“As long as you try your hardest and give a hundred and ten percent you can reach your goals,” said senior Michael Affinito.

Sixteen of these men are now seniors here at Liverpool High School, most of which who have grown up together, sharing a passion for the sport of lacrosse.

“Lacrosse is more than just a game to me, it’s a part of my life.” said senior, Scott Kershner.

“It may seem a bit cliché and kind of dumb, but playing lacrosse is so much more than the game. It’s pretty much a way of life for me at this point”, said senior, Gabriel Conte.

“I couldn’t imagine myself without it”, said senior, Jeffrey Conley.

Kershner, Conte, and Conley all agree that lacrosse is more than a sport to them.

Whereas for others playing lacrosse, it’s a way to have fun and enjoy life, hanging with their closest friends.

“Playing lacrosse is a conduit for me. It’s a time when nothing else matters besides the team, and having fun”, said senior Michael Czachowski.

Soon though the season will come to an end and the sixteen seniors on the lacrosse team will graduate. What will become of the team next year is left to the juniors and under-classmen. The whole team can agree that it will be sad to be leaving Liverpool and their team, but they are not ready to let these moments pass.

“Knowing that it’s my last year here is a huge motivator for working as hard as I possibly can. I don’t want to leave my last season with any regrets,” said Conte.

“It’s our last chance to shine, really. We’ve played together for our entire lives, and it’s tough knowing you only have one last run with these guys. But we have to make the most of it and reach our goals,” said Czachowski.

For senior, Colby Velazquez, though the season coming to a close is sad, it is motivating him and the rest of the team to win the Sectional Championship and hold that trophy in their hands.

“We need to end this season with a bang!” said Kershner.

Aside from the sixteen seniors, the Boys Varsity Lacrosse Team is composed of a few juniors and freshman, Kendall Keahey. They of who will continue to strive for the best here on our lacrosse team. But knowing that almost ninety percent of their team is graduating is a major downfall.

“With the sixteen seniors this year that are graduating, there is a lot of pressure that will be put on the seniors next year and upcoming juniors for the 2013 season,” said junior, Dominick Madonna.

“Every single one of our seniors plays hard and is very talented. It is going to be difficult for us juniors to step up and fill their shoes next year, especially because this group of seniors makes up about 8 of our starting lineup,” said junior Dustin Springer.

Seniors Austin Hope and Bryan Capone are the two that are leading the Warriors to victory. Both being chosen as captains, are driving the team to accomplish their goals.

Hope said that, “It means a lot to me to be chosen as captain. It gives me confidence that my peers trust what I can do. Also it helps reassure me that this is “my” team and I need to be a leader.”

They have shown their skills and talent, achieving victory over many teams so far. But what is it that makes this team so successful? How have them become a team and who is it steers them to victory?

Juniors, Harrison Sardella and Dustin Springer both agree that without the help from their coach they would be nothing this season.

“I think we are so successful this year because of our coach. Coach Felice is a major reason, because he always pushes us to do our best which makes the whole team better”, said Sardella.

“Coach Felice has distilled into all of us that hard work is important not only in lacrosse, but everything we do.” said Springer.

Other teammates feel that not only does Coach Felice play a major component in their success, but so does the fact that most of the players on the team have grown up playing together. Because they have played so long together they know each other’s strengths and work together to overcome their weaknesses.

“A big part of our success is the camaraderie we have as a team, we know each other well, how each player plays and we have a great coach. More importantly they give me the rock,” said senior Logan Thomas.

To achieve the best and be the best of any team, it is important to all work together, to be close, and all put your heads together for one goal. The best of teams not necessarily have just skill and talent, the best are those who work hard together and form a bond that is unbreakable.

“Being a part of this team is like a family. We have our highs and our lows as a team but whenever we have that high or low moment we do it together,” said Madonna.

Especially if one of those team members is down, the others have to be willing to step up for him/her.

