The Spoke October 2019

Conestoga High School, Berwyn PA 19312

Volume 70 No. 1

Students volunteer with Deb Ciamacca’s campaign

MOTHER HEN: Junior raises chickens AT HOME

Delivering Serves: Freshmen join varsity sports

page 2

page 4

page 10

Thursday, October 17, 2019

Spoke.news

Club seeks to eliminate styrofoam from cafeteria lunches Kate Phillips Staff Reporter

Photo Illustration by Melinda Xu/The SPOKE

Sweet dreams: Senior Alexis Malamas catches an extra 30 minutes of sleep due to new start times. After district-wide surveys, the school board pushed start times for Conestoga from 7:20 a.m. to 7:50 a.m.

Changing times

By Tiffany He and Melinda Xu Co-Managing Editors

The Spoke surveyed ten homerooms regarding their response to start times, separated by grade level and chosen randomly. In total The Spoke collected 161 responses.

For the past three years of her high school career, senior Alexis Malamas has woken up to mostly dark skies. With an alarm going off at 6:15 a.m., she would get ready for the school day, often skipping breakfast in the morning rush. This year, her schedule has changed. She sleeps in to 6:45 a.m. which still gives her time to make herself breakfast before walking to school.

“Personally, I can’t fall asleep very early, and I need to get work done late at night. The later start time has increased the amount of time I spend sleeping drastically,” Malamas said.

This shift in daily routine is just one of several adjust-

ments to the school day that high school students have experienced this year due to the new, district-wide decision that pushed forward start times.

Passed in the spring in a 7-2 vote from the school board, the new decision has high school starting at 7:50 a.m. and ending at 2:50 p.m.; middle school starting at 8:27 a.m. and ending at 3:10 p.m.; and elementary school starting at 9:10 a.m. and ending at 3:45 p.m.

Principal Amy Meisinger said that the main reason the school began to consider later start times were teenagers’ needs for sleep, which is often on a different circadian rhythm than adults.

“A number of other districts are currently studying and anticipate going to a later start time to try and best meet teenagers’ needs for sleep and biorhythms in terms of when (they) get tired and (how their) natural body cycle works, so that was a big part of the impetus behind it,” Meisinger said.

The American Psychological Association states that

Students, parents, administration and faculty adjust to later start times

the optimal amount of sleep for adolescents is nine and a quarter hours nightly, yet over half of teenagers from 15 to 17 years old get only seven or fewer hours. In addition, teenagers’ different biological clocks mean they prefer sleeping later in the night and waking up later in the morning. By pushing forward start times, the school hopes to allow students to follow this natural clock and get more sleep.

According to a survey conducted by The Spoke, students’ self-reported average hours of sleep per night has shown a statistically significant increase of 0.24 hours from this year to last year, as seen in Figure 1. However, even the increased average, at about seven hours, is well below the recommended amount.

For sophomore Vincent Salvati, the increase still produces meaningful impacts.

“I honestly think the start times are a welcome change, as before, the starting time was just unreasonable. I’ve been able to sleep in by a substantial

amount, and I’m happy that I can catch the bus at a later time,” Salvati said.

In fact, just the later start time alone seems to help students to feel slightly more awake. As seen in Figure 2, when asked to rate their alertness in class on a scale from one to five, students had a statistically significant average response of 3.31, meaning that they are feeling more alert, though only slightly.

Senior Shandia Lewis believes that the start times have benefited her and the school community, even if it’s not just through more sleep.

“I feel like everyone has a little more energy, and I think the day goes by a little bit quicker now that it starts 30 minutes later,” Lewis said.

For junior Denis Corr, however, the benefit comes mostly from the added sleep.

“I like it because I get to sleep in just a little bit more,” Corr said. “It’s nice to wake up a little later.”

Parents, too, have felt the impacts of the new start times.

For Sherry Han, who has two sons in high school and elementary school respectively, the changes have eased some of her concerns about student sleep.

“I always worry about those kids who always need more sleep and sleep so late,” Han said. “To have a half hour more really helps a lot. I think it is very beneficial for the high school students.”

Other parents disagree.

Syed Haider has four children, two of which are in elementary school, and two are in middle school and high school respectively. For Haider, the added sleep is not worth the setback in their daily schedules.

“Everything is delayed,” Haider said. “I think that the earlier time that we had was much better. They were getting a lot more time in the afternoon to get their homework done.”

It’s lunchtime. Swarms of high schoolers head into the cafeteria and sit down with their friends, laughing and enjoying a break from class. Multiple jokes and stories later, as students finish and throw away their lunches, the trash cans fill up with styrofoam.

The Greening ’Stoga Task Force is taking a step to empty those trash cans. The club is advocating the elimination of styrofoam from the cafeteria this year, which they hope will make the school greener.

The idea of eliminating styrofoam has only recently gained popularity, but there is one major concern regarding the elimination of styrofoam in school cafeterias: money. Styrofoam is currently the most cost-efficient material; one sheet of styrofoam costs less than 2 cents.

According to Yunge Xiao, president of Greening ‘Stoga Task Force, compared to styrofoam, reusable containers and eco-friendly materials are not mass produced so they are not as popular or as cheap.

Conestoga teacher Kevin Strogen, the club’s sponsor, is optimistic about the possibility of change from styrofoam to eco-friendly materials but recognizes the challenges.

“Financially, it has to be cost-effective. Performance-wise, it has to meet the goals that we need it to meet. And ideally, it has to be something that’s good for the environment too. It’s tough to get a win-win,” Strogen said.

Along with speaking at school board meetings, the club also shared their concerns with Dave Preston, the head of Food and Nutrition for the Tredyffrin-Easttown School District. During their meeting with Preston, the club learned that students are allowed to bring their own containers from home and use them in the cafeteria serving area. The club

is now distributing samples of reusable containers of paper and fiberboard in order to gauge student interest in making the switch.

Strogen made an analogy comparing the idea of reusable cafeteria products to another reusable material that has become relatively popular.

“It’s kind of similar to reusable shopping bags. It’s a great idea if people use them a lot and avoid using paper or plastic bags, but if you buy it and only use it a couple times, or if you lose it and have to buy another one, that’s not great for the environment either,” Strogen said.

Lunch prices will not change depending on student-supplied reusable containers: Preston explained that under the National School Lunch (NSLP) and National School Breakfast (NSBP) programs, the lunch container itself cannot affect the lunch price.

However, lunch prices could change depending on cafeteria-supplied eco-friendly material.

“The increased cost (of the material) may result in price increases, but not any more than necessary. This will be evaluated throughout the year,” Preston said.

The club believes that eliminating styrofoam would make a positive environmental impact.

Although the Task Force hopes to bring awareness into the community, Xiao stresses that the biggest thing students can do is bring reusable containers into the cafeteria.

Although the group acknowledges that the process of adapting a permanent eco-friendly and cost-efficient material will be hard, the Greening ’Stoga Task Force believes it isn’t impossible. Xiao said that she is passionate about making a change and refuses to believe that money can stop her.

“In the end, money is so small compared to the effect that we put back into the environment,” Xiao said.

Continued on page 3 Kate Phillips/The SPOKE

Going green: Many students at Conestoga purchase their lunches with styrofoam containers. The club Greening ’Stoga Task Force has advocated for the removal of the material from the cafeteria.

Powering up: District changes technology and printing policy Trey Phillips Staff Reporter

In the library, a silent line of students grows. They’re waiting to print essays, worksheets and homework assignments on the new print release station, one of the many technology changes Conestoga has seen over the summer.

These changes to tech policies have affected how and what students can print through the print release stations and have replaced the Home Access Center system with PowerSchool. Katrina Stokes, an IT specialist at the Tech Deck, saw these changes and their effects on teachers and students firsthand.

“We removed local classroom printers that teachers had and tried to have their (printing) centralized,” Stokes said. “You can go down to different locations where there’s a print release station and release that job, so it makes you come to it and release (what you want to print). It’s not just where you can print 100 pages and never come get it.”

According to Stokes, a minimum of 100 pages were wasted daily last school year, enough to cover the entire printing

table on any given day. New policies were put in place over the summer to reduce printer costs district-wide by as much as $30,000.

“There were printing changes throughout the district; it’s not just this building,” Stokes said. “I think it’s made a huge impact on what’s being wasted. You used to see the table sitting out there covered in papers that were never picked up; you don’t see that anymore. There’s no more random printing.”

The print release station at Conestoga is only a small part of a much larger initiative, as similar printing changes can be seen in every school from.

Another change for students this year was the move from eSchoolPlus to PowerSchool, the new Student Information System. Michael Szymendera, director of technology for the district, oversaw the introduction of PowerSchool and explained why PowerSchool was the best choice when it was time for an upgrade.

“For us there are three big parts of it: there’s the student information piece, the finance piece, and there’s the special education piece,” Szymendera said. “PowerSchool is a comprehensive integrated product that

brings all of those things together under one system.” eSchoolPlus, formerly known as the Home Access Center, replaced Pinnacle. eSchoolPlus was recently bought by PowerSchool in 2016.

Some students, such as senior John Atwood, have noted difficulties with PowerSchool.

One of the key differences this year was summer access to schedules, which were sent out toparents instead of directly to students, nor in printed form as in years prior.

“It was kind of difficult to just get on at first,” Atwood said. “A lot of people didn’t know their schedules when they posted them and that was a problem just not being able to see their schedule early on.”

However, initial impressions aside, PowerSchool has begun to show its worth. Junior Adam Francis said he values the new features that the Home Access Center didn’t offer.

“PowerSchool allows you to see the matrix view of your schedule and the week view, so it allows you to see different views. If you don’t understand, you can look at it a different way to understand it better,” Francis said.

Trey Phillips/The SPOKE

A push for change: Junior Ben Marshall prints an assignment from the school library. The district changed printing procedures for students to decrease printing costs by as much as $30,000.

News

2 A BRIEF LOOK The latest developments in T/E news.

PSAT testing date changed Conestoga scheduled the PSAT on Wednesday, Oct. 16 this year, instead of the usual Saturday testing date. Students not taking the test were excused from school.

New web-blocker Conestoga replaced its old web blocker, Barracuda, with Palo Alto Networks this school year.

The new blocker groups types of websites together and blocks them categorically.

Forty-one NMSQT semifinalists from Conestoga

Former teacher takes students out of classroom and into world of politics through campaign

Evan Lu and Emma Clarke Staff Reporters

Now conducting her campaign for the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in the 168th District, Ciamacca retired last school year after 19 years in the district. However, instead of enlisting professionals as interns for her campaign, she recruited high schoolers and former students, many from Conestoga.

Although the Ciamacca campaign officially began on

Sept. 14, the campaign’s six high school interns, or “Ciamacca Fellows,” began preparing the campaign over the summer. While it may be unconventional for Ciamacca to enlist the help of high school students, she sees their age as mutually beneficial.

“High school students will work for the experience and they have a lot of energy that they bring to the campaign.

When people see a lot of energy around you, they tend to emu-

A state-leading 41 Conestoga students were named National Merit semifinalists this year. Fewer than one percent of national test-takers receive this honor.

New

school board member appointed

Easttown resident Mary Garrett Itin was appointed as the newest member of the Tredyffrin/Easttown Board of School Directors. She will fill the seat of Heather Ward, who resigned due to relocation.

Security cameras replaced Conestoga’s security camera system was replaced this year.

The upgraded cameras can be seen throughout the school.

New AP registration dates Conestoga’s AP registration will now take place in October instead of March.

The change came due to a College Board policy change that created an earlier registration deadline. The College Board also created a new online portal for students and teachers to access AP course materials.

Ananya Kulkarni/The SPOKE

From T/E School District to 168th Legislative District: Former teacher Deb Ciamacca speaks at her campaign kickoff on Sept. 14. Ciamacca retired in June to run for PA State Representative in the 2020 election.

late that and so having that energy from high school students really gives me some push,” Ciamacca said.

Ciamacca said she believes that, with the emphasis on STEM subjects in school, government can sometimes appear mundane to students in a classroom, and she wanted to give them an opportunity to see what the political sphere entails. Ciamacca herself attributes her first interest in politics to working as an intern for Jimmy Carter’s presidential campaign in 1976.

For senior John Castleman, who did not have Ciamacca as a teacher, working in the familiar environment of Ciamacca’s campaign has been a stepping-stone into the political world. “(The campaign) aligns with something I want to do after school, like I want to major in something with politics, so I thought this would be a good way to get involved and get experience in this field before college and other internships,” Castleman said.

The interns get a broad view of the political sphere as they are brought onto the campaign, but Ciamacca also lets the Ciamacca Fellows individually experience different parts of a political campaign through rotating their roles in the campaign.

