Fall 2022

Theater Hosts Putnam Bee 24 ATHLETICS

Gridiron Athletes Hang Tough 28

TOOLBOX TUESDAYS 8

Eighth graders learn valuable life skills.

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Seventh graders throw up the "U" during Owl Camp at Camp Bear Track in August. CAMPUS

THE MUS MISSION: Memphis University School is a college-preparatory school dedicated to academic excellence, cultivation of service and leadership, and the development of wellrounded young men of strong moral character, consistent with the school’s Christian tradition.

357 College Board Honors 75 OWLS for AP Achievement

75 resulted in a score of AP Exams Students 3 90% 180

75 Earned AP Scholar Awards

AP Scholar with Distinction

students earned this top honor, which is granted to students who receive an average score of at least 3.5 on all AP Exams taken, and scores of 3 or higher on five or more of these exams.

Simeon Betapudi ’22

Turner Bishop ’22

Felix Campbell ‘22

William Chandler ’22

Collin Craft ’22

MUS offered 22 Advanced Placement courses in the 2021-22 school year. We also offered 20 Honors Accelerated courses, designed to be equivalent in rigor to AP courses. Owls have been among the nation’s top Advanced Placement performers since the school began participating in 1963.

Since its inception in 1955, the AP program has been based on the premise that qualified juniors and seniors are capable of college-level work, and that such achievement should be rewarded by advanced placement and/or college credit. A committee of readers from colleges and secondary schools grade AP exams.

We administered 357 AP exams to 180 Owls in May 2022, and 90% of them were scored at a 3 or higher.

Owls earned a 4 or 5 on 70% of the tests. Thirty from the Class of 2022, 13 from the Class of 2023, and one from Class of 2024 qualified for AP Scholar with Distinction recognition.

Students took exams in Art History, Biology, Calculus

AB, Calculus BC, Chemistry, Computer Science, English

Language and Composition, Environmental Science, European History, French Language and Culture, Latin, Physics 2, Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism, Physics

C: Mechanics, Spanish Language and Culture, Statistics, United States Government and Politics, and United States History.

McRae Dickinson ‘22

Noah Emmert ’22

Will Fraser ’22

Edward Grinder ’22

Mark Hieatt ’22

Jordan Infeld ’22

Dex Jack ‘22

Evan Jones ’22

Alex Li ’22

Samuel Lim ’22

Matthew Mellone ’22

Reece Needham ’22

Vincent Ores ’22

Hamza Ranjha ’22

Johnathan Ray ’22

Forest Rudd ’22

Evan Schrier ’22

Talal Siddiq ’22

Witt Smith ’22

Garner Uhlhorn ’22

Micah Unowsky ’22

Coleman Whitehead ‘22

Christopher Yarbro ’22

Jacob Zamore ’22

Kerry Zhao ’22

Abdullah Elahi ’23

AP Scholar with Honor

Frederick Huang ’23

Joseph Keeler ‘23

Varun

Krishnamurthi ’23

Jeffrey Liu ’23

Kevin Ma ’23

Max Mascolino ’23

Ismael Qureshi ’23

Alyaan Salman ‘23

Charlie West ’23

Henry Yu ’23

Jack Zaptin ‘23

Lou Zhou ’23

Jerry Xiao ‘24

students received this designation, which is granted to students who receive an average score of at least 3.25 on all AP Exams taken, and scores of 3 or higher on four or more of these exams.

Ayo Adebiyi ‘22

Chris Bird ‘22

J.D. Clorina ‘22

David Sabin ‘22

Hayes Wilkinson ‘22

AP Scholar

Aryaan Ahmed ’23

Charlie Gamble ’23

Amar Kanakamedala ‘23

Parth Mishra ‘23

Thomas Preston ’23

Kyan Ramsay ‘23

Mohid Saeed ‘23

Dannie Dong ’24

Evan Wu ‘24

students received this designation, which is granted to students who receive scores of 3 or higher on three or more AP Exams.

Kyler Herring ‘22

Andrew Kerr ’22

Jacob Musicante ‘22

Caleb Skinner ’22

Jack Zanone ‘22

Cristian Arocho ‘23

Jack Blackwell ‘23

Braden Chubb ’23

George Flinn ‘23

Ben McBride ‘23

Brown Nickey ‘23

Andrew Schell ’23

Liam Shepherd ‘23

Nicholas Tam ‘23

Andrew Xu ‘23

Parker Blackwell ‘24

Bryan Ding ‘24

21 Students Earn National Honors

NATIONAL MERIT SEMIFINALISTS

The National Merit Scholarship Corporation and College Board have honored 21 Owls for their high marks on the Preliminary SAT/ National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test. The 20 senior honorees represent nearly 18% of the Class of 2023. Twelve seniors have been named National Merit Semifinalists, indicating their PSAT scores rank in the top 1% nationwide. Cristian Arocho, Charlie Gamble, Frederick Huang, Amar Kanakamedala, Varun Krishnamurthi, Jeffrey Liu, Kevin Ma, Ismael Qureshi, Kyan Ramsay, Alyaan Salman, Jack Zaptin, and Lou Zhou are among 16,000 students to receive the honor. Semifinalists will compete for one of 7,500 National Merit Scholarships worth nearly $30 million that will be offered next spring.

NATIONAL MERIT COMMENDED

The following eight seniors have received recognition as National Merit Commended Scholars indicating their PSAT scores rank among the top 3-4% in the United States: Aryaan Ahmed, Jack Blackwell, Joseph Keeler, Max Mascolino, Parth Mishra, Thomas Preston, Matt Walker, and Henry Yu

COLLEGE

BOARD RECOGNITION

In addition to being named National Merit Semifinalists, seniors Cristian Arocho, pictured left, and Kyan Ramsay have been designated by the College Board as National African American Recognition Program Scholars. (Ramsay received this honor in 2021 when he was a junior.) Junior Jorge Garcia, right, was selected as a National Hispanic Recognition Program Scholar.

“It is a great honor to receive recognition from the National Merit Scholarship Corporation and the College Board, and we congratulate our honorees,” Assistant Headmaster Barry Ray said. “These young men worked diligently in their courses and prepared themselves well for the PSAT. We look forward to watching their future accomplishments.”

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The Coding Club – coached by Technology Assistant Director Jonathan Saunders –placed first in the state in the American Computer Science League. Three members of the team – Joel Lim ’24, Jeffrey Liu ’23, and Lou Zhou ’23 - qualified for the final round in the Intermediate 3 Division. The competition tests students in fundamental concepts of computer science ranging from beginner skills to those meant for more advanced students.

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Owls Host Memphis Symphony Orchestra Residency

Aclarinet concert in Hyde Chapel November 16 was the culmination of a residency with the Memphis Symphony Orchestra clarinet quartet. President and Chief Executive Officer Peter Abell introduced the program, saying, “Music provides the soundtrack to your life as you live it.”

MSO’s Mr. Andre Dyachenko (principal clarinet), Ms. Rena Feller, Ms. Nobuko Igarashi, and Music Instructor and MSO member Chris Piecuch worked with student clarinet players for two sessions before the concert.

At chapel the quartet took the stage and played. Then Owls Jeffrey Liu '23, Sai Madasu '24, Parth Patel '24, Eshaan Patnaik '24, and Lucas Zhang '26 joined them for a lyrical performance of Bohemian Rhapsody

The MSO residency program will continue in the spring, with a focus on strings.

Mr. Jonathan Saunders with Coding Club members Jerry Xiao '24, Jeffrey Liu '23, Lou Zhou '23, Joel Lim '24, Sai Madasu '24, and Alex Yong '25; team member Diego Guerrero Viloria '25 not pictured

Left, Parth Patel plays the clarinet during the Memphis Symphony Orchestra residency concert.

Below, Sai Madasu plays the bass clarinet.

Front, Ms. Rena Feller, Ms. Nobuko Igarashi, Sai Madasu, and Music Instructor Chris Piecuch; back, Jeffrey Liu, Mr. Andre Dyachenko, Lucas Zhang, Parth Patel, and Eshaan Patnaik

Owls Startup Fall with Math

The Fall Math Startup returned with 127 Owls competing for the top score on the exam.

The 100-question test, incorporating problems ranging from arithmetic to calculus, took place over a 30-minute period after school in the Dining Hall.