“Our goalie, Dom Madonna has kept us in some games solely off of some of the saves he’s making. We also have some fantastic leaders that really bring everybody together such as Austin Hope and Bryan Capone” said Conte.

This team is much more than just a few buddies having fun on the field, its family and friendship and commitment.

“Being a part of this team is great because of the friendships you make and the times you will never forget”, said Thomas.

Czachowski whole-heartedly agreed, “This team is my family. Whenever I’m down, I know I have twenty other guys I can go to.”

“This team makes me strive to do my best!” stated Conely.

“When you put that jersey on, the name on the front means a hell of a lot more than the one on the back,” Hugh Brooks summed it up in one sentence.

When each of those young boys picked up that stick they knew hard work was the key to being unstoppable. That dedication was required and the satisfaction of winning was only true when you knew you gave each game your all. Not only have each of these players shown they could work together as a team wearing their blue and orange, but putting blood, sweat, and tears into their season and they can carrying that pride on their shoulders throughout the rest.

 

She walks in. She stumbles across the room with a cup of coffee in her right hand. She sets her coffee on her desk, trips over the extension cord, darts back up with a grin drawn across her face. She lifts her arm up, exposing sweaty armpits as she sketches M-R-S-B-E-T-T-I-N-G-E-R on the board.

Who is she?

Well on paper she’s a biology teacher with two kids at home living an ordinary life. I guess in hindsight, ordinary isn’t the right word.

As the a 2011-2012 Liverpool Teacher of the Year candidate and recipient, Bettinger has found her five years at LHS to be the time of her life.

“I like to feed off the energy of the teenage crazy,” said Bettinger. “It’s a lot of fun.”

But these good times were not foreseen as she began the college process. She wanted to be a pediatrician. So she would endure a major in pre-medicine biology at Lemoyne College.

Here the young Bettinger would be forced to work with children at Upstate Medical Center, who had been diagnosed with serious conditions including various types of cancer.

Of course, these conditions would lead to the death of many children with whom Bettinger had formed relationships.

“It was one those days,” said the now lost student. “I looked a myself and said, ‘ I’m done’.”

So that night, Bettinger found herself working at J.P. Morgan Banks talking about what had just happened when a women next to her suggest, “Why don’t you be a teacher.”

“There it was, I found the way my life was suppose to go.”

In years to come, she would gradate and begin her teacher career and Tully High School, where she was reunited with her boondocks background.

“It was a nice school, you would know everyone and everyone would know you.”

But after becoming pregnant with her first child, Elijah, Bettinger who had already been living in Liverpool experienced a near one-eighty and decided the driving condition to Tully and back were not the most safe.

So she would put in an application for Liverpool High School and within two weeks would be called in for an interview and thrown into a job.

This would be a gift.

“Sometimes life just tells you where you need to be.”

In some cases, well this case, the place she needed to be was an open environment.

In this environment, Bettinger as embraced her imperfections and in doing so has embraced what it means to connect to the people around her.

But how is this?

Well for starters, biology teachers generally don’t bust out rhymes with their class on a daily basis.

Favorites titles such as “yo fatty acid” and “mitosis gangsta” have reached students serving as memory tricks.

“She is very engaging and has a lot of good way to remember things,” said senior and former student Joe Pizzito. “I think it’s much easier to remember concepts if it can connect to something else.”

The inspiration for such an abstract education came form Bettinger’s believe in staying true to herself.

“Being true to yourself is the best thing you can do,” said Bettinger. “If I pretend to be someone that I’m not, then I’m not staying true to my students.”

In these lessons Bettinger enables the quiet and less optimistic group of kids to expand themselves.

“If I make enough of a fool of myself, I mean jammin’ out in front of the room doing my thing, then I’m showing my students that it’s ok to be yourself, it’s ok to have some fun… if you’re dancing then the people around you are going to be wondering why aren’t dancing.”

On top of this, Bettinger has reached out to her department and has become a key feature to the outgoing group of teachers in the 500s wing of the high school.