“One intern is going to be writing articles to go in our

assistant principal appointed

Chandra Singh will serve as Conestoga’s new assistant principal for 9th grade. She is also in charge of student activities as of the beginning of this school year. planning

forum

scheduled

The District will hold a strategic planning forum for community members on Nov. 6.

The District plans to work with students, staff, faculty, community members, administrators and board members to create an educational vision for the District in the coming years.

Zakiyah Gaziuddin/The SPOKE

VapeEducate: Assistant principal Patrick Boyle shows the new educational anti-vaping course that students caught vaping will have to take. In addition to taking this online course, discipline was also changed to include two Saturday detentions.

Zakiyah Gaziuddin Staff Reporter

Read more at

Ananya Kulkarni/The SPOKE

Campaign companions: Ciamacca Fellows (left to right) Abhi Pandey, John Castleman, Noah Lanouette, Max Rosenfeld, Yuna Han, Dhivya Arasappan and Lena Pothier stand together outside the auditorium. They have worked closely with Ciamacca during her campaigning efforts this year. newsletter. Another person is going to be doing policy research. I go door to door almost every single day, so another intern is going to come around with me once a week and help me while I knock on doors, hand out literature, write down what people are saying to me,” Ciamacca said.

Interns may also help organize fundraising events for the campaign, such as a pancake breakfast, hayride or open-mic night. After spending a month on each task, the

interns will rotate tasks in order to get a full scope of a political campaign.

According to senior and intern Yuna Han, the different tasks of the campaign are also monitored by college students and adults.

“What I’m doing right now is I’m working with a Conestoga graduate and Harvard student, Jahnavi Rao, on social media. So we are posting on the campaign Instagram and wording the captions and Instagram stories,” Han said.

Despite Ciamacca’s busy schedule as she works to promote her campaign, Ciamacca maintains direct connections with her helpers.

“She’s really involved with all levels of our campaign,” Castleman said.

Ciamacca continues to welcome hardworking people from any background. So far, she has accepted every fellow that has applied for the position by filling out the registration form.

After all, “government isn’t a spectator sport,” Ciamacca said.

District adopts new disciplinary responses to vaping

New

Strategic

Thursday, October 17, 2019

Students caught using electronic cigarettes and vaping devices are now subject to two days of Saturday detention

NEWS

as a result of the new policy on electronic cigarettes that takes effect this school year.

Students will also have to complete an online educational program on vaping.

The program aims to educate students who use Juuls and other e-cigarettes on the dangers and harmful health implications that accompany them. Students will also be

required to take an assessment at the end of the course to ensure that they’re actually retaining the information. No one at Conestoga has taken the course so far this year.

For teenagers in America, vaping is an issue that’s all too familiar. Companies like Juul Labs Inc. have undergone severe scrutiny by the public for having flavors such as mango and mint, flavors that are largely the reason for the rise in vaping amongst teenagers, according to the National Youth Tobacco Survey.

In addition, according to Dr. Rachel Levine, secretary of health for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, at least one Pennsylvania resident has died from lung injuries associated with vaping — one of 18 deaths nationwide.

Before this school year, students caught in possession of or using a vape were suspended. If caught again, students received two days of suspension and if caught a third time, they were given three days.

The administrators wanted to create an educational program that would help students thoroughly understand what was happening to their

bodies when they vaped. The new program informs students about vaping, including the chemicals involved, their effects, and vape companies’ marketing tactics.

“We felt that (the previous) type of punishment at this juncture was not really having the effect we wanted it to have.

Kids were still vaping,” Boyle said.

Discussions of policy change began at the end of 2018, and the plan was put into place by May. “It’s amazing. We actually started discussing this at the end of last year, and none of (this newly available research) was out there. I mean, we knew the research that was saying (what) there could be, but this is such a new technology that they needed more research,” Boyle said.

Administrators said that they hope two Saturday detentions with the added component of a compulsory online course will serve as a better deterrent to vaping than missing a day of school.

“Other (schools) were suspending people for more days.

(In that case) you’re not really telling the student about the

harming of your health and your wellbeing that can come from vaping,” Boyle said.

The ultimate mission of this new program is not simply to punish students but to make them understand the danger of vaping and why they’re being punished. While it’s too early to tell the effectiveness of the policy, some students believe it may stop students from vaping at school, but whether or not it will completely eradicate the epidemic is yet to be determined.

“They may just stop (vaping) in school, but they probably won’t stop outside of school,” said junior Camille Herzog.

The change in policy was not a clear-cut decision. According to Boyle, the administrators took their time to deliberate and collectively reach a solution they believed would better combat the mounting issues surrounding vape usage amongst teenagers. Overall, Boyle said he feels satisfied with the results.

“What we started out with wasn’t what we ended up with, but what we ended up with was, I feel, a very good program (that has) students feel the consequences but feel supported as well,” Boyle said.

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More than 50 students of diverse backgrounds have started participating in diversity training as a part of the new Students Organized for Anti-Racism (SOAR) initiative.

The district created SOAR in partnership with the Pacific Educational Group, a consulting firm dedicated to promoting racial equity. Headed by English teachers Keri Phillips and Tricia Ebarvia along with counselor Leashia Lewis, SOAR is designed to encourage students to become leaders in promoting racial equity.

Counselor Rachelle Gough and teachers Seth Dixon and Alex Solove have also assisted in organizing the group and facilitating their workshops.

“I think the general purpose of SOAR as a whole is to give students the opportunity to have conversations about race and equity — to give them a chance to explore their own identities, their biases, their experiences with race in the building,” Phillips said.

According to Lewis, the Pacific Educational Group began working with the faculty at the beginning of the 2018-2019 school year. The SOAR initiative was created with the intention of including students in the racial equity training.

“In order to make systematic changes around race and equity, PG really believes that

we have to work with district office, principals, teachers and students,” Lewis said.

Teachers and counselors nominated members of SOAR with the goal of creating a diverse group of students that represents all of Conestoga.

Over the course of two years, students will participate in seven in-school workshops led by members of the Pacific Educational Group as well as mini-workshops headed by the group’s advisers. Within these workshops, students learn how to discuss their personal racial identities in a comfortable manner.

“Right now, it’s all about (students’) own training, because conversations about race are really hard. A lot of the focus is on understanding themselves,” Ebarvia said.

Ebarvia is happy to see the initiative come to Conestoga, as she feels like the opportunity to discuss race as high schoolers is one that students in other schools might not have.

“I think that racial literacy — understanding how race plays a role in our lives and the lives of other people — is a really critical thing to have,” Ebarvia said. “And it’s such an opportunity for high school kids, because when I think about my own experience and my own racial identity, I didn’t really think about what that meant until I got to college.”

Although the group has not yet directly brought their

training to the rest of the school, senior and SOAR

ronment at Conestoga.

“I feel as though SOAR will

up in our day-to-day lives,” Patel said. “I think SOAR will

Alex Gurski/The SPOKE

SOARing to racial equity: The book “Tell Me Who You Are” recounts the racial experiences of people of various identities from across the country. SOAR members were given the book in September to read as part of their training. member Vidya Patel believes SOAR can eventually help promote a safer learning envi-

help our school get a better grasp on how to deal with racial and ethnic issues that show

help students gain the skills to handle these situations effectively and, in turn, help the

school become a better and more equal learning environment.”

Junior John Yu, another member of SOAR, hopes that as they learn to discuss their own identities, they can encourage similar discussions among peers.

“After our work is done, and even as it is being done, we can start similar conversation(s) outside the classroom that can spark a conversation to spread awareness,” Yu said.

Like Patel and Yu, sophomore SOAR member Amy Douglas is confident in the effects the group will bring to Conestoga.

“I believe that SOAR will have a positive impact on the school, as it will start a discussion about a better understanding of our differences, building an acceptance of who we are,” Douglas said.

Witnessing firsthand the engagement of students in the workshops, Phillips is excited to see how SOAR will affect the student body as a whole in the coming years.

“It’s really clear to me, when you see the students doing the work and you’re in these conversations, how invested they are in this equity work, how important it is to the students,” Phillips said. “I believe that empowering the students to have these conversations and look for these conversations on their own is going to be a good thing for the building.”

News

Thursday, October 17, 2019

3

Time after time: school goes forward with new start times that we overlooked or didn’t see,” Pechin said. “We’re in the infancy of this, and we haven’t gone through winter and spring yet, and there’s bound to be a hiccup here and there, but that goes with unknown territory.”

Other Scheduling Changes Besides the schedule adjustments for sports, the administration also changed the bell schedule, moving the lunch periods from between fifth and sixth periods to between fourth and fifth period to prevent lunch times from being too late. Beyond this change, nothing was altered in terms of instructional time and time between periods.

However, anticipating some of the scheduling issues for teachers, the administration has switched the duty day times for teachers. Previously, teachers were required to arrive 10 minutes prior to the beginning of the school day and stay 25 minutes afterwards.

The new schedule now requires the teachers to instead arrive 25 minutes before and leave 10 minutes afterwards.

“We switched it so if (teachers) have kids, they can get out of here soon after the students are dismissed,” Meisinger said.

Future possibilities In terms of further changes, the district is focusing on evaluating the effects of the new start times before proposing anything new. According Claire Guo/The SPOKE to Director of Curriculum, InGoing home: Students board the bus after the day ends at 2:50 p.m. The school administration changed busing routes as a result of both the new start times and the new opt-in system, where students must register their need for a bus with the district. struction, Staff Development Continued from page 1 are playing a team like Marple teams, but such accommoda- coach Matthew Diamond and are at night and some are on Sat- and do not require early dismiss- and Planning Wendy Towle, Newtown or Harriton or Lower tions were not possible for all head boys’ soccer coach David urday, so the actual number of al. Nonetheless, different sports the district plans to ask stuImpact on Sports Merion, students, Zimmerman, the changes have games that we play away that re- play different amounts of games dents to take the same survey Would you support changing including had minimal impacts on perfor- quire an early dismissal is some- and the early dismissal could they distributed last spring to The new start times has also which are “see if they can draw impacted student sports. In par- a bit closer, senior ten- mance and practices in start times next year? any conclusions ticular, the athletics department we dismiss nis player Han- their sports. about the new start now has to dismiss athletes ear- them at 2:30,” nah Lowe.

“Our football team times and students’ ly from eighth period to attend Pechin said. “ W e seems to have adjusted sleep and school away games. To organize the disTo miniget pulled fine to the change. I have habits.” The results missals, the school developed a mize the imout at 2:30, not noticed an effect for 12 from last year will strategy where schools are split pact on class, and I have my players as far as a 11 1 be used as a baseline into either a 2:20 p.m. dismiss- administ raband eighth change in energy or permeasure for comal time or a 2:30 p.m. dismissal tion also tried p e r i o d , ” formance,” Diamond said.

10 2 parison. But at the time. Athletics director Kev- to give teachLowe said.

Zimmerman credits moment, the school in Pechin worked closely with ers who are “I (also) this easy transition to how 9 3 YES NO board does not have members of administration, c o a c h e s do know a small the time change, plans to make antransportation and security to eighth perilot of peo- only thirty minutes, is. In Director of Curriculum other change.

8 4 coordinate this new scheduling. od free. The ple on the addition, any negative ef“There needs to “The makeup of our league is new early dism team who fects of early dismissal are 7 5 be an opportunity for the shift such that some schools are far- issal policy has have core thing like five, ” Zimmerman said. present a problem to other sports lessened by the low number of 6 to settle in in order to assess ther away than others. If we are also increased classes eighth away games for these two teams.

For football, it is much the besides soccer and football. playing Garnet Valley, which is a the number of stuperiod, and they “It’s gone fairly well. No one how this change is working “We have 18 regular season same. According to junior footlonger ride, that’s the earliest dis- dent requests for eighth period are missing tests and quizzes.” games, so this year we have 10 ball player Michael Costigan, has a crystal ball, so our biggest prior to considering an addimissal we have at 2:20. But if we free, particularly those on sports According to head football away (games), but some of those most of their games are at night fear is that there was something tional change,” Towle said.

There needs to be an opportunity for the shift to settle in order to access how this change is working...

Dr. Wendy Towle

IF you do support changing start times, how?

By the Numbers Figure 1: Average amount of sleep per night 60

EARLIER

LATER

Aishi Debroy Staff Reporter

63%

50 Number of people

Transportation Department changes bus route system

37% Average: 6.81 Average: 7.05

40

Last Year

30

THIS YEAR

On a scale of 1-5, how have you been impacted by the NEW start times?

