Lady Mustangs prep for spring and beyond EXCLUSIVE
Peyton Miller is a senior at Middle Creek and plays soccer for the school She was born in Phoenix, Arizona Outside of school, Peyton enjoys hanging out with her family and friends After school, she plans on continuing her education at Syracuse University and hopes to study journalism
Eve DaSilva is a junior at Middle Creek High School She was born and raised in Raleigh, North Carolina She enjoys playing lacrosse and spending time with friends and family
Sophie Laine is a 16-year-old junior at Middle Creek High School. She has two younger siblings and two cats. She enjoys hanging out with friends and working out and throws for the MCHS track team. After high school, she plans to attend college for Organizational Psychology and find a career in Human Resources.
Hadley Donnell is a junior at Middle Creek High School. She was born in Raleigh, North Carolina. Hadley has one older brother. She enjoys playing tennis and she has been a member of the Middle Creek tennis team for two years. She also loves hanging out with her friends in her free time!
Noah Banta is a junior at Middle Creek High School. He was born in Buffalo, New York but moved to Raleigh, North Carolina, when he was very young. In his free time, he enjoys watching movies, listening to music, reading, and writing about himself in the third person for the school newspaper.
Kiley Carr is a junior at Middle Creek High School. She was born in Boston, Massachusetts, and has two siblings. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with family and friends and dancing.
Paige Herschman is a junior at Middle Creek High School. She plays soccer, which helps her when she has to work in teams with her peers. Paige is interested in seeing what is happening around the world and what her classmates, teachers, and many other people are interested in.
Aiden Mobley is a senior at Middle Creek. He was born and raised in North Carolina and enjoys playing and watching sports, reading, and writing. He will attend college for environmental science and communication.
Szaffi Hock De Leon is currently a 17-year-old junior at Middle Creek High School. She was born in North Carolina. She loves to snowboard, read, write, and sleep. She is currently a varsity swimmer and a lacrosse player at Middle Creek High School. After high school, she plans to attend college at NYU or NC State.
Gabriel Auger is a senior at Middle Creek High School. He was born in Manchester, New Hampshire, and moved to North Carolina when he was 11. His favorite sports team is the Boston Bruins, and he likes snowboarding, which he started when he was five years old.
Liam Debrauwer is a 17-year-old junior at Middle Creek High School. He was born in Cary, North Carolina. He loves to play hockey and video games and watch Carolina Hurricanes and Carolina Panthers games. After high school, he plans to attend a four-year university to pursue a medical career.
Jalexi Huckeba is a junior here at Middle Creek High School. She was born in Raleigh, North Carolina, where she currently resides. Jalexi’s family is part islander, the island being Guam, where her grandparents were born. She especially enjoys quality time with her family and friends. She is also very passionate about dance and plans on pursuing a career as a professional dancer and teacher.
Dylan Axman is a senior at Middle Creek High School and has been part of the men’s varsity lacrosse team for the past four years. After high school Dylan is going to attend Queens University of Charlotte to play Division 1 lacrosse.
Fabian Garcia is 17 and a junior here at Middle Creek High School. He is a born and raised North Carolinian. He enjoys media-related things, whether it's music, movies, or video games in general.
Sebastian Candioti is a junior at Middle Creek High School. He was born in Ojai, California, in 2007, then in 2016 moved to North Carolina. He enjoys swimming and soccer, as well as playing the piano. In his free time, he loves to watch movies, play video games, read, and write. After graduation, he plans to attend film school and work in the movie industry.
Maddie Herndon is a junior at Middle Creek High School. She was born in Atlanta, Georgia. She is on the cheerleading and softball teams. She loves hanging out with her family and friends and spending time at the lake and beach.
Ashton Jackovich is a student at Middle Creek High School who is 18 years old. He has lived in Apex, North Carolina, his entire life. He enjoys watching the Denver Broncos and going to Carolina Hurricanes games.
Casey Jacob is a senior at Middle Creek High School. He was born and raised in North Carolina. He enjoys going to the beach, watching sports, and betting on 12-leg parlays that never hit. He will be attending college for psychology in hopes of becoming a therapist.
Jayce Konowitz is a junior at Middle Creek. He plays on the varsity lacrosse team and has been a part of the team for three years now. When he is not on the lacrosse field he likes to spend time with friends and family, as well as workout.
Mary Lohmeyer is a junior at Middle Creek High School. As a player on the women's lacrosse team, she has a passion for sports along with hiking and reading. When she graduates, she wants to go to college to study wildlife management.
Mayra Rossel is a sophomore at Middle Creek High School. She was born in Raleigh, North Carolina. She was a part of the school's soccer team her freshman year and in her free time, she enjoys hanging out with friends and family.
Maddie Lehmkuhl is a senior at Middle Creek High School. She loves to hang out with friends and family, work out, and go to the beach! She plans to attend East Carolina University and study exercise science and physiology.
Jacob Lewis is an 18-year-old student who attends Middle Creek High School. He was born and raised in Apex, North Carolina. He loves watching Ohio State football, Bengals football, and the Carolina Hurricanes. He also enjoys playing video games and hanging out with his friends. After high school, he plans to attend a four-year university as an undecided major.
Samuel Moser is a 17-yearold writer who was born in Raleigh, North Carolina. He is a junior and attends Middle Creek High School. He is a fan of the Ravens and the Hornets. In the upcoming future, he is planning on learning how to finance and invest his money.
Zak Ossi is a senior at Middle Creek High School who has played on the Middle Creek Men's Soccer team for four years. He plans on attending a four-year university and after college wants to pursue a career in business management.
Carmen Shird is a senior at Middle Creek High School. She was born and raised in North Carolina. She plays varsity basketball. She loves to spend time with her friends during her free time and loves to cook, watch movies, and listen to music.
