Crowd goes wild at Convo Center

The Convocation Center at Northern Illinois University was a house divided Friday night, with a mass of fans in black and yellow and another in orange and black.

The annual Sycamore versus DeKalb high school basketball games, sponsored by Castle Bank, brought a large crowd of students and fans from the two communities together to cheer on the athletes.

Melissa Renteria, who works at Castle Bank in Sycamore, wore Spartan gear and handed out Sycamore spirit signs to fans. She said there seemed to be more DeKalb fans at the game early in the night.

"This is a big rivalry, and it gets bigger every year," said Angela DeLeon, who works at Castle Bank in DeKalb and wore Barb colors while handing out DeKalb spirit signs.

The girls teams played first, followed by the boys game. At halftime of the girls game, Sycamore and DeKalb cheerleaders performed and elementary students from both communities participated in a group dance to "The Cha Cha Slide."

Wearing orange and black, Dominic Buckner hung out with fellow DeKalb fans as the game started. He said it's a fun rivalry, but there's not a lot of trash talk between the two schools.

"I have a couple friends on that side," he said of Sycamore. Buckner said he prefers the basketball game to the fall football game between the two schools because "it's inside" and he can find friends easier.

A few feet away, Sycamore student Parker Majerus wore his black-and-yellow-striped overalls with pride.

"I got them online from an Iowa Hawkeye store," he said, adding that he gets "usually all compliments, but there are some haters."

Elementary schools in each district made banners that were hung at the Convocation Center for Friday's game, offering support for their high schools. Fans were decked out in orange or yellow tutus, and some wore gold leggings or orange spray paint in their hair. Others had glitter or paint on their faces, but that wasn't enough for those who painted their entire upper bodies and cheered in student sections at each end of the court.

Sycamore poms Amy Cappel, Caila Lee and Emily Friesen said they enjoy the games because "the student section always gets really involved," Cappel said.

All three girls said the basketball games are popular because there are other activities for fans. Staff with the Kishwaukee Family YMCA worked with children in Challenge Zones, where DeKalb and Sycamore fans could shoot hoops.

"Everyone gets really excited just coming to games and being with friends," said DeKalb band member Cody Espy, who plays baritone saxophone.

DeKalb cheerleader Alex Reed said the rivalry is popular because it's been around for years.

"There's a lot of energy," said fellow cheerleader Maggie Rapp.

"It's always a good game," added cheerleader Lydia Kenney.

Marianne Buehler, a secretary in the athletic office at DeKalb High School, watched the game from the DeKalb stands.

"It's a great community event," Buehler said. The game supports athletes from both schools and attracts families from the community, she said. "Assemblies at the elementary schools get the younger kids excited," she added.

Sycamore student Haley Herrmann cheered in the student section with her friends. Her group attends the games each year, she said.

"We're so close," she said of the two schools. "Making it at the Convo makes it a bigger deal."