November 2016 issue of the Pepper Box

Staff Editorial

When the staff of the Pepper Box came up with the theme of change for the November issue, the focus naturally went to how people change over time. However, there is one another change that affects us on a daily basis, and that is climate change.

During the month of October, the leaves were falling and the weather was supposed to gradually be getting colder. However, that was not the case earlier this fall. Summer has passed, but the heat has not. Instead of the crisp fall air we are supposed to be experiencing this month, we have been encountering something different; warm, fall air.

Due to the fact the Earth is constantly getting warmer, the weather is drastically changing. Rather than walking out of the house wearing a light jacket, we are going out in shorts and a t-shirt, similar to summer mornings. Even though many people believe that this is considered a natural occurrence, the evidence behind humans affecting the earth in this manner completely dominates that belief.

According to National Geographic, most of the human caused problems “come from the combustion of fossil fuels in cars, factories and electricity production. The gas responsible for the most warming is carbon dioxide, also called CO2. Other contributors include methane released from landfills and agriculture (especially from the digestive systems of grazing animals), nitrous oxide from fertilizers, gases used for refrigeration and industrial processes, and the loss of forests that would otherwise store CO2.”

Earth itself is obviously always changing. According to the National Weather Service, St. Louis will average 75 degrees in October, which is 7 degrees away from the average maximum temperature. This is something that should not be considered normal.

Our world needs to recognize the amount of damage we, as people, are currently executing and go out and make a change.

In the eyes of others, we should not have to go out and make that positive change on the environment because global warming is not considered something we have artificially created. However, whether it is or is not caused by us, we should still want to take the safety precautions in order to keep our planet healthy. Some ideas may include recycling or using alternative sources for energy. This will not only help maintain a clean environment for the people of the future, but it will keep the affects of climate change to a bare minimum.

PEPPER BOX STAFF Adviser: Ron Steinschriber Production Editor In Chief: Leia Boyd Content Editor In Chief: Sarah Barbeau Design Editor In Chief: Sidney Lee News Editor: Alicia Watson Opinion Editor: Royalty Knight Online Editor: Bri’asia Mays Sports Editor: Jenna Hudson Spotlight Editor: Makayla Smith Staff Members: William Qualls, Kourtney Pliner, Martin Trujillo, Vanessa Delgado, Jordyn Barber, Ashley Wright, Bailey Stock, Shelby Langhorst, Victoria Taylor, Tabitha Peebles

Editorial Policy: The Pepper Box is designed and created by members of the newspaper staff of Ritenour High School. The purpose of the newspaper is to provide a forum for the students to focus on issues, give opinions, and share information with the Ritenour High School community. The opinions expressed in this paper do not reflect opinions of our faculty or administration.

Letters to the editor are welcome and accepted, but they may not contain profanity, obscenity, or anything inappropriate to school. They may be e-mailed to Ron Steinschriber at steinschriberr@ritenourschools.org, or dropped off in room 240. The staff reserves the right to edit these letters.

Cover Illustration by Shelby Langhorst Back cover art by Ron Steinschriber, made on easel.ly

The problem with adulting Columnist Royalty Knight discusses the problems with a new term that is entering the American lexicon

The Royal Treatment By: Royalty Knight

There is a depressing fact that is inevitable. Eventually everyone will become an adult.

Becoming an adult has seemed to be on the minds of many young people recently, as the term adulting has been used so much on social media sites that it is slowly entering dictionaries as an official term.

Growing up is scary because becoming an adult is like going into the unknown. It is like heading into a forest that has signs everywhere like “do not enter,” “stay out,” and “turn back before it’s too late.”

For some it may already be too late.

I did a poll of teachers at Ritenour and asked them on a scale of 1 to 10 (10 being completely adult)

to rate their adulting skills. The only definition presented for the term “adulting” was the act of being an adult. The average score that the teachers rated themselves was 8.4, which makes it seem like most teachers feel as if they act like adults.