The teachers have religiously participated in Halloween costume contest, began a mural project around the wing with students, and become involved with outdoor activities such as the IronGirl triathlon and the Tough Mudder as a department.

This uniformity of quirky extra-curricular activities have shown students that teachers are in fact, well, people.

“Teachers aren’t people who go home to pods, like little space ships… Seeing teachers that made you see them as human beings and allowed connections changed me as a person.“

These teachers have in essence taught Bettinger that teaching is moreover a skill that requires the human element. This is an inherent quality that makes a good teacher great.

“I see my students as whole individuals, not just storage for information to pass a test…these people are going to live real lives…I could care less if they excel in biology. I’m going to test students and squeeze out whatever I can get but they’re humans…I’d like to think that if we can make a connection as humans then maybe I can spin you off into a decision in life.”

“You set a domino into effect but you never know where it’s going to land. How many dominos do I get to kick down? For my pre-med kids, how many lives will the get to save? For my teachers, how many kids do they inspire to do things?”

While appreciative to the award, Mrs. Bettiger has remained humble. She feels that she does not deserve anymore than any other teacher in Liverpool High School.

“I work with some of the most talented and inspiring individuals, I would give this award to them.”

Mrs. Bettinger’s passion has driven her career down a path that has left a positive impact on the lives of students and faculty members  during her five year at Liverpool High School.

“If I were not to teach another day, I would know that whether it was perfect or not, it was passionate and done with good intentions”

Well, it’s finally looking like spring and you know what that means…Spring Sports! That’s right; softball, baseball, lacrosse, and crew are all here and ready for action! None more so than Girl’s Crew. They are revving for a race according to senior Mary Beth Toukatly, “I think the entire team is just itching to get on the race course and really put all of their power behind the oar to see what we can produce.”

The team is full of hard working girls that love the sport and are true Warriors. The team has a lot of chances for practice and many of them grab as much as possible in the off-season. The girls have winter training three times a week starting in January and ending in spring. Besides that the girls are also able to use the Syracuse Chargers’ program to train in both the summer and the fall. It’s a great chance to meet fellow rowers since the program is open to anyone in middle school to adults in college.

The girls from novice crew who have moved on to Varsity are completely part of the team now and the only real difference according to sophomore Mary Panzetta is that they have more fighting spirit. “…the girls are more focused because last year we were just getting a feel for the sport and now we really care about it.” The practices might be tougher, but that’s only because they are all putting as much they can into it for every practice and every regatta.

            The opposition won’t be easy, though. Toukatly says the team is going to do their best and not expecting anything from the other teams just because they might have beaten them the year before, “Our competition is definitely stiff, and we know that we will have to work extremely hard to match their level and become competitive with them.”

 Likewise Panzetta has no major expectations for the other teams, however she does have a few for herself, “Even if we don’t win every race, I can still be proud of the way we raced. So I guess my expectations are just to improve at every race.” Both girls seemed to be more interested in doing their best rather than winning, which is probably the most important trait for an athlete to have. 

Now, the boy and girl rowers have their own separate teams and races, but before the season started both Boy’s and Girl’s Crew worked together last Saturday to raise money for Upstate Golisano’s Children Hospital in the name of Syracuse Women’s Rowing head coach Justin Moore’s daughter, Mackenzie; who is a cancer patient there. They held an erg-a-thon at the farmer’s market from 7:30 in the morning ‘til 1 in the afternoon as a fundraiser. They each took 10-minute turns on erg machines while other members talked to people and collected money for the hospital.

I had no idea what an erg-a-thon was, but luckily I was filled in by Toukatly; basically think that an erg machine is to a rower what a treadmill is to a runner. It takes a sec for the meaning to sink in, but it’s pretty simple. They spent the day raising money for a new play wing in the hospital and to raise money for their teams.

The upcoming season looks to be tough, but they’re more than ready for it. They’ll be playing Ithaca next Sunday – hope to see you there!

