WILLIS HALL HERALD NOV. 2024

SEE CENTERFOLD

THE

TIME FOR A TEAM TITLE

VOL. XIV, NO. 2 November 2024

www.willishallherald.org

INSIDE THE ISSUE OPINION

FEATURES

TEAMWORK

KINDNESS

CAPTION CONTEST

COMMANDER KUYPER’S ARMY DAYS

VETERANS DAY

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT BAND PREPS FOR ALL-DISTRICT EVIE LIGHTS STAGE

SWIFT IS ‘THE MAN’

NORTH CROSS HELPS RED CROSS

STUDENTS NEED SLEEP

BLOOD SPLATTERS/ ROBOT MATTERS

VIA TO PLAY ALICE FESTIVE FICTION!

willis.hall.herald

PAGE 2 NOVEMBER 2024

EDITORIAL

Teamwork can be both journey and destination

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whether it’s with 8th graders or seniors. We had some big wins. We played eamwork is the action of multiple people, especially when done great in the semis 48-0 against Fredericksburg Christian. We all felt good efficiently and effectively. about states; we just got down at half when it seemed like nobody really Teamwork is needed in the classroom, on the court and on the wanted to fight back. It was a great season, though and even if we lose, it’ field. Students and players need to work as a team in order to prepare for Nate Bonds ‘25 said, “it’s the chemistry as a team. It’s so we can all be their future, especially in occupations, which may include the understandon the same page. We all want the same result. If our team is winning, I’m ing of different perspectives, encourage productivity, communication and winning.

Mentally and physically.” the ability to build relationships.

On Nov. 7 in northern Virginia, our boys’ soccer team lost to Seton For the first time in NCS history, our girls’ cross country team won the School 4-2.

VISAA state championships for Even feeling the loss of states, sethe first time in NCS history. Kerrigan Chaney ‘25, an nior midfielder, Hunter Basile ‘25, exceptional and lifelong runner, still broke and reset a record for has been running solo until goals scored in a game. Dean Cote enough girls were registered to ‘25 said “Being a senior gave me make a full team. She has never a sense of leadership and duty as I had a full team until her senior knew I was a role model and my year. The championship team actions would shape the behaviors consisted of many 8th grade of others. Teamwork was crucial as runners with extreme potential. we had lost about 8 starting seniors “It felt really good to win [as from the previous season, we had a team],” Chaney admitted, to come together and figure out “I cried when I found out we how we were gonna fill this large won. And that’s unusual.” hole and it was really a team effort Our boys’ soccer, football, to do that.” and cross country teams may Teamwork is needed in the have lost the state championclassroom as well. Students need to ships- but what victory is most work as a team in order to prepare important? for their future, especially in Boys’ football, which had occupations, which may include TEAM HERALD: Anna Ciccozzi created this chart of how editing works from her summer camp. won the past two years of state the understanding of different championships, succumbed after a hard uphill battle against Blue Ridge’s perspectives, encourage productivity, communication and the ability to team 14-12 on Nov. 16. The Raiders had beaten the Knights last year, not build relationships. to mention winning the BRAC the last two years.

As a team, we have been able to publish two issues this year for the Her“Not only is it fun to work with the guys, it’s beneficial,” said Walker Reel ald. One being published only three weeks after the last. Our special issue ‘27. “We are learning how to work together. Everyone matters on the footwas made to honor the championship teams whether they had won the last ball team and we have to look out for each other. Teamwork is listening to game of their season or not; teamwork is the real accomplishment. your coaches and other members. To me it’s a whole team working together

Vol. XIV No. 2 November 2024 North Cross School 4254 Colonial Ave. Roanoke, VA 24018 www.willishallherald.org Instagram: willis.hall.herald

Founded in 2010 and based in the Journalism elective, The Willis Hall Herald is the official student-led publication of the Upper School at North Cross School. The Herald may be published in magazine form three or more times per year. Founded in 2017 and produced by the Herald staff, GeoPrism: A Global Studies Journal may be published in magazine form once or twice per year. The Herald welcomes letters, commentary and submissions of original content that adhere to the Herald’s dedication to factual journalism. Letters and other content must be signed and may be edited for length and Herald style. The Herald does not guarantee publication of outside submissions. Submit letters to willishallherald@northcross.org. The Herald won Gold Medals from the Columbia Scholastic Press Association in 2012 and 2015. The Herald is also a member of the National Student Press Association.

Co-Editors-in-Chief .....................................Lauren Boone ‘25 and Jacob Johnson ‘25 Copy Editor and Calliope Editor-in-Chief....................................Aadeetri Pandey ‘26 Digital Publishing Editor ...............................................................Anna Ciccozzi ‘26 GeoPrism Co Asst. Editors-in-Chief................Hanchen Ou ‘26 and Victoria Real ‘27 Writers at Large...............................................Fiona Parnell ‘26, Caroline Welfare ‘27 Photography Editor.........................................................................Monica Koene ‘28 Asst. Photography Editor........................................................... Nola Daninger ‘27 Junior Asst. Editor..........................................................................Kaitlyn Perkins ‘28 Calliope Asst. Editor ......................................................................... Akali Koeda ‘28 Opinion Editor................................................................................ Mason Bibby ‘27 Features Editors.............................Dara Kerman ‘27, Shree Patel ‘28, Isla Whittle ‘28 Arts and Entertainment Editor........................................................ Margaret Bass ‘28 Business Manager........................................................................ Joaquin Downey ‘28 Sports Asst. Editor........................................................................Luke Cocowitch ‘28 Asst. Digital Publishers......................................................................Mia Esposito ‘28 Advisor......................................................................................Robert Robillard P’35

OPINION

Give thanks to veterans

NOVEMBER 2024 PAGE 3

Caption Contest

By Mason Bibby

B

enjamin Franklin, then the delegate for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania at the 1787 Constitutional Convention, was reportedly asked: “So what’ll it be, Mr. Franklin? An empire or a monarchy?”

Franklin, a seasoned patriot and established intellectual on the heels of the Enlightenment, simply responded with “A republic, if you can keep it.”

It seems those words have been heeded–and the call answered by the few who revered the government “by the people, for the people” that Franklin and his fellow delegates conceived. On November 11 of each year–Veterans’ Day–we commemorate those who did.

It is an honor and a privilege to devote an entire day of our lives to the service, commitment, and sacrifice of members of our Armed Forces–brave Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, Airmen, Coastguardsmen, and Guardians. I was fortunate enough to be selected to demonstrate that premise this Veterans’ Day. Furthermore, we should ensure that every day is some iteration of Veterans’ Day, and we should live each day knowing that the nation we are so fortunate to live, work, play, and protest in freely is, in fact, not free.

I will reiterate what I said on the 11th: all gave some, and some gave all.

We should forever extol and venerate those who left their homes to defend an ideal–a promise–greater than themselves.

