athletics - Our Lady of Good Counsel High School

The Talon
Our Lady of Good Counsel High School
May 14, 2010 17301 Old Vic Blvd. Olney, MD 20832 Vol. V Issue IV
Secret Life of Service: Habitat for Humanity 2010
Maura Fries and Sarah Petrocci help with finishing
touches during the Habitat for Humanity service trip.
By Megan Payne
Managing Editor
Sunday:
Our team of 13
arrived at our
destination of Waynesburg, Pa. around
5 o’clock. We meet a local pastor in the
small town. We got to stay at the First
Presbyterian Church. There were three
floors to the church and we girls got
the entire top floor to stay in while the
three guys we had on our team had to
stay in the youth room. The first night
was mainly settling in. We explored
the small town and went to Domino’s
for dinner. Then we went to Wal-
Mart where we bought tons of food
and got some movies. Wal-Mart was a
destination mainly every night. Sadly
most of us did not realize how much
work the rest of the week would be, so
we stayed up watching “The Blind Side.”
Monday:
Photo by Megan Payne
The team had to wake up bright and
early for breakfast and a devotional
which we had every morning. We
met Richard Long who is one of the
main contractors in charge of the
construction of the homes built by
Habitat. He was the guy we always went
to with questions. The first day of work
was mainly outside, because the house
had been built. What was neat about
this house was that we met the future
homeowner’s boyfriend, a local tattoo
artist that was painting the children’s
rooms. He did some of the coolest
drawings for them. Also during the day
after raking the front yard to prepare it
for grass seed, we learned that we had to
dig a trench of about 100 feet for piping.
Trust me it was not pleasant learning
that. We all became “Ditch Witches.”
Tuesday:
Luckily, we were not “Ditch Witches”
forever. We were able to rent a real Ditch
Witch that finished the job in a few
hours. Otherwise, we would have been
working on it for the rest of the week.
Tuesday was mainly working at the
house from the day before doing yard
work. Afterwards, we all took showers
at Waynesburg College’s dorms which
were in walking distance. Definitely the
calmest part of the trip was when we all
basically took naps or did homework
after the showers. It was nice when
we were occasionally let off work early.
Wednesday:
“Hump Day” was challenging because
it seemed like the temperature scale
just kept going up. We went to a
duplex that was at the beginning of its
development. Some of the team, all
our three guys and some of the girls,
laid out the French drainage pipes.
Almost all the girls got to paint two
sheds. Thankfully that was our half day
so we left and got to go to the mall that
was about an hour away. Who knew
Habitat trips were filled with mall and
movie trips. Even Mr. Mooney enjoyed
seeing “The Last Song” with all the girls.
Thursday:
Thursday was spent at an entirely
different location. We worked on what
used to be a mining area and helped
make the warehouse a Christian Bible
camp. The man in charge had a pretty
cool story about how they got the
place. Their church had bought it for
$2 million while it was worth more
than $20 million. They were shooting
to open around July but there was
a lot of work to be done. We did a
lot of sweeping and cleaning up. We
prepared a lot of the way for other
groups to come help paint and finish
up the building. It was cool when we
got to have a volleyball game inside due
to the thunderstorm raging outside.
Also this being our last night, the
board for Habitat for Humanity threw
us a dinner in the church’s kitchen. It
was interesting to meet the different
families who were involved with the
project. It was a close knit community
even though they all came from a few
different churches. The small town
mentality was nice to experience.
It was actually getting sad that we
were going to be heading home the
next day, because over the week as a
team we got to know each other and
become closer than we were before. I
was going to miss the inside jokes, the
team-made dinners and the interesting
conversations in the girls’ rooms. No
matter whether or not we got frustrated
with each other we all became closer. I’m
so glad I went on the trip. Not just for
the fun times but also for the hard work
because it gave me a huge appreciation
for what my parents gave me and for the
work that Richard Long does every day.
Friday:
It was time to go home, but not
before doing some good old work in
the freezing weather. It had gotten
to be a whole different climate in the
mountains. Our team split up into two
groups. One went and did demolition
where they got covered in serious dust.
It looked like the guys had mascara on!
The rest of us stayed at Habitat’s local
warehouse, painted and cleaned up the
fallen trees in the back. Then we said
our goodbyes and headed on the four
and half hours drive home. We were
all tired and ready to take showers
in our own homes. It was definitely
worth going though. It is always worth
it to do service because personally
it gives me a fulfilling feeling. It is
like putting in a lot of exhausting
work to see a really good result.
Inside this issue . . .
Spring
Sports
Wrap-Up
Check
out
the rest of the
April school
Trips!
The Talon
Special
Feature:
Tribute to
the Class
of 2010
Index
Student News.... p 3
Opinion....... p 7, 10
Senior Insert..... p 8
Entertainment.. p 11
Athletics........... p 10

Page 2 May 14, 2010 Editor’s Page
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Editor’s Page
The Talon Staff
Editor’s Pen
Editor-in-Chief
Stephanie Lighter
Managing Editor
Megan Payne
Advertising Manager
Shaun Medina
Layout Editor
Sean Bagnall
News Editor
Danielle Gillespie
Student Life Editor
Rebecca Shipler
Opinion Editor
Tara Johnson
Sports Editor
Scott Chen
By Stephanie Lighter
Editor-in-Chief
It’s no question that school is tough, especially those dreaded final exams. As the
school year of 2009-2010 winds down, we can finally rejoice as the summer of 2010 begins.
After all the hard work we have put in towards passing our classes, we can take some much
needed time off to relax and enjoy the upcoming summer.
While change can be an intimidating concept, it is a necessary phase people must
go through in their lives. Seniors are now faced with the reality that high school is officially
over. The Class of 2010 is no longer a class of high school students and is now alumni. The
time has come for us seniors to make one of the greatest transitions in life from high school
to college. As scary as it can be, this shift is an important one in growing up.
For the rest of the students, college may not seem relevant, but I can promise you
that it will one day become a reality that everyone must face. Whether you are excited to
move on to the next chapter in your life or not, it will be a change that you have to make for
yourself. High school is going to fly by unless you take advantage of every opportunity that
is available to you so enjoy it while you can.
This summer, I encourage you all to do something that matters. Earn some easy
cash at a local job, travel the world and explore life outside of America or even intern for an
organization that you are passionate about. Summer is the time when memories are made,
whether you realize it or not. As short as it may seem, the summer time is a nice break from
school for you to mature outside of the classroom setting.
Although time does move forward as the newly elected president Teju Adewole
and vice-president Inder Takhar take over Good Counsel, never forget to look back on the
memories and experiences of this past year. Remember the time when Good Counsel beat
Dematha in the great football championship game. Remember the time when the school
had a second winter break from the massive snow storm. Remember the time when the
boys of ISA rocked out to a classic ‘N Sync hit on the annual Culture Day. These are some of
the many memories that made this school year an unforgettable one.
Entertainment Editor
Gianna Rico
Photography Editor
Cami Garofalo
Copy Editor
Olivia Jackson
Relations Manager
Lexi Runnings
Artwork Editor
Mary Beck
Distribution Manager
Nick Wager
Staff Writers
Leigh Emig
Ana Nunez
Nora Considine
advisor
Ms. Neugebauer
The Talon
The Journalism class celebrates the accomplishments of a
first successful year and says goodbye to its seniors.
Left to Right: Mary Beck, Leigh Emig, Sean Bagnall, Dani Gillespie, Becca Shipler,
Stephanie Lighter, Megan Payne, Nick Wager, Scott Chen, Nora Consadine, Lexi
Runnings, Olivia Jackson, Ana nunez, Shaun Medina, Gianna Rico, and Tara Johnson.
Publication Goals:
•To provide staff members with an experience of teamwork where they learn the need for
commitment, cooperation, communication and respect for the varied talents of others.
•To improve the writing skills of the staff by teaching proper journalistic format.
•To teach staff members computer skills in word processing, desktop publishing and
graphic design.
•To introduce staff members to the world of Mass Communication.
•To act as a primary outlet as a student news source within the Gold Counsel Community.
•To encourage excellence in the production of photography and artwork.

