High Tide: May 4, 2012

HIGH

TIDE Redondo Beach, CA // Redondo Union High School April 6, 2012 // Vol. XCII // Edition 12

hightideonline.org

WHICH SIDE ARE YOU? We’ve all know of the split brain phenomenon: the right side is creative, artsy, and free-thinking while the left is more analytical. But the question arises, does one side really dominate our personality? [see more on pgs. 12-13]

p6-7 //

Skyler Allen defines himself by his love of books.

p10-11 //

Hiking spots in southern California are explored.

p14-15 //

CARTOON BY COOPER LOVANO

Juilana Jordan swings in a softball game against PV.

NEWS // MAY 4, 2012

INTERNATIONAL FOOD FAIR

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ALL PHOTOS BY ERINN MIDDO

Food for thought. The International Food Fair yesterday served as a way to for clubs to raise money. According to Semper Club president Christie Goodman, selling sushi allowed Semper to raise sufficient funds for their club. “It was a lot of fun,” she said. “We sold out almost all of our sushi and overall the event seemed to run smoothly.” Clubs sold Chipotle, El Burrito Jr., popcorn, parfaits, egg rolls, and crepes.

RUHS’s Invisible Children club participates in Cover the Night

by Justin Lee

It’s two hours to midnight and juniors Ethan Pezzolo, Aryana Marvary, Vitoria Magno, and hundreds of other activists across the nation are “covering the night.”

With the help from the Mira Costa’s Invisible Children chapter, Magno and her cabinet were able to organize about 100 activists to work together in putting up posters to raise awareness of the injustices taking place in Africa.

“We managed to control them kind by getting them excited to go out for such a

great cause,” Magno said.

The Invisible Children Club at RUHS has been revived this semester since the Lord’s Resistance Army leader Joseph Kony’s crimes have gained momentum and awareness in the online community. The LRA is known for using African children as soldiers to support their agenda in Uganda.

“It makes me feel good that we are getting the word out about this heartless man,” Pezzolo said. “Invisible Children just strengthened the fact that there are just some cruel people out there, and they should be stopped,” Pezzolo said.

Reaping the rewards.

Seniors Ciara Diaz, Daniel Garzon, Joy Ohiomoba, and Sameer Siddiqui were selected for the Gates Millennium scholarship, which covers four years of tuition for the college of their choice, due to their strong leadership, community service, and various academic achievements.

To read the full story by Brianna Egan, visit hightideonline.org

Pezzolo sees this event as a means of getting the word out about Kony and the LRA. “This night is what makes people become more aware about what happens in the world and that our generation is not just the passive type. It shows that our generation cares,” he said.

Likewise, Marvray believes this activism is uniting the youth against the LRA. “I was once a child like them, and that the life that I live now should be one that they should be living too. That’s why I’m taking part in this movement,” Marvray

SURF’S UP!

said.

While many veteran activist against Kony criticize the suddent wave of momentum the cause has gained, former Invisible Children president Annica Stitch is really happy that the club is bringing awareness to causes that are beyond the scope of RUHS. “I’m really happy that students still interested in the issues around the world.

They are taking matter into their own hands, whether it be through Invisible Children or another organization,” Stitch said.

Senior Connor Beatty is the Most Valuable Player of the South Bay Surf League again for 2012 after receiving the title last year. He will be honored at the Hermosa Beach Surfer Walk of Fame.

NEWS // MAY 4, 2012

Hermosa Beach faced with decision about new oil drilling

by Andrew Czuzak

by Andrew Czuzak

a risky yearbook [in terms of design],” Pritzkat said.

Current co-editor-in-chief Lisa Inoue agrees with Pritzkat and credits his and Mata-Matthew’s specific vision and work ethic for the yearbook’s success.

“Brandon and Bonnie knew what they wanted and they pushed everyone out of their comfort zone to achieve it,” Inoue said.

Pritzkat believes that the The Pilot established a high set of standards and expectations for future yearbooks.

“I feel extremely proud of the book overall. It showed that we are capable of putting out a technically good product while still stretching our selves creatively,” Pritzkat said. “The staff and the two other editors-in-chief were amazing,” Pritzkat said, “The entire process of Not Just Another was one of the best journeys of my life, and I am grateful to have experienced it.”

It’s Gettin’ Hot in Here. A speaker shows a presentation about keeping campus clean at the climate change awareness assembly last week. The gathering of students and faculty was a way to increase awareness about global warming issues and encourage young people to take care of the planet. “It really opened my eyes to how important keeping our world clean is,” Sarah Patterson, freshman, said. “I’ll definitely think twice before littering.”

PHOTO BY JENNY OETZELL

Rock On. Freshmen Billy Hammer performs with his band at last month’s Battle of the Bands. Musically-inclined Redondo students performed for cheering peers in the annual competition at Nobel Plaza, showcasing a diverse range of talents, genres, and interests. While the noise level reached eardrum-shattering heights at times, it was overall a success. “We have some talented peers!” junior Jonathan Martinez said. The winners, The Machine,

Tug of War.

For the first time in RUHS history, last year’s The Pilot won both the Golden Crown and Pacemaker awards for journalistic excellence.

“Bonnie [Mata-Matthews, co-editorin-chief ] and I set out to make the book we wanted to make, regardless of the yearbook or publication world deeming it good or bad. But winning both these awards means that we have earned respect and praise from our journalistic peersthat we got it right,” former co-editor-inchief Brandon Pritzkat said.

A mixture of the editor’s unorthodox design combined with the strong staff writing, and photography gave The Pilot the edge to win both awards.

“When I started out I really wanted to make a yearbook that felt like a magazine...I am grateful and proud that our adviser, Mr. Ziegler, worked with us and was willing to let us publish such

photos.

Battle of the Bands.

The Pilot wins NSPA Pacemaker

week in

Assembly.

The future of the South Bay rests with Hermosa Beach voters whom must decide whether to repeal Proposition E, a ban on oil drilling (City of Hermosa Beach).

“Although they claim the are going to make safe, quiet, and modern facilities, at this point it is unclear what the oil company is going to build if they win this vote,” AP Environmental Science teacher Mary Simun said.

After banning oil drilling in 1995, Hermosa breached its contract with Macpherson Oil Company (now E&B Natural Resources Management Corporation). Now the legal ramifications are being resolved at the voting booth. Hermosa Beach voters must choose between a $17.5 million fee or the construction of up to 30 oil wells on city property and all the issues that come with it (Santa Monica Patch).

“I do not think we should drill,” Simun said, “Our rate of consumption is so high that we are not solving anything by drilling more except temporarily deflating gas prices.”

Simun believes that people tend to overlook the need to conserve our current source and reduce consumption.

“The more we wean ourselves off foreign oil from the Middle East, the healthier both physically and economically our nation will be,” Simun said.

Simun argues that all the money gained from drilling cannot reverse the environ-

mental and health damages that drilling cause.

“People fail to look at correlation between the extraction and burning of these energy sources and how healthy people are. Fines are very small for air and water pollution and it is cheaper for the energy companies to violate them, [pollute] and get fined than try and make it healthy for people,” Simun said.

Jeff Cohn, head of NoBPinHB, an organization formed to oppose the proposed drilling, agrees with Simun also claims that E&B’s safety procedures are questionable since they experienced an oil blowout in 1998 due to a management failure.

