by Maura Fortino
Students put their physical strength, stamina, and ability to hold their ground in a huge mud pile to the test this past Sunday, April 6. On the beautiful, spring afternoon, the men of Phi Kappa Psi hosted one of the most popular events on campus: Mud Tug.
At 2 p.m. the Schaaf Lawn sand volleyball court was turned into a muddy arena of tug-of-war. Students excitedly headed to the mud pit with hopes of being named the winner. There were 50 teams entered in the tournament, 32 consisting of girls and 14 consisting of boys.
Each team of five members had its own unique name and costume attire. After an intense tournament that had its share of upsets and comebacks, it came down to just two teams on each side in a best out of three series. However, the winners from both sides only needed the first two to finish the job.
On the women’s side, Team FWU took home the title of Mud Tug Champions. This is the second year in a row that the members of the women’s basketball team, seniors Jamie Caton and Cookie Geroski, juniors Shelby Sheets and Monica Heckman, and sophomore Kristen Thompson, were crowned champions. After their intense battle against Team Powerhouse, Geroski shared her Mud Tug experience proudly, yet humbly.
“I couldn’t have done it without my teammates, especially because the girls we faced were strong,” Geroski said. “Tugging on the rope while getting sprayed with water was hard because you’re slipping everywhere, but it definitely got my adrenaline going. I think everyone who participated is going to be very sore tomorrow.”
The men’s side winner was Team 2 Billz, made up of seniors Jake Biedel, Alex Able, Ed Strawser, Andrew Mercer, and Cody Mackey. Team 2 Billz had a tough journey to the championship having to take on the defending champions in the second round. Although the win over the defending champs was very exciting, it was even more bittersweet for Biedel as he also defeated his roommate, senior Zach Brown. Clearly, the most coveted prize is winning Mud Tug, however, there are many other ways to be a winner.
During a brief break, the hosts called several teams to center stage to determine best costume. The audience chose the ladies from Tug Down for What, who paid attribute to Tom Cruise in Risky Business, wearing button up shirts, ray bans, and white high socks. Students didn’t have to participate in Mud Tug to be winners. Throughout the event, a raffle was held allowing students to win gift cards to a variety of different restaurants around campus, including Chipotle and Cosí.
While those who competed enjoyed their time getting down and dirty, there were many other students who took to the sidelines to cheer on their friends, and hopefully stay clean.
“The general atmosphere and being able to hang out with friends while watching people get thrown around in mud made it such a fun experience,” Monique Hanayik, freshman, said.
For the fourth year in a row, Mud Tug proved to be one of the most talked about events on campus. Although Mud Tug brings the campus together for a day full of mud and fun, it is also a fundraiser for the charity Caitlin’s Smile. Caitlin’s Smile creates arts and crafts kits for children in the hospital fighting life-threatening or chronic illnesses. The main purpose of the charity is to bring smiles to the children’s faces.
Thanks to the men of Phi Kappa Psi and all the students who participated and donated money, Caitlin’s Smile is able to achieve its goal.
mfortino@capital.edu