News May 14, 2010 Page 3
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NEWS
A day of appreciation for our grandparents
On Wednesday,
March 31
By Becca Shipler
Student Life Editor many students
were dropped
off by their…grandparents Good
Counsel hosted its annual Grandparents
Day, a longstanding tradition
at the school. The event lasted
from 8:00 a.m.to noon. The event was
open to all grandparents that had juniors
or freshmen at the school. The
event was extremely popular, with a
tremendous amount of grandparents
walking the halls of Good Counsel.
When the grandparents arrived at
school they were directed to their
parking spots by volunteers from the
National Honor Society. The weather
was frigid, so the volunteers assisted
the grandparents in entering the building
as quickly as possible. Once they
made it safely into the building, they
had the option of attending mass at
7:30 a.m. before the official program.
After the mass, the program began
with a breakfast with Mr. Art Raimo
followed by tours of the school facility.
The grandfather of Riley Griffin, a
junior at Good Counsel, had an excellent
time touring the building. He said
the facility was nice and he had a great
time spending the day with Riley. The
grandparents were given an opportunity
to spend time in the classroom
setting through attending one class
with their grandchildren. During this
period the grandparents saw what the
classes are like at Good Counsel and
many were impressed with the teachers.
One grandparent was so impressed
that she took the time to compliment
Mr. Bob Handler on his teaching style
when her time in the classroom ended.
After the grandparents finished a
class with their grandchildren, they
attended a program of the fine arts
in the Litton Gym. The program included
a collection of songs from the
school’s chorus program, as well as
a scene from the recent theatre production
musical, “Into the Woods.”
Next, the grandparents enjoyed a specially
catered lunch with their grandchildren,
with background music that
included some of the grandparents’
old favorites. This was an excellent
opportunity for the grandparents and
the students to catch up with friends
and to mingle with new acquaintances.
Junior Riley Griffin enjoyed Grandparents
Day. She said, “This was a
really fun way for me to be able to spend
time with my grandpa and to show him
what my life during the school day is
Junior Allison Manucchia enjoys lunch with her grandmother.
Photo Credit: Mr. Joe Cabigas
like on a daily basis. The fine arts
program was extremely well-done and
I had a great time watching a segment
of the spring musical. This was a really
nice day to spend with my grandpa!”
After lunch, it was time for the
grandparents to say goodbye to their
grandchildren and the program
came to a close. There was a
large turnout of grandparents,
which made the event an immense
success! Grandparents
Day will continue to be a lively
tradition at Good Counsel.
Clubs celebrate ethnic traditions on Culture Day
By Dani Gillespie On Friday,
News Editor April 23 the
annual Good
Counsel Culture day took place in the
Kane Center. The Latino Student Association
(LSA), Black Student Association
(BSA), International Student
Association (ISA), and the Guitar Club
participated in the morning’s events.
These groups performed for the entire
school in an hour-long assembly.
The LSA performed first, with the
girls performing a traditional dance.
They wore long skirts, and white or
black shirts. At the end of the dance,
they took off their skirts revealing
short skirts and high heels underneath.
Junior Christopher Melendez,
a three-year member of the
LSA, said that this year, “we digitally
mixed the music, which made
the performances different this year.”
Instead of having one
song, the LSA danced to mixes of
three songs per performance, hoping
to keep up the energy level and
keep the audience entertained.
Melendez’s favorite part of the
LSA’s performance was the senior
dance between Karen Segovia, Randy
Delgado and Rebecca Medina.
“The seniors worked on it by themselves.
We had no idea about it until
about a week before,” Melendez related.
After the LSA’s first performance
came the ISA, who performed
a traditional Tinikling dance.
The BSA performed next. Junior
Gabby Ventura related a brief history of
the origin of hip hop and R&B. Other
members of the club then performed a
step routine. The boys, the Soul Squad,
performed first, and were followed by
the girls, called Divas. The BSA’s performance
ended with the Soul Squad
and the Divas performing as a unit.
The Guitar Club was next to perform.
Club founder Sean Bagnall said of the
club’s decision to perform on culture day,
“the opportunity arose, and we felt that
there is a lot of cultural history behind
the guitar.” The club gave a rendition of
the Spanish song “Guantanamera” with
teachers Mr. Dennis Essig and Mr. Brett
Taylor. Also, sophomore Alex Galiatsatos
completed a solo performance.
Next, the ISA performed again, giving
a rendition of N’Sync’s “Tearing up my
heart,” with junior Garret Taira lip-synching
a solo. This performance was an especially
large hit with the student body.
LSA members gave the final performance,
featuring a dance with
couples. The boys’ outfits, were
all black, with white suspenders.
When asked who decide on the
costumes, Melendez stated that it
was a group decision. “Actually,” he
The Talon
said, “[the decision] was much
more difficult than it seemed.”
The Culture Assembly lasted
for about one hour and fifteen
minutes, and was a big hit
for both students and teachers.
Left: ISA members Tommy
Fortes and Angel Batto
performed a tradtional dance.
Photo Credit: Mr. Joe Cabigas
Above: LSA members Chris Melendez
and Julie Egocheaga performed a
traditional Latin dance.
Photo Credit: Mr. Joe Cabigas
Above: Stanley Spottswood, Stphen
Spottswood, Bobby Mitchell and Kyle
Martn represented the BSA.
Photo Credit: Mr. Joe Cabigas

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Page 4 May 14, 2010 News
NEWS
A ‘harmonius’ adventure to Ithaca
By Tara Johnson
Opinion Editor
On Wednesday
April 14, 2010 at
around 10:00 p.m.,
for a gospel festival. They arrived
in Ithaca until about 9:00 p.m.
Mr. Spottswood has
been involved with
the Ithaca gospel program
since 2006.
Spottswood says, “I got
involved with it when
it first started because
many of the choral festivals
around the
country failed
to recognize
the music of African
American
composers
of
Segovia says, “It was a nice experience
and I could just feel the energy of the
c r o w d .
It made
me want
to sing
b e t t e r . ”
Mr. Spotts
w o o d
had the
privilege
of directing
one of
his own
g o s p e l
pieces at
Pennsylvania. The choir eventually
pulled up to Good Counsel around
7:45 p.m. The trip was a time for the
Good Counsel choir to grow together
and to learn from the great conductors
that were available on the trip.
It made me want to sing better.”
Mr. Spottswood had the privilege
of directing one of his own gospel
pieces at the concert. Seniors Katie
Murray and Stanley Spottswood
even had the chance to sing the solo
to Mr. Spottswood’s original song,
“Awesome and Incredible.” It was
important for Spottswood to be involved
with something that honored
African American composers for
their legitimist repertoire. The choir
left for Good Counsel on Sunday,
but not before long the bus broke
down in Pennsylvania. The choir
eventually pulled up to Good Counsel
around 7:45 p.m.
The trip was a time for the Good
Counsel choir to grow together and
to learn from the great conductors
that were available on the trip.
Mr. Stan Spottswood, a group of
chaperones and the chorus hopped
on a bus to Canada. for the annual
Band and Chorus musuc competition.
The festival took place at York
University in Toronto, Ontario Canada.
The Chorus performed in the
morning. The
Honors Chorus
performed
first, followed
by the Gospel
Choir and
then the Wom-
being worthy of
the concert.
en’s Choir.
being appropriate material
Seniors Katie Murray and Stanen’s
Following the
performances,
all of the choirs received useful feedback
from the festival judges. The
women’s choir placed first in its division,
and honors placed fourth
for the serious portion
of the concert program.”
The next day the Good Counsel
choir, along with many other choirs
from schools and churches all
around the country gathered to perform
ley Spottswood even had the chance
to sing the solo to Mr. Spottswood’s
original song, “Awesome and Incredible.”
It was important for Spottswood
to be involved with something that honored
African American composers for
and the gospel choir placed third.
in one voice. They represent-
their legitimist repertoire. The choir
The choir quickly got on the bus
heading down to Ithaca, New York
ed one choir performing spiritual
and gospel songs by several artists.
left for Good Counsel on Sunday, but
not before long the bus broke down in
The annual band trip--Oh, Canada!
Mary Beck
Artwork Editor
As each of
the four buses filled
with students pulls
out of Good Counsel, and the students
erupt in cheers. The moment
t h e y ’ v e
been counting
down
for since
September
has arrived.
They’re off
to Toronto,
Canada for
the annual
Spring Music
Trip.
Every
year in
April, GC’s
best music
groups head out for a four-day trip
to compete with other schools’ music
groups across the USA and Canada.
This year, Wind Ensemble, Jazz
Ensemble, Symphonic Band, String
Ensemble, Women’s Chorus, Honors
Chorus and the Gospel Choir.
On one day of the trip, each group
performs for a panel of judges. Most
of the judges are music directors at
top-notch universities. On the next
day, the groups attend an awards ceremony
where the scores are revealed
and trophies are handed out to the
groups. Since there’s a lot of time between
the musical performances and
the awards, the time gets filled with a
lot of fun activities and sight-seeing.
This trip is very important for the
Photo Courtesy of Google Images Free Domain
music program at our school. Fine
Arts Chair and director Dr. Slocum
says, “The trip establishes an end
of year goal for our ensembles. It
gives us the opportunity to be evalu
a t e d
by high
l e v e l
profess
i o n a l
m u s i -
c i a n s
a n d
c o n -
ductors.
It enc
o u r -
ages a
sense of
t e a m -
w o r k
among students and it allows
students and families to
get to know each other better.”
Students left by
bus on Wednesday
night at 10
PM and drove
through the
night. They
arrived on the
Canadian side
of Niagara Falls
around 9 a.m.
on Thursday,
where they
took in the waterfalls.
After a
quick lunch in Toronto, the groups
headed to a church where each had
clinics with local music professors to get
some last-minute tips before the competition
the next day. Then the groups
headed to their
hotel, where
many enjoyed
the hotel’s indoor
pool.
On Friday,
the choirs woke
up early to perform
at the
University of
Toronto before
heading off to
Ithaca College
un New York.
The instrumental
groups
slept in and
performed at
the University in the early afternoon.
After the competition the students were
taken to a Blue Jays baseball game,
where they got to
watch the LA Angels
earn a victory in
the last few innings.
Saturday morning,
the students
headed to the CN
The Talon
Tower. They rode
all the way to the
top and enjoyed taking
pictures of the
view. Later, they
weredropped off at
the Eaton Centre
Mall for a couple hours of shopping. Finally,
every group from all of the schools
that competed went to the Medieval
Times in Toronto for the awards ceremony.
When the presentation of
the awards was finished, they enjoyed
an amazing dinner and
show by the Medieval
Times performers. After
an exhausting day,
the groups returned to
the hotel before waking
up early to head
back to Olney, MD.
The performing
groups did an amazing
job at the competition.
The ratings that are
given at musical festivals,
in order of best
to worst, are Superior,
Excellent, Good,
Fair and Poor. Each
group was in a different
category to be judged. For the
choirs, the Honors Chorus received
a rating of Good at 4th place, the
Gospel Choir received an Excellent
and 3rd place, and the Women’s
Choir received an Excellent and 1st
place. For the instrumental groups,
the Symphonic Band received an
Excellent and 2nd place, the Jazz Ensemble
received an Excellent and 1st
place, the String Ensemble received
an Excellent and 1st place, and the
Wind Ensemble received an Excellent
and 1st place.
“I think [they] played very well
and I was very pleased with the outcome,”
says Dr. Slocum. “[They]
represented the school beautifully.”