Jeffrey Liu ’23, Dannie Dong ’24, Alan Cheng ’25, and Albert Ding ’26 were first-place winners in their respective Upper School grades. Dong was the top scorer of all 127 students.

Russell Lindeman and Joseph Zhao tied for first place in the seventh-grade division while Mustafa Mirza came in second, and Benji Berry brought in third place. Abdullah Khawaja took the top spot out of all the eighth graders with Will Brezina earning second and William Warmath third. Winners won five “skip the lunch line” passes and a $25 gift card to Amazon from the Mathematics Department.

Juniors

to

Owls Earn TMTA Honors 10

Owls placed in the top 10 in six Tennessee Mathematics Teachers Association contests last spring. Students from throughout the state competed, with first place winners earning a check; first through third place, a plaque; and fourth through 10th, a certificate. Parth Patel ’24 won first place in Pre-Calculus.

Tucker Melcher ’26, 9th place, Algebra 1/Integrated I

Jerry Xiao ’24, 10th place, Statistics

Reese Deupree ’26, 5th place, Geometry/Integrated II

Lucas Zhang ’26, 10th place, Geometry/ Integrated II

Albert Ding ’26, 10th place, Algebra II/ Integrated III

Alan Cheng ’25, 8th place, Pre-Calculus

Parth Patel ’24, 1st place, Pre-Calculus

Jeffrey Liu ’23, 6th place, Calculus and Advanced Topics

Dannie Dong ’24, 5th place, Calculus and Advanced Topics

Varun Krishnamurthi ’23, 9th place, Calculus and Advanced Topics

Seventh graders Russell Lindeman, Joseph Zhao, Mustafa Mirza, Benji Berry; eighth graders William Warmath, Abdullah Khawaja, and Will Brezina pose with their certificates.

Evan Wu, Qasim Akbar, and Eshaan Patnaik are ready

tackle their Fall Math Startup exams.

Becket Liles '27, Carson Alexander '27, and Mustafa Mirza '28 prepare for the exam.

MUS Goes Wild!

Science Instructor Shauna Miller and AP Environmental Science students set up cameras around campus to capture images of the wildlife that roams the grounds. Seniors Ben McBride and Jackson Moore; and juniors Casey Cooper, Harry Feild, Catcher Miller, Owen Sharp, Makhi Shaw, and Charlie Treadwell were instrumental in the project.

Foxes, deer, squirrels, raccoons, and an assortment of birds are the most popular critters seen on camera. The only owls captured on camera this season were the ones who take classes - their feathered brethren were too stealthy. One oppossum snuck into frame, but no bats, defying Mrs. Miller's expectations.

Both coyotes and bobcats are native species to Shelby County, and the forest surrounding campus would be an ideal habitat for both creatures, she said. But neither was seen.

Hawks have been recorded on campus cameras, but no owls yet.

Deer have been seen roaming the forest surrounding 6191 Park Avenue.

The MUS Wild cameras have captured 12 hawk sightings since being set up.

Raccoons have been the most popular critters caught on camera, with 168 sightings.

Eighth Graders Learn Practical Life Skills

Eighth graders have been learning life skills during Toolbox Tuesdays. They spend every other Tuesday’s Organizational Period focusing on a series of tasks –changing tires, using power tools, cooking, ironing, tying ties, sewing on buttons, building fires, and tying fishing knots –under the direction of faculty. Six groups rotated among the stations, completing the circuit by the end of the semester.

“The idea for Toolbox Tuesday originally came from Lower School Principal Loyal Murphy ’86, after he had observed outdoor skills being taught during Camp U in the summer,” said Science Instructor Nick Blackwell, who has spearheaded the project.

Blackwell brainstormed with Summer Programs Director

Ted Fockler ’10 about the skills boys need. “A central question became, ‘How can we prepare these guys not only for college but for life in general?’ Toolbox Tuesday grew out of that.”

During one session Blackwell, Assistant Headmaster McKee Humphreys '01, and Lacrosse Head Coach Joe Cummings helped a group of eighth graders cook – and eat – Cacio e Pepe. The goal is to teach the boys how to prepare a meal on their own.

Another group split between Religion Instructor Elliott Dent and Assistant Lower School Principal Joe Tyler as they demonstrated how to tie bow ties and neckties properly.

Assistant Headmaster Barry Ray believes ironing is an essential skill for young Owls, so he gave instructions on how

Above, Summer Programs Director Ted Fockler, right, and junior Henry Lindeman, middle, a member of the stage crew who helps with Toolbox Tuesday, teach eighth grader Julian Boswell small tool safety.

to iron a collared shirt. Art Instructor Laura Beck helped the boys learn how to sew a button on a shirt.

Science Instructor Garrett Smithson put his knowledge to work teaching Owls how to build an outdoor fire safely using a striker and flint. History Instructor Whit Tenent ’00 aided the young men in tying a variety of fishing knots. Both are essential skills for outdoorsmen.

Lower School Athletic Director Matt Bakke and Physical Education Instructor Kyle Finney educated their groups on how to safely jump a car battery and correctly change a flat tire. These are skills that will stick with the students when they start driving in a few years.

Technical Director of Theater Robert Fudge and Fockler took over the Hyde Chapel stage to demonstrate how to operate a cordless drill, essential knowledge for countless home improvement projects.

“Toolbox Tuesday is our way of teaching the whole boy,” Blackwell said, “giving him skills that go beyond the classroom.”

Assistant Headmaster McKee Humphreys shows off his scrambled egg-making skills to eighth graders.

3 Rex Levy ’27 practices tying his necktie after receiving lessons from Assistant Lower School Principal Joe Tyler.

1 Physical Education Instructor Kyle Finney demonstrates how to change a tire.

2 Dylan Taylor ’27, left, takes sewing instructions from Art Instructor Laura Beck.

CLUBS TOUT THEIR PROGRAMS

Students looking for extracurricular fun or education had no shortage of options during Club Day September 9 as representatives filled Morrison Courtyard promoting their organizations.

Food for Dudes, whose members grill at tailgates and sporting events throughout the year, held a Blazing Wings Challenge. A few feet away the Photography Club and Art Club sought participants for their student competitions.

One group of students recruited to a galaxy far, far away for Star Wars Club, while The Guild urged new adventurers to explore as Settlers of Catan. The Mental Health Club is back again this year to provide resources for students to take care of their emotional well-being.

URox showed off their climbing gear and held signups for anyone wanting to learn to rock climb, and the Golf Club held a demonstration for Owls interested in learning the game.

All organizations can be found using the Resource Board on OwlHub. There’s a club for everyone at MUS!

Homerathon Held in Thomas Amphitheater

In the tradition of Quintilian, Latin Instructor Ryan Sellers’ Latin III students participated in an epic recitation of the ilias Latina in a Homerathon in Thomas Amphitheater November 1.

Some students donned their best togas and headwear to stand in front of their class and recite lines of the condensed version of Homer’s Iliad. Each student had his own section to recite word for word. A few Owls memorized their lines and were able to dictate them with minimal assistance from Mr. Sellers.

Quintilian taught rhetoric in Rome and was known as a gifted orator. Students were graded on their audibility, eye contact with their audience, dramatization, and impression of recitation as they spoke like the famous lecturer.

Heiskell Weatherford '23 takes aim at the Golf Club's challenge during Club Day.

Nolan Yaren '23 and Benjamin Zague '23 competed in the Food for Dudes Blazing Wing Challenge.

Front, Cort Jones '25, Michael McDonnell '24, Palmer Hinote '25, Wills Frazer ’25, Ethan Zaptin '25, Louis Brundick '25, Alan Cheng '25, and Andersen Henry '25; back, Noah Porter '25, Houston Donato '25, Will Skinner '24, Luke Walters '25, Milling Chapman '25, Charlie Bragg '25, Cooper Solberg '25, and Hyde Crabtree '25

Right, Wills Frazer '25

Charlie Gallop '23, Mason Putnam '23, and Wilson Ezzell '23 recruit students.

Louis Brundick '25 dressed in his appropriate Roman attire to deliver his recitation.

COLLEGE FAIR FILLS COURTYARD

Students in Grades 9 through 12 flocked to the MUS College Fair held in Morrison Courtyard September 16. Representatives from 13 colleges and universities from across the United States provided information on their institutions.