Finn Rissanen is an 18-yearold senior at Middle Creek High School. He was born in Cary, North Carolina, and has lived here his whole life. Finn has a passion for aviation, cars, and graphic design, and in his free time he textures 3D models for games as freelance work.
Sophia Sica is a junior at Middle Creek High School. She was born in Long Island, New York, and moved to North Carolina at the age of three. She loves to spend time with family and friends, go to the gym, and pet sit. She is also involved in Middle Creek Key Club and SGA.
Welcome back to another issue of the Hoof Print
This issue features many student spotlights, sports updates, an article about our wonderful theater program, and a podcast! We're very excited for you all to read this issue.
After another great week at the Creek, we wish you a happy spring break. Stay safe, and especially have fun!
It’s officially that time of the year for the start of Middle Creek’s softball season! Everyone on the team is unanimously excited for the 2024 season, and the Mustangs are looking forward to a great and successful season!
Senior Leah Gore is committed to playing division one softball at Appalachian State University next year. Leah has been playing softball since she was seven years old and has been a part of Middle Creek’s softball team since freshman year. When asked what prompted her to commit, she responded, “I have been traveling up to the North Carolina mountains my whole life and fell in love with the campus, so it felt like home as soon as I got there. I also absolutely loved the coaches; they were so welcoming and know so much about the game, so I’m so excited to play for them.”
Before every game, Leah always tries to get her hair braided a certain way for good luck, and she emphasized the importance of going through the warm-up like everyone else and doing extra stuff if needed that day When asked what she will miss the most next year, she said, “I will really miss our coach and the girls that I have been playing with since middle school the most ”
Kristen Norton is a sophomore at Middle Creek who has been playing softball for 10 years and has been a part of the MCHS softball team for 2 years.
Kristen is hoping that the team will work together to succeed during games by “communicating more during games, even if it’s talking our teammates up or just letting everyone on the team know what they need to do in order to get the next out.” Some strategies Kristen is planning to follow to stay motivated during this season are focusing on what she does wrong during a game and working on what she can control to be the best she can be for the team. Kristen Norton’s favorite memory of playing Middle Creek softball was from last season when they beat both Apex Friendship and Panther Creek in the same week
If you want to see the Middle Creek softball team in action, their next home game is against Cary at 6 pm on March 21st!
The NFL combine is one of the highlights of the NFL offseason, as it lets college players shine. This year ' s combine was one of the most memorable with Xavier Worthy breaking the 40-yard dash record by getting a 4.21.
Not everybody performed at the combine For example, Caleb Williams, who is projected to go first in the draft, did not participate and it made fans upset Fans did not like his response, leading to many saying he has a huge ego Williams said, “I don't think I’m not gonna be selected No. 1,” which led to people being upset at him. Fans don’t like how he’s been acting recently, which led to people hating him and sending him messages saying they hope he fails in the NFL.
The players who shined the most were Xavier Worthy and JJ McCarthy. JJ McCarthy had his draft stock go way up, and some people are saying he’s a top-5 pick now. McCarthy also had good interviews and he showed that he has confidence in the league. During the 3-cone drill, McCarthy had the fastest time among all the quarterbacks who participated in it, getting 6 82 seconds
The player who disappointed the most was Miami safety Kamren Kinchens He was one of the top safeties, but he tied with the slowest 40-second time among safeties with a 4.65. Not only did he have an underwhelming 40-yard time, he also did badly in the broad jump, getting last place with a jump of 9 feet, 2 inches. After that performance, he will most likely fall far in the draft and will get passed up by many teams.
In this past winter season, the women ’ s basketball team set the record for the best season in Middle Creek history. Led by Coach Harden, they never lost their focus and continued to push themselves to be their best. Along the way, they also had a lot of fun and celebrated with great joy every time they won a game Thanks to their outstanding performance, Middle Creek's women ' s basketball team has set a new standard of excellence that will be remembered for years to come
The women ' s Middle Creek basketball team had an outstanding season, breaking many records both as a team and individually. Coach Harden proudly shared some of these records. He says, “This group has the best regular season record for women ’ s Middle Creek basketball.” The team finished with a remarkable 226 record, making it the best regular season record in the history of the women ' s basketball team. As a team, they also broke records for the most steals, most three-pointers in a season, most wins in a season, and most three-pointers in a single game.
There were some impressive individuals who set records in basketball. Alysia Pergerson, Joi Pergerson, and Ava Skladanowski were among them. Alysia holds the records for the most career steals, most steals in a single season, and most steals in a game. Ava holds the records for the most three-pointers in a season and in a game Joi set the record for the most points in a season and this season, she reached the milestone of scoring 1,000 career points
Coach Harden's favorite moments of the season were the Christmas tournament and their last regular-season game against Panther Creek. He says, “My favorite part was being there for the good points of winning the games that we won, and playing in the Panther Creek game at the end of the season It was probably the best game, going into overtime Even though we didn’t end up winning it, in terms of competitiveness it was probably one of the top two games in my career of the best basketball I had seen Even though we didn’t end up winning it, that was a great game, and I had a lot of coaches reach out to me and say how exciting the game was and the team.”
During the game against Panther Creek, the tension and competition between the teams started to intensify. Despite not winning, the girls played very well. Many spectators claimed it was one of the best high school basketball games they had ever seen, praising the girls for their outstanding performance.
