On September 12th, the homecoming festivities began with the announcement of the 2025–2026 homecoming court. Usually, there are five candidates each for king and queen, but this year, student government chose six due to the class size being larger than usual. The queen candidates include Bella Koleno, Cassandra Alley, Kyla Kephart, Emma Petriskey, Natalie Yingling, and Haley Woodling. The king candidates include Evan Emigh, Gavin Dunlap, Coby Kephart, Nick Parks, Keagan Dobo, and Dylan McGonigal.
The staff and senior class voted the previous week for the candidates to be present on the court. During the week of homecoming, voting for king and queen will be open Monday through Wednesday. All high school students will be able to vote during that time. Both the king and queen will be crowned during halftime of the football game against Juniata Valley on September 19th.
Another enjoyable Homecoming Spirit Week is just around the corner. The high school collaborated with the cheerleaders to plan Beach/Hawaii Day, Twin Day, Adam Sandler Day, Teacher/Student Swap Day, and to cap off the week with the classic Red, White, and Blue Day. On Friday, in the new gym, there will be a pep rally featuring exciting games for the Homecoming court candidates.
The escorts will write poems about the candidate they were paired with at the start of the week to be shared at the pep rally on Friday. Senior candidate Dylan McGonigal shared his excitement for the upcoming week: “I am freaking pumped and truly ecstatic. This is one of the most fun and exciting parts of the fall season. I can’t wait to compete in the games and see who is crowned later on in the week.”
Congratulations to all the members of the court! Come out to enjoy Friday Night Lights as the football team takes on Juniata Valley, cheer on the team to try to secure a victory for Homecoming Night, and see who takes the crowns for king and queen.
Image Caption: The Homecoming Court posing for a picture before the ecstatic week ahead of them.