SPORTS & CLUBS

A Tale of Two Footballs;
​Road to Homecoming

WRITTEN BY JULIO GARCIA
SEPTEMBER 29, 2015

​Things are changing as we know it. Throughout the ten years of our school’s existence, we never got to experience the event that will take place this October. We will have two homecoming games, one fútbol and one football. We often increase our spirit to help our soccer team rise against our opponent, but now there's a new group to cheer for. Enter - football. Our newly renowned “Dawg Pack” has taken the athletic section by storm. Led by Coach Roman, the football team will take the field on October 17 for a game with the familiar Pulaski team; the team we used to share since the beginning of the program. This marks a new era, an era that belongs to the Reagan football identity. But wait, enter Fútbol. The general perception of “soccer” in America has been a negative one due to the lack of interest of the American public. So it’s ironic that in previous years our sole homecoming game was soccer. They’ve become the stamp of Reagan athletics and hope to continue that run. Led by Coach Grihalva, the team looks to continue its fabulous run of form to stamp their ticket for state. So let's recap what both teams are up to, and how they’re preparing for the big day.  A tale of two footballs have been occurring, and they’re both on the road to homecoming.

​Fútbol 

Things started rocky this year for the team. They lost 3  consecutive games to opponents that they beat the previous years. Attacking midfielder Miguel Sanchez called it “humiliating,” saying that “the first three games were against teams we previously beat by mercy rule. It was real humbling.” It appears like everyone felt that way.  However this all changed with the turning point being a 1-0 victory over Riverside. Since then it’s almost been a turn of form. They’ve won  five consecutive games, and in conference, they have a clean sheet in every game but one so far.    

The promise of a good season is upon the soccer team. Everyone on the team expects great things from one another. This is due to the great amount of chemistry that the team has built. Goalkeeper Gonzalo Nieto describes it as “family.” To go deeper, he said, “The team starting had low morale. We understood that we are a great team and we should’ve played better than what we did.” However since the change in form the team really picked up. “We picked up morale by these wins and we just played better. We started talking better, and overall we played good,” said Gonzalo in a very jubilant manner. Miguel also said “When we play together, we do better. It’s common sense.” To be honest, it is common sense. The team mentally is clicking on all cylinders, and it’s a sight to see.

Bradley Tech is no easy feat though, and the team knows that. They did suffer a non-conference loss to the Trojans a while back, but it was a game that was more of a tune-up for the season; however, our boys hate losing. Quite frankly, they aren’t used to losing. “We have to pick it up if we hope not to repeat the last meetings fate,” said Gonzalo. “However, I’m really excited for the game. It’s Tech. We have a good team, they have a good team, so it’s going to be a good match.” That it should be! Tech are higher up the conference table, a table in which Reagan lead. However with Tech and King at our heels, we can expect them to nip at our ankles. “Tech are our biggest rivals. You can argue it’s King; however, I think it’s Tech because every year I played it was them who stood the strongest against us,” added Miguel. Tech has a history of being a nuisance to the team, maybe that's why it’s important we watch. “It’s going to be down to the wire; I can just tell it. I think it’s time to end Tech’s domination,” said Miguel with passion oozing from his mouth. The team really feels passionate about not only this game, but the season in general.

“You know, we have a really strong team. I believe we can make state if we really try. That’s how much confidence I have in this team,” stated Gonzalo. He really believes that, and without question he has a very good reason to believe it too. The abundance of clean sheets is just enough to understand that this team means business. Not only that, this team represent us as a student body, You should support this team too, like Gonzalo said, “We can make it state if we really try.”

NOTABLE UPCOMING GAMES:

• Monday Oct. 5th   : Reagan v. South  @South Stadium
• Wednesday Oct. 7th : Reagan v Hamilton @Hamilton Stadium
• Monday Oct. 12th : Pulaski/Juneau/Arts v Reagan @Pulaski Stadium
• Thursday Oct. 15th : Reagan v. Bradley Tech/Bay view/Carmen @South Stadium  

​Football

Since it’s existence, Reagan’s football has been almost overshadowed by the Pulaski kids. It was basically Pulaski’s team, however we are our own team now. It’s a proud moment within us as a entity. Another proud moment is the varsity team getting its first win in history with a clobbering performance against South, with the score 24-8. This included a dominating run game by Devin Cooper and Jose Silva. The two combined to rush a total of 186 yards against a South team that had no answers. In those 186 yards, there were three touchdowns between the two - and a Quarterback rating of 93.1 by River Gobel, with the highest a Quarterback can get is 158.3.

