Cabrini Night at the Phillies provided not only a win for Philadelphia but also a lively trip for Cabrini students, alumni and staff.
Every year Cabrini’s Student Engagement and Leadership office, also known as the SEaL office, plans and hosts a trip to a Phillies game in September. They offer a bus ride there and back, free tickets for freshmen, transfer students and orientation leaders, and discounted tickets for upperclassmen, staff and alumni.
Students all sit in the same section while they get to watch the game and Cabrini’s dance team and mascot, Calvin, on the field.
“Well the captains choreograph the dance months ahead of time so they can make sure its perfect,” sophomore dance team member MaryKate Sapata explained. “Knowing I’m going out there to dance in front of a whole stadium doesn’t seem as scary when you’re surrounded by your best friends. Not to mention the Phanatic dancing with us is hilarious too.”
First year students also got to enjoy themselves with their new friends they’ve made thus far at Cabrini. Being able to socialize outside of the classroom allowed for students to be around other students they might not have known before.
“I went to the game because a lot of people seemed to be going and I wanted to get to know more people,” freshman Kevin Finn said. “The student section was yelling and I thought it was funny the stuff people were saying.”
SEaL workers and the orientation coordinators worked for a long time planning this trip so that it will run smoothly. T-shirts are also made so that all people attending the game with Cabrini will stand out amongst the crowd.
“It is a fairly complicated event because there is so many different pieces,” Assistant Director for Leadership Development Lisa Podolsky explained. “Of course there is getting the tickets is a big thing to figure out how many we need and ordering buses. I think the event went really well this year. It was a beautiful night. We had a tons of students go down. Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves.”
Orientation coordinators Bryana Manning and Samantha Murray spent a lot of time planning and making sure everything went accordingly.
“It’s stressful because there are so many people to keep track of,” senior orientation coordinator Bryana Manning explained. “But when you have a great team (SEaL office and orientation leaders) it makes it a lot easier.”
The tradition of Cabrini night at the Phillies is a unique trip for students to get outside of the classroom and see a professional game of baseball. Freshmen get to bond with each other while upperclassmen, alumni and staff get to create new memories.
“I think the trip overall went well, we had some hiccups but everyone always enjoys the Phillies game and it’s a fun way to get new students, current students and alumni together,” Manning said. “My favorite part of the trip is seeing everyone in their shirts and watching all the Cabrini students on the jumbotron/big screen!”
