Whitewater High DECA students had a slam dunk at the Atlanta Hawks Marketing Competition, impressing the organization’s marketing executives and securing a first place win.

They were among hundreds of DECA and Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) students from throughout the state and Alabama who participated in the sports marketing competition at State Farm Arena in March.

The challenge was to create a marketing campaign that co-brands the Atlanta Hawks and colleges. The team of Matthew Castro, Cole Hayne, Mason Rzepkowski, Edward Huang and J.J. Riesberg designed Hawks merchandise featuring a hat with a patch of the college, a ticket package with one ticket to a Hawks college game and the college’s football game, a seat in a special student section, a meet and greet with alumni of the college in the NBA, and a special jersey featuring the patch of the college for players to wear during the game.

To publicly market the events, the students designated a group of ambassadors from the Hawks to go into colleges and speak with students in addition to promoting the events on social media platforms.

The Whitewater High DECA chapter will receive a monetary prize for the first place victory. The chapter has a history of winning the Atlanta Hawks Marketing Competition, taking first place in 2018 and 2015, and securing several second and third place finishes in prior competitions.