Bird`s Eye View

Volume 12, Issue 2
October Edition
Bird’s Eye View
Student
Newsletter
By: Mark Norman
“You’re Only Greek Once” : Homecoming Wrap-Up
By: Alicia Woodman
The 2012
SHS Homecoming has
come to an
end. The week
started by students dressing
up with different themes.
Monday was
White Out
Day, Tuesday
was 80’s day,
Wednesday
was Camo
Day, and
Thursday was
School Sprit
Homecoming King Phillip Day.
Reedy dancing with HomeWhen
coming Queen Kairegan
asked what his
Johnson.
favorite day
was, senior
Dalton Greenwalt stated, “Camo Day”.
On Wednesday afternoon, students enjoyed powder puff games as freshmen
played juniors and sophomores played
seniors. The championship game was
played after a pep assembly at the end
of the day on Friday.
Despite the rain, students, staff and
community members came out to the
2nd annual parade held in Medora this
year. The route started at North Main
Street and ended at the Medora Elevator where the SHS Boosters provided
food and a bonfire. The community
float winners were: 1st place- Village
of Medora 2nd place- George Lahr and
3rd place- Medora Athletic Association.
Mr. Bearley stated, “I’m very proud
of the job that students, teachers, parents, and community members did at
this year’s homecoming parade. Medora did an outstanding job decorating
their town.”
On Saturday afternoon, the Southwestern Piasa Birds football team
faced off against the Vandalia Vandals.
Homecoming week came to an end
with the dance, held in the MPR at 8
p.m. Columns, vines and a mural
painted by sophomore Jessica Werts
filled the MPR, transporting the students back in time to Ancient Greece.
Werts stated, “It took me three days
after school to paint the mural. It depicted the sunset on the Caspian Sea.”
Junior Casey Moore exclaimed, “I had
a ball!”
Senior CJ Couch stated, “I liked it. It
was a good homecoming. Everybody
dancing made it a lot more fun.”
Coronation was Returning King Zach
Mansfield and Queen Kaci McAfee
crowned the new king and queen. The
2012 King and Queen were Phillip Reedy
and Kairegan Johnson.
Senior Phillip Reedy said with excitement, “I wanted to be Homecoming King
since freshmen year, so I’m overwhelmed with joy! It was an honor!”
Senior Kairegan Johnson added, “It
felt fantastically awesome and wonderful!”
When asked how successful Homecoming was, Student Government sponsor Mrs. Bowman stated, “Overall, it was
a very successful Homecoming. Students
enjoyed themselves throughout the week.
The dance was well attended. I heard it
through the grapevine that it was the best
homecoming so far, despite the rain.”
Lucy Kroeschel Wins DAR Good Citizenship Award
By: Sarann Boker
Every year at Southwestern High
School there is a student who is the winner of the DAR good citizenship award.
DAR stands for Daughters of the American Revolution. There are four standards
that students must have to be considered
for this award: patriotism, dependability,
leadership, and service.
This year Abigail Bregenzer, Lucy
Kroeschel, and Philip Reedy received the
most teacher nominations; their names
were put on a ballot and the senior class
voted for one of their classmates who
they though represented the four stand-
ards.
Lucy Kroeschel was the winner and
recipient of the award.
When asked how it felt to win the
award, Kroeschel stated, “It was a great
honor.”
As of right now she will receive recognition for the award with possibilities of a
scholarship. There will be a ceremony in
the spring for Lucy to receive the award
and she will compete with other recipients in the chapter for a scholarship worth
at least $250. At the National level, 20
students win per year.
News
2
2012 FCCLA Of- Foiles Putts Through Final Season
Abby Mizerski
ficers Announced By:Senior
Josh Foiles is celebrating his
By: Alicia Woodman
FCCLA Officers: (front) Alicia Woodmanpresident. Back (l to r): Amanda Beeman
-treasurer, Shannan Haney-secretary,
and Emily Bowman-vice president.
