The
LEDGER
Vol. 6
Issue 2
December 11, 2018
Students As Consumers
It’s All About The Money Pg. 8-9
Content
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News
6
News
Footloose The first musical of the year is the largest Liberty has produced Lip Sync Battle Teachers and student battle it out in on stage
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In-Depth
Student as Consumers Students are on a budget and start paying for themselves
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News
Teacher of the Year Find out who won teacher of the year at Liberty
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Entertainment
The Latest Lingo What’s the tea of the sister slogans?
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Entertainment
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Opinion
2018 Look Back Learn about the midterm elections
Staff Editorial Do parents have a major impact on your future?
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The LEDGER
The Ledger magazine is a part of the district’s curriculum and is designed to provide a practical journalistic experience for written expression on a variety of topics. It is a student-led publication class that reports on stories relatable to the school community. Students write, take photos and design the publication and the adviser will supervise the student journalists. The opinions expressed in this magazine may not be those of Liberty, nor the Wentzville R-IV School District, faculty, staff or administration. The main editorial, when included, expresses the opinion of the Liberty editorial staff.
Volume 6 Issue 2
Editors Olivia Holler* Chasteanne Salvosa* Alyssa Bailey* Design Editor Jessica Gibson*
Reacting
Reporters McKenzie Bartels, Shae Bowsher, Emma Hankins, Nicholas Howard, Brooke Huffman, Lauren Polydys, Melana Quarles, Caleb Woods *Each editor also serves as a reporter
Letters to all editors can be submitted in room 239, emailed or mailed to Liberty. All letters must be signed. Limit letters you wish to be published to 250 words. Letters may be edited for space requirements and libelous material to the discretion of the editors. If you have a news story idea or comment, please contact us in room 239.
Credentials Intentions
The Ledger is a publication that releases 4 issues (one per quarter) throughout the year, distributing 1,000 free copies to the student body, faculty and administration of Liberty High School as well as the surrounding Wentzville and Lake St. Louis communities.
The Ledger is a member of the Sponsors of Student Publications of Greater St. Louis.
Advertising
To further facilitate the space available for student writing, advertising will not be offered in The Ledger.
Upcoming Events
JANUARY 1: No School 2: No School, PD Day 3: First Day Back 14: Late Start 18: No School, PD Day 21: No School, MLK Day 19: LHS Belles Showcase 25: Talent Show
Sports
Signings
Athletes sign away from high school and into college
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Sports
Midnight Madness The basketball season officially has begun
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Content | lhstoday.org design by: j.gibson
LHS Today: LHSToday.org
Twitter: @LHSJourn
Finals
Bell Schedule Wednesday, Dec. 19 1st Hour 7:15-7:49 2nd Hour 8:04-8:48 3rd Hour 8:53-10:13 FINAL 5th Hour 10:18-11:03 6th Hour 11:08-12:31 A lunch 11:03-11:33 B lunch 11:33-12:02 C lunch 12:02-12:31 7th Hour 12:36-1:20 8th Hour 1:25-2:15 Thursday, Dec. 20 (ALL FINALS) 1st Hour 7:15-8:42 2nd Hour 8:47-10:12 (Grab and Go Lunch) 10:17-10:33 5th Hour 10:33-12:00 Friday, Dec. 21 (ALL FINALS) 6th Hour 7:15-8:42 7th Hour 8:47-10:12 (Grab and Go Lunch) 10:17-10:33 8th Hour 10:33-12:00
photo by LHS Publications
photo by b. morris
photo provided by Abby Reed
Adding Pizazz to the Parking Lot
Seniors are able to paint their parking spots sponsored by National Honors Society by Jessica Gibson Reporter
photo by b. morris
photo provided by Zoee Harrington
photo provided by Marjori
Parking spots are great for the students who drive to school. The parking lot has more than 500 spots for the staff and students. The only way everyone is able to tell the difference between their spots is the small number located at the front of the spot. But other than that, every parking spot looks the same. Senior are in luck. For the first time at Liberty, and in the Wentzville School District, National Honor Society (NHS) is allowing seniors to paint their spots for $20. This offer is only allowed to seniors, but they are able to paint whatever they would like in their designated parking spot, as long as it is school appropriate. “We are painting the spots white as a base, but other than that, seniors must provide their own paint. They can use any type of permanent paint they would like,” Ms. Hallemeier, sponsor of NHS, said. When purchasing paint, student are recommend to buy latex based exterior paint. Students can also use spray paint on their spots. Also it is recommend to have a top coat, for a longer lasting picture. Students have had amazing and creative ideas already. “I painted a golf putter, and
Russo
then circles with my rewards that I’ve received around it,” senior Zoe Harrington said. The first opportunity for seniors to paint their spots was in October. There will be a few more opportunities, for seniors who didn’t get the chance the first time, in the future. “I painted mine on Oct 23,” senior Taylor Cunningham said. “I painted a golf ball with a red bow and my monogram in blue on the golf ball.” Painting the spots are time consuming. Students have put time and energy into creating their spots. “I think it turned out well, it’s what I pictured in my head,” senior Marjori Russo said. “I spent a lot of time painting and creating my spot. At one point I was at Liberty for five hours. I definitely spent 10+ hours on my spot, but it turned out really well I think.” There are still so many options and designs seniors can paint. Senior, don’t miss your chance to paint your spot on the upcoming dates. You’ll never get the opportunity again.
News | lhstoday.org design by: j.gibson
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‘If You’re Dancing, You’re Wrong’ Footloose is a success at Liberty with the most students ever involved in a production By Lauren Polydys Reporter
After months of hard work and dedication from all the cast, Footloose was finally ready for Liberty to see. On Nov. 16, 17 and 18, the musical was performed in the auditorium and has become Liberty’s second successful musical with the largest number of drama students ever involved. The show was delayed a day due to inclement weather. The Thursday show was moved to Sunday afternoon. Despite the slight alteration in the show, cast member and sophomore Lizzie Kayser believed the crew pulled it off. “It made me a little nervous at first but I think the extra day was needed to recuperate,” Kayser said. “Friday night only 20 seats weren’t sold. It was a great performance.” While at times the cast had to be serious, the musical overall was full of fun dance scenes and plenty of humor that kept the audience enthralled in the story of Ren McCormack (Wesley Nichols) and Ariel Moore (Emily Gann) and their classmates battling to change the ways of Bomont so they can be free to dance and express themselves. “My favorite part of the show is the finale because everyone got to
come together,” sophomore Alliesa Riles said. Riles played the character Rusty. “The hardest thing for me is not to break character, because I love to laugh and have fun,” sophomore Michelle Yoder said. Yoder played character Wendy Jo in the production. While everyone was watching the amazing performance on stage there was also another entire part of the performance going on behind the stage between coordinating lights, music and changing sets. These people are just as instrumental to the entire musical process and make the show as fun and beautiful as possible. Stage managers such as sophomore Evan Mantz, junior Drew Goodman and senior Cat Frank are just a few of the people who helped everything go as smoothly as possible. “[My favorite part of the Footloose process] was hanging out with all the cool kids backstage. What I will definitely miss the most is all the great people in the theater program,” Mantz said. The entire cast and crew have become a family, but even though the show is over these kinds of bonds are forever.
