October 2014 Newspaper

Renovations
to downtown
activity center
underway
Homecoming Competition
By Julia Kennedy
Yutan is a small community with a rich
history. Kevin Johnson, superintendent,
is working to preserve a piece of that history while meeting the needs of current
students.
As the community center undergoes
renovations, Johnson works side by side
with the school board to move the process
forward.
The center also holds many memories
for previous generations of families who
continue to live in Yutan. Former students
played sports there for 35 years. Now, it will
once again serve as a gym.
“It will be used for junior high practices,
special events, school dances, hopefully
prom, as well as the Yutan youth basketball
and volleyball,” Johnson said. “It will also
help during basketball season when there
are morning and late practices so kids can
get home around 6 or 6:30.”
The community center already has a
new look inside. The front entrance loft and
stage have been removed. The basement was
filled in so a new, larger gym floor could be
installed. New rest rooms are currently being built at the front entrance with a storage
room above.
In a few weeks, the building will have
a freshly-painted exterior, new doors, windows and lighting, and finished drywall.
The setting of new floors and basketball
hoops will bring the new gym closer to
reality. Because the gym will primarily
be a practice facility, no bleachers will be
installed.
Thanks to local contractors, such as
Long Construction, Brase Electric, Thomas
Plumbing and Bullock Construction, the
community center is nearing completion.
Johnson said they are hoping to have the
building done by Dec. 1. If not, by the first
of the year.
Continued on Page 3
BALLOON FUN AT THE CHIEFTAIN GAMES - Competitors closely eye the balloons during the balloon toss at the Chieftain games Sept. 19.
Homecoming festivities Friday afternoon featured a parade, the balloon toss, dodgeball and cupcake eating. See more coverage of homecoming on
pages 4-5. Photograph by Julia Kennedy.
Softball team captures
ECNC title at Auburn
By Haleigh Wuster
Every team sets high goals it wishes to
accomplish that season. The Yutan-Mead
players crossed one of their top goals off
their list on Sept. 27, becoming the East
Central Nebraska Conference champions
for the 2014 season.
Waking up bright and early for the long
trip to Auburn, Neb., players had mixed
emotions about the day to come. The Patriots were seeded third coming into the
tournament.
“I was kind of nervous, but I was mostly
excited in hopes of getting the gold,” sopho-
more Ellie Petersen said.
The nerves eventually disappeared as
the game verses Johnson County Central
went into play.
“We started out with not a lot of intensity
but picked it up in the end,” Petersen said.
Sophomore Haleigh Wuster had nine
strikeouts this game, and seniors Jessica
Pleskac and Lauren Taylor each had triples
in the fifth inning. The Patriots won the first
game of the tournament 8-2.
The Patriots’ second game was played
against second-seed Conestoga. Starting
out strong, the Patriots scored five runs in
Continued on Page 7
Cellphone policy
change designed
to keep devices
out of classrooms
By Madison Davis
Cellphones are a big part of everyday
life, but what happens when you are no longer allowed to use them regularly? With the
start of the 2014-2015 school year, teachers
and administrators decided on a more strict
cellphone policy.
Taking away the privilege of cellphone
usage in class, students are only allowed to
have them during lunch and passing periods.
“Cellphones were becoming an issue
with students misusing them,” principal
Tim McNamara said. “We feel this will
limit non-educational purposes of phone
use during school.”
The school board members hope that
the new policy will have a more positive
academic effect on the students McNamara
said. However, they might not know how
music affects students.
“I used to listen to music in study hall,”
freshman Shelby Fenner said. “It helped me
stay focused and get my work done.”
Continued on Page 3
See What’s
Inside............
CONFERENCE CHAMPIONS - Junior Nealie Josoff tags out a runner from Logan View during a softball game early in the season. Yutan-Mead captured the
East Central Nebraska Conference tournament championship with three wins at Auburn Sept. 27. The Patriots entered district play as the No. 1 seed with a
14-6 record. Photograph by Julia Kennedy.
Page 2
Opinion/Cartoon
Pages 6-7
Sports/Activities
Page 8
New Teachers
Ebola not likely
to have impact
on United States
as it had on West
African people
By Jessica Wade
Ebola is a deadly infectious disease that
is spread through bodily fluids; it causes
internal and external bleeding and, according to the World Health Organization, as of
Sept. 23 has killed over 3,000 people.
Most of the victims of Ebola have been
in West Africa, but an unidentified man in
Texas has become the first person to be diagnosed with the disease in the United States.
The man is believed to have been visiting
family in Liberia when he was infected.
The main concern of public health officials is the amount of contact this man may
have had with others and whether or not the
disease has spread.
Despite the toll Ebola has had on West
Africa, the fact that it is now in the United
States should not cause mass panic.
There is a huge difference between getting sick in a third world country and getting
sick in a country like the United States.
Because the disease is spread through bodily
fluids rather than through the air it is harder
to become infected, and Ebola does not kill
everyone who becomes infected.
The panic caused by the idea of a deadly
disease can become just as catastrophic as
the disease itself. The effect of the disease
has already taken a toll on the already unstable economic state of many West African
countries. It is causing people to stop going
to work and school.
Instead of only reporting the horrors of
Ebola, the media should also report what
is being done to fix the problem. Health
officials have already isolated and tested
everyone the man from Liberia has come
into contact with.
Ebola should be treated with necessary
precautions; it is an infectious disease that
has killed thousands of people.
But the possibility that an outbreak such
as the one occurring in West Africa will occur in the United States is highly unlikely.
