As all athletes know, everything comes differently when you’re playing your rival; the crowd sounds louder, you feel the butterflies in your stomach, and your will to win becomes that much greater. Rivals may come about in different ways; it may date back to when the two schools began playing their respective sports or it may have begun recently because of the competitive nature between the two schools. The latter seems to be developing a lot in Fenton sports. 

“The varsity football team has defeated Linden six straight times,” said senior Ethan Pyeatt. “Flushing is our current rival because they give us good competition.”

The boy’s tennis team, hot off their defeat against Holly, seems to feel the same way about their rival.

“Beating Holly has been our goal during my four years on the tennis team,” said senior Bradley Trecha. “Holly drives us to be a better team, which in my opinion makes them our rival.”

Not all Fenton sports feel the same way, as the volleyball team seems to be sticking to their traditional cross-town rival.

“I would say Linden is our main rival,” said freshman Adrienne Staib. “Especially since many girls on the team play AAU (club volleyball) with girls from Linden, it makes the game just that much more personal.”

Regardless of the manner in which these rivals are found, they drive each other to play to their top potential.