(From left to right) Paxton Linnemeyer (12), Michael Gannon (9), Dylan Lindke (11) and Christian Tebeau (12) sing to Wesley Nichols (11). photo by b.mcmakin
Cast
Wesley Nichols Grace Pickering Cameron Jones Lizzie Kayser Emily Gann Chynna Yeh Devin Eckardt Joshua Paubel Ashlynn Thompson Alliesa Riles Emily Grant Michelle Yoder Braden McMakin Aadi Kadam Ben Gagliano Jackson Martin Annette Oliphant Christian Tebeau Nash Gilbo
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Paxton Linnemeyer Michael Gannon Dylan Lindke Marlee Doniff Shaina Feinstein Sara Bailey Eradyn Bailey Lola Cadice Adelle Coughran Shaunna Cruse Anna Decker Alison Flitter Lindsay Grant Ashley Haberberger Madison Haynes Audrie Helms Abby Hinzman Bianca Jorden Lillian Kraft
News | lhstoday.org design by: l.polydys
Alyssa Place Marissa Pukala-Whitaker Ashley Russell Avery Schlattman Bella Tegtmeier Kate Waltman Aiden Yowell Amanda Yoder
Director
Ms. Gerhrke
Technical Director Mr. Amrhein
Vocal Director Ms. Kennedy
Set Designer Mr. Labrot
Light and Sound Designer Mr. Eversole
Choreographer Ms. Braswell
Assistant Choreographer Marlee Doniff
Stage Managers Cat Frank Drew Goodman Evan Mantz
Crew
Makenzie Keiling Jose Vasquez Ali Burkett Zach Pinkham Megan Chambers Maddie Ashlock Grace Bundy Brooke Huffman Emily Stabile Emily Ball Rachel Geisler Hope Harbour Sarah Downs Irem Inan Maya Angeles Alyssa Bailey Emily Bohn Ryan Lammert Summer White
photos by s.downs & b.mcmakin Annika Pastrana Joseph Powers Kyle Pridgeon Abby Shields Mykenzie Waller Julia Deters Lilia Taylor Cleopatra Mozolewski Ayrianna Franklin Zach Pinkham Drew Goodman Marishka Hanson Ryan Lammert Paxton Linnemeyer Evan Mantz Rachael Roberson Madison Stumpf Mykenzie Waller
Lending a Helping Hand Mr. LaBrot’s Woods II class make flag cases for veterans around the community by Caleb Woods Reporter
photos by h.mccune, j.gibson, k.hill Students in Woods II created flag cases for veterans as a way to give back. Junior Zach Dotson plans to give his to his grandfather for Christmas.
Veterans Day is a day to recognize and acknowledge those in the military. Liberty is stepping it up a notch. Mr. LaBrot’s Woods II class is making flag cases for veterans as a way to give back. “Over the summer, I came up with the idea of wanting my Woods II class to do a community project,” LaBrot said. “Sometimes they are expensive to have. My grandfather never had a case and that bothered me. It was in a plastic zipper bag that the Army gave us.” While Liberty did not have a Veterans Day assembly this year, the school still wanted a way to honor veterans. Junior Zach Dotson is making a flag case for his grandfather, Tony Dotson, who served in the Army. “I respect that he was in the Army,” Dotson said. “I plan to go into the Army after my senior year.” Dotson plans to give his flag case to his grandmother as a Christmas present. The flag cases are going to be a gift to the families of service members who can’t afford one.
Senior Reed Sutton is also making a flag case to donate it to the veterans. “They [the veterans] will normally pay $80 for the flag cases,” Sutton said. “If we are making the flag cases for free, the veterans will get it for free.” There are going to be 30 flag cases in total and once the flag cases are done, the Woods II class is going to donate them to Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW). The VFW is the U.S. oldest major war veterans’ organization. “If a service member passed away and the family can’t buy a case, they can give one away,” LaBrot said.
“I respect that he is in the Army. I plan to go to the Army after my senior year.” - Junior Zach Dotson
Taking Center Stage
Liberty students are selected to take part in St. Louis Suburban District Honor Choir
A
by McKenzie Bartels Reporter
group of students were selected to perform at Pattonville High School on Nov. 3 as part of the St. Louis Suburban District Honor Choir. The choir teacher, Ms. Kennedy, informed her students about this opportunity and encouraged they all take part it in it. The audition process on Oct. 6 at Marquette High School wasn’t easy. The students had to prepare a minute of a song and had to practice reading music. They had individual audition times and spent one minute singing and two part sight reading audition. The audition took place on a Saturday, and they didn’t hear the results until Monday. “It always feels nerve-racking waiting, but it in the end the results were good,” sophomore Alyssa Place said. Preparing for this performance takes a lot of work. For starters, they will need to work on a lot of their music on their own. Then, as a group they will practice together at Liberty a
photo provided by Ms. Kennedy Students performed at Pattonville for the St. Louis District Honor Choir. Wesley Nichols was selected for All State Choir.