THE FOLLOWING COLLEGES VISITED:

Christian Brothers University

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University

George Mason University

Illinois Wesleyan University

Mississippi State University

Pomona College

Rhodes College

Rollins College

Trinity University

University of Alabama

University of Colorado Boulder

University of Memphis

University of Mississippi

AP Chemistry Blasts-Off!

In the AP Chemistry Blast-Off, seniors fell to the juniors as the Class of 2024 engineers consistently launched their rocket higher.

At left, Class of 2024 engineers Dannie Dong, Bryan Ding, Eshaan Patnaik, Evan Wu, Samuel Callan, Parth Patel, and Alan Zhou

At left, AP Chemistry seniors assemble their rocket during the AP Chemistry Blast-Off.

Below, the Class of 2024 mixes chemicals for their rocket.

Juniors Hudson Shoaf, William Eubank, Palmer Harris, Will Skinner, Jeffrey Cunningham, and Charlie Treadwell

Michael Yarbro '25, Mason Putnam '23, Reid Chauhan '23, Andrew Tancredi '24, and Ethan Friday '25

Abdullah Elahi '23, Aaron Barawid '23, Aryaan Ahmed '23, and Hamza Janjua '23

Counseling Department and Parents’ Association Throw Counseling Department and Parents’ Association Throw

Families swarmed to the tailgate hosted by the Counseling Department and Parents’ Association before the Owls’ home opener against Germantown High School August 26.

Headmaster Pete Sanders hopped onto the dunk tank platform as faculty, staff, and students tried their hand at dunking him into the water below. English Instructor Jeff Posson ’03, Science Instructor Laura Landry, and College Counselor Jake Deitrich joined the headmaster in getting submerged.

Other Owls, including a few football players and cheerleaders checking out the festivities before kickoff, played the strongman game, swinging a hammer to see who could achieve the highest score.

Food for Dudes members and History Instructor Jonathan Large manned the grill to make burgers for hungry patrons. A donut-eating contest followed the barbecue, with Palmer Howie ’25 eating a full dozen Gibson’s Donuts in the fastest time. Howie won a grub day for his homeroom. The tailgate ended with everyone gathering for the first Owl Walk of the season.

Stephen Nash '25 competes in the donut eating contest.

Palmer Howie '25 shows off his empty Gibson's Donuts box.

Dion Stutts '24 takes a turn on the strongman game before the home opener against Germantown High School.

TAILGATE TAILGATE

Jack Knighton '23 aims a baseball at the dunk tank during the tailgate.

Lower School Mathematics Instructor Courtney Funk wants reassurance there will be no repercussions for dunking Headmaster Pete Sanders.

Headmaster Pete Sanders takes a dip in the dunk tank after a bullseye from a student.

Nathaniel Griffin '24 celebrates a successful hit during the tailgate festivities.

Joshua West '27 competes in carnival games with a group of Owls.

FoundersDay Campus Celebrates

Headmaster Pete Sanders celebrated Founders Day by providing Mempops popsicles to faculty, staff, and students. Owls took advantage of the frozen treats during Organizational Period and lunch. Founders Day is celebrated September 13 every year to mark the day in 1893 when James White Sheffey Rhea and Edwin Sidney Werts launched their college-preparatory school in Memphis, the original MUS.

Max Thompson '28, Ari Madasu '28, and John French Richards '28 enjoy Mempops on Founders Day.

Doug Suddarth '27 and Sam Speed '27

Athletics Administrative Assistant Beth Taylor and Student Life Coordinator Stephond Allmond

Cristian Arocho '23, Kris Johnson '23, and Marley White '24

Feeding the need

Four Owls Receive Impact Grants

Amar Kanakamedala ’23

The grant Kanakamedala received will go toward providing students at Balmoral Ridgeway Elementary School with tutoring and books. A book drive will be held to collect books for students in kindergarten through fifth grade to start the Balmoral Library Space. The grant covers the drive, bookshelves, library maintenance, and an after-school tutoring program.

Henry Duncan ‘24

Duncan will use the grant money to buy rims and nets for the basketball goals at Balmoral Ridgeway Elementary School. He wants to help the youth of the surrounding area by providing a revamped area to play basketball.

John Lee ’23

Lee’s grant will go toward helping The Salvation Army Purdue Center of Hope, which aims to aid single mothers and victims of domestic violence. The grant will help Lee put on one cookout a month to provide food and entertainment for those staying at the center. The Give, Pray, Service Squad, which is composed of volunteers from Hutchison and MUS, will assist on the project.

Joseph Keeler ’23

Keeler received a grant to provide hygiene kits during Grace-St. Luke’s More than a Meal Drives. The kits will hold a toothbrush, toothpaste, a razor, shaving cream, shampoo, a bar of soap, feminine hygiene products, and scripture cards. The drives serve low income and unemployed families in Midtown, Downtown, and South Memphis.

Thanks to the Kemmons Wilson Family Foundation for funding these projects.

Bennett Owen '24, Parker Blackwell '24, and Ihsan Omer '24 prepare to hand out food.

Mathematics Instructor Darin Clifft brings humor and Incredible Hulk flair to the effort.

Amar Kanakamedala '23 unboxes items for the CSO food drive distribution, which happens once a month.

Students Serve Memphis Through

CSO

Service and leadership have been on full display this fall as 272 Upper School students have volunteered to serve their fellow Memphians through the Civic Service Organization. The highlight thus far has been Service Week, September 12-17.

Upper School students had the opportunity to take part in Service Day September 14. As parents observed Parent Back-

students served with the following organizations During Service Week: 213

Idlewild Presbyterian Church Food Distribution: participated in a Mid-South Food Bank Mobile Pantry

Carpenter Art Garden: set up art projects for elementary school students

St. Vincent De Paul Soup Kitchen: prepared and served lunch to the homeless

Catholic Charities Food Distribution: participated in mobile food pantry

Aspire Hanley Elementary School: read to and played games with elementary school students

Perea Preschool: read to and played games with preschool students

Forrest Spence Fund: helped with fundraising efforts and volunteer recruitment

Calvary Rescue Mission: helped at the homeless shelter

Memphis Tilth/New Sardis Garden: worked in the garden

Memphis Zoo: led groups of Knowledge Quest students

MUS Quiz Bowl Tournament: assisted with preparation and read quiz questions

Grace-St. Luke’s: prepared sandwiches at MUS for More Than A Meal

to-School Day, Owls spread across Memphis to give back to their community at nine charities, shelters, or schools.

“This was an incredible Service Week,” CSO Advisor Jonathan Large said. “Students volunteered at many different locations all around our city in order to build community and provide help to those in need. Many of our students discovered that service to others is fun as well as virtuous.”

The CSO raised $6,592 in homerooms to purchase Christmas turkeys for our food distribution and provide a Thanksgiving feast and festival at Hanley Elementary School. Donors who gave $20 or more got a free pass on shaving for the rest of November.

Ongoing projects including the following:

Campus food distribution for Mid-South Food Bank

Tutoring at Balmoral Ridgeway Elementary School

Delivering food for Meals on Wheels

Assisting at Grace-St. Luke’s More Than A Meal

Oscar Liu '25 helps garden at New Sardis Baptist Church

Top, Owls took Service Day to play with the children at Aspire Hanley Elementary School.

1 Fletcher Taylor '26, Carter Wildrick '26, and Jacob Hindman '26 clean at the St. Vincent De Paul Soup Kitchen.

2 Coleman Kimmel '25 distributes food at the Calvary Rescue Mission.

3 Caleb Brapoh '26, Gabe Ungab '25, Michael Ray '25, Bradley Snider '25, Wilson Bridgforth '24, and Harry Feild '24 help organize the mobile food pantry at Catholic Charities Food Distribution.

3

2

1

Homecoming Court

Byars Tayloe / Gabriela Yambrek

Asa Howard / Liza Watson

Drew Clift / McCadden Wilbourn

Shawn Felsenthal / Emerson Baer

Hill Smith / Claiborne Collier

Barrett Sexton / Katherine Luter

HOMECOMING HOMECOMING

Owls Show Homecoming Spirit

Football Homecoming was filled with timehonored traditions, including theme days and a pep rally that featured the popular Roll Call by the cheerleaders.