“Steve Layton was the president of Equinox oil when the blowout happened.

Can we really trust him not to repeat his failure?”Cohn said.

According to Cohn, Hermosa is able to afford the $17.5 millon settlement if the citizens are willing to sell pieces of land that do not produce revenue, like Noble Park or the Old Prospect School building.

“It’s up to the citizens to come up with a plan to sell one or a few smaller parcels because we know our officials won’t take the initiative.,” Cohn said.

Cohn and Simun both believe that the ban will remain in place.

“It will definitely be tough to repeal this proposition. People are sick of being pushed around by the oil companies,” Simun said.

The

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PHOTO BY CHRIS V. NGUYEN

Pull Out All the Stops. Seniors Camera Carter, Veronique Monali, Kirah Storey, Laura Schlueter, and Izzy Castaldi participate in the Tug of War class competition that took place last week. This tug-of-war is one of many class competitions organized by the Associated Student Body in order to increase school spirit and student involvement.

“It was a lot of fun,” Monali said. Future exciting events are being planned by ASB for this year and the upcoming 2012-2013 school year.

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OPINION // MAY 4, 2012

Students must embrace diversity

by Benjamin McLaughlin

Contrary to popular belief, the hauntingly creepy “It’s a Small World” attraction at Disneyland was not meant to frighten with its cold, lifeless robots chanting in perfect harmony. It was actually meant to reveal how every person, no matter where they are from or how they look, is essentially the same.

This ideal has been widely accepted by modern human society, which has led to leaders stressing diversity. But why does diversity matter? Why is diversity important?

With the internet and airplanes allowing man to move about the world in the matter of hours, Walt Disney’s words take new meaning. The world is not as large as it used to be. We have access to every corner of our planet, and they have access to us.

There is perhaps no better example of the shrinking world and the importance of

HIGH TIDE

STAFF

Editor-in-Chief: Alison Peet-Lukes Managing Editors: Madeline Perrault; Meglyn Huber News Editor: Daniel Garzon Features Editors: Taylor Ballard; Kimberly Chapman; Anacristina Gonzalez; Bethany Kawa; Tricia Light; Jeremy Porr; Emma Uriarte Sports Editors: Tatiana Celentano; Julie Tran; Zach Zent Photo Editors: Erinn Middo; Jenny Oetzell Copy Editor: Camille Duong Cartoonist: Cooper Lovano Online Editor: Brianna Egan Staff Writers: Dylan Biggs; Matthew Brancolini; Taylor Brightwell; Torrey Bruger; Claire Chiara, Logan Collingwood; Andrew Czuzak; Navea Dasz; Navikka Dasz; Camille Duong; Brandon Folkman; Dan Furmansky; Shivaani Gandhi; Hana Ghanim; Cole Greenbaun; Mannal Haddad; Andrew Hazeltine; Nageena Hamraz; Katie Hill; Cedric Hyon; Craig Ives; Ilana LaGraff; Vivian Lam; Justin Lee; Anthony Leong; Diana Luna; Kayla Maanum; LeAnn Maanum; Isaiah Madison; Kylie Martin; Benjamin McLaughlin; Hayley Meyers; Madison Mitchell; Chris Nguyen; Cameron Paulson; Allegra Peelor; Alejandro Quevedo; Lia Quilty; Sophia Ritchie; Jason Rochlin; Jessica Shipley; Taylor Sorensen; Savannah Stern; Hannah Son; Claire Tisius; Colin Welch; Cody Williams Adviser: Mitch Ziegler The High Tide dedicates itself to producing a high-quality publication that both informs and entertains the entire student body.

This newspaper is wholly student managed, designed, and written newspaper that focuses on school and community events.

The High Tide is published by the journalism class at Redondo Union High School, One Sea Hawk Way, Redondo Beach, CA 90277.

Advertising is $7.50 per column inch, $6.00 if paid in advance. Call (310)798-8665 ext. 2210.

Signed commentaries and editorial cartoons represent the opinions of the staff writer of cartoonist and in no way reflect the opinions of the High Tide staff.

diversity than our melting pot of a country.

Thousands of cultures clashed in bustling cities, and when we chose to segregate or discriminate, we fostered racial stereotypes and ignorance in our children. Only by embracing diversity and equality are we moving past racism and moving towards a more unified national identity.

The same is true for diversity at Redondo.

As we are prepared for a life in a world full of different people, we need to experience them to be able to cope with them. Foreign exchange programs and people from all around the world make Redondo a much more realistic place for learning and experiencing life.

In the end, we are all humans fighting to live our unimportant little lives in a world that both amazes and confuses us. If we ever want to advance past our petty wars and nationalism, we must learn to accept diversity as a necessity and an opportunity to learn and grow.

Asking

Around

Students share their feelings about school diversity.

Q: Do you think racism is a problem at our school?

A: “If anything I hear a lot of rac-

ist comments when talking to fellow students.”

-Anneliese Wilson, 12th Q: Why do you think it is important for Redondo to be racially diverse?

A: “If we have more diversity, we

have a lot more culture and I think that makes our campus more interesting.”

-Rachel Rosolowski, 10th

Clothes help individuals express their personality

by Taylor Brightwell

Clothes set us apart from others. They hint at a favorite color, express our likes, and dislikes and intimately express our personality.

With over 2,500 students at our school it tends to be our clothes and style that distinguish us from everyone else.

From your favorite band’s t-shirt to your favorite pair of Vans, everything we choose to wear says a little something

about who we are.

We choose to dress a certain way to express who we are and what we like. Many argue that clothes can’t possibly define us because they are made by a designer for his or her taste. However, it is completely our choice to dress a certain way.

The clothes we wear often label us and show others where we go to school, what sports team we are on, or where we like to shop.

We are surrounded by brands and trends, and many of us dress to fit in while others dress to stand out. It is our distinct way of showing others what we are like.

We dress a certain way because it is the persona of ourselves that we present to others. We want others to see us in a the perfect light and some of us use will go to extreme lengths to protect that image.

But we all have those days when we just don’t feel like dressing perfect. Some days we may just want to be comfortable so we wear sweatpants or another day we may dress more put together because we want to impress someone.

We have options every day when selecting our clothes and the clothes we select can usually show what kind of mood were in.

Our clothes and style tell people a piece of who we are but it certainly doesn’t represent every aspect of our personality.

Yes, clothes play a role in how others perceive us but they do not tell our complete story. Clothes are our freedom of expression, but they do not define us completely. They are an extension of our personality.

OPINION // MAY 4, 2012

Pro

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by Haley Meyers

Head pounding with the pestering pressure to fill the immensely white, empty word document that taunts with its obnoxiously bright LCD screen. Drained eyes fighting to keep focus on the screen and peering at the daunting clock allowing for only a mere two hours to meet the college application deadline with flawless brilliance; this nightmare is the reality for students who wait until the last minute to complete their college applications.

Despite promising not to procrastinate, the realization that these two hours could now very well determine the fate of one’s future or lack there of, hits them in the head like a baseball bat just adding the pounding pressure that buries their head. Just think, this procrastination could sacrifice the hopes of entering the golden gates or walking the cobble stone quad of one’s dream university.

Fortunately, juniors have the choice to avoid these unfortunate events, and better plan for the application process that can easily determine the fate of their future.