Because America is not a land where despots, kings, or tyrants rule. It is a land of freedom. Democracy. Liberty. It is a land of dreamers, doers, thinkers, and believers. America is a nation that never shrinks back from a challenge. One that picks itself back up when it gets knocked down. And one that knows it is better to die on its feet than live on its knees.

We have not ourselves to thank for this. A country so honorable, so noble, so moral, was not simply the will of those who govern it. It was the will of the people—specifically, those who answered the call of duty.

So this November, reflect. Reflect on the freedoms you hold dear. Reflect on the sacrifices that your forefathers made to create the America we all hold dear. And thank a veteran, for they are often inconspicuous, but they have made contributions that the nation would never be the same without.

Illustration by Anna Ciccozzi

Caption Contest Winner “Revengegiving” -- Noah Shorey ‘26

Commander Kuyper shares more of his Army experience

By Fiona Parnell

Chris Kuyper, director of security operations, former Roanoke county police officer and Army veteran gave remarks at the Veterans Day assembly on Nov. 11. Along with active duty Sergeant Trevor Poulin, they spoke about the national holiday including its history and importance. They discussed their personal experiences, and commemorated the brave men and women who have served and lost their lives fighting for our country.

In an interview, Kuyper described himself growing up as a quiet, reserved, smaller kid who wanted to pursue a field that would challenge him both mentally and physically to prepare him for future endeavors of life. Kuyper had no interest in joining the military until an Army recruiter visted his high school in his junior year. After multiple discussions with the recruiter, Kuyper ultimately decided that serving his country was the correct path. The decision to serve did not just come from

VETERAN: Commander Chris Kuyper speaks at this year’s Veteran’s Day assembly. Photo by Monica Koene

his own personal goals, but also from his admiration for the individuals who serve and have served our nation.

Kuyper began his military career stationed at Ft.

Hood Texas, recently renamed Ft Cavazos. Upon joining the military, Kuper’s family was shocked at his decision and swift transition to training camp.

On the other hand his friends were not surprised as many of them had also enlisted.

“We would usually take leave at the same time,” Kuyper said, “so it was not only great to see and hang out with them when we were home, but to also see the positive change in them. Literally, we felt we left for basic training as boys, but returned as men.”

Kuyper served in the Army as a Signal Intelligence Specialist in the 504th Expeditionary Military Intelligence Brigade. When asked about the purpose of his role, Kuyper said, “The mission of the brigade was to conduct multi-disciplined intelligence collection, exploitation, and analysis operations during contingency missions worldwide.”

Kuyper served for three years until his enlistment period ended. Kuyper spent a few months back home in Buffalo, NY as he struggled with the Continued on page 6

PAGE 4 NOVEMBER 2024

Taylor Swift is ‘The Man’

OPINION

By Fiona Parnell

S

inger and songwriter, Taylor Swift, is a globally renowned star within the music industry. Swift is arguably the most successful artist in history due to her countless rewards, music versatility, and influence on society. Swift is the most streamed artist on Spotify, Apple Music, Pandora and Amazon Music making her the most streamed artist of all time. Swift is constantly topping the charts and regularly breaks records she sets. Swift has been hitting No.1 and having world tours since her second album “Fearless” was released back in 2008. Swift’s current world tour “The Eras Tour” has sold out every one of the whopping 149 shows; estimated 12 million attendees spanning across five continents, and was recently named the highest grossing tour in history. The Eras Tour movie is the highest grossing box office concert film of all time and sold 2.2 billion tickets in North America alone.

Swift is also the first artist to reach billionaire status solely from music. Not only is Swift widely recognized for her music, but also her actions within advocacy, philanthropy and shaping of pop culture.

Taylor Swift’s fans, often called Swifties, are known for their unconditional love and loyalty to Swift and her music. Although Swifties are technically just a fanbase, their passion for Swift goes way beyond that. Swifties have essentially created their own community through her music.

Swifties use Swift’s music to spread ideals of positivity and kindness, to not only each other but also the general public. Swifties create a safe space to relate their experiences described in Swift’s discography. The relationship between Swifties comes from the emotional and personal aspects of Swift’s music. Swift dives deep into her insecurities and describes her emotions through descriptive imagery in storytelling lyrics, making her music relatable and healing for many.

Despite Swift’s unmatched success and prosperity within the entertainment industry (and perhaps because of it), she and Swifties face

FEARLESS: Taylor Swift sings songs from her early “Era” during a concert in May of 2023. Photo by Ryan Hunt large amounts of criticism on a regular basis. By some, Swifties are viewed as “dramatic,” “insane,” “annoying,” “obsessive” and “crazy teenage girls” to name a few. These types of comments have been especially circulating recently because of her current record breaking world tour. The large amount of media attention surrounding the tour has sparked negativity on all social media platforms and political news channels.

Concertgoers often post videos either at the concert or in support of Swift. Many of these videos are of the emotional whiplash many fans feel when Taylor first appears or when hearing their favorite song. These types of videos have provoked certain groups of people to lecture both Swift and her fans using the deemed stereotypes as an attempt to question the validity of the impact of Swift and her influence on fans, specifically females. The majority of Swift’s fans are women and majority of her “haters” are men.

The most interesting part about this is not only failure to recognize Swift’s success and impact, but also the disregard of other fan bases’ behavior, whether that be sports, music, or influencers, especially predominantly male ones. No one bats an eye when it comes to half-naked men who have painted their whole body their favorite team’s colors to attend a game, but Swifties do when they plan themed outfits and put glitter on their face for a concert: it’s “stupid” Absolutely no concern about men repeatedly checking and

“Concertgoers often post videos either at the concert or in support of Swift. . . . Many of these videos are of the emotional whiplash many fans feel when Taylor first appears or when hearing their favorite song. These types of videos have provoked certain groups of people to lecture both Swift and her fans.”

memorizing their favorite players’ names, numbers, positions, performance, and stats, but when you know every lyric to her song it’s “insane” There’s no problem when men camp outside hours before games to tailgate and get drunk, but getting to the Eras tour early to gather outside the stadium to trade friendship bracelets and sing is. It’s fine when a grown man throws a temper tantrum because a player doesn’t catch the ball, he is just “passionate.” Or when their team loses, they throw something at the TV or punch a wall.

When they shout derogatory terms at the opposing team or fans, that’s just loyalty right?

There’s no problem because they are just “passionate” about their team and having fun, but when Swifties do it not only passionately but positively, unlike some men, they are cruelly ridiculed and put in a bad light.

The truth is the problem does not involve the so-called “extremism” and obsessiveness of Swifties, but lies within the internalized sexism and toxic masculinty deeply integrated into society. Swift’s domination of the music industry is not acknowledged by the vast majority of males and they refuse to accept her achievements. They deflect their internalized misogyny onto Swift by undermining her achievements and diverting media attention using her “crazy” fans, dating life for character assassin. From a young age, women are taught to accept male behavior as normalized in all aspects of life. Whether explicitly stated or not, sexism is integrated into the way society thinks about and views women, especially successful women, which is the reason why the “Swifties” face so much criticism.