Monday students dressed in pajamas followed by their baggiest outfits on Tuesday. The legendary battle between jocks vs. nerds took place on Wednesday while Thursday was reserved for the Homecoming T-shirts. On Friday, Grub Day, seniors donned their best camouflage gear.

Headmaster Pete Sanders led the 15 Snappy

Rahs with the MUS cheerleaders during the pep rally, which also featured senior skits and a video. Cheerleaders then headed to Hull-Dobbs Athletic Field to show off their routine to the cheering crowd.

The Homecoming Court and senior escorts took to the field during halftime of the Owls’ 42-7 win over the Ridgeway Roadrunners. Students chose Gabriela Yambrek, escorted by senior Byars Tayloe, as their queen.

1 Headmaster Pete Sanders leads the 15 Snappy Rahs during the pep rally.

2 Wilson Ezzell '23 and Georgia Carls went with a throwback look for the Homecoming Game, which had a theme of USA.

3 Andrew Ogbeide ’25, Townes Jones ’25, Edwin Laughlin ’25, and Tony Parks ’25 strike a tough pose.

4 Seniors Stryker Aitken and Adrish Biswas throw up the "U" before the cheerleaders' performance.

5 Ian McGehee '23 leads the seniors in a chant after the pep rally.

6 Morgan Perry, Coco Conrad, Sam Galler '26, and Will Fortas '26 pose for a photo during the 42-7 win over Ridgeway.

7 Back, Drew Clift, Shawn Felsenthal, Byars Tayloe, Tanner Williams, Hill Smith, Barrett Sexton, Asa Howard; front, McCadden Wilbourn, Emerson Baer, Gabriela Yambrek, Claiborne Collier, Katherine Luter, Liza Watson

8 Below, eighth graders Braylon Jones and Hudson Mattern wear their best jock and nerd costumes for Jock vs. Nerds day.

HOMECOMING HOMECOMING

Fall Fest Returns!

After an absence spanning a few years, the Student Council returned Fall Fest to the calendar November 12. The plan is for the festival to be a staple of the Owls’ fall experience going forward.

Students enjoyed a bounce house, inflatable jousting ring, volleyball net, spikeball setup, knockerballs, and a food truck. Seniors quickly adapted the knockerballs – designed to safely knock into one another - to play a game of organized soccer.

The real hit of the Fall Fest was the car smash. The boys destroyed a donated van with a sledgehammer — while wearing the appropriate eyewear. All proceeds went to the Student Council for future events.

Assistant Headmaster Barry Ray brought a lawn chair to oversee and enjoy the festivities on the field north of the Lower School, nicknamed Torrey Field.

4 Frazier Gardner ’23 surveys the damage during the car smash.

5 Hall Akin ’25 and Kyle Sneed ’25 take a break from using the knockerballs.

6 William Eubank ’24 and Grayson Pollan ’24 spar in the jousting arena.

1 Assistant Headmaster Barry Ray broke out his lawn chair to watch the Fall Fest fun and games!

2 Doty Rawson ’23 takes first crack at the van during the Fall Fest car smash.

3 Andrew Jones ’23, Hill Smith ’23, Van Abbay ’23, Tanner Williams ’23, Ben McBride ’23, and Harrison Hayden ’23

Students Revive Dutch Treat Dinner

One of the many traditions to return to MUS this fall is the Dutch Treat Dinner. This longstanding student-teacher tradition involves Owls meeting a faculty member for dinner and conversation. The boys got things started by taking Math Instructor Darin Clifft to Main Event for bowling. The dinner allows the students to get to know their teachers outside the classroom.

RunforLiza

Strength and Conditioning Head Coach Chris Wadsworth and Head Lacrosse Coach Joe Cummings organized a three-mile run around the campus September 9 in honor of Mrs. Eliza Fletcher. Students and faculty from MUS and Hutchison participated before school in memory of the beloved St. Mary’s teacher who was killed September 2 while on a run.

★ LONE STAR TOUR

College Counseling and Students Tour Texas plus LSU

College Counselors Jenny Byers, Zach Hansen, and Jake Deitrich loaded up a bus with 17 students at the start of Fall Break to tour seven Texas schools and LSU. The bus traveled 1,700 miles across the Lone Star State as the group visited Baylor University, Rice University, SMU, Texas A&M, TCU, Trinity University, and University of Texas at Austin. The informational tours were intended to show students what each school could offer. The expedition included a

peek inside Baylor football’s McLane Stadium and a visit to The Alamo in San Antonio.

The bus also made a stop in Baton Rouge so the students could tour LSU. The detour into the Pelican State included a meet and greet with the official mascot of the Tigers – Mike the Tiger.

Math Instructor Darin Clifft and seniors Thomas Cates, Andrew Jones, Reid Chauhan, George Flinn, Frazier Gardner, Ben McBride, Tanner Williams, and William Watkins enjoyed a night of games, bowling, and conversation at Main Event.

Sophomores Tucker Davis, Townes Jones, Davis Edmonds, Luke McEwan, Aidan Lightman, Bradley Snider, and Gabe Ungab

The Alamo was one of the many interesting sites the tour group visited.

HALLOWEEN TAKES OVER MUS

The leaves started falling, and students changed out their short sleeves for hoodies and sweaters, which meant it was time for Halloween at MUS!

Instructors in Science Analice Sowell and Rosalyn Croce held their Halloween Chemistry to teach chemical reactions through fake blood, fire, and smoke. The science instructors, dressed in their best Halloween costumes, hold this lab every year for their chemistry classes.

Croce and Sowell weren’t the only ones dressed up, as students, faculty, and staff took advantage of the costume day. A group of Lower School faculty cosplayed as Lower School Principal Loyal Murphy '86 –clipboard and all! Gandalf, The Joker, a group of Jedi, and Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band could also be found roaming the campus.

Fine Arts Instructor Laura Beck hosted a pumpkin carving contest. There was a bumper crop of creative entries, but eighth grader Will Patterson took home first place with his painted pumpkin.

Finn Barry '25 and Marley White '24 test their dueling skills.

Science Instructor Rosalyn Croce demonstrates a chemical reaction during Halloween Chemistry.

Academic Support Coordinator Margaret Rodriguez, Lower School Counselor Marisa Leard, Student Affairs

Director Anne McWaters, and Lower School Administrative Assistant Kathy Cook do their best impersonation of Lower School Principal Loyal Murphy, middle.

Nat Harris '28 and Braylon Jones '27 celebrate Halloween by dressing up as Gandalf and a ninja.

Math Instructor Steve Gadbois, Math Instructor Nancy Gates, Wills Frazer '25, Andrew Bruce '25, Rishi Yalamanchili '25, Luke Akers '26, and Math Instructor Darin Clifft

Will Patterson poses with his contest-winning pumpkin.

Cazateatro Honors el Día de los Muertos

In celebration of National Hispanic Heritage Month, the Cazateatro Bilingual Theatre Group made a presentation on el Día de los Muertos, a time to honor deceased loved ones.

Dong and Lim Perform in All-National Ensembles

Juniors Dannie Dong (percussion) and Joel Lim (oboe) were selected for the All-National Honor Ensembles, sponsored by the National Association for Music Education. They attended rehearsals and events November 3-6 at Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center in Washington, D.C., and performed in concert November 6 with musicians from around the country.

Williams Earns BRACE Award

Congratulations to seventh grader Gus Williams for his secondplace win in the grade-level BRACE awards at Briarcrest with “Psychadillo,” created in Mrs. Laura Beck’s Art 7 class. The Briarcrest Regional Art Contest & Exhibition provides a venue for regional art teachers to display their students’ work and encourages connection with the local visual arts community. Typically, around 50 schools participate in the event.

Above, freshmen Andy Yambrek, John Cal Ozier, Sanford Owen, and Max Park; left, an elaborate Día de los Muertos display in Hyde Chapel

Joel Lim and Dannie Dong performed in Washington, D.C., with musicians from around the country.

Gus Williams won the BRACE award with "Psychadillo."

Williams poses with his award-winning artwork.

