Dig pink

Areli Dominguez

At the annual, Downey vs. Warren, Dig Pink volleyball game, Kimberly Schnars, 12, spikes a serve to intimidate her rivals. Schnars demonstrated her skills with her high jumps and powerful serves.

Irania Quintero, Staff Writer
November 3, 2014

The thrill of the night on, Oct. 7, began when both Downey and Warren’s volleyball teams filed into Downey High School’s gym to “Volley for a Cure” in honor of supporting women fighting off breast cancer. The crowd was restless as the teams prepared to compete on the court and this time, play for a cause. Despite making a determined appearance to beat each other, rival teams Downey and Warren set their differences aside and came together in support of women who survived breast cancer.

“The girls will battle between the net, but they are all coming together as one,” Keri Wohlford, Downey assistant coach, said. “They understand that it’s not necessarily about the rivalry.”

Hundreds of supportive fans continued to fill the stands with their pink shirts and painted faces to make the event a grand slam of emotion and involvement. The stuffiness and overbearing heat of the gym did not stop the crowd from going wild, every chance they got, to let the girls know they had the whole school cheering them on.

“I think it’s amazing that this community gets together and raises money for breast cancer awareness and research,” Andrea Glasser, cancer survivor, stated.

By the end of the second set, Downey lead the way having beat the Bears on both sets. A 5-minute interval was given in between to give recognition to and applaud the women from the Downey community who defeated breast cancer.

“It feels good to beat Warren on our home court, but it feels better to come together as one to support one cause,” Victoria Trejo, 10, said.

The end of the night resulted in a win by the Downey Vikes and endless cheers from the crowd with satisfaction with the outcome, the final score being 25-11. The girls [volleyball team] congratulated each other on their success of winning one of the most intense and nerve-wrecking games of their season, as stated by Victoria Trejo.

“I didn’t want it [the game] to be Downey versus Warren, Warren versus Downey, or fans against each other,” Mrs. Sims, Head Coach, stated. “These women [cancer survivors] deserve so much more than we can give them, and that’s why we will continue to put on this event.”

Not all attendees were satisfied with the outcome of the game but they were all aware of the overall significance of the game: the Downey community coming together as a whole supporting breast cancer awareness and “digging pink.”

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About the Contributors

Irania Quintero, Staff Writer

As a first year staff writer, senior Irania Quintero joined The Downey Legend in search of new experiences and opportunities. “I joined Newspaper because it gives me a chance to explore and build upon my passion for writing,” Quintero said. “It is indeed a new environment for me but a challenge worth taking on.” She has a passion for writing and hopes that with being a part of the staff she’ll expand her knowledge on different writing styles, improve her own writing, and get a feel for what she plans to do in the future. “Great writing to me is writing that makes the reader feel like he or she is a part of the experience or event described,” Quintero stated. “My ultimate goal is to deliver the same feeling to readers as many writers have done for me.” As a writer for The Downey Legend, Quintero will be in charge of pitching new story ideas and meeting deadlines. The job of a writer may get stressful and tedious at times but with Quintero’s passion for writing and undeniable reliability, she’ll take this job on without the slightest of difficulty.

Aside from being a writer for The Downey Legend, Quintero enjoys writing poetry, reading books by Nicholas Sparks, watching the Angels during their baseball season, and cooking and/or baking in her spare time. She also says that her favorite music varies from John Legend, Kanye West, The XX, to different alternative bands. Quintero also shared that she’s great with puns and that she has a positive vibe about herself at all times. “There’s almost always a smile on my face no matter what my mood is,” Quintero said. After high school she plans to attend a four-year-university, her top choice being San Francisco State University, and eventually become a journalist. Quintero has the right mind set and motivation to help her accomplish her dreams and succeed in her near future as well as in her current position on The Downey Legend.

Areli Dominguez, Co-Photo Editor

As her final year begins at Downey High School, Areli Dominguez, 17, joins Newspaper as a new-coming photographer. Her interest for photography started last year in Photojournalism and Yearbook and she has loved it ever since. “I like that you can show your own point of view,” Dominguez said. She learned a lot within Yearbook, but she knows that Newspaper will be different and new and hopefully a challenge. She knows that at times it may be difficult, but she is hard working and motivated. Her main goals for this year are to keep on task and be proud of her own work.

She moved to Downey in the fourth grade and has been here ever since. Dominguez likes to draw, sing and do photography. She has two dogs named Casper and Oreo, who she loves to play with and be around. She hopes to attend Long Beach Community College in the next fall semester, but is unsure of what she wants to major in. In 5 years from now she has high hopes of to start a new job, and have the same friends from high school and other aspects of her life. When it comes to her friends or family she has a very caring heart. “I am a trustworthy, whether it is big or small, I for sure won’t tell anybody,” Dominguez stated. In her spare time, she likes to listen to bachata and eat sour patches, which is her favorite candy. She does not play sports now but when she was younger she played volleyball and swim. Her role models are her parents because they struggled to makes things work. She hopes to achieve greatness this upcoming year.