delgadosandovals@lopers.unk.edu
The UNK homecoming coronation took place Thursday evening at the 36th annual lip sync competition. The competition drew hundreds of students and community members to the Health and Sports Center.
Courtney Cox and Caleb Wiseman were crowned UNK’s 2024 homecoming king and queen after two rounds of student voting.
“I love being an RA, (and) being involved in the Newman Center and FBLA,” Cox said. “I’m so blessed to have this opportunity to represent them. (I know) that being kind to everyone you meet matters. My college career wouldn’t be the same without being involved and knowing all the people that I have today.”
Eight finalists for UNK’s homecoming royalty were announced Monday during a pep rally on campus. Wiseman, representing LoperCatholic, the Honors Program and UNK Student Government, said he felt honored to be crowned after the event.
“Really this is an award to show how much positive change students have made on campus, all eight of us up there,” Wiseman said. “I think I have to take this now and continue to help new people. I want to create a welcoming environment and continue to talk to everybody.”
Among other Louie’s Harvest Homecoming royalty finalists were Olivia Lawless, Sydney Owen and Lily Seibert. King candidates were Lance Haberman, Joey Orellana and Shawn Peterson.
Before the crowning, groups performed in the lip sync contest.
The team consisting of Alpha Xi Delta, Sigma Phi Epsilon and Sigma Lambda Gamma won the competition. Gamma Phi Beta, Delta Tau Delta and Lambda Theta Nu took the second place while the Honors Program came in third.
The Honors Program started their routine with a song from the “Harry Potter” soundtrack and concluded it with a classic song by “The Cranberries.”
“I’m very excited because we worked really hard and this is a group that has always worked hard at everything,” said Molly Dowling, a member of the UNK Honors Program team. “We only had four practices but we were really excited from the beginning. This is very important because it shows that UNK is one community that comes together and supports each other. This is a great time to have fun.”
All teams worked to incorporate Louie’s Harvest theme in their performances. Students dressed as cowboys, farmers, zombies and preppy athletes to dance and create the storyline for their performances.
“We put in a lot of work this week so we are super excited that we won first,” said Kiya Garrelts, a member of UNK’s Alpha Xi Delta chapter. “We are having some recognition on this campus and definitely we are going to put our name out there with the other chapters that we worked with.”
One of the main purposes of homecoming is to increase student engagement.
“We’ve seen with studies how the more you are involved on campus, the more you are likely to succeed,” said Walker Gullicksen, one of two LPAC chairs of homecoming. “In the end, these events are for fun, and they are there for our entertainment. The lip sync competition is just one part of the entire homecoming competition.”
Photos by Jenna Heinz, Jenju Peters and Gabby Roche / Antelope Staff