couple times. On Oct. 29, they rehearsed at Pattonville. The morning of the performance they will spend the morning preparing too. This is sophomore Shaina Feinstein’s second year participating in this program. “I made it last year and I was really hoping I would make it again this year. I’m very excited about the event and the fact that I made it,” Feinstein said. The other students participating are: Emily
Gann, Emily Grant, Alyssa Place, Dylan Taylor and Michelle Yoder. Wesley Nichols was also selected to audition for the 2019 All-State Choir. He was selected for second alternative bass in the AllState Choir. He is the first Liberty student to earn this opportunity. “It was crazy to hear because I didn’t think I did that well. I was like…holy cow,” Nichols said. Nichols will continue to prepare for his next audition with Ms. Kennedy, along with another vocal coach. Ms. Kennedy is proud of her students for taking part in this and for making it as far as they did. “I’m really proud of all them and hopefully in the future we can have more students participate too,” Kennedy said. This is a huge opportunity for these students, and it’s not easy. News | lhstoday.org design by: o.holler
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Lip Syncing For A Cause
Teachers and students went head to head and had students laughing all night long by Lola Cadice Reporter Liberty kicked off their first ever lip sync battle sponsored by Educators Rising and Cheer bringing the audience to laughter and tears in front of a big crowd in the theatre. Earlier this month, teachers chose students that they would be competing against and on Nov. 28 at 6 p.m., the battle finally took place. The teachers and students had prepared for awhile and could not wait for people to see what they had been practicing. If you photo by a. jordan won the battle, you received a small trophy Morgan and Jo Stevens went battled Mr. Burthardt and sang of a microphone, so if you were a winner you “Party in the U.S.A.” They also ended up winning. were able to take this trophy home. First up, was a mother v.s daughter, Mrs. T.O. and Annette Oliphant. Annette ended up winning the battle singing, “Mamma Mia” and Mrs. T.O. lost even though she had a great Christmas outfit and props. “Even though I practiced for 10-15 minutes, I still think I was prepared enough,” Annette said. Next, was Mr. LaBrot vs. Mike Dawdy photo by a. jordan and Jaxon Wheeler. Mr. LaBrot won lip In addition to fun songs being performed, teachers and photo by h. mccune students had fun extra challenges that they performed, such The real crowd favorite was when Mr. Barker lip sang syncing a mix of his favorite songs “Take as the Oreo stacking challenge. Dr. Kiely (left) takes on Megan to “Wrecking Ball” and wowed the crowd with his These Broken Wings”, “Genie in a Bottle” McVey. choreography and costume. and “Here I Go Again.” Lobster. Lobster won Mr. LaBrot went all out with quick costume changes, props and fun lip syncing to “Crazy In Love.” The crowd went crazy for Lobster and it music. The boys had a good song and good choreography but did not was an obvious win to the audience. make the cut. To send love and support to Coach Kleiber, who is battling breast Before you walked into the theatre, there was a table set up for a QT cancer, the crowd raised more than $200 to help and support her gift card raffle. Almost every student who attended the battle decided through this difficult time. This was great to add to the night, because it to sign up, thinking they could have the chance of winning a gift card really helped someone and made people show respect towards this cause. without having to do anything in return, but they were wrong. Next up was Mr. Jesse Graf vs. Luke Carter and Liam Finnegan. If your name was drawn, you would have to go up onstage and lip Jesse won lip syncing to a song about Taco Bell. He also had backup sync to the song “Respect” by Aretha Franklin. Two students - Cesar students involved in the song and these students were dressed up as a Padilla-Verdayes and Parker Freeman - had to go up and lip sync but still taco and Mountain Dew. each ended up with QT gift cards in return. Mr. Burthardt then lost against Morgan and Jo Stevens who lip sang Grace Pupillo, who was in the audience, really enjoyed the Lip Sync to “Best of Both Worlds.” Ms. Pizzo and Emily Gann had a duet and Battle and hopes to see Liberty do another event like this in the future. Gann sang to “I Wanna Dance With Somebody”, while Pizzo had some “At first I was skeptical of how the night would turn out, but once I great choreography. watched it I really enjoyed it and got a good laugh from it,” Pupillo said. LHS Cheer, who was a sponsor for this event, also did a challenge “I definitely think Liberty should have more events like this because I where they all did a press up. They had to see who held it the longest, yet loved seeing the teachers and students really getting involved.” they ran out of time. They each held the press up for the same amount Next up, Mr. O’Donnell went up against Chrissy Stewart and of time. Ruthie Clancy. Stewart and Clancy won lip syncing to “Fergalicious” The real crowd favorite was when Mr. Barker lip sang to “Wrecking while O’Donnell sadly lost. Ball” and wowed the crowd with his choreography and costume. His In addition to these fun songs being performed, more teachers costume consisted of a white tank top and white short shorts. He went and students had fun extra challenges that they also performed. These against Daphne Becker who also did a fantastic job. Barker however, challenges were an Oreo stack featuring Coach Kleekamp vs. Claire really went all out and had the crowd laughing to tears. Royer (tie), Tissue Trouble game featuring Mrs. Gehrke vs. Evan Mantz To end the night, there was a video shown featuring our (winner), and a Chubby Bunny game that featured Mrs. Clark (winner) administration lip syncing to “Get Your Head In The Game” and the vs. Lilly Lankford. crowd went wild. This video was hilarious and was the highlight of the Next, Coach Kling and Coach McMillen went against Aminhan night.
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News | lhstoday.org design by: m.bartels
A Beginning of Understanding Epsilon Beta shows their appreciation for all people by making pronoun buttons by Alyssa Bailey Reporter
photo by e.bailey
The feeling of being judged by other people at school, work, or home takes a toll. It’s already difficult to fit in, sometimes, and Epsilon Beta wants to acknowledge and change the way people look at the library and other individuals. Epsilon Beta has decided to start a new project where they will create and sell pronoun buttons to ensure a safe, happy environment for everyone. Ms. Oliva, their sponsor, took part in taking action to make this project happen, and as a way to promote the library that accepts everyone. “I want them to represent that we don’t judge people, and that we accept different shapes, sizes, and affiliations of people,” junior Lilia Taylor said. “For the most part, that we don’t care about judging you or making you feel mistreated just because you feel differently than others.” Senior Sam Nelson helped to design the buttons. Junior Ali Burkett, who is the secretary of Epsilon Beta, said the buttons should represent
photo by e.bailey
how the school is a safe place for everyone. “Since the library isn’t just books, it’s green screens, printing, and a place to go during lunch, we wanted to represent how it’s a service for whatever people need,” Burket said. Epsilon Beta began meeting every other week in A.I. to work on these buttons and has discussed different ways of distributing them in their usual meetings that take place every other Tuesday. Lilia Taylor, who is the president of Epsilon Beta, has put into words of what it’s like to become the new president this year and the changes she wants to make to accept and welcome everyone. “I’ve been so inspired and always so eager to get up there and get everyone excited about Epsilon Beta since, in past years, it’s been hard,” Taylor said. “We haven’t had as much membership so I’m really hoping to make a change on that this year and I’m just so excited to have more people joining our club to show them that the library isn’t just a place to read books. The library is a place to connect with other people and share common values, and just accept each other. It’s a way of showing that the library is a safe environment. It’s not exactly to promote Epsilon Beta, itself, but just the library.” The buttons will be sold at the library for a dollar and all the funds will go directly to the library. Epsilon Beta and their sponsor, Ms. Oliva, want the library to be seen not only as a resource but a reflection of the students. “We want our students to know that we have resources like, for example, fiction books that represents students at Liberty,” Oliva said. “We have books involving the LGBT community and we have a Gateway book this year that has a character that’s gender fluid. It’s just about practicing acceptance throughout the school.” Not only that but Epsilon Beta is planning on involving more students in their upcoming projects and activities, such as the stay in after school, the spring conference at Columbia, field trips at Discovery Ridge, and they worked the booth at Pink Night on Oct. 19.
