Issue 19 - Niskayuna Central Schools

Since 1974,
Now Weekly
March 5, 2004
Niskayuna High School
Volume 30, Issue 19
High school grieves for departed junior
Stephanie Bomeisl will be deeply missed by everyone who knew her
by Leanne Merrill
NEWS
The Niskayuna High
School community lost beloved junior Stephanie
Bomeisl last week. She passed
away at the age of 16 on Monday, February 23 at St. Clare’s
Hospital after a short illness.
Stephanie, who was born in
Niskayuna on June 10, 1987,
is survived by her parents,
one younger sister and one
older sister, and a large extended family.
Stephanie was a member of
an incredibly large number of
clubs and extracurricular activi-
Stephanie May Bomeisl
June 10, 1987-February 23, 2004
"Steph was always a loving and vibrant spirit - but she
was also a strong and positive influence in her home, her
school, her church, her community and her vast circle of
friends. She brought us joy and pride every day of her
life. We were truly blessed to have her with us for sixteen
years!"-The Bomeisl Family
ties. “She was a terrific kid. She
represented good things: a good
student, a good athlete, a good
friend,” said her mother, JoAnn
Bomeisl, discussing Stephanie’s
extensive involvement in the
community. Stephanie played
both field hockey and lacrosse.
Senior Lauren Hewitt, a fellow
member of the field hockey team,
said “she was a great girl, very
energetic, everyone wanted to
be around her. I’ll miss her and
her enthusiasm in field hockey.”
Stephanie was also an active
section editor for the yearbook,
who made valuable contributions to Crossroads. Year book
advisor Stacey Dawes said,
“Steph was enthusiastic, charismatic and brilliant. She always graced our presence with
a smile, and a look as almost if
to say, ‘You know what I’m
talking about.’
“I had the fortune of working
with Steph for three years, and
in that time there was never a
dull moment.
“The students I work with
on the yearbook are not
merely my students; they are
like family, and now a member of the family is gone.
Crossroads,the school community at large, as well as
myself, have lost a shining
star.”
In addition, Stephanie was a
member of several clubs, including STAND, Climate Committee, Reality Check, and
Youth to Youth.
She was en especially active
contributor at St. Helens, the
church which she attended.
There, she was part of the
Youth Ministry and the Justice and Service Committee.
She also participated in the
Apple Program, which facilitates discussions for inner-city
youth. “She spoke up for what
Warrior photo / Leanne Merrill
STEPH’S LOCKER: Stephanie’s
locker was decorated by many
friends who wanted to show their
love and support.
she thought was right,” explained her mother. Her involvement in community service organizations showed this
(continued on page 3,
FAMILY)
2
News
March 5, 2004
The Warrior
Two Niskayuna OM teams to go to states
By Joshua Xiong
NEWS
Each year, students at Niskayuna High
School assemble teams for the annual Odyssey of the Mind Tournament, a problemsolving competition that requires each team
to draw upon creative
thinking and technical, artistic, and dramatic skills
in order to develop involved, long-term projects.
This year, the regional
competition was held at
Mohanasen High School/
Draper Middle School on
February 28. The tournament is sponsored in New
York State by NYSOMA
(New York State Odyssey
of the Mind Association),
but extends to an international level. Odyssey of the
Mind is an activity that
stresses innovative problem-solving methods, being able to come up with
unusual solutions, and
generally being able to
“think outside the box”.
The competition is divided
into two parts, with the
first part incorporating a
long-term problem that requires a team to come up
with a presentation, complete with skit and
other specific tasks (the long-term problems
are split into several categories, each concentrating upon different challenges, for
example, creating an “entity” to conduct
intelligent tasks through certain methods
and delineating the solution in a skit based
on a certain science fiction plot with real
characters). The second portion of the competition, termed
“Spontaneous,” is a short-term problem
that a team is required to solve on the day of
the competition, on the spot, with only brains
and ingenuity as aids. Spontaneous problems are split into verbal and technical
categories; an example of a verbal problem
would be to name as many oxymorons as
possible in five minutes, and a classic technical challenge would be to build the highest
structure possible with only a bottle of shaving cream and toothpicks.”