Now, with the FOCUS academy closing, it is almost as if these same students are being told, “I don’t know.”

On March 19^th of this year, the FOCUS program was eliminated from the budget. Even though there were so many reasons and so many protests to keep it, there were just as many reasons to cut the program from Liverpool’s 2012-2013 district budget.

“Funds needed to support its creative teaching opportunities and the other aspects originally presented for the program required substantial funding. The Board did not feel we could make this commitment for next year and subsequent years,” said Patricia Debona-Rosier, President of the Board of Education for the Liverpool Central School District.

Though this was a reason for shutting down FOCUS, there are many other reasons.  Rosier and other Board members noticed that the size of classes at the main building at Liverpool were swelling to unusual numbers. Putting FOCUS academy teachers back at the main building would help relieve some of the massive class sizes.

Despite the estimated fifty students going to FOCUS, only forty were enrolled this year, and twenty to twenty-five of these students were going to the FOCUS academy full time – according to Rosier.  “Some students who were actually enrolled in the program did not match the student profile originally proposed to the Board; some of these students, once there did not or could not meet the requirements,” said Rosier.

The last reason was that there was no administrator that was on the academy’s campus all day, everyday. The district lacked sufficient funds to hire a full time administrator.

Jake Pellenz and Katrina Farifield are just two students out of the forty enrolled at FOCUS academy. They, like others have seen how big an impact FOCUS has had in their life. When they heard the news about the FOCUS academy closing, they, like most other students coming to FOCUS were more than disheartened.

“ [It's like] family over here. People wanted you to come,” said Jake Pellenz, sophomore. Unlike the learning experience he had at the high school annex, learning was more enjoyable for him as  he progressed throughout this past year. Because there are a few students, and a few teachers, the atmosphere made for students like Pellenz want to succeed in school. “They [the students] don’t want to let their family down,” said Tiffany Heffron, a school counselor at FOCUS. Support is what keeps them coming to school; it is what keeps them trying in school.

“Some kids wake up, miss the bus, and walk,” said John Sheridan, special education teacher at this academy, “Kids are texting other kids to get to school.” Up from last year is the attendance rate of 75%; fifteen percent higher than the 60% from last year. Students actually want to come; they want to sit down to the daily breakfasts and lunches that they have with their teachers – providing for a stronger bond between students and teachers; for students.

Katrina Fairfield is another sophomore that goes to FOCUS, and has found many benefits of being enrolled in the FOCUS academy. She has noticed that she has made a big improvement in how she responds to learning; whereas last year, at the annex, she nearly gave up all hopes of trying. Fairfield feels the same connection that Pallenz has with the teachers and the other students; it is very family-oriented, which gets students to become more interested in what they are learning. In turn, students do the work that they are assigned more so than they would have if they were in a regular high school environment.

Not only is there a sense of family and connectedness that allows them to succeed, the activities in class in which they are involved are encouraging, in a way. Students at FOCUS feel as though they have a better advantage as opposed to their previous year, whether their previous year was at the Liverpool High School annex or a different high school. Each teacher there – Matthew Brazill (Social Studies), Melissa Campbell (English), Mary Frye (English), Rebecca Hanna (Math), Michelle Roser (Science), and John Sheridan (Special Education) – all find ways to help these students succeed.

“He [Brazill] always plays a Youtube clip,” said Katrina Fairfield. Every class, Social Studies teacher Matthew Brazill plays a Youtube clip that – in some way – has a legitimate connection to the lesson that his class will learn that day.Learning about the Russian Revolution, Brazill paired his curriculum with the English curriculum; while students learned about this revolution, they read Animal Farm by George Orwell, in which the setting of the story is during the time period of the Russian Revolution. After studying different parts of Africa, learning about the poverty and illness in some regions in Africa, students had the opportunity to interview a man from Congo.