2014-2015
Chieftain
Times Staff
Jessica Wade
Cassie Wade
Colton Leal
Megan Wade
Madeline Miller
Haleigh Wuster
Maddie Davis
Julia Kennedy
The Chieftain Times Staff welcomes letters to the editor and
comments on our coverage of the
school and concerns you might
have. Please submit them to the
journalism room. All items must be
signed and appropriate. - Adviser
Rod Henkel
New teachers offer positives
New teachers have the opportunity to
breathe life back into a school. They can
shake up the curriculum and teach their
students in fresh, innovative ways. They can
bring new blood to sports, clubs and other
extracurricular activities by taking over as
coaches or sponsors.
Student
Opinion
Though there are many positive aspects
of becoming a new teacher, there are also
many challenges. Students are often upset
about their former teachers leaving and can
find it difficult to connect with new teachers.
They are used to their former teacher’s rules,
routines and ways of teaching and can often
make a new teacher’s job more difficult.
Despite having to face many challenges,
the four new teachers at Yutan High School
have done a fantastic job of updating the
curriculum and filling coaching positions
throughout the first few weeks of school.
Joy Tiefel replaced Yutan’s Spanish
teacher of four years, Kristen Day. Tiefel
has made several changes to the curriculum
and has brought in a more hands-on way of
teaching. She often uses a teaching technique called total physical response, which
allows students to walk around the room and
perform actions spoken to them in Spanish.
Tiefel focuses on students’ speaking and
listening skills, which should help with
real-world applications of Spanish.
New English teacher Laurie Kotalik has
also made several changes to the curriculum
and has taken over two coaching positions.
Her predecessor, Heather Niedfeldt, taught
at Yutan for one year and was the speech and
one-act coach. Kotalik has taken over both
coaching positions as well as the sophomore
speech class from Ginger Eikmeier. She
has introduced impromptu Fridays into the
class in an effort to help students become
better at writing and performing speeches
quickly. In my opinion, having the speech
coach take over the speech class was a good
idea because students who are interested in
the activity will already be adjusted to their
new coach.
New choir teacher Matthew Gunter and
math teacher Kassandra Bik have also taken
on several coaching and sponsor positions.
Gunter, who replaced Molly Schacher, has
made jazz choir accessible to students not
in regular choir by moving practice times
before school. It is a great opportunity for
non-choir students because it gives them the
chance to get involved in choir without having to commit to taking choir as a class. Bik,
who replaced Christina Modrell, has taken
over as assistant cheer coach as well as the
junior high math counts sponsor.
Despite facing challenges, Yutan’s new
teachers have the potential to be wonderful additions to Yutan High School’s staff.
They have stepped up to fill in the gaps left
by former teachers who were coaches and
sponsors. If they continue to have the success that they have been having throughout
the first few weeks of school, they will have
the potential to positively impact Yutan High
School and its students.
Student battles with arthritis
By Madeline Miller
For most of my life, I thought of arthritis
as a disease for the elderly. I have since been
proven wrong, however, in a particularly unpleasant way. On Aug. 13, I was diagnosed
with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis.
My detection of my disease started in
March with faint wrist pain and minor swelling. Since then, the pain has increased the
10-fold and spread to my ankles, my knees,
my elbows, my fingers and my left shoulder.
My elbows no longer straighten fully
and neither do my knees. Not only do I
struggle to stand up, I struggle to sit down.
At this point, it is more like strategic falling
than actually sitting down.
Things that I used to do with ease,
such as taking showers, getting dressed
and brushing my hair, have become nearly
impossible tasks to complete.
Along with the great joy of my immune
system attacking my joints, I have the pleasure of a severe anemia, which is an iron
deficiency. Because of this, I am always
cold. I bring a blanket to the movie theater
and shiver through the whole film.
On occasion, I get dizzy after standing
for any period of time. I have come terrifyingly close to fainting in the shower more
times than I care to count.
All these ailments have their prescriptions, however. Ferrous sulfate combats
anemia. For the arthritis, I take methotrexate weekly to suppress my immune system;
folic acid daily so that my hair does not
fall out because of the methotrexate; and
prednisone, a type of steroid, so that I can
actually walk and move throughout the day.
My morning starts when I drag myself
out of bed and descend the single flight
of stairs, an impressive feat that can take
anywhere from two to six minutes. When
I stay up past 9 p.m., I know that the next
morning will be spent hobbling around like
a 98-year-old woman.
Almost worse than the physical pain is
the emotional roller coaster that goes on in
my mind. Steroids are well known for their
effects on users’ temperaments, and I, a hormonal teenage girl, am no stranger to these.
Stereotypical “roid rage” is really only
typical of steroids that increase testosterone.
Instead, prednisone, a corticosteroid, causes
a shift in hormones that poses somewhat
different side effects.
Emotional examples include crying
when angry; crying when sad; crying when
frustrated; crying when thinking about being angry, sad, or frustrated; crying for no
reason at all; anxiety both social and otherwise; symptoms of depression; difficulty
controlling emotions; increased distraction;
feelings of uselessness and futility and wondering if my friends even like me anymore.
Physical examples include embarrassing
acne, sensitive teeth, abdominal pain and a
dry mouth. These seem to blend into my
life, and I hardly even notice them anymore.
On the bright side, I cannot be counted
tardy. People are much more likely to get
Continued on Page 3
BAND MARCHING DOWNTOWN - Juniors Sam Butler and Leanne McLaughlin carry the banner in leading the band through downtown during the homecoming parade Sept. 19. The band attended the Nebraska
State Fair and plans to march in Columbus later in October. Photograph by Maddie Davis.
Marching requires multi-tasking
By Jessica Wade
Playing an instrument is hard enough for
some people, but members of the marching
band don’t just perform music. They play
from memory while walking and keeping
in line with fellow band members. Those
fellow band members are also playing instruments and attempting not to run into the
person in front of them.
Senior and rank leader Skyler Limbach
said that marching band involves a lot of
multitasking.
