Marshall, Cruz crowned homecoming royalty
They aren’t the star quarterback or the head cheerleader – and they didn’t spend a second campaigning either. Yet, Ava Marshall and Oswaldo Cruz walked away from the homecoming football game with crowns on their heads.
Marshall, the 2026 homecoming queen, was in total shock to receive the crown. She thought her fellow classmate had a better chance of winning. Alivia Dunaway, Leigha Divoll and Peyton Markvicka were the other queen candidates.
“I thought Alivia was going to win,” Marshall said. “She’s got a lot more influence than me and talks to more people than me.”
Similar to Marshall, homecoming king Cruz did not expect to win either. With popular friends, he expected his chances of winning to be low. Abram Lee, Wyatt Engel and Miles Kovar were the other king candidates.
“I honestly thought it might have gone to my other buddies like Abe or Miles,” Cruz said. “I did not expect to win at all.”
Although these two did not expect the crown, they were extremely happy to hear their name being announced. For Marshall, it felt “good to be liked.”
“It feels good,” Marshall said. “I’ve tried my best to be friendly with everybody, so it felt good to solidify that I was being noticed and how I treat people was being recognized.”
One thing that both king and queen shared was their excitement for the other to win. Cruz and Marshall both voted for each other in this election.
“Ava deserved it,” Cruz said. “I don’t think I’ve heard of anyone have a problem with Ava ever; she’s really kind, caring and empathetic.”
One slight issue with these two winning king and queen is they both have significant others of their own. Marshall and Cruz are good friends, so they tried their best to keep their dance as unawkward as possible.
“We went out to dinner beforehand with Oswaldo and Hayleigh (Cruz’s girlfriend),” Marshall said. “It (dancing) was only awkward because everyone was watching and recording. Immediately after our dance, we both went over and pulled in our own boyfriend and girlfriend.”
Although it came as a shock for Marshall and Cruz to win homecoming king and queen, they both felt grateful. Cruz seeing his brother excited for him only made him happier.
“I had a big ole smile on my face,” Cruz said. “My brother was really happy about it and that just got me going – I was just really happy.”
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