Because teams are given a limited budget, they must be resourceful, since problems may demand the creation of intricate
sets, costumes, props, works of art, or the
construction of complex gadgets that may
draw on robotics, machine-based physics,
and even computer science and programming. For example, a problem requiring the
development of a contraption that would be
able to launch a large number of balls into a
hoop in a short amount of time would require, if done conventionally, over a hun-
dred dollars in materials ranging from wiring, separate pieces, wood, and other things,
depending on the complexity of the team’s
approach. This means that many of the
resources used by Odyssey of the Mind participants (“OM-ers”) must be attained from
recycled goods, donations from hardware
and technical stores, and from other normally non-utilitarian goods used in innovative ways.
This year, Niskayuna (including teams
from both high school and middle school
levels) excelled in the regional competition.
From Niskayuna High School, the Division
III, Problem III (Fantastic Art) and Problem
II (Strategy Sphere) teams placed first in
their respective categories, and will be joining approximately 200 other teams from all
over New York at the State Competition,
scheduled for Saturday, March 1 at SUNY
Binghamton in Binghamton, New York. The
other two high school teams, Problem I
(Envirover) and Problem V (Featured Creature), also did well, placing third and fourth
in their respective categories. All participants deserve commendation for exemplifying admirable talent, hard work, and cre-
ativity throughout the course of the competition.
If the two teams heading to States are
able to place first, second, or third there
in their respective problems, they will
advance to the 25th Odyssey of the Mind
World Finals tournament, which will be held
this year at the University of Maryland from
May 29 - June 1, with
teams from countries
such as Argentina,
Kazakhstan, Australia,
Germany, and many others participating. Sophomore Matt Conlon, a
member of one of the two
advancing teams, lauds
Odyssey of the Mind with
these comments: “I just
joined this year, and it’s
definitely one of the best
things that’ve happened
to me. Rarely does a person really get to apply
what they know to actual problems. That’s
what OM is - problem
solving. And that’s what
I think is great about it.”
Additional reporting by Alice Lee
March concert series
ready to perform
by Jesse Conti
NEWS
The Music Depart ment has several concerts planned for the next two months.
March 4, 5, and 6 are the dates of the high
school musical, Titanic. On March 10, Concert Band will be playing. On March 16 and
18, two distrcit-wide choral festivals will
be held. On March 16, Choir and Ladies
First will be singing with several elementary andmiddle school choirs in the auditorium. On March 18, Concert Chorale, Bel
Canto Voices, and Studio Singers will be
performing with the other elementary and
middle school choirs in the New Gymnasium.
On March 24, Symphonic Band and Symphony Orchestra will play in the auditorium. All concerts, except the choral festivals, are open to the public. Concerts are
free, so support the music department by
coming to a few of these events and hear
some great music.
The Warrior
March 5, 2004
News
3
NICS repeats pet photo contest fundraiser
by Moira Colley
NEWS
Think you have an awesome pet? Do
you have a good photo to prove it? NICS
has recently invited Niskayuna students
to battle it out in their annual Pet Photo
contest, with all donations going to benefit the Peppertree Rescue foundation
for animals. Though the deadline for
photos was today, March 5, people who
forgot to bring in that cute photo of that
cat playing the piano, can still get involved by participating in the voting,
which will take place next week.
Many students have already submitted photos of their dogs, cats, birds,
snakes or other precious friends for the
categories of cutest, funniest, and scariest pet. Those students who still want to
enter photos with a donation of $2 by the
end of the day to Mrs. White, Mrs.
Theissen, or NICS room D208,can help
rescue animals in need. The winner of
each category will not only gain the pride
of owning the best pet, and helping a
good cause, but also a prize for winning.
For a few years now, the Niskayuna
Inter-Community Service group (NICS)
has sponsored the pet photo contest to
fundraise for the foundation. The purpose of Peppertree Rescue is to rescue
animals in need, prepare themfor adoption, and ultimately find them new
homes. Because Peppertree is a small
volunteer rescue group, donations are
greatly appreciated. This contest provides a fun opportunity to win prizes
while contributing to a charitable cause.
Don’t own a pet? Regardless, students
can still join in on the fun by
Congratulations!
“Imagine a workplace where everyone
is witty and clever. Where everyone is
creative and caring. Where everyone is
well-traveled and urbane, sophisticated
yet sociable....Imagine a work
environment where banter and
badinage are the rule, where practical
jokes are taken in stride, where saracsm
is affectionate and the affection
saracastic.”
-An
excerpt from German teacher a letter
written to Metroland by German
teacher Joseph Carosella.