While all the teachers gave themselves high scores, not all responses to the poll were completely serious.

“Adulting is difficult, and best attempted in pairs or groups for safety. Taking a break from adulting periodically is good for you: dancing to Disney songs, coloring, or playing outside are healthy ways to recover from too much adulting,” English teacher Christina Melly said.

Even though many people feel that they are good at adulting, some people dispute the definition. While Merriam-Webster does not have an official definition for adult as a verb, it does include the following on its web site under “Words we’re Watching.”

“To adult is to behave like an adult, to do the things that adults regularly have to do. This includes things like having a job and living independently, sure, but also such mundanities as taking clothes to the dry cleaners (and remembering to pick them up), making and keeping dental appointments, getting your car

registered, doing yardwork.”

Social Studies teacher Catherine Lampshire believes that adulting can look different depending on the norms of the setting.

“The issue with “adulting” is having a common set of characteristics. I believe these are influenced by culture and thus can be quite different. What does adulting look like, sound like, etc. What is wrong with Peter Pan’s philosophy of refusing to grow up if it would mean never being able to climb a tree? I measure one’s adulting skills by one’s ability to achieve and maintain independence - I can support myself economically, socially, emotionally, and mentally. However, the wonder of it all is the blessing to have a partner who will share the adulting,” Lampshire stated.

Most of the responses about adulting did not share the lighthearted view that is often shown in the media.

Many of the teachers mentioned how difficult adulting was, along with how tiring it can be, and how often times adulting seemed overrated.

We all know that at some point we will be forced to adult.

However, after much research and consideration, I have concluded that adulting is not for me.

Buy your yearbook before it is too late.

40% of all yearbooks ordered have already been purchased.

For more information come to room 240.

Senior Ad space is still available.

Opinion

Donald Trump will be next president of the United States

Republican nominee Trump won the electoral college to become the 45th president

By- Martin Trujillo and Jordyn Barber Staff Reporters

In a historic presidential election, Republican nominee Donald Trump defeated Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton to become the 45th president of the United States of America.

Trump took 306 electoral votes, which beat Clinton’s 232 electoral vote total. Libertarian nominee Gary Johnson and Green Party nominee Jill Stein both earned 0 electoral votes. While Trump won the electoral college, Clinton is currently leading the popular vote count by almost 800,000 while votes are being tabulated.

Missouri’s 10 electoral votes went towards Trump. To break this down further, 110 of the 114 counties voted for Trump. The remaining four counties voted for Clinton. Among these four counties are St Louis County, St Louis City, Boone County (in Columbia, MO), and Jackson County (in Kansas City, MO).

During Trump’s victory speech he said, “To all Republicans and Democrats and Independents across this nation, I say it is time for us to come together as one united people.”

Later in his speech he pledged to be a president for every American.

He believes that together, united, Americans can rebuild the United States. The bulk of his speech consisted of him thanking his family, members of the RNC, and his running mate, Mike Pence.

This is the first time in United States history that a president has not

News

had any experience in politics or the military.

Clinton also made history when she became the first female to win popular vote in the United States.

In response to Trump’s victory, Clinton said, “I congratulated Donald Trump and offered to work with him on Donald Trump was elected as the 45th president of the United States on Tuesday, November 8. Photo courtesy: Gage Skidmore, behalf of our country.

I hope that he will be a flickr.com successful president for future,” McMillan said. all Americans.”

Junior Eliseo Rico was

Clinton then thanked surprised at voter turnout, but feels everyone who has helped support that the checks and balances written her through this campaign and her into the Constitution will prevent any running mate, Tim Kaine. major changes from occurring.