“You have to memorize new music,
march in time, stay in a straight line and
play your notes correctly,” Limbach said.
“It requires more thinking than regular band.
Instead of just moving your fingers, you
have to move your whole body.”
Band director Kevin Koopmann said
that just like any sport or club, the band
has practices to prepare for competitions.
The band will practice on the track using
sidewalk chalk.
“We will even practice with our eyes
shut because the size of step has to be the
same each time,” Koopmann said. “If you
Cellphone policy
changes student
use during school
Continued from Page 1
As the no-cellphone policy continues,
some students have found it harder to finish
work efficiently.
Though many students think they should
be allowed their phones, some might argue
that the cellphone policy best benefits the
school.
“I wasn’t one of the people that would
use their phone during class,” said senior
Brooke Phillips. “But I feel that this is the
best thing for us.”
With this new policy in place, teachers are finding it easier to keep students
involved in lessons rather than their phones.
“I don’t see the cellphone issues we had
last year,” health teacher Chris Feller said. “I
think, for the most part, students are doing
a good job respecting this rule.”
take too big of a step or too small of a step,
it’s like a domino effect, and you can screw
up the whole band with one person.”
The drum major for the marching band
is sophomore Ellie Peterson. According to
senior Jayden Rannells, the drum major is
similar to a director.
“There are rank leaders who are in
charge of their section, and then there’s a
drum major who directs everyone,” Rannells said.
Rannells is usually a clarinet player,
but because the band only had two percussionists, both he and fellow senior Zachary
Palmer were moved to those positions.
The band marches in two different com-
petitions each year: the Nebraska State Fair
and the Columbus parade.
Koopmann said that having such a small
band makes it difficult to find a free time for
everyone to compete.
“Our students are involved in multiple entities, whether it’s athletics or other
clubs,” Koopmann said. “This creates a
well-rounded education for students, but
it’s hard to find a time where there is not a
conflict.”
Koopmann said that marching band
helps students learn how to work together
because they receive a cooperative grade.
“In lots of classes you have your own
score, your own quizzes, tests and homework, so if the person beside you is failing
it doesn’t affect you at all,” Koopmann
said. “In this class, because our product is
made with everybody, the weakest link does
impact everyone.”
Senior girl
learns to live
with effects
of arthritis
Continued from Page 2
up and get something for me when I do not
want to leave my comfy spot. My parents
have begun to let me say almost anything
I want, partly because they know that with
stronger, more powerful emotions comes
stronger, more powerful sarcasm, and partly
because they feel bad for me.
People no longer ask me to help them
carry anything. Also, I am not allowed to
run. This is the single most glorious fact of
my entire high school career. For the first
time in my life, I can justify my laziness
with a doctor’s note.
Ultimately, my lumpy wrists, screwed
up pinky finger and double-foot limp cannot change the fact that despite having an
old person’s disease, I am still a teenager. I
am dealing with this the way any teenager
I know would: whining excessively, using
it to justify laziness and bad behavior and
ignoring the signs that I am actually falling
apart.
At this point, it seems likely that I will
end up like the Tin Man pre-oil can.
PERCUSSION IN UNISON - Junior Jeremiah Johnson and seventh grader Jordan Garlock play the
drums with the band as it marches through downtown Yutan. The band marched during the homecoming
parade and stopped downtown to play. Photograph by Jessica Wade.
New teachers
share memories
of homecomings
By Julia Kennedy
Homecoming is full of memories that will leave a lasting imprint. Each school
creates those by their unique traditions. New Yutan teachers Laurie Kotalik and
Joy Tiefel had the opportunity to experience the “Chieftain Way” this year after
teaching at different schools.
Coming from Essex High School in Iowa, Kotalik has an idea of some of the
similar traditions at Yutan.
“We had dress-up days, but most of them were different like backwards day, gender switch day, hat day, funky socks day and pink day,” Kotalik said. “The students
got very involved as well as the younger teachers when it came to dressing up.”
Kotalik’s former students also participated in decorating floats. Students were
pulled out of class a lot to help decorate the windows and doors of the school.
“I enjoyed watching the students build their floats,” Kotalik said. “They really
got into it and spent a lot of time and effort on them. There was a lot of pride in
the decorations.”
The parade followed the Trojan games at Essex. After the parade, students were
allowed to leave school early. Some students came back later to watch the homecoming game, but there wasn’t much of a
student section. Unfortunately, the Trojans
did not have a very strong football team.
“They never won both years I taught
there,” Kotalik said.
Although the football team was not the best, Kotalik
enjoyed homecoming at Essex.
Coming from North Side High School in Indiana, Tiefel had
a different experience for homecoming. It wasn’t considered a big
deal because dress-up days and activities were not allowed.
Also, pep rallies weren’t encouraged. Students could only attend them if
they made the honor roll. During the pep rally, students participated in a tug of war.
Along with the honor roll being required to participate in the pep rally, students
also had to have a good academic and behavioral standing to go to the dance.
“Students could check a list outside of the office to see if they could go,” Tiefel
said. Most of the students at Yutan are fortunate to participate in homecoming and
buy fancy dresses.
“Since it was a formal dance, many of my students couldn’t afford dressy clothes
they thought they should have, so there was a community clothing bank girls could
go to in order to find a dress to wear, “ Tiefel said.
Coming from such a different background, Tiefel looked forward to experiencing Yutan’s homecoming.
“Because Yutan is smaller, there is a lot more school spirit and support from
the community,” Tiefel said. “It is an activity to help unify and support the entire
school. In large schools, there is so much to do the community spirit is lost.”
Football players named
homecoming king, queen
By Jessica Wade
Homecoming royalty is a long-standing
tradition at Yutan High School.