Applying to college is the chance students have been waiting for their entire high school career to bring meaning to all the goals they have worked for and showcase all that they have accomplished. Somehow, applicants must do the impossible and display all of their potential, character, and accomplishment in just a mere 500 or so words.

Time allowance is key. Although, many college applications are not available until the fall, if an applicant plans on wowing the Admissions directors, it is imperative to set aside plenty of time to perfect a task this significant, complex and demanding. Beginning the personal statement essay as early as junior year is a wise decision and better prepares students for success in the application process.

Many of those who have endured the application process insist an extensive amount of time is needed for several rewrites. Most importantly, starting the application and its essays early allows applicants time to make inevitable mistakes and fix them.

Beginning this process early gives applicants options. Early decision, which may or may not be binding depending on the University, allows applicants to select their first priority school and receive their decision in

AROUND REDONDO ASHLEY NAKAMURA “I waited until the last minute and I wouldn’t recommend it for anyone.”

RAYMOND GANDARA “They should wait and and figure out what they want to do first.”

How early is too early to apply to college?

Students are divided between either applying often and early or narrowing their choices and waiting to apply to the schools perfect for shaping their future.

Con

by

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Seniors give advice on whether to start applications early or wait it out to narrow down their options.

DEVON VOIGTSBERGER “There’s a lot to get done so you should start as soon as you can.”

ASHLEY VALENCIA “You don’t know what to expect so you should start early incase you mess up.”

JAMES ATHERTON “Just start way in the beginning to just get it over with.”

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FEATURES // MAY 4, 2012

Reading defines Allen’s life

by Kayla Maanum

He lounges with his back rested against the cool wall of the culinary arts building.

The warmth of the vibrant sun engulfs him as he flips through the last crinkly pages of the book. To junior Skyler Allen, reading is not only a hobby he loves, but also what defines him.

PHOTOS BY CHRIS NGUYEN

Bookworm. 1 & 2. Allen spends much of his time at the public library. His favorite genre is a type of fantasy called urban fantasy.

Allen’s passion of reading is evident to all passersby.

“I read everyday. At school when I finish assignments or at lunch, I generally take out my book and read,” Allen said.

Learning strategies management teacher Kathleen Madden, who taught Allen the last two years, believes Allen’s mentality is a reason for his hobby.

“I think [reading] totally defines who he is because that’s what he does,” Madden said.

“He is very motivated to read, and people just know that about him.”

His motivation for reading stems from his desire to learn about new topics in entertaining ways. “[Reading helps me learn about] little bits of trivia and history, and also about mythology, I always think reading makes a person smarter, and it just sometimes helps you learn something interesting,” Allen said.

Madden believes through the knowledge Allen gains from reading, he has done well academically. “[Allen] did exceptionally well in the ver-

bal section of the SAT. [His vocabulary] helps him express himself because he can use a variety of words. He has a very extensive vocabulary,” Madden said.

Allen has been positively affected through reading. Madden believes Allen’s personality contributes to the educational benefit he gains from reading.

“It’s just naturally really engaging for him and stimulating for him. He’s just got that type of intellectual brain so he really gets into the writing and the characters,” Madden said.

Allen immerses himself in about five books per week. Madden is proud of Allen’s dedication to his hobby.

“In today’s age we recognize movie stars and athletes, so I’m just proud of him and all the work he’s put in and I’m glad that he’s been recognized [for his reading],” Madden said.

Today, and all the days to come, Allen will have a book in his hands. “[Reading is] something I really enjoy. I just know that I want to keep reading,” Allen said. “I think if a person just finds the right book, they can really enjoy it,” he said.

Coffee gets Reith through his mornings

by LeAnn Maanum

He walks quickly through the brisk morning air and opens the door of the Catalina Coffee House. Immediately, he is immersed in the familiar aroma of coffee and the warm atmosphere of the coffee house.

Junior Gunnar Reith, feels right at home.

For Reith, coffee is a necessity in getting through daily life. He started drinking coffee regularly at the beginning of this year.

According to him, classmates in his morning classes think he is “crazy”.

“They’re always like ‘Oh you’re so crazy!’

like, “Why do you drink so much coffee, it’s bad for you,’ but I don’t think it’s a bad thing,” he said.

Rieth drinks coffee almost every morning and sometimes at night if he needs to study for a test. Although he relies on coffee to keep him awake through the day, Rieth does not have noticeable side effects. “[I don’t have side effects] but I can definitely notice it. If I don’t have coffee in the morning I’m usually falling asleep in class,” he said.

Rieth goes to Starbucks so often that the employees know his name and what he usu-

Coffee Craze How addicted is Redondo?

Results from a survey of 79 students conducted in three classrooms.

ally orders.

“Yeah, [at Starbucks] they know me by name and they usually know what I like to get. I usually get a Venti Mocha and they’re like ‘Oh, you want that?’” he said.

Although he drinks it every day, Rieth does not believe that being a regular coffee drinker affects how he performs in school. “[It doesn’t affect me] too much, but I mean, sometimes if I don’t get enough sleep it’s pretty bad. Or if I don’t have coffee in the morning I have to get some that morning or I’ll fall asleep,” he said.

Rieth’s parents do not think drinking

coffee is negatively affecting his health.

“They don’t really care, I mean, they don’t see it as a big deal,” he said.

Rieth’s friends are also not concerned about his caffeine intake.

“I don’t think he’s dependent on it, so I don’t think it’s affecting his health,” sophomore Sam Bodan said.

Since he doesn’t believe it is a danger to Rieth’s health, Bodan believes Rieth’s love for coffee will stay with him in the future.

“I think it’s a big part of his life. He’ll probably drink it for the rest of his life,” he said.

72 % of students don’t drink coffee

22 % of students drink coffee once a day

6%

of students drink coffee two or more times a day ILLUSTRATIONS BY COOPER LOVANO

FEATURES // May 4, 2012

Self Expression Di Felice finds conficence through his unique hair and pircings.

by Nageena Hamraz

Through his piercings and bright red hair, junior Gino di Felice expresses his individuality despite judgment from other people.

“I was gifted with my own creativity and my own ways to express myself,” he said.

“Coming to high school and being exposed to all these new things and people gave me more courage to do what I want and change my appearance.”

Di Felice was inspired by his father’s many tattoos. He was “offered” his own individuality by his father.

“He encourages me to be who I am and do what I want. He sees it as me expressing myself in a physical way,” di Felice said.

At first, di Felice wanted to pierce his body because he wanted to test his strength and see if he could endure the pain.

“Putting yourself in a position that will inflict pain on [your body] makes you a stronger person,” di Felice said.

However, instead of feeling pain, he felt good.

“Before [the piercing], I was scared because I thought it was going to hurt, but when it happened I didn’t really feel anything,” he said. “It made me feel good about myself. If I can put myself through that pain, it was making me tough.”

According to di Felice, his piercings and hair give him self-confidence.

“I went from someone who was insecure and cared a lot of what people said, to this person that is not self conscious or insecure,” di Felice said. “I really don’t care what other people think about me anymore.”

But because of his unique style, many people judge him on his appearances.

“Most people look at me and think ‘oh that kid’s a delinquent because he has dyed hair and piercings,’” di Felice said. “People feel like I don’t have respect on authority figures or any hold on my life because of the way I look.”