As Taylor Swift said in her 2019 album Lover: “If I was a man, then I’d be THE man”

OPINION

NOVEMBER 2024 PAGE 5

Studies find that students need more sleep

By Kaitlyn Perkins

O

A possible solution to help students

the amount of sleep they get could Should the school day start later? improve be by starting the school day off later. If the

n Nov. 12 during morning assembly, Upper School students had the privilege of having Dr. Shannon Farris, Assistant Professor at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at Virginia Tech Carilion, speak about what neuroscience is and what she and her team do. Somewhere in the middle of her speech, I remember hearing her mention the importance of sleep and its connection to both learning and retaining information effectively. This got me thinking; would I do better in school if I slept more?

As highschool students, we often face the dilemma of having too much to do and not enough hours in the day. Many students at North Cross participate in sports and other extracurricular activities on top of all their school work. Between going from school to sports or to extracurriculars and then home to do homework, scarf down a meal and take a shower, time can be scarce. This can lead to getting to bed at an ungodly hour, which will only make such a busy daily routine even more difficult for students to maintain.

The article “Nightly Sleep is Key to Student Success” from Carnegie Mellon University talked about a study done at CMU which looked at the connection between sleep and academic performance among college students. The study found that the students on average “sleep 6.5 hours per night, but negative outcomes accumulate when students received less than six hours.” However, the article states that “sleep guidelines recommend teenagers get eight to10 hours of sleep every night.” The Center for Disease Control recommends that teenagers get eight to ten hours of sleep per night. Contrary to that information, the CDC states that a nation-wide study on high school students found that “about 7 out of 10 (72.7%) did not get enough sleep on school nights.” The CDC states that “children and adolescents who do not get enough sleep have a higher risk of obesity, diabetes, injuries, poor mental health, and problems with attention and behavior.”

The Office of Neuroscience Research at Washington University in St. Louis published the article “More sleep leads to better grades and well-being.”

The article notes that in a study by Tim Bono, PhD, lecturer in psychological and brain sciences in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, found that, “students who get a good night’s sleep night in and night out earn higher marks and feel a stronger sense of well-being than those with fluctuating sleep schedules.” Another study he did found that “the students who reported the most stable, consistent sleep patterns earned a GPA of 3.66, on average, while the students with the most variable sleep earned a GPA of 3.21. Students with regular sleep patterns also reported higher levels of well-being. These effects held even when controlling for SAT scores and baseline happiness.”

Dr. Farris shared her knowledge of the connection between sleep and performance through an email she sent me.“Sleep is required for our brains to function, although the exact reasons for this are not entirely clear. There are some recent studies in rodents that give us hints as to why sleep is important for central nervous system function. Firstly, during sleep (or when under anesthesia), the fluid flow in the brain and spinal cord increases, and it’s been proposed that this increase in flow cleans the cellular debris generated throughout the day from our brains. This is consistent with why brain disorders (anxiety, depression, dementia) can be caused or exacerbated by a lack of sleep (without sleep, junk and debris build up and make brain functioning more difficult). Secondly, a very recent study showed that the more synaptic plasticity that occurs (changes in the strength of synaptic connections that is the molecular basis of memory) the more delta oscillations are generated, which are low frequency waves that promote restful sleep. Thus, the more you learn, the more your brain is driven to sleep! So, I would argue that quality and length of sleep should correlate with learning performance. However, learning has to occur—so sleep alone will not make you smarter, but sleeping after learning certainly will. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommends 8-10 hours of sleep for every 24 hours for teenagers.”

school day started at 8:30 or 8:45, perhaps students would do better in class having gotten more sleep. I was fortunate enough to spend a year in New Zealand and experience going to a school there. I attended New Plymouth Girls’ High. It was very different, but a huge difference was that school started at 8:40 a.m. and ended at 3:20 p.m. I not only got to sleep more, but I felt more energetic throughout the day. Perhaps if NCS followed a similar schedule, students would have better concentration and participation in class, on the sports fields and in their extracurriculars throughout the day.

I understand that transportation is something to consider when revising school start times. However, if parents or caregivers had to drop off students earlier in the day, the students would be able to complete their assignments in the time before school starts and catch up on sleep the night before, saving 30 minutes or so of work to do before class starts in the morning.

A concern teachers might have due to the later start in the school day might be having to shorten classes. However, having experienced going to a school that started later, I can safely say that the 30 or so start time difference does not have a sizable impact on class at all. After all, it is a seven hour school day and I don’t think cutting out 1/14 of the school day is really going to affect the amount students learn a day. I honestly believe that a well rested student will learn more in a shorter amount of time then a tired one would learn in a longer amount of time.

Finally, the question that may be pressing a critic’s mind; how do we know that students are using the extra time to sleep instead of scrolling the internet or goofing off. The answer; you don’t.

FEATURES

PAGE 6 NOVEMBER 2024

Kemp subs for Sledd’s classes

Morgan Kemp sits at graphic design and yearbook teacher Sarah Sledd’s desk, who is on maternity leave for the remainder of the school year. An email to the Upper School faculty instroduced Kemp as “coming from the YMCA Youth and Family Department. She has two beautiful daughters and is from a military family. Roanoke is the 16th place she has lived!” She said her husband works at a local BMW business, so we might expect to see her riding in style. Photo by Nola Daninger

Commander Kuyper Continued from page 3

New student from New Jersey

PEACEFUL TRANSITION: Sharmithaa Maheswaran ‘26 poses for the camera

after starting on some classwork, collaborating with her new student ambassador, Maggie Bibby ‘26. Although only arriving recently, Sharmithaa has already proven herself to be an industrious worker, citing her love for both science and history. When asked about her favorite subjects, she lit up and said, “Anything science related, probably specifically like biology and I also do like history classes a lot.” She mentioned her hometown of Edison, New Jersey, and this piqued my interest. Why did her family decide to leave in the first place? “My parents, their jobs, moved here. So I guess that’s what brought me to the school,” she explained. “And my parents were researching for high schools in the area, and they found this high school, so let’s go. And they basically said it’s, like, really academic, and it’s known for a lot of things.” Photo and caption by Mason Bibby