News May 14, 2010 Page 5
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News
Carl’s cookies, more than meets the eye
A new type of religion class
By Gianna Rico
There’s a
Entertainment Editor new senior
religion class
this year at
Good Counsel that’s quite different
than the other senior classes.
This class is called Service Learning
and is different types of service.
“Service Learning is not just a religion
class. It teaches you valuable
life lessons and Christian character”
says senior Christina Metallinos.
This class does teach you life lessons.
In the beginning of the year students
had to research and personally
contact an agency to set up a volunteer
appointment. As their end of the year
project the class had to create, organize,
and go through with their own
service project. This required several
He likes to
By Camille Garofalo
call himself
Photography Editor
“The director
of concessions”
but is also known as the “hot dog
man”. Though recognized as the hot dog
man who is at all the student events,
many students wonder what the story
is behind the man at Carl’s Corner
Carl Leverenz’s story as the hot dog
man started 12 years ago in Wheaton,
Md. The old Good Counsel concession
stand was shut down due to
health issues. Carl, the father of two
Good Counsel students at the time,
took it upon himself to open a concession
stand in the back of his truck,
where they announced the game from
his sound system in the Good Counsel
parking lot. They raised enough money
to eventually build a brand new concession
stand at the old Good Counsel.
Two years ago, Carl retired from his
full time job as an elementary school
physical education teacher. Mr. Art
Raimo asked him if he would be interested
in a part time job manning
the concession stand. Carl agreed
saying, “I will work the concession
stand if you let any student organization
work- not just the athletic teams”.
A variety of Good Counsel clubs
and sports volunteer with Carl to
fundraise. Half of all profits go to the
school and the other half goes to the
student organization volunteering.
“Everybody wants to work with me!
From football to cheerleaders to student’s
mothers, sometimes students
come to help me just because they
feel bad for me,” Carl said with a grin.
Carl opens the concession stand
y for every athletic event, Speech
and Debate, Special Olympics
and numerous community events.
“It is important for the kids
to know that we are supporting
them and are open for them.”
What is categorized as a part time
job actually requires over 60 hours a
week for Carl. His goal to show support
for every student requires many
overtime hours. He puts in time to
make sure he is at every event, being
present for deliveries, baking the delicious
big daddy cookies and running
to Three Brothers pizza restaurant to
pick up the famous “Carl’s Italian ice.”
Carl always adds new and exciting
items to the menu. Carl also feels it is
important to make sure healthy food is
sold at the stand such as bananas, apples
and oranges. His newest addition to the
menu, the “Tom Arnold burger,” is described
by Carl as “Lean and mean on the
outside, sweet and tender on the inside”.
Carl also thinks of innovative ideas
to improve Good Counsel. His newest
idea of building a picnic pavilion
for the students was originally shot
down by the administration, saying
there was no money in the budget.
When Carl told the administration
he would sell Big Daddies to raise money,
he was laughed at and told it could
not be done. As of May 1st Carl will
have raised $7,000. Construction starts
by this summer and it will be ready by
the start of the 2010-2011 school year.
The amount of time, energy and
charisma Carl brings to work with him
each day is more than most people put
into their jobs over the course of a year.
He lives by the quote; “The purpose
of life is a life of purpose”. He
explains “Working as the hot dog
man gives my life a purpose, a reason
to get up in the morning”.
Carl touches the lives of students, as
well as the Good Counsel community
as a whole each and every day by his actions.
When he takes the money out of
his own pocket to make sure a student is
not left hungry staring at someone else’s
hours of planning outside of class to
make sure everything was perfect.
A few years back Mrs. Weidner had
the idea to start a senior religion class
focused solely on social justice. Fr.
Gross, Mr. Dalphonse, Mrs. Cabigas
and Mrs. Weidner had several discussions
on adding this class, carefully
weighing the pros and cons of starting
a brand new class. Their main
goal was for the students in this class
to become more familiar with the
Catholic Social Teaching on service.
Weidner says, “As the last Religion
course seniors take at Good Counsel,
we wanted the experience to transform
their behavior as well as inform their
thinking about Social Justice issues.”
Weidner reflects on the pressure of
writing an impressive course proposal
food, he’s donating more than an amount
of money in the life of that student. He’s
demonstrating the values of compassion
and generosity through example.
“I can’t stand it when I see a student coming
up with ones of their friends who are
buying food and who can’t buy anything”.
Carl describes his job at Good
Counsel as teaching him how
to live to be a better person.
He describes his goal as “I just try to
give each and every student undivided
attention even if just for a moment.”
Carl shows us that if you have an
idea and work hard you can achieve
you goals. “We’ve come a long way
from my old truck with no tail lights,
to the indoor and outdoor concession
stands as well as the plans of
a picnic pavilion we have today.”
In October 2008 Carl was injured
by a chainsaw. It severely injured the
left side of his face and led him to
many realizations about life and how
to live it. He described the experience
as teaching him that life could
be over any second and you have to
make a difference when you still can.
“It’s all about the present, past is history.”
Carl lives his life day by day. He says;
“I try not to take life too seriously”. He
does not worry about the future and
what may potentially go wrong, but
instead lives the moments that come
to him. He gives his job as “the hot
dog man” everything he has, not ever
asking what’s in it for him, only what
he can give and teach the community.
He believes values and enthusiasm
cannot be taught, only learned through
demonstration. Carl is a man that brings
character and life to the Good Counsel
community. He uses his personality,
and a few big daddy cookies to teach
the values of humility, simplicity, compassion,
trust and zeal that are the foundation
of Good Counsel High School.
The Talon
as to convince administration to allow
the new course. In this proposal Weidner
outlined specific ways to “teach
the principles of Catholic social teaching
through specific local, national,
and international social injustice issues”.
Eventually, with excitement, administration
approved the course and
Mrs. Weidner and Mrs. Cabigas set out
writing a curriculum and class outline.
As the student’s in the class final
project they had to design and execute
their own service project. The
different projects covered a range of
topics all benefiting an array of organizations.
Many students in the class
agree that overall this was a great experience
and are excited that it will be offered
next year for the lower classmen.
Carl Leverenz at his concession stand.
Photo courtesy of Cami Garofalo
GC hosts
a n n u a l
College fair
By Shaun Medina
Ask any high
Advertising Manager
school student
about
college and
most of them will run away screaming.
College is a whole new world
from high school. That is why it is
good that Good Counsel hosted a college
fair. This helped students learn
what they are looking for in a college.
The college fair at Good Counsel
was held on Monday, March 29 at
6:00 pm. Many Good Counsel students
showed up for the fair as well as
students from other high schools like
Holy Cross and St. John’s. There were
also many underclassmen that showed
up to get a head start with figuring out
what they are looking for in a college.
The college fair had a fair number
of colleges that showed up. Some big
names were Syracuse, Penn State, High
Point, Catholic University, LaSalle,
Mount Saint Mary’s, Towson, Purdue,
Villa Nova, Dayton, University of Florida,
Ohio State and Miami University.
100 colleges were scheduled to show
up. Some students felt it could have
been improved if there were more mainstream
colleges that attended. But it was
still great for information and allowed
for many students to better understand.
Crystal Acuna, a college bound junior,
was asked how the college fair
helped her. “I feel that it helped me to
see a lot of colleges and that there a
many options for me out there. I also
thought that it was good that there were
a lot of small colleges out there so they
can get their name out to students.”
The vast majority of the colleges present
gave a plethora of information to the
students. But if you still need more information,
there are many places to find
it. A great place to go is collegeboard.
com, where you can look up and research
colleges and even take a college
match-maker. Also college counselors
are very helpful in making a decision.

Page 6 May 14, 2010 News
6 BLA BLA BLA Exero 01, 5555
News
By Leigh Emig, Pasta, history,
archi-
Staff Writer
tecture, beauty.
So many things come to
mind when one thinks of Italy.
During this year’s spring break,
a group of students and faculty
members from Good Counsel,
traveled to Italy for a vacation
of fun and intrigue in
a country with much to see.
Students seemed to enjoy
the trip. There was so
much for them to see and
experience. Senior Amanda
Nyikos said, “I loved Italy.
It’s the most colorful and cultured
country I’ve ever seen.”
Although the eight hour
flight was tedious it was worth
it when the students arrived
in some of the most culturally
rich places on earth. They
spent their week traveling
through six of Italy’s most famous
cities: Rome, Vatican
City (which in itself is considered
its own country), Narni,
Assisi, Florence and Venice. Rome
was the first stop on their tour,
where they spent three days to shop and enjoy the sights.
Such sights included the world famous Coliseum, the Roman
Forum, and the Trevi Fountain and Vatican City.
“We went to Narnia!” exclaimed senior Margaret Kahwaty.
By Sean Bagnall, Does remaining
Staff Writer on your parent’s
health insurance
until age 26 sound appealing
How about everyone being able to
purchase affordable health care, regardless
of economic standing The
new bill recently passed by Congress
strives to do this and more, but
many people wonder, at what cost
On March 23, 2010 President
Obama signed the Patient Protection
and Affordable Care Act into law. In
the bill were various provisions to reform
health care over a ten year period.
One of the main goals of the
bill was to cover 32 million uninsured
people by 2020, raising the
percentage of insured Americans to
95 percent. Another key provision
was the creation of a state-run health
insurance exchange. This would be
an organized way for the uninsured
and those whose income is under
four times the federal poverty line to
purchase health insurance that is affordable
and fitting for their needs.
Those with pre-existing conditions
would be placed in a high-risk pool,
and would be able to purchase health
insurance through the exchange.
The bill also provided subsidies
to help the poor pay for the insurance
Nights in Italia
They didn’t actually go to
the “Narnia” in the world
famous books, but went to
Narni which inspired Narnia
in C. S. Lewis’s novels.
Here, along with actually
seeing a wardrobe, the group
celebrated Easter Mass.
Later that day, they also visited
Assisi, the home of St.
Francis of Assisi and saw
the Bacilica of St. Francis.
Florence and Venice were
big cities for shopping. Venice
was especially popular
among students, with Kahwaty
praising it as her favorite
spot. The students
spent much of their time
here shopping and found
everything from tacky souvenirs
to one-of-a- kind pieces
to remember their trip.
Wholesome Italian food
was also a staple on this trip.
Everything from pasta and
pizza to gelato and fresh
mozzarella were devoured.
The time spent in Italy,
however, was not only a vacation for
these students but a learning experience. “Seeing how
Photo courtesy of Amanda Nyikos.
Caroline Iciek and Aaron
Kramer in front of the Coliseum.
other cultures live allowed me to change perspectives
on my own life,” said senior Richard Blake. Spain…Italy...where
will Good Counsel send its .students next
Health care will never be the same
The Talon
premiums. Medicaid, a program that provides
health insurance for the extremely
poor, was expanded. Another provision
requires chain restuants and food vending
machines to display the amount of
calories in their food. Also, dependent
children will be allowed to stay on their
parents’ plans until they turn 26 years old.
In order to pay for the bill, taxes would
be placed on pharmaceutical companies,
indoor tanning services, and health insurance
companies. Revenue would
also be brought in through fines gathered
from employers that don’t provide
health insurance and fines gathered from
people that choose not to be insured. In
addition, there would be increases in
medicare payroll taxes of individuals
making $200,000 and families making
$250,000. Over the next ten years the
revenue from these taxes is projected to
cover the costs of the bill, and this health
care overhaul is supposed to significantly
reduce the deficit due to all the reforms.
As the bill was worked out in the
House of Representatives and the Senate,
there was much heated debate as to
its provisions. A lucid division along party
lines was vividly shown in the House’s
final vote of 219-212, with the Democrat
majority passing the bill. Along
with thirty-four Democrats, not a single
Republican voted for the bill. Republicans
in the House desperately fought
against the legislation, at one point
holding up signs reading “Kill the Bill”.
Representatives who opposed the
bill disagreed with the high cost of the
health care overhaul: close to $1 trillion.
Taxes would be increased and new taxes
would be introduced to pay for this.
Many representatives disagreed with
this since many citizens’ taxes are high
already. Another issue that was brought
up was the mandate that everyone must
purchase health insurance. There were
claims that forcing the people to purchase
health insurance is unconstitutional.
Also, a group of pro-life legislators
threatened to vote no if there wasn’t
a clear provision to ban federal funding
of abortions. However, President
Obama issued an executive order clarifying
this issue and the legislators decided
to vote yes. Despite the opposition
to the bill the Democratic majority
pushed the bill through to its passage.
With luck this bill will live up to its
expectations without harm to our current
system nor increase to our deficit.
Hopefully, Congres will try to work together
next time, negotiating their differences
for the prosperity of the country.
New SGA
By Olivia Jackson, They have given
Copy Editor their speeches
already and
even started the routine of Monday
morning meetings. Here is
a look at the newly elected Student
Government Association
and what its leaders had to say.
Question 1: What changes
do you hope to introduce
Question 2: What are some of the
challenges of your position and how
are you qualified to meet them
Question 3: How do you and your
partner make an effective team
Question 4: What ultimate impression
do you want to leave
Student Body President Tejumade
“Teju” Adewole and
Vice President Inder Takhar:
Q1: (Teju) Next year, the first
thing we plan to do is [set up] feedback
boxes around the school, so
others can put their suggestions
for improvements to the school.
Q2: (Inder) There are many challenges.
We have to get everything
passed by administration which
can be tough. Also we must make
the student body more enthusiastic.
Q3: (Teju) Inder and I work together
like “Mario and Luigi.” We constantly
bounce ideas off of each other
and know when it’s time to work,
and when it’s time to play. We will
bring this same vitality to the team.
Q4: (Inder) Make 2010-2011
the best high school year ever.
Junior Class Representatives
Erin Kelley and Sarah Schoch
Q1: We hope to improve school
spirit and student involvement
in events. We also want to incorporate
our class’s suggestions.
Q2: It can be challenging to listen
to everyone’s opinions but we
plan to use new strategies to do so.
Q3: We’ve both been friends for
a while and we can work together
well in planning and organizing.
Q4: We hope to leave a good impression
and that we will leave
Good Counsel with a lasting impact.
Sophomore Class Representatives
Caroline Byrne and Bridgette Ryan
Q1: (Caroline) I’d like to have a place
on the website where you can request
songs for music Friday. Bring more
spirit and 2nd pep [rally] maybe.
Q2: (Bridgette) I think some
challenges are time management
and organization but these
have always been my strength.
Q3: (Caroline) We can
bounce ideas off of each other
and then [compromise].
Q4: (Bridgette) I just want to make
an impression and have people remember
me and the changes I made.