Algebra and Geometry teacher Rebecca Hanna will not let her students slip. If students have a test, she’ll inform her students to only do the questions that they know. The ones that students doubt they can do will be dealt with later; Hanna goes over the questions they did not understand and gives them the option of staying after-school to review unanswered questions until these students feel confident enough to do these questions.

Students were more than disheartened to hear that a seven to two vote was all it took to dismantle the FOCUS academy that had seemed to be so prosperous two years prior. Everything that they were learning, everything in which they had been succeeding seemed –to them  – like it would fall to their feet in the next year.

“[I felt] disappointed,” said Jake Pellenz, “I felt like all the work [I’ve done] is going down the drain. Pellenz’s father spoke to the Board of Education on behalf of students going to FOCUS. He was not the only one.  Matthew Brazill said he was amazed  that students from FOCUS, students who were afraid of public speaking, spoke to keep their school, their program on the budget.

Knowing what is to come next year, Pellenz and Fairfield try to be optimistic on the situation. They’ll attempt to keep the skills that they have gained through FOCUS, they said, but it will be overwhelming.

Photo Credit: Dakota Inman

“When they’re [students of FOCUS] stressed, they need to have someone to go to,” said James Root a member on the Board of Education, “they need to get in with the right people.” On April 24th, some of the Liverpool Board members will meet with people like Mark Potter and John Sheridan to see if there is a way to keep the success that has so slowly been built by students, but transfer it into the main building of the high school. Two other alternative high schools still remain: the Career Academy and STARS; however, it is believed to be that FOCUS is slightly more academically inclined. “It has to happen quick,” said Sheridan, who also spoke on behalf of the academy to the Board. Sheridan, like other teachers hang on to the hope that their students have that safe haven – in order to help them prosper.

“I don’t know,” Rebecca Hanna is not the only one that hates this phrase at FOCUS; everyone – teachers, students, counselors – detests this word. “I don’t know,” means that no one knows where FOCUS students will proceed, “I don’t know,” is the statement that makes FOCUS’ students and staff alike shudder at the future of where the students should go next. Even though “I don’t know,” seems to be a popular phrase these days,  everyone at FOCUS seems to keep their heads high, no matter what.

DIY gifts (otherwise known as “Do It Yourself” gifts) can be a very inexpensive, yet thoughtful way of telling your best friend how important they are to you. DIY gifts are not gifts that your best friend has put on his/her list for years; instead, they are gifts that are needed, and they are things that will be used.

Kits

Not a lot of people use this idea, though, it is a very inexpensive idea. According to eHow, you’ll need a container (laundry [yes, laundry] basket, wicker basket, bowl, cup, etc.), a decorative filler for the container (easter grass, tissue paper, etc.), and cellophane or plastic wrap.

It sounds like an ominous task, but buying gifts cannot be that bad, especially when buying for a DIY kit. The key to buying gifts for a DIY kit is finding gifts that will be useful for whomever you’re buying. It may be a good idea to use the laundry basket as a container in which you are assembling a DIY kit; most likely, you’ll have friends living in dorms that will need to do laundry. Other than a laundry basket as Useful Gift #1/ Container, you might also try towels as part of the basket. Try to keep in mind that the basket needs to have a color scheme so it is appealing to the eye. Therefore, alternating college colors among the basket might prove beneficial (i.e. navy blue towel, orange laundry basket).The list of necessities can go on; therefore, you can fill in the blanks as needed.

Want simpler, and even less expensive ideas? These ideas may not be for underclassmen who are looking to buy a gift.

Pictures

There’s nothing much to it. If you have a favorite photo of you and your best friend, get it developed and get it framed. This will definitely be on the list of “things to pack.”

CDs

Burn a playlist of your friend’s and your favorite songs to a CD. If you both have opposing tastes, maybe it may be a good idea to burn some of your favorite songs on a CD (that way, there will always be something there to remind him/her).