Directed by: Mr. Ted Fockler

Assistant Director: Mrs. Kim Justis

Technical Direction by: Mr. Robert Fudge

Musical Direction by: Mr. Matt Tutor

Costumes by: Ms. Alexandria Perel-Sams

Choreography by: Ms. Hailey

Set Design by: Mr. Robert Fudge and

Production Classes

Production Support by: Ms. Chelsea Cheshire, Ms. Austin Hasenmueller, and Mr. Jeff Posson

Technical Assistance by: Mr. Trip Corder

Paint Supervision by: Ms. Lizzie

Special Thanks

CAST

Panch

Will Hess '24

Rona ........................................... Sara Ottinger (understudy Emery Brown)

Olive....................................... Callie Wittmann (understudy Alex Wallace)

Barfée.................................... Kris Johnson '23

Leaf Cristian Arocho '23

Marcy Stella Blen (understudy Elle Fowler)

Schwartzy CQ Gintz (understudy Lacy Ferrell)

Chip Joseph Weller '24

Madge ......................................... Fifi Younker (understudy Camille Smith)

All Dads .............................. Kyan Ramsay '23

All Moms .................................. Juliet Forgette (understudy Erin Dambrie)

Sister Mary Barbara Darla Suitt

Leaf Siblings/Ensemble:

Lacy Ferrell, Emery Brown, Erin Dambrie, Elle Fowler, Everett Sego '24, Camille Smith, Alex Wallace

'10

Eikner

'91

Wilson

MUS Theater

'03

Fudge

Mr. Pete Sanders, Mr. Rankin Fowlkes, Mr. Bobby Alston, Mr. Willie Hollinger, Mr. Dave Ferebee, Mrs. Liz Copeland, Ms. Kaitlan Koehler, Mrs. Rebecca Harris Greer, Mrs. Michelle Crews

The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee chronicles the story of the misfit contestants of a small town spelling bee. Students brought the anxiety and pandemonium to life in this fun-filled musical.

Stage Crew

Theater Production Class

Hayes Graham '24 –Independent Study in Design

Barrett Summers '23

Braden Chubb '23

Ian McGehee '23

Lou Zhou '23

Max Mascolino '23

Afternoon Shop Class

Aidan Stacey '26

Ansley “Red” Lattimer

Bo Richards '25

Caleb Latkovic '24

Caroline Chandler

Chrishton King '25

Declan Lonergan '25

Ethan Friday '25

Fenton Wright '24

Harrison Goetze '24

Hayes Graham '24

Henry Lindeman '24

Henry Mills '25

Isaac Palmer '23

Logan McCandless '24

Mark Boatright '25

Noah Brooks '25

Paige Fernández

Palmer Lowery '25

Sarah Blen

Stella Pitzer

Tucker Lowery '24

Set Art

MUS Art Club

CREW

Run Crew Sound

Audio Engineer and Effects – Noah Brooks '25

A2, Mic Wrangler – Chrishton King '25

Voice-over – Noah Brooks '25, Paige Fernandez, Chrishton King '25

Lights

Design – Paige Fernández

Programmer, Master Electrician – Hayes Graham '24

Follow Spot – Aidan Stacey '26

Follow Spot – Sarah Blen

Costumes

Makeup & Costume Technician – Kayla Oliphant

Stage Management

Actors – Fenton Wright '24

Backstage – Harrison Goetze '24

Tech Booth – Paige Fernández

House Manager – Henry Lindeman '24

Backstage Crew

Tucker Lowery '24

Mary Allen Wallace

Props – Ansley “Red” Lattimer

Poster Art Paige Fernández

Orchestra

Piano – Mr. Angelo Rapan

Cello – Mr. Kaleb Brown

Reeds – Mr. Brian Sims

Drums/Percussion – Mr. Paul Mullikin

Leaf learns he will be allowed to compete in the spelling bee.

The spellers and friends gather after Barfée wins the spelling bee.

Spellers kick up their heels during the Putnam County Spelling Bee.

Rona opens the show by reminiscing on her own spelling bee experience.

BUILDING UKULELES...

T-SHIRT DESIGNS

Designed by Kai Barnes ‘ 24

Left and above designed by Kemp Conrad ’23

Seniors Van Abbay, Heiskell Weatherford, and Brown Nickey use routers to rid their instruments of their sharp edges.

Jack Fortas ’23 continues to mold a simple piece of wood into a ukulele.

Griffin Brown ’24 starts the construction process on his ukulele.

...and Portfolios

Posters HOMECOMING

Gus Williams '28 won the Lower School Homecoming poster contest. Kai Barnes '24 took the top spot in the Upper School contest for his art depicting a football player.

Clockwise from top left, Abdullah Elahi '23, Maddux Beintone '28, Mustafa Rehan '28, Thomas Levy '28, James Hanlon '28, Levy, and Will Perkins '28 show off their art.

GRIDIRON OWLS RESET FOR RESILIENT SEASON

"Reset"

was the motto for the 2022 football team.

Coach Bobby Alston and the senior leaders chose this motto because they wanted to return to the principles that have always made Owl football so special. The responsibility fell to the team, particularly the captains, to set good examples and show younger players why doing things correctly is so important.

The team would face serious challenges, particularly from a very competitive schedule that included five region games and five non-conference matchups. But a good offseason workout program, which included working four mornings per week in the summer, had the Owls confident and ready to take on stiff competition.

The season started on a high note at Arlington as the defense showed just how dominant it would be, and the Owls shut out the Tigers, 35-0. Unfortunately, the squad would suffer its first setback of the year the next week against Germantown, falling to the Red Devils at home, 21-16, with all the points coming from either the defenses or special teams.

The Owls would learn from the loss and go on to win six of their next seven games. Game three opened division play as the squad traveled to St. Benedict and defeated the Eagles, 49-8. After an easy 47-0 victory over Raleigh-Egypt, the team would stumble again against division foe Ensworth, 27-17, and its division record stood at 1-1. In game six, the Owls returned to winning form, besting neighborhood rival Ridgeway, 42-7, a win that earned Coach Alston his 200th career victory.

The team returned to division play with Briarcrest next, and the defense continued their solid play, helping to secure the 19-17 win. The victory propelled the Owls in their next game against rival Christian Brothers. Playing on Walnut Grove, the team fell behind early, 7-0, but a strong ground game helped the Owls control the ball and the clock, possessing the ball 33:38 compared to the Purple Wave’s 14:22. A Tee Perry 4-yard scoring run gave the squad the lead in the fourth quarter that they would not relinquish, and the team won, 21-14.

The regular season ended with a 28-7 home victory over PURE Alliance on Senior Night, and then the Owls fell on the road at Brentwood Academy, 35-7, to finish the regular season at 7-3, 3-2, earning the third seed out of the West Division.

In the Division II-AAA state playoffs, the Owls drew Father Ryan in the first round. Once again, the defense stepped up, limiting scoring opportunities for the Fighting Irish, and the team held on for the 17-10 triumph. However, the Owls fell in the quarterfinals to eventual champion Baylor in Chattanooga, 42-16, to end the year at 8-4.

Despite the final game, Coach Alston enjoyed this season.

“Thanks to the leadership of our seniors and the great work of our coaches, this team was able to finish much better than predicted. I loved the way we competed in every game, even those we lost. We lived up to our fight song's challenge and brought ‘honor to the Red and Blue,’” Alston said.

Several individual and team records were set this season. Special teams blocked eight kicks, a school record. Also, Tyler Perry’s 34 rushing attempts against Christian Brothers tied a mark, and junior linebacker for most tackles for loss (33) and quarterback hurries (10) in a season. And junior kicker field goals set a season mark.

Additionally, several Owls were recognized with postseason awards. On the Division II-AAA West Coaches All-Region team, seniors Stryker Aitken

Brandon Nicholson

all made First Team, and seniors

Malcolm Shaw, junior Ray were tabbed as Honorable Mention. Aitken, senior Chubb, Mathews, and Malcolm Shaw all were named to the Liberty Bowl High School All-Star Team.

The coaches appreciated the work of the seniors this year, including the three captains, DeWitt Shy. They join Aitken, Chubb, Jacob Cole, Jack Fortas

Harrington, Harrison Hayden

Griffin Marshall, Mathews, Moore, Max Painter

Solberg, William Tayloe

Temme, William Watkins

Demar Wells, Edward Wilson

seniors on the football operations staff:

Reid Chauhan, Andrew Jones

Jack Knighton

Brandon Nicholson runs through the Red Devils.