Opinion March 17, 2010 Page 7
Exero 01, 5555 BLA BLA BLA 7
Opinion
Behind the scenes: the training room
By Ana Nunez,
Staff Writer
By Shaun Medina,
Staff Writer
Good Counsel is
known to have impressive
athletic programs.
Look around and you know that at least one
person plays a sport. A lot of the sports are
recognized to do really well and are state, if
not nationally ranked. Many of the athletes
revolve their lives around a sport. This much
time spent on a sport is hard for the body.
That’s why when you walk down the athletic
hallway, you see kids coming and going
from a little place called the training room.
The training room was introduced in
1992 when Mrs. Amy Prezelski arrived to
Good Counsel. She laid the foundation of
the program and wanted to show the benefits
of having an athletic training room.
She was devoted to educate the athletes
about how their injuries shouldn’t be taken
lightly and in order to get better; they
must take responsibility of their own bodies.
Throughout the coming years, she got
help from others who shared her vision.
In 1997, Athletic Trainer, Pete Kotz,
joined the team and has been at Good
Counsel ever since. His purpose of coming
to Good Counsel was to continue what
Nearing the end
of sophomore year,
students are given
the choice to play
ball in the big leagues. Not literally but
in the sense that they get to take more
challenging courses. They have the option
to take the AP path or the IB path.
These options are not as different as
one may think. An issue is that some
think that there should be a restriction
saying that AP students should not be
able to be involved in IB classes. But it
would be unfair to have this restriction.
All classes should be open to all students.
Taking either of these paths will result
in being very much challenged and will
showcase any student’s academic ability.
This is why AP students should be allowed
to take the same classes as IB students.
For example, there are the IB science courses.
It would not be fair for only IB students
to be able to take these courses because
they are more interactive than the AP level
courses. In IB sciences classes, the labs are a
huge part of it and they allow the students to
take a more hands-on approach to learning.
Not only does IB offer good science
classes, it also offers, arguably, the most
challenging math class that the school
offers. The IB Higher Level Math class
is a two credit class that takes students
through a year’s worth of pre-calculus during
its first semester. Then immediately
after, they take a semester of calculus. This
class is very beneficial to students, so why
should it be limited to only IB students
Besides the fact that IB offers several
courses that should be open to all students,
integrating the classes is a way of not
The Good Counsel Training Room.
Photo Courtesy: Ana Nunez
Mrs. Prezelski started. He wanted to
have a program where the technology
and care would be equivalent of that
IB or not to be, that is the question
completely isolating the IB students.
Students in the IB program are stuck
with mostly their same peers in every
class. The fact that other students
can take IB classes allows for a more
diverse class. That way, all of the IB
students aren’t completely separated
from the rest of the student body.
Also, all non-IB students do not get
college credit for taking IB classes and
cannot take the exams. Non-IB students
take these classes willingly. It is
because there is much that is offered
to IB students that can help them to
get ahead of their peers. It would be
unfair to not share the opportunity
with the rest of the student body.
That is why non-IB students should
be able to take IB classes. There is so
much offered to them through the
IB style of teaching and it is a good
way to keep the IB students connected
to the rest of the student body.
The Talon
of a college-level training room.
From 1997-2002, Pete worked
on getting funds to get the
equipment he thought was necessary
to have such as a stem machine
and ultrasound machines.
The only indivduals who would
remember the old training
room are the seniors who spent
one semester at the old campus.
“It was a 75-foot long by 12-feet
wide room with 2 treatment
tables and two taping stations,”
said Athletic Trainer, Pete Kotz.
That is how small the training
room was at the old school. First
order of business for Pete was to
ask for cabinets to hold all the
supplies needed. Many of the
tables and cabinets were built
by Pete himself, who is a selfproclaimed
carpenter. Along
with the limited space, there was also
a small television where the basketball
team of 1998-1999 would watch
The Simpsons before their games.
That is why when the plans for
Enjoying a Hobby
Relaxing with friends
Summer Jobs
Traveling
Summer Plans
0 50 100 150
the new training room were beginning,
many knew that in order to accommodate
the athletes; it would
have to be bigger, much bigger
Later on, Dr. David Higgins came to the
team. He was a private doctor who also
offered his time to help the school. Along
with Mr. Raimo, who supported the
program, promoted health and safety by
providing the best sports medical care.
The next ones to come to the program
were Skylar Saar who came to
Good Counsel in 2004 and Kelly Piazza
in January of 2008. Saar has a
reputation for getting athletes back
into shape by providing workouts that
rehabilitate the athletes’ injuries. Piazza
comes as an athletic trainer who
along with Pete and the others takes
a team approach in sports medicine.
Senior Katie Koenig says, “The athletic
trainers are really helpful and
they are willing to help you take
care of yourself. They offer accessible
treatments there that I think are
very unique to have at our school.”
Summer
Plans

8 BLA BLA BLA Exero 01, 5555
Our Memories...
Troy Gloster – “My most memorable moment
was wining the WCAC championship. It was
a great feeling to win after being there after 6
years in a row.”
Falc
F
Kenny Robinson – “Florida trip with my track
team junior year.”
Garrett Schmidt – “Going to California for the
football team”
Jeff Gan – “El Salvador service trip.”
Alecia Dennis – “The football WCAC championship
and winning against St. Johns’ in soccer
this year in the WCAC championship.”
2
Suzanne Perucci – “Being at the old GC in
Wheaton”
Jemel Sessoms – “Winning in track and breaking
2 school records”
Sarah Fitzgerald – “The pep rally freshman
year”
Kevin Nguyen – “Junior Retreat. April Army!”
John Picciano – “Football WCAC championship
win”
Julia Michaloski – “Pep rallies”
Liam Fox – “Snow days”
Hilary Freeman – “Craziness at L.I.F.E meetings”
Molly Shawhan – “Winning the lacrosse WCAC
championship for 7 years in a row”
Richard Blake – “Band concerts”
Carly Larkin – “I will miss the friends that I
made here at Good Counsel.”
Mary Beck – “My favorite memories are the
band trips that we go on every year.”
Ana Nuñez – “I will miss going to the sporting
events and just being a part of something like
Good Counsel.
Where Are W
American U. La Salle U.
Augusta State U.
Limestone Co
Boston College
Loyola U. Mar
Boston U.
Jacksonville U
Brown U.
James Madiso
Bryant U.
Loyola U. New
Capital U.
Marist College
Carnegie Mellon U.
Marymount U
Catholic U.
McDaniel Col
Clemson U.
Montgomery C
Coastal Carolina U.
Mount Saint M
College of Charleston New York U.
Columbia U.
North Carolin
Cornell U.
Northeastern
Delaware Valley College Penn State U.
DePaul U. Princeton U.
Drexel U.
Providence Co
Duquesne U. Radford U.
U. of Dayton Robert Morris
East Carolina U.
Saint Francis U
Elon U. Salisbury U.
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical U. –FL
Savannah Coll
Franciscan U. of Steubenville Shepherd U.
Frostburg State U.
Shippensburg
George Mason U. St. John’s U. –
Georgetown U. St. Joseph’s U.
Georgia Tech
St. Mary’s coll
Gulf Coast Community College Stanford U.
High Point U. Stevenson U.
Hofstra U.
SUNY Maritim
Indiana U. of Pennsylvania Towson U.
Jacksonville U.
Tri-County Te
James Madison U.
U. of Californi
Johns Hopkins U.
U. of Cincinna
Keystone College
U. of Colorado
Senior Advice
So they’re leaving, graduating, and moving on to bigger and better things, but
the sen10rs didn’t want to leave without passing on some quality advice…
“Even if you are a freshman, your grades matter.” - Katie Dubitsky
“Take three APs. Having two free periods make[s] it well worth it. Don’t
stress too much about college or SATs.” –Ben Mitchell
“Senioritis stinks! It’s bad. Don’t slack off—it is hard to come back from not
doing any work and final grades count!” –Aislinn Cunningham
“Don’t be afraid to get involved in the school. Be open-minded and make the
most of all the opportunities Good Counsel has to offer.” –Courtney Tolson

