On January 22, 2026, Castaic High School held its first rally of the semester, “Winter in New York,” promoting the school’s incoming Winter Formal.
Starting the rally off strong, ASB unveiled the school’s highly anticipated new mascot’s name, Cody the Coyote.
Throughout the rally, Cody the Coyote helped raise school spirit, starting with commemorating the incredible achievements of Castaic’s Girls Flag Football team, who made it to CIF Finals on their inaugural season.
Following this, Castaic Cheer performed a breathtaking routine, boosting the audience’s enthusiasm and spirit. Upholding the energy Cheer had created, winter sport team captains were introduced, shouting out Girls and Boys Basketball, Girls and Boys Soccer, and the Dance Team.
Then came a student-favorite rally tradition, a class-competitive game between each grade.
The first game of the rally, “Mattress Sledding”, involved a set of students belonging to each grade sliding across the gym floor using mattresses; the first team to get across the finish line wins a point for their grade.
Though not part of the game itself, students in the bleachers vivaciously cheered on their teams, and after a close match, the junior class won the competition!
Afterwards, the Winter Formal court winners were announced, with the freshman princess and prince being Charlotte Wheeler and Jake Avekian, and sophomores Odessa Blackman and Tristan Gray as queen and king.
While the Winter Formal is normally open for all grades, this year, Castaic made a twist, having its first ever collaboration with Saugus and Valencia High Schools in order to create a special, underclassman centered event, similar to Prom for upperclassmen.
After promotion of the Winter Formal, Castaic’s Dance Team held an awe-inspiring performance, riling up the students once again before the final activity of the rally, another class-competitive game, “Hungry Rats”.
Similar to the game “Hungry Hungry Hippos,” a team of two students per grade worked together to collect the most cheese off the floor.
Throughout the competition, students cheered for each of their grades once again, with the senior class winning a point after an exciting game!
After a winter-ful first rally, Castaic students are excited to start off the second semester strong, growing anticipation for when the next rally will be.