20

Average: 3.27

10 0

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9+

Hours of sleep

Figure 2: Change in alertness from last year to this year

1

Much less awake

2

3 No change

4

3

4

5

No impact

very positively

Change in hours of sleep from last year to this year

5 Much more awake

Number of people

1

2

very negatively

Average: 3.32

80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0

-1

ON THE WAY HOME

-.5

0 Change in hours

.5

1

The TESD Transportation Department implemented a new system of organizing bus routes and stops during the district’s back-to-school meeting on Aug. 13.

Due to the new start times, as well as the new opt-in program this year, the transportation system has changed.

The new program requires parents to fill out a form that allows students to opt in or out of busing. If chosen to opt out, the students would be ineligible to ride them. The influx of last minute opt-in requests from parents caused the Transportation Department to adjust bus stops and routes.

“Since all of the start and end times for each school changed this year, the bus routes needed to be reexamined in light of our system and coordination with all the non-public schools (in the area),” said Karen Henry, the Transportation Department supervisor.

Every year, the department evaluates the timing and efficiency of bus routes during the first two weeks of school.

Upon receiving bus route arrival times from all the schools in the district, they calculate the most efficient

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route and make further decisions using the results. As a part of that process this year, they added a second bus contractor, On The Go Kids. “(Changes were made) to maximize the efficiency, because buses are expensive. It’s not cheap to run buses every day, so the district has to be responsible when they’re using their funds,” Principal Amy Meisinger said.

Students have differing opinions on the changes. Senior Nate Stein found the new bus arrangements favorable.

“Overall, the new busing route has been beneficial for me. I now find myself getting home at the same time as last year, despite school being pushed 30 minutes later,” Stein said.

On the other hand, sophomore Elise Bermingham said that her bus route this year includes new neighborhoods, resulting in increased travel time. According to Bermingham, it now takes her 25 minutes to get home compared to only 10 minutes last year.

Taking note of the community’s concerns, the Transportation Department is working to increase the efficiency of the All-Call system, which allows families to notify the department of any concerns that they have.

T/E LIFE Aditi Dahagam & Elena Schmidt Staff Reporters

This school year, five new exchange students enter the community through the American Field Service (AFS) exchange program.

Marwan Kassem, Johanna Kutzschbach, Enni Bergskaug, Vito Pampinella and Maria Bonilla came from around the world to experience life in the United States.

Marwan Kassem Kassem, a senior from Egypt, joined the program because he wanted to start a new chapter in his life. Some of his goals include making new friends, learning about American culture, and improving his knowledge.

“When the organization told me that I was on the final travel list, I thought that I was dreaming, but when I realized the situation, I was very proud of myself,” Kassem said.

Not only does Kassem want to learn about America, but he also wants to share some of the qualities that he loves about his country.

“I want to make friends from (the) U.S.A., and I want to exchange my culture, my Egyptian culture, and I want to make (an) image for Egypt,” Kassem said.

Vito Pampinella Back in Italy, Pampinella enjoyed riding motorcycles with his friends and going to discos at night. He loves his country because of the social atmosphere and activities.

“Italy is really fun and wonderful. It’s a very cool place to hang out with friends, watching the sun going away behind the sea.”

Pampinella also likes math and reading, so AFS provided him with plenty of opp or tunities and resources, as well as a chance to travel outside of his home c o u n t r y.

He describes the experience of coming to the U.S. as a d r e a m come true because it brings new options for his future.

“America, it’s an advanced country, always open to of-

fer work to the ones that want to work seriously. In Italy, I wasn’t feeling 100 percent involved in my life. Here, I can set real goals and so on,” Pampinella said.

Enni Bergskaug Bergskaug, a senior from Finland, was excited to come to the U.S. and experience the exchange program. However, she was hesitant because she thought she would be homesick, missing the things she loved the most about her country.

“I’m so happy to be here, and I really like the school. I do miss my friends and family a lot, but I’m in contact with them almost every day,”Bergskaug said.

Soon after arriving, Bergskaug found herself noticing slight details that differed from Finland.

“I’ve started to miss things that I thought I wouldn’t miss, like public transportation and sidewalks,” Bergskaug said.

Johanna Kutzschbach Kutzschbach, a German senior, was inspired to apply to the program after her best friend had applied the year before. She was taken aback when she was chosen, but also relieved.

“I was shocked, happy and very excited (because) there were a lot of troubles during the application process,” Kutzschbach said.

Upon arriving, Kutzschbach didn’t expect the heavy course load that was to come at ’Stoga. She also didn’t expect the amount of interaction between the students in the U.S. In Germany, the students remain in the same group the whole day.

Kutzschbach said, “(In Germany) you have to have class spirit. On a bigger scale, we don’t have the same school spirit.”

Thursday, Oct. 17, 2019

Exchange Students come to 'Stoga Elena Schmidt/The SPOKE

Crossing seas: The four exchange students, Marwan Kassen, Vito Pampinella, Enni Bergskaug and Johanna Kutzschbach, smile outside in the courtyard. They were chosen to come to Conestoga High School through the American Field Service exchange program. improve her English. She was excited when she found out that she was part of the

“Everything is different. The school is really big. The people are really friendly,” Bonilla said.

One aspect of the school that Bonilla enjoys is the greater opportunity she has. ’Stoga offers a wider range of resources compared to her school back in Panama.

“In Panama, you don’t have (a) computer, you can only read and write,” Bonilla said.

"My school is really small, so I don’t have (a) library.”

“America, it’s an advanced country, always open to offer work to the ones that want to work seriously.

Maria Bonilla Bonilla, a Panamanian senior, came to the U.S. to learn about American culture and

On her 16th birthday, junior Izzy Thornberg opened up a Clay’s Bakery cake box to find seven baby chicks. To some, the lack of dessert might be a disappointment, but Thornberg couldn’t disagree more.

“It was like the best birthday gift ever,” Thornberg said.

Not many suburban teenage girls

exchange program, but she didn’t anticipate the numerous distinctions between her home country and America.

Aditi Dahagam/The SPOKE

Panama power: Maria Bonilla stands in the courtyard. She came from Panama and and enjoys all the opportunities and resources that are available at 'Stoga.

Mother of hens: junior takes care of seven chickens Abby Carella & Mira Harris Staff Reporters

On her 16th birthday, junior Izzy Thornberg opened up a Clay’s Bakery cake box to find seven baby chicks. To some, the lack of dessert might be a disappointment, but Thornberg couldn’t disagree more.

“It was like the best birthday gift ever,” Thornberg said.

Thornberg is one of a handful of Conestoga students who can say they are the proud owner and single caretaker of seven chickens, but Thornberg is different. They’re not just her pets, they’re part of the family.

Even before she had her own chickens, Thornberg was obsessed. When she was younger, her family often went to visit her grandparents’ farm. They had all kinds of animals, but the chickens in particular fascinated her.

“I first got into (chickens) when I was like 11 because that was the first time I went to my grandparents’ farm in Missouri. Their neighbors also had chickens, and I was just like, oh my gosh, these are adorable,” Thornberg said.

Thornberg spent the next five years learning everything she could about chickens. She decided that if her parents wouldn’t let her get chickens right away, the next best thing would be to learn about them. An entire bookshelf in her room is dedicated to chicken-related books, and her brain is an encyclopedia of chicken facts. From knowing the normal body temperature of a chicken (115 degrees Fahrenheit) to the average age chickens start to lay eggs (six months) to even the correct percentage of protein a chicken needs in its daily diet (20 percent), Thornberg is the chicken queen.

Armed with her knowledge about chickens, Thornberg presented her case to her parents.

Mira Harris/The SPOKE

Aimee Buttenbaum/The SPOKE

Chicken-winged: Junior Izzy Thornberg stands with her chickens outside her house. Thornberg and her father built a DIY coop for her seven chickens.

Chickstagram: Thornberg posts photos of her seven chickens on their Instagram account. She received the chickens for her 16th birthday.

“I made a PowerPoint on why we should have chickens.

My mom was like, ‘no,’ but clearly I broke her down,” Thornberg said. “I claimed that we would save thousands of dollars if we had our own chickens to lay eggs, and so now, any time we get the eggs, my parents are like, ‘Oh, thank God we’ve saved thousands,’ and it’s become a family joke.”

Walking into Thornberg’s kitchen, your eyes are immediately drawn to a giant metal

see Cheryl, the chicken who is a true “character” as Thornberg says, enjoying a dust bath out-

chicken holder filled with freshly-laid eggs. Outside the kitchen window, there is a full view of the

95 other chicken-lovers on their Instagram account, @breakfastpoopers, which Thornberg runs in her free time.

About the classic question, ‘What came first, the chicken or the egg?’, Thornberg said, “This is really cool.

So, it was actually the chicken, because way back when dinosaurs were around, chickens derived from live-birth animals, and then they developed from live-birth into egg-laying, and then they started to evolve into bird-like creatures, and then chickens.”

I made a PowerPoint on why we should have chickens. My mom was like, 'no,' but clearly I broke her down. backyard, which is often bustling with all seven chickens (and the dog to watch out for hawks) running around a DIY coop built by Thornberg and her father. You’ll

side of her pen while Chickie Minaj, Princess Laya, Goose, Badonkadonk, Clementine and Beaker wander about. These chickens also have a fanbase of

T/E Life

Thursday, Oct. 17, 2019

Sewing senior spends summer making clothes Aimee Buttenbaum Co-T/E life editor

Walking through the hallways, one can spot a range of different fashion styles from edgy to bohemian, but very few can say they envisioned, constructed and created the outfit they’re wearing — a fact that senior Emma Leuders can say with pride.

While she’s always had a knack for fashion from a young age, Leuders decided to take the next step and sign up for the Fashion Camp at Parsons School of Design in New York City this past August.

“The camp was two weeks long, and it was so fun. You got to work with an actual college professor from Parsons,” Leuders said. “I got a really great professor, and he’s writing my recommendation letter.”

Leuders thought the guidance she received was helpful, but she found the time she had to explore her own abilities just as beneficial.

“We had to go get our own fabrics, and it was so fun going to the Garment District, and I got to meet all these designers who do this for a living,” Leuders said. “I felt like a little adult getting my fabrics.”

During her two weeks in the Big Apple, Leuders worked on making four separate pieces every day from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

“Most of the kids at the camp did super avant-garde crazy stuff, and as much as I have so much respect for that, I kind of wanted to make something that I would wear,” Leuders said. “I made a

pink two-piece set and these gingham pants with a matching top.”

This camp has been a dream come true for Leuders, who has wanted to make her own clothes since the fourth grade.

“I would buy shirts from Goodwill and cut them up and make them into clothes when I was younger,” Leuders said.

Fashion became more serious as Leuders turned it into a job, becoming a shift manager at Plato’s Closet in Paoli.

Currently, Leuders works with local fashion designer Christine Shirley, who has her own fashion studio in Wayne where she sells the clothes she makes.

“I don’t get to sew all the stuff yet, but I just do the cutting and stuff,” Leuders said. “It’s fun because she’s doing exactly what I want to do, so it’s like having a mentor. I found the perfect job.”

As Leuders continues to progress in the world of fashion and design, she intends on making this passion her career after college.

“I would like to be a buyer for a store and get to travel the world and look at clothes and say things like: we want this in our Free People store,” Leuders said.

For Leuders, creating clothes is a way of displaying her personality, and that is something she wants to continue to do for the rest of her life.

“This sounds so corny, but it’s a way of expressing yourself. It’s fun to look at someone and get an idea of who they are from what they’re wearing,” Leuders said.

Courtesy Emma Leuders

Fun fashion: Senior Emma Leuders stands next to her work in her studio at Parsons School of Design. Leuders spent two weeks at the school for a camp this summer.

5

Teacher feature: Amy Alvarez

Aimee Buttenbaum/The SPOKE

In her element: Science teacher Amy Alvarez smiles next to the periodic table in her classroom in room 293. Over her 18 years at ’Stoga, Alvarez has taught courses ranging from chemistry to physics. After considering entering

Aimee Buttenbaum Co-T/E life editor

A trip up the glass staircase and a sharp left followed by an immediate right will lead any student to the chemistry room occupied by Amy Alvarez, a teacher who is more than familiar with the school as she begins her 18th year here.

Over this time span, Alvarez has taught many science courses, including the old ICPE (Introduction to Chemistry, Physics and the Environment) and all levels of chemistry and physical science. She was also a gifted support teacher for several years, but among all of these courses, chemistry has been the constant.

Although Alvarez eventually found her passion for chemistry, she didn’t always know what she wanted to pursue. Originally, she received her bachelor’s degree in food science.