The team also participated in the Christmas tournament. They won the tournament and everyone played amazingly well. This part of the season was the most memorable for many players and they considered it to be their favorite part
The Middle Creek women ' s basketball team's record-breaking season shows the immense talent, dedication, and passion of young female athletes, leaving behind a legacy that will be remembered for years to come
BY: MADDIE HERNDON
BY AIDEN MOBLEY
On January 21, Caitlin Clark scored 45 points for the then-second-ranked Iowa Hawkeyes, but it wasn’t enough to avoid the upset at Ohio State or the scary collision she suffered in the subsequent court storm An oblivious Buckeye fan ran into Clark head-on as she jogged toward the exit, knocking her to the floor and sparking an uproar of players, coaches, and media members urging for a ban on court storming.
Nothing ever came of it, and debates fizzled out. That is, until about a month later when, Wake Forest, as 2.5 point favorites, “upset” Duke in Winston-Salem. It was a much-needed win for the NCAA Tournamenthopeful Demon Deacons, and exultant fans rushed the court, with many reaching the playing area before the final buzzer sounded. One of these fans collided with Duke forward and likely 2024 NBA draft lottery pick Kyle Filipowski. He sustained an apparent knee injury and limped off the court, surrounded by a protective horde of Duke staff and coaches.
In the postgame press conference, a furious Jon Scheyer, Duke's head coach, asked, “When are we going to ban court storming? Like, when are we going to ban that? How many times does a player have to get into something where they get punched, or they get pushed, or they get taunted right in their face?”
I’m with Coach Scheyer. This is, quite literally, madness, not the kind of (March) madness that brings buzzerbeaters and shock upsets that propel an obscure school into the national spotlight I’m talking about the type of madness that consists of preventable injuries and security breaches
In the women ’ s SEC Championship game between South Carolina and LSU, a spectator leaped from the stands when a fight broke out between the two teams, attempting to engage before being detained Multiple other fans tried to do the same but were stopped before reaching the court
College basketball fans are becoming too comfortable. They have no right to be on the court, yet they believe they do because they so often have unobstructed access.
Court storming is dangerous and unprofessional, and frankly, it makes no sense. Fans aren’t allowed on the court before or during the game, and court or field storming isn’t tolerated in a single professional sports league. So why is it allowed to continue in college athletics?
Money, as always. Court storms attract attention, get clicks, and increase attendance. It’s also expensive to increase security and other preventative measures, so colleges have made the decision that they’re better off letting the fans storm the court. Well, it’s time to make it even more expensive to let the court storm happen than to stop it. Fines galore, forfeits, and even prosecution seem to be viable options. After all, it is trespassing.
College football gaming is rapidly undergoing big changes, as the trailer has been released for the next college football game. It has been a long time since the last NCAA game. This has led fans and players’ excitement to grow as they wait for this iconic game to come out.
Among all the important components of the new NCAA football game, the most remarkable one is the realism and authenticity that the game will have With technology advancements, the builders have gained many new opportunities to recreate college football arenas with many details These details go beyond the basic visual aspects; it involves all the small thrilling feelings you would have if you were inside the arena
As the IGN website reports, the game offers players a wide spectrum of universities, among which there are teams of top programs from major conferences like the SEC, ACC, and the Big Ten That way you can act as the main decision-maker for your college team, taking on their opponents in the most exhilarating clashes with strength and strategies copied from real games.
Also, the new college football game combines all the new industry developments, which are designed to elevate the experience of the game and have an impact on the players and the viewers. The game also involves recruiting high school prospects that could change your program.
The online multiplayer mode of the game is a new addition that allows the players to compete with friends and others from around the world in a fight for the college football national championship. This improves the level of excitement and competitiveness, and it creates a community full of college football game lovers.
Ultimately, the launch of a brand new college football game indicates an exciting innovation in the sports gaming industry. With advances in realistic details and total involvement, it intends to take the breath away of the players as well as viewers for a long time.
In the last publication, I covered NHL trades from January 1st to February 22nd. However, the deadline for NHL trades was March 8th, so many trades had yet to be made. We started with the Pacific division last time, so this time, we will start with the Atlantic division.
For our first team of the Atlantic, the Boston Bruins obtained Pat Maroon from Minnesota and Andrew Peeke from Columbus. The Buffalo Sabres obtained Bowen Byram from Colorado, Calle Sjalin, and a conditional seventh-round draft pick (2024) from the Florida Panthers, a fourth-round draft pick (2024) from the Philadelphia Flyers, a seventhround draft pick (2025) from Montreal, and a seventh-round draft pick (2025) from San Jose The Detroit Red Wings acquired Radim Simek and a seventh-round draft pick (2024) from San Jose Next we have the Florida Panthers, who obtained Vladimir Tarasenko from the Ottawa Senators, Kyle Okposo from Buffalo, and Mangus Hellberg from Pittsburgh. The Montreal Canadiens acquired Jacob Perreault from Anaheim as well as a conditional thirdround draft pick (2025), ending with Arnaud Durandeau from New Jersey. The Ottowa Senators acquired a conditional fourth-round (2024) and a third-round draft pick (2025) from Florida. The Tampa Bay Lightning obtained a conditional fourth-round draft pick (2025) in a trade between Edmonton and Anaheim, Anthony Duclair along with a seventh-round draft pick (2025) from San Jose, and Matt Dumba with a seventh-round draft pick (2025) from Arizona. The Toronto Maple Leafs, in a three-team trade with Anaheim and Carolina, obtained Ilya Lyubushkin, Kiril Slepets, and Joel Edmundson from Washington, Cade Webber from Carolina, and Connor Dewar from Minnesota
