It was a cool November evening at the La Jolla High field. The wind was blowing, the temperature had dropped to below 50°, and the rain was pouring all over Bishop’s crowd watching their football team play Sante Fe Christian. But that didn’t stop the Bishop’s Dungeon.

Despite the weather, the Dungeon members fought through the sheets of rain and the freezing temperature. Posters in hand, their loud cheers overpowered the rain as they continued to support the football team — whatever the cost.  

With the 2024-25 school year well underway, the Dungeon is flourishing like never before. Whether it’s showing up for the football team through a rainy game, supporting the Girls’ Varsity Field Hockey team at their Open Division Championships, or cheering on the Boys’ Basketball Team at their home opener — there’s no denying their heightened presence at athletics events. 

Their energy has been felt beyond the stands. Athletes across various sports have noticed a shift from previous years and appreciate the support. Girls’ Varsity Tennis player Julia Pawl (‘27) observed that tennis traditionally has not attracted much support from the student body in the past. However, this year, she’s noticed that the Dungeon has made efforts to simply show up.  “When the Dungeon shows up to our matches, it excites us and brings pride to our team. It makes us want to perform well and succeed,” Julia said.

Varsity Football Quarterback Cash Herrera (‘26), echoed this feeling: “The energy [the Dungeon] brings keeps us going throughout our game as we play. It feels much better playing when the school is hyped, yelling our names and cheering us on from the stands.” 

They have made significant strides in boosting school spirit and increasing attendance at sports events. This fall, a new wave of Dungeon members took to the stands to rally support for Bishop’s Athletics: Associated Student Body (ASB) Dungeon representative Timothy “Tim” LaBrucherie (‘25), Laine Jeffery (‘25), Casper Lightner (‘25), Gabby Gaspar (‘25), Henry Armstrong (‘25), Jayla Stafford (‘25), Kiran Dhupa (‘25), Kylie Nordan (‘25), Malaya Taylor (‘25), Natalie Marvin (‘25), Owen Turner (‘25), Pars Findikoglu (‘25), Warner Vaccaro (‘25), Audrey Donnelly (‘26), Moana Peterson (‘26), and Clyde Kates (‘26).

Traditionally, Dungeon members have been exclusively seniors. However, for the first time ever, the Dungeon expanded its membership this year, recruiting three junior members to promote collaborations and ensure a smooth transition for future leadership. 

“We want to make it the most fun for everyone and leave a legacy for our school to carry on,” Jayla said. Their first step in doing so was to include the juniors. Audrey appreciates the time the Dungeon spent as a team, adding that, “it is super fun to get to work closely with the seniors to create themes for games and ideas for new chants.” Clyde also believes that incorporating juniors this year has been nothing but beneficial and said, “learning from them will help [them] take over next year and know exactly how everything works and how [they] can improve for next year.”

Moana also agreed, highlighting the importance of expanding their efforts. She stated that “having juniors in the Dungeon is really helpful because now we have the ability to rally people from both grades to games.” She added that it also helps that “the dynamic between the seniors and juniors is great” and that they are “such good friends” as it allows for a more connected and harmonized relationship when leading the student section.

The Dungeon has stepped up this year, addressing past issues of inconsistency and lack of student engagement. Tim, who leads the Dungeon, believes the main problem before was due to the lack of participation. He said,“without many people in the student sections in the past, the experience as a student [in the stands] wasn’t as enjoyable, which caused fewer people to come to sporting events.” That is why their main focus this year is to “get more people out to the games to show that with a large student section, the games will be much more enjoyable to cheer on for.” He feels it is his job “to lead the student section and make sure everyone is having a good time,” instead of intensely focusing on the game. 

Through cycle-planned lunch meetings with faculty members, Assistant Athletic Director Al Gomez  and Athletics Facilities and Equipment Manager and Baseball Coach, Bryan Santy they have been able to stay on track. Laine says they use the time to “check-in and appoint themes for games ahead of time” which she believes is “a smart way to avoid scrambling at the last minute.” 

In addition, Jayla said that the meetings “give more structure to [their] team and allow them to formulate school-appropriate ideas under the supervision of staff members who advocate and promote them, involving the whole school.”Another area addressed in these meetings is their promotion and advertisements. Tim explained that “this year [they] have focused largely on social media posts whether they be funny, surprising, or motivational to promote the games.” For example, for the Girls’ Varsity Tennis senior night they photoshopped a 5-year-old Kendall Kearney (‘25) onto a pink Power Ranger, mid karate chop. 

Besides social media campaigns, they have been creating encouraging posters and promotional videos in order to successfully draw larger crowds to sporting events. Laine explains that they have been trying to increase their poster-making this year since it is easy to do. “So if you’ve noticed an increase in posters, that’d be the Dungeon.” For the football game against Mater Dei Catholic High School, the theme was pajamas, so they got creative and made signs saying “Knight Time,” filled with drawings of beds, alarm clocks, and teddy bears.  

Furthermore, Laine noted that the members have collectively agreed to continue their networking on Instagram and to be more active on the app in comparison to last year. She said that the fun and engaging videos that they have been posting before major games have ultimately encouraged students to attend and filled  the student section. 

Jayla, who runs the Instagram account, added that their strong social media presence “is a creative way to make students aware of upcoming games and attract support.” She noticed that they “have the best turnouts” when they post about it weeks in advance, such as for the Field Hockey Open Division Championship game which had a huge student turnout. Ronik Gupta (‘27) who attended the game shared “that [he] had never seen that many people before at an away game, especially one in Chula Vista, which is definitely a commute for many students. “That just goes to show not only how differently the Dungeon members are treating their job this year, compared to years prior, but also how positively the student body is reacting to their efforts,” he said. 

At sporting events, Dungeon members also distribute props and face paint they ordered beforehand to add to the spirit. Maia Salami (27), who is a frequent facepaint user at the games, shares that these additions “have made games so much more fun, festive, and spirited, which is needed during our downtime when we go to a stressful school like Bishop’s.” Due to the preparation and steps taken before games, Audrey says that “[they] now see many more new faces show up in support of our teams.”

All of these efforts, along with the “newfound energy” they have established this year, according to Laine, have resulted in “parents and teachers going out of their way to applaud [them] on [their] evident growth and increase in spirit.” 

Coach Paula Conway, Director of Athletics and Head Girls’ Varsity Field Hockey Coach, praised the Dungeons’ effort and work so far this year, highlighting their “outstanding job supporting various fall sports, both through their enthusiastic presence on the sidelines and their efforts on social media.” To her, all of this is very important as she emphasized the significance of school spirit, referring to it as a cornerstone of community. “It fosters a sense of community, pride, and connection among students, faculty, and alumni. It strengthens the identity of the institution and helps bring people together,” which is exactly what this new wave of Dungeon members is achieving. 

With their dedication and passion, the Dungeon is breathing new life into Bishop’s athletics and our school spirit as a whole. Members like Audrey feel the impact of their own work. As she put it, “The times I feel the most joy are when I’m standing up next to all my peers, screaming and cheering on the sports team we are watching. I think it makes us all feel united on the sideline.”

So, let’s all take time out of our busy schedules to show up to a sports game and rally behind our Dungeon. By continuing to support Bishop’s teams and bringing energy to games this year, we will be able to instill the spirit that the Dungeon works so hard to cultivate into our school and Bishop’s athletics. Roll Knights!