“It feels pretty good to be a part of this win,” said the captain Baude Seitz. “This is a real kickstarter for the team, for us to get more involved and provide that spark that the team really needs. Also it sets a tone for generations to come. This is documented as the first win, and it’s dedicated to those that helped establish the football team here at Reagan,” he continued. With the historic outing that took place, our team really looks promising. With something to cheer for every friday night, the lights look really bright on our team and they’re ready to perform. A really proud showing by the team, but the grass hasn’t been this green for the whole year.

​Growing pains are the only way to explain the team. Nothing in its first year of existence is going to be sensational; however, the first year is the most important year for any organization. That is no different for our boys in blue. “Despite the losses, the team can really maneuver the ball against teams with brute force. Our first two teams were teams you see in the playoffs every year. And we really help our own, and moved the ball against these teams,” said Baude. The football team  really did make a stand. However this really turned once the injury bug took its affect. Quarterback Caleb Downey went down, and running back Andres Sabala went down with a nasty broken arm. The team had to account for them, and it took awhile.

​Despite that, the team didn’t let it get to their heads. “It wasn’t that bad during the beginning. It gave us an idea on what we were facing and how we had to expand and grow as a team,” Baude said. Confidently he continued, “We never let it go to our mental state.” Which shows the sign of promise like I stated earlier. “Morale only dropped when we didn’t act or feel like a team. It only dropped when people didn’t commit to football every Friday. That’s honestly when my morale dropped, however that only happened once or twice maybe.” Baude said. But with the recent win fresh in their minds, I don’t think that the team will drop anymore. Now the team had its taste of victory, and it’s a sweet one.

Now onto homecoming. A game that couldn’t be more properly placed. The Friday night lights will turn on to showcase two teams whom know each other very well. Our Reagan Huskies will take on the Pulaski Rams in a game with new faces against people the team knew from previous years. “Man, it’s going to be a really good game. It’s our first time playing them and it’s going to be even better since I know some of the people on their team since we were teammates,” Baude said with a devilish grin. This game was always going to be one we look forward too, but since it’s at homecoming that raises the bar just that much higher.

“This game brings us together. It’s not just the people on the field who are apart of this, it's all of us, we all are apart of this,” the captain said. We really all are apart of this, and we should be proud of how far we’ve come.

NOTABLE UPCOMING GAMES:

• Saturday Oct. 3rd : Reagan v Hamilton @Hamilton Stadium
• Saturday Oct. 10th : Reagan v North @Custer Stadium
• Friday Oct. 16th : Pulaski v Reagan @Pulaski Stadium.
  

Career Retrospective for bo ryan

WRITTEN BY JEVEN HORTON
​SEPTEMBER 29, 2015

Why Bo?

It was two months after seeing my favorite team, the Duke Blue Devils, beat my hometown team, the Wisconsin Badgers, by the tip of Justise Winslow’s finger, that I saw on the ESPN, “Wisconsin Badgers Head Coach Bo Ryan plans on retiring after the 2015-2016 season.” This news caught me by surprise because his success over the last two seasons and sudden rejuvenation of Wisconsin's interest in basketball. Granted his extensive and somewhat long career, this news was met with little to no concern from avid basketball fans or even the casual collegiate fan. I even asked some of my friends and family who are mildly into college basketball, and they didn’t really know one thing about him except that he was the coach.

You may be wondering, what is there really to learn about him now? Well, since he’s retiring so soon, it would be best to look back at his career. People just assume he started winning once he went to Madison. But before we delve all into his college basketball career, it'd be best to go back to his beginnings.     


Love for his Father & the Game

​William Francis Ryan was born in Chester, Pennsylvania on December 20, 1947 from parents Butch Ryan and Louise J. Whitledge-Ryan. He would have a sister growing up, Nancy Sipple (née: Ryan). Ryan began to develop a love for basketball and played it at a young age. His father was a highly successful coach for the youth sports clubs and teams in Chester, but Ryan’s father’s greatest gift from coaching was the respect and admiration he received from those he coached as well as the ability coach under-privileged kids and teach them the intricacies of some sports. He did not neglect his son’s development as he also taught Bo the keys to being a successful point guard.

Basketball was not the only sport Ryan partook in. He was his class’ president and went on to letter in all of his sports: basketball, football and baseball. He did all of this while leading his high school basketball team to a 25-1 record in his senior year. Using the skills his father both preached and taught him, as well as his notable high school success, he would go onward to the next level and be the starting point guard in college, at Wilkes University in his home state of Pennsylvania. His passion and intensity for the game would not allow him to step away from basketball, eventually making him decide to pursue coaching and making the young William become the “Bo” we know today.