Pre-election polls differed

“I feel as if it could’ve gone from the outcome of the election. differently. There were plenty of people Government Teacher Michael Murray who didn’t vote, but it isn’t the end of reflected on this. the world because he still has to go

“I wasn’t completely sold on through Congress. Also, I don’t believe the polls. I knew it was going to be it won’t affect me directly,” Rico said. close, but I did feel as though she was

The reactions to Trump’s going to win,” Murray said. victory were mixed at Ritenour. Senior

Post-election, Ritenour Chayce Aites is excited about the students shared their thoughts on the election results, but still waiting to see outcome. Senior Ma’isah McMillan what a Trump presidency will look believes that although she comes from like. groups that Trump has spoken out

“I won’t hide the fact that I was against, she will not be in danger with rooting for him. I’m optimistic because his election. we’ve seen a complete switch in the

“Well, I’m not really worried Senate as far as Republicans being about anything because Donald in office. But it should be interesting Trump doesn’t have any true power; because a lot of Republicans don’t he can’t overcome the amendments like Trump either. Like Obama said, we have in place. I’m just disappointed Democrats are going to have to come that he is the representative of our together with Republicans to ever truly country. As a Muslim and young black succeed,” Aites said. woman, I am not worried about my

Leading up to the election, several staff and students of Ritenour shared their thoughts on the presidential candidates. This election brought forward strong stances in favor and opposition of the major party candidates.

Republican nominee Donald Trump and Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton elicited some strong viewpoints from staff and students at Ritenour. Trump photo courtesy of Michael Vadon on flickr.com. Clinton photo courtesy of Marc Nozell on Wikimedia.

There is nothing that I like about Hillary. I dislike her because of her views, she always changes her perspective. Back then she used to not agree with abortion and now she does, and she changes her opinions like that *snaps fingers*. - Sophomore Luis Bautista

“I think the election is the worst two choices we’ve ever had in my lifetime.” - Engineering teacher Jack Heeter

“I feel that it’s (the election) just a bunch of kids arguing and that it’s not an actual election.” - junior Kyle Collier

“They are just arguing, debating among themselves about who did more wrong than the other, instead of about the real deal about what they are actually gonna do for the United States.” - Science teacher Angela Lane

“If Trump becomes president, I think his biggest obstacle will be getting people to work for him. He’s got so many enemies, and said so many things, made so many people angry, that if he wins, he will have to step back and work with these people.” - Social Studies teacher Alex Terrance

“I feel like Hillary would do a good job, because she is also trying to get college free, which is good, because parents that make under a certain amount of money should still be able to work hard for their kids while their kids go to college Sophomore Hope Houston

News

Ritenour hosts race summit A city wide event to help discuss racial issues in the community is housed in the Ritenour Auditorium By: Vanessa Delgado Staff Reporter

On October 18, 38 schools from across the Saint Louis area came and joined Ritenour students to participate in the Gateway 2 Change Race Summit.

Gateway 2 Change is a non profit organization that was sought out after the impacting events in Ferguson back in 2014. The events stirred up the local community on their safety on being targeted by their race. The overall goal of this organization is to create awareness of the cultural and racial issues that still continue to happen in the 21st century.

The day was filled with team bonding activities where the students got to meet new students from the different schools attending. The “You Don’t Know My Story” campaign played a huge role in this summit.

Ritenour students were given the opportunity to not only share their personal stories but to hear from different perspectives as well. Members of the Game Changers felt they could be seen within everyone else and that they were not the only ones facing these problems.

“It’s just to show that anything and everything can happen to people that you would not even think of,” senior Daniel Carroll stated after hearing many emotional stories throughout the day.

Students are more prone to think that one has to be of a certain race or fit a profile for one to be judged of who they are.

This summit also gave an insight into the Ritenour perspective

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of diversity. Members were surprised to hear visitors say “ This is Ritenour?” when they walked through the doors of the auditorium.

Visitors were amazed at how diverse Ritenour is compared to their own school.

“They know Ritenour for its bad reputation, but now they had an actual opportunity to see how it really is,” Sponsor Students discuss issues of race and acceptance at the Gateway and Spanish Teacher 2 Change Race Summit in the Ritenour auditorium. Photo by: Tavonda Palmer said.

