QuadWorks continued its tradition of festivities leading up to Homecoming weekend that culminated in the annual lip sync competition Friday night in a Willingham Auditorium packed to the brim.
Who won the Lip Sync Competition?
This year in the large bracket, Zeta Phi Beta, Pi Kappa Phi, Alpha Psi Omega and the Mercer Players took home the gold.
Chi Omega, Lambda Chi Alpha and Kappa Alpha Psi came in second, and Phi Mu and Alpha Tau Omega came in third.
Back to Black (African Student Association, Organization of Black Students and Caribbean Students Association) won the medium bracket, with Residence Life Association (RHA) and Student Government Association (SGA) in second and Baptist Collegiate Ministry (BCM), Agape, Reformed University Fellowship (RUF) and Wesley of Macon in third.
The Mercer Music and Lyrics Club was the lone team in the small bracket, making them the victors of this year's competition.
The overall winners of Homecoming Week will be announced at the football game Saturday against Furman University.
An energetic event
Each team's skit was judged by three prominent members of the Mercer community based on several factors: creativity, content, Mercer spirit, team syncing, overall appearance and originality. Homecoming's theme this year is "Turning Back Tarver," making the skits inspired by time travel.
This year's judges were Dean of Students Doug Pearson, his wife and Copy Editor at Mercer University Press Mary Pearson and Coordinator of Academic Programs Grace Day.
SGA President and previous Homecoming King Rylan Allen served as the competition host and donned his signature orange blazer.
Many skits featured "time machines" created in a previous competition this week made of large cardboard boxes and tin foil, and some featured storylines including them, such as RHA and SGA's skit in which the performers tried to get their tin foil time machine to work.
This year's teams were determined to make a spectacle. Several performances featured stunts such as flips and handstands, and the audience was just as lively as the performers. The cheers and music could be easily heard on campus outside of Willingham. One performance featured a Taylor Swift serenade addressed to the judges.
At the end of the event, The Mercer Dance Team made a surprise performance with Allen making a special appearance as the star of the routine.
This year's takeaways
Many events changed time and location due to rain throughout the week, but the gloomy weather did not keep Mercerians away from the fun this year.
Mercer's Director of Campus Life and Student Involvement Carrie Ingoldsby, a familiar face to many on campus, announced at the beginning of the event that this would be her final homecoming at Mercer as she prepares for a new position at Wesleyan College, a women's college in Macon.
The evening concluded with a pep rally on Cruz Plaza, where the Homecoming Court was announced and the band, dance team, cheerleaders and color guard performed for the student body.
Read more: 2022 Homecoming Court announced after record-breaking student vote turnout
Mary Helene Hall ‘23 is a journalism and women’s and gender studies student who has worked for The Cluster throughout her time at Mercer. She has held internships at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and AL.com, where she covered a variety of topics including politics, crime and culture.