Coach Bo

​Ryan’s ascension to his current status was a lengthy one. He began coaching and occasionally worked as a history teacher at Brookhaven High School. He would work there for a year until he graduated from Wilkes University and began his graduate work at Villanova University. However, his collegiate career officially started in 1973, when he became the coach of Dominican College of Racine until the school closed down in 1974. His success from Dominican would allow him to get another job back in Pennsylvania. Ryan’s pre-collegiate career was resurrected, and he coached at Sunny Valley high school for two years. His success continue, as he won conference coach of the year in 1976. This honor had allowed him to get a job with the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Although Ryan would be an assistant, his first eight-year stint with the school would prove to be extraordinarily valuable. The poor performances of these Wisconsin teams would leave Ryan to explore his options, which he did. Becoming the coach of UW-Platteville in 1984 proved to be the best decision he made. People began to see his ability to coach and in his 1st year he led the team to a 9-17 record. However, there would be no sophomore slump for Bo, according to his biography in University of Madison, he led the team next year to a 16-11 record that ended with the team exiting in the first round of the NAIA tournament. He continued to build on the team's success as each year went on and fixing the biggest weakness that they had, which was facing divisional opponents. His growth, as well as the team’s, became noticeable in the his fourth year, as the Pioneers boasted a 14-2 divisional record (24-5 overall). They would boast a top three record for some time after that and a string of third round exits would continue to plague the program and Ryan. But in his seventh year as coach, Ryan and the pioneers got over the hump and finally captured their first elusive championship (NCAA D-III Championship). The success would continue as Ryan and UW-Platteville would go on to win three more championships (1995, 1998 and 1999) and cement Ryan record as one of the best coaches in the 90’s. He had several coaching awards to his name, created one of the best defense (in 1997) that colleges had ever seen and had been the winningest coach for UW-Platteville (266-26 / 90.8 winning percentage).

Seeking a bigger test, Ryan rode of into the sunset from Platteville and arrived at UW-Milwaukee. Ryan’s presence created such a stir that it made attendance increase by 60 percent and gave the program it’s first back to back winning seasons. He would eventually hand the program off to Bruce Pearl in order to return to UW-Madison. His first (and only) tenure as the coach of the Badgers in 2001, following Dick Bennett’s sudden retirement, and the uncertainty following Brad Soderberg's ability to be a full-time head coach.

The team was seen as lowly and not many expectations were set for the program. Many believed that Ryan’s exemplary coaching was a byproduct of him leading his program against Division III teams who do not pale in comparison to the Big Ten and Division I schools. However, the team succeeded beyond those little expectations that they had and they did so well they received an invitation to the NCAA tournament. They would ultimately exit in the second round of the tournament but the success would not, as it never did for Ryan. The team would outright win the Big Ten conference for the first time in school history. Then, the success continued and continued to mount up to where we are today. 

Granted, he never took his talents to the professional level, he has given the game of basketball some great professional athletes such as: Devin Harris, Frank Kaminsky and Sam Dekker. He also takes pride in developing players and bonding with them like his father did. This became extremely evident when he stated this in regard to his loss to Duke. According to Kevin Trahan of SB Nation Ryan has been stated as saying, “All the seniors that I've had -- hard to say the word. But every player that's played through the program, okay, we don't do a rent-a-player. You know what I mean? Try to take a fifth-year guy. That's okay. If other people do that, that's okay. I like trying to build from within. It's just the way I am. And to see these guys grow over the years and to be here last year and lose a tough game, boom, they came back.”

This quote’s context should be broadened from just the Duke game, this is the coach that Bo Ryan is. He’s a hard-working man who developed his craft and wants to see those in his program develop like or even better than he thinks they can.

Bo Ryan is one of the greatest, smartest and highest winning coaches that the sport of basketball has the fortune of having. His career could probably never be duplicated, and people should appreciate it while they can this coming October and college basketball season because the last thing he needs to complete his resume would be an NCAA Championship, so don’t be surprised if this March we see Bo Ryan ride off into the sunset into retirement. With knowledge now, maybe you could even cheer a little harder for the Badgers and enjoy a championship a little bit more!      

(UW-Madison Biography Archive)

SB Nation Article on Bo Ryan following Wisconsin's loss to Duke        


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J & J DEBATE #1:
Julio’s Argument: No, they should not. Jeven’s Argument: Yes, they should.