“I loved my coursework while I was at Penn State. I just didn’t love working in the industry after I graduated,” Alvarez said. “I did give it a shot and worked in the field for one year, and I knew after a year that it just wasn’t my passion.

I wanted to work with people more and less in just a lab, so I

ming lessons,” Alvarez said. “I really enjoyed working with younger children, but I never really saw myself as an elementary school teacher.”

Along her journey to becoming a teacher, Alvarez explored many different interests. She received her teaching certification in chemistry from Gettysburg

her older brother’s footsteps.

“I find (law) very interesting, but I don’t like to read like my brother does,” Alvarez said. “I thought, boy, I just don’t know if I would enjoy it enough because of the volume of reading that’s required in that profession.”

Her degree in guidance and counseling was a suggestion

lum that we offer here at Conestoga,” Alvarez said.

Outside of the classroom, Alvarez spends time with her four children and two grandchildren.

“My family keeps me very busy, and I enjoy every minute with them,” Alvarez said.

“I enjoy relaxing and being with my family, whether it’s hanging out by the pool or working in the garden or going to the beach.”

While Alvarez teaches her students about chemistry in the classroom — such as her favorite unit, stoichiometry, which deals with molar mass — she values the lessons her students have taught her.

“I would say what I’ve really taken away from my students is how much they’ve taught me about people and approach to life,” Alvarez said. “It’s a marathon, not a sprint, in education as well as life, and I think, daily, my students help remind me of that and that I’m not done any more than they are.”

It’s a marathon, not a sprint, in education as well as life... I think, daily, my students help remind me of that. wanted the best of both worlds, and I felt that education would give me that.”

Alvarez sees herself as a people person, an attribute that she identified when she was working as a lifeguard in high school.

“I loved teaching swim-

College, her master’s degree in Guidance and Counseling from McDaniel College in Maryland, and her principal certification from Immaculata University.

She even considered being a lawyer in college, a choice that would have had her following in

made by her father, who was also a guidance counselor “I do think it helps me, especially today in my work with students and helping them to manage their schedules and (make) very difficult life choices about the challenging curricu-

Leukemia survivor makes wish, meets YouTubers Daniel Howell and AmazingPhil Emma Galef & Julia Harris Staff Reporters

A week before school started this year, sophomore Rachael Pei’s wish came true.

She flew to London to spend a day with her YouTube idols, Dan Howell and AmazingPhil.

They spent the day playing with the dogs and cats at the Battersea Dog and Cats Home.

Pei, thrilled to have met the YouTubers, was thankful for more than just that day.

The summer before sixth grade, Pei was diagnosed with cancer. Her first question?

“When can I go back to school?”

Pei spent much of the follow-

ing year in treatment and recovery, and she had to put some of the activities she enjoyed, such as tennis and swimming, on hold.

Pei was one of 200,000 people in the United States diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in 2015. Fortunately, this type of cancer is usually curable within two years. During the recovery process, Pei spent her days in the hospital watching encouraging clips from her family and funny videos from her favorite YouTubers, Daniel Howell and Phil Lester. The two YouTu-

bers post comical, entertaining videos on their respective channels, Daniel Howell and

nesses, Pei got to celebrate the end of her treatment by meeting Howell and Lester, who

On Aug. 19, Pei flew to London with her family where the YouTubers live. She stayed in

Honestly, I think it made me a better person, because before, I wasn’t really motivated to do anything.

AmazingPhil.

Thanks to the Make-AWish foundation, a nonprofit organization fulfilling wishes for children with critical ill-

Courtesy of Rachael Pei

AmazingPhil-anthropy: Sophomore Rachael Pei joins with Youtubers Daniel Howell and AmazingPhil at the Battersea Dog and Cats Home in London. Pei met the two Youtubers through the Make-A-Wish Foundation after recovering from acute lymphoblastic leukemia in the hospital.

had unknowingly supported her along the way.

“The whole time, I couldn’t really believe it,” Pei said. “It was like a shock factor.”

London for four days, spending one with the YouTubers and the other three touring the city. At first, Pei felt nervous about interacting with

Dan and Phil, whom she had watched on-screen for years, but she said that they were nice and accepting, so it was easy to make conversation with them.

As soon as she returned to the hotel, Pei posted a photo of herself with the YouTubers on Instagram. Now, the picture has almost 20,000 likes.

“I’m really glad that everyone was so nice about it, because in the comments of my post, everyone was really sweet and encouraging,” Pei said.

Pei also had some positive advice to share with anyone going

through a diagnosis like hers.

“I would tell others to have hope most of all, because sometimes it may seem like the end of the world,” Pei said.

She added that there will always be bright things in life, and that there is a kind community of people in the hospital that understand what you’re going through.

After everything she went through, Pei says that she is now a happier and more motivated person.

“Honestly, I think it made me a better person,” Pei said, “because before, I wasn’t really motivated to do anything, but afterwards, it made me more happy with life.”

T/E Life

6

Thursday, October 17, 2019

Aimee Buttenbaum/The SPOKE

Lanternflies—the menace invading the community Hyunjin Lee T/E Life or

Brooms, soaps, tapes and cell phone apps — people are coming up with more and more ingenious ways to kill the lanternflies spreading all over Southeastern Pennsylvania and beyond.

An invasive species native to China, India and Vietnam, spotted lanternflies were first discovered in Berks County in 2014. Today, they can be found in states such as New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia and Pennsylvania. From tree trunks at people’s favorite parks to sports fields, backyards, parking lots and even the courtyards at Conestoga, spotted lantern flies have claimed their domain.

“There are just so many of them. The other day I looked at the tree in the courtyard, and there was a swarm of them in the tree,” sophomore Chloe Brooks said.

People have even reported the ubiquitous menaces flying into them.

“Over the summer, two lanternflies landed on my shoulder during marching band preseason.

They are ugly when they are alive.

They are ugly when they die. And to make matters worse, they are bad for the environment,” sophomore Amy Douglas said.

Their dark black spots and splashes of blood red may be interesting (or horrifying) to look at, but spotted lanternflies pose threats to the Pennsylvanian economy and agriculture, especially to the vineyard industry.

“In vineyards, (spotted lanternflies) are stressing out plants so much that, in combination with bad weather, we are getting total crop loss and/or vine death,” said Heather Leach, an extension associate at Penn State University specializing in the spotted lanternfly.

Pennsylvania, the fifth-largest grape-growing state in the nation, is home to more than

270 wineries and annually produces approximately 1 million gallons of wine.

Spotted lanternflies, which feast on plant saps, are attracted to a wide array of other agricultural crops including walnuts, hops and the “tree of heaven,” a deciduous tree native to China.

“There is a very important ingredient of beer called hops.

Pennsylvania grows a fair amount of hops, and all of these plants are threatened by the lantern flies,” Environmental Science teacher John Ligget said.

In addition to damaging the environment, these unwelcome guests from overseas create disturbances in our everyday lives.

Students have noticed them during lunchtimes in the courtyards and out in the parking lots suntanning on the roofs of their cars.

“I think that the lanternflies are gross and a danger to an environment that is already in jeopardy in so many ways,” junior Katie Chuss said.

Spotted lanternflies have received an unprecedented amount

of media coverage and public attention in comparison to other invasive species.

“The stink bug might get close, but I don’t know that it’s at the same level. After all, I never hear of people dressing up as stink bugs for Halloween like I hear with lanternflies,” Leach said.

She believes that the attention could be due to the awareness campaign led by Penn State University and supported by the United States Department of Agriculture and the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture.

Matthew Helmus, an assistant professor of biology at Temple University, offers another possible reason for the extensive coverage.

“It’s not like an invasive species that’s only found in the water where you can’t see it or in an agricultural field out somewhere far away from you. It’s all over the place, and it jumps on you,” Helmus said.

Currently, Chester County and twelve other Pennsylvania counties are under quarantine.

“In order to stop the movement

of (the) lanternfly, (Pennsylvania) is requiring that people who travel to certain counties in Pennsylvania not move material which could contain the eggs or the young forms of the lanternfly from one county to the next,” Ligget said.

However, preventing the spread of material between counties is not a foolproof mechanism. According to Leach, the quarantine comes with its own potential complications regarding permit training and record keeping.

Furthermore, campaigns by several different groups are raising awareness of spotted lanternflies.

“We’re really trying to get people aware of this to limit the spread and do their part, calling on community engagement. People are banding together to stop spotted lanternflies, and that is very encouraging to see,” Leach said.

As for the rest of us, we can help stop the spread of spotted lanternflies too. As Helmus said, “If you see it, squish it.”

Hyunjin Lee/The SPOKE

Squashing the enemy (above left): As the spotted lanternflies invade the community as well as Conestoga’s courtyards, students are coming up with more ways to kill the invasive species, the most popular form being stomping on them. Students first noticed them in the courtyard at the beginning of the school year.

Taking over trees (above): A tree in the large courtyard is covered with spotted lantern flies, as they are attracted to agricultural crops. The species came over from China, Vietnam, and other Asian countries.

Sophomores climb their way to the top, start new club Sanjana Sanghani Staff Reporter

No fear. Despite three in five people having a fear of heights, sophomore Karis Blagden says she only experiences joy when climbing up a 60-foot rock wall, which is why she took the We don’t just teaCh the tests. initiative to create a new rock climbing club.

First introduced to rock climbing by her mother and brother, Blagden has been climbing for about three years.

At Main Line Test Prep FLEXIBLE “Once you climb up to a and Tutoring, we have certain point and you’re feeling Group Discounts the strain in your muscles, you been tutoring students Open 7 days a week have to learn to push yourself in various subjects and because you know it’s going to standardized test prep be so rewarding once you’re at HELPING the top,” Blagden said. for over 20 years. Our CONESTOGA WITH: Blagden’s rock climbing extutors are patient and periences sparked an interest SAT/ACT/AP Exams make learning fun. in her friend, sophomore MeStudy Habits gan Adams. Adams says that Most importantly, we Academics she “instinctively knew she instill confidence in our wanted to continue” climbing College Counseling and was “inspired by other adstudents by making and application vanced rock climbers” since tough concepts easy to the first time that she climbed essays. understand and apply. with Blagden.

Even though Adams and Blagden mostly participate in Ask about our all-day SAT prep seminar on indoor climbing and in lead climbing, or climbing with a November 16. partner, Blagden has also dabbled in climbing outdoors. For example, Blagden once climbed We don't just teach the tests. We take them up a 100-foot cliff in Colorado.

“It’s really different climbtoo! Our founder, Steve Odabashian, believes in ing outdoors. The view is alstaying ahead of the changes. In May 2018, he ways amazing once you get to scored 1560 on the SAT and a 35 on a 2017 ACT. the top, but climbing indoors makes you feel more safe and comfortable,” Blagden said.

Adams also says that Blagwww.mainlinetestprep.com den provides her with a sense of reassurance since Blagden steve@mainlinetestprep.com is belaying her — keeping Adams from falling too far if she 484-424-9893 slips — from below.

We take them too!

Courtesy Karis Blagden

Hanging on: Sophomore Karis Blagden rock climbs outdoors at a camp in Colorado, something that Blagden normally does indoors as it is more convienent and makes her feel safer and more comfortable. Blagden began climbing three years ago when her brother and mother introduced her to the sport.

“You have to have a lot of trust in your partner, because they are keeping you from falling. (Blagden) is my support system: giving me encouragement or cheering me on when needed,” Adams said.

Inspired by their “fun experiences,” Adams and Blagden started the rock climbing club this year. Before holding

their first meeting, Blagden and Adams aspired to attract new members and offered free carabiners — metal hooks used as safety closures — at the club fair. Both also plan for club members to rock climb indoors at the Gravity Vault, a rock-climbing gym in Radnor.

Blagden also says that the club will try to hold bake sales so

that the fee to climb at Gravity Vault will be cheaper.

“Our main goal right now is to attract people who are new to the sport so we can create a community of rock climbers,” Blagden said.

Blagden and Adams plan to teach the members correct rock-climbing techniques and to give out safety forms to ensure that safety is never compromised.

“Megan and I are both belay-certified, and because you are putting your life into the hands of the belayers, we know that we have to be focused to ensure that you don’t fall,” Blagden said.

Additionally, Blagden says that she hopes the club will provide members an opportunity to “unwind and learn a new skill.”

T/E Life

Thursday, October 17, 2019

EW

Story and photos by Katherine Lee and Umar Samdani, Webmaster and Staff Reporter Design by Reese Wang, Design Editor

“I always wanted to be a teacher.

When I moved to the United States many years ago, I had the opportunity to go to college and start fresh, so I knew from the beginning that education was the path I wanted to follow,” Spanish teacher Miryam DeLuca said.