Exero 01, 5555 BLA BLA BLA 9
ons
ly Away
010
e Going
U. of Dayton
llege
U. of Delaware
yland
U. of Mary Washington
. U. of Maryland, Baltimore County
n U.
U. of Maryland, College Park
Orleans
U. of Miami
U. of New Hampshire
. U. of Notre Dame
lege
U. of Pennsylvania
ollege, Rockville
U. of Pittsburgh
ary’s U.
U. of Richmond
U. of Rochester
a State U.
U. of Scranton
U. U. of South Carolina
U. of Tennessee, Knoxville
U. of Virginia
llege
U. of Wisconsin, Madison
UNC – Greensboro
U. United States Air Force Academy
. Villanova U.
Virginia Military Institute
ege of Arts and Design
Virginia Tech
Wake Forest U.
U. of Pennsylvania Washington College
Queens
West Liberty State College
West Virginia U.
ege of Maryland Xavier U.
York College of Pennsylvania
e College
chnical College
a at Berkeley
ti
at Boulder
A Letter From Mr. Graham
Dear Students,
As a high school student, I had no idea of what career I wanted to pursue. In college,
I decided to become a teacher and it turned out to be the right profession for
me. I have loved being an educator. I still love what I do and that made my decision
to retire so difficult. In addition to that, of all the places in which I’ve served, Good
Counsel is my favorite.
It has been a lot of fun and very rewarding to see Good Counsel grow in enrollment
and status during these past eight years. It was taxing but exciting planning for, and
moving into, a new building. It’s been challenging, but gratifying as we improved
our academic offerings and increased our program opportunities for our students.
All these things happened because Our Lady of Good Counsel has a strong president
who has set high expectations, a Board of Directors which has been extremely
supportive and, most importantly, a group of dedicated and talented teachers and
staff.
Of course, the most important part of any school is the students. I have found that
Good Counsel students understand and embrace the sense of community that is
so important to a Xaverian Brothers sponsored school. From my first day at GC, I
noticed how everyone seemed to be accepted and welcomed. Students are generally
positive, friendly, engaging and polite. Visitors are always commenting on how
well they are treated by our students. It has been my perception that Good Counsel
students enjoy school and really want to be here. Each day I look forward to seeing
you, interacting with as many of you as possible, and in general, just enjoying the
smiling faces. I will miss that.
While I look forward to my retirement and having the time to engage in and enjoy a
number of planned and unplanned leisure activities, I will certainly miss the energy
and excitement that I have experienced at Our Lady of Good Counsel. I plan to
be a frequent visitor at GC events and look forward to seeing current students and
alumni alike during these occasions.
I know that I have been blessed by having the opportunity to serve as the principal
of Our Lady of Good Counsel High School. I could not have found a better place
and experience to conclude my career. Of all the highlights, getting to know so
many Good Counsel students and alumni has been the best. Thank you for being a
part of my life and allowing me to be a part of yours. I will miss all of you.
Sincerely,
John P. Graham, Principal
End-of-Year Calendar
Last Day of School For Seniors.......May 14
Senior Exams...............................May 17-20
Prom/Post Prom.........................May 21-22
Senior Breakfast & Awards..............May 24
Graduation Rehearsal......................May 25
Graduation.........................................May 27
Beach Week!.....................Starting May 29!
“Take advantage of the IB program and don’t feel threatened by the upperclassmen.”
– Kaitlin Mills
“Don’t be afraid to make new friends.” – Gianna Rico
“Try to attend as many Good Counsel events as possible, including games,
plays and afterschool activities.” – Stephanie Lighter
“Watch out for Mr. Arnold!” & “Challenge yourself and take advanced classes—colleges
like that.” - Nick Wager

10 BLA BLA BLA Exero 01, 5555
Page 10 May 14, 2010 OPINION
OPINION
The Kane Show
By: Dani Gillespie It calls
News Editor out cheaters
on the
radio, gives
updates on celebrity gossip every
30 minutes and discusses pop culture
issues. These are just three elements
that blend together to create
the experience that is the Kane Show.
The Kane Show is a radio
show on Hot 99.5 FM every weekday
Photo Courtsey of Google Images
Falcon 5K raises money for endowment fund
By Sean Bagnall
Layout Editor
morning from 5 a.m. to 10 a.m. The
host, known to listeners as Kane, is
supported by cast members Sarah,
Sammy, and Eric. Sarah is the token
girl on the show, who is spunky
enough to voice her opinion. Sammy
is always up to some new antics, like
when he tried to park a car blindfolded
and placed a snake in Sarah’s bed.
The best part of the Kane Show
is the group dynamic. Each cast
member adds his or her own personality
to create a show that
appeals to a broad audience.
Besides having his conract
extended for three more years,
Kane has taken on a nationwide radio
broadcast on Sunday nights. His
show is broadcast not only in the
Washington Metropolitcan area , but
in Florida and Tennessee as well.
The most infamous part of the
show is the War of the Roses. People
who suspect their significant other of
cheating on them call or email Kane
describing their situation. Kane then
calls the potential cheater pretending
to be an employee of a flower
company who is offering a dozen
free roses. He asks the person to
whom they would like to send the
roses, and oftentimes the people do
not choose their significant others.
The cheaters reveal themselves.
Another unique part of
the show is the audience interaction.
Kane welcomes listener
input for topics of discussion
and encourages them to call
in to share their experiences.
A huge contingency of
Good Counsel listens to the Kane
Show regularly. When asked what
part of the show she likes best,
junior Allegra Johnston said “I
really like the issues that Kane
discusses. This morning he was
talking about people who accidentally
got locked inside of stores at
night. It was amazing how many
people this had happened to!”
As summer vacation arrives,
and students are no longer
required to wake up at the crack of
dawn for school, how many students
will be awake early enough to listen
to the Kane Show Here’s hoping
that this journalist will not be.
But come the fall, it will be nice to
have something to look forward to.
Top 10 Things
To Do During
Summer
Photo Courtsey of Google Images
By Nora Considine
Staff Writer
1. Show the world your toes!
Break out the flip-flops you’ve
stashed away all winter.
2.. Take a road trip with some
friends.
3. Jump whole-heartedly into
the ocean (who cares if the water is
cold!)
4. Lay low at home-drink lemonade
and read a book.
Good Counsel held its third
annual Falcon 5K run/walk and
kids’ fun run on Saturday, April
24. This event raised money for
the school’s financial aid Endowment
Fund. One-third of the
school’s student body relies on
this aid to attend Good Counsel.
“The Alumni and Development
offices founded the tournament,
one, to raise funds for the endowment
for financial aid and,
two, to provide a new community
event for alumni, parents,
students, faculty/staff, and the
Olney community at-large. It offers
a different option than a lot
of our other events and is a great
family or group outing,” said
Ms. Costello, Alumni director at
Good Counsel.
Those who participated in the
run received 2 service hours if
they registered individually. If
they registered as a team, they
received 3 service hours. The 5
kilometer course started at Good
Counsel, and snaked down along
Route 108. Runners then entered
into the Hallowell Development
and ran along those footpaths,
and back up 108 into Good
Falcon 5K runners warm up.
Counsel’s Kline Stadium, where
it ended. There were 230 students,
faculty, staff, family, and alumni
that attended the event. Also, the
weather was cool and clear: perfect
for a nice run.
Of the men who tackled the Falcon
5K, Michael Fitzgerald came
in first place, with a time of 17:53,
Jack Riely came in second with a
time of 18:25, and Allen Meringolo
placed third with a time
of 18:49. For the women, Katie
Koenig finished first, with a time
of 21:40, Carravit Pape-Calabrese
came in second with a time of
22:07 and Erin Britt finished third
with a time of 22:08.
“I ran last year and came in third.
The Talon
Photo Courtesy of GC Advancement Office
During the race this year I was
trying to pull away from all the
other guys who are on the track
team with me. The 5K was a
hard race and hurt a lot, but it
felt good when I finished,” said
Michael Fitzgerald. “I decided
to run in the race because, one,
everything goes to a good cause.
Two, many of my friends were
running and it was fun. Three, it
was a good workout doing a 5K,
and I love to run.”
Apparently, school spirit and
pride are still high at Our Lady
of Good Counsel. As long as
there is spirit, people thrive and
bond as a community.
5. So you wanna be tan Catch
some rays at the local pool.
6. Remember the money you’ve
been working for all winter Spend
it!
7. Run, walk, bike, talk-do whatever
you can to be outside!
8. Hang out and bond with your
family.
9. Bring out the chef in you and
make homemade popsicles!
10. Most importantly, have fun
and be SAFE!
Congrats, Falcons!
We made it to
S u m m e r
2 0 1 0 !

