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Sports
Tuesday, March 20, 2018
Wacky workouts: Gyms offer new ways to exercise Staff Reporters
Photo by Emma Clarke
Suspended upside down wrapped around strands of colorful silk, dancing in the water to electrifying music and centering one’s inner self in an extremely hot room are three ways Stoga students have been branching out from the run-ofthe-mill gym workout. Sophomore Jennifer Miller has been attending an aerial yoga class at Pure Energy Studio in Paoli to complete her 30 hours for extended experience. “Aerial yoga is like doing regular yoga poses but in the air on a hammock,” Miller said. Rather than opting for a traditional workout experience
at the gym, on the treadmill or going on the elliptical, Miller believes that aerial yoga provides a fun as well as muscle strengthening workout. Throughout the class, the instruc-
additional health benefits. When suspended in the air, tension from the bones and muscles is released. The class also focuses on core strengthening, as one must hold themselves up in the air, all
t o r leads the group through multiple poses that vary in difficulty. Miller’s fa-
through center of
the their body. “Aerial poses like hip hangs are good for breaking
vorite pose, the sacrum, is when one’s legs are wrapped around the silks in order to hang upside down. Aerial yoga also has some
d ow n bad tissue that builds up over time,” Miller said. While Miller uses this unique workout to fulfill hours for extended experience, other
students, such as sophomore Vanessa Schaefer, attend these alternative classes for pure joy. Schaefer participates in hot yoga classes at Lifetime Fitness. “Something very different from normal yoga is that it makes you sweat buckets and also your heart beats really fast,” Schaefer said. These classes may seem as if they would be on the pricey side, but in reality, they are included with most gym ad studio memberships. While Schaefer enjoys this 105-degree yoga class, sophomore Imani Alleyne opts to cool of in the pool during an Aqua Zumba session at the Upper Mainline YMCA. “The class starts by warming up with some arm stretches and other things to loosen
your muscles before you get in the pool,” Alleyne said. Once in the pool, the instructor begins to play some pump-up music to get the energy flowing. The class then follows the instructor as they
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I get to meet new people and it combines two of my favorite things: dancing and swimming. Imani Alleyne
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Aimee Buttenbaum and Emma Clarke
Sophomore
go through a series of dance moves. This consists of an abundance of moves such as lunges and jumping jacks com-
bined with dance moves such as the samba. Water resistance is a key part in this class as it offers another layer of difficulty. “I love it because I get to meet new people and it combines two of my favorite things: dancing and swimming,” Alleyne said. Aside from Aqua Zumba, The Y also offers other out of the ordinary water-based classes such as Aqua Fit, a hardcore conditioning workout, and Aqua Tai Chi, a variation on the ancient health practice from China. Although running for a certain number of miles on the treadmill may seem like the best way to complete extended experience hours, these students have proven that there are also fun alternatives to the basic workout.
Girl power: Senior wrestler takes her place on boys’ team Design Editor
“I don’t like when people doubt me because when they doubt me it makes me want to do it even more.” Senior Nabaa Alazawee is 106 pounds of fire. She needs to be, as the only female wrestler on the Conestoga boys wrestling team. When Alazawee told people she was thinking about joining the wrestling team, they would say, “Hah, really. You’re kidding right?” With this echoing in her mind, Alazawee was even more determined to walk onto the mat. And, the process of getting on the team was as simple as that first step. “There’s a wrestle-off process who will determine who the best person is for each weight class. For her, fortunately, she was the smallest one on the team and there was no one there to challenge, so she wrestled in the varsity line-up all year long,” Elicker said. Traditionally a male-dominated sport, wrestling is now gaining popularity among females. “Now probably it has appealed to more girls than historically. I think in generations past, not too many girls were encouraged to go out for
wrestling,” said Matthew Mckenzie, Vice President of the Conestoga Youth Wrestling Association (CYWA). According to pa-wrestling. com, there are 22 female wrestlers out of a total of 1,328 males in the District 1 Area, which consists of Bucks, Chester, Delaware and Montgomery Counties. The Conestoga Youth Wrestling Association is one of the local organizations that encourage female participation.
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You measure how good a wrestler is by the drive and the movtivation they have on the mat. Allen He
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Lyvia Yan
Senior
“Our charter is really to support the sport because we really think it helps to develop character and sportsmanship and physical conditioning and maturity. Those are characters that I think are positive for both genders.” McKenzie said, “We really would try to do anything to support more (female) interest in wrestling.” Alazawee first joined the Conestoga wrestling team as a manager last year. It was during the 2017-2018 season
Elizabeth Billman/The SPOKE
Standing proud: Senior Nabaa Alazawee poses in the ’Stoga wrestling room next to the big “C”. Alazawee joined the boys’ wrestling team just this year because of her dad’s legacy. As for her post-high school plan, she looks to join the military.
