Tendayi Peyton ’21 and Izabelle Fernandez ’21 pose for some post-race photos.
Photo by Lisa Abitbol

Where there’s a will to roll a hoop, there’s a way to roll a hoop. The restrictions of the pandemic were no deterrent to the class of 2021. So, just as in years past, seniors in robes lined up on Tupelo Lane with hoops in hand, ready to roll.

Sure, this year’s race, held on May 22, was a little different. Everyone wore masks and competed in 10 groups of 25 students each. There wasn’t one winner to potentially throw in the lake—there were 11 (the fourth group’s race ended in a tie). And the commemorative winner’s hoop wasn’t signed by those 11 individuals; the class decided to go a different way.

“We thought it would be more meaningful for our class, especially given the fragmentation we’ve experienced as a result of this year, if we just signed it ‘class of 2021,’” says class co-president Shreya Parjan ’21. “In a year like this, where the playing field isn’t level in so many things, we thought this one thing could be something where we all collectively had this victory. And the victory is just being able to celebrate this moment.”