Every year the court is announced over
the intercom the
week before the
big homecoming football
game. No one
knows the identities of the king
and queen except for student council sponsors Amy Arensberg and Chris Feller, and
they keep the results top secret.
“No one knows who won except for
Mrs. Feller and me,” Arensberg said. “We
don’t tell anybody; not even Mr. McNamara
knows.”
Everything about the homecoming court
went according to tradition, except for one
detail. This was the first time in the history
of Yutan that both the homecoming king
and queen were football players: running
back Boston Rew and kicker Megan Wade.
This was Wade’s first year playing on the
football team, and she said that her favorite
part of being on the court was having the
opportunity to participate in the activities.
Rew is the fifth member of his family to
be on the court, following in the footsteps of
three older siblings and his father, who was
on the court his
senior year.
“Riding in
the parade was
probably my
favorite part,”
Rew said. “Everyone got to see you, and it’s not something
you get to do everyday.”
Madison Egr, Connor Worden, Morgan
Burkle, Colton Leal, Brooke Kelly and Tad
Nelson were also on the court.
Worden said that his favorite part was
also riding in the parade.
“I had never been in a convertible before,” Worden said. “I also liked dancing
with Tad and Morgan.”
Rew said that the atmosphere of homecoming week was electric.
“So many people participated in everything,” Rew said. “I had a great time.”
“Riding in the parade was
probably my favorite part.”
Senior Boston Rew
HOMECOMING ROYALTY - Seniors Boston Rew and Megan Wade smile for the cameras after being
crowned homecoming king and queen following the football game Sept. 19. The fact that both the king
and queen were football players made several newspapers and television newscasts. Photograph by Julia
Kennedy.
Week provides students
chances to participate
By Haleigh Wuster
To some, homecoming week is the most
exciting part of the school year. It is filled
with school spirit, excitement and a chance
to make so many unforgettable memories.
This year’s homecoming week provided many chances for people to become
involved. There were class floats for every
class to build on their own, and the Chieftain
games got almost all students involved.
Along with being involved in those
activities, dress-up days were a big opportunity for students to show their spirit.
“I like the dress-up days because some
people go all out and it’s funny to see all
the crazy ideas,” sophomore Daleigha Ford
said.
Most students and staff had a positive
opinion about how the week of homecoming went.
“Homecoming is my favorite part of the
year,” freshman Machala Woodcock said.
“Everyone is always so happy and excited.”
Along with all the excitement of home-
coming week, comes some stress. This is
student council sponsor Amy Arensberg’s
second year helping with student council.
She says there is a lot of “pressure” involved
in homecoming week, but it is still worth
having.
“Homecoming is a lot of stress for the
faculty and the students, but you have to
make those memories,” Arensberg said.
Arensberg and co-sponsor Chris Feller
brought some new ideas to homecoming
last year and again this year. The floats were
changed from sports floats to class floats.
The Chieftain games also had some changes.
“I’ve always liked homecoming week,
but I’m glad we are finally starting to switch
things up a bit,” senior Christian Kazos said.
Every day of homecoming brings more
and more excitement leading up to the big
game on Friday night. Although homecoming is a distraction from schoolwork to
some, it is an enjoyment to all.
“I have made great memories during
homecoming week that I know I will never
forget,” Woodcock said.
Seniors enjoy final week
with homecoming activites
By Colton Leal
FOCUS ON MAKING THE CATCH - Senior Christopher Stevens focuses on catching his balloon during
the Chieftain games competition. The balloon toss followed the parade and then students went to the gym
for dodgeball and cupcake eating. Photograph by Jessica Wade.
Bussing spends summer
living Japanese culture
By Jessica Wade
For most high school students summer
vacation entails a summer job, playing on
a summer sports team, hanging out with
friends and going on family vacations. Senior Jayme Bussing’s summer was spent in
a foreign country.
After the long process of applying for
an exchange scholarship, which included
setting up a profile on the YFU (Youth for
Understanding) website, writing five short
essays, filling out contact information,
receiving doctors notes, applying for a
passport and a student visa and requesting
recommendation letters-a process that took
nearly a year - Bussing didn’t receive the
scholarship for which she applied.
“I was in Canada, which was the plan
if I didn’t get the scholarship, and half way
through the trip I got a call from YFU that
said that one of the girls that had received
a different scholarship had a medical emergency,” Bussing said. “They said that I was
next on the list to replace her and could I
get ready in three days to go to California?”
Bussing flew from Toronto to Detroit
before traveling to San Francisco where
she stayed for three days while attending
orientation. Bussing was finally on her way
to Japan on June 16, which was also her
mom’s birthday.
Bussing had a host mom and dad, a
younger host sister who is 15 and three older
host brothers. Bussing’s host sister plans to
go to Australia for a foreign exchange year
and wanted help with her English skills.
Bussing said that the language barrier
was one of the more challenging parts of
the experience and that it was hard not to
be able to communicate properly.
Bussing attended a four-story Japanese
school while she was there.
“I went to an all-girls Catholic school,”
Bussing said. “There were two Canadian
English teachers there, and there was another foreign exchange student from Finland
who spoke great English.”
Bussing said that the education system
in Japan is much more intense than the one
here.
“They have to take entrance exams to
get into high school,” Bussing said. “If they
[students] don’t pass, then they get put in a
lower-level school.”
Bussing said that the most rewarding
thing about her trip was visiting so many
places and making new friends.
“I spent a weekend in Tokyo and went
shopping all day,” Bussing said. “There was
an Anime store that was eight stories high.”
Bussing said that she wants to be an
English teacher in Japan and it was a good
opportunity to learn the language and about
the culture.
“It was really fun and a great experience,” Bussing said. “It made me realize that
I want to live there at some point in my life.
