The Fears and Cheers of Titan’s Week

By Joe Priela

Coming to Enderun Colleges for the first time, the visitor is confronted with the relatively small size of the school, as if the College were boasting, “We are quality over quantity.”

But hovering over the Enderun micro-community, there is a macro-community, a larger world of hardly known faces, doubts and hesitations, chancey relationships leaning towards friendships but not quite there.

Often, one learns, friendships formed off-court translate to smooth teamwork on the court.  Among the freshmen particularly, most of their team chemistry was formed through group chats and working our practice game schedules. Of course, playing side by side, and during the competition itself, teamwork is building up.

Bonding among peers is not easy, especially when all are newcomers, but it is worth the endurance — like a month-long project you cram into a few hours of concentration and in the end, you get some unexpected surprises.

On the cold Titan Hall floor we do our warm-ups, checking the competition from our sideways glances, one might think, what if we lose today? Will my doubts weaken our team? The air resonates with words unspoken, as the hall fills up with supporters, some for us, some for the competition.

And then, all of a sudden, it doesn’t matter if we win or lose, if we take home the gold or the silver medal or none at all.

Titans’ Week isn’t all about winning games. It’s true, freshmen and especially the SHS guys were weary of the upperclassmen, that they might play extra hard to let it be known that they were here first.

The buzzer rings, an unnerving imperative. We all shake hands, telling each other that it was a good game. From bridges burned slowly coming to the realization that we’ve been building bridges on the same island. Realizing that you are a part of a bigger community. The Titan Community.

More than the wins or losses, the games and the competition ties us together, the friendship, the camaraderie. Friendship is our strongest bond and it connects us Titans in our community.