FCCLA (Family Career and Community Leaders of America) has been busy at
the start of the school year. Officers were
recently elected and the members are:
freshman Samantha French; sophmores
Megan Kirby, Rachel Baldwin, Faith Miller and Hayley Niebel; juniors Shannan
Haney, Emily Bowman, Wannida Artsavapongtanet and Jacob McCoy; and seniors Laci Hudson, Miranda Daube, Alicia
Woodman, Amanda Beeman, Carly Hines
and Erin Huff.
FCCLA created a Homecoming float in
which the design float was The Grecian
Ruins and the theme was “Ruin the Vandals.”
Every year FCCLA goes to a leadership
conference in Springfield. This year it is
to be held on October 29th at the Springfield Northfield Inn and Conference Center. The conference will be raising money
for the Alzheimer's Association for research. The different sessions are: “Spice
it Up”, “Recycle and Redesign”, “Zumba
Fit”, “Cosmetology”, “Alzheimer Awareness and Activities”, and “Your Safety is
Important”. Members can pick two sessions to attend. FCCLA plans on ringing
bells for the Salvation Army in December.
Senior Amanda Beeman stated, “I’m
excited to ring bells again.”
Junior Shannan Haney added, “I love
FCCLA!”
accomplishments concerning the golf
team. Josh recently placed second in
the Conference match at The Rail in
Springfield. He and teammate, sophomore Nick Ballard, made the AllConference team which is made up of
the top 10 golfers in the Conference.
“My score was 77 and par was 72,”
commented Josh about his conference
accomplishment.
The team played in regionals at
Timberlake’s Golf Course in Staunton
but Foiles said that they were not successful.
“We didn’t do good at all,” stated
Josh about the regional play.
When Josh first started playing
golf, he never saw himself coming this
far and considers himself “lucky”.
Being a senior this year, he stated that
his favorite part of being on the golf
team is, “I get to have fun and get out
of school!”
Emotions were running through his
head like crazy when he did so good in
the conference match. He stated that
he was overwhelmed and proud of
himself.
The 2012 golf team introduces themselves
at the Homecoming Pep Assembly. L to R:
Josh Foiles, Nick Parrino, Jessica Werts,
John Trevino, Nick Ballard, and Jacob Brefeld.
Josh’s biggest influence throughout
his golf career would be his boss, who is
the manager at Rolling Hills Golf Course
in Godfrey.
Josh stated, “He’s a professional, and
he gives me tons of pointers and lessons.”
Josh plans on playing golf in college
at SIUE.
Sophomore Jessica Werts played well
in the girls Conference match in Litchfield. She was also selected to the AllConference team.
Drug Task Force Officers Speak at SHS
By: Alicia Woodman
On September 25, the Illinois Drug
Task Force came to SHS to talk to the
P.E. classes about the dangers of drugs.
Two officers presents; one officer was
an alumnus from Southwestern and the
other was an alumnus of Litchfield.
During the presentation, the officers
talked about the use of synthetic drugs
and the dangers of using them. They
showed pictures of drugs, money, and
they highlighted large drug busts in the
area.
The officers wanted to take a proactive approach in educating students about
drugs. The officers also talked to the P.E.
classes in the middle school.
SMS Principal Scott Hopkins stated,
“I’m very grateful for the time, effort
and money the state put towards this
program. I thought it was very educational and our kids learned a lot.”
He continued, “The students at the
middle school were attentive and asked
good questions. I’ve seen too many kids
and families torn apart because of drugs.
I’m also grateful to Mr. Skertich and the
board to take action on this issue.”
“The Southwestern School District
has made an effort to educate our students, staff and community on this topic.
It affects all of us,” he commented.
He also added that drug education is
key and proper education is the way to
combat drug issues in our school and
state.
Junior Alysa Kaiser explained, “It
was a very informative presentation. The
pictures in the slide show were impactful.”
Entertainment
In The Halls
What is your favorite
Halloween candy?