Royalty Knight

The summit it motivated you to go and actually made the members of the Game create change, rather than just talk Changers proud of where they attend about it.” school. They were not bragging, but

Sherman also noted that there others saw it through their own eyes is still more that can be done after rather than others stating it to them as these summits come to a close. if it were false information.

“If we are going to get bigger,

“It made me appreciate my we need to spread out to the rest of school,” sophomore Lena Thai said. the school. The program itself does a

Racial profiling has been an lot of talking, but we don’t actually do issue that people think is over, but is anything,” Sherman said. “Other kids actually still continuing to happen. in schools don’t get the opportunity Senior Calin Hogan believes that these to go there and they need that summits are helping to share this experience.” information to not just the students,

Summits like these allow the but also to their parents. community to bond and get to know

“This summit put Saint Louis each other. It is a demonstration that together,” Hogan said there are people who are concerned

Some of the Ritenour students and will not just stand and watch who attended have been involved in negativity in the world. this program since its inception, and

“It gives hope that humanity have seen some changes over time in hasn’t completely died,” Palmer said. the summits.

“This year it was a step up because they incorporated motivation,” junior Reese Sherman said. “This time

NHS hosts successful blood drive The National Honor Society organized a blood drive which helped raise 33 units of blood for those in need

Junior Eduardo Gomez participates in the blood drive. Gomez was one of the volunteers through NHS, and a donor as well. Photo courtesy: LeAnne Vest

By:Victoria Taylor Staff Reporter

The fall blood drive took place October 24th and was hosted by the Ritenour’s chapter of the National Honor Society (NHS).

With the help of 58 students, Ritenour successfully donated a total of 33 units to the American Red Cross Organization.

According to the American Red Cross, there are 4 steps in the donation process. These steps are necessary for every donor and are performed each year.

Step one is registration. Staff and volunteers sign donors in, give them information on the donation, and receive information such as a donor card and a driver’s license.

Step two is a health history & mini-physical. Students who volunteered to donate blood are asked

questions on information such as their health history and places they’ve traveled in a confidential interview.

Step three is the donation, which takes approximately 8-10 minutes. However, the time the needle is inserted is only just a few seconds.

When approximately a pint of blood is collected, the donation is complete and a bandage is placed on the arm. The final step in donation is refreshments.

Eating and drinking something is key to people’s safety after a donation, and NHS made sure to have snacks available for those who had just donated blood.

These steps are necessary for everyone who wants to donate and are performed each year in the fall by NHS members.

However, there are also certain requirements that are needed before a person is able to donate. The level of iron in a person’s blood has to meet a

certain number in order for them to be eligible. This is one of the reasons why 27 of the students who signed up were turned away.

“I was volunteering, so I noticed a lot of people trying to donate but many weren’t able to either because they had low iron or other problems like that,” junior Eduardo Gomez said.

NHS changed the way they organized the blood drive this year, and it seemed to streamline things and create an easier process.

“The blood drive was different than the years before because we have always double booked appointments and had a flood of people waiting a long time to get their blood taken,” senior Kayla Dobin, NHS president, said.

Although less students were scheduled overall, the organization still met their goal for donations, and did not have to worry as much as the event was going on.

“This time we only scheduled 85, the minimum, standard number.

As a result it was a lot more organized and manageable,” Dobin said.

Each and every donor had a chance of saving up to three lives within each donation taken place.

This mentality is what spurs many students to donate blood. It was the opportunity to help someone in need that led senior Carla Damien to volunteer to donate blood.

“It was so overwhelming, but I guess it was pretty fun because I got to donate blood and help people out,” Damian said.

News

Changes over time Ritenour students explain how they change from their entrance to school until their exit

Freshman year: trying to figure things out. Freshman Kevin Dominguez looks for his class while Officer Jeremy Miller helps. Photo by Sidney Lee

By: Tabitha Peebles Staff Reporter

Sometimes change can occur in people’s lives without them even knowing it. Ritenour students have experienced some of these changes upon entering high school, and have seen themselves change as they have progressed over the years. Some may question if change is a good or a bad occurrence, when it will affect us in some aspect almost evidently.

