-head competitions for fun and glory.
Yet the stakes were higher than ever, as, for the first time, the name of the winning team would be engraved on a plaque in the gym.
The first event was the Dunk Tank. Director of Upper School Academics & Student Life Tyler Hodges,  Coach Dillan Bennett, Academic Services Assistant James Tur, and Coach Ray Robitaille volunteered to sit in the dunk tank while seniors and later, other representatives from each team took a shot at hitting the target and getting to dunk a faculty member.
Senior Joey Eckert was the first to hit the target and send a teacher plunging into the tank.
First everyone served volleyballs in an attempt to gain points by hitting the faculty members who were in the dunk tank.
“Being dunked feels refreshing,” freshman Chris Costantino said.
Next up was the Van Pack, where each team attempted to get all members into a van.
In the end, each team was able to fit every member, making it more a contest of how many members showed up.
“The van smelled like teen spirit,” said Social Science Instructor Kevin Shertzer.
Following the Van Pack was the Relay Obstacle Course, which consisted of jump roping, leaping, diving, and dribbling a soccer ball, finished by spinning in a circle before a dizzying race to the finish.
Money won the first round, Killer Whales emerged victoriously, and Red Tide’s faculty duo prevailed in the faculty round.
The teams then headed to the volleyball court. First, everyone served volleyballs attempting to hit faculty members who were sitting in lawn chairs.
Afterwards, the teams competed in a King of the Hill event. After a long series of intense volleyball matches, Money triumphed in the student round and Red Tide won the faculty round.
A Basketball Match Up was next in the lineup, with winning teams rotating to the next court to face a different team.
People then paired up, regardless of which team they were on, for a classic activity – the Water Balloon Toss.
After lunch, the teams then set off to play Capture the Flag.
After two games, Grey Killer Whales took the prestige of being the top team.
The final event of the day was a Tug of War, in which 10 contestants from each team attempted to outdo the other. Red Tide prevailed as the team with the most points.
“It’s a beautiful day, beautiful people – just a good recipe for Field Day” said sophomore Scott Johnston.
“It’s a great effort out there when all the teams are working together,” said sophomore Parker Rusack.
“It’s my favorite school day of the year,” said junior Allison Towbes.