It made my career goal clearer.”
Out of the entire school year, one specific week stands above the rest when it
comes to school spirit: homecoming week.
There is no doubt that this week is special
to everyone, but being the last of up to six
homecomings between grades 7 and 12, it’s
especially touching for seniors.
“We feel like we’re on top, and we run
everything,” senior Christian Kazos said.
“The little kids look up to us.”
The week kicks off with a series of
dress-up days. This year’s week consisted
of Dress-Like-Your-Dream-Job Day, Retro/
Hippie Day, Color Day, Character Day and
Spirit Day. This was the most exciting part
of the week for many people at school.
“I expect everyone to show their school
spirit,” librarian Michelle Dooley said. “I
love seeing how creative everyone gets with
their costumes.”
Also during the week, each of the fall
sports received additional support at their
competitions in the area, from the home
cross country meet on Monday to the football game on Friday.
Plus, other school groups also became
more involved during the week. On Tuesday
of homecoming week, the student council
hosted a game night during a junior high
football game, and the new art club helped
make decorations.
“The week gives every student a chance
to express themselves and take their mind
off of school,” senior Jayme Bussing said.
By the time Friday rolled around, a
special vibe of pride and anticipation filled
the school, and about half of the day was
devoted to competitions and getting pumped
for the football game. Seniors like Kazos
saw the Chieftain games as the highlight of
the week, but seniors like Josh Trost saw
the football game as the week’s high point.
By Saturday, the homecoming vibe lived
its last day with the homecoming dance.
“I thought I was going to cry at the
dance,” senior Megan Wade said.
Although the school spirit will live on,
there will be no returning to the most special
week of the year.
“I tried a little harder because it’s my last
year,” Bussing said. “I know I won’t have a
chance to do it again.”
FRESHMEN SING - Freshman Nic Lothringer leads the freshmen football players in singing the school
song during the homecoming pep rally. Each fall sports team is recognized during the pep rally, with the
football players and volleyball players singing. Photograph by Jessica Wade.
Seventh grade boy
excels with go kart
By Colton Leal
Looking back to kindergarten, most
people remember taking naps, playing at
the park and other stress free activities, but
seventh grader Chase Brown voluntarily
became involved with an extremely stressful
activity for a kindergartener: racing go karts.
Over the last eight years, Brown has
been racing around the dirt oval at speeds
of up to 50 miles per hour in his go kart.
He was first inspired to get involved
with racing because he wanted to follow in
the footsteps of Scott Brown, his dad and a
former drag racer.
Currently racing in Eagle, Neb., Brown
has two points championships and one
track title under his belt. Accomplishments
like these can only be achieved by “being
consistent throughout the season and getting
as many points as you can by winning,”
he said.
Most kids his age don’t really focus on
driving in any form, but racing is something
that’s always on Brown’s mind.
“I just love to go fast and turn left,”
Brown said.
Although, there are some major dangers
involved with his racing. Brown has even
been upside down before.
“I got spun out, and it was really tacky
that night,” Brown said. “It [his car] just
hooked, and I barrel-rolled five times.”
When things go wrong or even when
things are going great, Brown gets most
of his help and support from his father, but
he has also let his friends Joel Pleskac and
Levi Larson take part in his experiences at
the track.
“It’s pretty cool that a lot of people his
age are racing together,” Pleskac said.
Even when he’s not on the track, Brown
says that the sport takes up a lot of his time.
He spends a lot of his free time working on
one of his two cars at his race shop a couple
miles outside of Yutan.
In school, Brown takes the most interest
in things that can relate to his racing career.
“I really like to work on stuff with my
hands,” Brown said.
Because of this, it’s no surprise that
Brown’s favorite class is industrial tech, and
Brown also competes with the junior high
football team.
Being that he is only a seventh grader,
there are still plenty of things that Brown can
do to further his talents in and out of racing.
In the future, Brown hopes to move up
in classes and continue racing. He even has
goals of driving the fastest and most dangerous cars that have ever been on the dirt track.
“I want to drive a sprint car at the big
track someday,” Brown said.
This dream might be considered unrealistic for some people, but, then again,
it is probably fair to say that most people
wouldn’t be able to find as much success at
speeds of up to 50 miles per hour as Brown
has from the age of six.
SENIOR FINISH - Senior Jacob Schulz sprints to the finish line at the Ashland-Greenwood cross country
invitational Sept. 22. The boys cross country team has won each of its six meets this season entering the
ECNC meet. Photograph by Jessica Wade.
Six meets into season,
boys remain undefeated
By Maddie Egr
SEVENTH GRADER IN ACTION - Seventh grader Chase Brown competes in his go kart during the
summer. Brown, who was inspired to race by his father Scott, has been racing for eight years and has
won several events. Courtesy Photograph
Megan Wade becomes
first girl to play football
By Colton Leal
Hockey, wrestling and, most of all,
football are all sports that explode with testosterone, but that didn’t stop senior Megan
Wade from joining the football team.
Being in need of a kicker, Yutan head
coach Dan Krajicek was open to every
solution he heard, and when senior Josh
Trost mentioned a couple of senior girls
who played soccer, Krajicek was interested.
Krajicek and his players did some recruiting and invited Wade and her sister
Jessica to try kicking field goals after school.
They accepted.
“They said they had never kicked a
football before,” Krajicek said. “But Megan
made her first one.”
Not long after this experience, Wade
began practicing in pads with the team.
“She stretches, warms up and starts
practice with special teams,” Krajicek said.
“As soon as she’s done kicking we let her
go because there is no need for her to do
anything else, and we don’t want to wear
out her leg.”
Wade said that learning the in’s and
out’s of football has been one of her biggest challenges, but learning to play with
Continued on Page 7
The Yutan High School boys’ cross
country team has gone undefeated so far this
season. Having won all six of its meets, the
rest of their season is looking bright.