choice to either reenlist or enroll in college. After careful consideration, in August of 1991 Kuyper decided that he would continue his military career and aspired to be a part of the Army’s Special Forces. Kuyper began filling out enlistment papers and taking tests to prepare for his next Army journey when many high profile incidents. An incident that haunts our community forever, a tragedy happened that would change his life path forever. the 2007 Virginia Tech school shooting, was one of Kuyper’s most signifiOn October 16, 1991, a mass casualty incident occurred at Luby’s Cafeteria cant endeavors while a part of the Roanoke County police force. As a result in Killeen, TX. Luby’s Cafeteria was a restaurant that Kuyper frequently ate of the active threat phenomenon and Kuyper’s work in our community to at while stationed at Ft. Hood. As a result of this horrific incident, Twen- prevent and respond to the threat, the FBI provided him with an Executive ty-three people were killed and as a result Kuyper withdrew his enlistment Fellowship position with their Active Shooter and Violence Reduction Unit papers. in Washington, DC. Kuyper filled that position for two years until he retired Subsequently, Kuyper began to search for a career in law enforcement to on May 1, 2022. help prevent incidents like the one at Luby’s Cafeteria from ever happening In June 2023, North Cross Head of School Armistead Lemon asked Kuyper again. In 1994 Kuyper moved to Roanoke County to apply for the Director of Security position foland was hired as a police officer and became a team “We would usually take leave at lowing several conversations with her about campus leader on the Roanoke County SWAT. “I feel blessed every single day that I get the same time, so it was not only security.

Upon returning home from service, many veterans to spend time building a robust safety and securigreat to see and hang out with ty program at the school and to engage and build experience various mental illnesses like PTSD, dethem when we were home, but relationships with our North Cross community” pression, anxiety, addiction, etc. due to the high levels of stress and traumatic events experienced during to also see the positive change in Kuyper said, as he reflected on his time at North instances such as combat. them. Literally, we felt we left for Cross.

“I have been fortunate enough not to have strugFor Kuyper, he sees Veteran’s Day as “a formal day basic training as boys, but gled with mental health challenges throughout my that we, as a country, can honor our military vetermilitary and law enforcement career,” he said. “I returned as men.” - Chris Kuyper ans and make them feel as special as they are. To me, give full credit to ??? help me get through the daily every day is Veterans Day and I find myself seeking challenges and life as a police officer to my wife who is my rock and a great those who have served no matter where I am, so I can take a moment from support system when I needed her. Not everyone can be a law enforcement my day to thank them for their service.” and/or military spouse and navigate the challenges that come with those jobs “When I come across a veteran of a foreign war, I love taking the time to successfully. A study found that 65-70% of first responders’ first marriages speak with them about their service and sacrifice,” he said. “Every veteran end in divorce. We’ve been married for almost 25 years now” has a story (or three), and I feel honored to have them share their story with A favorite memory of Kuyper’s from the military is when he was in Army me and to build a bond with them. We live in an amazing country and I am Basic Combat Training at Fort Jackson, SC. One of Kuyper’s fellow platoon beyond thankful we have people who would lay it all on the line to defend soldiers received a care package from his parents back in New Jersey. Once our Nation and for people they don’t even know” training day ended, he opened the package to find a Whopper from Burger Although Officer Kuyper has only been at North Cross for a short period King amongst the other goodies from home in the box. The soldier ended up of time, he has made a substantial and lasting impact already. Kuyper’s dedicutting the burger into 12 slices and everyone in the room were able to take cation to keeping the student body, faculty, and campus protected while also a bite. “I think I held that little piece of Whopper in my mouth for about ten bringing light and perspective to our curriculum and student life is admiraminutes before I swallowed it. After being removed from the civilian world ble and truly amazing to see. The North Cross community thanks Officer for months, you really learn to appreciate the little things in life.”

Kuyper for his unwavering commitment to not only keep our school safe, but During his time of duty as a member of SWAT, Kuyper was involved in his fight for the safety of all Americans.

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PAGE 8 NOVEMBER 2024

FEATURES

North Cross blood helps Red Cross save lives

BLOODY GOOD CAUSE: Juniors Brandon Carey and Carter Krzeminski man the reception table on Nov. 20. They organized the event along with Leyton Sturm ‘25 (right), who won some Christmas socks. Ava Dalaski ‘26 smiles while recovering from giving her blood. She said her arm went numb initially. Photos by Tracy Schaefer

What does kindness mean?

On World Kindness Day, students and teachers offer a variety of answers.

By Mia Esposito

If you Google kindness, it is a noun that is “the quality of being friendly, generous, and considerate.”

However, in reality kindness can mean different things to different people. That’s why I decided to ask our students and staff what it means to them. As you read their answers, think of the commonalities and differences. What do your peers think kindness is?

“Kindness to me honestly means standing up for what you believe in,” Spanish teacher Zoe Mullins said, “and giving other people the kind of treatment that you would like yourself.” Mullins seems to think of the Golden Rule.

Who better to ask about kindness than our beloved Director of Student Life Stephen Belderes?

“The first thing that pops in my head has got to be the golden rule.”

Hmm, this sounds familiar does it?

“That’s what overall kindness is. . . .

The golden rule. Period. That’s what it is.”

Well, it seems that some people have made up their mind: The golden rule, no question about it, but some students found different ways to define its meaning.

Freshman class treasurer George Lugar ‘28 “Kindness means respecting others and treating people how you want to be treated.”

Maggie Bibby ‘27 says, “Kindness is being honest and thoughtful.”

Huw Wente ‘28 thinks kindness is: “Greatness, because I think it brings all the world together.”

So kindness is a way we can all connect? A way for us to be unified in trying times?

Kindness and unity go hand in hand.

Touching on this fact, DEI Director Debbie Taylor thinks it’s important to celebrate World Kindness Day, “Because the world we live in right now, we’re so self-absorbed, and so many people are doing so many unkind things. It’s just one day everyone can stop all around the world and just focus on kindness.”

So, how have these people that shared with us their definition of kindness see it around them?

Well, let’s see. Wente thinks “It’s huge when people open the door for other people at this school.”

“Recognizing that people exist.

The smile, the wave,” she said. Acknowledgement is key for Mullins, and it seems like she agrees with Wente. It’s “the simple things.”

“People here, cause I just moved

“A major act of kindness . . . is when there is a student sitting by themselves, or all alone, and another student goes up to them and invites them to join in the activity.”

BE KIND: Naiel Ferron ‘28 writes a kind qoute outside math teacher Jennifer

Sprouce’s room. This shows North Cross School’s students embracing World Kindess Day. Photo by Mia Esposito and caption by Shree Patel

here,” Sharmithaa Bhaani Maheswaran ‘26, “and people have been really nice to me.” This ties in with Mullins’ idea of acknowledgement, so is that the real act of kindness?

Echoing Mullins is Dr. Daniel Hood.

“A major act of kindness I like to see is when there is a student sitting by themselves,” he said, “or all alone,

and another student goes up to them and invites them to join in the activity.”

Now we have a picture of what kindness means, treating others how you would want to be treated and a sense of unity. And a picture of acts of kindness, acknowledging others and the little things that let them know you care.

