To some, this rivalry seems dead and old news, but to Oak Hills and Elder students, any meeting between the two is detrimental to their bragging rights. The rivalry is decades old, dating as far back as the 1960s with many unsure of how it began. Most students speculate that it started because of the school’s close distance or because it is a public school vs a Catholic school. No matter the origin, the rivalry is reborn again with a regular-season matchup against the Panthers on January 21st at the Pit. Although Elder is on a five-game win streak against Oak Hills in basketball, the Scots have overcome barriers like this before. In the 2005-06 season, the Panthers were undefeated 15-0 going into a game against Oak Hills and left 15-1. This win is even more memorable because Elder had former NFL star tight end, Kyle Rudolph, on their squad. The two teams have played 55 times starting in the 1964-65 season, the record is 35-19 with Elder leading.
The rivalry is more than a game though. In 2016 nine students faced criminal charges for spray painting at least 50 public safety signs in their school colors. But it doesn’t stop with safety signs as many know about the tradition of painting the guard rails. This tradition has recently slowed down since the criminal charges, leaving hairpin guard rails safe.
Another tradition the Oak Hills students do is crossing out the letter E in every word around the school. We have done this tradition most recently last year when we played the Panthers in a football playoff game. The tradition is a sign of obvious disrespect to the school which many participate in.
Although this rivalry isn’t just in basketball, it is a well-fought battle anytime any sport plays each other. Just last year the big first-round playoff game between Oak Hills and Elder was the talk of the town until the game was finally over. It ended a staggering 28-14 with the Panthers overpowering the Scots. In soccer the record is still tied up at 19 wins 19 losses with 13 ties with the last game ending in a heady two to two. The last matchup between Elder and Oak Hills in baseball ended with a scot loss of four runs to nine. Another loss for the Scots in volleyball last season with a three-to-nothing sweep. Last season in bowling the Panthers were defeated 2471 to 2132.
Even though it seems like from the Elder students that this rivalry is long gone Oak Hills still triumphs and wins games in an attempt to earn the respect we deserve. This multiple decade old rivalry will thrive no matter the records or the scores of the games. The match ups will always be physical and the winner will always make the loser know.
