Five senior hopefuls competed in Ground Zero for the right to be Homecoming king during Homecoming week on Nov. 2. Through dance, a question and answer session and movie, candidates explained to the audience of 300 why they thought they should represent their school.

After the music and dancing stopped, however, reigning king Carlos Moran, ?01, declared the decision of the student body to make Casey Belmont, ?02, their king. Belmont defeated fellow seniors Anthony Pellouso, Tim Swift, John Wiens and Tim Haydock. The king candidates were judged by a group of their peers.

“Casey is a worthy winner because of his character, popularity and his genuine sport,” Christopher Schultz, activities director, said. “I couldn’t be happier for him.”

Belmont’s responsibilities include presiding over Homecoming night’s festivities. These are to include the introduction of the homecoming queen, who was chosen earlier in the week at a separate event. Currently Belmont also plays varsity football and will play baseball in the spring.

“I am glad the event is over because we struggled through the practices for the hip-hop group dance thing,” Belmont said. However, being with the four other guys really helped alleviate some of the stress. It was an honor to win but the fun really was the competition in front of the student body.”

All five king candidates are close friends and often hang out after school or on the weekends. All but Anthony Pellouso are on the varsity basketball team and go on trips together. All five are in a student leadership class together.

“Other than getting an even bigger head after all of this, Casey’s an awesome guy,” Pellouso said. “He’s funny to be with and I had a blast competing and dancing with the guys.”

Swift agreed with Pellouso and Schultz and suggested the better man won amongst them.

“I had so much fun just being with my friends,” Swift said. “I loved the atmosphere in Ground Zero today. I have to give it up to Casey because he deserved every bit of the accolades. I’m glad he won.”

During a mock queen pageant competition on Nov. 1, Samantha Kimball, ?02, defeated Chelsea Myers, ?02, by one point. The final queen and princess pageant will take place at halftime during the Homecoming Strathmore football game at Clark Stadium on Nov. 2.” “Greg Stobbe” “After dancing, answering questions about fellow candidates and showing off in one of the movies, Casey Belmont, ?02, strutted his way as king of Homecoming on Nov. 2 in Ground Zero.” “Patricia Hill” “After they danced in unison, each senior king candidate answered questions about the others. Here eventual winner, Casey Belmont (center), gets a laugh from his peers. Anthony Pellouso, (left to right) Tim Swift, and Tim Haydock each muse to Belmonts wit.” “