For our first team of the Metro, the Columbus Blue Jackets acquired Malcom Subban from St. Louis, Jakub Zboril, a third-round draft pick (2027) from Boston, and a conditional fourthround draft pick (2026) from the Rangers. The Carolina Hurricanes obtained a sixth-round draft pick (2024) from a three team trade with Toronto and Anaheim, another sixth-round draft pick from Toronto, Jake Guentzal and Ty Smith from Pittsburgh, and Evgeny Kusnetsov from Washington. The New Jersey Devils, in a three team trade with Dallas and Calgary, acquired a fourth-round draft pick, Kurtis Macdermind from Colorado, a third-round (2024), second-round (2025), and fourth-round (2025) draft pick from Winnipeg, Jake Allen, and Nathan Légaré from Montreal, and Kaapo Kahkonen from San Jose The New York Rangers obtained Alex Wennberg from Seattle, Chad Ruhwedel from Pittsburgh, Nic Petan from Minnesota, and Jack Roslovic from Columbus The Philadelphia Flyers acquired Ryan Johansen and a first-round (2025) draft pick from Colorado, a fifth-round (2024) draft pick from a three-team trade with Calgary and Vegas, Erik Johnson from Buffalo, and Denis Gurianov from Nashville. The Pittsburgh Penguins obtained Michael Bunting, Ville Koiven, Cruz Lucius, Vasili Ponomarev, a conditional first-round (2024), a conditional fifth-round (2024) draft pick from Carolina, a fourth-round (2027) draft pick from the Rangers, and Ludovic Waebe along with a conditional seventh-round (2027) draft pick from Florida. The Washington Capitals acquired a second-round (2024) and a fourthround (2026) draft pick from Vegas, a thirdround (2024) and fifth-round (2025) draft pick from Toronto, and a third-round (2025) draft pick from Carolina
BY GABRIEL AUGER
Moving West, the first team of the Central, The Arizona Coyotes, obtained a fourth-round (2027) draft pick from Edmonton, a sixth-round (2024) draft pick from Nashville, and a fifth-round (2027) draft pick from Tampa The Colorado Avalanche acquired a seventh-round (2024) draft pick and Zakhar Bardakov from New Jersey, Sean Walker and a fifth-round (2026) draft pick from Philadelphia, Casey Mittelstadt from Buffalo, Brando Duhaime from Minnesota, Yakov Ternin and Graham Sward from Nashville, and a fifth-round (2024) draft pick from Anaheim. In the Chicago Blackhawks only trade, they obtained a fifthround (2024) draft pick from Nashville. The Dallas Stars acquired Chris Tanev and Cole Brady from a three team trade with Calgary and New Jersey, along with Emilio Petterson from Calgary. The Minnesota Wild obtained a third-round (2026) draft pick from Colorado, a conditional sixth-round (2026) draft pick, Luke Toporowski from Boston, Turner Elison from the Rangers, and a fourth-round (2026) draft pick along with Dmitry Ovchinnikov from Toronto. The Nashville Predators acquired Jeremy Hanzel and a third-round (2025) draft pick from Colorado, Anthony Beauviller from Chicago, Wade Allison from Philadelphia, and Jason Zucker from Arizona. The St. Louis Blues only trade was with Columbus, where they were given future considerations. The Winnipeg Jets obtained Colin Miller and Tyler Toffoli from the New Jersey Devils in two separate trades.
For the first team of the Pacific, The Anaheim Ducks acquired a first-round (2024) draft pick, a conditional fourth-round (2025) draft pick from Edmonton, Jan Mysak from Montreal, and Ben Myers from Colorado. Additionally, in a three team trade with Toronto and Carolina, they obtained a third-round (2025) draft pick The Calgary Flames obtained Artem Grushnikov, a second-round (2024) draft pick, and a conditional third-round (2026) from a three team trade with Dallas and New Jersey; Daniil Miromanov, and a conditional first-round (2025) draft pick in another three team trade with Vegas and Phildepha, Riley Damiani from Dallas, and Nikita Okhotivk from San Jose
The Edmonton Oilers acquired Adam Henrique, Sam Carrick, a seventh-round (2024) draft pick, and right to reserve Ty Taylor from Anaheim, and Troy Stecher, along with a seventh-round (2024) draft pick from Arizona. In The Seattle Krakens only trade with the Rangers, they obtained a second-round (2024) draft pick and a conditional fourth-round (2025) draft pick. The San Jose Sharks acquired Jack Thompson, and a third-round (2024) draft pick from Tampa Bay, Klim Kostin from Detroit, David Edstorm, a first-round (2025) draft pick from Vegas, a fifth-round (2024) draft pick from Calgary, Vitek Vanecek, a seventh-round (2025) draft pick from New Jersey, and Devin Cooley from Buffalo. For the final team that was active during the deadline, the Vegas Golden Knights obtained Anthony Mantha from Washington, Noah Hanifin in a three team trade with Calgary and Philadelphia, and Tomas Hertl, a third-round (2025) draft pick, and a third-round (2027) draft pick from San Jose.
For the past year, The Charlotte Hornets have had many struggles, from players getting injured to some getting arrested Currently, the Hornets are the 13th seed and lost to the Wizards and Pistons in their last 3 games. These teams mentioned happen to be contending for the worst record as well.
This team is horrible and always a disappointment every year. This team has great players with a lot of potential, but most of the time the effort seems off.
Thankfully, this post-all-star-break part of the season has been infinitely better than the first half.
The Hornets had a great trade deadline, getting rid of Gordon Hayward, which was overdue Gordon Hayward always seemed distant from the team and was just a waste of money He was alway injured or playing horribly Terry Rozier was a good scorer, but he just chucked shots up and was inefficient PJ Washington was a good role player at times but showed no effort other times.
On the upside, Charlotte gained Seth Curry and Grant Williams, two solid veteran role players who can contribute to winning from the Mavericks. We also got Tre Mann from the Thunder, who has turned into a very promising and good young player. Most importantly, we have our rookie Brandon Miller, who has proved to be a great scorer and very reliable. He resembles a young Paul George.
