Not Your Average Drumline: Bringing Samoan Culture to the Sidelines
October 30, 2015
Mater Dei High School senior football player Tupua Seanoa carries his Samoan heritage with him on the field every week through his family and their music. Since Seanoa was a freshman, his family has been playing traditional Polynesian drums and conch shells in their group Tupua Productions at every game, regardless of the distance.
“One thing that Samoan culture is about is family, and I know that Mater Dei is about family as well. So it all just blends in together,” said Tupua Seanoa’s sister Kalea Seanoa.
But the tradition will end soon. Tupua Seanoa will be graduating this spring, and the Seanoa family does not plan to continue playing next season.



![BUILDING THE FUTURE: Plans to build tennis courts and a new Performing Arts Center will be started and completed in the coming years. This will benefit students and athletes alike as they will enhance both the Athletic and Performing Arts Departments and bring much-needed venues and state-of-the-art spaces to campus. “You want to be rooted in that tradition of the school when [it comes to] these projects, we’ve always got to be innovating and moving forward,” Vice President of School Relations Scott Melvin said. Mock Renderings courtesy of Mater Dei High School.](https://thescarletscroll.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Mater-Dei-Tennis-Court-and-PAC-e1780632956112-1200x672.jpg)

![GET UP Students laugh and dance at a school rally. All the events and rallies hosted by ASB help bring students together and make school an enjoyable place to be. Senior Maddy O’Connor believes ASB keeps everything together and the school spirit alive. “A lot of things wouldn't be as organized [without ASB] and it'd be kind of boring,” O’Connor said. “ASB brings joy to Mater Dei, and pretty much [all things] cool.”](https://thescarletscroll.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/HEIF-Image-1200x800.jpeg)