Mini-Movies

This may be something that you want to start now. Compile a bunch of pictures of you and your friend (photos from freshman year to photos from the present) and upload them to your computer. Depending on what type of computer you have (Mac, PC, etc.) there will be a movie maker program which you can use to put together the uploaded pictures. Downloading music to the movie would give it a little emotional “punch” to the movie.

If these ideas have not helped you in the least, Pintrest.com and eHow.com maybe able to help you complete the journey to finding a perfect, yet inexpensive gift.

This year, though, the change is a little more significant than in others.

For the first time in recent history, Liverpool High School will not be giving its student body the chance to vote for the members of student council.  There will be no election booths to vote in, no candidate speeches to listen to, no campaign posters to look at, and, sadly for me and my journalism crew, no election issue to design.

The reason is pretty simple; there was barely any competition.  The majority of student council jobs this year had only one applicant.  In fact, there were almost no races at all.  And two spots were completely vacant.

According to Liverpool High School’s Director of Student Affairs, Diane Sipfle, the lack of new candidates and minor competition across the board was enough to call off the election.  “The only reason for an election is if there is competition,” said Sipfle.

With the majority of positions already decided by default, Sipfle believed the election would have been a nuisance.  The costly process of bringing in six voting machines would have been unnecessary and a waste of the school’s money.  Added to lost class time and lesson disruption (all students would have voted during their history classes), requiring students to leave for the election would have been pointless, according to Sipfle.

“I’m disappointed, of course…upset no.  Disappointed,” said Sipfle of the non-election.  “[The lack of candidates] suggests to me that we need to do a better job of letting people know all that student council does for this building.”  And the numbers would support her.

In the 2007-08 election, there were 45 total candidates over all school-wide, senior, junior and sophomore class elections.  45 candidates dipped to 28 candidates in 2008-09, to 22 candidates in 09-10, to 24 candidates in 2010-11.

Election woes aside, current junior class president Breanna O’Reilly believes that student council will be able to pull through its current rough patch. In addition to her current position, O’Reilly has served as a freshman class officer and as a sophomore class president.

“I think there has been a problem with getting people to run for two reasons. The first reason is that it is such a huge commitment; we spend hours a week planning events,” said O’Reilly.  “It does take a substantial amount of time that I feel a lot of students are not able [or] do not want to give.”

“The second reason I feel there has been a hard time getting students to run is because a lot of students don’t know what we do. I know there are students that think we do nothing, and I know there are students that think we have the ability to even change the lunch menus. In reality we don’t do either, we plan and put on events for the student body, and if more students knew that I think we would have more participation,” said O’Reilly.

LHS’s student council isn’t dead.  Simply put, almost everyone who ran for office this year is in for next year.  That much is clear.  What is still up in the air is the effect this will have on the student body, and student council-sanctioned events.

Sipfle believes the situation at hand extends a lot farther than the realm of student council.  She points to a number of factors, ranging from changes in scheduling, to an abundance of extra-curricular activities and clubs at the high school, to our generation’s ability to communicate with friends from the comfort of home.

“[The school has offered so many electives], that in many cases there are too many things to do,” said Sipfle.  As for the scheduling, there is a little history involved (and frankly, a little personal bias too, as it indirectly involves participation in classes such as journalism.)

Alright, so here’s a history lesson for you sophomores and freshmen.  Two academic years ago, students took seven classes with an option to take an eighth in place of an academic support block.  Over the last few years came the introduction of the academic advisement period, late arrival, early dismissal, and study halls.  And the effect on some electives and extra-curricular activities has been rough, as some students prefer staying home over taking an extra class or being in a club that requires a lot of outside work.

“I think that the amount of students willing to put in the hard work and extra time that a newspaper takes, a yearbook takes, that student government takes is not a large number of students,” said Sipfle.  And while she understands many students are busy with things like jobs and sports, she wondered if others were “used to things being done whether they participate or not.”

“There are a lot of kids, a large population, that do spend the extra time, but it’s not everybody,” said Sipfle.