DeLuca previously taught Spanish 1 and 3 at Renaissance Academy Charter School in Phoenixville. Now at ’Stoga, she teaches Honors Spanish 2, and Accelerated and Academic Spanish 3.

Aside from teaching, DeLuca enjoys spending time with her family and traveling.

“I visited Ecuador, the Galapagos Islands (and) Machu Picchu, and I love

A former professional video game player, James Mahoney is excited to bring his experiences to Conestoga. Before arriving at ’Stoga, Mahoney taught English and social studies at Radnor High School. Currently, he is a long-term substitute teaching World Literature and Language and Composition.

“Time’s flying by,” Mahoney said. “The teachers are fantastic teachers. I think that they’re very helpful, and I’m very lucky to have all of them.”

In the classroom, Mahoney enjoys talking about his past experiences.

Mahoney owns a motorcycle and has gone bungee jumping,skydiving, and windsurfing. He has been to 24 different

PO X E

my native country, Colombia,” DeLuca said.

DeLuca came to the United States 15 years ago to learn English. She studied education at a community college in New Jersey before transferring to Penn State, where she got her degree.

She is now working on her master’s in education at Eastern University.

James Mahoney

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countries, including Brazil, China and New Zealand. “(Skydiving) is very scary, but you never feel more alive,” Mahoney said.

Currently, Mahoney runs the Ping Pong Club. He also has two dogs named Mac and Cheese and loves cooking and baking.

Susan Milliken Before teaching at ’Stoga, Susan Milliken taught history at Haverford High School and Abington Junior High School. Now, Milliken teaches Honors U.S. History.

Milliken is especially fond of the atmosphere of the school. She admires the excitement that students bring to the classroom.

“I like how everybody loves being at Conestoga and is excited to be part of the community,” Milliken said. “The students here are really respectful. I love how polite they are.”

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Corey Davison

EACHERS

Miryam DeLuca

7

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In addition to the students, Milliken loves how consistently supportive the staff is.

When she is not teaching, Milliken helps out at the theater departments at Haverford, where she directs plays and other performances.

Corey Davison has been teaching history and rock climbing. His favorite place ever since he became a teacher in 2013. to climb is in Northern New HampNow, he teaches Accelerated World shire.

History and Honors U.S. Government.

Davison’s previous teachers inspired him to pursue teaching as a career.

“There was (a teacher) in particular at my undergrad in Boston College who framed it as ‘What do you like to do? What do you want to do, and what are you good at?

But also, who does the world need you to be?’” Davison said. “So when I thought about the things that I like, the things that I want to do and the thing that I thought I could offer to the world, it really came down to teaching and nothing else.”

In his spare time, Davison enjoys reading

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Kristine Fagerman Kristine Fagerman is teaching Accelerated and Honors Geometry as a long-term substitute. Before coming to ’Stoga, Fagerman taught different levels of math at schools in other parts of the country and even overseas.

“I’ve taught at maybe ten different schools all over the place. Started off teaching in Chicago and then went overseas and taught in Venezuela for eight years at an international school, and then I came back, and I’ve taught at Germantown Friends and at Lower Merrion,” Fagerman said.

In her free time, Fagerman likes to read, spend time with her family and be

active. She has also recently taken up pottery.

“I began taking a pottery class this past summer at the Wayne Arts Center,” Fagerman said. “So far, I have been working only with slabs, not a wheel.”

Stephanie Matula A Korean-Slovak American, Stephanie Matula enjoys bringing her diversity into the classroom setting. Before ’Stoga, Matula taught history at Quakertown High School. Currently, she is a long-term substitute teaching World History.

Matula wants her classes to be open to diverse backgrounds and opinions.

“Especially with World History, sometimes we talk about things that some people have more background on,” Matula said. “I try to bring the story aspect into history, so people can talk about their backgrounds and how it’s influenced their lives.”

Outside of school, Matula is fond of draw-

ing and exploring coffee shops with her friends. Matula especially enjoys eating ice cream and macarons.

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Claire Miller Before Claire Miller came to ’Stoga, she taught English in Chicago. Currently, she teaches Honors American Literature and AP Seminar.

One of Miller’s favorite parts of Conestoga is the student body.

“The way the students push my thinking is something that I really value,” Miller said. “I feel somedays I learn as much as the students just because of the questions they ask and the information they bring into the room.”

Miller loves to read, spend time at Valley Forge Park and travel. Recently, she enjoyed a visit to Cleveland, which turned out to be much more exciting than she

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imagined. She has also performed poetry and traveled in Europe for two months. During her time in Europe, she visited Italy, France and Belgium.

Her favorite book is “The Invisible Man” by Ralph Ellison.

Invisible Man

Ralph Ellison

OPINION

Thursday, October 17, 2019

Changes You may notice the paper in your hands looks a little different from last year. We have a new printer — School Paper Express — so our colors are slightly different and our sizing is a little wider. We’ve made our front page header and our section headers left justified and have changed some of our fonts simply because we like the way it looks. We hope you like the way it looks, too.

Each school year, the editorial board of The Spoke presents the policy that will guide the paper’s direction. We hope to be as transparent as possible as we continue to cover the T/E community.

Our Mission The Spoke serves as a public forum for student expression. We strive to objectively cover stories of interest within our school and community.

We understand our responsibility to report in an unbiased and ethical manner.

The Spoke staff aims to include a diverse range of issues and voices within the paper.

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Friday night lights are as bright as ever...for me at least

Matthew Fan

Co-Opinion Editor The stands at Teamer Field begin to fill relatively quickly.

First comes the marching band, followed by the parents and other community members. Then the students start filing into the Pit — fashionably late of course.

By the end of the first quarter, the stands are completely full and the crowd is boisterous. It’s Friday Night Lights, our first home football game of the 2019 season.

Everyone knows our football team isn’t the best. In its last three seasons, the team has only won five games out of 30. The week before, Owen J. Roberts’ football team beat our team commandingly at 28-0.

Why are people still watch-

ing the games? What’s the point of coming if you know the team is most likely going to lose?

It’s no surprise that the players’ parents come and watch. For students, perhaps they are still grasping on to the hope that the football team may win. Perhaps their loyalty to Conestoga is what keeps them on their feet cheering at every game.

Conestoga fans probably have faith that the underdog will come out on top once in a while. We saw it with the Eagles in Super Bowl LII, so there must be a chance it happens with our team. To be honest, I find myself jumping up and down and clapping my hands enthusiastically whenever our football team scores — even if we may be losing by a lot.

I can’t help it. Conestoga’s my heart, and the only thing it’s pumping out is ’Stoga pride.

I’d like to think that I would go watch every football game voluntarily, but realistically, if I weren’t in marching band, I probably would never have

watched a single one. But as my last year in marching band comes closer to the end, I have realized it’s the environment that makes me look forward to every Friday night during t h e football season.

I go to the games because of the adrenaline rush — playing “Rocky� as the football t e a m crashes through t h e cheerleaders’ banner, blasting stands tunes and dancing to drum cadences, and marching onto the field as the crowd cheers and the

announcer emphatically says, “The Conestoga High School Marching Pioneers!�

The unique blend of rivalry and camaraderie at Conestoga

football games is unmatched.

I can’t help but think of the game against Ridley earlier this season. During halftime,

I walked in front of the Ridley student section with a couple of my friends. Immediately, we received showers of unified chants of “get back to your own side� and various obscenities.

How e v e r, when we talked with some of Ridley’s band members, they complimented us on our show and joined in on some of our dances.

E a c h week brings a new football team and a new student section, another culture to interact with Charity Xu/The SPOKE (or rather, rival with). That is what entices me to watch the football games, whether we win or not.

Depth not breadth: You don’t have to be well-rounded

Colin Kennedy Guest Columnist

Every high school student today has probably been made aware of the importance of appearing “well-rounded� in order to stand out among college applications, but has this compromised the value of the education we are receiving, and, on a larger scale, compromised our ability as young people to find and develop our true passions in life? The idea of being well-rounded as a student has caused young people to fill their time with activities in which they have little interest at

the expense of the things they care about. The sooner we dispel the myth of the well-rounded, model student, the sooner our education system will see high school students with less undue stress, healthier lifestyles and a clearer view of the life in front of them.

Picture the ideal well-rounded student, the student involved in countless clubs, activities, sports and possibly even an after-school job.

They spend four years balancing all of this to stand out among a pile of college applications, but what have they taken away from all their extracurriculars? What do they learn from half-heartedly participating in six different extracurriculars as opposed to committing and devoting themselves to three or four?

The pressure to look as involved as possible fills clubs with students who want credit yet couldn’t care

cerned with being well-rounded, they could benefit from extracurriculars and develop interests and passions.

Several university admissions officers are also beginning to take note of the flawed way American high schoolers view extracurriculars. A blog post from the University of Southern California’s Admissions office states that, when evaluating a student's activity list, it is far more interested in applicants who “follow their passions and show dedication over time to a few specific involvements rather than spreading themselves too thin.� In a web page titled “Who We Want,�

UNC-Chapel Hill mentions that the univerElena Schmidt/The SPOKE sity needs a “variety of less about what they are doing. strengths and talents that, togethIf high schoolers were less con- er, will form a whole that is greater

The Spoke is published seven times per year at School Paper Express. It consistently receives a Gold rating from PSPA and CSPA, and is a National Scholastic Press Association Pacemaker award-winning publication. The Spoke serves as a public forum for student expression.

The

Staff

Editors-in-Chief: Claire Guo, Audrey Kim Managing Editors: Tiffany He, Melinda Xu News Editor: Richard Li T/E Life Editors: Aimee Buttenbaum, Hyunjin Lee Opinion Editors: Andrew Bucko, Matthew Fan Sports Editor: Ananya Kulkarni Design Editor: Reese Wang Copy Editor: Sophia Pan Multimedia Editor: Alex Gurski

Business Managers: Andrew Fessick Cartoonists: Coco Kambayashi, Trey Phillips, Elena Schmidt, Charity Xu Staff Reporters: Emma Clarke, Abigail Carella, Alexis Costas, Aditi Dahagam, Aishi Debroy, Emma Galef, Julia Harris, Mira Harris, Akshita Joshi, Evan Lu, Gavin Merschel, Kate Phillips, Trey Phillips, Devon Rocke, Hiba Samdani, Umar Samdani, Sanjana Sanghani, Elena Schmidt, Zakiyah Gaziuddin Webmaster: Katherine Lee Faculty Advisers: Cyndi Crothers-Hyatt, Susan Gregory

than the sum of its parts.� It’s clear that a resumÊ padded with extra activities which a student has little commitment to isn’t as impressive as it used to be.

During my freshman year, I found myself involved in too many different clubs that I didn’t really care about very much. I didn’t have time to go to all the different meetings and I ended up not getting credit for most of them. I realized my time is much better spent on clubs that I actually care about and that I actually participate in.

The only reason colleges look at extracurriculars is so that they can get a better understanding of who you are. So why fill your resume with extracurriculars in which you have no interest? There are so many opportunities to be involved at Conestoga, so rather than thinking of them as ways to impress colleges, use them to broaden your horizons, make new friends and make a difference in your community.

Coco Kambayashi/The SPOKE

From the Editor: What self-care really means

Audrey Kim

Co-Editor-in-Chief Between the self-care kits and the self-help books, the Instagram-filtered photos of slim detox smoothies and salt baths, it’s hard not to hear the term self-care these days.

Search up the words on Google and you’ll get everything from countless articles that advise to “visit the farmer’s market� and “meditate with zen music� to self-care Twitter bots.

I’ll admit that I also buy into the self-care mantra more frequently than I’d like to, and more easily than I should. It’s not exactly hard to convince yourself to buy special scented candles and make chocolate cakes in the name of “treating yourself,� the slogan that frequently pops up on social media posts and BuzzFeed articles.

As time passes, though, I’ve started to wonder what the term self-care really meant to me personally. How much of this supposed self-care was me actually trying to give myself a break, and how much of it was just me trying to escape from the exhausting cycle of sleep-schoolwork that I had gotten into?

I deeply suspect that selfcare has emerged as a kind of response against the daily work and grind of our regular lives, where we’ve consistently associated our productivity with self-worth, and glamorized being overworked, busy cartoon andStand-alone stressed. For example, the Journal of Consumer Research has published research showing that Americans associate busyness and stress with prestige and status. And there’s a lot of profit to be made in terms of self-care: the self-improvement industry is now worth over $10 billion. The problem

is the difference between actual self-care and consumer selfcare: are you using self-care as short-term solutions to escape from the hectic pace of life? Or are you making the choices to build a life you don’t need to regularly escape from?

