![Minutes before the Activities Fair in the gym, president Abhi Gowda ‘26 prepares the stall for his club Helping Hands, Sept. 4. A relatively new club, Helping Hands was co-started by Gowda and focuses on assisting the homeless, and just last year they succeeded in raising a couple hundred donations to send to shelters. This year, they have goals to expand, with hopes to increase volunteer opportunities and take in-person trips to shelters, as well as extend their help beyond just homeless people. “The Activities Fair gives a lot of underclassmen the opportunity to really get to know the Canyon culture, and it gives them many opportunities for service and volunteering,” Gowda said. “[Through the Activities Fair,] I hope to find a bunch of new and passionate members about our club and just get our name out there and spread awareness to the cause that we’re fighting for.”](https://rockmediaonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/1-2-1200x885.jpg)
![The winter guard team makes fifth place at the state championship finals in the Denver Coliseum, March 30. The team performed to Barnes Country's “Glitter and Gold,” lead by coaches Margo Sanford, Blair Bickerton and Anna Orgren. In their class there were a total of nine groups participating, and the top five who made it to finals received a plaque. “[Walking onto the stage] is very nerve-wracking, but also very exciting as well. When you first start color guard there's a lot of anxiety and uncertainty when you first perform in front of an audience, but once you've done it for a while, it starts to become the best part of the season,” Ella West ‘25 said. “It's very fulfilling to see an audience react to something you've put your heart and soul into.”](https://rockmediaonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Both-socal-media-nd-website-main-1-1200x846.jpg)
![April marks the 25th anniversary of Sexual Assault Awareness Month, created by the National Sexual Violence Resource Center (NSVRC). This month is to spread awareness of the harassment, assault and abuse that happens around the world. The symbol that represented the month was a teal ribbon; however, some survivors of assault create different symbols and movements like the TikTok trend in 2022, where survivors would tattoo Medusa on their body, in honor of her backstory in Greek Mythology. “I don't think [this month is known] at all. I rarely see anybody talk about it. I rarely see much of an emphasis on posting it online, or much discussion about it, and I feel like there needs to be way more discussion,” an anonymous source said. “I think just validating every experience that a person has gone through, regardless of the degree of it, the severity, is an essential step into making sure that people are aware that this is a very real problem in a society and that we need to do better in addressing it.”](https://rockmediaonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/IMG_0011-1200x900.jpg)
![Lesbian Visibility Day is April 26, and it’s a holiday to celebrate the lesbian community of the world. Lesbian Visibility day was established in 2008 by many queer activists and organizations who sought to raise more awareness for lesbian history and culture. “So this is why during Lesbian Visibility [Day] we celebrate and center all lesbians, both cis and trans, while also showing solidarity with all LGBTQ+ women and nonbinary people,” Linda Reily, in an article written by her, said.](https://rockmediaonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Lesbian-Visibility-day.jpeg)
It’s 6:30 a.m. Warm-up music starts to play, the lights get brighter and you know it’s game time.
You spend the day doing your typical game day routine. It started from the moment you woke up to when you stepped on the court for the first time. The whole day has led up to this moment, so you know it’s time to show everyone what you came to do.
You win the game.
Then, the next thing you know it’s three days later, and it’s time to start your routine again.
Humans are creatures of habit. Throughout our lives, we develop routines, whether it’s how we get ready for a normal school day, a school dance, or the next rivalry game.
However, athletes tend to take things further. They will stick to their game day so specifically that it becomes crucial to how it will affect their ability to play. It can even create superstitions among different players and teams.
Every student-athlete has a story of where they come from and how they do things through each day, but what each of them has in common is their strict and specific game day routine, whether it’s riding together to the game or going to their favorite restaurant with their teammates before the big game.
This is Morgan Buston’s ‘25 game day routine.
Buston, a varsity girls volleyball player, is a defensive specialist (DS) and setter. Buston gets ready for games as soon as she wakes up in the morning by dressing up or wearing team merch, depending on if it is a home or away game.
After this, she goes through her classes and gets lunch with her other teammates. At lunch, Buston will always order herself a Dr. Pepper: she believes it is essential to her gameplay, especially in rivalry games.
“I have to have at least one Dr. Pepper before a game, usually multiple,” Buston said.
This tradition began when she started playing on varsity her sophomore year.
At the end of the school day, Buston grabs her volleyball bag from her car and starts to get dressed for the game. After she and the other team members are dressed, they watch the lower levels play and cheer them on.
Next in Buston’s game day routine, they go to a separate room and meet to discuss lineups and other game information. Then, they have a dance party.
“We usually have like a big speaker and we start blasting music and having a dance party in the locker room 15 minutes before. That’s a really good way to get pumped up for the game,” Buston said. “This portion of my routine is extremely important. It helps me get connected to my teammates and truly get our heads in the zone. It also provides us with good luck and now it has become a superstition that if we don’t do this we will play badly, or lose.”
The game started at 7 p.m. Now, at 9 p.m. Buston has celebrated with her friends and family, helped take down nets and put away concessions.
After the long routine, it is finally time to go home and get rest–before she starts all over again the next game day.
See below for the team’s schedule.