The Hornets have been bad but it's starting to look up for the team since the trade deadline
Ariel Henry, the U S -backed Prime Minister of Haiti, has agreed to resign after deadly gangs, armed with guns trafficked from the United States, attacked several police and military institutions in the country's capital of Port-au-Prince While the U S military was able to airlift several non-essential personnel members from the American embassy, thousands of Haitians are stuck within the countries borders looking for escape
The country declared a three-day state of emergency on March 4th after gangs stormed the country's two biggest jails. This siege led to over 3,000 prisoners’ escape. Some, but not all, of the criminals are violent and dangerous, with many being among the likes of murderers, kidnappers, and sexual predators.
Jimmy Chérizier, a Haitian gang leader and former policeman, has been a leading voice in the insurrection. He claims for the violence to be a revolutionary cause rather than one of criminal intent. Chérizier was quoted saying in a 2023 interview with the Associated Press:
“I’m not a thief. I’m not involved in kidnapping. I’m not a rapist. I’m just carrying out a social fight.”
Haiti is a country with a history of revolutions since the late 18th century, when Haitian slaves revolted against their white masters. In 2004 the Haitian Coup D’etat occurred, where the National Revolutionary Front for the Liberation and Reconstruction of Haiti removed the at-the-time president of the country, Jean-Bertrand Aristide, after months of armed conflict.
With this history it's easy to wonder if Chérizier is purposefully using mentions of revolution to cloud and hide a more vicious intent
Iceland: the land of beautiful small towns, spectacular scenery, and of course, volcanoes. Iceland’s Blue Lagoon, one of its main tourist attractions, is a spa created from geothermal seawater, and it has recently been exposed to the astonishing works of geology.
As Iceland is located on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, it is within two tectonic plates making direct contact with each other: the North Atlantic plate and the Eurasian plate This seismic activity can be felt all across the island country and can prime Iceland’s many volcanoes to a point where a threat of an eruption could become serious Eruptions every few decades have been the norm for around 1,000 years
To list a few examples, Reykjanes volcano erupted on the 8th of February, spewing lava and smoke all over A magma eruption had occurred on March 2nd, and on the night of March 12th, a total of 22 earthquakes were recorded in the south side of Reykjanes peninsula’s newly formed magma tunnel. The town of Grindavík is located in this southern peninsula region, with the Blue Lagoon just a mere 3 miles away from its town center. This magma tunnel runs from under the town into the sea, and it is notably a very shallow distance to the bottom.
Because of this, sinkholes have started appearing in the town. On March 12th, 10 million cubic meters of magma were recorded to have accumulated in the Reykjanes volcano’s magma chamber, so with an impending eruption likely, and magma flowing closely under Grindavík, things are not looking great.
What has the Blue Lagoon done? As simple as it needs to be, they have evacuated the lagoon first and foremost, and residents of Grindavík have been evacuated as well Undoubtedly, the Blue Lagoon is a large part of Iceland’s economy, though all these natural wonders make me want to visit As the residents and visitors of Iceland begin waiting out the consequences of seismic activity, the future of Grindavík is brought into mind
Every man should periodically be compelled to listen to opinions which are infuriating to him. To hear nothing but what is pleasing to one is to make a pillow of the mind.
-St. John Ervine
Should a SAT score determine if you get into your dream college? In my opinion, I believe that they shouldn't require them.
SAT scores have been key to the college admission process, but that has changed within the past couple of years. They aren't required for every college you apply to, and some are even optional.
After the COVID pandemic in 2020, it was harder for students to take these tests. For many people, this move would only be temporary, but some colleges still don't require it up to now. However, recently, there has been debate on whether colleges should start requiring these test scores again.
On one side, these tests are still required because if you are planning on going to a big college, these schools tend to rely on test scores due to them having large applicant pools, and with these scores they can better select the students whom they feel are good at test-takings
Another reason to continue test scoring is that these test scores contain great academic information that can help see how successful they can be in and after college
The other side of these tests and why they shouldn't be required is that the students could find preparing and studying for them to be extremely stressful. I do not believe that a single score should determine what you can achieve academically or how well a student can succeed in college.
Lastly, the students that have the resources to study prior to the test with a tutor or are able to afford one have a bit of an advantage; therefore, they are likely to prepare for the test and get a better score.
After looking at these reasons, do you think colleges should still require SAT scores?
Middle Creek students are known for making it back to class at the last minute from lunch They race back (doing the speed limit) to school grounds and leap across the classroom line while the bell rings.
This is because of the unfortunate distance between most of the common lunch spot locations and our school, besides students' homes. Bojangles, McDonald's, and Hibachi Bowl are ten minutes from our school. Harris Teeter and Costco are eight minutes away. Don't forget you have to drive back, so that's only half of the time we have to spend driving during lunch.
With each of those locations, if they’re packed with people, the time to get your food made and delivered to you at your table takes another 5 minutes, leaving only 10 minutes to actually eat.
The only other option that is faster to get to (7 minutes) and gets your food out faster than all the other fast food restaurants is Chick-fil-A The staff is friendly and remembers students' orders, so it's quick and easy You can order it from your phone so your food is ready for you when you arrive at the restaurant
When A lunch students returned on 3/8/24, I asked 20 of them what their favorite lunch spot was. 2/20 sent Mcdonald's, 3/20 said Hibachi Bowl, and the last 15/20 chose Chick-fil-A. Yes, CFA can be a little more expensive, by an average of 2 dollars a meal, than the other food choices on our list, but the food quality and speed, along with a family-like atmosphere, are what you ’ re paying for.
After reviewing the evidence I collected, I can conclude that the majority of Middle Creek students agree that Chick-fil-A is the best lunch spot due to its distance, speed of service, and quality.