Change can alter people’s outlooks on situations. It can also be an opportunity for people to adapt to different atmospheres. Change could be the remedy that people need to advance to the next stage in their life.

Spotlight

Sophomore year: feeling comfortable. Sophomores Tiyler Grayson and Andrew Nguyen hang out on the couches in the Green Room. Photo by: Sidney Lee

There are some built-in changes for students at Ritenour High School, and those are the transitions from eighth grade into high school, all the way through the transition from senior year into post high school life.

Freshman Joy Hayes was astonished at the atmosphere she faced upon entering high school. It was different than the life she had crafted in middle school.

“This transition from middle school to high school was tough.

The diversity and population of the school is not something I’m used to.

Preparing for this change through the accompaniment of all kinds of people and the task of maturing myself, will help make this change to be more

accommodating,” Hayes said.

Change can halt people in their lives as they come across plateaus that are present, until they take that next big step. Some may feel like they are incapable of change once they’ve encountered a significant one already.

Change could even turn into routine; considering the change was something essential to people’s everyday lives.

“I haven’t experienced any real changes since my transition from freshman year until now. I’ve fallen victim to the same agenda. I’m awaiting the next big change in my life that will continue to help me progress,” sophomore Dylan Licare said.

Change can also be a gateway for people to earn freedoms and

Junior year: stressing out. Junior Reese Sherman works on a computer while having her notes strewn around the table. Photo by Sidney Lee

Senior year: moving forward. Senior Kenyana Savage meets with College Counselor Julie Kampschroeder to talk about her future.

Photo by Sidney Lee

meet new people. New advantages associated with change could help broaden limits. It can also put people in certain situations that would be beneficial for them to further expand their social boundaries.

“Upon being in high school over the past two years, a change in independence is what I appreciate most. Meeting new, friendly people to associate myself with has also helped me to become more outgoing since freshman year,” junior Isaiah Redmond said.

Other times, change can be more than a mental or surrounding change; but a physical one. Time can allow people to experience change as a literal part of themselves.

“One of the biggest changes I experienced was my hair length. My hair used to be so short freshman year,” junior Emma Carriker said,

One thing people need to remember in spite of every type of change is to never let it overtake their lives.

“No matter how tough things get, you can’t give up. If you looked at yourself in twenty years and nothing had changed, you wouldn’t be happy.”, Carriker said.

Once people have experienced a quantity of change throughout their lives, they tend to look back on all they’ve accomplished on our journey. No matter how big or small the change, they are bound to take

something away from it.

“This entire journey has been stressful. What made it easier for me to deal with these years of change was, making it an essential to stay self driven and aware,” senior Kenyana Savage said.

People also tend to look back on how change has bettered them over time and how it’s molded them into the person they are today.

“This change and experience in high school has taught me to be more confident and stand up for myself. Freshman year was filled with anxiety but now I’ve become a lot more open,” senior Morgan Coffey said.

Spotlight

How to manage changes Students and staff participate in changes in their lives, either by choice or by consequence transitioning from middle school to high school, or from high school to being an adult.

For sophomore Erica Toledo it was the fact that she often heard about her peers contemplating suicide, and then she was confronted with it in the worst possible way. This forced her whole outlook on life to change, and it has helped her become the person that she is today.

Toledo feels as though even though it was for bad reasons, it gave her a better outlook on life.

She now appreciates her peers and takes nothing for granted.

A photo of Dr. Shane Hopper in the military stands side While Toledo was forced to by side with a current photo of him as the principal make a change after seeing the at Ritenour High School.Photo illustration by: Shelby action of her peers, other people Langhorst choose to make changes solely for themselves.

By: Makayla Smith

Chemistry teacher Rachel Spotlight Editor Tripp has adapteded to the city of St. Louis after a life altering move. Over

Change can be a very the summer Tripp moved here from uncomfortable situation for some people, while others seem to adapt very easily.