Varsity/JV

Coaches: Varsity Staff

JV Record: 5-0-1

Roster: Seniors Stryker Aitken, Jack Blackwell, Lewis Butler, Carter Campbell, Braden Chubb, Jacob Cole, Jack Fortas, Nicholas Galler, Jacob Harrington, Harrison Hayden, John Lee, Wilson LeMay, Griffin Marshall, Nickolas Mathews, Ben McBride, Will McDaniel, Jackson Moore, Max Painter, Malcolm Shaw, Liam Shepherd, DeWitt Shy, Wyatt Solberg, William Tayloe, Morgan Temme, Rhodes Temme, William Watkins, Heiskell Weatherford, Demar Wells, Edward Wilson; juniors Griffin Allen, Mac Barcroft, Steve Blen, Wilson Bridgforth, Knox Brown, Noland Brown, Trey Charleston, Casey Cooper, Lee Couloubaritsis, Luke Early, Palmer Harris, Gavin Helton, George Henley, Walker Griesbeck, Barton Johnson, Martin Kerlan, Clayton Kuhlo, Michael McDonnell, Catcher Miller, Sims Miller, Brandon Nicholson, Tyler Perry, Cooper Shannon, Makhi Shaw, Hudson Shoaf, Will Skinner, Dion Stutts, Andrew Tancredi, Van Thompson, Jeremiah Tisdell, Sam Wilson; sophomores Bryan Billups, William Craft, Thomas Davis, Tucker Davis, Turner Davis, Davis Edmonds, Charlie Gerhart, Foster Houseal, Brady Hughes, TJ Mayes, Jacob McCabe, Leo Meske, Levi Miller, Stephen Nash, Javier Rawls, Michael Ray, John Redd, William Renovich, Bo Richards, Paxton Silver, Aidan Smith, George Steffens, Whitt Stockburger, Hall Thompson, Owens Unglesby, Jacob Wade, Michael Yarbro, and Ethan Zaptin

Ninth Grade

Coaches: Varsity Staff

Record: 4-2-1

Roster: Miller Caldwell, Charles Doughtie, Brady Ehrhart, Hugh Flanders, Will Fortas, Sam Galler, Gavin Gatere, Maddox Giel, Kellett Giles, Miller Griesbeck, Jackson Hood, Charlie Hottinger, Kendon Leakes, Oliver Leavitt, Watts Liebenow, Wills Marshall, Reid McKnett, Henry Moak, Gray Nevels, Madden Oatis, John Cal Ozier, Boyd Rhodes, Whit Sansom, Daxton Saunders, Carter Sayle, Noah Spears, Devin Wells, George Willmott, and Joshua Wittber

Eighth Grade

Coaches: Head Coach Bobby Wade '84, assistant coaches Trevor Benitone '91, Michael Fitzsimmons '14, Larry Heathcott, Henry Dickinson '11, Malik Smith '14

Record: 9-0, Shelby County Middle School Football League Champions

Roster: Cross Alpe, Walker Atkinson, Bennett Brooksbank, Richie Cacioppo, Barrett Clift, Liam Curran, Woodson Dunavant, Adams Feild, Foster Flaherty, Ian Friday, Gray Gowen, Arqish Heerani, Sathvik Jampana, Dhilan Madasu, Wyatt Martin, Zack McKnight, John Painter, Matthew Ray, Alex Sansom, Brayden

Santibanez, Cannon Sherman, Tanner Sherman, Walter Sherman, Logan Smith, Owen Smith, Sam Speed, Austin Spence, Holden Straub, Kreider Tayloe, Dylan Taylor, Anders Trammell, James Watkins, Joshua West, Glenn Williams, Keaton Witt

Seventh Grade

Coaches: Head Coach Derek Clenin '03, assistant coaches Jay Edwards '07, Drew Karban '10, Terrence

Patterson, Michael Ray, Michael Schaefer '03, Will Thompson '95

Record: 9-0, Shelby County Middle School Football League Champions

Roster: Palmer Albertine, House Benitone, Maddux Benitone, Benji Berry, Dewey Drinkard, Anthony

Edwards, William Frazee, Mack Gober, Beau Green, James Hanlon, Porter Hays, Thomas Heffner, Thomas Higginbotham, William Hill, Hudson Jacks, Haynes Kiser, Thomas Levy, Russell Lindeman, Caleb Loudenbeck, Ari Madasu, Jordan Marks-Gow, Hudson Mashburn, Michael McKay, Ellis McKinnon, Andrew Phillips, Tommie Reed, Price Renovich, John French Richards, Andrew Selecman, John Mark Selecman, Knox Sims, Leo Smythe, Bruce Stockburger, Max Thompson, Will Walk, Cobb Whipple, Walker Wilhite, Harry Word

OWLS GOLF WINS 19TH REGION TITLE

BY DANIEL BLACK '18

The 2022 MUS golf team continued the program’s long history of success, claiming its 19th region title and finishing fifth in the state tournament.

The Owls began the season with three consecutive third-place finishes — in The Preview Tournament, the Ronnie Wenzler Memorial Tournament, and the FCA Tournament — before entering individual match play.

They finished the season with an 8-1 record against individual teams, sweeping matches against region foes Christian Brothers, Briarcrest, and Saint Benedict. They also added a pair of quality tournament showings, finishing second at the MHEA Tournament and winning the Collierville Dragon Invitational.

At the TSSAA Division II-AA West Region Tournament, the Owls put together their best performance of the year. The team combined for a score of 284 (-4) at Windyke Country Club to claim the program’s first region title since 2016. Sophomore Cooper Solberg earned medalist honors with a 4-under-par round of 68. Senior Clarence Chapman and junior RJ Neal were also in red figures with the pair shooting a 70 (-2) and a 71 (-1), respectively. At the state tournament, held at The Sevierville Golf Club, Chapman and sophomore Wils Moore led the Owls in their fifth-place finish, each shooting a two-day total of 148 (+4). Eighth-grader Brantley Moore combined for a total of 151 (+8) with Solberg and Neal rounding out the team.

This year’s squad featured seniors James Alexander, Chapman, and Brown Nickey; juniors Wyatt McAllister and Neal; sophomores Wils Moore, Sujay Mukatira, Jackson Peters, and Solberg; and eighth-grader Brantley Moore.

Head Coach Cliff Frisby gave credit to the seniors for their leadership of underclassman players.

“Our three seniors were great leaders and helped the younger players tremendously,” Frisby said. “Clarence, Brown, and James represented the school and the golf program extremely well. The Owls will learn from their experience and be ready for next year’s season.”

Chapman, recipient of this year’s Treadwell-Condon Golf Award, recognized the team’s success, despite its youth.

“This year’s team was very special because of how young we were,” he said. “However, each and every one of us had a good chance to go low any time throughout the season. Everyone stepped up this year and committed themselves to the team, and I’m very proud that my senior season was spent with a bunch of hard workers.”

Chapman will remember his time as an Owl fondly.

“I’ve enjoyed my five years playing on the varsity golf team and wouldn’t trade that experience for anything,” he said. “I’m very thankful to Coach Frisby, who has served as a mentor to me since the eighth grade, as well as the guys I got to meet and become friends with. There is no other team I would’ve rather played for.”

Clarence Chapman accepts the Treadwell-Condon Golf Award from Coach Cliff Frisby.

JV Golf

Coach: Jason Peters '88

Record: 9-0, first in the Shelby Junior Varsity League Tournament at Irene Country Club

Roster: Senior Taylor Patteson; juniors Colson Bragorgos, Jeffrey Cunningham; sophomore Milling Chapman; and eighth grader Charles Snider

Lower School Golf

Coach: Jason Peters '88

Record: 9-0, first in the Shelby League Senior DivisionTournament at Irene Country Club

Roster: Eighth grader Drew Knighton; seventh graders Richard Brinner, Michael McKay, Will Perkins, Drew Tayloe, and Cobb Whipple

The JV team: Charles Snider, Jeffrey Cunningham, Coach Jason Peters, Taylor Patteson, and Colson Bragorgos (not pictured: Milling Chapman)

Clarence Chapman

The Lower School team: Will Perkins, Cobb Whipple, Drew Knighton, Coach Jason Peters, Drew Tayloe, Richard Brinner, and Michael McKay

Brantley Moore

The varsity team: front, Jackson Peters, Cooper Solberg, Wyatt McAllister, and Brantley Moore; back, Brown Nickey, Sujay Mukatira, James Alexander, Clarence Chapman, Wils Moore, RJ Neal, and Head Coach Cliff Frisby

Wyatt McAllister

YOUNG CROSS COUNTRY FINISHES 10TH AT STATE

Cross country is a sport that has no offseason if an athlete wants to reach his full potential. Owl Head Coach Joe Tyler emphasizes this approach with his runners as the coaching staff gives them opportunities to train throughout the year, aiming for peak performance during the state meet in early November.