Mr. Delong: Candy corn mixed with
peanuts
Mr. Bennett: Peanut Butter Snickers
Emily Jones: Milky Way
Jasmine Crane: Warheads
Mr. Lansaw: Butterfingers
David Freeman: Reese’s
Jessica Werts: Tootsie Rolls
Keely Eggelhoff: Reese’s
Morgan Porter: Reese’s
Brittany Means: Candy Corn
Sarann Boker: Milky Way
Caleb Munsterman: Snickers
Brandon Murphy: Reese’s
Caleb Rich: Snickers
Florian Rambow: Twix (cookies)
Carly Zini: Popcorn
Balls
Carly Smith: Tootsie
Rolls
Mrs. Mathis: Peeps
Mr. Bearley: Bottlecaps
3
Cardinals Defeat the Odds!
By: Emily Jones
The St. Louis Cardinals
have defeated the odds this
year in the MLB Postseason.
First, the Cardinals, along with
the Atlanta Braves, were
picked for the Wild Card. After
beating the Braves 6-3 on October 5, 2012, the Cardinals
faced the Washington Nationals in the NLDS. They beat the
Nationals with a final score of
9-7 on October 12, 2012, with
4 of their runs being made in
the last inning.
Now, the Cardinals are
facing the San Francisco Giants
for the NLCS title. To beat the
Giants, the Cards have to win 4
out of 7 games. The first two
games were held in San Francisco, and the teams split with
one win each. The next three
games were in St. Louis, and
the Cards won the first two but
the Giants fought back in the
The Cardinals celebrate their Game 4 win in the
NLCS against the San Francisco Giants. Photo
by Phillip Barnard.
Coach Bill Parmentier Speaks at
Homecoming Football Dinner
By: Katelyn Stanley
On October 3, the Southwestern Football team held their 2nd annual Homecoming football banquet, at Brittanny
Trap Range in Bunker Hill. The players
and guests were served dinner which was
catered by the Brass Door. The emcee
for the evening was Mr. Jeff Reno.
Coach Jeremy Lansaw said a few words
about the 2012 football team, then guests
were introduced to the keynote speaker.
This year’s speaker was Coach Bill
Parmentier, who coached at Southwestern for 17 years. He was an assistant
football coach under Head Coach Harold
Knapp from 1958-1965. He was head
football coach from 1976-1978. He also
coached girl’s basketball and baseball
while at Southwestern. Currently, he is
an assistant coach at Staunton where he
gets the chance to work closely with his
son Mike who is Staunton’s head coach.
According to the players, the banquet
was definitely a success. Several Varsity
players said that Coach Parmentier focused on “discipline” in his speech.
Junior Zach Davis stated, “Team discipline is key to victory.”
Other players stated the advice Coach
Parmentier gave that would stick with
them.
Senior CJ Couch said, “His love for
the game; I will admire it as much as I
can.”
Senior Mason Cunningham added,
“Always treat people with respect.”
Senior Dalton Greenwalt answered,
“Play every game like it’s your last.”
Juniors Zach Davis and Garrett Simpson added, “Don’t ever take a break.
Keep your head in the game.”
Coach Jason Darr organized the event
in which approximately 200 people attended.
last game at St. Louis. Back in San Francisco, the Giants defeated the Cardinals again
to tie the series. The series outcome will be
decided on Monday, October 22, in San
Francisco. The NLCS winner will be facing
the Detroit Tigers in the 2012 World Series.
The Tigers defeated the New York Yankees
in four games for the ALCS title.
The World Series will begin on Wednesday, October 24, at the NLCS champion’s
stadium.
Veggie Creations by
Home Economics Classes
“Veggie Shark” made by sophomore
Faith Miller in 8th hr. Home Economics.
“Veggie Race Car with Driver” made
in 8th hr. Home Economics class.
Entertainment
Students “Locate” Their Yearbooks
By: Emily Jones
The 2011-2012 SHS Yearbook was created by
the Southwestern Yearbook class. The theme,
which was picked by a majority vote of the class,
was based on an iPad Google Search. The cover
featured a Google Earth search of Southwestern on
an iPad, and the inside contained pages based on
the format of a Google search. The yearbook was
printed by Jostens.