Metroland Magazine is coming
today to interview and photograph
the Foreign Language department
for a cover article to appear in
Metroland’s March 18 issue. Stop
in at the Foreign Language Resource Center and join the fun!
votingoutside the new cafeteria on
March 10, 11 and 12 for their favorite
photos of the best pet in each category.
Seniors Sara Weinstock and Paula
Staples, members of the NICS club,are
hoping for a good response from the
students. Weinstock said, “ It’s for a
good cause, it helps the’animals and
it’s very entertaining.” Staples added,
“It’s different then your average
fundraiser.” Student reactions to the
idea have been positive as well. Stated
junior Sarah MacKintosh , “ I think the
Pet Photo contest is a creative and fun
way to try and support the animal shelters. I’m planning on doing it.”
The NICS members are hoping it will
be a successful and fun event for all
who participate.
Remember to submit your pictures!
Family and friends reflect on great
impact
of
student’s
life
(continued from page 1,
HIGH)
attitude. “She had a tight
schedule; something was always meeting.”
An honors student, she had
good relationships with her
teachers. “She always smiled;
she was always willing to try
new things, and I thinkthat
spoke to her love of life,’ said
Jason Bach, a social studies
teacher. Her chemistry
teacher, Jill Wright, commented, “She was extremely
outgoing and helpful to all of
her peers. Even if you didn’t
feel like smiling, she always
made you laugh.”
According to her mother,
Stephanie was “joy and love”.
This sentiment was echoed by
many of her peers. “There was
never someone who could
brighten your day more,” said
Dana Russell, a student at
Schenectady High School and
a friend of Stephanie’s.
Stephanie’s mother also spoke
of her great smile, as did many
of her friends. “She had the
power to move mountians
with her smile,...her ability
to love, but most of all her
friendship,” wrote junior
Jennie Kreis in the program
for Stephanie’s funeral.
Stephanie’s mother wishes
her to be remembered for the
positive, happy person she
was, especially as she had
“tremendous warmth,” and
was “great with family, a tremendous sister”. Her 12-yearold sister, Lauren Bomeisl, said
“Stephanie was so perfect that I
think of it as having her on earth
for sixteen years practicing her
job to be my guardian angel.”
Added Staphanie’s mother “She
was color and age blind; she
didn’t judge anyone. She reached
out to a new student and put her
under her wing, and introduced
her to her friends.”
The number of people who
attended Stephanie’s funeral
attests to the large number of
friends and family that cared
deeply about her. Many people
at Niskayuna High School can
be seen wearing purple ribbons, in a tribute to her. Even
people who didn’t know her
were touched by her legacy.
“From what I’ve heard, she’s
an awesome person and I have
a lot of respect for her,” said
senior Sean Whitney.
Though this has been a difficult time for many, Stephanie’s
mother encourages a positive
attitude. “I don’t want the legacy
to be the tragedy,” said her
mother. “I want to keep that
bright spot where she was.”
4
Opinion
March 5, 2004
The Warrior
Sailors and crew both needed The Warrior
Many members of the high school community are aware of the musical production Titanic, which will be performed
Thursday, Friday, and Saturday of this
week. What may not be so obvious is the
amount of work put into it by many different groups.
This year has been particularly intense,
as the musical score, set
design, sound management and lights have all
required significant effort
to put together in the relatively short
amount of time allotted to the musical
production. Not to mention the costumes
and makeup, as well as advertising and
fundraising. What is unfortunate is that
these groups don’t always receive as much
recognition as the cast, and everyone
should have a “piece of the glory.”
It’s important to realize that every major production, whether it is a musical, a
sports team, or even an administration,
has a lot of people working behind the
scenes, all of whom add to the overall
production. With the musical, the lights,
sound, set design, directing, orchestration, costumes, makeup, etc, are all very
important and require a lot of time and
effort. For example, the set design includes a hydrolic stage, platforms, drops,
which require a great
deal of complicated operation. Anybody involved would appreciate
congratulations for a job well done.
The Warrior would like to take this space
to say just that. “To all those who contributed, good work!” We would also like to
encourage anybody who knows people who
participated in any way to do the same.
Remember, everyone appreciates being appreciated, so the next time you see someone
working hard, be certain to acknowledge
them for it. After all, if not for the crew,
Titanic would be shipwrecked and adrift.