STEM

NOVEMBER 2024 PAGE 9

Forensics students enjoy study of blood splatter

SPLAT! Forensics students display blood castoff. STEM director Jennifer Landry’s fourth period Forensic Science students conducted a blood spatter lab on a 76-degree warm day in November. Junior and senior students analyzed the way splatters of blood can differ on sheets of paper, cardboard, plastic and other materials. Students displayed how certain movements can change the shape of how blood drops appear and wrote lab reports with the information they gathered. Photo by Akali Koeda

SPLATTER: As the forensics class tests the splattering of blood, Indira Weed ‘25 poses

with a bloody knife. During their fourth period class, the students within the forensics class were led outside to conduct an experiment on the splattering of blood with teacher Jennifer Landry piloting the experiment by attempting an example. “It was really fun to go outside and test the different blood splatter techniques,” Anna Ciccozzi ‘26 said, “and my favorite part was the cast-off spatter where we pretended to stab somebody.” Through further questioning, it was mutually agreed throughout the members of the group that Fiona Parnell ‘26 had the best stab and splatter. “This was one of the most exciting experiments that we have done in this class,” said Lauren Boone ‘25, “and I think that Forensics is one of the most interesting classes.” Photo and caption by Akali Koeda

Robotics team prepares for competitions in early 2025

Thor Construction wishes the Class of 2025 a great senior year!

Hello Human: Zuhair Mirza and Luke Daniel work hard to try to attach an

The Willis Hall Herald thanks Thor Construction for its support!

extendable arm to the base platform of the robotics’ teams robot. The team of 13 has been working for over two months now, and have run into a few problems along the way, but they have slowly overcome them. They will have a competition in early 2025 using their robot to collect small samples and use them to score. “I think it’s really good so far this year, and we got a good head start because we had the base already kind of built,” said Dr. Timothy Naginey, one of the leaders of the robotics team. As he said, the team did have a head start using a pre-built base from last year’s competition, however the arm has been the major problem so far, as it is currently being held on by “a wish and a prayer,” as some might say, or as the rest of the group calls it “some zip ties and duct tape.” Despite this, the team still has high hopes and continues to work as the deadline for the competition nears, with the first on Jan. 18 in Harrisonburg and the second on Jan. 26 in Bassett. Photo and caption by Joaquin Downey

STATE C

PAGE 10 NOVEMBER 2024

GIRLS WIN!

By Kaitlyn Perkins

Raiders Girls Cross Country was ready. We trained all season for the moment, our moment to shine at the VISAA state championship race.

This was a big race for the girls, especially for senior team captain, the great Kerrigan Chaney.

Chaney had already won this race the past two years. On Nov. 8 she set out successfully for her three-peat, winning her final NCS cross country race, but for the first time, with a team.

“For Kerrigan, for Kerrigan, for Kerrigan.”

Ainsley Myles‘27, me, Kaitlyn Perkins ‘28, Lizzie Carter ‘29, Lilian Philips ‘29, Madison Ball ‘29, and Olivia Ball ‘29 chanted and fist-bumped as we waited anxiously to start the race.

“Olivia and Lizzie had to make a big move in the last two kilometers to close down the points on Trinity Christian,” Coach Ed Dickenson said “while Kaitlyn and Lillian both finished inside the top-20 for All-State distinction.”

It was Chaney’s last cross country race with the NCS girls. She deserved a team win to solidify her legacy. She doesn’t need another gold medal to add to her too-many-to-count collection. What she needed was the memory of leading her team of girls to their first ever state championship, and she did.

“It felt really good to win [as a team],” Chaney admitted, “I cried when I found out we won.”

(Jacob Johnson contributed reporting.)

Virginia Milesplit Report www.va.milesplit.com “In the girls race, the North Cross girls came on strong late in the season and even though they moved up a division from a year ago, they were able to score a solid victory. The girls form Trinity Christian put up a valiant effort led by three all-state finishers . . . . But North Cross also had three all state runners in Kerrigan Chaney, Kaitlyn Perkins, and Lillian Phillips, who were able to outpace the Trinity girls to victory.

“Kerrigan Chaney rose to the occasion now running in a higher division and continued her VISAA domination. She was able to drop runner-up Isabella Curtis of Peninsula Catholic early on and win her third straight VISAA championship. Her finishing time of 18:38 was the second fastest girls time of the day.”

Place Time Points 1 Kerrigan Chaney 18:38.29 1 7 Kaitlyn Perkins 20:32.77 7 17 Lillian Phillips 21:33.76 17 24 Olivia Ball 21:51.74 24 30 Lizzie Carter 22:12.24 30 39 Ainsley Myles 22:34.38 39 63 Madison Ball 23:33.85 61 Total Time: 1:44:49 Average: 20:57.76 1-5 Split: 3:34

READY: Above left to right: Kerrigan Chaney, Lizzie Carter, Madison Ball, Kaitlyn Perkins and Lillian Phillips prepare to race. Beh

Ball aim to place high in case of tiebreakers. Below left in the chart, see times, placings and points for all seven girls. Photos by Karen Pe

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4

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CHAMPS

NOVEMBER 2024 PAGE 11

Six runners earn all-state honors

ALL-STATE METAL: Lillian Phillips ‘29, Kaitlyn Perkins ‘28, Kerrigan Chaney ‘25, Spencer Britton ‘27, Finn Chaney ‘27 and Justus Horner ‘28 wear their VISAA Div.II All-State medals. Photo by Jacob Johnson

It runs in the family

Multiple sibling sets help XC flourish and Caleb ‘28 Miao.

“It’s been pretty fun to be able to run with Caleb this year beWhile the entire team celebrated the success of the girls first cause even though we’ve been on the same team before . . . we state championship, four sibling sets filled the roster. haven’t, you know, both like been varsity, like running together, Kerrigan ‘25 and Finton ‘27 Chaney, Josh ‘25 and Caleb ‘28 so that’s been a pretty cool thing,” Josh said. “It’s also been cool to Miao, Harry ‘25 and Peter ‘27 Anderson, twins Madison and Ol- see how much progress he’s made, because the last couple of years ivia Ball ‘29, all ran for the varsity this year. The Ball’s ran with he’s been in middle school, and I’ve been in high school, so we’ve younger brother Gavin ‘30 on the Middle School team. Last year been running together in practices but never in a race.”

Alex ‘24 and Gabe Dickenson ‘29 shared workouts on the cross Caleb finished his season at Panorama Farms in Earlysville, runcountry team spanning seven years, the boys and girls team. ning a very solid 21:27. Running a sub-20 minute top-five time Not many people were aware of the coincidence of the amount for the team, Josh has not finished his season and high school of siblings that inhabit the team. Kerrigan and Finn’s mom, Darcy career yet. He and his teammates are eager to go out with a bang McGrath, suggested that someone in the newspaper should talk at the Foot Locker meet, Nov. 30 in Charlotte, NC, with the about the amount of siblings on the team. This opened not only majority of his fellow senior runners. my and the team’s eyes but fellow journalist and cross country Finishing third overall in the race, the boys were paced by Spenteammate, Kaitlyn Perkins ‘28. cer Britton ‘27, who placed second overall, and Finn Chaney, who “I don’t really notice because on the team like siblings would,” placed 10th overall. Meanwhile, Justus Horner ‘28, whose sister Perkins said. “We push each other and compete to get better.”