Sometimes a life situation is planned, but other times life throws someone a curveball and they have to be able to adjust. The smallest change could make the biggest difference in someone’s life, but it’s different for everybody.

Change is common and though often times people are comfortable where they are, it’s also something they need to learn to accept, whether they choose to make the change, or the change just happens naturally.

For some, the change could be

Spotlight

Illustration by Kourtney Pliner

Indianapolis with no family or friends, just her husband and her child.

“It has been difficult being away from all of my family and old friends, but it has made me grow closer and stronger in my relationship with my husband and son,” Tripp said.

People may not realize it, but everyday people choose to risk their life in making one of the biggest changes ever, which is going to the military. It’s not an easy choice to make, nor is it for everybody, but is also a change that shouldn’t go ignored

“Joining the military changed my life in a positive way,” Dr. Shane Hopper said. “It took me out of a situation I felt trapped in.”

He continued to say that joining the military made him want to do something with his life, which took him on a path which ultimately led to him becoming the principal at Ritenour.

Music department showcases their talent at concerts Band, choir, and orchestra all perform in winter concerts then most days we were great, we were always doing our best from the first minute to the last minute,” Kaiser said.

Senior Kayla Newman is also in choir, and she felt like Mendoza and Gardner. Newman started off nervous in the beginning of the concert, but as her concert went on she settled down and became more comfortable with each piece.

“As soon as the concert got underway, I felt better about performing in front of people,” Newman said.

The band plays at their Halloween concert. The students were allowed to dress in costume for this event to get in the holiday spirit. Photo courtesy of Rhonda Olson.

By: Will Qualls Staff Reporter

Ritenour students showed off the work being done in all branches of the music department when they held concerts in the auditorium on October 20, 26, and 27.

Orchestra, band, and choir each held a concert at the end of the month to show what the students have been working on.

Senior Donnell Gardner is in the band, and he was excited by the outcome of the concert, and especially the audience that they had.

“It felt like we had between 200 and 300 people there,” Gardner said.

Preparation went into each concert, as Gardner said that the band has been preparing for his concert since the beginning of September.

Senior Ammy Mendoza was in

the orchestra concert, but she also pulled double duty as she performed the Scottish concert as well. Mendoza acknowledged that the concert was not perfect, but she was very excited about the outcome.

“Yeah, it’s been rough, we’ve been practicing on one piece at a time.

People make mistakes, but on concert night we did the best that we’ve ever done,” Mendoza said.

Like Gardner, Mendoza went through a lot of preparation

“It was pretty stressful handling both the Scottish and regular concert, and we practiced on our own time to make it easier,” Mendoza said.

Senior Austin Kaiser is in choir, and although he was thrilled with the results of the concert, he said the group had some challenges leading Freshman Alyssa Lane, Sophomore Royal Todisup to the event.

“The class itself wasn’t always man, Freshman Morgan Eaves play the flute at the band concert. Photo courtesy of Rhonda Olson 100%, some days we were just out of it,

A&E

Fall sports wrap ups • • •

Football

• Senior JC Biayi moves with the football in a game against Northwest High School on September 2.

Photo courtesy of Brendon Klohr

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Coach Hoyt Gregory Record- 7-3 Best Moment- Blocking the field goal to beat Parkway North Key players- 1st team all conference: Carl Garmon, Tyrel Slack, Dele Adeoye, Rashad Hughes, Roby Hughes 2nd team all conference: Blake Rogenhofer, Trie Beach, Mann McGruder Newcomers: Mann McGruder was conference newcomer of the year

Softball

Girls Volleyball

Coach Ellen Kim Record- 18-9-1 Best Moment- Best moment would either be beating Pattonville, beating Mehlville, or winning districts for the first time in school history.