Mrs. Ruyle has been the sponsor of the Yearbook class for eight years. This year, the Yearbook
class consists of 11 students on staff, and senior,
Erin Huff, is the editor. The class has many benefits to students, such as learning how to use the
Senior, Erin Huff, is the editor
program Adobe InDesign, along with developing
of the 2012-2013 yearbook.
real-world experience. It also helps to improve
grammar and proofing skills, as well as picture taking abilities.
When asked how the class benefits a student, Huff replied, “It got me more involved
in the different activities. I get to see the other side of things I’ve never been involved
in before.”
The pictures for the 2012-2013 yearbook will be taken on October 31st. The yearbook class already has plans for the yearbook, but they are being kept secret until the
yearbooks are distributed. The class ends two weeks after school ends, so that they can
get pictures from prom, graduation, and the summer sports into the yearbook. The yearbook typically takes one year to be created.
Mr. Tim Reed, teacher, took pictures at the 2012 Homecoming Dance held at SHS.
These pictures will be sold online and 10% of the profits go towards the Yearbook. 4
In The Halls
With Hannah & Sarann
What is Your Favorite
Scary Movie?
Jessica Werts: Saw
Jasmine Crane: Children of the Corn
Mr. DeLong: Silence of the Lambs
Keely Egelhoff: Children of the Corn
Morgan Porter: The Three Strangers
Brittany Means: It
Myles Porter: Cinderella
Mr. Bennett: Alien vs. Predator
Hayley Neibel: Insidious
Austin Richey: Paranormal Activity
Taylor Curtis: Zombieland
Janina Vomund: House at the End of
the Street
Nicholee Hayn: It
Danielle Gillespie: Coraline
Katelyn Stanley: Sinister
Emily Jones: Paranormal Activity
Hannah Price: The Last Exorcism
Mrs. Goetten: Halloween
Morgan Ozark: The Strangers
The A-maize-ing Godfrey Corn Maze
By: Frankie Steward
During the fall season, local residents can enjoy many attractions in the area
including haunted houses, pumpkin patches, and corn mazes. The Great Godfrey
Corn Maze is located in Glazebrook Park and consists of two trails cut into
7-acres. The trails are over two miles long and have a different theme every year.
This year the theme is “Alien Abduction.”
Seniors Ashley Dunham and Jaelan Caver work at the corn maze. Both have
worked at the maze for two years.
When the two were asked what the best part about working there, Ashley
said, “Seeing siblings fight… and seeing corn cobs get chucked at people’s
Seniors, Ashley Dunham and Jaelan
Caver have worked at the Godfrey
heads.”
Corn Maze for two years.
Jaelan added, “Scaring little kids.”
The two said they enjoyed the job, but it got extremely cold towards the end of the
season.
The maze opened this year on August 31st, and is closing this season on October 27th. The hours of the maze are Friday (6
p.m. -10 p.m.), Saturday (11 a.m.-10 p.m.), and Sunday (1 p.m. to dusk).
To get into the corn maze, it costs $6 for adults, ages 6-11 is $4, and 5 and under is free.
Besides the corn maze, visitors can also enjoy a zip line for $3.00 a ride, and kids can ride the cow train for $2.00 a ticket.
There are other things also, such as a hay wagon for $2.00 per ride, and a corn cannon that visitors can shoot 3 times for $1.00.
Extras
FFA Participates in
CDE Competitions
FFA member Keely Egelhoff, sophomore, participated in Forestry
By: Hannah Price
On September 20, the Southwestern
FFA Chapter went to the Forestry
CDE, Career Development Event, at
Pere Marquette State Park in Grafton.
“Every contest (CDE) prepares the
students for the different careers they
can enter,” stated FFA advisor Tim
Reed.
“Students worked to evaluate trees
and their environmental impact,” explained Reed about the Forestry CDE.