Epsilon Beta plans to involve more students in their upcoming projects and activities.
News | lhstoday.org design by: m.bartels & b.huffman
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Are Students Consumers?
Is high school preparing students to become participating consumers in our country’s economy? by Chasteanne Salvosa Co-Editor-in-Chief Students might not spend money on many things, but as they begin to become more self-reliant for their finances, getting jobs and gaining financial freedom is the first big step for financial literacy. But as much as students spend on the things they purchase, does that validate them as consumers in our economy? Students tend to spend money on the most trivial things as they still rely on their parents for their more basic needs such as electricity and water, but this gives students the freedom to spend their paycheck on whatever they like. “I feel like a lot of the items that adults don’t buy, they don’t buy them because they have responsibilities,” according to senior Sabrina Martinez, who works at the O’Fallon Hut 8. “The items that we buy because we don’t have as many responsibilities. In that sense, we buy a lot of the things that adults won’t buy.” In a recent poll conducted out of 100 students by Ledger reporter Alyssa Bailey, the most popular categories for student spending is entertainment, such as going to the movies, eating out with friends and shopping for clothing. “I’m going to be getting my license in April and I’m going to need to pay for my own gas and food when I go out with friends,” sophomore
Adelle Coughran said. But is the high school curriculum preparing students to becoming participating consumers in our country’s economy? The Wentzville School District requires that students take one semester of Personal Finance in order to graduate. The class curriculum covers everything from simple budgeting to basic tax forms that students will need to know before working. “I don’t think one semester of Personal Finance is enough to teach students financial literacy,” junior Logan Wernig said. But for some students, learning financial literacy is a teamwork effort between the student and their parents. “It has to be half and half,” Martinez said. “Parents contributing, the school contributing and teens also need to step up and contribute to how you become financially literate.” So, are students consumers? Yes. Considering that students are active in workplaces that are vital to the economy and then participate in it through their many little purchases in food and retail, students are learning consumers who are trying to master skills in financial literacy all while being in school full time.
IT’S ALL ABOUT
by Alyssa Bailey, Brooke Huffman
What do you spend your money on?
Approximately
40%
of Liberty students have a job and put money into their savings account.
A survey conducted by The Ledger staff found trends about student spending among 100 Liberty students* by Alyssa Bailey Reporter *The following results were taken from a recent survey distributed to Liberty students via email and 100 responses were recorded. The results came from a variety of students among different grades.
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In-Depth| lhstoday.org design by: a.bailey, b.huffman, c.salvosa
Do you have a job and if so, do you save a portion of your paycheck into a savings account?
Are You on Track to be Financially Stable? 1) Within a week, how much money do you usually spend? A) $0-15 B) $15-30 C) $30-45 D) $45+
2)Do you have a savings account? If not, do you have a secure area to put all your money?
4) If there was an unexpected emergency (i.e. car broke down, tire popped, accident), you would have enough money to fix the problem. A) Strongly Agree B) Agree C) Disagree D) Strongly Disagree
5) I have a plan (budget) for spending and/or saving my money. A) Strongly Agree B) Agree C) Disagree D) Strongly Disagree
A) Strongly Agree B) Agree C) Disagree D) Strongly Disagree
3) I regularly save my money for longterm financial goals, such as car payments, insurance, college, etc. A) Strongly Agree B) Agree C) Disagree D) Strongly Disagree 6) I try to avoid impulse purchases and do not spend money on unnecessary items. A) Strongly Agree B) Agree C) Disagree D) Strongly Disagree
Tally up your answers and find out your results below. If you answered mainly D’s: The Financial Flunkee You’re not the best at saving your money but it’s not too late to start. Keeping a budget or keeping track of your money would help you now and in the future. If you answered mainly C’s: Basically Broke You’re falling off the tracks a little, try to not make any hasty purchases.
If you answered mainly B’s: A Fruitful Future You’re in a good direction and above average with managing your money. Congrats, you’re on track! If you answered mainly A’s: A Successful Student You are in outstanding financial shape and managing your money has been a breeze. Keep it up!
THE MONEY
& Chasteanne Salvosa Reporters
Categories of Spending
Which of the following do you spend your money on a weekly basis? (Students were allowed to select multiple responses.)
Food Shopping (retail) Entertainment/Going out with friends Auto Expenses 20
40 60 Number of Students
80
100
In-Depth | lhstoday.org design by: a.bailey, b.huffman, c.salvosa
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A Taking the Extra Step
Mr. Hysong takes top honors in winning Teacher of the Year by Olivia Holler Co-Editor-in-Chief Mr. Hysong is one of the many teachers who goes the extra mile for students to succeed. Senior Zoee Harrington goes to him for help rather it be math or a personal issue. She knows she can count on him. “Hysong has always been there to listen and be a shoulder to cry on if I was ever down. I can’t think of any other person to deserve this award more,” Harrington said. The announcement for teacher of the year was made by Mrs. Reininger in front of the whole staff after school on Nov. 14. Mr. Hysong, a math teacher, was selected by his peers for the award. “I feel great, it is an honor. It is a privilege to be selected by all the faculty of Liberty,” Mr. Hysong said. At first, Mr. Hysong did not desire to be a math teacher. “I originally was going to be an engineer and went on a college visit and decided that was not for me,” he said. “I still wanted to do something with math but a little more social so I chose to be a math teacher.” He has been a teacher for 12 years. He spent his first nine years at West Junior High School in Columbia teaching 8th and freshman and three years at Liberty. Ever since he started teaching, he found a love and passion for his job, especially working with high school students. “I went into secondary education because I didn’t think I would be able to get along with the middle school students, but then I was placed in junior high and I taught 8th grade students for nine years and it ended up being good,” Mr. Hysong said. “When I moved I knew I wanted to be with older kids, I just felt like you can have more authentic relationships and conversations.” Hysong is originally from Warrenton. When he moved here he knew he wanted to be in the Wentzville School District. “I had always heard positive things about the Wentzville School District. When I was looking at schools in WSD, I noticed that Mr. Pryor was an assistant principal at Liberty,” Mr. Hysong said. ”He was my golf coach at Warrenton when I was in high school. Once I got the opportunity to sit down and talk with Mr. Pryor and Mr. Nelson, I knew that I wanted to be at Liberty.” From the start, Hysong knew Liberty was a place to be. Each day, he continues to make an impression on not only students but colleagues as well. “It is a joy working with him, he and I laugh everyday and it’s
fantastic,” Ms. Jacks said. As a teacher, their job is prepare you for the next several years in high school. Hysong makes sure his students are prepared beyond high school. “My role as a Formal Algebra 2 teacher is to prepare students for College Algebra or Algebra 3,” Mr. Hysong said. “But it also is to help students prepare for the next level of education or the workforce. If that’s the workforce – how to be socially ready, if it’s college – to be academically ready but also socially ready, how to work hard and be responsible and build relationships.” Mr. Nelson says Mr. Hysong has been a strong addition to the math department. “He has been a fantastic addition to our math team. He really understands how to help and prepare students,” Nelson said. Mr. Hysong continues to prepare students but also to build relationships with them. “The biggest challenge I face is student motivation. The best way to deal with that is try to build relationships with students. They will work for you because they like you,” Mr. Hysong said. As Liberty’s teacher of the year, Hysong advances to the next round for the district teacher of the year. On Dec. 20, the district teacher of the year will be announced at the board of education meeting.