Despite the judgments and rumors, di Felice continues living with his unique style.

“I actually have a plan for my life,” di Felice said. “I do what I do and I look the way I look because I like it, not because I think

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“[Getting piercings] increases your pain tolerance and emotional threshold,” di Felice said. “It has allowed me to let myself fill myself up; it makes me feel full.”

PHOTO BY DIANA LUNA

the majority will.”

Di Felice does not consider the judgments that people have.

“I know what I do makes me happy. I’m not trying to make anyone else happy [and] I’m not trying to get attention,” he said.

“Negative attention doesn’t matter to me; I’m just trying to do what I like.”

Di Felice’s best friend, senior Daniella Garcia, is one of the people that encourage and support Felice to “become an individual.”

“He never used to dye his hair or have piercings, [but] I dyed his hair for the first time, and he’s been colorful ever since,” Garcia said. “If you don’t have friends who support you, you’re never going to become your own person.”

Di Felice’s change in appearance has made a big difference in his life. “[My piercings] make me feel better because it makes me feel stronger,” di Felice said.

“Me changing myself drastically on the outside helped me change myself drastically on the inside for the better.”

Tehrani is addicted to dance

by Cameron Paulson

Social life gone. School put second.

Sacrifices made. For junior Lily Tehrani, her whole world revolves around dance.

“Dance is my place of tranquility and peace,” Tehrani said. “I would absolutely go crazy and lose my mind without it.”

Tehrani picked up her interest in dancing around the age of eight or nine.

“Well when I first started I was taking classes like hip hop and ballet and jazz, and I soon got on a team,” Tehrani said.

Up until Dancing queen. Tehrani preforms a dance move in ballet called an arabesque.

Tehrani was about 14 she hadn’t taken dance too seriously, but when high school came around, her “perspective of dance” completely changed.

“In ninth grade I started intensely training for hip hop and contemporary,” Tehrani said. “I signed with [the talent agency] McDonald Selznick Associates and started going on auditions.”

Since her freshman year of high school, Tehrani’s priorities changed dramatically.

“I go on auditions now two or three times a week and sometimes even more,” Tehrani said. “I gave up my social life completely to dance.”

Although Tehrani’s friendships are no longer of utmost importance, her family still is.

“My mom is the most supportive of me,” Tehrani said. “Without her I would have no way of getting to auditions or classes, and most of the time I think she’s more enthusiastic than me [about my dancing].”

Tehrani’s mom, Nazanin Tehrani, has “encouraged” and “supported” her daughter throughout her dancing career.

“I have always loved to see Lily on the stage and I know that’s where she belongs,” Nazanin said. “As long as she continues her passion for dance, I will continue to support her.”

Tehrani not only hopes to be in the business soon, but also to teach her own classes at her dance studio.

“I would love nothing more than to teach people dance,” Tehrani said. “I’ve done it before and I would love to do it again.”

Tehrani’s drive to dance is more important to her than anything, and, according to Tehrani, it is “not an option” that it won’t continue into her future.

“I have dedicated everything to dance and I am not going to give up all that I have worked for,” Tehrani said. “No other career or job intrigues me more than dancing because it’s what I love to do.”

For complete interviews of Allen, di Felice, and Reith, watch “What Drives Me” at hightideonline.org PHOTO BYJENNY OETZEL

Cover Story

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Omar-Amrani plans to use his left brained traits to fight cancer

by Naikka Dasz

According to research from abc.net those with right brains tend to follow artistic paths and those with left brains more logical paths. Senior Zack Omar-Amrani’s left-brained thinking influences many of his interests and his plan for the future.

Omar-Amrani considers himself to be more leftbrained and embraces it.

“I just think in black and white most of the time.

I never really think in the gray area, like anything emotional,” he said, “I like being left-brained. It doesn’t really bother me. I just like being myself.”

As a more logical person, Omar-Amrani enjoys learning about the world through science.

“Physics is my favorite subject. I think it’s really interesting. [I like] learning about the world and how it works and functions. In my free time I like to

look up facts about physics,” he said.

In addition to physics, Omar-Amrani is stronger in math and science subjects over history and English.

“English never really clicked with me. I was always just way into math or way into physics. It was never anything different from that,” he said.

Although Omar-Amrani tries to do well in his classes, he does not have to try hard.

“I’m doing pretty well [in Calculus] and it’s been fairly easy for me. I think I try harder than the average person but not super hard at all because the average person usually tries very little,” he said.

Omar-Amrani considers himself to be more like his father, who is more left-brained.

“My dad works at Aerospace and he’s pretty much the same as me, with a huge math and science back-

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MAY 4, 2012

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2.

ground,” he said.

Although he takes after his father, not everyone in his family is left-brained. “[My sister] is definitely more right-brained. She doesn’t understand math very well at all. She is really good at communication, which is the major she’s choosing,” he said.

Like his family, his friends are also a mix of leftbrains and right-brains.

“My friends are all different, but I’d definitely say I have more left-brained friends than right-brained,” he said.

Due to his left-brain thinking, Omar-Amrani is pursuing a future in science.

“I’m trying to go to UCLA. I haven’t fully decided what I want to be, but right now I think I want to be an oncologist [a cancer doctor],” he said.

3.

Musical prodige. 1 & 4.

Mackley strums her guitar intently. 2. Mackley taught herself piano. 3. A painting Mackley did herself on her guitar.

Grutzik prefers having one solution over many

by Navea Dasz

Many argue whether nature or nurture affects human development more, but for sophomore Petra Grutzik environment played a more influential role in developing her left-brained personality.

“I think your environment has a lot to do with whether you’re right-brained or left-brained,” she said. “I’ve always had a pretty structured academic life, so I’ve always been doing that.”

As an engineer and a “very knowledgeable person”, her father was her greatest influence growing up.

“He’s always trying to teach me, always trying to explain different philosophies or discoveries, or always trying to get me interested in the next thing,” she said.

Growing up with an academic lifestyle, Grutzik has come to enjoy studying, learning, reading, and researching “more than painting a picture.”

“I like math, because there’s always one answer.

There are always steps to follow, and as long as you follow those steps you’ll always get the right answer,” she said.

As the president of Bay Math League and member of robotics club, she has found that she can stay on task, be focused, and work with one thing for a long period of time.

Are you right or left brained?

Take the quiz!

“I really like figuring stuff out,” she said. “That’s why I like math problems, because of the challenge of trying to figure things out.”

As a logical and methodical person, she sometimes finds some parts of a creative, innovative class like English difficult. “[English] sometimes gets frustrating when opinions are involved, or when there are so many answers, she said. “It’s just confusing.”

According to Grutzik, her younger brother was raised in a different environment and is “completely different” than her.

“He wasn’t raised with such an academic schedule, so he’s super creative, can play three different instruments, and loves to paint,” she said. “He’s completely right-brained.”

Grutzik expresses herself through her interactions with the people around her “I express myself through the opinions I share with other people,” she said. “It doesn’t matter if you’re right or left brained when you’re talking with people.”

Since becoming friends in the 6th grade, sophomore Samuel Nicks has noticed several left-brained characteristics from her, such as remembering things only specifically studied, doing things in a planned orderly way, and never being absent minded.