Each year Middle Creek High School has the amazing opportunity to host a play that utilizes people of all abilities and focuses on building character traits such as perseverance, kindness, integrity, and respect. This year we will be doing Annie, which will be taking place at the end of May. This play is based on volunteers, but we would love to see each and every one of you participating
This play allows students to express themselves and everything they have learned regarding this play in the last couple of months The goal is to build relationships and to allow students who seldom get recognition to get a standing ovation in front of their families. Many students that participate in this play enjoy being on stage and hearing the crowd cheer.
Mr. Vickery is an MU teacher and the golf coach at MCHS. He is in charge of the play and does a great job of including everyone. Mr Vickery always has a smile on his face and wants everyone to have fun with whichever role they have in the play. His favorite part of the play is “seeing the relationships develop between all types of people regardless of ability, gender, religion, race, etc. during practices and seeing them all on the same page for the show.”
Zacai Rogers is a senior here at Middle Creek and is planning on being in the play for the second year in a row He also participates in the class PEPI, which works with Mr Vickery’s and Mrs Truska’s classes during the week Zacai exclaimed, “Being a part of the play opened my eyes to see how much of a community a school can become ” He is very good at bringing energy to the stage and is always willing to help others with directions if needed. Zacai stated, “The first year it was quite scary because I didn’t know what to expect, but I would never go back in time. This year I am so excited because it is Annie and I know a lot more people participating in it as well.”
ITS, or the International Thespian Society, is a theater honors society ITS students go on field trips and travel to events, representing thespians at Middle Creek MCHS has had students in ITS for years, and this year was no different On March 1st through 3rd, Middle Creek’s ITS students packed their bags and jumped on a bus for ECU, where the 2024 North Carolina Thespian Festival was held.
The Thespian Festival is an annual event for North Carolina Thespians to go to workshops, participate in showcases in front of judges, and hold many competitions, like the theater Olympics. This festival was a place for theater kids from different schools around North Carolina to come together to be taught by professionals to improve their theater skills, whether that be directing, light, sound, acting, hair and make-up, dancing, singing, acting, or costume design.
Along with these workshops, there was a chance for thespians to perform or give presentations in front of judges to qualify for international competitions
One of these presentations was done by Reece Eaton, a Middle Creek junior, who gave a presentation on her process as a stage manager in front of a panel of judges She explained, “The judges look at your organizational skills and your communication skills that will feed into future careers. ” The judges base the score on a rubric that spans from “fair,” the lowest score, to “superior,” the highest score. “I got a superior,” Reece said, “ so I qualified for internationals.”
BY: MARY LOHMEYER
Another successful performance was a duet to the song “In His Eyes,” from the musical Jekyll and Hyde by Frank Wildhorn. Gemma Gilbert, a Middle Creek junior, and Wren Waldrup, a Middle Creek senior, paired up for this performance. Wren said, “Our duet song received straight superiors from every judge.”
In addition to the duet, Wren performed a solo performance, singing “There’s a Fine Fine Line,” from the movie Avenue Q by Jeff Whitty This showcase was also extremely successful, as Wren received two rubrics with straight superiors, and one with three superiors, and two excellent
Aside from the workshops and showcases, another part of the Thespian Festival was its location Being on a college campus was a great experience for the students participating in the field trip. “I loved ECU,” Brinn Flohr, one of Middle Creek’s Thespians explained. “It was so fun!”
Whether it was the workshops, showcases, or experiencing college life at ECU, the Middle Creek Thespians had an invigorating experience at Thesfest and are excited to use the new skills they learned in the workshops in future performances for Middle Creek and beyond.
This world is but a canvas to our imagination.
-Henry David Thoreau
Entertainment fans have been intensely engaged in celebration and conversations for the past few months. The annual film and television award season concluded last weekend with the 96th Academy Awards Ceremony.
Talk show host Jimmy Kimmel returned to host the event, which also featured musical performances by Billie Eilish, Jon Batiste, and The Osage Singers. Eilish and her brother Finneas took home the Oscar in the Best Original Song category, for their collaboration on “What Was I Made For” from Barbie. Also nominated for the category from Barbie was “I’m Just Ken”, which was performed by Ryan Gosling, with special appearances from Slash, Wolfgang Van Halen, and his Barbie costars. The performance featured over 65 dancers and musicians, creating the largest musical event in Oscars history
The real star of the show was Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer, which won 7 awards out of 13 nominations Nolan himself won Best Director, the first Oscar of his career Cillian Murphy and Robert Downey Jr became first time winners as well, taking home awards for Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor, respectively The film also won awards for Original Score, Film Editing, and Cinematography.
The most shocking and heavily debated award was the Best Lead Actress category. Much of the marketing for this year ’ s Oscars was based on Lily Gladstone, the first Native American actress to be nominated in the category. Many were surprised when the award went to Emma Stone, despite the Academy using Gladstone’s potential historic win as a major selling point for the event. Stone won for her role in Poor Things, which won a grand total of 4 awards out of 10 nominations. The film received Oscars for Makeup and Hairstyling, Costumes, and Production Design. These 3 categories were considered a toss-up between Poor Things and Barbie, which despite being the biggest film of the past year, only took home 1 award out of 8 nominations.
The only other film to win multiple awards was The Zone Of Interest, which won Best International Feature and Best Sound Director Jonathan Glazer gave a powerful speech while accepting his award, calling attention to ongoing world conflicts Additional winners include Godzilla: Minus One, a relatively low-budget film, which took home the award for Best Visual Effects Da’Vine Joy Randolph won Best Supporting Actress for The Holdovers Hayao Miyazaki’s The Boy and the Heron beat out Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse for Best Animated Feature, and War is Over! won Best Animated Short. Best Picture nominees American Fiction and Anatomy of a Fall also won awards for Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Original Screenplay, respectively.