that she officially became a wrestler. Her coach, Tom Elicker, said that “She’s the first (female wrestler) that I’m aware of in probably the history of the school.” Despite being the only girl on the team, Alazawee was treated like any other wrestler. “Anyone who drilled with her did it without a problem, and there were no complaints from either party. I think they embraced it, and she’s part of the (Conestoga) team,” Elicker said. She did the same repetitions of workouts and was expected to show the same intensity as any other male on the team. During practice, they also practiced wrestling moves and Alazawee drilled with senior Allen He. “There definitely is a learning curve to wrestling with a girl because they’re not a guy, but I think it’s not because she’s a girl that it’s weird. It’s more that she’s a teammate and she’s new to the sport and as another teammate it’s your responsibility to help her out,” He said. Her record is 3-16, but the three ‘wins’ were all forfeits because either the opposing team didn’t have someone in the lightweight class or there was an injury. Despite not formally winning, Alazawee keeps going. “I don’t think you measure how good someone is by their record. I think you measure how good a wrestler is by the drive and the motivation they have on the mat,” He said. Along with her teammates’ support, Alazawee credits her success to her family. “They like defending themselves — that’s how we are and that’s how we’ll always be,” Alazawee said. Alazawee’s family is as tough as she is. Her dad wrestled on the Conestoga team when he was a student, and her two older brothers, class of 2017 and 2016, serve in the military. “My dad used to wrestle and he would like teach us (Alazawee and her brothers) moves. And, when I was the manager, I wanted to wrestle because I could use the wrestling skills in my career choice, which is probably going to be the military and the police force,” Alazawee said.
COMMITMENT CORNER School: Sewanee: The University of the South Grade: 12 Sport: Lacrosse Why Sewanee? “I chose Sewanee because the coaches were welcoming, the campus has many outdoor opportunities and the academics are rigorous.” Favorite ’Stoga Lacrosse Memory? “When we won districts last year.”
Drew Mullen
Courtesy Nabaa Alazawee
Crunching the competition: Senior Nabaa Alazawee tackles her competitor in the meet against the Ridley Raiders. This season, Alazawee won three matches by forfeit. Alazawee will continue her athletic high school career with playing rugby in the spring.
One of her favorite memories is when her brother came back from being deployed in Japan to watch her match against Upper Darby. “I didn’t win but I stayed in until the second period, and
he said he was proud of me so that made me happy,” Alazawee said. It is this drive and motivation that pushes Alazawee pursue her interests in the face of adversity.
“Police, I want to do that. Rugby, I want to do that. I don’t like when people doubt me. Everybody knows this, when they doubt me, I want to do it even more,” Alazawee said.
24-carat coaching: Diamond tackles ’Stoga football Avery Maslowsky Sports Editor
Hall of Fame, which honored his determination as a player in the ’90s and his work as a coach today. “I had such a positive experience with football when I went here and having coached here for so many years I have seen so many great young men come through this program,” Diamond said. “I look forward to the positive influence I can have to help them achieve their goals. I know we are going to be prepared, work extremely hard, and make the experience special.” But aside from the Hall of Fame, Diamond is recognized for his love of the game and his drive to achieve team goals. “I think he will bring us back
to a point of success and consistency in every game and every week,” junior fullback Ryan Duffy said. “He’s a great motivator and he has hope in each and every player, no matter how good you are or how much experience you have.” As for now, Diamond has one goal in mind for the upcoming season, and that is building back the team confidence. “We have the players and ability to have a very success season this fall and I know myself and my coaching staff will be working diligently to have our players prepared to achieve their goals,” Diamond said.
20 years ago, Matt Diamond was named captain of the Conestoga football team and today he is named head coach. For nine years, Diamond has played an influential role in the football program. For seven seasons he coached the freshmen team and for the other two he worked alongside Marquis Weeks as the assistant varsity coach, focusing his attention directly on the wide receivers and defensive backs. But following the 2017 football season, the head coach position became vacant. According to athletic director Kevin Pechin, when it came time to fill the open position, Diamond fit the bill. “What makes Conestoga athletics so special to me is I know the positive influence it can have for students. It helps build confidence, leadership ability, strong friendships, and work ethics that will carry over into so many aspects of their lives,” Diamond said. “Matt is so invested in all sports Conestoga,” Pechin said. “His football knowledge, organizational skills and passion towards CHS football are a few of the many qualities that made him qualified for the position.” Football has always been part of Diamond’s life. According to PA Prep Live, while enrolled at Conestoga, he was not only football captain, but also awarded the first-team all area ranking as a defensive back and a quarterback. After high school, Diamond played football for Gettysburg College and started each game as a defensive back, receiving all Courtesey PA Prep Live league recognition his senior year. Smiling wide: Teacher and coach Matt Diamond takes on the headIn the fall of 2017, he was coach position of the football team. He has coached the freshmen named into the T/E Old Timers team and assisted with the varsity team for nine years.