EDITORIAL
Nisky transportation lacking
by Alex Rivedenira and
Katerina Gross
OPINION
On a frigid winter morning, while awaiting the
bus’s arrival, I found myself stranded outside in the
cold and dark. The bus was
apparently fifteen minutes late, and it seemed
as if the vehicle upon
which I depended for
transportation to
school was fated
never to arrive.
Suddenly, just
when I thought I
might have the fortune of not having
to attend school
that day, a huge,
screaming yellow
demon tore down to
a road perpendicular
to mine, and came to a
screeching halt at the end
of the street, as though its
operator had finally come
the conclusion that he/she
had missed my stop. Somehow, the bus managed to
maneuver itself and swerve
around the corner to collect
my bus-stop companion and
myself. In retrospect, perhaps we overreacted, but at
that moment, almost fearing for our lives because of
the bus’s startling arrival,
we flung ourselves to the
safety of a nearby snowbank to avoid the its careening path.
All of a sudden, the
door sprung open
to reveal a
Warrior art / Alice Lee
friendly-looking bus driver
who proceeded to inform us
that everything was okay,
and that our regular bus
was not going to be picking
us up today. Therefore, we
would have to take this alternate route to the high
school. Although the unexpected encounter with this
new bus driver invoked a
small amount of bewilderment, I boarded the bus,
sat down, and attempted
to recover from the
morning’s events.
It almost seems too convenient to be a coincidence
that the worse the
weather, the later the buses seem to arrive. This
episode demonstrates
one of the inherent
flaws of the
Niskayuna Central School District transportation system.
While poor
weather conditions are a
viable excuse
for bus delays,
ithe problem is
compounded by
the fact that the transportation department attempts to squeeze too many
students into one route.
Overcrowding on the
buses is a significant issue that should be considered when trying to reform the transportation
(Continued on page 5,
SPORADIC)
Niskayuna High School
1626 Balltown Road
Niskayuna, NY 12309
(518) 382-2511, Ext. 351
http://www.nisk.k12.ny.us/nhs/
warrior/
T H E S TA F F
EDITORS -I N-CHIEF : Tae Andrews,
Elspeth Edelstein
NEWS E DITORS: Jesse Conti, Leanne
Merrill, Julia Napolitano, Jeremy
Wolos
ASST . NEWS : Nate Staudinger
OPINION E DITORS: Kishori Rajan, Alec
Wilson
ASST . OPINION : Evan Ballan
ENTERTAINMENT E DITOR: Stephanie
Blair, Matt Larkin
S PORTS EDITORS : Jonathan Chow, Lisa
D’Aniello
ASST . SPORTS: Peter Chalfin
M AGAZINE EDITORS : Alice Lee, Anna Yu,
Kathryn Fantauzzi
ASST . MAGAZINE: Anjana Rajan
Web Site Manager: Scott Brainard
DISTRIBUTION MANAGER: Jackie Nguyen
B USINESS M ANAGER: Erik Donhowe
ADVERTISING MANAGER : Jonas Chang
GRAPHICS COORDINATOR : Evan Fenaroli
C OPY E DITOR: Abby Alger
ADVISORS : James Edgar, Russell
McDowell
EDITORIAL POLICIES
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR are welcome from all members of the
school community. The Warrior
reserves the right to edit letters
for grammar and length.
SIGNED OPINION ARTICLES AND CARTOONS express the opinions of
their creators.
UNSIGNED EDITORIALS represent
the consensus of the paper’s editorial board, which may not reflect
the majority of the students’ views.
THE OP-ED PAGES are a forum for
students’ opinions and ideas.
The Warrior is published each Friday the high school has classes (33
times a year).
For a one-year subscription, send
a check for $25 payable to Niskayuna
High School to The Warrior, Attn:
Subscriptions, 1626 Balltown Rd.,
Niskayuna, NY 12309.
The Warrior
March 5, 2003
Opinion
5
Presidential ads need to be subtracted
by Evan Ballan
OPINION
With the upcoming election in November, and scattered primaries and caucuses around the nation, candidates participating in the 2004 Presidential race
are rushing more than ever to recruit
supporters to hop aboard their campaign
wagons. One of the ways in which the
candidates do this is through advertisements, via television, the radio, and any
other places where they can get their
voices heard. It seems, however, that
President Bush has an unfair advantage in that some means of
reaching America available to
Bush are not at the hands of
the other candidates.