The team is made up of seniors Colton
Leal, Jacob Schulz, Cayden Menicucci
and Luke Breitenfeldt, sophomores Jayden
Graham, John Grinvalds and Corrigan
Abraham and freshmen Mason Timm and
Tyler McLaughlin.
The six varsity runners are Leal, Schulz,
Graham, Grinvalds, Abraham and Timm.
Together as a team, they have won meets
at Tecumseh, East Butler, Bergan, Yutan,
Ashland and Fort Calhoun.
Each team member is required to run so
many miles during summer vacation to keep
in shape. About two weeks before school
begins they start practicing five days a week,
occasionally meeting early Saturday mornings. Some people may think cross country
is only running, however, there are many
things you have to work on such as your
breathing, pacing yourself and your mental
toughness to finish the race strong.
Due to all of this training the boys’ team
this year has had its most successful season
in Yutan cross country history.
Leal leads the team with the top performances at all six meets. He was champion at
the East Butler meet, runner-up at Johnson
County, third place at the Ashland and Fort
Calhoun meets and fifth place at the Yutan
and Bergan meets.
“This is my senior year,” Leal said, “but
I’m treating it like any other season. Being
undefeated is great and all, but in the end
there is one meet that really matters.”
Being one of two senior runners for the
varsity team, Leal is showing a lot of senior
leadership.
Head coach Rod Henkel has seen not
only this leadership from Leal but also his
dedication to the team.
“Colton has done a great job, not only
with workouts and competing at meets, but
also with leading the team in terms of work
ethic, encouragment and advice,” Henkel
said.
Helping Leal lead the team is other
senior runner Schulz. He agrees with Leal
that being undefeated “feels amazing” and
that all of their hard work after four years
is beginning to pay off.
One sophomore who has really excelled
this season and help lead the team alongside
the seniors is Abraham. He has followed
Leal with team second-best performances in
three of the four meets he has competed in.
Due to a poison oak incident, Abraham
sat out of the last two meets. He hopes to
be fully recovered and back running for the
ECNC and district meets.
“I feel bad because I let my team down
when I was out with poison oak,” Abraham
said. “But (other runners) really stepped it
up. (They) filled the varsity positions and
did a nice job.”
Over all the season, which only contains
three more meets including ECNC and districts, has been a memorial one for everyone
not just the seniors. Grinvalds and Timm
have run well, Henkel said, in the absence
of Abraham and Graham, who was nursing
a sore ankle.
“I think the highlight of this cross country season is being undefeated,” Graham
said. “I’m having a lot of fun competing, and
it’s even more fun when you’re winning.”
With high hopes for the district and
state meets, the runners continue to practice
hard and wait to see where their work will
take them.
“This boys team has had the most success of any team in the history of the Yutan
program,” Henkel said. “Hopefully they
can continue as strong as they’ve begun
the season.”
First Cornhusker game Pleskac catch seals
Patriots’
ECNC
win
rated great experience
Continued from Page 1
By Megan Wade
One thing the University of Nebraska is
famous for is football. The atmosphere of a
Husker game is a major draw to Memorial
Stadium. That was one thing I was looking
forward to as I attended my first Husker
football game.
We waited in line as all the people
flooded into the stadium.
We climbed all the way up
to row 93, and watched the
cheerleaders warm up as we
waited for the game to start.
The intensity of the crowd
grew until all at once, everyone stood up as the Nebraska football team
ran onto the field. The stands literally shook
as the more than 90,000 fans stood up to
cheer on their Huskers.
The homecoming Husker game against
Illinois continued the tradition of more
than 300 consecutive sell-out games. Nebraska was favored to win, but had a rocky
first quarter.
The Huskers ran the ball for a touchdown early in the game. The crowd went
crazy, and more than a thousand red balloons
were released. Fireworks were released after
the touchdown and after the extra point went
through the uprights.
The crowd calmed down as the entire
stadium waited on a commercial break.
Everyone had to wait until a man standing
on the field with a headset gave the okay for
play to resume. The interruption slowed the momentum
of the play and the excitement of the crowd,
but the exciting atmosphere returned when
the famous Nebraska Black Shirts ran onto
the field. Their theme song played over the
intercom, as skulls with Husker helmets
flashed across the three jumbo screens.
I had heard about the Black Shirt de-
fense, but I was disappointed when within
just a couple of plays, the pathetic Illinois
offense scored. The frustrated Husker fans
sat back down in their seats as the small
section of Illinois fans cheered.
By halftime, the Huskers were easily in
the lead. For the half-time show the UNL
marching band took the field. Alongside
the band were baton and flag twirlers. The
band marched into different
formations, creating an amazing show. They even spelled
out “fear Ameer”.
The television cameras
zoomed in on the baton twirlers as they lit the ends of their
batons on fire. Toward the end of halftime,
the king and queen were crowned, each
candidate walking out as the announcer
listed their impressive majors. Only two of
the 20 candidates were not originally from
Nebraska.
The crowd cheered again as the Huskers
came back onto the field. The Huskers easily
maintained their lead through the third quarter. The crowd attempted to start the wave.
It took about 20 tries before the wave
reached all around the stadium to the student section. Once the student section took
control of it, the wave ran the entire length
of the stadium. Each section of fans stood
up as the wave traveled around first fast, and
then in slow motion.
The Huskers finished the fourth quarter
strong, going on to win the game 45-14. The
exciting atmosphere of the Husker game was
everything I had expected.
My favorite part of the game was when
the entire crowd cheered when the Huskers
did well, and booed in disappointment when
the Illinois offense beat our Black Shirts.
Overall the game was a great experience
and I can’t wait to go back and cheer on our
Nebraska Huskers.