WRITTEN BY JULIO GARCIA & JEVEN HORTON
SEPTEMBER 29, 2015

College athletes are the subjects of debate today. Colleges and corporations receive an abundance of money, and they offer an abundance of scholarships; however, this leaves a huge question. Does the athlete’s performance outweigh the scholarship they receive, and do they deserve the same compensation as professional athletes? Let the J&J debate ensue...

Julio: Alright, so since I’m going to dominate this debate, I’ll start off easy. If you pay every single athlete, wouldn’t you have to pay the rest of the student body too? What gives an athlete the jurisdiction to receive income? If you pay the athletes, then you’d have to pay the science majors for learning science in the same way the basketball player learns basketball in college. It doesn’t make any sense due to the fact that college is a place to learn. Also, where are we going to get the funding for this? Taxpayers aren’t going to bite on the idea of paying students no matter how entertaining they are.     

Jeven: Interesting points, however, the taxpayers do not pay a single penny because of the ridiculous amount of income these programs make, based of the licensing and distribution rights for the schools and anything affiliated with them. This influx of money is spent on other portions of some schools or they just let it burn in their pockets. So, you could say in some cases the collegiate students are helping fund the school in a way. Which is good for some students, however for the students who help create some of that revenue, is quite ludicrous.

Julio: Amazing you’d say that, and a clever idea. However the funding from the television deals are already used. According to the article (see link below), 96% of the funding is already in use. You have to remember that the majority of the deal gets distributed to travel expenses and to actually rent a major location to play in. Also, the NCAA has a program that dedicates a portion of the money to students who are in emergency situations who don’t have the resources to live. Plus the television deals only cover a certain amount of time, so they have to evenly distribute the money throughout the years. That’s why they make so much money, so they can give scholarships to individuals.  

Link: Average Scholarship $ per athlete 

Jeven: That 96% percent figure is an interesting one. To be completely honest, I don't really believe it because of the awful stories that these athletes have about struggling to live on campus and go to school. Some statistics are based off of what these school’s union say. See Shabazz Napier's story (link below) on how the union "distributed" the 4% you think gets trickled down to.

Link: Shabazz Napier on NCAA Unions

Julio: Okay, so you say they need to get paid. However the ironic part is that they do get paid - a lot. College students - who deserve it - get the extra scholarships that the other athletes don’t get. This includes two billion dollars distributed to 348 teams throughout the entire division. This is $13,821 dollars per student. However this doesn’t account that the fact that some of them get four free years of school that they wouldn’t be able to afford without the scholarship. Free school is a feat within itself because people who are like you and I aren’t able to go to school for free, so they get compensated sufficiently.

Jeven: Sure the athletes are covered scholastically. But the extra toll that they put their bodies through along with being a full-time student is, dare I say it, more impressive than the professionals. They put on the same performance as professionals so why not pay them for it. The constant traveling and practicing with the team is an accepted burden, and in some cases makes some athletes even wonder if playing the sports or going to the school is even that important to them. Thus making them reconsider that lifestyle all together.

Julio: Good point, but if they are as good as you say they are, won’t the get compensated thoroughly in the professional level? People get paid an abundance of money already in their respected fields, so why not just wait? And say if they do get injured before they make it pro, isn’t that when the free college becomes more appealing? If you can’t make it pro, can’t you just find a major and stick with it? Honestly if you reach a top level University, can’t you rely on it’s academic programs to guide you to where you need to be? Plus with the whole “extra toll” arguement, I think that anyone who joins something puts an extra toll on themselves. Kind of like us. We put this extra toll writing this, however I don’t feel like I should be paid for this, because I’m not at the top level yet. Everything comes in due time, and if you really want it, the extra toll is nothing to you.

Jeven: Our circumstances are severely different than theirs. I bet if we wrote for the NY Times front page, and we weren't paid a dime, you be offended. It's embarrassing and laughable how much and how they profit off of these kids who thrive to be pros but must act as college students. The opportunity to make millions and truly live their dream is more important than trying to use college levels sports so big names can profit more while you could potentially hurt your future. To some of these kids, the possibility of getting paid millions is more important than having school spirit.

Julio: Why should they get paid when they go to a school with an opportunity to get education that could possibly be better than education anywhere else? People who go to higher level colleges for sports basically get a free ride to study a subject in that top college. If that isn’t enough compensation, then what do you want? It’s amazing to think that free education isn’t enough. It’s greedy to think people want that much. I understand that you’re gifted; however, there becomes a point where you have to realize if you’re that good you’ll receive the payments you feel you deserve in the professional level. Is it that much to wait?   