Jon Loy, Angela Newby, Keely
Egelhoff, Ashley Egelhoff, John Payne,
Leighton Grothaus, and Nick Ballard
attended the CDE as a team. Overall,
they placed 7th.
“My grandpa influenced me,” sophomore Keely Egelhoff instantly replied
when asked why she decided to participate in the Forestry CDE.
All members prepared by learning
how to grade trees for their lumber
capacity and how to individually identify them.
The Southwestern FFA also competed in the Land Use CDE in Litchfield, where members test different
soils on October 16. They placed 5th,
which kept them at 3rd chapter overall
in the section.
Southwestern will also be hosting
the Agronomy CDE on November 15,
and the Ag Sales CDE the same day.
5
National Honor Society Elects Officers
By: Katie Wooldridge
As a new year begins, NHS welcomes an outstanding 29 new inductees to the organization. Preceding
school last year, nineteen seniors were
inducted into NHS during the May
ceremony.
The seniors include: Emily Bachman, Katie Baker, Sarah Bennett, Abi
Bregenzer, Chris Catlett, Danielle
Gillespie, Dalton Greenwalt, Adrienne
Grothaus, Laci Hudson, Lucy
Kroeschel, Demi Lowis, Rachel Luly,
Abby McNear, Jonathon Montgomery, Phillip Reedy, August Schetter,
Nick Simmons, Hunter Watson, and
Emily Wilson. Out of the nineteen
seniors, five of them were elected as
officers. Simmons is president, Reedy
is vice president, Grothaus is secretary, McNear is treasurer, and Hudson
is Historian.
Reedy stated that being vice president is a “very prestigious position”
and that he is looking forward to being
a part and playing a big role in NHS.
Also inducted were ten juniors.
They are Morgan Crane, Ethan Gallaher, Randi Hopkins, Lauren Jenkins,
Josh Jorden, Alysa Kaiser, Hanna
Moore, J.P. Mueller, Keri Watts, and
Katie Wooldridge.
NHS officers from left to right: President
Nick Simmons, Historian Laci Hudson,
Secretary Adrienne Grothaus, and VicePresident Phillip Reedy. Not pictured:
Treasurer Abby McNear.
When asking Crane how she felt
about being accepted into NHS she said
that it was an honor and a great privilege.
She said that she enjoys helping out in
the community which is a big part of
NHS.
Ms. Gaffney, NHS advisor, is excited
for this year with so many members. For
this year, Gaffney has planned for NHS
to ring bells at Christmas and to hold an
undecided fundraiser in the spring. The
society has recently held a book sale.
Gaffney said that the book sale did go
well and mentioned that Gallaher, Hudson, and Jorden helped a lot.
Senior Erica McCord Benches Her
Way to New Weight Lifting Record
By: Katelyn Stanley
On October 16, senior Erica McCord
broke the record for bench press with 145
pounds. She beat Carlye Terrill’s record
of 135 pounds. The week of Oct. 15-19
was max outs for Coach Hanslow’s
weight lifting P.E class.
McCord holds the record for her
weight class, which is 130-145 pounds.
Her name is now on the wall, where she is
hoping to have more titles throughout the
year.
“It’s very impressive when a girl can bench
more than a lot of the boys; a record I think will
stand for quite some time.” -Coach Hanslow
Extras
Flight Club
Soars at SHS
(Left) Juniors Abby Mizerski and
Danielle Halcolm show their school
spirit by wearing their new “Flight
Club” t-shirt. Mr. Henry (middle) is
the Pep Club sponsor.
By: Lauren Peiffer
Athletes at Southwestern can always count on Pep Club to cheer them
on. Pep Club is made
up of enthusiastic
students showing pride for their s c
hool. There are no certain requirements
to join, and it is organized by the students for the students.
Currently there are no student leaders, but next semester they’re planning
on electing leaders for basketball season, and their will be a few meetings
this year. Pep Club is selling Flight
Club tee-shirts for $8.00, the shirt was
designed by Nick Simmons and several
other people.
