Sunday night ended sorority recruitment weekend for fall semester with the bid night ceremony in the Student Center ballroom.

The night had the highest overall matched bids of the last few years, said Meredith Bielaska, assistant director of Greek affairs. This semester, 307 new members were matched with sororities.

All six sororities gathered outside of the Student Center chanting their sororities’ name before bids were announced.

“It’s basically each sorority competing and screaming outside,” said Olivia Campbell, junior integrated health studies major and member of Delta Gamma.

Marisa Gerace, junior managerial marketing major and sorority recruitment counselor, said potential new members waited in holding rooms in the Student Center to receive and finalize their bid cards for most of the day Sunday.

Bid night is when each girl is accepted into a sorority, and she decides whether to accept the offer, Gerace said.

Before the ceremony, all six sororities were on the ballroom floor and stage chanting and cheering for the arrival of new members.

Each new member was brought on stage during the ceremony, where recruitment counselors announced the member’s new sorority.

“After that [announcement], the new sister joins a sea of people cheering,” Gerace said.

“I’m very happy with my new sorority,” said Janna Hehn, new Sigma Sigma Sigma member and sophomore biology major.

Amelia Corrigan, Greek affairs intern and academic advisor, said working with recruitment was a new experience.

“It’s really different every day,” Corrigan said. “I wasn’t Greek [during undergraduate].”

Corrigan works under Bielaska and helps plan events, including bid night.

“I even got choked up,” Corrigan said about watching bid night.

Chelsea Abraham, president of Sigma Sigma Sigma and junior psychology major, said Thursday and Friday were the first parties for formal recruitment.

“We split the party into two nights because it is easier and the PNM’s [potential new members] don’t have to meet every sorority in one night,” she said.

Both nights took place on the third floor of the Student Center. Each sorority had its own room where girls met potential new members and talked with them to figure out who would be a good fit.

Contact Chelsea Kiko at [email protected].