8 - Merrillville Community School

More documents

Recommendations

Info

10 Sports Thompson’s absence motivates girls’ track team By Nakel McClinton Sports Editor After winning their second consecutive indoor Duneland Athletic Conference title, the girls’ track team had high expectations. With unexpected injuries and a car accident no one could have seen coming, however, the team has not performed up to their level of capability. Senior Brianna Thompson, who won the 400 meter dash at indoor DAC, was in a season-ending car accident that ended in broken bones and a stay in the hospital. “We were all worried about her health, like would she be okay, would she live or be disabled. At first we didn’t know much,” Junior Airrica Harper said. “I felt like we lost a part of our team and I felt bad for her because it was her senior year.” With the top 400 meter sprinter out, Freshmen Jaz Talley and Malika Sweeney, as well as Sophomore Shequida Dillard have stepped in. “They have surprised us and stepped up in a big way,” Coach Jeff Fairbairn said. “We’re still trying to find more people to fill in and pick up her points though.” The accident motivated the team to do better for Thompson. At every meet, each team member wears a purple ribbon in their hair in her honor. “After we found out, it pushed us to perform better for the fact that she would want us to,” Senior Alexandra Domoras said. “We’re coping with it well,” Harper said. “We’re a strong team and we’re going to get through it.” Despite the accident and injuries, the team is off to a 3-2 conference record. They also placed second out of 14 teams at the West Lafayette Relays, only losing to number one state-ranked Lawrence Central. “We need to focus on continuing to get better instead of being content with how fast Last year in a dual meet against Portage and Chesterton, Senior Brianna Thompson paces herself to the finish line as she runs the 400 meter dash. Thompson was in a car accident in April and suffered broken ribs and a fractured back. Photo by Giolas. we run, how high we jump or how far we throw,” Coach Fairbairn said. Both Harper and Domoras, as well as Seniors Nakel McClinton and Jaleesa Holmes, have the best performances in the region in their perspective events. Harper, a sprinter who transferred from Highland this year, is undefeated in the 200 meter dash. She accredits this to the training and lifting during practice. “There are always people to push you and you can not slack off,” Harper said about comparing <strong>Merrillville</strong> to Highland’s track team. By the end of the season, she wants to decrease her time and make it to state in the 200 meter dash, was well as the 4x100 meter relay. Domoras cleared 12 feet in pole vault last week to give her the edge for the best jump in the area. Her previous best was 11’7”, a mark that won her an individual DAC title. “I’m very proud of myself,” she said. “To finally get to that point and it feels like it took so long, it’s such a relief.” Domoras said she is excited for her potential, and wants to clear 13 feet by the end of the year, as well as win state. Another big challenge for the team will be to compete with an all new sectional including Griffith, Calumet and Lake Central, who has won a state-record 20 straight sectionals. “I expect us to be right in the mix to win it,” Coach Fairbairn said. “It will be tough to knock off Lake Central though and Crown Point will give us a run, but we hope to advance as many as possible to the next round as well.” Softball continues to face adversity throughout season By Cassie Govert Staff Reporter The softball team is working towards improvement with a 0-15 record so far this season. Although the record seems formidable, the team still has hope for their last few games. The team’s upperclassmen have been working hard to bring up the team morale and gain improvement. “Jessica Vasquez has done very well pitching for us and Mercedes McClendon is doing extremely well with batting,” Coach Amy Govert said. However, the team has also suffered a couple of injuries that have taken out important players. Although these injuries are not season-ending, they still prevent vital players from helping the team. During a game last year against Kouts, Junior Jessica Vasquez winds up a pitch to deliver to the batter. The Pirates lost the game 6-5. Photo by Giolas. “Selena Diaz will still be out for a few more weeks with a twisted ankle and Chloe Nelson has also been out with a head injury,” Coach Govert said. Even with these minor setbacks, the team is still showing great improvement. “We have the same goals, we just need a complete game,” Coach Govert said. Lake Central and Crown Point have been the team’s toughest competitors, with Lake Central being ranked in the top three in the state. “We were actually neck in neck with Crown Point, but we just fell apart a few innings into the game,” Coach Govert commented. Even with an unrewarding season so far, the team is still positive.“We just hope to keep improving,” Coach Govert said. Boys’ track hopes to be ready by sectionals By Jake Larson Back Page Editor The boys’ track team has a record of 0-5 in the Duneland Athletic Conference, but finished second place out of seven at the Elkhart Memorial Relays. “This season has been a little disjointed,” Coach Brian Past said. Injuries have contributed to the season being disjointed as Senior William Isabel pulled his hamstring and Junior Dylon Collins was victimized in a car accident. Making the best of the situation is that the younger runners have been gaining experience. Such performers that have gotten experience are Juniors Marcellus Joiner, Nathan Bride, and Austin Jamerson. “Austin Jamerson is like our triple threat,” Coach Past said. Jamerson earned the nickname by not only being the top high jumper, high hurdler and long jumper on the team, but also in the area. The way the track team conditions themselves is that they peak towards the time of sectionals. “We want to do better at the end of season meet and make sure athletes are peaking at sectionals in order to reach our goal,” Coach Past said. Soaring over the bar, Junior Ausitn Jamerson competes in the high jump last year during a conference dual meet. He placed third in the event at last years’ state finals. Photo by Giolas.