History teacher Mr. Roger Henry
said , “Yes we still have shirts available! Get yours today…. NOW!”
Pep Club is planning to have a
Flight Club day, which will be on the
first boys and girls home basketball
game. Everyone is encouraged to wear
their Flight Club shirt, and come out
and support their peers.
6
“Leaf ” It to Environmental Biology:
Students Identify Leaves in Medora
By: Danielle Gillespie
A trip to rural Medora proved to be a
positive, not to mention informative,
experience for educators and students
alike. Ms. Debbie Gaffney took the 26
students in her Environmental biology
class to Mr. George Lahr’s house on the
19th of September. Mr. Lahr, a retired
science teacher from Southwestern, and
Mr. Don Stuckey, a retired superintendent with a degree in forestry, opened
their properties for student exploration
and identification.
Ms. Gaffney wanted the students,
“To be able to identify native Illinois
trees.” The students trekked the properties keying out different trees and listening to the knowledge presented by Mr.
Lahr and Mr. Stuckey. Over 30 trees
were identified over the course of the
day.
In fact, he thought the trip went great
and complimented the students on how
hard they worked, saying that it was the
best bunch of students.
Senior Bailey Hallows enjoyed,
“Spending time outside during school
hours.”
Ms. Gaffney’s favorite part of the
experience was, “Interacting with students outside of the classroom and seeing
them appreciate trees.” She also enjoyed
seeing the interactions between the students and Mr. Lahr and Mr. Stuckey.
PBIS Initiative Put Into Place to Help
Cut Down on Number of Tardies
“The biggest discipline problem in
the high school right now is tardies.
Recently, fifty out of 100 referrals were
for tardies,” commented Mrs. Peg
Mitchell, dean of students.
The PBIS committee has come up
with an incentive program to try to get
students to class on time and reduce the
number of tardies. Beginning on October 21, the SAS class with the least
amount of tardies (on average) for a
two week period will receive an ice
cream party. If the class wins multiple
times, they will get a pizza party on the
fourth win.
Teachers will receive an update at
the end of the first week so they can let
their class know how they are doing.
An announcement will be made on
the 2nd Friday stating which class won
and the ice cream party will be given
the following Monday.
“We hope the incentive program will
help decrease tardies,” explained Mrs.
Mitchell.
She said that first hour is the worst
“by far” for tardies followed by SAS.
“Students need to get to class on
time and be responsible,” added Mrs.
Mitchell. “They also need to be respectful to their teachers by not interrupting
class.”
Sports
Football Season Nears the End
By: Ellie Trombetta and Caylin Beeman
The Varsity football season is coming to an end with
a record of 3-6. The boys
came out with two big wins
against Pana, 14-7, the first
in 7 years; and Staunton, 1815. While the boys beat both
of these teams at their homecoming games, they unfortunately couldn’t pull out a
win at our homecoming
and team captain
game against Vandalia, 36- Senior
C.J .Couch is proud of how
14.
his team is playing this
The boys also played an season.
amazing game against Carlinville, who is ranked third in state, the Birds led 7-0 at
halftime but unfortunately lost their senior night, 21-28.
Senior and captain of the team, C.J. Couch, commented that while they played well on their senior night and
did a lot of good things, they couldn’t capitalize on Carlinville’s lack of defense.
Assistant coach Dan Grimes explained that although
they lost, he is very proud of how the team played.
He said, “Vandalia and Carlinville are very good and
bulky teams.”
Coach Grimes stated, “The boys always give their
best effort, and that’s all a coach can ask for.”
When asked about Staunton as a new conference
competitor, sophomore and varsity quarter back, Andrew Fry, explained that they were over confident.
He noted, “They came in
thinking they were going to
win, but it didn’t turn out so
well for them!”
Fry also mentioned that the
team gained a boost of confidence from these wins.
Regrettably, the boys didn’t win the Vandalia or Carlinville games, meaning they can
not participate in the play off
games at the end of the 2012
season.
