Mr. Seahawk Event Raises Student Involvement

By: Katie Wildgrube
Posted In: News

Thirteen of Salve’s bravest student-athletes gathered together to strut their stuff at the annual Mr. Seahawk Pageant Feb. 27, 2009.

Over 600 students piled into the Rogers Recreation Center to watch the contestants compete for the title of Mr. Seahawk. The pageant consisted of catwalk, talent, beachwear, school spirit and a question and answer segment.

Brian Kirkland, who represented the football team, ultimately won the crowd over with his comedy routine and was crowned Mr. Seahawk 2009.

“As Mr. Seahawk, I would spread the word that Salve is a great place with great people,” Kirkland said during the question and answer segment.

Borat impersonator, Dave Guerriero, received straight 10s across the board wearing the infamous green swimsuit featured in the film Borat. The crowd agreed with the judges and granted him second place.

“The best part [of being a constant] was performing in front of everyone,” Guerriero said.

Third place winner, Taylor Solari, was a last minute addition to the pageant. His small person dance became a crowd favorite and he received three 10s from the judges. The audience was outraged by the score of six from soccer coach Craig O’Rourke, whose harsh and brutally honest comments were nothing short than those of Simon Cowell.

“[Mr. Seahawk] was a great time,” Solari said. “I don’t regret anything at all about it.”

The other judges were Assistant Women’s Lacrosse Coach Katya Outwater, Athletic Director Colin Sullivan, and Assistant Athletic Director Lisa Yenush. Nick Piscitelli’s Evolution of Dance remix impressed one of the judges and said that it was “six minutes of pure entertainment.”

Evan Gates and his lacrosse teammates received a standing ovation with their performance of “I Want it That Way” by the Backstreet Boys. Even O’Rourke said, “That wasn’t bad.” Sadly, it wasn’t enough to put Gates in the top three.

Despite the longevity, the event proved successful. Each attendee brought a can donation for the Martin Recreation Center. Just about all the contestants were in agreement that it was a fun experience.

“The best part was having a blast with the other guys backstage,” Brendan Lavery, a contestant, said. “Everyone was cheering for each other having a good time.”

The other contestants were Matt Shubert, Charlie Normington, Ken Johnson, Max Starace, Jay Nelson, Jabreche Boyd and Tim Daly.

The Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), and the NCAA Choices Grant, which supports alcohol education and events such as Mr. Seahawk, sponsored the event.

“I like the grant and I hope it gives the school more opportunities to put on events like Mr. Seahawk,” said Jay Nelson. “There’s not much else to do on a Friday night.”