President Bush has raised
some $200 million to advertise for his reelection, which
is one of the largest amounts,
if not the largest, that a President has ever raised. He’s been
spending this money, in part, on
commercials, getting airtime on
television to reach out to the American nation. Candidates of other parties
also try to do this, but, because of Bush’s
Presidential position, their voices are
unfairly limited.
A number of television networks have
decided not to air policy issues for any
party. This seems like an understandable thing; if ads for one party were run
more than ads for another, viewers might
complain that the station had a bias and
change the channel. However, some stations aren’t abstaining completely from
airing policy ads. Commercials from the
White House are still aired by many
networks, which lead to supporting Bush,
and are thus allowing Bush to advertise
only because he’s the President, while
the Democratic candidates are forbidden to air commercials on the same networks because their considered a policy
ads. What the networks need to do is to
make a decision: they either will air ads
paid for by candidates, or they won’t air
Warrior Art / Alice Lee
any political ads, including ones from the White House. If
there’s something that the White House
badly needs to tell the American people,
it can come on television live and tell us.
This perspective isn’t meant to be from
a political standpoint; if the President
getting the exclusive airwave rights were
a Democrat, I would feel the same way.
Regardless of the parties involved, it
seems like an abuse of Presidential
power, since it’s not giving equal opportunities to all candidates to get their
points of view across.
What would make the most sense to
me would be if the current President
were not allowed to advertise for reelection. The current President already
has an advantage as it is. What the
candidates do is try to explain to us what
they would do if elected to office. We
already know what Bush would do if he
were to be elected into office, since he
has been already. Every single American is already familiar with Bush, and
a vast majority of them are
familiar with his general politics, beliefs, and the way
that he runs things in Washington; he shouldn’t be allowed to waste his time trying
to explain them to us. After all,
actions speak louder than words,
and acts that the President partakes in can be a lot more significant than words that he can
speak. Disallowing presidential
policy ads would also alleviate the
unfair advertising advantage that
the President has, and allow him to
focus on more important things, like
running our country, instead of other,
more trivial things, like filming advertisements telling us how he wants to do
it. Nobody wants to be told what to do,
and the President should be forced to
show, not tell.
This article was partly sponsored by
the campaign to elect Kerry in ’04.
ALL OPINIONS expressed on the
op-ed pages represent the individual
viewpoints of their authors. The
content does not necessarily represent the views of The Warrior, the
high school, the school districtor the
board of education.
Busing issues create several dilemmas
Transportation should be reconsidered to promote better environment
(Continued from page 4,
NISKY)
department’s policies. It
should be taken into consideration that high-schoolers
generally require more space
to obtain a minimal comfort
level. This doesn’t include
three to a seat. Also, one could
argue that having more space
reduces the possibility of getting your neighbor’s cold.
Finally, the transportation
system is not an accessible
one. The transportation department, by town regula-
tions, is only accountable to
pick up students living outside of a two-mile radius of
the school. On days with lessthan-desirable weather, this
poses quite a problem for kids
who live within this two mile
radius and need to get home.
Not only does this pose a
dilemma for students, but also
it encourages non-environmentally friendly tendencies.
Although the school promotes
students’ using the bus transportation provided by the district, it is also inadvertently
supporting the use of private
vehicles by those kids living
within the two-mile radius.
On the other hand, while it
may be easy to point fingers at
the transportation department
for all of the faults of the bus
system, students should consider and respect bus rules and
regulations to make the driving experience more efficient
and enjoyable. Sadly, in our
community it is uncommon to
see such behavior at the high
school level.
Moreover, it would be spec-
tacular to implement systems
of climate control in the buses
to make passengers and bus
drivers satisfied with their
riding and driving experiences.
Although some of these ideas
are far-fetched, and could potentially stretch the school
district’s budget considerably,
they would help a great deal to
enhance the transportation
from home to school, and back.
But, until these changes are
made, all I know is that we
underclassmen can’t wait until we get our drivers’ licenses.
6
Entertainment
The Warrior
February 13, 2004
The Passion of the Christ stirs box office
by Nicole Stoodley
ENTERTAINMENT
For months, controversy has
been stirring over Mel Gibson’s
Bible-based film, The Passion of
the Christ. Opening on Ash
Wednesday, the film drew flocks
of curious viewers, Christians
and non-Christians alike. So
many that, in its first weekend,
The Passion grossed more than
all of the other top ten movies of
the weekend combined.