I don’t think self-care needs to be something constantly recorded, marketed and filtered through the lens of an Instagram filter. Self-care is often a very ugly thing. It means going to sleep on time, even if you have work to do, and cooking yourself healthy meals and sweating through another workout. It’s letting yourself be normal and unexceptional as you accept that deciding your ultimate goal in life isn’t to have abs to post about on social media in your perfect room. It’s finally doing that assignment or having that conversation with a friend that you’ve been putting off for forever, even though it might be a difficult one. It means being honest with others, even if it doesn’t mean you’ll be universally liked. It means making the right choices for you, even if they aren’t the easy ones.

This isn’t to say that I’m dismissing all forms of marketed self-care. At the end of the day, if taking a bubble bath and baking vegan chocolate cakes are what make someone happy, they should do it. But instead of “fixing ourselves,� maybe we can learn to love ourselves a little more in the process. There’s no point in self-care if it leads to more stress about leading a perfect life, both off and onscreen. Actual self-care has a lot less to do with “treating yourself � and more to do with making choices for your personal long-term wellness, even if they aren’t easy ones.

A world in which self-care is such a trendy topic is inherently unhealthy. Self-care should not be needed because we are so exhausted by outside life. And, subsequently, if we’re choosing a life that looks good over a life that feels good, we’re doing something wrong.

Non-staff contributions: Non-staff contributions from students, the community, graduates or other interested parties are welcome. Editors will decide which contributions are published based on space and relevance to the community. All contributions must conform to journalistic practices, including accuracy, timeliness, purpose and writing conventions. The Spoke reserves the right to work with the contributor to meet these standards. All outside contributions are bylined.

Editorials: Unsigned editorials represent the views of The Spoke editorial board, not necessarily those of the administration, student body, community or advertisers. The opinions expressed in signed columns are those of the writer and not necessarily the opinion of The Spoke.

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Coco Kambayashi/The SPOKE

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Op/Ed

Thursday, October 17, 2019

9

Report Card

Escape the vape: don’t waste your breath

Andrew Bucko Co-Opinion Editor

The bathrooms are quieter compared to my past three years at Conestoga. Groups of guys passing around e-cigarettes in plain sight are few and far between. The signature crackle of heating vape juice occasionally echoes from stalls, but only when fiends are guarded by a metal partition.

Just why are these fruity-smelling speakeasies coming to a close? Could it

be the new cameras outside of bathrooms and in parking lots that administrators informed us of on the first day of school?

Perhaps students cower in fear of being caught and having to take a digital anti-vape course?

Or maybe, just maybe, the 18 (and counting) national vaping-related deaths have a role.

According to the CDC, these deaths — along with 800 reported vaping ailments — are all caused, in part or in full,

by THC and nicotine vapes.

Most troublesome about these deaths is how little time vapes have been on the market. U.S. Customs and Border Protection cites the first U.S. import of vapes in 2006, with mainstream use coming much later. Illnesses arising this early offer a glimpse of what upcoming decades may bring. Even my aunt (a loyal Marlboro fan) has been smoking for 40 years and has yet to

succumb to illness.

If the prospect of a swift and mysterious death isn’t reason enough to stop, the cost of funding a vaping addiction is nearly as scary. Using a pack of JUUL pods per week can cost anywhere from $1,000 to $1,300 annually. That’s a Louis Vuitton bag, two roundtrip flights to the Caribbean or a competent laptop to replace your school one. Is it really worth slaving away at some nine-dollar-per-hour job only to have your paycheck go up in smoke?

On the bright side, vaping is, like, totally in. After all, nothing is more attractive than exhaling antifreeze and a slew of other chemicals. What better way to spend your Saturday than hunting to find the cheapest mango JUUL pods? And begging upperclassmen to buy “the goods” will obviously earn you a cool reputation.

Lanternfly Invasion

- They’re going to kill all of our trees...

New Printer System + Saving paper

Elena Schmidt/The SPOKE

“I think It’s OK. I know that vaping is bad and this seems like a step in the right direction.”

“It’s a good idea. Too many people vape and it’s bad for your lungs. It can even kill you.”

- Josh Penny, freshman

Kylie Jenner & Travis Scott Breakup

A

“Stranger Things” season four

sophomore

STUDENTS SPEAK OUT

Q: Do you agree with President Trump’s call to ban flavored vape products?

“I think a total ban on flavored vapes is pretty extreme. Even though vaping is pretty bad and they are known for marketing towards kids, it’s still a safer alternative to smoking cigarettes and makes it more enjoyable to quit their cigarette addiction.”

Sophia Pan Copy Editor “I’m not a VSCO girl, I swear! I just like scrunchies.”

“If you lose this round, you have to dress up as a VSCO girl!”

“Hey, VSCO girl! Where’s your Hydro Flask?”

Lately, I’ve heard this term — VSCO girl — tossed around a lot. So, what exactly are VSCO girls, and why does everyone seem to hate them?

The term VSCO girl stems from the popular photo-editing app VSCO, which functions like a low-pressure version of Instagram without likes or comments. To put it simply, a VSCO girl is someone “basic,” often stereotyped to be wealthy, conformist and vain. She’s generation two of the “basic white girl” (think Starbucks and Uggs) of the early 2010s.

Picture a girl in oversized clothing, Hydro Flask in hand, walking around in her Birkenstocks saying “sksksk” and “and I oop-.” Her hair is tied up with a scrunchie, and she’s got four more on her arm. And don’t forget the puka shell choker around her neck and the friendship bracelets on her wrist. But however strange the VSCO girl may seem with her phrases and fashion sense, she doesn’t deserve the hate she gets.

A lot of VSCO-girl hate originated from TikTok, a short-video sharing app that has skyrocketed in popularity.

Recently, that hate has seeped into our everyday lives. People have started dropping casual jokes about wearing scrunch-

simplicity to them that flatters everyone in every outfit color. The German company has retained relevance since its inception in 1774 because of its time-tested design, whose soles are designed to become more comfortable over time.

“Sksksksk” (a keyboard smash) and “and I oop-” (adopted from drag queen Jasmine Masters) are harmless phrases that effectively communicate excitement, shock and surprise. Besides, internet lingo has always found its way into the outside world — these are just the newest additions to the ever-growing list of weird things people say (think “mood” and “tea”).

Most of what people associate with VSCO girls is harmless or even healthy. At the end of the day, everyone just wants to fit in somewhere. VSCO girls shouldn’t be insulted for wanting to be comfortable, eco-friendly or accepted.

Coco Kambayashi/The SPOKE

- I’m 13 episodes behind

+ Nostalgic way to procrastinate

senior

B

- Drifting is hard. Bye bye battery

junior

ies or clothes that are too big.

Hydro Flasks have become indicators, and mockingly saying “sksksks” or “and I oop-” has become the norm.

But most of what typically characterizes VSCO is simply harmless or functional.

Scrunchies, for example, work great for tying up hair both thick and thin. They’re a fun and vibrant return to ’80s and ’90s fashion.

And what’s wrong with wanting to save the turtles? If environmentally-conscious products like Hydro Flasks and metal straws are a VSCO girl’s way of showing she cares about the planet, let her be.

Crewnecks and oversized tops provide comfort by allowing more movement and air circulation. Wearing something just a bit too big is like being enveloped in a soft hug, and no one should be judged for wanting a little more comfort.

Birkenstock sandals have a

+ Something else to binge

Mario Kart Tour

- Aaron Li,

-Katie Chuss,

D-

-Poor Stormi :(

- Cameron Porte,

In defense of VSCO girls

B

- Hard to print anything in a timely manner

+ More drama to keep up with

“I’m of two minds on the issue. There are definitely health issues that come with using tobacco and vapes, and we’re just starting to see the amount of damage vaping can do. At the same time, simply banning (flavored vapes) doesn’t address the root causes and doesn’t help anyone who’s already addicted. Unless we actually get people access to treatments and discourage vaping, I don’t think it would fix much.”

F

+ Fun to kill, ASMR-grade crunch

Censure Trump — Impeachment isn’t worth it

Claire Guo Co-Editor-in-Chief The sensational drama of American politics has reached a three-year high. House Democrats are exploring the impeachment of President Donald Trump, and they’re serious.

That leaves us with two questions. One, is what Trump did impeachable? And two, should Congress move forward with impeachment if his actions are impeachable?

The short answer? Yes, and no.

The long answer: 1. Is what Trump did impeachable?

Yes. Most of us aren’t political experts, so sometimes it’s hard to determine how wrong any political action really is. (Before the televised hearings on Watergate, a Gallup poll found that only 31 percent of Americans thought Watergate was a “serious matter.”)

But Trump’s phone call to the Ukrainian president is grounds for impeachment.

The Democratic Party began a formal impeachment inquiry — an investigation, the first step to impeachment — three weeks ago.

Why now? A “whistleblower” in the intelligence community sent a complaint to the director of national intelligence claiming that in a July phone call, Trump pressured Ukraine’s president into investigating Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden while withholding nearly $400 million in military aid to Ukraine.

Since then, the White House has released a rough transcript of

the call. In it, Trump asks Ukraine’s president to investigate Joe Biden and Biden’s son (in regards to a baseless theory that Biden deliberately sabotaged a Ukrainian prosecutor’s investigation of his son).

Trump then says, “I will have Mr. Giuliani give you a call and I am also going to have Attorney General Barr call and we will get to the bottom of it.”

A highlight of what’s wrong with the above picture: Trump wanted to have his personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani work with a foreign president on investigating possible campaign rival Joe Biden (on a matter for which there is no evidence of Biden’s wrongdoing). The vague Constitution boundaries of acceptable presidential behavior are nowhere in sight.

If the impeachment process moves forward, “articles of impeachment” will reach the House, where a simple majority vote would “impeach” Trump. But Trump wouldn’t be removed from office until a trial is held in the Senate and a two-thirds majority votes to convict him. That brings us to our next question.

2. Should Congress move forward with impeachment?

No. The results of such an impeachment are easy to predict: the Democrat-controlled House will succeed in “impeachment,” but the Republican-controlled Senate won’t convict and won’t remove Trump from office. In the meantime, the American public will be dragged through mountains of Trump coverage and grow more polarized than we already are, if you can believe that. Issues that truly matter to Americans, like health care and education, won’t matter. Not to Congress, not when each side is so focused on getting the other.

But if Trump deserves impeachment (see 1.), how can Congress ignore his actions?

What if I told you there was a third option? One that publicly

Trey Phillips/The SPOKE

condemns Trump but doesn’t drag Americans through the tedious and ultimately damaging impeachment process?

Congress should censure Trump. Censure is a formal statement of disapproval of a politician’s actions that requires a simple majority vote from both houses. It doesn’t remove members from office, but it is a public condemnation. One without hearings.

Censure forces all members of Congress to vote on one thing and one thing only: is what Trump did wrong? There is no evasion of the question, no disagreeing with impeachment “because it overrides the American people’s decision.” Censure lets Americans choose the president themselves on November 3, 2020, little over a year away.

What’s more, only one president has ever been censured: Andrew Jackson, in 1834. Succeeding to censure Trump now would make a statement, and that was really the whole point of impeachment, wasn’t it?

Members from both parties have introduced dozens of resolutions over the years to censure presidents from Lincoln to Nixon, Clinton to Obama, and even Trump himself earlier in his presidency. Besides Jackson, every attempt failed: the evidence wasn’t strong enough, or the party attempted impeachment instead.

Censure could succeed now.

Impeachment won’t. Worse, it’ll waste our time.

Censure Trump. Move on.

The 2020 election is on its way, and that’s when the American people will decide what they want.

Charity Xu/The SPOKE

Sports

10

Thursday, October 17th, 2019

Early success: Freshmen deliver in varsity sports Alex Gurski and Hiba Samdani

Multimedia Editor and Staff Reporter As Conestoga begins its new fall sports season, six freshmen are applauded for making varsity teams. From preseason in August until now, these athletes have pushed themselves to make a positive impression on their new teams and to play the sports they love.

Freshmen Amanda Hill and Kate Galica made the Varsity Girls field hockey team, snagging two of the 22 positions available to players. Hill began playing many sports at a young age but stuck with field hockey. She joined many clubs and played for teams like Fastflix and Mayhem Field Hockey Club. When Hill read the email announcing that she made the team, she was not only excited but had a huge grin across her face. However, as a freshman, she was apprehensive about making mistakes in front of her teammates.

“The one thing I was really stressed about was whenever I made a mistake, but everyone is making mistakes. (What matters) is whether or not you will

run hard to get that ball back,” Hill said.

Galica’s experience in a multitude of other sports helped her make the team. Playing lacrosse and having prior experience with field hockey have helped her become a faster runner, a crucial skill when playing on the field.