Her solution?  “Do nothing.  Schedule no events.  No dances.  No bonfires.  No tailgating events without officers recruiting fellow students to help with them, schedule them, plan them.”

This might just be what has to happen, as clearly, numbers would indicate something needs to change to get more people to run for student council.  To help you understand, let’s look at some more history.  Comparing what was a healthy election held in the 2007-08, to the election held last year, candidate numbers have dipped.  In 2007-08, there were twelve total candidates running for a presidential job, and last year saw only six candidates.  Over the same time period, the total amount of vice president candidates went from ten to five, and secretary candidates went from eight to seven.  The only total that went up was seen in the treasurer numbers, going from five to six.

If more people ran, there would be more competition, thus allowing students to vote for their class reps again.

Competition brings about change, new ideas and progress.  Without competition, it is a lot easier for things to become static.

We live in a forward-moving society.  Who will be the new face of change in Liverpool?  Step up to the plate and the job could be yours.

Last year’s team was one of a kind. With the amazing combination of speed, power, and pitching Liverpool went 10-0 in league games and 20-2 overall. Players like Mike Parsons, Corban Gapski, Bobby Broddus, Andrew Shreyack, and Jordan Leedom proved to be the anchors of the team and showed leadership throughout the season. This year, Caruso, Patrick Wright, Nicholas Pilotti, Tyler Bliss and Ryan Contegni will have to take over the senior leadership roles and lead this team. Younger players like Dom Pirro and Austin Bush will also be big parts of the team. Both Pirro and Bush were on JV last year, both showing that they belong up at the Varsity level.

The main concern this year for the Warriors is replacing the talent that has moved on. Wright will have to continue his success swinging the bat and produce a solid amount of RBIs to replace the power numbers of those like Shreyack and Parsons. Caruso, who during the offseason signed on to play at St. John’s University after leaving Liverpool, will also be a big part of the offense. Last year, he batted over .500 and came up big with the bat late in the season. Bliss will also be among the replacements for the offense that has departed.

Something else to watch out for is the team being unable to be content with last season. They were an extremely well rounded team, but came up short in the playoffs. Not to take anything away from the excellent season last year, but there can be more accomplished this year with this team. With a lot of the guys entering their final season for the Warriors, they want to leave it all on the field. During spring break, the Liverpool Warriors will head down to Myrtle Beach, hoping to get some early looks at the competition and see where they stand right now.

“We have a lot of potential, and I think if we can come together as a team, and play the baseball we’ve always played, we can accomplish a lot.” Caruso stated full encouragingly. Nick Pilotti seconded that, “We all know what we are capable of doing as a team. If we can execute and play smart, we are a going to be a tough team to beat.”

Obviously these guys are ready to play some ball. This year could be the year that the Warriors go all the way and the team knows that. They will need to focus and stay determined not to settle for just a “good” season. Before their time in Myrtle, they will take on Oswego on April 11^th, and then Utica Proctor the day after. We wish the best of luck to the Warriors this season and to the seniors. Go Warriors!

The competition involves students participation in various categories and at various levels such as making exhibits, documentaries, website and performances.

“It is a great opportunity for the students” said Kristine Fernandez, one of the History teachers at the Annex.

The regional completion, held at OCC, consisted of three local school districts including Cicero-North Syracuse, Fayetteville – Manlius, and Liverpool.

According to Maureen Tricase, an Annex history teacher,  “History itself is such a great experience.” She feels, “History is the perfect way to fulfill the need of primary sources.”

The students who received the first and second position at the regional level move on to the state level at Cooperstown, New York to compete with other regions on Monday, April 23, 2012.

There are 11 students who made it to Cooperstown, New York, and 4 students claimed third place.

“It feels like a great sense of accomplishment. We had put a lot of hard work and effort in it,” said Brianna Denely, one of the winning students.

I was very pleased that the judges acknowledged my efforts and my hard work,” said Lander Eicholzer. He won second at the competition.

