Picasa 3.0
It was around 12:45 p.m. on a sunny April afternoon when Reese Roaman ’25 was calmly enjoying her lunch off-campus with her friends until her assassin, Lachlan Rudd ’25, burst through the doors with one goal on his mind: getting her out. With one splash of water, Roaman was eliminated from the game. Another player was down; however, there were many still left standing.
Each spring, as the school year slowly starts to come to an end, Poly Prep seniors find fun ways to make their last few weeks on campus memorable. Senior Assassin has become one of the most anticipated traditions at Poly, as a game of intense strategy, fun and surprise attacks. Whether running after someone when they get off the bus or ambushing them at their house in the morning, students engage in exciting, creative ways to get their assigned target out.
This year’s game was run through the Splashin’ App, which randomly assigns each participating senior a target. The app also shares players’ locations, allowing assassins to track their targets and plan the perfect moment to hunt them down and get them out.
Round One took place between April 21 through 27, and Round Two between April 28 to May 4. These elimination rounds were only allowed outside on campus before 8:45 a.m. or after 3:45 p.m.. Eliminations were allowed off-campus anytime during the day or night, including in public restaurants and spaces. During practice was off limits; however, targets could be eliminated while walking to and from practice, as said on the Poly Senior Assassin Instagram. Each player had seven days to get their target out; if they didn’t, they would be eliminated. The rules changed for the final round, however, which occurred from May 5 through May 9. Eliminations were allowed outdoors on campus anytime during the school day.
Despite these rules, students found clever loopholes past the safe zones. They created elaborate tactics to get their targets out, such as lurking in parking lots, going on their sports bus, or staging elaborate decoys. “It’s cool and funny to see your friends make up weird ways to get their targets out. Watching the videos on Instagram is always entertaining,” said Opal Williams-Law ’25.
Not only is the game fun and exciting, but the winner also wins a $400 cash prize. “Every student chips in three dollars,” said Roaman, student body president and one of the organizers of Senior Assassin this year. “[The] cash prize gives the fun game more stakes and intensity.”
More than just a game, Senior Assassin brings the grade together in a way few traditions can. “Senior Assassin is a unique way for our grade to come together at the end of the year, and it’s a fun and long-standing tradition at Poly, so I am so happy that I got to help carry it on,” stated Roaman.
Congratulations to seniors Lucia Zaremba, Jack Bogner, Jane Littleton, Daniel Walker, Marc Livingston, Matthew Khorosh, and Wendy Zhou on winning Senior Assassin 2025!