Lydia ‘24 ran with the team for many years, placed 20th. Those The wave of eighth graders got to shine on the varsity and as- three Raiders earned all-state honors. Five seconds after Justus, sisted on the first ever win for girls cross country in the history of Harry placed 21st.

NCS.”It was a team effort from beginning to end,” Head Coach Ed Dickenson said, “reflecting the character and heart that our girls’ team has shown all season. Amazing performance!”

Twin troubles: Olivia Ball ran a 21:51, the fourth fastest time among the Raider girls and cementing the championship with her 24th-place finish. In only her second varsity race, her sister Madison came in at 23:33, putting her at 63rd overall. More than 150 girls ran in the Div. II race.

Another sibling duo that seems to fly under the radar is Josh ‘25

By Jacob Johnson

hind them, Ainsley Myles and Olivia Perkins

1

“It was a team effort from beginning to end,” Head Coach Ed Dickenson said, “reflecting the character and heart that our girls’ team has shown all season. Amazing performance!”

PAGE 10 NOVEMBER 2024

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

Valeria rehearses for Alice

By Caroline Welfare Valeria Dancea, ‘25, walks our halls and the stage with a huge smile on her face.

She has been gracing North Cross’s theater productions for four years. Her favorite character that she has portrayed was Eliza Doolittle in Pygmalion, and her favorite production was The Crucible. She says that her favorite play that she hasn’t been in is Beetlejuice the Musical. Via said that her sister Ruxi ‘19 got her interested in the stage, and that if she has time, she will continue ‘breaking a leg’ in college productions.

To students on the fence about participating in theater, “It’s less scary than you think!”

Via said, “And it gets easier as you get on stage more, so you should definitely give it a shot even if you don’t think you’d be good at it.”

Meanwhile, she is excited to be the lead in the winter play: Alice in Wonderland. ” It is going to be super interesting and fun,” she said.

Dancea played Eliza Doolittle last year.

Photo by Sarah Sledd

Band members prepare for all-disrtict/concert

FLAUTING IT: From left, Maggie Bibby, Taahir Imam, Catherine Jackson and Shree Patel play flutes. Photo by Joaquin Downey

“So when you get to the auditions, you get an audition number, and As the tryouts for all-district band you go to a table of all the different approach, Charlie Jackson ‘28, instruments, and they give you a Maggie Bibby ‘27, Hue Wente number, and then they start calling ‘28 and Finton Channey ‘27, have [the] numbers,” said Jimmie Donsigned up and are working tireless- nini, Band Director when asked to ly to improve upon their scales, sum up the audition experience. both Chromatic and their 12 ma- “and if your number is called, you jor scales, and follow a guide to the prepared “I encourage studentss to a warm up room, piece they have audition for all district and you warm been given.

Then you band, because, first of all, up.

To dive into follow [them] on the specifics of the actual audtion itself down to the actuthese require- and preparing the scales al audition room, ments, let’s start and you play your and the prepared piece scales, and then with scales. Each instrument has and preparing themselves [the] chromatic 12 major scales, and then for sight reading is good scale, from which, two [the] prepared for all musicians.” will be chosen etude, and then randomly.

-- Jimmie Donnini you sight read Students must something.” The demonstrate a full understanding entire actual audition process only of these scales, being able to go up takes about five minutes, and then and down them every single note you’re done. tongued and in a sixteenth note “I think the most important part style, with preferably two, or in of All-District is probably when, some cases three octaves. it just has to be the time you take, Each student must play a chromat- like when you actually get into all ic scale, which is a scale of every sin- district, it’s the time that you spend gle note, lowest to highest, of their practicing with the actual band, instrument, which must be slurred with students from multiple other on the way up and they tonged on schools, that’s the most important the way down, both directions in a part of it,” said Bibby. sixteenth note style. Lastly, the stuIn conclusion, all of the students dents must play a specifically pre- are hard at work with the requirepared piece of music, being careful ments, with Donnini there to help of dynamics, tone, notes, tempo. them along the way.

By Joaquin Downey

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

NOVEMBER 2024 PAGE 9

By Margaret Bass Lower School actors in Peter Pan Jr. embraced their mischievous characters with dramatic lighting provided by Evie Eagan ‘25.

The students who provided backstage assistance were Suvi Hansen ‘26, Samantha Belderes ‘28, Evie Eagan ‘25, Noah Shorey ‘26, Taahir Iman ‘27 and Caroline Welfare ‘27.

Lightboard Operator, Eagan, has been helping out with tech for North Cross’s theatre since 2022 with the production of Little Shop of Horrors. She has primarily helped out with lighting and sound through the years but has done a bit of everything. The lightboard can be a stressful and difficult position to manage, but Belderes ‘28 said, “She really kept it together the whole time. We are going to miss her a lot.”

Eagan also helped out with getting the rowdy kids into their mics backstage before each performance. This was tricky because often the younger kids would misplace their mic belts

which were used to secure the mics onto the actors. There was also some trouble backstage keeping the budding actors quiet and behaved. One such event was when the kids would roll around in their Heelys and say, “I’m flying!” They used these shoes onstage to imitate “flying” across the sky to Neverland and it was difficult to limit this to only onstage. Eagan’s favorite memory of the production was opening night.

“The theatre was completely packed,” she said, “and it was amazing to see all the actors get so much love from the audience!”

Thomas Costello, Director and Choreographer, has worked with Evie in every production since he arrived two and a half years ago.

She was a part of the tech crew for Costello with the productions of Tuck Everlasting, Annie Jr., The Addams Family, and Peter Pan Jr. “She is very easy going, always ready to help with whatever we need.” Photo by Sarah Sledd

Work behind the audience, in the hallways and backstage

BLUE COW

FESTIVE FICTION

PAGE 14 NOVEMBER 2024

Be thankful for what you have

“

By Dara Kerman Jordan!! Come down stairs now!

Everyone is waiting for you,” my mom screams at the top of her lungs.

“Ughhhh, I hate Thanksgiving,” I mutter quietly to myself, as I force myself out of bed and down the steps to our dining room, which is filled with relatives I haven’t seen in months. I managed to fake a, “Nice to see you!” along with a joyful “Hi!” when I greeted each of my relatives, none of whom I was happy to be spending time with.

Every Thanksgiving in my family ends the same way every year: Someone ends up mentioning politics, which then results in an all out screaming match between aunts and grandfathers. On top of that, the food isn’t even worth all of the arguing! The turkey is dryer than the Sahara and the stuffing has an odd mushy texture to it. Thanksgiving sucks!

