The Battle for the Paddle is tonight, and many students at Lakeland High School have been discussing whether or not LHS will hold the paddle for the fifth year in a row.
The battle for the paddle has many different components, and LHS must win in many different categories to claim the paddle for the fifth year in a row. What are all the categories that BFTP entails?
The main events that determine who wins or not are boy’s basketball, wrestling, girl’s basketball, the boat race, the lip sync, cheer and dance, decibel reading, band, decorations, fundraising, paddle drawing, rap battle and overall school spirit.
In case students were not aware of what BFTP is, it is a winter sports spirit competition between Lakeland High School and Sandpoint High School, where the rival schools compete for the paddle that has been held at LHS for the past five years.
In the past two years, LHS has won in fundraising, boys’ basketball, spirit, and many other small events that guarantee LHS leaves with the paddle.
This year, there are many predictions for how we are going to beat Sandpoint.
One of the main parts of BFTP is student spirit and sportsmanship. Lakeland always does well in spirit and sportsmanship, and this year, most of the student body predicts the same will happen again.
“I think we have a good chance to win, but I think it’s up to the students to put in the work and to put in the spirit,” Lincoln Wood said. “Student council can only do so much; it’s now up to the people and the students.”
Winning BFTP is not just about sports and competitions. It is about the school spirit of the rival student bodies.
Fundraising is up in the air this year. Last year, LHS beat Sandpoint with $31,000, surpassing their $13,000. This year, one day before BFTP, LHS’s goal is a surprise until it is announced at the event, so we can only hope we will beat them.
This year, LHS sold out of spirit packs, selling three hundred and fifty tickets. The gym will be packed with Lakeland students ready to keep their hold of the paddle.
The lip sync is another important event that takes place during BFTP. This year, after getting a sneak peek into the lip sync being performed by LHS, I believe we will most likely beat Sandpoint in this category.
Zach Mcgee, an extremely spirited junior at LHS, has many opinions on what he thinks will happen tonight.
“I think we will obliterate Sandpoint in wrestling. There is no doubt we can dominate in basketball. I think we will have a 5-peat this year,” Mcgee said.
Personally, I fully believe that if we as a student body can put in the spirit and effort, there will be a 5-peat this year, and LHS will continue to hold the paddle.