“You have to run (a mile) every week, and try to beat your time. I had a bunch of lacrosse tournaments, so that helped fill in for the mile time, too,” Galica said.

Even though she is a freshman, Galica has made an immense contribution to the team.

Galica has scored in almost every game this season and is one of the starting players, a position given to players that demonstrate exceptional skills in their sport.

Freshman Isabella Chen made the varsity girls’ tennis team this year after spending her summer training at the YMCA, spending time in the gym and on the tennis courts there.

Chen started playing tennis at just 3 years old and has continued working on her game since, practicing at the YMCA and the Julian Krinsky School of Tennis as well as competing in tournaments.

Hiba Samdani/The SPOKE

Reaching for the stars: Freshman Isabella Chen delivers a serve at the YMCA. Chen previously practiced at the Julian Krinsky School and participated in tournaments before making the varsity girls’ tennis team.

Her extensive experience in tennis prepared Chen for her first high school tryout, but she still had jitters beforehand.

“I was really nervous for tryouts. I knew a good amount of people on the team already, but I didn’t know too many people, and I was also really scared of how good they were,” Chen said.

After finding out she made the team, Chen was “very surprised and really happy.”

With only a few more weeks to go, Chen feels as though she gets along well with the rest of the varsity team, despite her status as the only freshman in the group.

“Nobody really treats me differently because I’m a freshman,” Chen said. “Everybody just knows I’m on the team. I’m another teammate.”

In an effort to make the varsity girls soccer squad, freshman Mia Galrao spent her time prior to tryouts working on her endurance. She exercised by running, practiced with her club team, FC Delco, and worked with her old coaches from previous clubs in preparation for the preseason.

Galrao was “terrified” going into tryouts, but ended up as the only freshman girl on the team this year. She looks forward to becoming close with her new older teammates.

“I was so happy and super excited to get close to the team,” Galrao said. “They are all so sweet, supportive and encouraging. They are like my big sisters.”

Sara Walheim, this year’s only freshman on the volleyball team, made the team after spending the summer in preparation for tryouts, participating in tournaments with teammates from her club team.

Walheim has been playing volleyball for two years, working on her skills through playing on her club team, TEVA. Despite the training done on her club team, she was still nervous about making the school team.

“Being a freshman, tryouts were very intimidating at first. I was scared that I would mess up and that it would affect how the coaches saw me. Towards the end of tryouts though, I was just happy to be on the court again and play my game,” Walheim said.

In the weeks since the season began, Walheim has become close with her teammates, despite being the youngest on the team.

“I absolutely love the team.

Being the youngest on varsity was intimidating at first but my teammates are the best and have made me so much more confident on the court.”

Ananya Kulkarni/The SPOKE

Digging for more: Freshman Sara Walheim watches the ball in a Pink Out volleyball game against Garnet Valley on Oct. 7. Walheim has played on her club team, TEVA, for the past two years before making the girls’ varsity volleyball team.

Alex Gurski/The SPOKE

Achieving goals: Freshman Mia Galrao walks across Teamer Field during a soccer game. Although she said she was initially “terrified” during tryouts, Galrao became the only freshman to make the team.

Closing the gap: Freshmen girls tackle football Alexis Costas Staff Reporter

Rain or shine, it’s not unusual to see Conestoga football players working hard to perfect their offensive and defensive lines hours after the school day is over. Some people may be surprised to see both boys and girls taking the field to practice their plays, but to freshmen football team members Ella Bass and Brooke Braslow, it’s nothing new.

For Bass and Braslow, who play safety/wide receiver and quarterback respectively, athletics have always been part of the daily routine. The two are definitely no strangers to sports: Braslow plays basketball and lacrosse, and Bass has passionately played softball for years. However, while both have played football in the past for their middle schools’ unlimited teams, as well as the Conestoga Generals

in Braslow’s case, this is their first time playing the sport together on a team. It’s not easy being the only female players on the field, especially in a male-dominated sport like football, but the girls are more than up to the challenge.

“It’s tough. We work a lot harder than we did (before playing for Conestoga),” Bass said, “but I like it. I like having to push myself harder.”

Aside from the increased practices, some of the differences the girls say they’ve had to adapt to this year are keeping track of jerseys and equipment, talking more with coaches and playing with/ against boys who are stronger and/or larger than them physically.

Like the rest of the team, the two attend daily practices and weekly games. Although an unfortunate finger injury is currently keeping Bass off the field, she

goes to all practices and games to learn the team’s strategies and support her fellow players, including Braslow.

While the girls occasionally feel that their teammates make a point of going easy or hard on them because of their gender, for the most part they fit right in among the male players.

Girls playing “doesn’t make a difference to the sport. It’s still the same game,” said Karan Kang, wide receiver and free safety for the freshman football team.

Freshman football coach Aaron Lockard, a strong believer in the importance of teamwork, feels that there are unique benefits to having a mixed-gender team.

“Sports, like football, are important for students to build teamwork and leadership skills while overcoming physical and mental challenges. Every good team finds a way to build each other up and

embrace the positive characteristics each player brings to the table,” Lockard said.

Of course, there are challenges besides physical ones that the girls have had to deal with. Both say they have dealt with unfair bias from opposing players, and even other coaches.

“A couple years ago, there was this one coach who completely pointed me out,” Braslow said. “He said, ‘That is a girl, you have to go hit her harder, you have to go hunt her down, take her out of the game.’”

Sometimes, the players they go up against try to bother them even without a coach’s direction.

“It’s harder in game situations.

Guys see your hair and they like to pull at it. That’s not fun, but you keep going,” Bass said.

The two had similar sentiments on the importance of self-confidence for other girls who are considering playing male-dominated

sports such as football.

“I would say, just put yourself out there. Just be you. Even though the guys might be stronger or faster than you, just ignore that and be your own person,” Braslow said.

Considering the adversities the girls face, one may wonder what makes playing a male-dominated sport as a female worth it, but both are passionate in their belief that physical, mental and social challenges should never stand in someone’s way of doing what they love.

“If you like to play a sport, go for it. Who cares what you are off the field? You’re all people at the end of the day,” Bass said. “If you want to play football, no one should be able to stop you from doing that.”

Both Bass and Braslow are open to the possibility of playing football in college and plan to continue playing the sport for ’Stoga.

Commitment Corner Corner Commitment Lily Bielinski Temple University SPORT: CREW GRADE: 12 Why Temple: “I chose Temple because of the amazing athletic opportunities I am going to have rowing there. I also love the campus, being in the city and I’m excited to stay around the school.”

Courtesy of ‘Stoga Football

Breaking ground: The freshmen football team poses for their team photo. Freshmen Ella Bass and Brooke Braslow (bottom right) joined the team this year as safety/wide receiver and quarterback, respectively.

Sports

Thursday, October 17, 2019

New ’stoga Coaches

11

New field hockey, ice hockey and crew coaches take on Conestoga sports teams

HIGHLIGHT REEL The latest developments in Sports. qualifies

New head girls’ field hockey coach: Regan Marscher Ananya Kulkarni Sports Editor

Regan Marscher played field hockey at ’Stoga from 1991 to 1995. Now she’s back. This time, as head coach.

Intense stress fractures in her senior year forced Marscher to choose between field hockey, the sport she had loved since the eighth grade at T/E Middle School and lacrosse, the sport that she was going to be on scholarship for. She chose lacrosse, playing as a student athlete and becoming captain of the team during her time at Rutgers University.

She eventually became a Division 1 lacrosse coach as well as coaching lacrosse at multiple high schools.

Since moving back to the area Marscher has worked as an assistant coach on the ’Stoga lacrosse team as well as the head lacrosse coach at Baldwin.

She’s stayed with field hockey and lacrosse all these years due to her love for the game itself.

“Field hockey, especially now is a really fast sport, and the skill level needed is super high,” Marscher said. “Being back with field hockey has really made me fall back in love with the sport” But Marscher really first got back into coaching due to her positive experiences as a student athlete and the “life lessons” the sport taught her.

“I just feel most at home on a field. I truly want to stay involved and stay around athletics, and that’s really what’s kept me going with coaching,” Marscher said.

Over the course of this year, Marscher wants the team to keep pushing to make each other stronger together and emphasize the importance of teamwork.

TEMS eighth grader Rishi Srivastava placed fifth in a national squash tournament and qualified for the British Junior Open. tackles

Marscher tries to accomplish this by starting each practice with a talk to reflect on their most recent game.

“For me I think, coming to practice with the right mindset is important and not just going through the motions,” Marscher said.

During practice she goes on to run competitive games which stress particular drills or skills and usually finishes a practice with a scrimmage to apply these skills to a higher intensity setting.

Marscher’s main goal for the season is a victory at the District Championship.

What makes all the practices, drills and scrimmages worth it?

“For me, it’s seeing the girls having learned the value of hard work and teamwork,” Marscher said. “I want them to feel that all the time they’re putting in is worthwhile.”

The Conestoga varsity football team beat Lower Merion 47-6 on Oct. 5. receives

Conestoga sophomore and tennis player Ananya Krishnan received the honor of “Main Line Girls Athlete of the Week.” ranks

The Conestoga girls’ soccer team was ranked ninth nationally by the USA Today/United Soccer Coaches Super 25 poll. fundraises

The Conestoga girls’ volleyball team hosted the Pink-Out fundraiser for breast cancer on Oct. 7.

Alex Gurski/The SPOKE

Flicks: Regan Marscher poses for a photo on Teamer Field on Oct. 4. Marscher joined the coaching staff as head coach this year after working as the assistant coach for ’Stoga lacrosse and field hockey in 2018. Marscher hopes to empahsise the value of teamwork this season.

wins

The Conestoga boys’ varsity soccer team won 1-0 in a Sept. 21 clash with the Haverford School.

New boys’ ice hockey coach: Ross Hyatt Reese Wang Design Editor

Reese Wang/The SPOKE

Skating into a new season: New coach Ross Hyatt prepares to pass the puck to a player during a JV practice on Sept. 26.

Hyatt’s positive experience as a student athlete on the ’Stoga team inspired him to return as a coach this year. Hyatt hopes to further bridge the gap between JV and varsity athletes on the team this season.

Class of 2006 alumnus and new Conestoga boys ice hockey coach Ross Hyatt remembers stepping out onto the ice for the first time when he was five or six.

“My stick got caught on the net, and I knocked the wind out of myself,” Hyatt said.

Encouraged by his hockey-loving family, Hyatt stuck with ice hockey and played through high school. Growing up, he played defense in local recreational leagues before switching to center because he liked the way centers supported their teammates. However, his fondest memories come from playing for ’Stoga.

“My favorite moment was probably making the Flyers Cup

my sophomore year. We had gone through a little bit of a drought as a club, and then getting back into the Flyers Cup was definitely awesome,” Hyatt said.

The team reached the Flyers Cup, a postseason tournament for Philadelphia area high schools, twice during Hyatt’s time in high school, with him as team captain during his senior year. However, it wasn’t until he attended Eastern University, which didn’t have an ice hockey team, that he decided to try coaching.

“I always wanted to teach and mentor kids, and coaching was the step that I made,” Hyatt said.

After college, Hyatt coached at local ice hockey clubs Valley Forge Colonials and Valley Forge Minutemen. His experience coaching a Conestoga player there inspired

scores

him to apply for Conestoga head coach, after previous coach Mike Graves retired. After being hired as both the new varsity and junior varsity coach, Hyatt hopes to connect the teams and develop young hockey players throughout the district.

“JV kids will be able to get some varsity time, and we’ll have more of an opportunity to develop at a faster rate. Our goal is to have everyone who’s playing JV move up to the varsity level,” Hyatt said.

Practices started on Aug. 21 and occur once a week for both varsity and junior varsity teams.

During practices, players warm up with mini games of two-ontwo or three-on-three before completing “flow drills” with lots of skating and opportunities to handle the puck.

Senior defender Kennedy Niness and offender Meghan Wolfe had their first varsity goals as well as junior defender Sofia Ries in the girls’ game against Upper Darby on Oct. 7.

Although practices are tough, Hyatt said that he hopes each player enjoys the opportunity to be on the ice, learning how to be a kind and supportive teammate, and ultimately, a kind and supportive member of society.

“My ultimate goal is always to grow the individual, not necessarily just 100% the player,” Hyatt said. “I hope that players come out of this season as developed young men and better hockey players as well.”