The team was defeated 1417 by Roxana on October 19.
The JV team has a record
of 5-1 this season with a big
win over Litchfield, 42-0, early in the season. There only
loss was to Roxana, 0-8.
“The boys
always give
their best
effort, and
that’s all a
coach can
ask for.” Coach
Grimes
7
Class of 2013 Wins Again!
By: Ellie Trombetta and Caylin Beeman
The
first of three
powder-puff
games was held
on October 3, at
3:30. The game
was played
between the
freshmen,
coached by Mr.
Brad Skertich,
Coach Skertich calls a play in the freshman
and the juniors, huddle in the freshman-junior game.
coached by Mr.
Brian Madson. The juniors came out with the win, 12-6,
reserving them a spot in the championship game.
The game held right after that was between the
sophomores, coached by
Chris Redfern; and
seniors, coached by Matt
Hasquin. The seniors won,
14-0, also giving them in a
spot in the championship
game against the juniors.
The playoff game was
held on October 4, during
homecoming festivities.
The Seniors came out on
top in a very close game.
The final score was 6-2.
Senior Laci Hudson, runs the ball
The games were
in the sophomore– senior game.
refereed by seniors Chris
Catlett, Kylor Smith,
Jordan Sheehan, C.J. Couch, Jonathon Kirby, James
Bennington, and Hunter Watson.
When asked who the most competitive players were, senior
Alayna Ducharme commented that sophomore Ashlyn
Ringhausen and junior Lindsey Snyder were both very
ambitious.
Juniors Hannah Wilfong and Lindsey Snyder stated that
senior Tarah Wallace and freshman Maddy Greeling were both
very aggressive competition.
When asked what their strategy was to win, Snyder said ,
“Pretty much just out-smart the seniors with our trick plays!”
When asked who stood out the most, senior referee, Kylor
Smith noted that Lindsey Snyder
worked very hard.
He stated, “Lindsey stood out
to me. She was very tenacious!’
Sports
8
Volleyball Season Coming to an End
By: Alysa Kaiser
Approaching the end of the 2012 season, the varsity volleyball team has certainly
had its’ ups and downs this year. The Varsity has a record of 3-21 and JV’s record is
12-7. Coach Kinser claimed, “People should not define us by our record, because we
play very competitively.”
Although the season has not turned out the way Coach Kinser planned it would,
she still believes that every one of the girls gave 100% throughout the entire season. Volleyball team walks in homecoming parade . The team will play in the Carlinville
The varsity volleyball girls participated in the Macoupin County tournament on
Regionals on Monday, October 19.
the day of homecoming in Carlinville, placing 6th out of seven teams overall, and
pulling out a win against Mt. Olive.
The team was also very excited to receive new uniforms this year. When Lauren Jenkins, junior, was asked how she liked them,
Jenkins replied that they are “really stylish”. She also stated, “We may have lost a lot of games, but at least we looked good while
playing them.”
The 2012 volleyball team became very close this year. Senior, Tarah Wallace, noted that she couldn’t pick a favorite memory if
she had to, because this was the best team she’s ever played with and the whole season was a blast.
Cross Country Team on Its Final Sprint Cheerleading Update
By: Danielle Gillespie
On the morning of September 29, the
Piasa Birds hosted the Southwestern
Invite at Schneider Park. Run as a
flighted race, the invite leveled the playing field for many athletes and gave
them a fighting chance for a medal. The
format had number one runners from
each school racing against each other,
number two runners racing against each
other, etc. with the eighth race including
runners number eight and below. Gold,
silver, and bronze was awarded to the
top three in each of the eight races. In
total, 79 athletes participated in the
Southwestern Invite and 47 medals were
awarded.
“The Southwestern Invite went
great,” commented Coach Gary Bowker.
“Every coach complimented us on how
well it was run and the format of the
meet.”
As the season winds up, conference,
regional, and sectional are the three
meets left. Conference was held on
Monday, Oct. 15 at home, the regional
took place in New Athens on Oct. 20.