“Since she was young, Petra has always been devoted and serious about school,” Nicks said. “[Her] childhood was pretty much how her life is now besides all the AP/honor classes.”

For more visit hightideonline.org

1.

Lost in the music Pheonix Mackley enjoys and excels at playing instruments but has trouble with things like math. Mackley tends to get lost in her music

by Cedric Hyon. photos by Diana Luna.

PHOTO BY MYA GELBER

Math star. Grutzik enjoys activities with exact answers and finds her enviornment partly responsible.

Guitar, 175 316 minutes. Piano, 262 974 minutes. Cello, 525 948 minutes. Right brained junior Pheonix Mackley’s love for the arts, timeless.

“My cousins played music and I’ve been hearing them play piano my entire life. One of my cousins started playing violin and that’s what got me into string instruments,” Mackley said.

Aside from her cousins, other family members are music oriented as well.

“My dad sang in our church choir, and my older brother plays the saxophone. My grandma used to sing. My family has a big influence on me musicwise,” Mackley said.

Out of the three, instruments she plays Mackley says the piano and cello are the most difficult.

“The piano and the cello are by far the hardest [instruments I taught myself ]. With the piano, you never really stop learning. There’s always a challenge,

like a song you can’t play or an awkward fingering,” Mackley said.

Mackley taught herself piano and cello by mainly finding pitches of melodies, while gradually learning more complex songs.

“I started by just sitting at the piano trying to figure melodies to popular pop songs, and it came really easy for me. I moved on to learning two handed things and then I just slowly got better,” Mackley said.

Mackley says that her envy for her friend drove her to learn all of her instruments.

“I had a friend who played a lot of instruments, and I’ll admit that I was super jealous. He played saxophone, clarinet, bass guitar, regular guitar, drums, and piano. So I wanted to be able to do that, so I just started one day,” Mackley said.

Although she has never had proper training, her

4.

friends say that she has a very good singing voice.

Sophomore and friend Sydney Holt convinced her audition for Advanced Choir.

“She’s a lot better than she thinks she is. She has a unique quality to her voice which makes it nice to hear,” Holt said.

With all these skills, Mackley cannot see herself as a logical, math-oriented person that characterizes left brained people.

“Not in the least bit. Math is not my strong suit,” Mackley said. “Music is my life. It’s something I feel, not something I do.”

“The fact I can get lost in it. If I’m having a bad day or if I’m trying to say how I feel, I can sit down at the piano or pick up my guitar and get lost for hours and not even feel sad anymore,” Mackley said. “It’s usually my fallback when I’m bored or if I’m having a dull day.”

Are you an athlete an artist or dancer?

Do you learn best with visuals?

Are you bad with numbers?

Is it easy for you to express emotions?

Do you rely on intuition for decisions?

Do you find music to If you answered mostly yes, you are be an outlet?

a. Yes b. No

a. Yes b. No

a. Yes b. No

a. Yes b. No

a. Yes b. No

a. Yes b. No

right brained. If you answered mostly no, you are left brained.

10

FEATURES // MAY 4, 2012

FINISH .3 ft

HUNTING FOR

4,350

HIKES:

Although we live in the suburbs, great hiking spots surround us.

At the waterfall, people enjoy climbing up the rocks and walking through the pouring water.

Because of its calming ambience, this hike is popular in the summer. In its scenery and physically demanding nature, this hike is a perfect way to spend your day.

ft

Once you start going uphill, the hike gets more difficult. Good hiking shoes are necessary because the ground gets extremely slippery.

At one point, people use a rope to climb up through rocks to prevent slipping and falling.

The rope leads up to the first small waterfall.

.21

After using the rope to get up a hill, you reach a second 150 feet tall waterfall, which is one of the highlights of the hike. There is moss hanging off the rocks of the waterfall, which gives the area a magical feel.

After walking up and through hills in Malibu where houses are located, you arrive at a trail sign called Escondido Canyon Trail and Waterfalls.

Experienced hiker

by Shannon Bowman

Awe-struck, junior Adam Johnson takes in his reward, a beautiful view untouched by humans. After hiking miles through the mountains, all he can do is enjoy this feeling of peace.

Johnson has been backpacking for as long as he can remember. His “Pop”, an avid hiker, introduced his son to the family hobby and Johnson has continued hiking with friends from his Boy Scout troupe.

Johnson’s longest hike was through the Sierra Mountains. The 66-mile trek took him and his father a week.

However, he states that he was not the least bit exhausted during the journey.

“It’s all about pacing,” he said. “I know how to pace myself and get tired.”

Johnson’s experiences hiking in nature have inspired him to pursue a future in the natural sciences. To get a head start on these dreams, Johnson volunteers every Saturday at the Madrona Marsh in Torrance. He helps lead restoration projects and keeps track of the various species of birds to make sure they are doing all right.

“I try to do a lot for the environment,” he said. “It’s just something I do,” Johnson said.

Taking care of the environment is something everyone should do, Johnson feels.

“Pick up a piece of trash,” he said.

1,6

PHOTOS BY KIMBERLY CHAPMAN

65

.09

ft

3,8

85

Location: Malibu Address: 27200 Winding Way Distance from Redondo: 55 minutes Length of hike: 4.2 miles round trip Difficulty of hike: 4/5 Features: 150 foot waterfall, 50 foot waterfall, 5 creek crossings, 100 foot rocky cliff. Dog-friendly! Free parking.

Type of trail: Paved road leads to the trail, then rock and dirt.

1,200 ft

ESCONDIDO FALLS

START

The trail starts out fairly easy on mostly flat surfaces. There are a few creeks that you need to cross and jump through to continue on the trail. A cave of plants and trees surround the trail.

RUNYON CANYON HIKE Location: Hollywood Hills Address: 2001 N Fuller Ave Distance from Redondo: 40 minutes Length of hike: 2 miles Difficulty of hike: 3/5 Features: Views of downtown Los Angeles, Griffith Observatory, and the Hollywood sign.

Dog-friendly! Free parking.

Type of trail: Sections of the trail are paved, but most of it is in dirt.

PHOTOS BY LOGAN COLLINGWOOD

PORTUGUESE BEND Location: Rancho Palos Verdes Address: 30940 Hawthorne Blvd.

Distance from Redondo: 20 minutes Length of hike: 4.5 miles round trip Difficulty of hike: 2/5 Features: Abalone Cove and Catalina Island views, pine knolls, sun-soaked trail, gradual 800 foot descent. Dog-friendly! Free parking.

Type of trail: Dirt.

Compiled by Logan Collingwood and Matthew Brancolini

LOOKING BACK

FEATURES // MAY 4, 2012

2012 seniors tell us what they would put in a time capsule.

“Letters to yourself. Like

put in a graded quiz so “ Iwewould can find out in the future

where you would want to be 50 years from now.

“

what we were learning.

”

-Mercedes Larios

-Steven Vaughan

My senior class shirt because if I saw that 20 years from now that would be pretty cool.

[The shirt] signifies a lot because it is my graduating shirt that represents our class and it would bring back a lot of memories.

-Brooke Rocha

“

back and see what people in 2012 looked like and what you learned and what was important.

how we looked so we can reflect back on it and remember how high school was.