WSD Teacher of the Year Winners Barfield EC SPED Center: Elizabeth Sandorf Boone Trail: Angela Garcia, School Counselor Crossroads: Heather Gardner Discovery Ridge: Becky Newsom, Librarian Duello: Jackie Swanson Green Tree: Charlene Waggemann, PE Teacher Heritage Primary: Sally Schulte, PE Teacher Heritage Intermediate: Barb Stepp Lakeview: Jennifer Cook, Librarian Peine Ridge: Lisa Ryan, 5th Grade Teacher
Prairie View: Emily Dubois Stone Creek: Jennifer Thies Wabash: Kaci Lueking, 1st Grade Teacher Frontier Middle: Doug Leonard South Middle: Yvette Wiemann Wentzville Middle: Chris Kyle Holt High: Justin Young, Math Teacher Liberty High: Chris Hysong, Math Teacher Timberland High: Stacey Nielsen, College/Career Counselor Mind Development: Ashley Capotosto
How well do you know Mr. Hysong? 1. How many years has Hysong been teaching? 5. What is his favorite sports team? 2. Where did he go to school? 6. How many kids does Hysong have? 3. Where did Hysong teach before Liberty? 7. What are his kids names? 4. Where did he live before he was in Lake St.Louis? 8. What is his favorite food? Answers on pg.13
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Feature | lhstoday.org design by: o.holler & m.quarles
A Day at a Time
Get to Know the Counselors Ms. Sheffield
Counselor Mr. Cunningham makes an impact in our community by Olivia Holler Co-Editor-in-Chief
Upon senior Zoe Killingsworth’s first impression of Mr. Cunningham, he was intimidating. But once she got to know him, she was able to open up more to him. “He turned out to be a big teddy bear,” she said with a smile. Not only do students think highly of him, but his co-workers do too. He was even nominated by his colleagues for teacher of the year. “He is great with students,” counselor Ms. Wooten said. “Sometimes girls are hesitant to talk to him, but if they give him a chance, they find out that he is really good at his job.” His hard work and experience shows through daily. The guidance office is easily impressed with how he portrays himself to students. “Mr. Cunningham is easy to work with,” Ms. Wooten said. “He came with lots of experience and knowledge. We were lucky to get him. He was the counseling department chair at St. Charles High School for eight years before coming to Liberty.” Mr. Cunningham comes with experience and the desire to want to help specifically teenagers. “I have always felt like I am a good listener and I just love helping people, especially teenagers,” Mr.Cunningham said. “My passion is working with teenagers and I just felt like this was a better position than teaching because I can help them in a different way.” Students can see that he is motivated and tries the best he can to accommodate every situation as needed. Killingsworth describes him as “open, honest and willing.” There is nothing else he would rather be doing than helping teenagers. “I think I would intimidate kids but a teenager I can be more real with because you guys are closer to adult age. I am able to talk to you like an adult,” Mr. Cunningham said. Cunningham went to college at Southwest Baptist University. Then he went to Lindenwood and got a master’s in school counseling. He has been a counselor since 2007. “Lindenwood gave me a good job of giving
me a little bit of foundation, but honestly I think with everything you have to learn on the job,” Cunningham said. “I didn’t learn in school how to deal with schedules and things like that. It prepared me for the consulting part. They aren’t going to be able to give me every scenario I deal with on a daily basis. Something new comes through every year. You use your past experience to deal with the new situations. I don’t think any education could prepare you for every situation in a job.” A counselor faces many challenges throughout the year and even on a daily basis, but Cunningham handles it smoothly and takes it day by day. “The biggest challenge is to get students to calm down and be able to relax and know that they are okay here,” Cunningham said. “That’s hard when you have 1,400 plus students and all the faculty and I have to try to help them understand that it is a small community and we are a family here at Liberty and that they are going to be okay. Avoiding is not going to help. If we can get you here, I know our teachers are going to take care of you and hope that students understand. It is a daily battle.” Even outside of school, he still his willing to help people in our community. He works at Behavioral Health Response in Creve Coeur several times a week in which he provides telephone counseling to people in mental health crises as well as mobile outreach services, community referral services and critical incident stress management. “It is just a great feeling to be able to know that I helped that person out today,” Mr. Cunningham said. Mr. Cunningham is a shining example of someone who does the job for the love of students and our community.
“It is just a great feeling to be able to know that I helped out a person today.” - Mr. Cunningham
Years as a counselor: 5 Outside of school: Shopping Favorite music: Halsey, Without you Favorite food: Pizza or salad Ultimate travel destination: Backpacking through Europe with no kids or phone
Ms. Wooten
Years as a counselor: 23 Outside of school: Work out, hangout with friends Favorite music: Styx or anything you can dance to Favorite food: Mexican Ultimate travel destination: A beach
Mrs. Gerringer
Years as a counselor: 16 Outside of school: Spend time with family, read a novel Favorite food: Home-style Ultimate travel destination: seeing the Northern Lights Feature | lhstoday.org design by: m.quarles & o.holler
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The Latest Lingo
Liberty students dish about the most recent teenspeak by Chasteanne Salvosa Co-Editor-in-Chief artwork by s. bailey
by Chasteanne Salvosa Co-Editor-in-Chief ‘I always have all the tea and the receipts to back it up’, ‘No cap, I can totally make this half-court shot’, ‘I’m gonna go off, on me’. Do any of the preceding sentences confuse you? Or just not make any sense? And do you want to know what the meaning behind ‘it really do be like that sometimes’ and what it means to ‘get this bread?’ Well then, it’s time to update your knowledge on the latest teenspeak, as the outdated terms you may be very well familiar with, such as ‘roasted’ and ‘on fleek’ are out of the cycle. For parents and teachers, every other word coming out of their teenager’s mouth sounds like it originates from a foreign language. And it may very well confuse parents on why their kids feel the need to say ‘bread’ instead of ‘money’ or ‘tea’ instead of rumors. “I think we have slang words to make it easier to describe something or makes it easier for someone to relate to something,” according to freshman Avery Schlattman.
