The start to the eliminator course. Photo by Jordan Grabelle ’22.
This Wednesday, the Upper School participated in a version of the Eliminator, an upbeat relay race style competition, which looked a little bit different than previous years. The new course, “Eliminator 2.0,” was considerably longer than before, completely outdoors, and encircled most of the campus.
The competition took place in two parts. First, the freshmen took on the sophomores, with the sophomores winning by a slim margin.
After the first competition was completed, the juniors and seniors went head-to-head, resulting in a win from the seniors. The time it took for each grade to complete the course was recorded, and the rankings were based on how quickly the grades could finish. The freshmen earned an additional thirty seconds being added to their score due to the runner taking off early. This helped the sophomore class pull ahead.
Olivia Neri, one of the freshman participants, commented, “Everything was a little hectic, and it was hard to know exactly when to start, but I still had a fun time.”
Andrew Gray, a participant for the senior class and member of the MFS Cross Country team, took his role in the competition very seriously. Before the race, Andrew Gray ’21 shared, “I think I have a really good chance of taking it home. As long as everybody else does their job and we are ahead even by a little bit. I think I have a good chance.” Gray had a smile on his face when the seniors crossed the finish line.
It seemed that Gray’s confidence led the way to an overall win for the Seniors. The times for each grade are as follows:
1st: Seniors (3:44)
2nd: Sophomores (4:24)
3rd: Juniors (4:30)
4th: Freshmen (4:59)
Graphic credit to Spirit Week Committee. An overhead view of the Eliminator 2.0 course.
The new course was not only enjoyed by competitors, but by spectators, too.
Trisha Nelson ’22 said, “I was running from the oval to the fields and around the tunnel as well. It was hectic but fun!”
Students moved from event to event, and there were fans at each station waiting for their grade’s representatives to complete the course. There was an especially large crowd waiting for runners to emerge from the tunnel.
Abby Taylor ’22 summarized the event best when she said, “Eliminator 2.0 brought to MFS what was missing this school year: Upper School bonding, friendly competition, and spirit!”