Exero 01, 5555 BLA BLA BLA Entertainment May 14, 2010 Page 11
Entertainment
Nickleback Makes A Comeback
By Lexi Runnings
Relations Manager
On April 14,
2010 the Verizon
Center was
jam packed, the
seats were filled and a huge crowd of
people stood in front of the stage. The
lights began to dim,
the room filled with
evil jack-in-the-box
music and the stage
filled with fire as
Nickleback made
its first appearance.
The show started
out with the band
Sick Puppies, an
Australian pop punk
band who until now
hasn’t really gained
much fame. Their
energy was great as
they a played a few
songs, their most
popular song called
“Going Down.”
The next band up
was Shinedown.
The band came out
dressed from head to toe in black clothing.
They worked hard to get the crowd
pumped up and excited for their set. They
began strong with their hit “If You Only
Knew”.”The lead singer Brent Smith took
frequent breaks to thank the fans and
By Stephanie Lighter
L i f e
moves fast
Editor in Cheif and it is easy
to lose focus
on what
is most important in life. Given the
ultimate deadline, people are forced to
submit to
the dayt
o - d a y
trivialities
t h a t
sometimes
“ b u r y ”
their lives.
R ecently,
MTV aired
a show
c a l l e d
“ T h e
B u r i e d
L i f e ” .
C a m e r a s
f o l l o w
four young
men, Dave
L i n g w o o d ,
Ben Nemtin, Jonnie Penn and Duncan
Penn, as they go on a journey to
complete 100 things on a list to do
before they die. As they complete
each item on their list, they help a
stranger achieve one of their dreams.
The four boys came together in 2006 and
realized that they all felt like something
was missing in their lives. They decide
to do something about this by creating
a list of their shared life goals. After
fundraising and working at various
the crowd for being so attentive. Shinedown
finished with the famous poprock
chart-topper “Second Chance.”
The set change was brief as Breaking
Benjamin got ready to take the stage.
They started out their set list with the
s o n g
“I Will
B o w ”
with such
s t r o n g
energy it
blew the
c r o w d
away. A
few minutes
into
its set the
Frontman of Breaking Benjamin,
Benjamin Burnly. Photo courtseyof Google Images
jobs to raise money for their trip, the
boys started completing their list in
British Columbia. They were able to
accomplish 24 items on their list while
also helping 28 strangers with theirs.
MTV first offered them a show in
November 2006, but to stay true to the
grassroots
m i s s i o n ,
the boys
decided to
keep going
a l o n e .
However,
they went
ahead with
the offer
in 2010 as
season one
of “The
B u r i e d
L i f e ”
premiered
on MTV
on January
18, 2010
around the
world, crossing off the item 53 on
their list by having their own TV show.
Many questioned why the
show was called “The Buried Life”. The
saying comes from a poem, written by
Matthew Arnold in 1852. The idea is that
day-to-day things can sometimes bury
people and make them forget about
what they are passionate about in life.
For every item the boys complete on
their list, they help a stranger achieve
one of their dreams. They help and
The Talon
band experienced
a brief
technical
difficulty
when the
speakers
blew out,
w h i c h
happened
twice more throughout the rest of its set.
That did not phase them though. Ben
Burnley, the lead singer, continuously
made jokes about “knowing you’re
at a real rock show when the speakers
blow out.” Although the set was absolutely
amazing, there was a downside:
the instruments were so loud
that the actual singing was muffled.
It took awhile for Nickleback to
take the stage. As the crowd waited,
they watched the stage transform.
Equipment was moved and another
half of the stage was revealed. Risers
with steps were set up on each side
of the stage. The evil jack-in-the-box
music began to play and Nickleback
came out with a burst of flames. The
band opened with “Burn It To The
Ground” to go with the fire filled stage.
Their entire set was phenomenal
with several big screen TV’s hanging
in the center of the stage. As
the show played on different videos
were played on the screens. During
the song “Photograph” pictures of
the band throughout the years were
shown. This added a personal touch,
connecting the band and crowd. Towards
the middle of its set the band
switched gears completely, moved
down the stage towards the crowd and
began to play softer acoustic songs.
Before its set completely ended, the
crowd got a special treat. While the
rest of the band went backstage for a
break, the focus turned to drummer
Daniel Adair. His drum set raised into
the air a few feet and rotated in a circle
while he beat out an intense solo. The
Burried With Curiosity
Photo courtsey of Google Images
encourage others to go after their own
lists. The purpose of the show isn’t just
to go after goals while having a great
time and sharing memories. It also
forces people to evaluate their own
lives and question whether they are
going after their goals as well or not.
What do you want to do before
you die It is universally the most
important question to ask. As filming
for the second season of “The Buried
Life” begins, people across the world
are now more excited to achieve the
impossible. The show opens people’s
eyes and is truly an inspiration.
Photo courtsey of Google Images
band came back out to finish their set
with a strong ending. They finished
with a show-stopping rendition of
“Rockstar”. All in all the show was well
done, all bands played their best and
really showed what they’re made of.
So You Wanna
Train Your Dragon
By Giaana Rico
Entertainment
Editor
“How to Train
Your Dragon”: the
title just sounds
awesome. Let’s be
honest, it seems like a children’s
movie and although it is, it’s enjoyable
for all ages. DreamWorks Pixar certainly
did not fall short with this one.
The movie focuses on a character
named Hiccup (voiced by Jay Baruchel),
a young Viking boy who
wants to grow up to be just like his
tough dragon hunting dad, Stoick
(voiced by Gerard Butler). Hiccup
decides to show the older,
rougher dragon hunters that he too
can be just like them by hunting
down a powerful, dangerous dragon
called a Nightfury.
Disappointed that his elders
don’t believe him he goes to find
the wounded dragon. To Hiccup’s
surprise he learns that dragons
aren’t aggressive or mean animals
like the other Vikings had
taught him, but that they’re actually
quite gentle and friendly.
Hiccup bonds with his new pet
and names him Toothless because
his teeth can disappear into
his gums. The rest of the movie
is just as charming as the beginning.
It chronicles Hiccup teaching
Toothless how to fly again.
With the new-found friendship
between Hiccup and Toothless,
Hiccup learns all about dragons
and moves to the top of his
dragon hunting class. With this
new knowledge, Hiccup also decides
to never hurt another dragon.
As Hiccup and Toothless bond
and grow in their relationship,
Hiccup and his father’s, relationship
starts to break a little. Stoick
takes a strong stand against Hiccup
keeping Toothless as his pet.
“How to Train Your Dragon” is
chock full of visually, stunning images
and clever, witty lines. The
star filled cast just adds to this
films charisma. This movie has
something for everyone and of all
ages. “How to Train Your Dragon”
is sure to please everyone!

Page 12 May 14, 2010 entertainment
12 BLA BLA BLA Exero 01, 5555
entertainment
A book you can sink your teeth into!
By Mary Beck
Art Work Editor
Ever since the
rise of “Twilight”’s
fame, there’s been
a battle between “Twilight” and “Harry
Potter”. But why choose when you
don’t have to Author Richelle Mead
has offered a series that has the best
of both worlds: “Vampire Academy”.
In “Vampire Academy”, there are
schools devoted specifically to vampires
so that they can receive not only
a normal education, but also an education
in magic (for Moroi students).
These schools also train students in
physical combat (for dhampirs) so
that the dhampirs can act as guardians
to the Moroi and take down the
undead Strigoi vampires who are a
threat to vampires and humans alike.
The series focuses on the lives of
Rose Hathaway, a dhampir promising
to be an amazing guardian, and her best
friend Lissa Dragomir, a royal Moroi.
Their days at St. Vladimir’s Academy
are usually spent trying to uncover the
secrets behind Lissa’s mysterious magic
and trying to hide Rose’s romance
with her instructor Dimitri from
the world. However, danger always
seems to be following the girls, and
in the series’ latest installment, the
stakes are higher than ever before.
“Blood Promise,” the fourth novel
in the series, finds Rose searching
Russia for Dimitri to fulfill a
promise she made to him. The
emotional pain Rose is experiences
coupled with her intense run-ins
with both mysterious humans and
vampires makes for an exciting
ride for both her and the reader.
Richelle Mead is the master of
suspense; every moment from the
first page to the last keeps readers
turning the pages, anxious to
find out what happens next. And,
for the first time since the first
book, the ending contains a glimmer
of hope for Rose’s future.
Vampire Academy is the perfect
series for anyone looking for
a vampire fix, a magical story fix,
a combination of both, or just
something really good to read.
Mead’s story is unique and gripping,
so it should definitely find a
way onto your summer reading list.
Book to fill your break!
By:Olivia Jackson
Copy Editor
Summer is approaching
quickly,
and Good
Counsel students are on the cusp of
a long vacation. Why not use some
of this free time to do personal reading
and relax with a book outside
the curriculum Mrs. Marybeth Milcetich,
the school’s Media Center
Specialist, shared a few recommendations
for enjoyable summer reads.
1
“Carbon Diaries 2015”
and sequel “Carbon Diaries
2017,” by Saci Lloyd
—These stories jolt the reader into
quite an unfamiliar setting—London
five years from now. The first diary
captures teenager Laura Brown’s insights
into a society that just began
a program of carbon-rationing. This
anti-global warming campaign takes a
toll on Laura as she tackles the combined
challenge of growing up and
dealing with the ecological frenzy. The
sequel introduces another unique scenario;
this time, Laura’s band is planning
a tour in Europe just as a neo-
Nazi group and an extremist “save the
planet” organization begin to stir commotion.
Milcetich cautions that “you
have to get used to the language supposedly
used in the future” because
it is “more like text message talking.”
2
“Caught,” by Harlan Coben
—This suspenseful story follows
the search for a missing collegebound
girl. Tension abounds as a
reporter from the girl’s hometown
launches a sting operation to expose
the criminal responsible for her disappearance.
Milcetich says that this
is “an adult book for the ‘mature’
reader,” but praises the story for its
action and excitement. “I have never
read an author before who is so
unpredictable with his plot twists.
Just when you think you know
what is going on, he surprises you.”
3
“Going Bovine,” by Libba Bray
—Milcetich says this book “is
supposed to be very funny about
a 16-year-old teen boy suffering
from ‘mad cow’ disease.” Cameron,
the afflicted boy, embarks
on a journey similar to the one
he had been reading about Don
Quixote. As he seeks a missing
Doctor X to rescue the world and
cure his disease, Cameron encounters
a Dark Wizard, fire giants and
many other fantastical elements.
The Talon
A trip “Into the Woods”
By:Becca Shipler Cinderella
wishes
Student Life editor
to attend the
King’s festival, Jack wishes that
his cow, Milky-White, would
give him some milk, Rapunzel
wants to escape from the tower,
the Baker and his wife wish
to have a child and the Witch
wishes for both youth and power.
These characters from the timeless
tales of the Grimm Brothers
find themselves in an interesting
plotline in Stephen Sondheim’s
musical, “Into the Woods.”
Good Counsel’s theatre department
did six productions of “Into
the Woods” between Saturday
March 6 and Sunday March 14.
The Good Counsel production
of “Into the Woods” was performed
at the historic Olney Theatre.
It was directed by Mr. Hilary
Rinke and the musical band was
directed by Dr. Richard Slocum.
There were a great number of talented
cast members with stand
out performances from Kate
Williams, Sara Petrocci, Craig
Vincent, Tendo Nsubuga, Katie
Murray, and Will Redmond.
The musical included familiar
characters from classic
fairy tales and fused them
with a very original, though
sometimes complicated, plot.
Through various twists and
turns the characters interact with
each other and most of them
find their “happily ever after.”
One highlight of the production
was the closing number,
“Ever After,” in which all of
the cast participated. The music
in the production was very
well-done and entertaining. The
dancing was fine and the costumes
were excellent, especially
Cinderella’s ballroom gown.
What really made the production
stand out was the energy of the cast
and the beautiful set design. The students
created backgrounds, a tree, and
a very realistic looking tower, which
housed some of the most dramatic
parts of the musical. The energy of the
cast was apparent throughout the entire
play, which spread to the audience,
who laughed throughout the musical.
Junior Sarah Ruppert, who was on the
technical crew, exclaimed “The cast
performed very well. They deserved
the success they received. It was very
entertaining and while I was backstage
the music kept me fully entertained.”
The musical was very successful
and there were numerous performances
with a full house. The theatre
department was very dedicated to the
production and a few of the graduating
seniors plan to continue their
love of theatre by pursuing it as a
major in college. The audiences enjoyed
the performances, making it
one of the most successful productions
Good Counsel has done recently.