The next Oscars ceremony will be held in the Spring of next year, with films like Dune: Part Two and the sequel to Joker being strong award contenders.
At the 2024 International Berlin Film Festival or “Berlinale,” history has been made with the first Argentine film ever to win the Golden Bear for best short film Francisco Lezama’s Un Movimiento Extraño, or An Odd Turn, is a film which covers the story of an Argentine security guard who loses her job and becomes immersed in the US dollar black market The film has been praised for it’s technical competency and clever, witty commentary on the current economic and social landscape of Argentina
Francisco Lezama has made several well-reviewed short films, including Yet it Remains, Frankenstein’s Bride, and Dear Renzo. Through these works Lezama has exhibited a mastery of social satire for which he has received several awards. But none of his films have been so acclaimed and influential as his 2024 short An Odd Turn. Outside of increasing Lezama’s notoriety as a filmmaker, An Odd Turn’ s recognition at the Berlinale marks an important milestone for Argentina as a whole.
Argentina has long faced a tumultuous political and economic landscape, with corruption running rampant throughout all facets of the government and the economy cycling between comfortable heights and devastating lows. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, Argentina’s already shaky economy faced a sharp downturn, with inflation increasing at a rapid rate, reaching around 211% in 2023. This economic downturn has caused people in Argentina to turn to unsanctioned means in order to secure their living.
The drastic decrease in the value of Argentina’s official currency, the peso, has lead to the establishment of a black market for US dollars, also called the “Blue Dollar Market.” According to Business Insider, the unofficial exchange rate of US dollars in Argentina has reached a staggering 60,000%. Behind closed doors, families stash hoards of blue dollars in cabinets, safes, and underneath beds as a way of protecting their savings, which would otherwise be at risk of dropping in value if held in pesos
In his film An Odd Turn, Francisco Lezama discusses these issues through a satirical lens, in which the story is cleverly relayed to the audience in an entertaining way while at the same time providing an in depth exploration of the real issues faced by the Argentine people The film’s win at the Berlinale marks the first time a film discussing these issues has gained widespread notoriety With this new milestone, awareness and discussion surrounding these societal problems might spread, and the film could perhaps spur progress in one day finding a way to overcome the issues which face the Argentine people.
Here I present some music albums I personally recommend, coming from different genres and artists that most people probably haven't heard of. My first album pick I'd recommend is a hip hop collab album by MED titled Bad Neighbors, and what's interesting about this album is that the album has two versions with different songs in each while keeping some original songs. Now this album is a very unique album as I said earlier It's a collab album between MED, Madlib, and Blu, who all work frequently with each other What really stands out on this album from their other collab is the unique features provided on the album, like MF DOOM and Anderson Paak, but also having underground artists on the album to shine some light on them. Plus, the production on the album is phenomenal thanks to producer Madlib, who is considered to be an amazing producer in the hip hop community.
My second pick is an alternative album titled How Do You Sleep at Night by Teezo Touchdown, who most people have probably heard of. He is an artist who's been doing mostly features for other artists like Travis Scott, Drake, lil Yachty, and Tyler, the Creator. But at the end of last year he released his first album. The album is very much a genre bender, not being afraid to have different tones in each song, and you can very much see it in his appearance too. He looks like he belongs in an entirely different genre, but when you listen to his work he proves you wrong, intentionally trying to say, “Never judge a book by its cover ”
The last album I'd recommend is an R&B album titled Absolutely by Dijon, who I recently discovered and is currently an up-and-coming artist The album has no features at all with production and songwriting done by him. Dijon has a smooth flow through the album that resonates through one song to the next. It’s almost like being on a boat going down a river, which makes this album so much better, not to mention his voice, which is certainly the star of this album, helping the album stand out from others. It’d be great for more artists to listen to his work and feature him more on other songs.
As the weather is getting warmer, there are plenty more outdoor activities to look forward to The Triangle has many activities for people of all ages and abilities With many markets, parks, and restaurants, there is plenty to explore.
If you have a particular interest in flowers, there are a variety of opportunities for you to view North Carolina's beautiful gardens. Roses are a beautiful flower, and you can view these flowers at The Raleigh Rose Garden, and if you go at the right time you could catch a show from the Carolina Symphony, seeing as they have outdoor shows throughout the spring. The rose garden is a great place to walk around and take pictures; you could even host a wedding there! Further exploring the sector of flowers, you could visit the WRAL Azalea Gardens or the Juniper Level Botanic Gardens. All of these locations are great places to consider for prom pictures!
If you ’ re a fruit lover, you should get excited because strawberries are back in season! This unlocks a plethora of spring activities. Strawberry farms are open again, and it’s the perfect spring activity to go out with your friends and family to get some delicious, fresh strawberries. Popular strawberry farms around the Triangle are DJ’s Berry Patch, Phillips Farms of Cary, and Page Farms. We all know somewhere else you can buy strawberries: farmers markets! The State Farmers Market is open everyday, and as the weather is getting warmer more vendors are taking their goods to the market There are a few more popular farmers markets that you might not know about, such as Moore Square Market, Cary Downtown Farmers Market, and Midtown Farmers Market Those four lesser known farmers markets will open towards the end of April on weekends
Besides sweet berries, the spring weather is perfect for outdoor dining with all of your friends A few nearby places with outdoor seating are Gonza Tacos and City Barbeque Gonza Tacos has great Mexican food with outdoor seating near a lovely fountain and field space. City Barbeque has a great variation of wings, ribs, pulled pork, and more, as well as many appetizing sides. To continue on your outdoor dining experience you could venture to Goodberry’s Frozen Custard. They have delicious sweet treats. Frozen custard is the perfect way to end a warm spring day.