Cinematically, this is an excellent movie. Gibson conveys
the intense emotions of the
events through excellent camera work, dramatic music, and
the utilization of the talents of a
very gifted cast. The entire movie
is in the original languages of
the time, Latin, Hebrew, and
Aramaic, with subtitles in English. The scenery is very authentic, as are the costumes. The
mechanics of the movie are all
superb, but that is not why most
people are going to see it.
There has been so much hype
regarding this movie that some
people just want to find out what
it’s all about. Rumors before the
film was nationally released in-
cluded ones of excessive brutality and anti-Semitism. However,
after seeing the film, it is clear
that these were only rumors.
While the film was graphic in
the scenes of Jesus’ torture and
crucifixion, these were broken
up with flashbacks of Jesus’ life,
along with scenes from parallel
storylines. Complaints have
been made that the violent nature of the movie undermined
its message of love. The movie
makes it clear, though, that it
was through Jesus’ endurance
of these brutalities that he
showed his love. As far as the
claim about the movie inciting anti-Semitism, you might
as well say the movie incites a
prejudice against Italians because the Romans were
showed enjoying the torture
of Christ. The message of the
movie was about how one man
made a sacrifice so that all
people might know God and
live with Him forever. It was
certainly not that of revenge
against those who “killed
Jesus.” As any Christian
would tell you, no one killed
Jesus; he was born to die, as
Photo courtesy yahoo.com
JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR: Jim Caveziel portrays Jesus in Mel
Gibson’s film The Passion of the Christ.
was prophesied hundreds of
years before his birth. The
movie makes this clear and it
would certainly be no fault of
Mel Gibson if someone used
the movie as an excuse to
harm another human being.
Another reason for seeing
the film is to give visualization to the words many people
have heard since their childhoods. Certainly, the film puts
a very clear picture in one’s
head about the sufferings of
Christ, although not all of the
film was straight out of the
Bible. Many parts were more
Gibson-inspired than divinely
inspired, such as some scenes
including Mary, the mother
of
Jesus,
and
Mary
Magdalene.
Overall, The Passion of the
Christ is an extremely powerful movie that tells an inspirational and potentially lifechanging story. For whatever
reason you may choose to see
this movie, you will not walk
away disappointed.
Very few surprises at this year’s Oscars
by Kishori Rajan
The evening started off with Billy Crystal’s
musical number, proving once again that
he’s the perfect person to host the show. His
four-year hiatus and Michael Moore’s
strongly criticized political acceptance
speech last year didn’t dissuade him
from making jabs at current political
situations, which was especially refreshing after the overblown Super Bowl incident, and the resulting five-second delay that was imposed on the formerly
live broadcast.
Lord of the Rings dominated the night,
picking up an incredible eleven
awards- a clean sweep. This ties the
record for most wins, an honor shared
with Titanic and Ben Hur. The last
installment of the classic trilogy was
honored in the categories of editing,
art direction, costume design, visual
effects, makeup, sound, musical
score, best song, and best adapted
screenplay. It also won best director
(Peter Jackson), and the most coveted award of the night, Best Picture
Photo courtesy yahoo.com
of the Year.
HOLD IT HIGH: Peter Jackson accepts his award.
ENTERTAINMENT
The strength of the filmmaking and performances in 2003 has made some critics
dub this time period as a golden age in
cinema. Unlike some previous Oscar sweeping films like Titanic, and with the exception of Return of the Kings, films this year
have been most memorable because of the
characters and performances, not the actual films themselves. Mystic River, House
of Sand and Fog and Monster are perfect
examples of this.
All the acting awards went to the expected people: Tim Robbins, for Mystic
River and Renee Zellweger for Cold Mountain, who finally picked up the golden man
after two previous nominations. No real
surprise with Charlize Thernon’s win for
her performance in Monster. The most
anticipated category of the night was the
award for Best Actor. Sean Penn’s moving, dark portrayal in Mystic River and
Bill Murray’s surprisingly strong performance in the comedic Lost in Translation
were equally strong. Sean Penn won the
coveted statuette, after three previous
nominations, and received a standing ovation from the Hollywood community.
What the most disappointing about the
2003 Academy Awards was that all the
most predictable winners won. There were
no upsets in any category, and smaller
films like City of God and In America
didn’t take away any awards. While most
of the wins were definitely deserved, did
Lord of the Rings really have to win them
all, or did that clean sweep of eleven wins
just sound too good to pass up?
