Grades nine through twelve competed in the annual dodgeball event Wednesday during long lunch in the gymnasium.

The sophomores began the competition by playing against the juniors, and the seniors competed against the freshmen. A total of five games were held, all of which lasted three minutes each.

Juniors lost to the sophomores in the first game but defeated them in the second round, tying the score. The teams played a third game, resulting in a victory for the juniors. The seniors won both games against the freshmen, remaining undefeated.

“It was really scary and intimidating,” said Rachel Cheng (9), the last freshmen player to be eliminated. “But at the same time, it was very fun.”

The dodgeball event was postponed twice due to other conflicts, such as author David Quammen’s talk on his book Spillover: Animal Infections and the Next Human Pandemic, and the Halloween pumpkin carving competition.

“We didn’t want to have too many events going on at the same time. It wouldn’t have worked out,” Spirit Club Co-President Julia Wang (11) explained.

Dodgeball is an ongoing tradition at the Upper School, which shows each grade’s unity and displays teamwork. This event is a way to bring the community together and show class spirit, which was demonstrated through the student’s clothing, as many of the participants wore their class T-shirts.

A class has never failed to gather enough players to compete, although this year, that was almost the case for the freshmen.

Freshmen class Spirit Coordinator, Haley Tran, describes her experience attempting to encourage freshmen girls to play.

“In the beginning there was a shortage of girls, but in the end a lot of people came out and played,” Haley said.

Next week, juniors will compete against the seniors, determining which class will be the dodgeball champion, while the freshmen will take on the sophomores competing for third place. The event will take place at 12 p.m. during long lunch next Wednesday.