Hopefully you feel inspired to take an adventure this spring to explore local fun and support local business!
Katelyn Griffith is a junior at Middle Creek High School who is a hardworking student who takes her grades very seriously. She is 17 years old and was born in Raleigh, North Carolina. She has been playing soccer for seven years now. She has played on the Junior Varsity Soccer Team at Middle Creek for two years and currently plays for Trinity Soccer Academy, her position usually being midfield.
Her favorite memory from club soccer was going to a college showcase, WAGS She said, “We had three games in which we did well as a team, and we definitely built our teams’ bond there, as we went out to eat all together and go shopping ” Katelyn also said that she looks up to her coach, Elliot She explained how he has helped her grow a lot as a player as he pushes her to be better and work harder
A typical day in the life of Katelyn consists of going to school and going to work at the YMCA, where she usually works with K-1 students, leads the kids through sports, and instructs them on crafts. She also works at Middle Creek Elementary after school with kids, helping them with homework, playing with them outside, doing arts and crafts, etc. Katelyn says she enjoys her job because she is able to build relationships with them and be a role model they can all look up to. Katelyn then goes to the gym to workout or hang out with friends. Katelyn says, “Working out at the gym has helped with my endurance and building muscle to be stronger on the field.”
Mr. Scialdone is an English teacher here at Middle Creek who has taught Katelyn for multiple years, including English 1 Honors and African American Literature Honors He mentioned that Katelyn is an academic weapon, and if he could give any advice for her senior year, he said, “Take classes and things that you are actually interested in, not just all the APs Find what you ' re passionate about and put your energy towards it ”
Katelyn is a rising senior who wants to attend East Carolina University or UNC Chapel Hill and major in nursing. She plans to work in pediatrics.
Josh Riddle is a 16-year-old junior at Middle Creek High School and is heavily involved in student and school activities. I've asked him some questions to get to know him better.
What's your favorite part about being at Middle Creek?
“I definitely hangout with friends and spend time learning new things. I also like to participate in clubs and sports and meet new people.”
What sports do you like to participate in?
Josh is an avid runner and mountain biker. When asked about school sports, he said, “This spring, I'm doing track and running the mile and the 3200-meter races. Last fall, I also ran for the varsity cross country team and ran the five-kilometer event ” When asked about what he does in his free time, he said, “I like to bike in the mountains; it's a fun way to relax and clear my mind ”
What kind of classes is he taking this semester?
Josh is taking AP English Language and Composition, AP Calculus BC, APES, and AP Computer Science Principles. When asked about these classes, Josh stated, “They're pretty hard classes, I'm not going to lie. But they're going to help me out in the future, so it's going to be worth it.”
Are you involved in any clubs or school organizations?
“Sometimes during lunch, I’ll go to the math lab and help kids with their homework as a part of the Math Honor Society. I'm also in the Spanish Honor Society.”
Josh, what's your lunch location?
“If I'm staying on campus, I like to hang out in Dr. Williamson's room and play cards with my friends If I'm going off campus, I like to go to Chick-fil-A ”
And lastly, what are your plans after graduation?
“I want to major in computer science at either UNCChapel Hill or NC State I want to become a programmer because it is a fascinating field that is always growing ”
Avery Scoggins is a senior at Middle Creek and this is her second year here! She is dedicated to school, other people, volleyball, and her future.
he was nominated by her science teacher, Jennifer Kubacki, who states, “Avery is hard-working, she tries to ensure she is always doing her best. She helps other students, especially students who need extra help and attention. She is very patient and welcoming to all She is always happy and is just a pleasure to be around ”
Avery has played volleyball her whole life, and it is something she truly enjoys She won NC MaxPreps Player of the Year last year and plans to continue playing at the University of Arizona. She advises young players who are getting into the sport: “since you can’t start playing travel volleyball until around the age of 12, it's good for you. That way you don’t get sick of the sport because it is new. ”
Avery is very dedicated to her studies and wants to be a physician's assistant or a nurse anesthetist after college. She has loved her experience at Middle Creek and feels that all of the people here are so nice and she has made many great friends Like Mrs Kubacki says, “She is one of those people who make you feel good ”
Ayden Steadman is a sophomore here at Middle Creek! In his free time, he enjoys playing video games and playing flight simulators. Ayden is also on the men ' s tennis team here at Middle Creek! He mentions how he is interested in aviation. He would like to go to the meetings for the aviation club here at Middle Creek, but unfortunately, with it being mid-tennis season, he doesn't have much time to do so. Ayden is in the middle of preparing to get his pilot's license in June or July!
Steadman mentions, “I’ve had one discovery flight, which is just a quick flight to see how you handle flying and see if you like it ” He also tells us that he is currently reading books to prepare himself for the starting process of getting the pilot license In the future, Ayden plans to be an aerospace engineer or pilot He said, “I would like to go to the Air Force Academy or the Naval Air Academy if I were to become a pilot.” It looks as though Steadman has big goals for the future!
One of Ayden’s teachers is Mrs. Johnson, who had Ayden as a student in the fall semester. Mrs. Johnson is the teacher who nominated Ayden for this student spotlight. She had many wonderful things to say about him! She said, “I nominated Ayden because of his unique interests. He is very interested in aviation.''
Mrs. Johnson also added that Ayden is usually quiet in the classroom but can also be a jokester! She said, “He is a quiet jokester - he saves up the really good ones and then lights a fire pretty quickly ” Ayden is a unique student and possesses many exceptional qualities
Ayden is a great student here at Middle Creek and a friend everyone should get to know!
