Homecoming is an annual and traditional past time at Texas A&M University-Kingsville. Current students, alumni, faculty and staff gathered for this momentous occasion and celebrated the history, the significance and their pride for Javelina Nation.
On Monday, Oct. 22, the voting polls opened for the homecoming court. The candidates for Queen were: Allison Kyral, Crystal Vela, Luz Hernandez, Jessica Gillam, Sydney Surber, Monica Hysquierdo and Tanishka Guduru, and the nominees for king were as follows: Christopher Aguirre, Lue Gonzalez, Heet Joshi, Robert Ray Benavides and Adrian Garcia. The decision was announced during the homecoming football game on Saturday, Oct. 27.
Sober Spirits was hosted on Tuesday, Oct. 23, which emphasized how students can celebrate and enjoy their evenings without resorting to alcohol or drugs. This was followed by the women’s volleyball game against Tarleton State University. The Lady Hogs faltered and lost.
Fall Carnival was unfortunately cancelled on Wednesday, Oct. 24, because of weather conditions. Dr. Terisa Riley, vice president of Student Affairs sent out a campuswide email: “After careful consideration and monitoring of predicted weather conditions, Texas A&M University-Kingsville has made the decision to cancel the Fall Carnival which was scheduled for Wednesday, October 24. The forecast for Wednesday includes rain showers throughout the day and a thunderstorm during the time that we normally set up. This type of weather is a recipe for disaster when considering how many of the booths require electrical support, and we believe attendance would be very low which would result in organizations investing in lots of products to sell that would not be sold. We are disappointed because the Fall Carnival is such a fun part of our Homecoming Week, but we hope to see you at some of our other amazing events.”
The homecoming parade, hog call, bonfire and the newly added fireworks show took place on Thursday, Oct. 25. The parade showcased organizations, homecoming royalty and distinguished alumni. Citizens gathered all around downtown Kingsville to support the historic university. The bonfire, which focused on hyping up Javelina supporters, students, and alumni, was hosted by 91.1 radios personalities Etta Enow and Troy Sanchez from radio show The Tea. “The crowd was hyped and that was the goal. This was the first year we had fireworks, hopefully a tradition that continues because everyone was taking pictures with the fireworks, everyone was on snapchat with the fireworks, everyone really enjoyed it,” Enow and Sanchez said.
Winners for float decorations were announced at the bonfire which included the Marketing and Communications Department with third place, Student Athletic Advisory Committee (SAAC) with second place, and Javelina Alumni won first place. At the bonfire number 94 defensive tackle, Shawn Sims gave an excited speech.
“The season didn’t turn out how we wanted, but we’ve got three games left. So, come out and support at Javelina Stadium. Ya’ll going to throw some tortillas? Put some meat in ’em and some cheese,” Sims said jokingly.
On Friday and Saturday other exciting and honorable events like the Distinguished Alumni Awards, the 18th Annual Breast Cancer 5K walk/run for, the Sam Riggs concert, and the Javelina Alumni Association general meeting took place.
The Javelinas crushed the Western New Mexico Mustangs, 37 to 34. But then came the moment almost all were waiting for… halftime. During halftime, the band performed songs from the band Queen for about 15 minutes. Following that, people gathered around for the king and queen of the 2018 homecoming to be announced. Three ladies and gentlemen stood on the field in their sparkling dresses and sharp suits waiting for their name to be called as the king or queen, but ultimately it was Lue Gonzalez and Monica Yserdo who stole the crowns.
“It was an amazing feeling hearing my name. I wasn’t expecting to hear my name. I had practiced my reaction to win or lose but my actual reaction was just pure happiness and accomplishment,” Gonzalez said.