Sun Devil athletics and residence hall support should go hand in hand.
Now there is a program that rewards residence halls for their attendance at ASU sporting events. The program run by Residence Hall Association director Jimmy Andrews and marketing and promotions coordinator Kate Lawler was enacted to promote residence hall unity and rivalry, hence the name Res Hall Rivalries.
"We wanted to increase attendance and student participation, and at the same time, help cultivate school spirit," Lawler said.
The idea is for members of each residence hall to come together and bring as many students as they can to university-sanctioned sporting events. Each person in attendance will count as one point toward a respective residence hall.
The residence hall with the most points at the end of each event will receive a food party. There also will be a party next spring for the hall that cumulates the most points over the course of the school year.
All ASU sporting events, with the exception of football and men's basketball, are free to people with a validated student I.D. Lawler said athletes living in residence halls would appreciate support from their hall mates.
"Athletes love to get support from their schoolmates and peers, and if we could aid in attendance, this could help their performance," Lawler said.
The inaugural event took place Sept. 27 at Wells Fargo Arena when the ASU women's volleyball team hosted UA. Ocotillo Hall took first-place honors with 38 people in attendance. Ocotillo-Mariposa Hall president Ryan Strowman verbally challenged all other halls to try to catch up at a recent RHA meeting.
Another way ASU's Marketing and Promotions Department has helped bolster attendance is by giving specified games the distinction of being a "Gold Game." Any game against UA is considered a Gold Game, meaning that members of every athletics team on campus are encouraged to show their support.
The next Resident Hall Rivalries event, which is tabbed as a Gold Game, will take place at 1 p.m. Oct. 25 when the ASU men's and women's swimming and diving teams hosts Nevada-Las Vegas and NAU at the Mona Plummer Aquatic Center.
"There is so much excitement," Andrews said. "Bring your whole hall and have a good time."
Reach the reporter at john.powers@asu.edu.