After about 30 minutes of dinner, things start to go south when my grandfather Papa brings up the election. When I see my aunt’s

By Evelynn Palmer

A

s the Christmas season approaches, so does the company’s annual Secret Santa that Ms. Evelynn Palmer has been dreading for so long. With her lack of connection to most of her colleagues, she has never been the best gift giver. However, because Secret Santa is anonymous, this gives her space to breathe as she ponders who will be her next horrid gift recipient. Last year it was her worst enemy, Amanda Sawyers, which worked out perfectly as Amanda ended up receiving a holiday candle and a few pencils from “yours truly.”

Today was the day of the fretted name drawing, and as she and her colleagues crowded around the hat of names, Evelynn closed her eyes and hoped for someone she truly knew, like her best friend Marcy. However, as she grabbed a piece of paper from the hat, she instantly felt that something was wrong. As she slowly opened the fate-determining scrap, her eyes

face start to turn more annoyed and angry, I know that she is going to blow soon. That’s how I know it’s the perfect time to get away.

“Excuse me, I just have to use the restroom.

I’ll be back in a minute,” I say knowing full well I will not be back anytime soon. I’ve started a sort of tradition every year on Thanksgiving of leaving dinner early to get away from the chaos.

This year, to distract myself from the family drama, I took the family dog Daisy for a walk.

“Daisy! Come here, let’s go for a walk!”

Soon after my calls for her, Daisy comes rushing towards me excited for her walk. Daisy and I walk all the way up our hill, and we circle around the neighborhood. After around an hour of walking around, I can tell Daisy is ready to go home, as she looks exhausted and she’s panting almost like she is pleading for some water. I’m also getting a little tired, so we start heading back home.

As we start approaching my house, I notice that things seem different. The closer we get,

Anonymously yours

widened. It read, “Jackson,” as in, her ex-best friend, Jackson Graves, who Evelynn has known since her childhood and long ago had stopped being friends. As she pondered ideas, she silently groaned at the notion of having to choose a thoughtful gift for him.

After consulting Marcy about her dilemma, she finally decided on a snowglobe based on his favorite movie and a box of Rolos, which she remembered he liked when they were kids. Putting the presents into a bag and signing it, “from your Secret Santa,” Evelynn sighed, reminiscing about their childhood memories before life had become complicated.

She and Jackson had been like two peas in a pod, always sticking together from the moment they met at the beach. As they grew older, Evelynn even started to catch feelings for him. However, as they entered high school, Jackson slowly started to drift apart from her and became the quarterback for their football team, skyrocketing his popularity and leaving her

the more I notice that something is wrong.

There aren’t any cars filling up my driveway or even any parked in front of the house. I start running towards my house. I’m concerned and wonder if everyone left.

“Did we really walk for that long, Daisy?” I ask myself.

After a couple knocks on my front door, I resort to screaming “Mom!!” through our mail slot. I finally see her coming down the stairs to come let me in. As soon as she opens the door I ask “Where’d everyone go?” She says, “Jordan honey, they all left, the dinner ended hours ago.” All I can think about is how I didn’t even get to say goodbye to my family members I won’t see until next year. My mom notices my worried expression, so she tells me, “Jordan, you should have stayed for dinner. You missed the best part, dessert!” I guess I should have stayed. Maybe I should have been more grateful to see my relatives… maybe Thanksgiving doesn’t suck after all.

in the dust. As heartbroken as she was, she accepted that she would have to move on. After high school, they went to separate colleges and hadn’t contacted each other for years when they ended up joining the same corporation.

The day of the gift exchange came by quickly, and Evelynn was trembling with anticipation. She arrived at work extra early, looked to make sure there was no one around, and slipped the gift onto Jackson’s desk. Exhaling a deep breath, she went to the bathroom to refresh her mind.

When she came back, she was surprised to see a package on her desk, signed, “anonymously yours.” Feeling her face flushing, she gently picked up the package and slowly unwrapped it. Inside lay a CD of “The Polar Express,” her favorite Christmas movie when she was a child, and a scarf in her favorite color, lavender. She glanced around and saw Jackson staring right at her. He quickly blushed and looked away, and although she wasn’t sure, Evelynn

had a gut feeling that he had given her the gift.

Knowing that this was a chance for reconciliation, she put her pride aside and walked up to him, tapping on his shoulder. Handing him the CD, she nervously said, “If I’m right, you’re my Secret Santa.

So I’m hoping I’m right when I ask you if you maybe want to watch this with me this weekend?” Closing her eyes and bracing herself for the worst, she was surprised when she felt a hand on her shoulder and a voice that she had grown to deeply miss.

“You are right, Evelynn, and I would love to. I’m so glad you asked. You were my Secret Santa too, weren’t you? Only you would know to get me a Paddington themed snow globe.” Jackson joked. Evelynn laughed softly, a faint blush tainting her cheeks.

As they finalized their plans together, their coworkers watched from around the corner, silently applauding themselves on the success of their scheme to unite the two lovers together at last.

FESTIVE FICTION

NOVEMBER 2024 PAGE 15

My Life as a Pumpkin

By Sir Jack O. Lantern

I

n the beginning I was merely a little seed waiting for my time to shine. As I was planted one early morning in May the ideas of my life to come began to form. Finally, one brisk morning 5 months laterI was spotted by a young boy in a large pumpkin patch in the town of Transylvania called Spooky Nook. I was sitting in my bed of leaves when the little boy wearing a red and black flannel shirt and blue jeans came and sat right on my head. As he posed for a picture, I wished I had a face to smile alongside him, but I knew that day would come eventually. When he stood up he turned around and said, “Can we take this one home?”

His parents looked at each other, communicating silently with each other, then turned to the boy and said, “Looks like the perfect pumpkin to us!” It was at that moment that my life truly began.

Finally I was sitting on a warm seat cushion of a red truck with the young boy, whose name I learned was James. He was in a booster seat

By Isla Whittle

A

with one arm wrapped around my stem. Later, the truck pulled into a driveway of a gorgeous brick house. The little boy was unbuckled by his father, and his mother came around the other side of the truck to lift me out. I was placed on the front stoop and he and his parents walked inside and shut the door.

The next morning I woke to the sound of the truck pulling out of the driveway. I watched the sights of the street for a while until James came out with an excited grin and asked, “Ready to have a face?” His mom came out and brought me into the house. We walked through

a dining room, kitchen, and bedroom until I was set down on a tarp on the back porch.

There were knives next to me and a big wooden spoon. I began to sense a new feeling inside of me that felt a little like butterflies in my stomach. The carving went like this: James’s mom did most of the cutting since James wasn’t strong enough. He used the wooden spoon to scoop out my seeds and place them in a pile on the tarp. He got very messy and I even saw some seeds in his hair. When that was done, his mother asked him to draw out my face so that she would know where to guide the knife. Finally, hours later I was completed. They returned me to my front step and lit a candle inside me.