The Talon
ATHLETICS May 14, 2010 Page 13
Exero 01, 5555 BLA BLA BLA 13
ATHLETICS
GC’s On The Right Track
By Ana Nunez
Staff Writer
It’s been a
long and grueling
season for the
Good Counsel track team, but everyone’s
hard work is finally paying off.
Both the girls’ and boys’ teams
ended the indoor season on a good
note with high expectations for the
spring. Their times in the relays were
in the top of the leaderboards for
both Montgomery County and the
WCAC. But these times were expected
to drop during the spring season.
At the beginning of the spring
season, it was pure work and seeing what
the coaches would be working with. A
few athletes went up to Boston, Mass. to
participate in the Nike Indoor Nationals.
The following week was the 1st
Annual Falcon Invitational which was
held at the Kline Stadium.
This was a successful meet
where most of the Good Counsel
athletes worked the majority of the
meet rather than running in it. The
next weekend, the Falcons ran at Cougar
Relays where the boys won overall
and the girls placed third overall.
That following Wednesday,
the track team headed down to compete
in the Florida Relays where the
warm weather was nice weather and it
would definitely help some of the times.
Both the relays and individual
times were amazing. Senior Kyle
Graves broke his personal and school
record by running a 4:13.34 in the
1600m run. Junior Thomas Tallerico,
who had broken the school record before,
broke it again with a 1:55.13 in the
800m run. The boys’ 4x200m relay ran
a 1:28.58 taking the top time in area’s
leaderboard. Junior Teju Adewole gave
a time of 14.37 in the 100m hurdles.
One of the track team’s most
long awaited meets each year is the Penn
Relays. This is one of the biggest meets
of the year due to the large amount of
teams and athletic competition as well
as the talented athletes who come
to run. From high school to collegiate,
and even the world teams run
during this three day meet. One of
the most anticipated athletes that
would showed up this year was
Usain Bolt, who would anchored
for the Jamaican team in the USA
vs. the World 4x100m on Saturday.
Maybe it was the atmosphere,
or just the will to win, but
the Good Counsel boys and girls
performed
amazingly.
On Thursday,
the
first day,
the girls
ran their
4 x 1 0 0 m
w h i c h
clocked at
a 49.35.
Junior Jade
W h i t a -
ker led the
baton to
fellow junior
Taylor
Prendergast
then passed
off to senior
Adrienne Crutchfield with
Adewole anchoring the win in their
heat. Later on the day was the 4x400
where junior Maria Docal led off
then passed it on to Whitaker. The
last two legs featured freshman Ashley
Enweze and anchored by junior
Colleen Phillips clocking at 4:10.88.
On Friday, the 4x100 would
start the day with a 43.75 which included
senior Jemel Sessoms leading
off to other senior Cortlandt
Harris then finishing it off with juniors
Mike Jefferson and Sean Sutton.
Nearing the end of the day, the
Good Counsel boy’s Distance Medley
Relay (DMR) ran an impressive
Photos Courtesy of Gazette.net
The Good Counsel Distance Medley Relay team, Cortlandt Harris, Thomas Tallerico,
Fola Shokunbi, and Kyle Graves, hold up their Championship of America plaque.
the Penn Relays’ Championship of
America. Relay team included Tallerico
running the 1200m, Harris in the
400m, junior Fola Shokunbi in the
800m and Graves in the 1600m. This
was the first Championship of America
won in Good Counsel’s history.
Saturday would be a day of
pure excitement and accomplishment
for the Good Counsel Falcons. The
boys’ 4x400m would run a 3:16.87
coming second in the heat and ahead
of Dem
a t h a .
S u t t o n ,
Shokunbi,
Tallerico
and
H a r r i s
ran their
race flawl
e s s l y
with all
r u n n ers
r unning
less than
a 50 second
split.
Photo Courtesy of Ana Nunez
The 4x100m relay, Jade Whitaker, Taylor Prendergast,
Adrienne Crutchfield and Teju Adewole.
Also senior
Thor
Serefenas
threw the
discus and got 4th overall with 173-1
The track team’s success in the Penn
Relays has made it clear it can accomplish
whatever it puts its mind to. They
can run with the big dogs and now is
the time to reward their hard work.
There is only one more meet,
Draper Relays, before the WCAC
Championship which will be held on
May 14-15 at Kline Stadium. These
championships will be interesting to
see because there is no definite answer
on who will win. The top competition
will be Dematha and Gonzaga
on the boys’ side and Seton and Mc-
Namara on the girls’ side. Here’s wishing
good luck to our fellow Falcons!
By Leigh Emig
Staff Writer
Golf Roundup
By Nick Wager
Distribution Editor
When some
people think about
golf, they sometimes
misunderstand the effort that is
put into it. There are a lot of technicalities
behind this difficult and challenging
sport. With only two seniors, Bobby
Kessler and Adam Mitchell, the team
appears to be young and without experience,
but that is not the case. They
have been leaders to the younger ones
and have shown them the way with their
experience and knowledge. With wins
over Bullis and St. John’s, the Good
Counsel team made themselves noticed.
Sometimes the Golf team does
not get enough attention but now is
the time to notice. With players like Jason
Horsley, Kevin Phelan and Andrew
Shirdon on the Varsity team, the Good
Counsel Golf team looks promising for future
seasons. The Golf team will rise again
to make a name for themselves as a team
that continues to improve on the green.
Rugby: Building Moments
Good Counsel has its fair share of high profile
sports throughout the year: football, basketball and soccer
to name a few. A diverse number of sports have
been in these halls for years, but one has been missing. For two years
now, rugby has made its mark as part of GC’s athletics department.
Last year Mr. John Sullivan introduced a new team to Good Counsel:
the rugby team. For those who do not know much about rugby, it is
similar to football in that tackling is involved. This year, with Mr. Sean
Hanel joining the coaching squad, the team is ready to make an impact.
The season is still early. At the time of printing, three games have
occurred with one win and two losses. Practice takes place on Monday’s
and Thursday’s with games happening throughout the week. Like the football
team, Dematha is seen as their biggest competitor. So far this season
the leading players are seniors Joe Custead, Adam Buran, RJ Arthur,
Kyle Brincefield, and Jason Bobrow, along with junior Felix de Rosa.
Hanel is optimistic about the team’s potential. He says, “It’s a new
team with only 20 to 30 guys so it’s hard to be seen as an established team.
We get better and better each game and I’m looking forward to the future.”

Page 14 May 14, 2010 ATHLETICS
14 BLA BLA BLA Exero 01, 5555
ATHLETICS
Senior night blowout
By Scott Chen
Sports Editor
It was Senior
Night on Thursday,
April 22 for
the Good Counsel
girls’ varsity lacrosse team and the Lady
Falcons really put on a show as they
dominated their Washington Catholic
Athletic Conference rivals, the St.
John’s Cadets, in a 21-0 blowout victory.
This was a very special game as
Good Counsel high school recognized
the senior players on the Lady Falcon’s
varsity lacrosse team on Senior Night.
The seniors were introduced one by one,
with their parents, onto the field before
the game started. Each of the fourteen
seniors on the team was recognized for
their merits on and off the field. To
make this game memorable, in honor of
Senior Night, Lady Falcon head coach,
Michael Haight, played only the Lady
Falcon seniors for the whole game.
“The game was different because it
was senior night because all of the
seniors got to play which made
it really special,” said Lady Falcon
goalkeeper, Chelsey Hipp,
commenting on the game. “Also
everyone got to play different positions
that they normally don’t
play so everyone got an opportunity
to score which was really cool.”
Led by senior captains, Shannon
Lechner and Christina Sheridan,
the Lady Falcon’s roared out
of the gate strong. The Lady Falcon’s
took the lead with a goal in
the first thirty-five seconds of the
game from senior midfielder/attacker,
Kelsey Conway, and never
looked back. They were up by ten
goals before the game was half
mark of the first half of the game.
The Lady Falcon’s ended the first
half with a commanding 16-0 lead
over St. John’s. Kelsey Conway,
Brea Dabbs, Sara Fitzgerald, Rachel
Forman, Shannon Lechner and Molly
Shawhan each had two goals and Jamie
D’ Arco had one goal in the first half.
Both goalkeepers, Christina Sheridan
and Chelsey Hipp, played well in net.
In the second half, the Lady Falcon’s
continued to put the pressure
on the struggling Cadets. Katelyn
Sheridan and Pauline Peacock scored
in the first four minutes of the second
half. Shannon Lechner and Brea
Dabbs added the next three goals
to give the Lady Falcon’s a 21 goal
lead. The game ended with a score
of 21-0 in favor of the Lady Falcon’s.
The Lady Falcons were in total
control of the game from start to finish.
They were all over St. John’s as
they put the pressure on the Cadets
not only offensively, but defensively as
well. Good Counsel’s defense gave St.
John’s a real hard time as they limited
the Cadet’s ball possession time, causing
the Cadets to have very few shots on goal.
The Lady Falcon’s have moved
a 13 win and 2 loss record and are currently
in first place in WCAC’s. Their
remarkable performance this year has
given the team a great opportunity to
claim yet another WCAC championship
title. The Lady Falcons have one more
home game left versus the McDonough
Eagles on May 1 before the WCAC
playoffs begin on May 3. Goalkeeper,
Hipp, remarked that the team needs to
work on beating McDonough because
they are one of the Lady Falcon’s rivals.
A great night for the Lady Falcon
seniors a s they played exceptionally
throughout the whole game. Two weeks
later on May 7, the Lady Falcons would
become WCAC champions with a 21-8
victory over the Holy Cross Tartans at
the University of Maryland, College Park.
Good Counsel led the entire game starting
with a goal by junior, Maggie Mirkin,
within the first two minutes into the game.
They had a commanding lead of
15-5 in the first half and outscored the
Tartans, 6-3 in the second half. Shannon
Lechner and Brigid Smith each had
four goals, Breanne Dabbs and Kelly
Lechner each had three goals, Morgan
Stephens had two goals, and Kelsey Conway,
Sarah Fitzgerald, Caroline Peters
and Molly Shawhan each had one goal.
Both goalkeepers, Christina Sheridan
and Chelsey Hipp played well in net.
The Lady Falcons defeated the
Tartans earlier in the season with a 17-6
victory. This would be the seventh straight
WCAC title for the Good Counsel varsity
girls’ lacrosse team. Just another thing
that makes the Good Counsel community
proud and enthusiastic for next season.
Top: Senior Brea Dabbs goes for the goal
Photos Courtesy of Mr. Cabigas
Falcons fly past the cadets
By Tara Johnson On Saturday
Staff Writer April 24, 2010
the Good Counsel
Falcons took on the St. John’s
College High School Cadets. The
overcast sky indicated a fret of rain,
but the falcons fought on. Patrick
Townsend (#9), a senior at Good
Counsel scored the first goal leading
the falcons to victory. The first quarter
ended with the score 3-1 with Good
Counsel in the lead. Mr. Matthew
Dirkin, Head coach as well as an English
teacher at Good Counsel says,
“St. John’s always produces
strong athletes I think if we try
to match our athletics with theirs
then we will have a close match.”
Immediately after the start of
the second quarter the cadets fired
back with another goal making
the score 2-3 with Good Counsel
in the lead. St. Johns continued
to make goals ending the second
quarter with 5-4 with St. John’s
in the lead. Mike Bitonti (#8),
a senior at Good Counsel says,
“This season means the most
to me because I missed my entire
junior season. Coming into the
season I knew that it was really
important to prove myself, to get
a captain spot and to hopefully
leave Good Counsel with a championship.
As for the playoffs we are
coming off of a four game winning
streak and a lot of intensity that
should carry into the final stretch.”
The falcons fired back
quickly into the 4th quarter tying
the score 5-5. Good Counsel scored
two more goals and St. John’s scored
one more in the 4th quarter making
the final score 7-6. Dirkin says,
“Our defense played well in
the 4th quarter after SJC had the
lead in the 3rd quarter. SJC have
gotten a little better these past
few years. Anytime we can get
a Catholic win it’s a good thing.”
The Talon
Goalie Patrick McEnerney shouts to his teammates