The Owls were on the younger side with only two seniors on the squad. Coach Tyler and his assistants, Coach Matt Bakke and Coach Colleen Shallow, concentrated on building good habits this season, stressing the importance of doing little things correctly more than results. The team responded and improved throughout the year, ultimately claiming a top-10 finish at state.

The Owls faced a competitive schedule that featured a good balance of local league meets and some challenging out-of-town invitational meets. The team started the meet season in Hendersonville at the Coleman Midgett Invitational, ultimately finishing second as a team out of 22 squads. They next traveled to Alabama for the Chickasaw Trails Invitational, a traditional destination for the team. The Owls also had two local league meets before participating in the Frank Horton Invitational at Shelby Farms, which included three Owl runners.

The postseason saw the Owls run at the county

Lower School Cross Country

Coaches: Head Coach Matt Bakke, Assistant Coach

David Ferebee

Roster: Eighth graders Carson Alexander, Will Brezina, Webb Canale, Joshua Dong, Braylon Jones, Coleman Russell; seventh graders Paul Duffee, Ethan Ferdinand, William Morris, Lewis Sewell, and Kemmons Wilson

championships, followed by the Division II-AA West Regional, both at Shelby Farms. The Owls ran well, finishing second both at county and region, and they were ready for the state meet, held this year in Hendersonville at Sanders Ferry Park.

At state the team claimed 10th. Freshman Porter Spiceland was the Owls’ top finisher as he took 32nd place overall. He was followed by sophomore Palmer Hinote, senior Andrew Schell, sophomore Baker Schell, freshman McEwen Taylor, sophomore Stanton Miller freshman Carter Wildrick. Other Owl runners this season included senior Charlie West juniors Will Gramm, Sai Madasu Owen, and Jerry Xiao; sophomores Gilliland, Declan Lonergan, Noah Porter Luke Walters, Zeon Wang, Samuel West and Alex Yong; and freshmen Joshua Gramm, Bennett Jones, Michael Langston, Max Park, and Hunter Smith

Overall, Coach Tyler will look back on this group with much contentment.

“It is uncommon in sports to get out of it what you put into it. Great in theory but doesn’t usually happen. This team got out of it exactly what they put into it,” said Tyler.

Palmer Hinote '25

Bennett Owen accepts the Russ Billings Cross Country Award from Coach Matt Bakke.

Charlie West '23 and Baker Schell '25

Zeon Wang '25

Trap sends nine to

STATE CHAMPIONSHIP

Varsity trapshooting sent nine Owls to the state championship in June. Charlie Treadwell '24 led the way for the varsity squad scoring a 94 while Charlie Bragg ’25 also posted a 94 for the JV team.

Trapshooting Roster

From the Class of 2022, Chris Bird, Evans Culpepper, Will Fraser, Andrew Harris, Scott Ledbetter, John Monaghan, Garner Uhlhorn, Jack Varner, Jack Zanone; Class of 2023, Aaron Barawid, Lewis Glankler, Rowland Hayden, John Lee, Jackson Moore; Class of 2024, Wilson Bridgforth, Knox Brown, Gabe Chen, Oliver Doughtie, George Henley, RJ Neal, Wilson Thakkar, Charlie Treadwell, Worrick Uhlhorn, Ben Wunderlich; Class of 2025, Charlie Bragg, Hyde Crabtree, and Foster Houseal

Jonathan Large, Jack Zanone, Andrew Harris, Wilson

Bridgforth, Head Coach

Hamilton Eggers '94; back, Rowland Hayden, George Henley, Garner Uhlhorn, Gabe Chen, RJ Neal, and Charlie Treadwell

Oliver Doughtie

Front, Assistant Coach

Gabe Chen

Athletes Gain Strength and Flexibility with

Strength and Conditioning Head Coach Chris Wadsworth drops the weights for something more relaxing Thursday afternoons. Owl athletes enter the weight room to join the strength coach in yoga with the lights off and calming music playing in the background. The poses allow the athletes to build up strength and flexibility while preventing injury.

Cort Jones '25

Donovan Claggett '24

Ian McGehee '23

Myles Gill '24 and Kai Barnes '24

David Simpson '23

Strength and Conditioning Head Coach Chris Wadsworth

LOWER SCHOOL TENNIS

Coach: Head Coach Jay Horne

Record: 10-0, first in Shelby League Tennis Tournament

Roster: Eighth graders Colin Carter, Foster Fogelman, Chase Frazer, Joel Hobson, John Parker Jefferies, Becket Liles, Benjamin Nichol, Will Patterson, Bo Schroerlucke, Walker Shirley, Gray Stakem, and Maddox Yarbrough; seventh graders Richard Brinner, Mac Canale, Ian daPonte Cooper, Cole Evans, Nat Harris, Peo Hughes, Jack Mavar, Mustafa Mirza, Mustafa Rehan, Michael Robbins, Charlie Savage, Jack Shirley, Garrett Thompson, Will Walk, and Joseph Zhao

Three Owls Sign NLIs

Three Owls signed National Letters of Intent November 9 to play their respective sports at the college level. These seniors put pen to paper to finalize their recruiting processes in front of family and friends in the lobby of the Sue H. Hyde Sports and Physical Education Center. Congrats to these seniors, and Go, Owls!

Drew Clift | Lacrosse Providence College

Ian McGehee | Wrestling Davidson College

Roberto Ferrer Guimaraes | Tennis Mississippi State University

Benjamin Nichol, Becket Liles, Bo Schroerlucke, Head Coach Jay Horne, Foster Fogelman, and Joel Hobson following their win in the county tournament

DON’T LOOK UP, RICK BARRY

The following is excerpted from an August 17, 2022, chapel presentation by Department of Classical and Modern Languages Chair Ryan Sellers.

In the Netflix film Don’t Look Up, Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence play astronomers who make a terrifying discovery: A comet is going to make impact with Earth in six months, and if nothing is done to alter its course, all of mankind will be rendered extinct. What’s even more terrifying than the discovery itself is the fact that the astronomers can’t get anyone to take the threat seriously.

Don’t Look Up is a darkly satirical film, and it lampoons a long list of targets: the refusal of the American public to accept science and reason; our obsession with celebrity culture; the vapidity of the news media; the dysfunctional nature of the American political system; capitalistic greed; big technology; the snobbery of elite institutions of higher education; the indifference of the American people to the dangers of climate change; and, finally, as many film critics have argued, Don’t Look Up is also a satire of the polarized reaction of the American public to the COVID-19 pandemic.

One moment when the pandemic became real for me came March 11, 2020. Just before the NBA’s Oklahoma City Thunder and Utah Jazz tipped off, an official made this announcement: “Due to unforeseen circumstances, the game tonight has been postponed. …You can visit okcthunder.com for updates on upcoming games.” There would be no upcoming games, however, because the NBA soon announced they were suspending the entire season.

The reason, as we would later discover, was that a member of the Utah Jazz, Rudy Gobert, had tested positive for COVID that afternoon. Gobert soon became known as “NBA COVID Patient Zero,” and he was swiftly and harshly mocked on social media, especially since he himself had mocked the seriousness of the virus just a couple of days before by deliberately going out of his way to touch all the microphones during a press conference. To his credit, Gobert later apologized for his immature behavior.

I was thinking about Rudy Gobert as I watched him play in the Tokyo Olympics last summer. Gobert, as a member of a very strong French national team, defeated Team USA in one of the preliminary games and then faced Team USA again in the gold medal championship game.

Team France attempted to exploit the size advantage provided by the 7-foot-1 Rudy Gobert by feeding the ball inside

to him again and again. It was a good strategy, but Team USA responded by putting Gobert on the free throw line, and he kept missing, again and again. Gobert ended up shooting 6 for 13 from the line that night. The final score of the game: USA 87, France 82.