Jeven: It is that much to wait. Especially considering that some sports may force or have already forced some athletes to go to college. People's lives are in the balance when they are faced with a decision of going to college to make money or make money now and help those in your life. An excellent example of this would be 2015 NBA draft pick Emmanuel Mudiay. He went overseas in China to avoid the NCAA and help his mother out financially. Everyone viewed Mudiay as a potential number one pick out of high school, and figured that it would be best to hone his true craft and not waste time doing what he didn’t feel was necessary. furthermore, in order to avoid future forgoing talent, colleges will need to do the right thing and pay these specially talented individuals what they deserve.

Link: Emmanuel Mudiay forgoing SMU

Julio: That’s a hard choice I admit, and honestly money is a major factor. Maybe moving to China was the best choice for him, but that doesn’t make it the best choice for everyone. It’s one person you named, and it was a weird case. Mudiay is in the NBA now right? So I bet if he would’ve taken a student loan he could’ve paid it right back in a blink of the eye. Even more, he would get the opportunity to work out with people in the same bracket as him. It’s better competition to help him develop. Plus with the financial situation he could’ve taken steps to help lower his tuition. There’s a magnitude of ways for us to lower our tuition, and we’re not top draft prospects. So in theory, there was no reason to go to China, because if there wasn’t a full ride for him anywhere, then he could’ve applied to multiple scholarship programs and received grants.

​Whether to go to college or not is a hard choice, and some people decide to choose other routes than what you expect. However, in theory, the idea of college athletes receiving income is a topic that is considered due to the business of the game. With Jeven arguing yes, and Julio arguing no, it’s hard to see who is right. People are still arguing about this topic, and it seems it won’t be solved for a long while.

Agree? Disagree? Vote with who you agree with and in the next issue we will settle this debate. Also, we will have a new discussion so stay tuned for that! - J&J      

Runner's High: An Interview with Cross Country Captain Andrew Johnson

WRITTEN BY JULIO GARCIA
SEPTEMBER 29, 2015

​When you think of cross country, what do you think of? Maybe you think of the major amount of running and how you’d hate to be in that position. Or maybe you think of the open air and the fresh wind that hits your face as you run miles. Either way you look at it, you see runners everywhere - specifically those on the cross country team that proudly wear the Reagan logo and compete against other runners. A proud individual to wear that logo is Andrew Johnson, the Captain of the cross country team, and one might dare say, he is the best distance runner in the school. Disagree with me? I dare you to challenge that idea, because Andrew might change your mind. Here’s what the captain had to say.

Julio Garcia: What made you do cross country? 

Andrew Johnson: I really don’t know why I did cross country; I just started doing it in middle school and kind of got hooked on it. My dad made me run with him; we’d go outside and sprint or whatever. So I kind of started opening up to it more, and once I got to freshman year, it was either the football team - which I’m not much of a football player - or cross country and I’m like ‘You know what? I’ll just do cross country because I’m probably going to be no good at football and I know how to run distance,’

JG: Is it hard to balance cross country with school?

AJ:  Not really, because once running gets habitual to you, you find the balance. It’s scientifically proven to be a stress reliever. It releases stress for me.   

JG:Do you have a regiment? Do you have a schedule you follow religiously?

AJ: I definitely change my diet. I eat a lot more carbs before running, like for breakfast. Afterward I eat more protein to gain that energy back. Also stretch. It’s important.  Finally just more sleep. Sleep is very crucial.

 JG: What’s your diet like?

AJ: Pasta - mostly. Great source of carbs. Proteins - lean meats like chicken and different nuts.

JG: What’s the farthest you ran in one sitting?

AJ: It would probably have to be the long run I had in sophomore year which was 12 miles.

JG: How did it feel after the twelve miles?

AJ: I got something that, well some runners call it ‘runner's high’ and what that basically is, is you run so much that your body gets used to all the pain and you don’t really feel it anymore.

​JG: So you just don’t feel pain after a while?

AJ: Yeah, let’s say after the halfway point that’s when your body starts getting used to it

​JG: Do you feel you work just as hard as those who play other sports?

AJ: Well, I mean, every sport has its own unique challenge to it, like football you have to have the physical toughness to be getting hit over and over and over again. With baseball it’s just mental toughness, and emotional because you have to hold that back. With running I would say it’s mostly mental toughness for sure because if you tell yourself that you can’t do it, you’re not gonna do it. Running is physical also, but if you’re ever to overcome that, that’s what makes a good runner.