-Brittany de Seriere and Joannah Slater

-Kirah Storey

”

would have put in a tennis ball because I was a tennis player and it was a big part of my life in high school…and I would try to get all my teammates to sign it.

erations] can see how old it is and the advancement of technology. I would put in a dollar bill because in 20 years dollar bills probably won’t do anything.

”

-Spencer Peak

going to be playing drums anymore.

salsa team since sophomore year so [salsa] defines my whole experience here.

” I would put my track spikes -Charles Angulo

“ in it because it was a sport

”

that I played in high school and im not going to play it in college so they would remind me of the experience

A picture…and I would write my name on it, so everyone could know what I looked like.

”

”

put my drum sticks “ Iinwould there because im not

put my salsa heels “ Iin.would I have been part of the

-Emmy Bensing

”

would put in one of my old “ Icellphones, so [future gen-

“ [If I were a graduating senior,] I

“

”

put my yearbook “ Iinwould it because you can look

“ Our senior photo to remember

-Kelly Rodriguez

”

Probably my dancing shoes.

I started dancing in high school and I want to see how it progresses when I look back on it.

-Mary Lopez

”

-Adam Genovese

11

DRAWING BY COOPER LOVANO

-Andrew Lopez

”

S TR ES SE D OU T! 12

FEATURES // MAY 4, 2012

Hardy struggles with anxiety

by Savannah Stern

Thoughts are spinning in her head. Her mind jumps from one subject to another.

She is unable to focus on one specific thing and begins to feel frustrated. Junior Emma Hardy is well-accustomed to such sensations.

Hardy suffers from a mild anxiety disorder and obsessive compulsive disorder, better known as OCD. She was diagnosed towards the end of her freshman year as she began to feel stressed out for no apparent reason.

“Most people get stressed because of particular things, but sometimes I get stressed out for no reason. That’s where the anxiety disorder comes in,” she said.

Although Hardy does experience stress from everyday things like school and extracurriculars, she feels that many of her problems come from the pressure she puts on herself.

“I am a perfectionist. I put pressure on myself to never mess up at anything, and that definitely adds to the stress,” Hardy said.

Her OCD also adds to the anxiety and gets in the way of her daily life. Things like which side of a person she walks on or which seat she takes at the dinner table are constant concerns. When these routines get disrupted,

Hardy’s anxiety level begins to rise.

“If something isn’t right or in order, it makes me anxious, and I just want to fix it; to put it the way it’s ‘supposed’ to be,” she said.

Hardy’s anxiety can be debilitating and makes homework or other tasks difficult to finish.

“It’s like you’re stuck in your head. You feel paralyzed,” she said. “It’s really hard to focus on any one thing. Work just gets really hard to finish.”

Because she doesn’t know the clear reason for her anxiety and stress, Hardy can’t simply get rid of it like most other people can.

“People get stressed out all the time; it’s normal. But when other people get stressed they know the reason, like a test or something, and once it’s finished the stress is gone,” Hardy said. “But when you don’t know the reason, it doesn’t go away. Some days are better than others.”

Hardy sees a therapist when the stress and anxiety get too overwhelming. She also takes prescribed medication to prevent panic attacks.

“Going to a therapist does help because I can get everything out of my mind. I can say whatever I want or need to. It’s nice to be in a place that is free of judgments,” she said.

The little things. Junior Emma Hardy feels that her OCD makes tasks like completing homework more difficult.

covered material and focus on what students struggle with. Planning for the reviews, as well as additional grading and other preparation, make the weeks before AP’s stressful for teachers.

“Last year it took a long time [to plan],” AP US History teacher Amber Keller said.

“The whole deadline really puts stress on everybody.”

Both the students and the teachers feel the stress of preparing for the tests.

“I get a little stressed because I know [the students] are under stress. I want them to do so well,” Keller said.

Despite the inconvenience, students attend the sessions in order to better prepare themselves.

“It’s something that, if you’re an AP student, you need to attend in order to be successful,” Keller said.

However, the review sessions can have an adverse effect on the schedules of AP students. “[The sessions don’t have a huge impact [on my schedule] since it’s only once a week, but it cuts my practices short and I have to start my homework later,” Sophomore Erin Shy said. “In the end it’s worth it [though].”

PHOTO BY JULIE D’EATH

AP preparation strains teachers, students

by Alejandro Quevedo

The sky outside is velvety black, but the teacher is still sifting through piles of exams.

Her free period was consumed with planning for the night’s review sessions, which kept her at school until nine last night. With an exhausted sigh, she looks down and continues her work.

Nearly every AP course offers or requires a weekly review session. Typically lasting from around February to the date of the final exam, these two-hour sessions are used as an opportunity to review all of the previously

Students may be required to plan their weeks out, especially if they are taking multiple AP classes.

“The students know that [the review sessions] are necessary,” AP Spanish teacher Deborah Forster said. “It’s difficult to balance everything: schoolwork, having some sort of a life, and all of their AP classes.”

The review sessions also increase unity within the classroom.

“I get to know the students more one-onone,” Keller said. “Even though the review sessions cause stress because it’s my busy time of year, I really do enjoy them.”

FEATURES // MAY 4, 2012

13

Stress impacts students’ health

by Mannal Haddad

Weary-eyed and exhausted after numerous all-nighters, students struggle to stay awake in class as a new, stressful day begins.

Both students and teachers agree that the pressure to succeed in school can cause stress that can harm students’ health.

“I have so much going on [that] I get almost no sleep. I go to bed at 11 or 12 on a good night,” sophomore Garrett Lash said.

Physiology teacher Stephen Brown believes that stress makes it difficult to sleep and that a lack of sleep can have negative effects on the body.

“Stress messes with the hormones in the body, which is going to disrupt sleep habits.

It has a negative effect on memory, moods, and causes anxiety. [It can be] detrimental to performing any kind of task,” he said.

Lash sees the effects of sleep deprivation and stress on his body and mind, and he feels that it makes him anxious and unable to concentrate at school.

“I worry too much about the littlest things. It takes a toll on my brain and even-

tually my body,” he said. “In class, I’m out of it. I work as hard as I can, but [stress makes school] harder than it needs to be.”

Junior Zoe Ezzes also has stress due to a busy schedule. She was in the spring musical and would sometimes stay at school until eight during tech week and ten during shows.

Between drama, choir, three AP classes, and working as a counselor at an acting camp, she “struggles” to find the time to sleep, and her schoolwork suffers as a result.

“If I can move I go to school, but all I want to do in class is sleep, so I’m not retaining anything,” she said.

Lash believes that stress “plays a part” in him getting sick so often, and Ezzes agrees, believing that her lack of sleep causes her to get sick frequently as well.

“I have too much homework, so I don’t get enough sleep at night. That makes me susceptible,” she said.

The lack of sleep and stress that many students experience could have dangerous long term effects, according to Brown.

“If they don’t know how to deal with stress, it could cause problems with salt and

water balance. They’ll lose muscle mass, and have blood sugar problems,” he said.

Lash juggles taking one AP and two honors classes, being on the water polo and swim teams, playing the piano, and tutoring, so he struggles to find time to relax.

“I barely have time to hang out with my friends, which is what relieves my stress,” he said.

Brown believes that the best way to deal with stress is to have a strategy, such as exercising, talking, avoiding stressful situations, or relaxing.

“I take a 45 minute nap every day,” he said. “I have to have some way to center myself.”

