By: Lillian Skye Noble, SOC/BA'16
The 2000 fans who attended the American vs. Army and American vs. Navy games on Monday and Tuesday night were treated to a Patriotic fan-fest like no other.
I work for the Athletics Communications Department, which means that during basketball games I’m either sitting courtside running statistics to coaches and the media at each time out, or working behind the scenes in the AV (audio/visual) room scrambling to create graphics for the online broadcast (still learning how to do that). The American versus Army game was the first AU athletics game I was able to attend as an Eagles fan since Bender Blue Out my first semester, and, like so many other students who had the chance to attend, I had a blast.
Over 1,600 people filled Bender to enjoy free food and drinks and cheer on their favorite teams. The crowd was electric--Blue Crew lined the fan section cheering for their home team--but Eagles fans had some competition. Army’s fans, a crowd practically singlehandedly directed by a passionate Army fan, was a formidable rival.
Clawed the Eagle joined in the fun, tousling fan’s hair, greeting young fans, and posing for selfies. I’ll never get over the thrill of taking a picture with Clawed--pictures with the school mascot are great momentos to look back on. His reactions to the Eagle’s baskets are priceless, and his dance moves are killer, so be sure to keep a look out for them at the next game.
I was at the game with a few of my friends, and, like Clawed, we all did our fair share of reacting to each play. We were torn between screaming, cringing, and cheering at each and every play, and the game kept us on the edge of our seats. AU fought valiantly, but Army ended up pulling ahead of us in the last few minutes to win the game.
The women’s game against Navy on Tuesday night was just as intense. Instead of slowly battling it out with Navy, the Eagles held nothing back. The women’s team never ceases to amaze, and the Eagles came out on top with 59-49 over Navy.
Both games were Greek and Club Sports Challenge events, and I was there with some girls in Alpha Xi Delta and some other new members. Members of other sororities, fraternities and club sports teams came out to the games to help earn points for their organization.
I believe that the presence of the 2000 fans who filled Bender Arena on Monday and Tuesday night spurred the American University Eagles on to playing harder. I’d encourage all students to support the teams. Even if you’re not a big sports fan, AU basketball games are never a disappointment and are sure to leave you bubbling with school spirit.
About the Author: Lillian Skye Noble, a first year student at American University contributes to AU Blue Crew Leadership Council as a Sports Multimedia Journalist. As a passionate writer and self-proclaimed nerd, Lillian is known for being the first to volunteer to edit someone's paper before it's due and is certain she's AU's resident diehard Star Wars fan. She has worked for Tb-Two*, a weekly newspaper published by the Tampa Bay Times, where she was a staff writer and social media moderator.