Student
Review
just the first inning. Junior Kaitlynn
Hunt started off the game with a double,
followed by singles by Taylor and Wuster.
Taylor struck out three and allowed Conestoga only two hits. Taylor also had two key
hits in the game.
“The girls hit really well, which gave us
a lot of momentum throughout the game,”
head coach Brian Sass said.
The team run-ruled Conestoga in the
fourth inning with a score of 10-1.
“We had one of our best hitting games,
so it was really exciting,” junior Nealie
Josoff said.
The Patriots were then headed to the
championship game to face the Auburn
Bulldogs on their home field. Taylor had
one strikeout and allowed four hits against
Auburn. Taylor also hit her first homerun
of the season.
In the bottom of the seventh inning, the
Patriots were up 6-4. They needed just one
out to win the game, but Auburn’s big hitter
was up to bat. Auburn had runners on first
and third base.
On the very first pitch of the at-bat, the
Auburn hitter drove the ball into deep center.
Center fielder, senior Jessica Pleskac, caught
the ball as it was going over the fence, robbing Auburn of a three-run homer and the
championship game.
“I was really excited when I realized I
caught the ball,” Pleskac said. “It was a great
feeling when all of my teammates came
running into the outfield after my catch.”
The Patriots have won the conference
title twice in the last three years. After the
conference tournament, the team’s record
was 10-5.
“I think our team played great this
weekend,” Josoff said. “I’m so proud of
my team.”
Two YHS alumni
march as Huskers
By Cassie Wade
Excitement races through your veins as
you march from the music building to the
football stadium. It is game day, and today
you will stand with the other members of the
University of Nebraska at Lincoln band, 300
strong, and play the familiar Husker fight
songs that fans adore.
Many people dream of being able to
participate in their favorite extracurricular activities after high school. For Yutan
alumni Ryan Ambrose and J.T. McLaughlin,
this dream becomes a reality during home
Husker football games as they play in the
marching band.
Ambrose said that he first became interested in continuing his band career in
college after speaking with a UNL band
representative at an all-state competition
his senior year of high school.
“They told me that they are always
looking for good trumpet players, so I told
Mr. Koopman (Yutan’s band director) that
I wanted to try out,” Ambrose said. “It’s
one of the best decisions I have ever made.”
Ambrose is currently a senior at UNL,
majoring in elementary education and working toward an endorsement in coaching
basketball, volleyball and football. He is a
four-year band member and a second-year
B rank marching band leader.
“I lead the second part trumpets in sectionals and critique marching and things
like that,” Ambrose said. “I also help decide
what sort of songs we play with the drum
majors and section leaders.”
According to UNL band director Anthony Falcone, the band rehearses for an
hour and 20 minutes five days a week.
“We perform a different halftime show
for every home game,” Falcone said. “Typically, this adds up to eight shows a year
with different music and a different drill,
all performed from memory.”
McLaughlin said that it can be difficult
to memorize all of the information, but the
friendships he has been able to make by
participating in marching band makes it
worthwhile.
“Our section is essentially our family
on campus,” McLaughlin said. “On the
weekends, we hang out together and even
go home with each other.”
McLaughlin is currently a freshman
majoring in music education and can play
the euphonium, piano and baritone. He said
that his favorite part of being in marching
band is the crowd at the football games.
“It is unreal seeing all of the people making their way to the stadium,” McLaughlin
said. “One of the cool things we get to do is
high-fiving the little kids as they walk by.”
Both McLaughlin and Ambrose agree
that the atmosphere at UNL football games
is different than the atmosphere at Yutan
football games.
“In Yutan, you can stand out as an individual,” Ambrose said. “At UNL, however,
you are part of something way bigger than
yourself.”
Wade kicks for football team
Continued from Page 6
KEEP THAT HEAD DOWN - Senior Megan Wade kicks an extra point out of the hold by junior Parker
Hinrichs during the Palmyra game. Wade joined the football team this season when it was in need of a
kicker. Photograph by Julia Kennedy.
all new teammates has been almost no
problem at all.
“I feel like part of the team,” Wade said.
“The boys are nice.”
Her teammates feel similarly.
“We treat her the same as everyone else,”
Trost said. “She makes the extra point, and
we all go tap her on the head.”
Because of this support, Wade just
focuses on doing her job for the team, no
matter how big and fast the men running
at her are.
“I don’t care about getting hit as long as
it’s after I kick,” Wade said.
Two games into her season, Wade had
made three of the four extra points she had
actually gotten to kick, and she’s improving
quickly. Krajicek said that in the beginning,
it took Wade about two seconds to get the
ball off, and that was a problem.
But after only one week, Wade was kicking in less than a second and a half. Along
with the coaching staff, her teammates have
picked up on her improvement as well.
“She’s a great addition,” said Wade’s
holder Parker Hinrichs. “She can make any
extra point now.”
As for the future, the team will be depending on Wade to continue making its
extra points and close-range field goals.
“We need her to make 75 to 80 percent of
our extra points, but I really believe she can
do that,” Krajicek said. “She’s been working hard, and we’re really happy with her.”
New vocal teacher began at Minatare
Gunter brings enthusiasm to YHS
By Madeline Miller
It is always difficult to adjust to a new teacher, especially when that new teacher’s policies differ greatly from
their predecessor’s. Such is the case with new vocal music
teacher Matthew Gunter.
That adjustment is not always negative, though.
“[Gunter] knows how to handle our choir, especially
those who are very rowdy,” junior Samantha Butler said.
Students have reacted positively to the learning environment that he creates in the classroom.
“I like the way he keeps it organized and focused but
still keeps a relaxed aura,” said Kaitlyn Rider, a senior.