Ezzes also has trouble finding ways to relieve her stress because she feels like adding another activity to her schedule would only add to the stress. “[Stress] limits me from doing things I want to in my spare time,” she said. “I’m afraid [that new things are] going to add on more stress because I know it will be taking time away from the other things that I have to do.”

The American Psychology Association recommends the following to relieve stress: - Listening to music - Reading - Playing sports - Meditating - Napping - Exercising - Spending time with family Information from apa.org

Brown takes first AP as a senior, feels pressured

by Shivaani Gandhi

We know the signs: dozing off in class, drinking coffee like it’s water, and doing hour upon hour of homework every night. AP season is upon us, and senior Lucas Brown is experiencing it for the first time.

Although most AP students take their first AP class either sophomore or junior year, Brown made the decision to take his first one, psychology, as a senior.

“I’m going to go to a good college, so I want to be prepared,” Brown said. “My mom’s a psychologist and she told me to try out AP Psych, so that’s what I decided to do.”

According to Brown, there is a big difference in the workload of an AP class versus a CP class.

And the AP countdown begins...

“I never had to study before, but now I have to remember all the small details,” he said. “I’ve been doing a lot of one-pagers and lots of studying to prepare for the AP exam.”

AP Psychology teacher Brooke Mata also feels that the work load is larger, but believes that Brown is doing well in her class because of his “strong” work ethic.

“There is a lot of terminology to remember, especially when combining science, sociology, and psychology. It can become hard,” she said. “He makes sure to take time to meet with me if he doesn’t understand something, [so] he’s doing well.”

Although psychology is his only AP class, Brown says kinesiology is also a difficult class for him, so he must work hard to make sure

May 8 Spanish Language

May 7 Chemistry, Environmental Science, & Psychology

he gets everything done.

“It’s hard to balance psych with my other classes. This year has definitely been [my] hardest so far,” he said.

Mata agrees that one of the hardest parts of taking an AP for the first time is learning to manage one’s time.

“The amount of work, preparation, and rigor is different. In AP’s, students are tested every two weeks. They have to constantly prepare for the AP exam, so the way they balance work has to be different,” she said.

Brown said that while many seniors take five classes, he is taking six, so his workload is heavier than others.

“From freshman year all the way to senior year, my work load has increased tremen-

May 10 English Literature

May 9 Calculus AB & Calculus BC

May 14 Biology & Physics

May 11 European History & United States History

dously. Usually they say your sophomore and junior [years] are the hardest out of the four, but I can easily say my senior year has been the hardest,” Brown said.

Mata does not believe that Brown’s choice to take a more “rigorous” class as a senior is a strange one.

“I think different people are ready to challenge themselves at different times. [They] don’t take an AP because they think it will be easy,” she said. “It was a good decision for Lucas [because] he’s challenging himself.”

Despite the challenges he has faced, Brown is glad he chose to take AP Psychology.

“Balancing my time has been a challenge,” he said. “It’s been hard but overall this year has gone well for me.”

May 16 English Language & Statistics

May 15 United States Government

May 18 Spanish Literature

May 17 Economics

14

SPORTS // MAY 4, 2012

Against all odds

by Allegra Peelor

Boys tennis lost to Peninsula on Monday 7-11 to finish a season filled with illnesses and injuries with a record of 128. However, according to coach Jessica Siebert, it was a good match compared to the last time they played Peninsula and lost 3-15.

“Penn’s a very good team and we put up a good fight against them,” she said.

Siebert believes that one of the reasons why the game’s score was so close is because of strong doubles play. RUHS’s number one doubles team, seniors Chris Lew and Daniel Helfant, swept their three doubles matches 6-4, 6-3, 6-2.

“We did really well in doubles today,” Siebert said.

Monday’s loss to Penn contributed to the team’s fifth place finish in Bay League, but placing fifth was finalized two weeks ago when they lost to West 7-11. According to junior Derek Levchenko, the team “could have done better against West.”

“Coach was disappointed. We were disappointed,” he said.

Junior Christian Grantz does agree that the loss to West was a blow to the team’s confidence, but it also helped keep the boys motivated to do better and “keep fighting” to finish out the season strong.

“We were a little disappointed,” Grantz said. “But we were missing key players so it didn’t hurt too much.”

According to Levchenko, the team has overall strong doubles play but in their match against West, this aspect of their game did not come through because senior Chris Lew was out of town.

“If we had Chris, we probably would have had at least a close score and could have kept

Boys’ tennis finished in fifth place for Bay League, finalized by their loss to West Torrance.

our fourth place spot [in Bay League],” he said.

As a result of placing fifth in Bay League, it is very unlikely that the team will be able to enter CIF finals since wildcards are usually given to teams that place fourth or better in their league.

“Our season was cut short because of that,” Levchenko said.

However, according to Grantz another reason why their season did not reach its full potential was because for almost every game the team was missing at least one player due to injury or illness.

“We fought hard despite losses and got as many sets as possible,” he said.

Siebert and Grantz agree that in order to have a better season next year, the team needs to strengthen their doubles play since according to Siebert, “that’s where people are graduating.”

“We are definitely going to need to strengthen our doubles because we have a lot of people coming up from JV for doubles,” Grantz said.

Levchenko believes that the incoming freshmen are their main hope for having a good season next year, since there are seven seniors leaving.

“We’re gonna be missing some of our key players next year - our number one doubles team’s going to be gone so we hope we get some good freshmen,” he said. “I just hope that the freshmen we get can step up and earn a very good spot on the team but I don’t know what to expect.”

Although this may not have been the best season in the team’s history, Siebert believes it could have been much worse.

“We had a rough season between injuries and illnesses,” she said. “But given what we had to work with, we had a successful season.”

PHOTO BY BRITTANY NGUYEN

Jump Shot. Junior Derek Levchenko serves the ball in match against

Softball loses to Palos Verdes Baseball hits one out of the park

by Jessi Shipley

by Jessi Shipley

On Wednesday, the softball team lost to Palos Verdes 3-6.

On Wednesday, the baseball team beat Mira Costa 8-2.

“This was one of our best

“We need to be more ag-

wins so far. We played excellent defense and hit well all through the order. When you do those two things, you’re going to get good results.

gressive at the plate and work on swinging at the first pitch, but our defense was strong in the game against Palos Verdes.

-Samantha Ruiz

”

PHOTO BY ANDREW HAZELTINE

Out of the park. Senior Juliana Jordan hits in game against West.

-Matt Esparza

”

PHOTO BY ANDREW HAZELTINE

Take me out to the ball game. Senior Matt Esparza pitches in Palos Verdes game.

SPORTS // MAY 4, 2012

Meeting the qualifications

15

The qualifying track runners head to CIF to compete head to head in what could be a defining victory. through to CIF as possible.”

According to senior Cameron Lawler, qualifying for CIF is very difficult considering only the top three athletes move on from each race in Bay League finals.

“My major goal for these upcoming meets is just placing into CIF,” Lawler said. “It’s going to be difficult but I am ready. I just need to keep my consistency and I’m sure I’ll place at the top.”

Lawler feels that some of the team suffered from minor setbacks due to the variation of coaches during the season.

