A day dedicated to obstacle courses, dancing and strategy games as eight herds go head-to-head to compete for one golden trophy: it’s the Ursuline Cup Finals. On April 11, the school will host this annual event to determine which herd will rise above the rest.
Currently, the Bohaty herd dominates the leaderboard at 256.9 points, which is nearly 40 ahead of the runner-up – Martina, at 215.75 points. However, Lucas Herd Executive Madeline Roberts expressed that she believes Perrini will prevail because the first ranked herd has been triumphed on Ursuline Cup Day repeatedly in the past.
“I think everyone’s kind of silently rooting for Perrini as the underdogs, because they’re in third right now and have a pretty good chance,” Roberts said. “If you look at it throughout the years, whoever is in first never wins in the end. I think they have all the right seniors and people to get the job done.”
The overall goal throughout the year is to earn the most herd points so that the herd wins the Ursuline Cup, accompanied with other rewards such as an icecream truck and bragging rights. Points are earned by leading in participation, whether that be in attendance at school events, bringing in the most items for charity drives, or winning herd day games.
The day is spread out between indoor and outdoor competitions with non-participating herd members rooting for the different events. Games include Just Dance, castleball, marshmallow catch, a 4×1 and obstacle relay race, a frozen t-shirt race, trivia, tug of war and other competitions.
Some of Roberts’ teammates, sophomores Norah Dominguez and Emily Atchity, will represent Lucas in the blow-up obstacle relay race. The duo previously participated as freshmen, giving them the advantage of being familiar with the layout.
“I think we’re going to just go really fast and get a good start on the obstacle race,” Dominguez said. “Last year we did it and placed third, so I want to do it again and get first this time.”
Dominguez expressed that she has high hopes for her particular event, but is expecting Bohaty to be the Ursuline Cup champion based on their recent victories.
“They (Bohaty) keep winning everything, and honestly have earned those wins pretty fairly,” Dominguez said. “They’ve had athletic players and their captains show up, which gives them a good amount of attendance points.”
Herd Executives are responsible for planning a majority of the day, coming up with new games and strategically entering players based on their skills.
Tylicki Herd Executive Kirston Verhulst shared that she encourages athletes to participate in sports events to increase the herd’s likelihood of success.
“It can be a little stressful trying to figure out who you’re gonna put in herd games because you want to put the people who actually want to be there as a priority,” Verhulst said. “But I also really need to rely on fast runners or athletic people for competitions like castleball or races.”
To ensure inclusivity, the executives planned to have a broad range of competitions on display. This can let people shine in areas outside of athletics that are typically highlighted during herd days in the gym or on the field.
“We realized getting more people involved meant having to have other focuses such as academic events,” Verhulst said. “Finding different ways for people to be involved helps get people out of being in little cliques and makes everyone ultimately more tight knit over the spirited day. The day feels like one big family getting together to celebrate, and I think that’s what’s so special.”