The Warrior
March 5, 2004
Sports
7
Girls’ track wraps up successful season
by Joyce Dadekian
SPORTS
This year the Niskayuna High School
Girls’ Indoor Track and Field team has
worked hard to establish a reputation as
one of the best teams in the area. Not only
did the girls’ team secure this as a top
competitor, but as Section II Class B champions as well.
Section II is widely acknowledged as the
powerhouse of New York State, with talented athletes and strong teams. “Our section is always top notch,” explained coach
Jason DeRocco. “We run against some of the
top teams and girls in the country everyday,
but it brings out the best in our people as
well.” The best was brought out in many
girls who competed in the Championship
meet. Overall, the team had many athletes
scoring in the top three places, securing the
win. In addition, the boys’ side easily captured the Class B Championship, so both
teams bought home the winning plaques, a
rare and thrilling feat for Niskayuna.
Thirteen girls competed in the SUNY
Albany sectional meet and proved that they
were worthy of the title section two champions. Reflecting back on the meet, DeRocco
commented, “I’m obviously pleased with the
success and progress that we made. The
girls knew they had a shot and were willing
to do what they had to, which paid off. Only
thirteen girls made the bus so they came
through when it mattered.”
After maintaining an excellent 3-3 record
throughout the season, the team pulled everything together to manage the impressive
victory. It was a season-long effort, with
girls giving 100% effort day in and day out.
Warrior photo / Lisa D’Aniello
I BELIEVE I CAN FLY: Sophomore triple
jumper extroadinaire Julia Stori attempts 34
feet at State Qualifiers.
Many individuals consistently
shattered personal records
throughout the year with the guidance of the coaching staff, consisting of DeRocco, Michael Peters,
and Darryl Bray. Often the
coaches worked with athletes one
on one so that they could improve
in problematic areas. Said sophomore Sara Schecter, “I definitely
improved. We were more of a team
and worked well together. The
workouts were a good balance of
hard and easy and it showed
[when we raced]. And the close
team atmosphere was great.”
The superb coaching, team
Warrior photo / Kyle O’Connor
chemistry and the work ethic of
LOOK
WHAT
WE’VE
GOT:
The
Niskayuna
Sectional squad
the team enabled every individual
poses with its first place plaque after successfully beating out
to reach her potential. Often run- all the tough competition.
ning in pairs or groups, athletes
challenged each other with friendly compe- will be heading down to the Armory in
tition, and encouraged each other to attain Manhattan for Nationals. Both relays are
new goals. This proved to set the pace for the aiming to break the school records, and as
season: fast. The team met every day after the Armory is one of the fastest tracks in the
school and meets took place every weekend, world, they definitely have a good shot.
Despite the fact that the girls’ team will
giving the girls plenty of time to bond.
The girls also attended the Brown Invita- be losing talented seniors next year, such as
tional, Yale Classic and the Dartmouth In- Bankert, Lisa D’Aniello, Sarah Miller and
vitational, which gave them an opportunity Caitlin McTague, most remain optimistic
to compete against teams and individuals that the younger individuals will step up
outside Section II, and from across the na- and help the team reach new heights for the
tion. This also strengthened the teams’ ties future. Coach DeRocco also remains posiand contributed to, as sophomore Ashlee tive, saying, “It will help new people step
Atwell said, the “family-like environment.” forward and progress.” With underclassAtwell and senior Robin Bankert both men standouts like Atwell, sophomores
qualified for the State Competition, which Julia Stori and Jillian Gold, and juniors
will be held tomorrow at the Carrier Dome Lindsey Rosecrans and Katie Sheehan, the
in Syrause. Bankert made it in the 600 Lady Warriors will continue to succeed.
meter run, and Atwell qualified in the And the team still has the entire Outdoor
polevault. Unfortunately, a recent ankle season together to look forward to.
injury has forced Atwell to take
some time off, but she hopes to
return soon. Senior Dave
Parker also made States for
pole-vaulting.
Niskayuna’s pole-vaulting
squad, which is the best in the
section, has been plagued numerous injuries. Senior Julie
Granka is also out with a sprained
ankle, and senior Anjana Rajan
had her season ended prematurely by a back injury.
Senior distance runner Caitlin
McTague also took some time off
because of back pain, but plans
on returning for National Championships the weekend of March
Warrior photo / Lisa D’Aniello
13. The girls’ Distance Medley CATCH ME IF YOU CAN: Senior Robin Bankert (right) tries
relay, the boys’ 4 x mile relay, to edge out South Glens Falls opponent Christine O’Leary as
and Parker in the pentathalon, they approach the finish in the 600 meters at State Quallifiers.