Key Players- Morgan Coffey - broke several assist records and ended her career with over 1,100 assists Newcomers- Makayla Hollyfield - freshmen starting on varsity, did a great job

Senior Camryn Aubertin runs the bases in a game against St. Charles on September 19. Photo courtesy of Brendon

The girls volleyball team celebrates a point against Clayton on August 25. Photo by Sidney Lee

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Coach Tom Anderson Record- 10-13 Best moment- Andrea Wanta hitting her first career home run Key players- Andrea Wanta, Kaleigh Robinson, Shelby Beile Newcomers- Mia Key

Cross Country

Coach Michael Aitken Best moment - At the District Meet on October 22nd the Men’s Team took 8th place lead by Mamadou Diouf ’s near season best time of 18:21 and a fantastic 41st place finish and near 30 second lifetime personal best of 18:51 by Jon Teoli.

Key Newcomers - Mamadou Diouf , Jon Teoli, Mike Schutzius Kay Returners - Maddie Stiebel, Emma Stiebel, Austin Cornell The cross country team starts their race. Photo courtesy of

Sports

Kailee Tabers.

Girls Golf • • •

• •

Coach Jack Heeter Record- 0-7 Best moment- Emma Stiebel almost hitting Coach Heeter with a ball and Kili gaining conference points with a 54 against Parkway North.

Key players- Maddie Stiebel and Kili Garcia Newcomers- Grecia Ramirez and Maddie Stiebel were big 1st year contributors. Emma Stiebel is also a newcomer.

Boys Soccer Senior Dan Caballero clears the ball in a match against MICDS. Photo by Tori Taylor

• • • Sophomore Kili Garcia swings on the course during the season.

Photo courtesy of Jack Heeter

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•

Coach Mike Murray Record- 5-14 Best moment- we played a very challenging schedule of ranked teams and played most of them to close games Key players- Defenders Dan Caballero and Frankie Becerril, goalie Jose Murillo

Girls Tennis Coach Beth Seibold Record- 2-8 Best moment- Our best moment was that the girls seemed to have fun when they played Key players- Edu Gonzales, Amanda Crawford, Adriana Martinez and Benita Zossoungbo Newcomers- Adriana Martinez, Nyola Saddler, Benita Zossoungbo, Makayla Johnson

Senior Edu Gonzalez returns a volley against Pattonville. Photo courtesy of RHS Athletics

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Boys Swimming

Coach Jennifer Wakefield Best moment - “Conferences were the best, because there were a lot of people there, and it was a really exciting meet, and everyone was ready to get their medals,” freshman Pierre Brown said.

Key players - Logan Causey, Nick Virga, Blake Beck, Andrew Buresh, Rob Smith Newcomers - Pierre Brown, Derrick Franklin, Malakhi Romer

Junior Logan Causey swims in a meet against DeSmet. Photo by Makayla Smith

Sports

Jamborees help winter teams The Ritenour basketball teams participated in jamborees, a preseason scrimmage offered to varsity teams

Junior Alexis Ramey shoots a free throw in a jamboree held November 11 at Visitation. The basketball team participated in the event in preparation for the season. Photo by: Jasmine Cooper

By: Ashley Wright Staff Reporter

A new event has started to take place during the pre-seasons of high school sports in an attempt to show teams how ready they would be if the season were to start early.

A jamboree is a series of practice scrimmages against multiple teams, a tournament full of practice games to get ready for the regular season packed into a limited time slot.

Most jamborees are held during the preseason, before the season begins.

The girls basketball team participated in a jamboree at Visitation High School on November 11, and the boys basketball team participated in one on November 15 at Francis Howell High School ahead of their winter seasons.

Senior Maddie Stiebel participated in the girls jamboree, but has also participated in jamborees during soccer season.

Sports

“I like jamborees I think they are very helpful,” Stiebel said.

As captains of the soccer team last season, Stiebel and senior Shelby Beile feel that although jamborees do not go against a team’s record, they allow teams and coaches to analyze what they do best, and what they may need to improve.