R.I.P. The Dead Dictionary 12
Tea: (noun) a synonym for news or gossip, can also mean rumor Receipts: (noun) term for proof behind a rumor Keysmash: used to express a state of confusion or shock (ex. askldjfloiajldkfhlkj) Oof: (adjective) similiar to saying, ‘that’s rough’ Go off (I guess): to vent, usually said with a sarcastic tone Snapped: (verb, past tense) to have vent after internalizing a lot of emotion It really do be like that sometimes: It is what it is Wig: similiar to ‘deceased’ or ‘shooketh’, used to express a state of shock That ain’t it, chief: to disagree with something or someone Retweet: to show agreement Wyd: ‘what are you doing?’ On me: to mean, ‘I swear’ Cryin’ in the club: to become suddenly emotional Bag/coin/bread: (noun) synonym for money or profit No cap: ‘I swear’ Local: (noun) someone heavily invested in mainsteam culture
Awesomesauce /ôsemsôs/ adjective A term used to describe something or someone as extremely good or excellent. Once used by everyone, awesomesauce is a word that remains in the elementary vocabulary but is dead in the world of teenspeak. ‘The 2017 homecoming dance was awesomesauce.’
Savage /savij/ adjective, noun A term used to describe something or someone as ferocious for roasting something or someone else. Savage, founded in the same era as YOLO, was unfortunately subject to the same treatment as the slang word by being plastered onto cheap merchandise sold at everywhere from Amazon to Walmart. “The way Keith answered Mr. Roger’s question was savage!” Entertainment | lhstoday.org design by: c.salvosa
Y.O.L.O. /yōlō/ abbreviation An abbreviation for the phrase, “You only live once”. The phrase was popular among partygoers and daredevils alike, but as YOLO made itself into the mainstream market in the form of cheesy clothing such as cheap plastic slides and neon snapbacks, the word became overused and eventually, died from exhaustion. ‘“Dude, do you think I should go to the winter formal?” “Yeah dude, YOLO.”’
From “aldskfjaslkdfj” to “tea”, teens are using terms that most adults have never heard of. The current slang words of teens mainly stem from social media platforms, Instagram and Twitter, where someone starts the spark of a new trendy word. Below are some of the current terms of teenspeak.
Match the Ledger staff
Try to find each Ledger staff member’s childhood picture 1.
A.
Put the number next to each letter of what Ledger staff member matches their baby picture. (Example D 6) A. ____ B. ____ C. ____ D. ____ E. ____ H. ____ I. ____ J. ____
F. ____ G. ____
K. ____
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The first person who brings the completed page to Room 239, wins a QT gift card.
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Christmas Break
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D.
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G.
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by Sara Bailey
What is Liberty’s favorite holiday? 10.
Halloween 18 votes Christmas 88 votes New Year’s 4 votes Valentine’s Day 3 votes
J.
*poll results from lhstoday.org
5. Missouri Tigers 6. 2 7. Evelyn and Graham 8. Chipotle Chicken Burrito Bowl
photos by Ledger staff, b. mcmakin, e. mason and LHS Publications
K.
Answers from page 10 1. 12 2. Mizzou 3. West Junior High 4. Warrenton
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Interactive | lhstoday.org design by: c.woods
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2018 in Reverse
Looking back at the memories we made in 2018 By Lauren Polydys & Shae Bowsher Reporters
(From left to right) Adrienne Rockette (9), Kiara Jimenez (10), Fiona Flynn (9) and Pierce Polydys (10) reflect on something they did this year they were proud of. As 2018 comes to an end, they plan for their future goals in 2019.
“I got to run for varsity cross country as a freshman and we went all the way to state and placed.” -Freshman Adrienne Rockette
“This year I joined FCCLA, HOSA and Spanish club to meet new people and make my resume for college really stand out.” -Sophomore Kiara Jimenez
“Being a journalist this year has helped me take a huge step out of my comfort zone through making me more open to talking to different people.” -Freshman Fiona Flynn
photo by s. bowsher
“I got my driver’s permit this year so I can hopefully be able to drive to school next year and anywhere else I want to go since I will be 16.” -Sophomore Pierce Polydys
2018 Highlights The year 2018 is coming to a close and everyone is getting excited and prepared for the holiday festivities to come. Some people are starting to think of their New Year’s Resolutions and are ready to jump right into 2019. Before the New Year, take some time to look back at everything that has happened this year to help shape and change the person you were before. There are so many monumental moments of 2018 to look back on, but here are just a few ranging from movies to movements. Time’s Up Movement is launched against sexual harassment
January
February
75th Golden Globe Awards-
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First SpaceX launch of an orbital rocket
Pyeongchang 2018 Olympic Winter Games
Entertainment | lhstoday.org design by: l.polydys & s.bowsher
National Student Walkout Day
March March for our lives in Washington DC to end gun violence
Hamilton the musical at the Fox Theater
April Beyonce headlines Coachella music festival
Kissing Booth was released on Netflix
May Royal Wedding between Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
Keeping Up With The Midterm Election The new ratio of congressional and governor seats By Emma Hankins & Melana Quarles Reporters U.S. House of Representatives 233 Democrats
2 Undecided
Gained 38 seats
Lost 38 seats
200 Republicans
U.S. Senate 47 Democrats
1 Undecided
Lost 2 seats
Gained 2 seats
52 Republicans
Lost 6 seats
27 Republicans
Governors 23 Democrats
Gained 7 seats
First Time Voters
Liberty High School students vote for their first time and share their experiences
“It wasn’t what I was expecting, the lady asked if I was a first time voter and when I said yes she announced, ‘We have a first time voter in the house’ and everyone applauded for me. I researched a little but I knew what I was going to do because of my views and my family. To be honest I didn’t know some of the people. I was already getting pretty educated about it but I wish I would’ve asked about how the voting went. I didn’t know that there are different ways to vote; the electronic version and the ballot.” - Senior Jessica Gibson
The Muny celebrates 100 years on stage
June Ocean’s 8 is released
France wins the World Cup
July Longest Blood Moon Eclipse
“It was cool because my family is super into politics. We all voted together. My sister and I disagreed and we had a cool discussion about it. It was dorky but fun. I researched like a nerd and I made my decision before I got there and read up on the people I was voting for. The whole voting thing was different than I thought. It was a giant piece of paper that you fill out and they put it in a machine.” - Senior Eradyn Bailey
Crazy Rich Asians is released
August To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before is released on Netflix
Hurricane Florence hits North Carolina
September LHS has their “Greatest Homecoming on Earth”
“It was nuts. I stood in a line at Frontier for three hours. It wasn’t very well organized. The ballot machine was broken, and I stood in many lines and the machine wasn’t working. They had to take my ballot by hand. It was definitely worth it because I have been waiting to vote. I did a little bit of research and I read into the propositions and I read up on the candidates and I didn’t go super in depth, I just got a general gist. It was good to finally have a say in the government. I think that every vote matters and every vote is valid.” -Senior Paxton Linnemeyer