“During the middle of the season, we had a transition of two different coaches,” said Lawler. “We didn’t have a coach for about a week and that seemed to tear down our consistency but we tried to not let that bring the team down.”

by Diana Luna

Minor setbacks have affected the track team throughout the season but they were able to defy those struggles to lead themselves into the Bay League finals for today, 6:00 p.m. at home. The team has continually shown its true potential in every meet and has strived to perform its best according to coach, Julie Ferron. Last Tuesday was the Bay League Preliminals and the overall goal was to qualify for Bay League Finals. “[Tuesday] was just to qualify for Bay League Finals which is the main purpose for Prelims,” Ferron said. “Friday’s purpose is then to make as many athletes

The amount of injuries also played a role in set backs according to junior Kayla Ferron.

“Of course there are those annoying injuries that got to everyone. It’s happened to our best runners at the best and worst of times, which had put them out for a couple days in between the season,” Kayla said. “Luckily, we only had a few who were injured for Prelims last Tuesday.”

Kayla qualified for Bay League finals as did many others including Cameron and Cole Lawler and all of the distance runners.

“We are now competing for ourselves, so if we win or lose, then that’s individually on ourselves,” said Lawler.

“We want and are going to take it all.”

PHOTO BY JENNY OETZEL

Run it out. Freshman Amber Gore and Junior Erin South compete in the 400 race

Turning a new leaf mid-season

by Brandon Folkman

PHOTO BY ALEXIS BRACKENS

Lax. Senior Tyler Clinton catches a ball in a game against Costa.

After qualifying for CIF playoffs as a 14th seed, Redondo Lacrosse’s season came to an end Tuesday with a 3-13 loss to Westlake.

“It was a tough game to end on because I don’t think we really played up to our full potential,” senior Eddie Clites said. “They came to play and just played way harder than us.”

The team had a rocky start to their season with some hardfought losses, however mid way through their season turned around as they began to win and have a shot at making CIF playoffs. According to Clites, the team’s major problem was focus.

“Once we got more focused in practice we started to play a lot better and won a lot more games,” Clites said.

According to Clites, the team’s 11-4 win over rival Mira

Costa was the highlight of the season.

“Beating Costa was definitely our biggest highlight because it’s the first time any Redondo lacrosse team ever beat them,” Clites said.

Senior Tyler Clinton agrees with Clites that defeating Mira Costa was the best part of his high school lacrosse career.

“It felt amazing to beat Costa for the first time,” Clinton said. “Since I was a freshman I had lost to them seven times and this was my and the rest of the seniors’ very last chance to beat them.”

Both Clinton and Clites agree that the team will have a strong future next year.

“Even though a lot of seniors are leaving the team this year, I think next year the team will have a lot of potential and will do pretty well,” Clites said.

Swimming to the high victory Physical and mental preparation

by Kylie Martin

by Colin Welch

On Wednesday night’s Bay League prelims at Costa, many swimmers advanced to the Bay League Finals.

Boys’ golf gains confidence for CIF with their win last Monday. The team is getting mentally and physically ready for team play.

“All season we have been

“We are excited for team

working hard and training rigourously for the Bay League Finals, which definitely paid off during Wednesday’s meet.

-Jonathan Ortiz

”

CIF and we are all focused and ready to perform and try our hardest to do well and get better.

PHOTO BY MAX PITTMAN

Fly high. Sophomore Nick Johnson swims butterfly in meet against West.

-Matthew Ferradas

”

PHOTO BY JENNY OETZELL

Hole in one. Junior Ray Malator competes in match against West.

16

SPORTS // MAY 4, 2012

Boys’ vollyball gains energy for CIF

by Allegra Peelor

ATHLETE OF THE

ISSUE

by Chris Nguyen

He loosens the velcro on his glove and aligns his thumbs at the top of his driver. Then he swings his club and watches the ball fly through the air, closer and closer to the hole. A sudden grin comes across his face as he realizes the ball has disappeared:

2.

PHOTO BY ERINN MIDDO

Swinging with passion. 1.

Senio Kenny Cole swings in a match against West. 1. Cole has been on varsity golf all four years of high school.

1.

PHOTO BYJENNY OETZELL

Kenny Cole

Senior Kenny Cole made his first hole in one at Skylinks in Long Beach.

“I was only 13 and it was just really funny because my friends tackled me when the ball went in.

It just seemed so surreal, I could not believe it,” Cole said. “Some people go through their whole lives not making a hole in one, and the fact that I made mine at such a young age made it feel so awesome.”

Cole first swung at a golf ball at the age of 5, when introduced to the sport by his father.

Kenny immediately fell in love with the sport and has never stopped.

When he first started, most of his skills were natural, and Kenny’s father, Randy Cole, knew he would be great. He “could not be more impressed” with Kenny’s determination through the years.

“I am so proud of Kenny and his efforts to get better and improve. He has come a long way since he first started,” Randy said.

Cole enjoys playing golf most

with his friends and when he can, he loves going to Palm Springs or Lake Tahoe to play.

“My friends make golf a lot more fun. The course in Palms Spring and up in Lake Tahoe are really beautiful and nice change of scenery. They are especially fun because of the design of the cours-

“I practice fifteen hours

a week and when you put a lot of effort into something, it’s going to mean a lot to you.

-Kenny Cole, 12

”

es,” Cole said.

Cole has been on varsity all four years. And this year, Kenny with the rest of Redondo Golf has won eleven matches and only lost two.

He accounts his success and overall accomplishments through high school to his coach, John Burke, and also to all the time that he has spent on the driving range,

just practicing his swing.

“Coach Burke truly inspired our team constantly by just telling us that he had faith in what we could accomplish and he helped teach me to stick to my game plan,” Cole said.

Cole believes that golf helps define him. Through his extensive taining, it has become a “huge” part of his life.

“I practice fifteen hours a week and when you put a lot of time and effort into something, it’s going to mean a lot to you,” he said.

“I feel like it [golf ] is a big part of my life now.”

Kenny plans to to use his experience here at Redondo and learn from it to improve himself as a player as he moves to the next level.

He plans on going to UC Siverside and walking on the team there.

“Each year we have gotten better and better. And finally my senior year we won the Bay League title,” he said. “Being on varsity my whole high school career has helped me grow a lot.”

The boys volleyball team beat Peninsula 25-17, 22-25, 25-15, 25-11 on Monday to finish their season at third place in Bay League, behind Mira Costa and Palos Verdes, and with a record of 19-11.

Senior Clay Attig believes that the team played well against Peninsula.

“We played with a lot of energy in the last couple games,” he said. “[It] showed in our serving and passing.”

Head coach Duncan Avery agrees that the team’s spirit contributed to their success on Monday.

“We came out a little flat,” he said. “But we responded to their energy.”

As for their final placement in Bay League, Avery is happy that the team ended up third since Mira Costa and Palos Verdes are strong teams, but he does believe that they could have placed higher.

“It was tough losing to PV and I always think we could do better if we didn’t get first [in league],” he said.

According to Attig, there will be tough competition in the upcoming CIF tournament, but the team is well-prepared.

“We played a lot of hard teams in our pre-season that prepared us for CIF,” he said.

Avery also believes that the boys will go far in CIF. “If we focus on our defense and keep training at the level we’re training at we’ll do well,” he said.

PHOTO BY ANDREW HAZELTINE

Power shot. Senior Steven Vaughn spikes thae ball against a Peninsula blocker.