Students decked out in orange, blue, and white waved signs and posters, chanting and cheering on their school’s basketball team on Friday, December 2, at the DePaul Athletic Center. Fans crowded together to watch Parker take on Senn (girls) and Latin (boys) for this year’s Blue Out Game.

The girls’ team played Senn at 6 and ended with a 45-34 victory thanks to a season-high scoring record. According to sophomore Lauryn Rauschenberger, the team had already played Senn before and won, so the players were confident. “We had a team dinner and got to shoot around,” Rauschenberger said. “And our team played really well, even though we were missing one of our captains.”

The girls noticed, however, as more and more fans crowded into the bleachers–as the boys’ game grew nearer and nearer. “It’s definitely disheartening,” Rauschenberger said. “People showed up, but when the boys started, there were all these signs, and it was different because they’re playing our rivals.  It does suck knowing your sport will never be as loved as the boys’ sport just because they’re boys.”

The boys’ team also held a 45 minute practice and a team dinner before the game, according to sophomore Andy Wessman. “Then the coach just talked to us before to get us hyped about the game,” Wessman said. “We played really well.  A ton of people thought we were gonna get blown out, but we came in with the mentality that we were going to win, and I believe next time we will.”

Freshman Griffin Kass, a JV and Varsity player, agreed. “We came into the game really optimistic, and we knew going in it was going to be tough,” Kass said. “What made the big difference in the 4th quarter was our starters became tired, and it came down to the last minutes of the game, and they weren’t able to execute.”

Though an ending score of 54-43 wasn’t what the players had hoped for, it kept fans on the edge of their seats, cheering and chanting, for the entire game.