“They show us what we need to work on. Even though we have practices, we get a chance to go against other teams and it shows us what we need to work on as in coming up with strategies that will make our team better” Beile added.

Most players enjoy jamborees.

Players are presented with an opportunity to practice against other players after only having the opportunity to practice amongst themselves for an extended period of time.

A jamboree can include multiple competitions involving a relatively large number of competitors,

all participating in a sport or game.

Varsity boys basketball coach Mike Nelke feels that jamborees are a great way to simulate game situations.

“I think jamborees are good for us overall. You get to see how players react to game situations, no matter how much you practice them (game situations) things can change when it’s time to perform in front of a crowd,” Nelke said.

Jamborees are a way for teams to compete in an array of competitions before the season starts. They allow teams to see the talent that they have, as well as the opposing teams.

For those who are not as experienced on the varsity level, jamborees are a good way to for that person to gain experience. Stiebel gave insight on what it was like to be a new addition to varsity and how she used jamborees to prepare herself.

“They give people who have not played varsity sports a chance to get experience before they head into their first game so they are not as overwhelmed by the first game as they would be if they did not have the jamboree experience,” Stiebel said.

Jamborees also give coaches a chance to focus more on their teams, rather than wins or losses.

Varsity soccer coach Michael Murray discussed how the main concern of some coaches tend to be how their teams react to game situations.

“I feel as though a jamboree is a great way to see an actual opponent before we open the season without worrying about winning or losing. We see a lot of game situations,” Murray said.

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Winter sports season previews Girls Basketball Wrestling Coach Ron Steinschriber Last Year’s Record - 7-17 Key returners - Atihrra Finerson, Rosalind Johnston, Alexis Ramey, Michaela Reed, Maddie Stiebel, Ashley Wright Key newcomers - Nature Frost, Adreona McCraw, Laprincia Smith Overall thoughts/goals for the season: We are taking a new approach this year and hopefully it will produce good results. Look forward to seeing a a much more aggressive team who is looking to push the ball and play pressure defense.

• Coach Conye Ausar • Last Year’s Record - 5-9 • Key returners - RJ Sagum, Austin Cornell, Brian Chrun, Ryan Howerton, Mamadou Diouf, and Daniel Carroll • Key newcomers - The newcomers to the team are actually newcomers to wrestling so this will be an acclimation year for them in Junior Ryan Howerton wrestles in a meet last regards to wrestling season. Photo courtesy Sean Baker • Overall thoughts/goals for the season: I would like to qualify six for the state championships and bring home 2 medals. As long as I and the coaching staff continue to make the wrestlers into better people, the wrestling will take care of itself. Medals wanted. Medals EARNED!

Junior Michaela Reed dribbles up the court against Hazelwood Central last season. Photo courtesy of Sean Baker

Girls Swim Senior Kelly Hall swims in a meet last season.

Photo courtesy of Brendon Klohr

Boys Basketball Junior Robyion Hughes drives the ball up the court in a game last season. Photo courtesy Sean Baker

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Coach Mike Nelke Last Year’s Record - 15-11 Key returners - Carl Garmon, Robyion Hughes, Nick Williams, Kobe Smith, JC Biayi, TJ Ball, Jon Bishop, Demeetrie Beech Key newcomers - Malachi Pittman, Robert Givens Overall thoughts/goals for the season: Improve our 15 wins from last year, compete for a conference championship, and make a run in the state playoffs.

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Coach Andrea Rivera Last Year’s Record Key returners - Lauren Jacobsen, Samantha Pullen, Caroline West, Leanna Morales, Monica Jara, Kelly Hall, Emma Stiebel and Lexi Alanis Key newcomers - It’s a little early to pick out any standouts yet, but I think they are going to make a strong impact this season.

Overall thoughts/goals for the season: We have double the numbers from last year, which is exciting. There is a different energy at the pool every day because everyone has such a positive attitude and great coachability. I have enjoyed watching the progress unfold thus far and I think they are going to wow me by the end of the season.

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