Exero 01, 5555 BLA BLA BLA ATHLETICS May 14, 2010 Page 15
ATHLETICS
The Falcon baseball walks it off
The Boys Varsity Baseball team works together and supports each of their teammates.
By Nick Wager
Distribution
Manager
It’s an unusually
cold and windy
day for April and the sun is behind the
clouds. People cheer and clap as a runner
slides into home plate and scores.
However it is not the Falcon side that
is cheering. Instead it is a score by a
St. John’s Cadet at the start of Good
Counsel’s Varsity baseball game.
Good Counsel’s home field advantage
didn’t pay off Tuesday this April
27 against the St John’s Cadets. Although
it was a much-desired win,
the Falcons were simply unable to
get enough points out of the game.
This win marks a four game winning
By Megan Payne The much anticipated
re-
Managing Editor
match against
the Bishop
O’Connell Knights did not go exactly
as the Good Counsel Falcons had
planned. The 8-0 loss on Monday,
April 19 was attributed mainly to the
lack of offense by the Lady Falcons.
Senior Captain Taylor Wigmore
said, “We struggled to get decent
hits in the gaps. Their pitcher
held us to four hits. We just need
to get runs on the board because
that’s how you win ball games.”
If the injury of the exceptional
freshman pitcher, Tori Finucane,
had not kept her out of the game,
the game’s outcome may have been
different. Considering the last time
the rivals met, Finucane kept the
Knights to two hits. Finucane has
made Good Counsel a real contention
for the WCAC trophy. The
only thing getting in the way is the
Knights who have dominated the
league for over 15 years.
With Finucane benched, Wigmore
streak for St. John’s because of
their recent wins over Ryken 12-
5, Gonzaga 16-0, and O’Connell
7-6 over the period of three days.
The Cadets had the advantage
from the very beginning by scoring
two runs. Later on in the game
it appeared like the Falcons had
hope when they also scored, but
this was not enough. Some players
struck out and many hit foul balls,
but some like number 13 Jake Taylor,
were able to move the Falcons
ahead. Things looked up when
Jake struck out number 20 Justin
A disappointing defeat
pitched. The game had a rough
start, with the Falcons making an
error which
led to two
runs scored
by the
K n i g h t s .
The Falcons
could
not get
a n y t h i n g
started with
their lead
off batters.
In the
s e c o n d
and third
i n n i n g s ,
G o o d
C o u n s e l
kept O’Connell
from scoring,
but only senior
captain Marygrace Serra got a hit
against O’Connell’s junior pitcher,
Jilly Falle. Good Counsel hitters
could not find the holes and
were hitting towards O’Connell’s
second baseman, Sarah Eidt..
Senior Captain Taylor Wigmore
shows her dedication.
Korenblatt or when our Falcons ran
home twice. However, St. John’s
scored a third run and held that
score for the entirety of the game. It
ended with a lead of 3-2 by St. Johns.
It was an important game for
both teams because of the GC Varsity
team’s recent upgrade to the
number one rank in the Washington
Post over the Cadets. St. John’s had
recently been demoted to second
and it proved that they were willing
to fight for some revenge. Before
this game Good Counsel had
only lost two games out of sixteen
O’Connell freshman Jillian Ferraro
started the fourth inning with a
triple which was
capitalized by
another triple.
Good Counsel
c o n t i n u e d
struggling to make
anything happen.
S o p h o m o r e
c e n t e r - f i e l d e r
Jessica Reese
said that the
Falcons “had a
strong defense,
O ’ C o n n e l l
just got hits
which were
u n a v o i d a b l e .”
O ’ C o n n e l l
continued making
the most of their
3-0 lead by making
it 6-0 by the end of the fifth.
Walks and an error did not help
the Falcons in the fifth inning.
by making it 6-0 by the end of the
fifth. Walks and an error did not
The Talon
to Bishop O’Connell and Mercersburg
in a double header. It was disappointing
that the Falcons could
not keep their streak, but they have
a few more promising games left that
will enable them redeem themselves.
help the Falcons in the fifth inning.
By the end of the seventh inning
O’Connell had scored two more runs
because of a home-run by the Jillian
Ferraro who went three for four. The
Falcon line-up could only get four hits
against O’Connell’s junior pitcher
yet they never made it to third base.
This discouraging loss is going to
have to be a learning experience so
that the Falcons can continue to
become better. Hopefully this is the
year to become WCAC champions
for the five seniors last season.
Wigmore commented that “I think
that we really need to improve on our
offensive game. Against O’Connell we
always tend to [psych] ourselves out
when we are up to bat when shouldn’t.
We are a team of very talented hitters
and I think if we just focus and
relax our bats will come around.”
With this loss, the Falcons Conference
record falls to 5-2 but the season is not
over yet. With the rest of April to play,
Good Counsel is getting ready for the
playoffs that start Thursday, May 6.

16 BLA BLA BLA Exero 01, 5555
Page 16 May 14, 2010 ATHLETICS
ATHLETICS
Falcon athletics have another great season
Top Center: Kyle Graves, Courtland
Harris, Thomas Tallerico and Fola
Shokunbi making history at the Penn
Relays
Top Left: Senior, Jake Taylor, tries to
tag someone out.
Top Right: Seniors, Kelsey Conway
and Shannon Lechner, playing great
defense against their opponent.
Center: Junior, Patrick McEnerney,
playing well in net.
Bottom Left: Freshman, Jonathan
Woodward, serving the ball back to his
opponent.
Center Left: Girl’s softball made a
splash this year.
Bottom Right: A.J. Mitchell focusing
on his next shot.
Photos Courtesy of Joe Cabigas
By Scott Chen
Sports Editor
The school year
is winding down
and Good Counsel
spring sports
teams have worked very hard to
go out with a bang. From lacrosse
to baseball to track and field, each
spring sports team displayed great
efforts during the spring months.
The Falcon’s Varsity Golf team
has become a force to be reckoned
with. Led by seniors Bobby Kessler
and A.J. Mitchell, the Falcons have a
five wins and three loss record, making
the Falcons a definite threat in
the Washington Catholic Athletic
Conference. “We had a solid season,”
said senior Bobby Kessler. With one
game left in the season, the Falcons
will try to finish off the year strong.
The Good Counsel Varsity
Boy’s Lacrosse team has performed
very well this season. They have played
very aggressively throughout the entire
season. With senior leaders such
as Sean Wright, Mike Bitonti, Sean
Murphy and Patrick Townsend, the
boys’ lacrosse team has high chances
of doing very well in the postseason.
The Falcons finished the regular
season with a record of nine wins
and eight losses. They had an impressive
victory in the WCAC
quater-finals with a 11-1 victory
over teh St. John’s Cadets. Unfortunately
their playoff run ended
with a 6-12 loss against the De-
Matha Stags. The Falcon’s played
with much passion throughout the
year and should be proud of what
they accomplished.
After being crowned WCAC champions
last year, the Varsity Girls’
Lacrosse team aimed to play just
as well as they did the year before.
On April 23 and April 24, the Lady
Falcons traveled up to New York
and defeated two national ranked
lacrosse teams. The girls’ varsity lacrosse
team also played well in the
regular season with a record of fifteen
wins and three losses in the regular
season. The Lady Falcons dominated
the St. John’s Cadets with a
12-0 victory in the quarter-finals; a
22-5 victory against St. Mary’s Rytken;
and finally a 21-8 victory over
the Holy Cross Tartans giving the
Lady Falcon’s varsity lacrosse team
their seventh straight WCAC title.
The Varsity Men’s Baseball
team has played phenomenally this
The Talon
season. With a record of nineteen
wins and five losses in the regular
season.,they have become formidable
opponents in the WCAC. With
senior leaders such as Jake Taylor,
Matt Kohn and George Smith Jr.,
the Falcons will have a great chance
at claiming the WCAC championship.
With the postseason coming
up, the Falcons must work hard
in order to become champions.
The Good Counsel Girls’
Varsity Softball team has been playing
very well this season. After placing
first in Grand Strand Softball
Classic at Myrtle Beach over Spring
Break, the Lady Falcons aimed to
do just as well in the WCAC’s. Led
by players such as Taylor Wigmore,
Marygrace Serra, Stephanie Ryan,
and Victoria Finucane, the Lady Falcons
are becoming contenders in the
race to be WCAC champions. They
had an impressive 8-0 victory over
Bishop McNamara in the quarter-finals
and defeated St. Mary’s Rytken
in the semi-finals 3-2. Unfortunately
the Lady Falcons lost in the championship
against O’Connell 3-1.
The Boys’ Varsity Tennis
team has had a very produc-
tive season this year. Their efforts this
year have made them feared by everyone
in the WCAC’s. “It was an okay year,”
said junior tennis player, Garrett Taira.
The Falcon’s Varsity Track and
Field team is performing very well this
season. The boy’s Distance Medley Relay
team took first place at Penn Relays
on April 23. They become the first team
in Maryland to win the Distance Medly
Relay in 46 years. Led by seniors, Kyle
Graves, Katherine Koenig, Cortlandt
Harris and Adrienne Crutchfield, the Falcons
are expected to do very well in the
WCAC Championship. After performing
very well in the Florida Relays and
the Penn Relays, the Varsity track team is
highly favored to win the WCAC championship
in both the girls and boys. “My
teammates did amazing this year,” says senior
distance runner Kyle Graves, “They
exceeded all expectations and I look forward
to see what they can do next year.”
This year our sports have finished
off to an excellent end. Every fall, winter
and spring team performed very well this
year. So much success has come from our
students at Good Counsel High School.
This leads to a lot of anticipation for the
2010-2011 season. May next year bring
even better seasons for all the teams!