Rooks-VanDellen (RVD) played true to its villain theme Friday night, playing spoiler to powerhouses Beets-Veenstra (BV) and Schultze-Eldersveld (SE) by winning the annual Battle of the Bye in convincing fashion.

Over 800 students gathered in the Huizenga Tennis and Track Center for a mattress race that grants the winner a bye through the first round of the all-important tug-of-war on Chaos Day.

The race took only minutes for RVD to capture the title.

“The bye is a curse,” said Boer-Bennink sophomore, Kate Henriksen, downplaying the accomplishment.

Henriksen was referring to the “curse of the bye” which dictates that very few, if any teams who have won the bye go on to win Chaos Day.

“I don’t remember the last time a team won the bye and won Chaos Day,” said John Witte, dean of residence life.

RVD was more than willing to accept their victory, even with the accompanying curse. “We’re going to be the first one to break the curse,” said RVD resident assistant Steven Zantingh.

Beets-Veenstra freshman Cassandra Hooyer isn’t worried about her dorm’s chances on Saturday morning, “It was an off day. After an off day, you get a good day.”

BV is looking to claim a three-peat Saturday morning, but there are more than just other teams in their way.

Asked if BV would be victorious for a third year in a row, Witte said, “If motivation is a part of the picture, than I do, but it’s more than just wanting it. It’s the luck of the morning.”

“Teamwork makes the dream work,” said Henriksen, revealing Boer-Bennink’s strategy to defeat BV.

The underclassmen gather tomorrow morning to determine the mightiest, smartest, and craziest dorm of them all, and confident RVD resident assistant Erik Newhouse had a message for any challengers.

“Let the odds be forever in their favor,” he said.