During the game I couldn’t help wondering: Why wasn’t he shooting free throws underhand?

The underhand free throw, often dismissed as the “granny shot,” is usually a source of great ridicule.

The NBA player best known for this unorthodox style of free throw shooting is a man named Rick Barry. A versatile small forward from the 1970s who could shoot, score, rebound, pass, and defend, Barry made the All-Star team eight times, and in leading the Golden State Warriors to an NBA championship in 1975, he averaged 30 points per game in the NBA Finals. As for his free throw shooting: Over his career, Rick Barry shot 89%, which places him in the top 10 career free throw shooters of all time.

Although Rick Barry was unquestionably one of the best players of his generation, he was also unquestionably arrogant, difficult, and hyper-critical of the imperfections of everyone around him. As Warriors Executive Vice President Ken Macker said, “You’ll never find a bunch of players sitting around talking about the good old days with Rick. His teammates and his opponents generally and thoroughly detested him.”

Rick Barry’s abrasive personality is, I think, one of the reasons the underhand free throw has never become popular. But personality characteristics aside, most players perceive this style of shooting as effeminate. During the 1961-62 NBA season, Wilt Chamberlain, who was one of the worst free throw shooters in NBA history, changed to the underhand style and raised his free throw percentage by a full 10 points. Even though it was effective, he decided to stop. As he later explained in his autobiography, the underhand shot made him look “like a sissy.”

Dr. Larry Silverberg, a professor in the North Carolina State University Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, has done some data-driven research into the mathematics of free throw shooting. He concluded that the overhand free throw is much more complicated, much less efficient, and has a much higher margin of error than the underhand shot. In other words, with the overhand shot, more things can go wrong. For highly skilled players who can synchronize all of the necessary body parts successfully and consistently, the overhand shot is better, according to Silverberg, primarily because of the higher release point and

Don’t Look Up generated a lot of controversy and discussion – which is exactly what effective satire is supposed to do."

-Ryan Sellers

improved trajectory of the ball. For players who cannot synchronize all of the necessary body parts successfully and consistently, the underhand shot is a much better option. “The beauty of the underhand shot,” explains Professor Silverberg, “is that [it] is a smooth motion, and it’s easier to become consistent with it if you want to change your habits.”

Chinanu Onuaku, who played for the University of Louisville and then the NBA’s Houston Rockets, greatly benefited from the underhand technique. Onuaku shot 47% from the line during his freshman year at Louisville. He changed methods, and after two seasons, his free throw percentage had increased to 72%.

The player whose name perhaps comes up most often in these discussions of free throw technique is Shaquille O’Neal, a career 53% free throw shooter. People would sometimes suggest that he adopt the Rick Barry method of shooting. His response: “I’d rather shoot 0% than shoot underhand.”

In professional basketball – a sport that is influenced more and more by data analytics, a sport where the margin between winning and losing is often razor thin – it is absolutely astonishing to me that coaches and general managers do not require their players to use this style of shooting.

As a point of comparison, consider the high jump. In the 1968 Summer Olympic games in Mexico City, Richard Fosbury completely revolutionized the sport by turning his back to the bar. By Olympic standards, Fosbury was a mediocre athlete and a mediocre high jumper. Yet he calculated a way to take advantage of the principles of physics by arching his back and lowering his center of mass below the bar, thereby improving his leaping ability by 6 inches.

The media responded by making fun of him. A newspaper in Oregon dismissed his technique as the “Fosbury Flop.” Other reporters mocked him, saying that he looked like “a fish flopping into a boat,” “the world’s laziest high jumper,” and “a two-legged camel.” After Fosbury won the gold medal in 1968, however, they stopped laughing. Four years later, at the Summer Olympics in Munich, 28 out of the 40 high jumpers in the competition were copying Fosbury’s technique, and 1976 is the last time that anyone won a medal in Olympic high jumping without using this strategy.

It’s always fun to engage in sports hypotheticals. In fact, a book published in 2018, Upon Further Review, is dedicated to this exact premise. What if the 1999 women’s American soccer team had lost the World Cup? What if the Dodgers had never left Brooklyn? What if a young quarterback named Tom Brady had never stepped in for an injured veteran quarterback named

Drew Bledsoe?

I would add these hypotheticals to the list: If Shaquille O’Neal had shot his free throws underhand, he would have scored 50 points per game for his career, and he would have won 10 championships. If Rudy Gobert had shot his free throws underhand, Team France would have defeated Team USA for the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics. And if the 2007-08 Memphis Tigers, ranked 339 out of 341 teams in free throw shooting for that season, had shot their free throws underhand, they would have won the national championship – which would have then been invalidated by the NCAA for rules violations. Nevertheless, it would have been a lovely moment for the city of Memphis while it lasted.

Of course, it’s a lot more fun to engage in sports hypotheticals than hypotheticals involving the survival of the human race, and the hypothetical comet barreling toward planet Earth as depicted in Don’t Look Up generated a lot of controversy and discussion – which is exactly what effective satire is supposed to do. Good satirists force us to confront unflattering photographs of ourselves, and if Don’t Look Up is, in fact, an accurate portrait of America in the year 2022, it’s not an easy one to look at.

As a society, we are desperately in need of logical thinking, and we are desperately in need of innovative ideas, ideas about technology, education, income inequality, climate change, and infectious disease. If someone has a revolutionary idea that will help solve any of these problems, even an idea that seems – like the underhand free throw or the Fosbury Flop –awkward or counterintuitive, I hope that we can put aside our foolish pride and accept it. And I hope that we are never in the position of Leonardo DiCaprio’s character at the end of Don’t Look Up, facing a preventable catastrophe, wondering about lost potential, and saying, “We really did have everything, didn’t we?”

Latin Instructor Ryan Sellers praised Don't Look Up as effective satire because it created important dialogue.

Peter D. Sanders

Headmaster

Barry Ray

Assistant Headmaster

McKee Humphreys '01

Assistant Headmaster

Loyal Murphy '86

Lower School Principal

Bobby Alston

Director of Athletics

Wendy Trenthem

Director of Hyde Library

Flip Eikner '77

Academic Dean

Perry Dement

Director of Advancement

Claire Farmer

Director of Annual Fund

Rankin Fowlkes

Director of Business Operations

Joe Abrahams '96

Director of Counseling Services

Ann Laughlin

Director of Alumni and Parent Programs

Zach Hansen

Director of College Counseling and Strategic Initiatives

Jenny Byers

Director of College Counseling and Student Programming

Buck Towner '07

Director of Admissions

Liz Copeland

Director of Communications

Rebecca H. Greer

Assistant Director of Communications

Jonah Jordan

Managing Editor, Inside MUS

Kaitlan Koehler

Graphic Designer

OATH OF HONOR

We, the students and faculty at Memphis University School, hereby pledge our full support to the Honor System. I pledge to be honest myself, and in order that the spirit and integrity of the Honor System may endure, I pledge that I will make known to the Honor Council any case of dishonesty which I may observe at MUS.

THE MUS MISSION:

Memphis University School is a college-preparatory school dedicated to academic excellence, cultivation of service and leadership, and the development of well-rounded young men of strong moral character, consistent with the school's Christian tradition.

On the Cover

Eighth graders demonstrate some of the tools they have used during Toolbox Tuesdays, when they learn how to change a tire, use power tools, cook, iron, tie neckties, sew on a button, build a fire, and tie fishing knots. Front, Cross Alpe and Sathvik Jampana; back, Chase Givens, Sam Cohen, Henry Cannon, and Tanner Sherman

See more on page 8

Left, Abdullah Elahi ’23, Grayson Skipper ’24, Fenton Wright ’24, Benjamin Zague ’23, Chrishton King ’25, and Kris Johnson ’23 promote Bullying Prevention and Awareness Month with themed Be Kind Bruh T-shirts. Students were allowed to wear these shirts – which could be purchased for $5 – Thursdays in October.

Left, Clayton Kuhlo ’24, Andrew Kuhlo ’24, Jason Peters ’88, John McCallister ’24, William Eubank ’24, Wilson LeMay ’23, and William Tayloe ‘23 raise money for The Salvation Army.