11 Sports Girls’ tennis switches line-up for improvement By Ana Adame Staff Reporter With an improved record from last year of 3-6, the tennis team is working hard to secure more wins. The girls are still working at finding the perfect line-up to guarantee the three points needed to win. “We’re expecting the girls to play hard in whichever spot we put them to try and find a strong line-up,” Coach James Simon said. Along with varsity, the junior varsity team is also working hard to prepare for the future of the team. They are also 3-6 in their record and gained a third place out of six teams in the Plymouth tournament. With three weeks worth of games left, the girls are working hard to get more wins under their belt. “Our goals are still the same. We want to keep improving our record and strive to win sectionals,” Coach Kyle Prow said. Baseball starting to improve despite ‘rocky start’; earns big win over Chesterton By Brandon Neal Staff Reporter The boys’ baseball team has started out their season with a “rocky start”. With losses to Hobart, Boone Grove, Washington Township and Munster, the team remains positive about the remainder of the season. Coach Joe O’Connell shared his thoughts on the season opener and how the team will adjust to the early losses. “We didn’t start off our season as good as we would’ve liked. We’ve had some key injuries, but at this point, everybody is healthy or getting healthy,” Coach Joe O’Connell said. Junior Jon Feliciano has yet to play a game because of a foot surgery that was authorized in the winter. “I think the entire team is anxious for the return of Jon Feliciano, and we have good chemistry,” Coach O’Connell said. However a few players have a different perspective. Junior Varsity player David Hertl felt that they could play better. “I think when it comes time to play, we have to get better at playing with each other. We have good individual players, but we have to improve the overall chemistry.” Still, players and coaches remain optimistic. “There’s always a chance to turn the season around,” Hertl said. “When we have everyone healthy again we can start piecing together the second half of the season, to get the confidence to head into sectionals,” Coach O’Connell said. The season is already starting to turn around for the team. They beat conference rivals LaPorte and Chesterton, which was one of the biggest upsets in the region so far. Chesterton had just beat Lake Central, who was the number one team in the state. Now the Pirates have a new confidence with this win. “It was a huge win,” Junior Joseph Cowser said. “Beating the team that beat the number one team in the state was a huge accomplishment.” The team is hoping to carry this momentum into the post-season. “We started off kind of slow but we’re finding our stride and hopefully we can pick it up towards the the end,” Cowser said. Earn college credit at Purdue University Calumet Summer 2012 Classes begin June 11 and meet Monday, Tuesday, Thursday from 10 a.m. to 12:20 p.m. ENGL 10600 First-Year Composition (4 credits) For West Lafayette students only. Extensive practice in writing clear and effective prose. Instruction in organization, audeince, style, and researched based writing. English 10600 is the standard 4-credit hour course required of all students entering Purdue University, West Lafayette. Credit for English 106 also transfers to a number of other Indiana colleges and universities as well as many schools across the nation to satisfy the college composition requirement. ENGL 10400 EnglishComposition I (3 credits) Emphasis on the organization of the expository theme. Directed writings of themes based on personal experience, on the relationship between experience and language, and on the relationship between experience and language, and on the relationship between experience and ideas. English 10400 is typically the first semester composition course. In a baseball game last year, Junior Jon Feliciano delivers a pitch to the batter from the mound. Feliciano has been out with a foot injury this season. Photo by Giolas. ENGL 10500 EnglishComposition II (3 credits) This course will continue the first semester’s emphasis on the writing process and rhetorical analysis while introducing students students to systematic research and writing from sources other than personal experience. In English 10500 students learn to manage the research process in the context of assaignments that focus on the kinds of writing they will encounter in college, the workplace, and the community and use APA and MLA documentation styles. English 10500 is usually taken during the second semester of the freshamn year. This course offering is perfect for students who have already satisfied the requirement for English 10400 through AP or dual credit.
Page 1 and 2: MERRILLVILLE HIGH SCHOOL irror Vol.
Page 3 and 4: 3 News Merrillville family makes th
Page 5 and 6: 5 Opinion Decision 2012... or not?
Page 7 and 8: t s g t and bs Von Buelow enjoys fr
Page 9: Arts and Entertainment Teen story r

8 - Merrillville Community School

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?