Seeing red

As the lights dimmed at UD Arena for the Flyers men’s basketball matchup against Duquesne in late February, two familiar names were back in the stands for the first time in decades. Ashley Puglia Noronha ’96 and Katie Brown Konieczny ’96 returned to campus to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Red Scare — the student section they founded — and to see it in action during a men’s basketball game where they once led from the front row.

After leaving Red Scare’s legacy in capable hands at graduation, the pair had not been back to a UD basketball game. They followed along from afar, glimpsing photos in alumni publications and hearing stories of packed arenas and painted faces. This time, though, they experienced it live.

“It's my first time seeing Red Scare in action. Now, I've seen photographs in UD Magazine or other publications, so I'm aware of what's happening,” Noronha said. “... but to see it live [was] a big thrill,” she said. 

Three decades ago, the idea for Red Scare had been little more than a spark.

Noronha  came to UD drawn by the threads of spirit and calling. With alumni parents, she grew up on stories about campus life and athletics; she knew the fight song by heart. And she knows every word of her parents’ harrowing retelling of when the Flyers made it to the NCAA finals in 1967.

When she came to UD, she expected to be met with the same vibrancy toward athletics that was present in all of the stories she had heard. Instead, she found quiet stands and little visible school spirit.

So she decided to make her own.

“I thought, wouldn’t it be wonderful if it were possible to really channel this excitement, in a more specific way, to cheer on all athletics at UD,” she said. 

Alongside her housemate, Katie Brown Konieczny ’96, the duo pitched their grand idea of an organized student group that brought school spirit and pride to all games. Together, they wanted to unite people who enthusiastically loved UD. Thus, Red Scare was born, and the fun began. 

“It allowed all students who were on the sidelines cheering to also be part of the sports culture. And I think that it really promoted something that is particular to UD, which is that feeling of family,” she said. 

In those early days, students covered themselves in body paint, invented chants and revived traditional cheers. Leaders cued the crowd. Spectators became participants. The section wasn’t just loud — it was unified.

“We were the best fans in the world for the best teams in the world,” she said. 

The friendships formed in the stands stretched beyond game nights, weaving into the fabric of student life. What began as organized cheering became something deeper: belonging.

Looking back, Noronha said, one of the biggest impacts she knows she and Konieczny made was the shift in campus culture. And she hopes to see that still alive today.

“I think one of the greatest gifts that [current Red Scare students] can leave to the University is to figure out how it's going to be a better place after they graduate,” she said. “To ask, ‘How can they serve?’ To have this service mindset, to look around and to actually almost anticipate people's needs before they are even able to articulate them.”

Through Red Scare, Noronha learned how to build something lasting from an idea and a conviction. As she stood once again inside UD Arena, she saw that same spirit — passionate, familiar and proud — still uniting Flyers past, present and future.

And when the crowd rose, the rallying cry sounded just as it had 30 years earlier: Go Flyers!