Red Sox win the World Series
October Eighth annual HOPE 5k in Kirkwood MO
Midterm elections
November St. Louis International Film Festival
Entertainment | lhstoday.org design by: l.polydys, s.bowsher & e.hankins
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Do Parents Pressure Career Choices? Is it true that parents put more pressure on their child when picking a career? by The Ledger Editorial Board
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hat do you want to do with the rest of your life? Is this something you actually want to pursue? There’s over a million people going after the same career and there’s only a 1 percent chance that anyone makes it... These are all common questions that parents ask their child. It’s not to necessarily make them feel bad about what they want to become when they’re older, but there’s a lot of pressure riding on it. Picking a career choice is stressful enough and with parents looking over our every shoulder, there’s not much free range to choose what the child really want to do. Following a career path is the foundation of what career the child will choose but when they are told to be something that they’re not, or don’t want to become, there’s no use in enjoying what the future lies ahead. It’s truly about the choices the child makes. There are many factors that go into why parents interject with their childs career. “Some factors that can influence trajectories include the family’s culture, their income and family resources, and the quality of the parent-child relationship,” said psychologist George Holden at Southern Methodist University in Dallas. One of the biggest influences that come from parents is how a child is raised. Family values and culture is a crucial aspect when a child is developing. Kids growing into adolescence often come to their parents for advice and feel that their parents will support them. However, when teens start to distance themselves from their parents, they tend to be more pushy and controlling. It’s not out of despite but love. There is a big difference between being supportive and being pushy. It revolves around the idea of nature v. nurture. Parents initiate their child’s life in the beginning, whether that includes sports, socializing and school. As their child becomes independent, parents react to their day-to-day decision making. This either sparks pride in parents or disappointment, which further leads to individuality from parents. Not all parents take this well and when their child decides they want to go to college, their controlling intentions leads to additional pressure when choosing a college, often a four-year college. Depending on the relationship between a parent and a child, it can also influence the amount of pressure on a career choice. To have a close relationship with your parent is worthwhile, but even when the relationship is significant, parents typically expect more from their child,
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Opinion | lhstoday.org design by: a.bailey
artwork by a.bailey
career wise, and sometimes, even hope their child will follow in their footsteps. However, that’s not always the case. Even parent-child relationships that are rocky still differ in career choices. Frequently, the parent and child don’t consider each other’s feelings when deciding upon an occupation. It’s important to discuss and explain where both sides come from, but usually there’s not always the same amount of communication coming from both parties. A parent’s approach should be to inspire their teens to explore a diverse set of potential occupations or to stick to a path that makes them happy with their life. Parents may interject their opinion about a career choice, but ultimately it is a child’s decision. It’s normal to stray away from what parents expect from you in order to make yourself content in the occupation that you desire. Don’t be afraid to speak up about what you want because in the end, it’s your life and it’s your decisions.
“Some factors that can influence trajectories include the family’s culture, their income and family resources, and the quality of the parent-child relationship.” -psychologist George Holden
Step Aside
How the hallway traffic affects students getting to class by Brooke Huffman Reporter
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photos by a.bailey
How to Survive the Hallway
trademark of Liberty’s hallways is the constant crowding of people. Whether it’s a clump of people off to the side, or an immovable walk in front of the stairwell, it’s a constant iconvenience we’ve all learned to live with. Sure it’s annoying, but really, what are we going to do about it? Most likely complain to our friends, or try to explain to our teachers why we were late to their class. It’s unfortunate, but it’s just a part of life. As for those contributing to the traffic, I’m sure they’re unaware of how aggravating they really are. All they really want to do is talk to friends between classes, and is that really such a bad thing? They’re not trying to get in your way or make you late, they’re trying to socialize during the few minutes of free time they have during the day. Instead they’re getting shoved to the side, or whistled at by teachers to “move along.” Not that encouragement would be much better- at least the whistling gets things done. I would have sympathy for these people, if it weren’t for the fact that they don’t seem to care about anybody else. They don’t apologize for being a roadblock. They don’t politely move out of the way. They just keep on doing what they’re doing and that’s that. It’s frustrating, to say the least. You don’t want to ask them to move, but at the same time do you really have another choice? I get it, I really do. If you don’t have any classes or lunch with your friends, you want to talk to them at some point during the day, but can’t you do it anywhere else? Whether it’s near the vending machines or even inside of a classroom, just anywhere that doesn’t affect anybody else’s routine. When your quick chats come to the point where we need teacher’s lined up along the hall to instruct people to get to class, they’re crossing a line. Is there a solution? Yeah, and a pretty simple one at that - don’t stop in the middle of the hallways. Passing time, while extraordinarily short (especially for students going from the 300 to 200 hallways), is something that needs to be used for getting from one place to another. So next time you have the option to stand tall and proud (in the middle of the staircase) think about everybody behind you that is about to be late to class. Make everybody’s day (and life) a little bit easier and at least stick to the sides.
Way #1 - Stay in your Lane Walking in the hallways is just like going for a ride - stick to the right. A common rule in riding a bike, driving a car, it’s something we’ve known since pre-school. If you stay on the right side of the hallway, it eliminates the problem of running into other people. Way #2 - Move at a Moderate Pace I’m not suggesting that you sprint down the halls like you’re finishing a megalap, just don’t stand still. A lot of people have places to be, and when you’re stuck behind this fortress of people that are practically not even moving, it’s gonna be hard to get to class on time. Try to walk with somewhat of a purpose when you’re going from class to class. Way #3 - Find Alternate Routes The central staircase, while convenient, is also extraordinarily overcrowded. Taking other staircases, venturing through other hallways, or finding other shortcuts can save you and everyone else time. If 50 people chose not to take the central staircase, think about how much easier it would be to get from the 100 hallway to the 300 hallway.