Only the top seven teams for girls and
boys advance to sectional at SIUE on
Oct. 27. Both teams fell short of making
sectionals; however, junior Lauren Jenkins ended up qualifying with a time of
21.55 as an individual.
Jenkins stated, “It was a huge surprise
to me! Although I thought our team did
great finishing in a pack towards the
By: Morgan Ozark
Above: Boys 2012 Cross Country Team
Above: Girls 2012 Cross Country Team
front. I was almost sure we were going
to make sectionals.”
Jenkins added, “There were a lot of
us who got our best times, which is
what cross country is truly about, so I
thought our team did great!”
In Coach Bowker’s opinion, the key
to running a good three mile race is having the right mental approach, stamina,
and, as senior Chris Catlett interjected,
“And a great coach telling us what to
do.”
For the first time ever, the squad hired
a professional choreographer named Andrew Miller. Miller choreographed the
squads routine on Oct. 13. The cheerleaders practiced for six hours learning their
routine.
Coach Borkowski stated, “He is coming back on November 10th to teach the
dancing and clean up the rest of the routine.” Ayla Pace, a sophomore stated, “I was
looking forward to getting his help, because choreographing to our squad’s
skills isn’t easy. It’s exciting; I think it
will help our squad do better!”
The cheerleaders on the competition
squad are seniors Erica McCord and
Brendan Lawson; juniors Rachel Meisner,
Danielle Churchich, and Maddie Pilkington; sophomores Courtney Bangert, Amber Barnett, Morgan Ozark, Leah
McGaughey, Ayla Pace, Maddie Schelle,
and Kassy Voss. With alternates senior
Kaitlyn Lawson; sophomores Chelsey
Milligan and Shelby Donahue.
Coach B explained, “I picked the people I did because of their hard work during practice and their skill level. We have
to score as high as possible”
McGaughey noted, “I think we will do
a lot better than last year because of the
help we are getting and changes in rules.”
The first competition will be held at
Bethalto High School, on December 16.
Homecoming 2012
9
Greek Week Over: Homecoming Memories Made
Homecoming Court candidates CJ
Couch and Erica McCord cruise the
parade route in a dune buggy .
Homecoming Court candidates Jon
Moulton and Tarah Wallace give a
“thumbs up” during the parade.
Homecoming Court candidates Chris
Catlett and Miranda Daube ride along
in a red convertible. Photos by Mrs.
Sinclair
Senior Devynn Wittman (left) and junior
Maddie Pilkington show off their ‘80s
style.
FCCLA “Ruin the Vandals” float (l to r)
freshman Samantha French, junior Emily Bowman, and senior Erin Huff.
Senior Chris Catlett puts a different
spin on ‘80s Dress Up Day.
Senior Jonathan Kirby
gets into
the Homecoming
Spirit on
White Out
Day.
Senior Dalton Greenwalt participates in White Out Day.
Junior Shannan Haney and senior Alicia
Woodman take part in the parade.
Homecoming 2012
10
Powder Puff Action: Playoff Games
Freshman Maddie Greeling gets past jun- The seniors come up with a play in
their huddle so they can take down
ior Alyssa Kaiser in the playoff game.
the sophomores in the playoffs.
The sophomore team prepares to take on the seniors in the playoff game.
Mrs. Borkowski introduces the senior
cheerleaders at the pep assembly.
Photos by Ellie Trombetta
(l to r) Mrs. Ruyle, Mr. Buttitta, and Ms.
Gaffney served snow cones during the
Powder Puff game.
Photos by Alicia Woodman
The student body participates in the
“Roller Coaster” at the pep assembly.
The cheerleaders look on as senior Tyler
Gilleland leads the “Roller Coaster”.
(l to r) Juniors
Dylan Wittman
and Quincy
Dunn show off
their ‘80s
style.
Photos by
Austin O’Heron
Mr. Borkowski “rocked
out” in his
‘80s Day
outfit.
Senior Hunter Watson hobbled along
on ‘80s Day.