8
Sports
March 5, 2004
The Warrior
A-Rod brings good prospects to Yankees
don’t look for that to happen again. Then we ing he never let the pride of the Yankees,
SPORTS have Javier Vazquez, who has been domi- Andy Pettite, slip through his mitts along
When the Red Sox acquired pitchers Curt nant in the National League while playing with that other Hall of Famer, Roger
Schilling and Keith Foulke this offseason it for the Montreal Expos. Yeah, that’s right, Clemens. So it seems Red Sox and Yanlooked as though they had gained control the Expos. Look for him to pull a Jeff Weaver kee fans can finally agree on something:
over the New York Yankees for the first time and struggle in the Big Apple. Pitching in they both hate Clemens.
since 1995. Then the A-Rod trade
But don’t worry, there are more
talks came, and Red Sox fans like me
troubles in store for the Yankees
were quite intrigued by the possibilthis year. Joe Torre is in his final
ity of sending Manny Ramirez to the
year of his contract, and with a
Texas Rangers in return for Alex
team filled with egos, and George
Rodriguez, the best player in baseSteinbrenner jumping down his
ball. However, the Red Sox didn’t
throat, don’t look for Torre to stay
have the resources to finish the deal.
in pinstripes for the whole seaThen the Evil Empire went into full
son. Also, the Yankees team has
grind.
much talent, but no chemistry.
No big deal- they just went on a
The core team has been disshopping spree bigger than any Paris
mantled, along with its dynasty.
Hilton or Michael Jackson ever had.
The Yankees won’t finish first this
They just assembled a team resemyear, because the Red Sox playbling a mixture of both National
ers and their bolstered pitching
League and American League All Star
staff are calling them out.
teams, with the acquisitions of Gary
The Red Sox have arguably the
Sheffield, Kevin Brown, Javier
best pitching staff in the AmeriVazquez, and oh yeah...Alex
can League, with former 20-game
Photo courtesy Yankees.com
Rodriguez.
winners Pedro Martinez, Curt
But Red Sox fans need have no fear, A-WAD: The Yankees paid a hefty sum of cash to put Alex Schilling, and Derek Lowe. They
for the Yankees’ pitching rotation is Rodriguez in pinstripes.
go along nicely with a strong
worse than it has been in the last
bullpen, which this year actually
eight years, before the team went on its New York on a winning team is a lot differ- has a closer, who just happens to be one
championship runs. And, as well as we all ent than pitching in Montreal, where the of the best in baseball: Keith Foulke.
know, pitching wins championships- not team stinks and nobody cares about base- And did everybody forget about the Red
hitting. So the Yankees can have their Gary ball. Then the team has Jon Lieber and Sox lineup that broke so many records
Sheffield and their Alex Rodriguez, but the Jose Contreras. First of all, Lieber hasn’t last year? Because that whole lineup
fact of the matter is that those guys can’t pitched since 2001, and don’t look for has remained intact, except for second
pitch.
him to stay healthy this year, either, basemen Todd Walker.
Yes, the Yankees’ pitching staff looks since he has already found a way to
After arguably one of the best playoffs
good on paper, but aside from Mike Mussina, injure his groin during spring training. ever, and a heated offseason, 2004 is
it consists of a huge question mark. Kevin Jose Contreras has never pitched con- turning out to be one of the most highly
Brown is 39 years old, and has had a good sistently in the starting rotation before, anticipated seasons baseball has seen in
but injury-plagued career. Last year was a and will probably start to fade around a while. And, this year, Bill Buckner,
fluke year, in which Brown actually stayed the All-Star break.
Grady Little, and Babe Ruth can’t make
healthy for more than 3/4 of the year, but
George Steinbrenner is probably wish- the Red Sox lose the big games.
by Matt Friedson
Johnas places 2nd at state championships
Congratulations to junior Steve Johnas, who placed second in the New
York State Wrestling Championships, held last weekend at the University at
Buffalo. Johnas, seeded second, went into the State tournament holding an
undefeated record. In Buffalo, he defeated John Foley of Section IX in the
first round, and then easily hammered Mark Bloom of Section V, 13-5 in the
semifinal match. His streak was ended only by Alton Lucas of Section XI,
in a close 9-4 match.