Opinion | lhstoday.org design by: a.bailey
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Through Thick and Thin
An inside look on the brotherhood of Sam and Donny Arrington by Ally Schniepp & Elizabeth Hamby Reporters Senior Donny Arrington didn’t know what his 7-year-old self was thinking when he started playing football, but as he did, his little brother, Sam, then 4 years old, mindlessly followed in his footsteps. “It’s a free hit at someone, so why not?” freshman Sam Arrington said. Both Arrington brothers, although being three years apart, started playing the game they love at the young age of 7. In their brotherly rivalry, they each strive to be better than the other, both said that they were better. “Older siblings always want to show up younger siblings,” Donny said. Although in this rivalry there is a multitude of pressure set on Sam’s shoulders to fill his brother’s shoes. “I was being put in different positions that I didn’t want to play in because of my older brother. I have to strive for greatness,” Sam added. With Sam as a freshman and Donny being a senior, the pressure was on for the season, especially since they both play quarterback. But that doesn’t stop the brothers from pushing each other to do their best. Donny greatly impacted Sam on the basic
knowledge of football. “He taught me how to throw a football,” Sam said. Donny often gave his little brother advice, but it only sometimes came through to Sam. Aside from playing football, Sam and Donny also share their love of track. With Donny being injured, it’s hard to know when he will pick up the sport. Donny’s ACL injury ended his excellent senior year in week seven as he couldn’t play what were supposed to be his glory games. But through thick and thin, Sam stands by his brother’s side, no matter what. In the light of a district playoff game, Donny needed his brother to get through the 37-2 loss against the Fort Zumwalt North Panthers. Although it was a sad night for the team, the torch was passed as one brother’s high school career ended and one is just starting. In times like this, you forget all other opinions and critiques to help out someone you love. Their brotherly rivalry may be important, but before all else comes brotherly love.
photo by h.mccune
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Sports | lhstoday.org design by: j.gibson
Signing in the Spotlight
Athletes make their next destination official at the early signing date by Nick Howard Reporter For 14 athletes, their goals were made official on Wednesday, Nov. 14 for College Athlete Signing Day in the main gym. Colleges gained new athletes for next year’s fall semester and pictures were taken with families. Athletic director Mr. Eldredge encouraged everyone to come out and support the athletes in their signing. For the athletes who signed, it was a huge relief mixed with excitement as they get ready for their next chapter. Senior Caitlin Rodriguez is happy that she finally has found a good college in Maryville to be going to for softball. “It’s nice that I don’t have to worry about having any stress about needing to find a college anymore,” Rodriguez said. For senior Chase Krogman, he finally made it official that he is committed to the university that he has been verbally committed to since his sophomore year. He will be attending Missouri State for baseball and hopes to be drafted out of the school. “It feels like forever ago since I first committed so it’s great that I’m finally making it official,” Krogman said. As athletes head off to college, new goals are set for their time playing sports wherever they commit to. Senior Zoee Harrington hopes both athletically and academically that she goes far for her years at Quincy University. “I plan to go to college to study special education and try to make it professionally in golf,” Harrington said. As the athletes finish up their last year of high school here at Liberty, the goal of heading to college for these seniors has been finalized.
Congratulations to all our athletes!
Liberty’s Signing Athletes Beth Roberts
Chase Hoeber
Missouri S&T
Parkland College
Soccer
Jack Kavanaugh
Soccer
Baseball
Chase Krogman
Baseball
Missouri Baptist
Missouri State University
Zoee Harrington
Emily Albers
Golf
Softball
Quincy University
Central Methodist University
Christian Zeik
Luke Paulus
Lake Erie College
Quincy University
Wrestling
Caitlin Rodriguez
Softball Maryville University
Baseball
Mia Eshoo
Softball
MacMurray College
Brady Voss
Dani Gregory
Missouri S&T
Auburn University
Abby Behlmann
Hyatt Hines
Softball
University of Texas at Tyler
Baseball
McKendree University
Track
Golf
photos by e.mason
Sports | lhstoday.org design by: j.gibson
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The Madness Commences Basketball teams start the season off with a bang by Ally Schniepp Reporter
photo by e.mason Corye Keller is in mid-dunk, proving why he deserves to win the dunk contest.
photo by e.mason Taryn, the raffle winner, attempts a half court shot while the clock was running out.
Students roared with team spirit, whether Grace Watson was sinking a 3 or Jayce Catchings was slamming one down in the dunk contest at the first ever Midnight Madness on Nov. 20. “The competition was great,” Mr. Wheeler said, who was the announcer of the big event. After Wheeler introduced the varsity players, they jumped right into the 3-point contest. The Jr. Eagles boys basketball players were assisting the athletes participating in the competition by rebounding and passing to the shooter so the players could get as many shots in as possible. After several rounds of close competition, the finalists were sophomore Toni Patterson for the girls and senior Chase Hoeber for the boys. After a tough battle, Hoeber came out on top and took the title. Knockout quickly started up after the 3-point competition ended. Players from both teams lined up one after another on the free throw line, ready to knock the people in front of them out. With five or so players left in the game, junior Megan Kruse knocked one down a split second before senior Jarrin McKeithen scored a layup. The crowd went wild and they couldn’t wait to see what happened next. “I am very impressed with the energy,” Wheeler said. After a tough battle between junior Jayce Catchings and sophomore Kaden Jacobi, Jacobi brought out the win over Catchings. Wheeler then came over the speakers announcing the raffle winner. An eighth grader from Frontier Middle School came down from the stands to claim her winnings. She had won the chance to make a layup, free throw, 3-pointer, and a half court shot in a minute to earn more prizes. Taryn, the winner, made the layup without a problem. She struggled with the free throw at first, but soon made it. Taryn knocked down the 3 on her first try like it was a layup. Twenty seconds left to make a half court. She tried her hardest, and was close several times, but she couldn’t sink it. She put up a good fight and went on her way to collect her prizes with a smile on her face. On to the dunk contest. Although Catchings just lost in knockout, he was ready for the dunk contest. The dunk contest had three contestants: Chase Hoeber, Jayce Catchings and Corye Keller. The competition was fierce. Between Hoeber throwing the ball against the wall only to slam it down into the hoop and Catchings giving the fans a chance to interact by tossing the ball to someone in the crowd to throw it back to him so he could smash the ball in the basket. But, there can only be one winner. “Corye Keller is your winner!” Wheeler said. The crowd exploded with excitement and adrenaline from watching what had happened. “I just use my teammates,” Keller said humbly of his achievement. “With the end of the dunk contest, that concludes our first ever Midnight Madness,” Wheeler said. The crowd let out one final roar, cheering for all they’d seen that night. From now on, every year the students will be ready and welcomed to basketball season by this new tradition.
photo by e.mason The varsity boys basketball team gets ready to go out onto the court for Midnight Madness.
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Sports l lhstoday.org design by: n. howard
photo by e.mason The dance team performs on the floor, ready to make students excited for basketball season.