IN PHOTO: ANDREW JOHNSON

JG: So, what are the pros and cons of running?  

AJ: Pros I would say you get in shape very fast, I guess it’ll hurt, but I mean you definitely get faster, and get more in shape. Another pro, you get to eat more food. Running does make you very hungry. You can say you run, I guess that counts. You’re also in like, a community because once you start going to these cross country meets you see the same people and you get into the community of people that you can relate to. I would say the cons are getting hurt. It sucks when you get hurt.

JG: Have you ever puked?

AJ: No, I've never puked. I mean I’ve had the feelings but never really puked. (Laughs)

JG: What’s the offseason like? Do you run even though it’s not in season? And how do you bear the winter?

AJ: People call me crazy for it but I do run in the winter, outside. For an example, I did run in a blizzard, I think it was sophomore year by the lake. It was really awesome experience. Also during the school days I do go to Mr. Duellman’s room and put my stuff in there and just go outside and run. I do get a lot of comments but I try to get people to run with me in the offseason even if it’s the winter or not.

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JG: So, do you keep your whole 18 minutes dedicated to finishing the race, or does your mind go off and wander?

AJ: Normally my mind is pretty set on the race. Like I try to mentally prepare before a race too. Occasionally on time too. Sometimes races have like clocks where people tell you the time. If I’m not hitting my time that’s when I either keep the pace, or I speed up because I actually wanna get a certain time. 

​JG: Do you consider yourself the best runner at the school?

AJ: It depends, I mean distance maybe. Sprinting, most likely not. I’m not a sprinter, I’m a distance runner.


JG: What’s your biggest accomplishment?

AJ: Probably gaining my first medal freshman year. It was at the mps grade level challenge meet. You get medals for like top five in your grade level, and I got second place for freshman and that was my first high school medal, which I thought was awesome.


JG: From then, do you count how many medals you have?

AJ: I do have like a little bag full of medals, but I probably have about.. over ten for sure. I did just get three this past weekend so that continues my collection!

JG: What is your ultimate goal?

AJ: Break 18 minutes running a 5k. I was so close, my closest is 18:04.

JG: How many 5ks have you ran?

AJ: I really don’t know. I would say at least 25 since high school has started.     

JG: Any advice for freshman just starting cross country?

AJ: Just stay with it, I mean the greatest thing I like to see is people coming out there, knowing that they’re not the greatest runner, or the most in shape, but they still run the race anyways. I love when people do that so, you have to stick with it, eventually you’ll get up there.

JG: So you’re saying it’s all about commitment?

AJ: Yeah, it’s all commitment and I do get upset when people quit. It’s just commitment and having commitment with cross country. Cross Country can help you with anything really.  

JG: Anything else you want to share?

​AJ: John Cena 2016 ♠

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SPOTLIGHT: GIRL's SWIm

WRITTEN BY JULIO GARCIA
SEPTEMBER 29, 2015

On September 17, the SCC (South Central Co-Op) swim team took the pool for their first home swim meet of the season. Pulaski was filled with six  teams from the Milwaukee region including our SCC swim team, a team dominated by Reagan girls, however others from School of the Arts and Pulaski were present too. Led by Coach Shareef, the team shined brightly as they took home the silver trophy beating out Milwaukee Lutheran by the slimmest of margins. This includes sensational performances by Alexis Mazur getting 2nd in the 200 I.M, 2nd in the 100 backstroke, and helping get 2nd with Sofia Diaz and Natalija Walker in the 400 relay.

Other great performances were by Riley Oberdorf who took 1st in her 100 free and second in her 200 free. Other good performances were Jace Kleppin taking 1st in her 100 individual medley and Mackenzie Berlin who dropped 16 seconds in her 500 freestyle. When asked how the team did, Coach shareef replied “Overall, great! We had multiple girls who broke times and were really competitive.”  And when asked on the overall state of the team he said, “We are getting to where we want to be with shape and conditioning. I like where we are at, I just don’t LOVE where we’re at.” He was hinting at the idea that the team is in full swing;now it’s time to push it to higher levels.  

Being in the opening stages of the season, the girls are really pleased with how it’s going so far.”It’s still very young, so we’re optimistic as a unit,” said Sofia Diaz, a two year captain of the team. “It’s very challenging however my belief in these girls are very high,” she continued. This seemed the case for everyone. Every person I asked on the team about how the season is going answered with a instant, “Difficult but fun.” Sofia summarized their feelings perfectly when I asked her, and she replied, “Swim isn’t for everyone. You have to be strong and very dedicated to the team, and with yourself.”