It felt warm and comfy.

“So what have you named him honey?”

James’s mom asked.

“His name is Jack!” James replied, jumping up and down in pride.

So there you have it! That is the story of my successful life as a jack-o-lantern and how I came to be named Jack O. Lantern.

Image generated using Photoshop AI.

The perfect pumpkin prediction

s I went to the pumpkin patch with my friends, we decided we’d get the best pumpkin we could and have a pumpkin carving competition.

They all picked out their pumpkins rather quickly, but I couldn’t find one that I wanted. Finally, after a while of them telling me to hurry up and pick one, I finally found one. It was the perfect pumpkin, perfect shape and just big enough. We went back to my house and started to carve it.

My friends all decided to do scary faces, but I tried to make mine more funny. We had my mom and dad judge them without knowing who carved which. They both decided on mine. I was so happy that I won, even though it’s just a silly competition. I begged my mom to let me keep it in my room for now, before it started to rot. She reluctantly

agreed, but only for a few days. announces that we are going to The next day, I woke up and be getting our very important saw that my pumpkin’s carving tests back. I’m nervous, since seemed to have changed. It I’m not very good at math. That’s looked like a piece of paper that why I’m shocked when I get my had an A+ on it. I was confused test back, and it has an A+ on but decided to let it go. I went it. My mind flashed back to the back upstairs after breakfast and pumpkin’s first carving. I quickly it changed again! Now it had a tell myself it must just be a coinbasketball on it. Even more concidence and continue throughout fused, I shook my head and went my day. to brush my teeth. I went into my After school I have basketroom one last ball tryouts. I I couldn’t ignore don’t think that time, and saw one final image I’ll make the it anymore, the on it, a pizza. I team, since our pumpkin was pre- school’s really thought I was going crazy, but dicting the future! good at this ran to catch the sport and I’m not bus. very good. All I tried to tell my friends about my friends are definitely going to the changing pumpkin, but no make it, and I really want to play one believed me. They laughed with them. After tryouts, they and thought I was joking. I decid- announce all the numbers that ed to just stay quiet and not talk made it. 22, 5, 17, are all called. about it anymore.

20, 19, 6, are called next. I get In first period, our teacher nervous as they continue down

the list. And then the coach says, “And lastly, 11.”

I look down at my shirt that reads 11. I can’t believe it! I ran over to my friends to celebrate.

My mind briefly shows me the second carving, a basketball.

Another coincidence, right?

Later that night, I told my parents about my math test and basketball triumph. My mom is so happy, and tells me that we’re going to order pizza for dinner, my favorite. I thank her, but then think about the pumpkin’s third and final image, a pizza. I couldn’t ignore it anymore, the pumpkin was predicting the future!

I immediately ran upstairs to look at it, but it only showed the face that I carved on it.

The next morning, I checked, but it still remains unchanged.

Every day that I was allowed to keep it in my room, I looked, but it never changed again.

PAGE 20 NOVEMBER 2024

SPORTS

Falling for the sport of indoor bouldering

BRAC All-Conference Field Hockey

By Caroline Welfare My sport is indoor bouldering.

The climb in the right photo was a V1, but I had been having trouble reaching beyond the ledge to get the final few holds. In this particular photo, I am smearing (using the wall) to even out my weight distribution in order to make the final shift. In the other photo, I had just made a swing to get my left hand to the other wall, and I am moving to get my left leg on that wall too.

At the competition on Nov. 9, there were 100 competetors, not counting the spectators who showed up to watch us. We were at an indoor gym in Richmond, called SCOR. The routes were numbered, and the label only read who needed to climb it. I am classified as a U17-F climber, so I could only climb U17-F routes, all of which were V3s and above. I am on the River Rock Climbing team, competing during the first season they have had since COVID-19 hit. There are 10 teammates, including me, five boys and five girls.

Our coach, his first name is Heath, teaches science for another school in the area, and my teammates are from many different schools. Coach often tells us to “send hard,” meaning give a route our all.

My favorite part of the climb is letting go. I lower myself a few holds down, take a deep breath, raise my eyes to the wall, and then let go, usually curling my arms into my chest. Falling the ‘right’ way is important in climbing, because a bad fall can cause injury, even death in extreme circumstances. Weeks ago, I landed wrong after one of my favorite climbs. It was a green and white route set as a V1, and I had done it many times before. (for reference, VBs are the easiest route, then V0s, V1s, and so on). But that time, I had landed on the mat on my hand, with

Millie Chopski 1st Julia Cephas 1st Mercedes Herrera 1st Penelope Lampros 1st Sophia Camp HM Tennis

Falling the right way is important in climbing, because a bad fall can cause injury, even death in extreme circumstances.

Anna Ciccozzi 2nd Nikitha Sherigar HR Soccer

Hunter Basile 1st Bob Alemenas 1st Mario Mitzkewitz 1st Cesar Cuenca 2nd Leyton Sturm HR Volleyball

a locked elbow under my shoulder, not on either of the climbs in the photo, and I can still feel the injury on bad days. But the joy of reaching the top is worth the pain of an injured shoulder. The holds are often rough on your hands, forming calluses and then breaking them off.

The climbing chalk you use for your

hands is supposed to help with this.

Climbing is a sport that takes your whole body. The wall isn’t always vertical, and there are many types of holds. There are crimps, pockets, slopers, jugs, pinches, blocks that aren’t holds but you can use anyway, and sometimes you just have to use the wall itself, known as a smear.

Scout Kappes 1st Peyton Greer 1st Milica Anjelkovic 2nd Julia Corliss 2nd Faith Johnson 2nd

CHAMPIONSHIP GAME SCENES

HANDOFF: Quarterback Brock Miles ‘25 hands off the ball to running back Tristan Lange ‘26, the backup quarterback the last few years, who will get his chance to lead the team next season. After a succesful season, the Raiders reached the state finals, losing to Blue Ridge 14-12, finishing with a 9-2 record. Right: Jesiah Hines ‘27 keeps the Baron offense off the field with one of his two interceptions. Below right: Normally a wide receiver, Jaziel Hart ‘26 runs for a gain from the backfield.

He scored the first touchdown to give the Raiders an early lead. Below, fans like Head of School Armistead Lemon, assistant dorm director Annie Elwell ‘14 (holding the cutout of Austrian player Jonas Koegl-Wallner ’27) and SCA Advisor Susan Wenk never failed to support and cheer for the players. Bottom: Spanish teacher Zoe Mullins joins Elwell, dorm director Kate Branciforte and Upper School Director Allie Kier watch the game. Bottom right: Trace Pickard ‘27 leads the team onto the field with the school flag. Photos by Monica Koene

NOVEMBER 2024 PAGE 21

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