New crew coaches:

Reese Wang, Gavin Merschel & Ananya Kulkarni Design Editor, Staff Reporter and Sports Editor

Ananya Kulkarni/The SPOKE

Goldia Kiteck head Coach

Ananya Kulkarni/The SPOKE

Jess Crosby Head Novice Coach

Ananya Kulkarni/The SPOKE

George twardy JV/V Coach As a freshman at a new school, George Twardy wanted to try something new, so he decided to give rowing a shot. Twardy entered St. Joe’s Prep not knowing anybody and wanted to find a way to get involved and meet new people.

“I thought this might be a good way to meet people and maybe get into something. I figured if I didn’t hear about it, a

Conestoga Crew head coach Goldia Kiteck repeats it every day: “Put the blade in before the legs push.”

Kiteck knows from her experience rowing on the University of California-Berkeley’s varsity crew team that doing so puts your weight in the water and increases speed. Kiteck first tried crew when she walked on the club team at UC Berkeley, where she rowed in both fours and eights, before moving up to varsity and finishing her rowing career at the Vesper Boat Club in Philadelphia. She is currently the head coach of Conestoga Crew.

Conestoga Crew coach Jess Crosby grew up hearing how much fun her dad had rowing in high school. However, it wasn’t until after she was cut from the school volleyball team her junior year and given the ultimatum of “You’re either doing a sport or getting a job,” that she decided to give crew a try.

“Once I got into it after a few weeks, I was like, ‘Okay, (my father) was right. I should have listened to him earlier,’” Crosby said.

Crosby started as a coxswain, someone who sits opposite rowers to motivate and steer them,

bunch of other people didn’t either, and we’d all be new at something,” Twardy said.

Eventually, rowing worked out for Twardy, and he accepted a scholarship to Drexel University. Throughout his years rowing, he looked up to his coaches, which inspired him to become a coach himself.

“My coaches were an inspiration to me and just rowing in the real world, I really wanted to give back,” Twardy said.

Post-graduation, Twardy volunteered as a coach at Drexel.

After searching for a coaching position, Twardy heard from a friend about the opportunity to coach at Conestoga.

“I love being out on the river everyday; it’s what I want to do,” Twardy said

Kiteck received her first taste of coaching at UC Berkeley, where she mentored young rowers.

“If the coaches wanted someone to get technically better at rowing, they’d often pair me with them in a smaller boat, and we’d row together,” Kiteck said.

Kiteck began coaching as an assistant coach at Conestoga during the fall of 2018. After the head coach left in August 2019, Kiteck submitted her resume to a board of Conestoga Crew alumni and parents. She presented the board with her coaching philosophy.

for the Newport Rowing Club in Delaware. She was recruited to St. Joe’s University (SJU), where she coxed for four years.

After Crosby graduated from St. Joe’s University in May 2019, she realized how much she missed the river. Crosby decided to go back to the river and went on row2k.com, where she saw Conestoga Crew’s ad.

As the team’s head novice coach, Crosby will introduce new rowers to crew in the spring. She hopes her coaching will convince them to love crew.

One of his favorite aspects of coaching is when everything “clicks;” the rowers find their rhythm and can push the boat down the river as one quick, powerful motion. He is very “efficiency-motivated” and an advocate for excellent technique.

“If you’re dedicated to move your boat, you’re not going to lack on power, but (we need to) focus on the form a little bit,” Twardy said.

Twardy also wants success from his entire team.“It is easy to take thirty people and just focus on four of them and make them fast. It’s an art, it’s another thing, to make your entire program as fast as it can (be),” Twardy said. “So, trying to focus on everybody is a challenge in sorts, but we’re all very motivated to do that. We all want to see everybody succeed.”

“A team is built on and relies on the mental, physical and emotional growth of every single athlete,” Kiteck said.

To manage Conestoga Crew’s program, Kiteck increased the amount of time she spent on the Conestoga Crew Club from 15-20 hours a week as an assistant coach to 20-30 hours a week. During this time, she sends emails, plans workouts, sets up lineups, gets race schedules, manages assistant coaches and goes down to the boathouse to adjust boats.

During practices, rowers perform drills focusing on different parts of the rowing stroke,

Courtesy Allie Nussbaum

Allie Nussbaum JV/V Coach

Courtesy Garren Best

Garren Best JV/V Coach Garren Best, decided to try rowing competitively during his junior year of high school. Rowing, as it turns out, was the perfect fit.

Best attended Unionville High School, where he helped found a rowing club. He achieved multiple records and earned a scholarship to St. Joe’s University. Best said

such as the arms and legs. Once a week, Kiteck plans quads made of rowers of different skill levels so that the younger rowers can have the feeling of a more experienced boat. Although practices are strenuous, Kiteck hopes the team enjoys the hard work.

“I’m hoping that everyone this year feels a sense of community within the team,” Kiteck said. “No matter what kind of day it is, you’re going out there and you’re accomplishing some good hard work on the river, or when we go to races, we’re showing them what Conestoga Crew can do.”

Allie Nussbaum wanted to find a sport that suited her, and rowing turned out to be just that. While many people involved with crew are rowers, Nussbaum became a coxswain. Since rowing is a technique-based sport in which coaches cannot help from the sidelines, a coxswain can serve as a “coach in the boat” and can make or break a strong boat. Since Nussbaum said she struggled with athletics sports in general, becoming a coxswain meant being able to participate and learn the skill of rowing without having to be the strongest athlete on in the water.

Rowing was a sport that she the team his freshman year was “horrendous.” Yet after his senior year, they were ranked 17th in the country. His experience shaping an average team into a top-notch competitor helped frame his coaching style and experience that rowers see today.

“I know what it takes to get boats to go fast and to improve a program,” Best said.

Best is now using his experience to help Conestoga Crew to compete to the best of its ability as a coach.

Rowing gave Best a lot — a scholarship, better habits and a skill — and he wants to “share the same experience with other people” and “help them succeed at that level.”

“It’s easy in rowing to just pull really really really hard and go down the course,” Best said.

thought she could (and did) “stick with.” Nussbaum competed in rowing from her novice years through college. She eventually received a scholarship to Temple University. Since she wanted to stay involved with rowing after finishing up her rowing years at Temple, she turned to coaching.

The coaching mentality that Nussbaum uses with her rowers is primarily learning-based. She pushes “mindfulness” and “being really aware of what you’re doing and how you contribute to the system,” Nussbaum is excited to start racing and her career as a coach at Conestoga.

He is an avid believer in working “smarter not harder,” and really wants to emphasize the importance of technique this season over other drills that just build power.

Best, who wants to stay active in the sport now that he is coaching, rows competitively for Vesper Rowing Club and will be competing with the Saint Joe’s alumni team and in the Head of The Charles Regatta in Boston.

Best’s expectation for the year is to make it to states and send as many boats as possible to nationals. So far, everything is off to a good start.

“I have been impressed with how remarkably mature and ready-to-learn these Conestoga kids are,” Best said.

Design by Reese Wang

SPORTS

The SPOKE Commitment Corner Page 10

New coaches join the ’Stoga coaching staff Page 11

Freshmen on varsity sports Page 10

Thursday, October 17, 2019 Girls on freshman football team Page 10

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Winds of change: The ’Stoga Pioneers face off against Garnet Valley in a football game Sept. 28. The Pioneers lost 28-56 after an exciting blackout game. The team hopes to turn around their season with changes to both their offensive and defensive strategies.

Football team takes on new changes Devon Rocke Staff Reporter

Fall is in the air, colored leaves are beginning to fall from the trees, and this year’s seasonal winds of change brings a new and improved season for the football team with them.

During this past off-season, coaches looked for new ways to revamp their offensive and defensive strategies. In previous years, the team played pro-style, an offensive scheme with a balance of running and passing. This year, the team

will focus on a more wideopen style of offense.

“We (feel that) one of our biggest strengths (is) our overall team speed,” said Matthew Diamond, the coach of the team for the past two years.

“So we wanted to try to implement an offense that can put (the players) into (open) space and take advantage of their quickness.”

Diamond’s new offense uses four or five receivers depending on the play, meaning that the quarterback has more options for throwing the ball.

This puts more pressure on

the opposing team’s defensive backs and linebackers, whose responsibility is to defend against the pass. Additionally, the team has changed to an RPO (read, pass, option) offense, consisting of reading the defensive end, keeping it or giving the ball off.

Varsity co-captain Scott Smith also sees signs of hope in the team’s performance.

“Our offensive line is now starting to click,” Smith said.

“Once everything gets rolling, I think we’ll be pretty good.”

Changes will be made on the defensive side of the ball

as well. The Pioneers are running a cover three or a cover two defense. In a cover two defense, the free safety, a player who is considered the last line of defense, and the strong safety, a player who stops runs and defends passes, guard the two deep zones of the defense.

A cover three defense is when three defenders line up farthest from the ball, and the strong safety moves closer to the line to play a similar role to linebacker. To put more pressure on opponents in the red zone, the team also plays a man-to-man defense.

“Our goal on defense is to stand our ground and make them feel sorry for playing us,” said senior Chris Radina, middle linebacker on the team.

By adapting to the players’ individual strengths, the Pioneers’ losing margins have significantly decreased and the team is working towards having a winning season similar to the one they had in 2014 when they went 7-4. Although the football team has had its share of struggles in the past, Diamond expects “to continue to build each week and to be better than the day before.”

Sophomore serves: Ananya Krishnan qualifies for state tournament Akshita Joshi Staff Reporter

Akshita Joshi/The SPOKE

Swinging her way to states: Ananya Krishnan steps up to the ball at a local match at the YMCA on Sept. 16. Krishnan recently became the first ’Stoga girls’ tennis player to qualify for the state singles tournament in a decade. She will play at the tournament in November.

The court is filled with an air of anticipation, the only noise coming from rackets hitting the ball, as the sound echoes. For many students, this atmosphere might be intimidating, but for sophomore Ananya Krishnan, it’s nothing but exhilarating.

From long commutes to intense, three-hour tennis practices and homework from difficult classes, Krishnan still manages to maintain her title as the number one singles player at Conestoga. She recently qualified for the state tournament, and plans to compete in November.

Krishnan qualified for state singles this year after competing in the district finals tournament. She will be the first ’Stoga girls tennis player in a decade to compete in state singles. Krishnan will compete in Hershey this November, and is looking forward to the competition.

Krishnan’s coach, Britt Aimone, has also shared her

excitement about Krishnan’s attitude towards the sport.

“Ananya is fierce, but full of grace. She has an innate ability to fight for every point, whether it be three hours into the third set, or while battling an injury. She stays consistent throughout her play,” Aimone said.

In addition to her title at ’Stoga, Krishnan is currently ranked 16th in the state by the Tennis Recruiting Network, and is continually working toward a higher ranking. She plays for the varsity girls’ tennis team as well as The High Performance Tennis Academy outside of school.

At the High Performance Tennis Academy, Krishnan’s practice routine consists of two parts: private lessons where she practices strokes and technique and group lessons where she applies that technique and plays scrimmages against teammates.

Her weekends are reserved for tournaments and matches against other teams. Her routine tends to be very hectic, since her intense tennis regi-

men can make balancing her busy schedule difficult.

“My advanced classes often have a lot of homework, and I struggle with having to go to tennis practice and coming back home to study for hours,” Krishnan said.

Krishnan notes that one of the most difficult aspects of tennis for her is finding the self-discipline to continuously improve.

“Sometimes you feel like you aren’t good enough,” Krishnan said. “If you keep practicing, you will get better every single time, you just have to set your goals and try and work towards them.”

Krishnan admitted that she has lost many matches and tournaments, but said that she used what she learned to improve her technique for the next match. She mentions that there have been times when playing where she was losing by a whole set, but by the end, she was able to bounce back and recover due to her mindset, often times winning the match or tournament altogether.

Krishnan stays motivated because of her family. Her little brother and many of her younger relatives have been inspired to play tennis because of her and they look up to her as a role model.

“A lot of my family members pursue tennis because of me, and I appreciate that and I feel like I need to set a good example,” Krishnan says.

Although Krishnan has overcome plenty of obstacles in the past, she admits that she has often considered quitting throughout her journey, but she always remembers her love for the sport. Krishnan advises aspiring tennis players to “know that they are good enough, and with practice, they can become better.”

Krishnan’s goal for the rest of the school season is to hold onto her number one position in girls tennis. She is planning to compete in the winter nationals and national clay courts before college. In the future, she hopes to gain a higher ranking in Pennsylvania, and eventually a higher ranking in the nation.

SCORELINE

Scores as of 10/8

Football

B Soccer

G Soccer

G Tennis

B XC

G XC

Golf

Volleyball

W

2

11

13

14

L

5

2

0

T

0

2

0

Field Hockey

8

10

10

8

12

3

3

1

3

7

2

0

0

0

0

0

0