Girls swim, just swim in general, has to be one of the hardest sports in the world. I say this because swimming is strenuous on every part of your body. Therefore it only makes sense that the team in general must gel correctly and motivate one another. Captain Alexis Mazur said, “The team really relies on each other, and we put our all in for each other each and every meet." You can see this clearly throughout every meeting too! During each event, there is at least one other team member cheering the swimmer and pushing them to their potential. Senior Jace Kleppin stated that “the team is a family. We argue like every other family, but at the end we really come together.” The unity of this team is one that you really can’t find anywhere else. Jace continued, “It’s really a competition against yourself. However the team is there to help you with that fight.” This mostly has to do with the relationship with Coach Shareef. Observing his coaching, the girls really took what he said to the heart and respected his coaching. “Team chemistry is awesome!” he exclaimed. “They’re a bunch of sassy teenage girls so it can be stressful. However it’s really fun and I love this team.”


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Something throughout the event bothered me though. It wasn’t the officials, the other competitors or even the pool. What bothered me is the amount of people in the stands watching. Throughout the event, only a handful of people came to see, and majority were family members of the swimmers competing. How can a sport so competitive be so unrecognized? I’m not the only one who noticed either. “Swim is the hardest sport. I bet anyone who steps in the pool and tries to swim will come out and understand it is the hardest sport on the planet,” said Coach Shareef. He has a very valid point. Swim is very underappreciated within the sports world. We only turn our attention to it when someone the magnitude of Michael Phelps appears. But what about just regular swim? As I was saying the area only had a handful of people, so I pondered; why isn’t girls swim more appreciated?

You can argue that girls swim doesn’t have a chance from the start. Swimming isn’t too popular due to the lack of broadcasting and lack of fan base. Also  women's sports don’t generate enough attention all together. However it’s demoralizing to put your all into something and have no one turn out to see it. It’s almost as a painter, when they produce a piece of their work and no one sees it. These ladies are artists and their canvas is the pool. “These ladies work incredibly hard, just like in anybody else in any other sport,” Coach Shareef says. Alexis brought another good point. “I’ve been swimming ever since I was 8 years old. I couldn’t imagine my life without swimming or without this swim team”. So when I asked if the team deserved a bigger platform I got the overwhelming “Definitely”.

“The word needs to get out there. Not enough people know what we do, and not enough people know about girls swim”, added on Sofia. “We don’t really get a lot of recognition despite the fact that we work really hard in the pool." Alexis Mazur had the same to say. “We don’t really get enough recognition for what we do.”

Competitiveness is a craving the human body desires and nothing gets more competitive than racing against yourself while racing against someone else. Not to forget that the slightest of a second can be the difference between first and last place. Swim deserves spotlight and trust me, and take the advice from Coach Shareef and Alexis Mazur, “COME WATCH US SWIM!"          


Notable meets:

​Tuesday October 6th at Hamilton High School
Saturday October 10th at Riverside
Thursday October 15th at Hamilton
Conference Saturday October 30th at Riverside
Saturday October 31st at Riverside

​Influx & Consequences of Sports Injuries

WRITTEN BY JEVEN HORTON
SEPTEMBER 29, 2015

Whether you like it or not, sports have become a fixture across many countries and cultures. They have allowed us to become rivals with each other and have some common ground with people we may know nothing about. However, as much as we glorify and appreciate these athletes, there is one thing that everyone, especially the athlete’s, fear and that is an injury.

An injury is the body’s way of breaking down from some type of trauma that it has been through while doing some activity. In this case, sports is the most common form of traumatizing a body because of the sheer athleticism that the athletes possess. The quicks cuts, the sharp turns, the back-bending flexibility, and the bone-crushing hits that some of these athletes have to take is too much for their bodies to handle. They could lead to some of the darkest moments in sports, but most importantly to the athlete’s life and well being.

However, there is a disturbing trend that is occurring. Injures aren’t just happening more severely, they are occurring more often. It’s an occurrence that was starting to become more and more prevalent as sports began to start up for fall. Players that had never been injured before had now become injured, and those with persisting health problems are probable now. This trend has become a norm now, which is frightening. It’s not just football as well, it’s soccer, basketball, even professional wrestling that these injuries have  begun to be a problem. It’s time to dig deep, section by section, and see if their really is a bigger picture problem here.