Gunter has a few years of teaching experience under
his belt and uses it to keep his students on task.
“He kind of has a different way of doing things that I
kind of like because it’s strict but not [stifling] at the same
time,” Rider said.
Gunter graduated from Wayne State in 2011 with a
degree in K-12 vocal education. He began his teaching
career at Minatare High School, a Class D2 school. The
town of Minatare, Neb., has a population of about 816,
and Yutan High School is double the size of Minatare
High School.
Despite this, Gunter feels that the two schools share a
close, family environment.
“You know everyone,” Gunter said. “You know all the
staff. You’re pretty close; it’s pretty family-like, I would
say, between both schools.”
Gunter’s own family is made up of himself and his
wife Shawna Gunter. The couple has been married for less
than a year; they will celebrate their one-year anniversary
on Oct. 26. Gunter’s cats Forte and Faith and dog Melody
further prove his love of music, which he inherited from
his rather musical family.
Gunter’s enthusiasm for music is rivalled only by his
enthusiasm for teaching. He loves to help people and to
be the center of attention.
If he had not been a teacher, he would have been “a
guidance counselor, or a pastor of some sort, or even a
psychologist.” Despite the back-up plans, Gunter ended
up with the original career he wanted.
“A director of mine said, ‘If you teach it, then you
know it,’” Gunter said.
NEW MAN IN CHARGE - Matthew Gunter directs the choir during a recent rehearsal. Gunter is in his first year of teaching at Yutan after
graduating from Wayne State College in 2011 and beginning his teaching career at Minatare, Neb., High School. Photograph by Haleigh Wuster.
Bik replaces Modrell in math department
By Haleigh Wuster
Yutan is filled with new faces this year,
including a new math teacher, Kassandra
Bik. This is Bik’s first year of teaching after
graduating from Wayne State College, and
student teaching for a semester in Wayne.
When Bik was young, she never thought
about becoming a teacher.
“I always wondered why anyone would
want to be a teacher and be at school all the
time,” Bik said.
Bik first realized she wanted to be a
teacher when her college professor had her
instruct the class for a few days.
“After that [teaching] I started thinking
about being a math teacher. I’ve always
liked math,” Bik said.
Bik’s favorite part about teaching is the
relationships built with students.
“I like having that relationship with my
students that I care about them and get the
chance to get to know them,” Bik said.
On top of the relationships with students,
she enjoys the relationships built with other
staff as well.
“The staff here is great,” Bik said.
Growing up in the small town of Emerson, Neb., Bik was involved in many activities such as softball, basketball, volleyball,
gymnastics and dance.
“If I could pick anything, I definitely
miss softball the most,” Bik said.
Because of her love for sports, Bik
decided to become involved in coaching.
She is the assistant coach for the cheerleading team alongside head coach Natalie
Zabrocki.
“Kassie has been a ton of help and a
New Spanish teacher can relate
to students not liking language
By Megan Wade
SPANISH TEACHER AT WORK - Joy Tiefel writes on the board while
teaching one of her Spanish classes. Tiefel came to Yutan after a year of
substitute teaching in Fort Wayne, Ind., where her smallest class had 35
students. Photograph by Megan Wade.
great addition to the team,” Zabrocki said.
Bik enjoys coaching the cheerleaders,
but prefers dance rather than cheer.
“I was a dancer, so I wish it was more
of a dance team than a cheerleading team,
but the girls are nice so that makes it fun,”
Bik said.
Although under much “first-year stress,”
Bik says she likes it here and is hoping to
stay here for years to come.
“May is a long ways away, and a lot can
change, but right now, this is where I want
to be,” Bik said.
Talking, singing and laughing can be heard down the
southwest hallway this year at Yutan High School. With
the addition of Spanish teacher Joy Tiefel, students enjoy
learning Spanish in fun and creative ways.
“She teaches us songs and dances,” freshman Shelby
Fenner said. “They really get stuck in your head.”
Tiefel grew up in Mississippi, with her dad working
as a minister. She was not always sure she wanted to be
a Spanish teacher.
“I hated Spanish in high school, absolutely detested
it,” Tiefel said. “I did not want to be in the class; it was
hard and boring.”
Tiefel’s job experience in a slaughter house in Gibbon,
Neb., led to her future career in teaching and caused her
to pursue a degree in secondary education from IndianaPurdue University.
“I was one of only four people in the entire slaughter
house that spoke English; everyone else spoke Spanish,”
Tiefel said. “I had a realization that as a country we are
going to need to know Spanish, even here in Nebraska.”
Tiefel said that it is important for students to learn
Spanish because Nebraska has a high immigration rate,
and it’s a high probability that students will come into
contact with a native speaker.
“Spanish is definitely the most-needed language
here,” Tiefel said.
Tiefel was a long-term substitute teacher last year at
an inner-city school in Fort Wayne, Ind. She worked in a
large language department as one of four Spanish teachers. Her smallest class size was 35 students.
“It was an experience,” Tiefel said. “I’d say about
an eighth of my classes were native (Spanish) speakers,
which was frustrating because they didn’t want to let us
test them to higher levels because I was Spanish 1.”
Tiefel has five kids and will be teaching her oldest
son in Spanish 1 next school year. Tiefel said she tries
to teach Spanish to her kids at home.
“My sons are open to it [learning Spanish]. My one
daughter hates it,” she said.
Tiefel said that she wanted the job at Yutan so much
because she has family living nearby.
Work begins on activity center
Continued from Page 1
As with any renovation of an older structure, there
were a few snags in the construction process. Lead paint
had to be removed and tuck pointing was also necessary
to repair concrete blocks.
The response of the community has been very positive.
“People are excited to have it back as a functional
building. It’s not only something that helps the school,
but it is good for the community, too,” Johnson said.