“They [my family] expects me to do my best and they are extremely proud of me,” said Joshua Dela Cruz, one of the winning students.

“They [my parents] saw this as an opportunity to see a smile on my face” said Aaron Laviolette, one of the winning students.

“It feels like a great sense of accomplishment. We had put a lot of hard work and effort in it,” said Brianna Denely, one of the winning students.

“They [my parents] were very proud of me. They liked to see to my hard work finally pay off,” said Kyle Halladay. He won the second position at the competition.

When asked how they reacted after winning the competition, freshman Shuting Lu replied, “ I did not believe it. I was shell shocked and amused.”

“It is not just the product, it is the interview, and the competition is going to be stellar,” says Tricase. “Even if they made it to Cooperstown or not, they are winners: they accomplished what they decided to do.”

Fernandez and Tricase have been involved in this competition for six and four years, respectively.

We all wish the best of luck to the students; hope they have a great time, and also wish they claim first place.

Though the preparation for these events may seem miniscule to those of athletics and exams, there is quite a bit more involved, a lot actually. After all, prom and ball are designed to be two “magical” nights for students to enjoy.

So it has to be the perfect night.

Some stress over their attire, others struggle finding a spot to take pictures with friends. But the biggest problem for most lies within this question: “Who am I going to take that special photo with?”

Also know as; their date.

You know, that person who you’ll take a couple hundred photos with in a twenty-minute period and sit next to on the way to the local Holiday Inn and lose seconds into the dance.

Also that person that your future coworkers, significant other, and kids will look at years from now will allow them to judge your social standing from your high school days… so it’s pretty important, huh?

Now for those of us who haven’t been lucky enough to have been in a long-term relationship, or have not been close enough friends with someone to go with, well, we’re in trouble.

I’m here to tell you, I’m in trouble.

In the long hallways of Liverpool High School things are not as easy as grabbing the closest person you find and proposing. Thinks are well, quit more complicated.

One of two factors are probably apparent; the guy is either too nervous to buck up and ask a girl or secondly, the girl won’t accept the initial offer because she’s waiting for “that” guy to ask her. You know that dreamy guy that you find on the cover of Seventeen or some other corny teenage girl magazine.

If I could, well if I had the pride, I’d find poster and write “prom?” across it and fly it over the school flag and see if any ‘ole girl would accept my offer. But sadly I think I’d fail miserably.

Guys do not want to be rejected and embarrassed. Nor does any girl truly want to go with her fourth or fifth option.

Sorry, it’s just the way things work.

And that’s precisely why us guys have this profound fear of asking girls to prom.

I mean I’m not one to whine.  I’m certainly no Brad Pitt but at least I’m more attractive than a Zach Galifianakis, just saying ladies.

I just thought this process would be a little easier.

In traditional high school lore the football player would be able to pick a date with ease. Added a mixture of some poetry and romance, it should make the task at hand that much easier. I thought I was Mr. Goodbar, just saying, that’s all.

What happened to the good guy always winning? In the movie Super Bad, both main characters Seth and Even score their respective “girls” by the end of their time at high school.

Yes I realize that Hollywood glorifies stories such as Seth and Even’s but in the same respect there must be some hope in movies. Maybe one day that Cinderella story could come around.

So how can things work out in your favor?

Well if you don’t get lucky or take the initiative to find someone, you’re going to show up alone, and if you let it get to you, well, you’re going to have a rough one.

Or you could follow a new trend, a new way at looking at prom.

No date, no problem.

Because, ultimately, “dates” only last for the fifteen minute period between getting your pictures done and riding over to the Holiday Inn.

Do yourself a favor and sit back and spend a good time with a friend, high school’s almost over so enjoy it while it last.

Mr. Pascale, an English teacher at Liverpool High School makes it his mission to dress “fresh” everyday, especially on Friday.

Fresh Friday is a new trend started by Pascale, challenging students to dress their best and look as fresh as possible.