The Head of the Discussion

The most talked about part of head injuries have been concussions. It’s earned this reputation because of the severity of the injuries that is done in the short term, as well as, the long term. However, the stigma with concussions is that it is directly correlated to football and football only. A lot of information shows that football is the sport that gives an athlete the highest chance to give or receive a concussion. According to the Frontline article, “87 Deceased NFL Players Test Positive for Brain Disease”, “87 out of 91 former NFL players have tested positive for the brain disease (CTE)… In total, the lab has found CTE in the brain tissue in 131 out of 165 individuals who, before their deaths, played football either professionally, semi-professionally, in college or in high school”. And in high schools, per 100,000 student athletes, 64 to 76.8 have been the recipient of a concussion.

That is worrisome because football isn’t even the sport with the highest number of concussions, soccer is. Soccer has a severely moderately to low concussion rate at 19 to 20 percent. However, it barely eclipses football because of the immediate shoving the back and sliding into an offensive player leaving them helpless, which could lead an immediate concussion. This also shows the amount of physicality in a sport, as well as the mentality that a player has. It shows the contrasting “brush or shake it off” attitude in football versus the ”get him out of the game immediately” attitude that soccer possesses.

So in this respect, head injuries haven’t increased or rose just the overall understanding of them has. This attentiveness is a necessity because of the mishandling of the situations in the past. Also, the controlling of the injuries can help to ease players back and make the recovery process a lot more beneficial to the athlete's long term health.           


The Body of the Issue

The body is an athlete's greatest body of work (no pun intended). When an injury to their body occurs they are likely to take the trauma seriously. However, this is not like the head or concussion issue, not in the slightest. The damage done to the body is more able to regenerate and it would take supreme severe damage to truly affect an athlete in the long term.

The most common upper body injuries that athletes have reported have been: rotator cuff/shoulder impingement, tennis elbow, herniated discs, tendonitis and wrist sprains or strains. These injuries have become prevalent because of the amount of athleticism that that these athletes have in part to the advancements in preparation. These preparations are meant to decrease the occurrences of injuries, but if done in large, repetitive portions, it can be harmful. The sports that see these injuries the most are tennis and basketball due to the repetitive nature of the respective sports.

Basketball injuries like these occur because of the athletic movements and constant jerking to stay with the opposition. However, the repetition of shooting, running the play and staying with your opponent through the plays is where the damage can be done. Injuries like these can happen to the best of them. It happened to potential hall of famer Kobe Bryant when he went up for a routine dunk and had to sit the remainder of the season due to a torn rotator cuff.

​Following that same suit, tennis injuries are so prevalent that it even has an injury named after it, ie. tennis elbow. The constant running and jerking of the body is harmful to the upper body because it torques the body and can severely damage your abdomen and spine. The influx of tennis injuries besides foot and ankle problems have been staggering. Of the 39 total cases done by Nation Center of Biotechnology, 29 of the injuries dealt with the upper body and rehabilitating the body.
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This shows, even though the information has been existent and procedures are being used, it is still not enough to stop or even slow down the occurrence of theses in juries in the upper extremities and body.                       


The Stepping Stones

Foot and leg injuries are the most common and hard to look at injuries in sports. However, their occurrence rate has seen a significant dip over the last couple of years because of the amount of athletes who have come forth with their foot, ankle and leg problems and sought solutions to the problems. Though that does not mean the injuries have gone away.

Injuries to significant young stars and amateurs have become the talking point now for leg injuries. The severity of these injuries have become life-changing and extremely hard to watch because of their grotesque nature. The most prominent leg injury in recent memory has to be the NBA star Paul George’s (see link - it serves as a form of reference; viewer discretion is advised).

The injuries are exhibited in very fast paced high intensity sports not as common injuries as they once were. The new commonality for these injuries have become the severe and traumatic ones, which is a definite problem that needs to be avoided at all costs.  


The Price

The physical damage isn’t the only damage an athlete's suffers when they get hurt, there is also mental damage. The injury affects the athlete mentally not fully allowing them to be or capture what they once were at their peak. Paul George’s recovery makes for a good reference point once again because his story is one that resembles one many amateurs athletes face. The uncertainty physically and mentally, it's the price all athletes unfortunately have to pay if they suffer their first injury.   


Where do we go from here?

With all this information, people in sports medicine have reached an impasse. There is no true way to get rid of injuries all together, for that is impossible. However, we can make the process more effective and streamlined for earlier success, considering that may depend from person to person. That also means that athletes and people need to be more open to disclosing what is wrong with them and not act like they are not injured as that could lead to further damage. Sports will be always be something special to people, but humans’ well being comes first and foremost.    


Frontline Article on Football & CTE

(NSFW) Paul George Team USA Injury

Paul George Update Injury Link


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