The Panel - October 2023 - Volume 72, Issue 4

350 Prospect Street Belmont, MA 02478

Non Profit Org. U.S. Postage Permit #58555 Boston, MA PAID

A Student Publication of Belmont Hill

Volume 72, Issue 4

Belmont

Hill

Celebrates

November 2, 2023

100th

Anniversary

By Jaiden Lee ’26 Panel Staff On Friday, October 13, 2023, the long-awaited Belmont Hill 100Year Centennial Celebration took place in the Jordan Athletic Center.

Over one thousand alumni, faculty, parents, and others affiliated with the school came to join in on the celebration, marking the largest gathering in the history of Belmont Hill.

The soon-to-be ice rink in the Jordan Athletic Center was decorated with dimmed lights, projections of the school’s beautiful scenery, balloons, and even a beautiful tree situated on top of a platform in the center of the room.

Before the official Centennial Celebration Program began, guests mingled and chatted among the tables filled with laid-out food and drinks, and soon the rink was entirely packed with people.

After about an hour had passed, guests took their designated seats at the far end of the rink, in front of a wide stage with a Belmont Hill podium. Two enormous screens hung above either side of the stage for full visibility to even those at the back of the audience.

The program was officially introduced by Trustee and Centennial Celebration Committee Chair Bill Achtmeyer ’73, P ’26, and after a few words on the gathering and importance of school tradition, he donned a Belmont Hill Centennial hat midway through his speech to celebrate the occasion.

Then several trustees spoke about different facets of Belmont Hill and what Belmont Hill means to them. For the introduction of Ronald M. Druker ’62 Head of School Greg Schneider, Danielle Heard, trustee and head of Nashoba Brooks School, and Sarah Pelmas, trustee, head of the Winsor School, and O-Donnell Family Chair, made their speeches on the importance of the night’s celebration and a few remarks on the character of Mr. Schneider.

In his “State of the School” speech, Head of School Greg Schneider discussed important aspects of the school, including the students, faculty, and community as a whole, and spoke about the ideas of character and gratitude.

B-Flats at Centennial Celebration Mr. Schneider introduced Jaiden Lee ’26 and Brian Lee ’24 soon after to the stage for a short cello duet performance, playing Barrière Cello Sonata for Two Cellos for the audience.

Then, David E. Kelley ’75, a famous television writer and film producer (Big Little Lies, Boston Legal), spoke about the power of life-long friendships filled with humor and laughter, and described his time at Belmont Hill as a boy and his journey up to this point.

Will Forde ’05, another trustee, then made a few remarks on the importance of who and what made up the school that led to its success, and introduced a video on the traditions of Belmont Hill. After the video was played, Jon Biotti ’87, P ’23, President of the Board of Trustees, spoke about his and his son’s experiences at the school, and why Belmont Hill’s traditions were so special to him.

Dr. Jeanne Tift P ’18, Darling Family Chair in the Humanities Chair Holder, then made her remarks on the school’s generous fostering of diverse areas, since her son had attended the school. A Faculty and Staff video was subsequently played for the audience, highlighting the importance of the faculty for a successful school, and their daily sacrifices to help every student

reach their highest potential. Then a Special Reflection was made by Jonathan Kraft ’82, another trustee, who made an energy-filled speech that captivated the audience’s attention, full of life lessons and what made Belmont Hill so special. One of the highlights of the evening was his presentation of a special once-in-a-hundred-years alumni award to Carl Martignetti ’77, for his selfless character, devotion to the school, and commendable achievements even beyond the school.

After the award presentation, Captain Colton Bradley ’15, an Aeromedical Evacuation Officer in the U.S. Army, made his remarks as a former student and gave an introduction for General Milley. General Mark. A. Milley ’76, 39th Chief of Staff of the Army, 20th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and 2015 Distinguished Alumni Award recipient, made a keynote on the importance of character; General Milley began with an acknowledgment of the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflicts and the brutalities of the conflict committed in the past weeks, then spoke about his time as a young hockey player at Belmont Hill and how the school had shaped him to become the man he is today.

To wrap up the celebration of

Cover

the night, the B-Flats led by Donnell Patterson performed “Come Celebrate Belmont Hill,” and led the audience soon after in a group sing-a-long of “Happy Birthday” to the school.

As a finale, Amy Madden, Greg Schneider, and Bill Achtmeyer retook the stage to wrap the event up, and confetti and balloons exploded from above onto the audience in a final surprise.

All guests received two books from the school, made specifically for the centennial year, titled A Century of Character, and 100 Years of Athletics: A Visual History of Athletics At Belmont Hill School.

As guests went outside onto the track, brilliant fireworks were sent off into the night from the baseball field, lighting up the sky with colors of red, blue, and white.

A special thank you to Mrs. Beverly Coughlin and Mr. Jay Fritz ’91 for their organizational efforts in the event; thank you to the speakers, keynotes, wperformers, parents, guests, alumni, and the Centennial Celebration Committee for a wonderful night to remember for years to come. ☐

Letter

By Kevin Weldon ’24 Panel Staff As I am sure you are all well aware, this year is Belmont Hill’s Centennial. Over the past few months, Belmont Hill has celebrated the crucial role that faculty, athletics, and arts have played in the founding and culture of our community. The Panel has been a part of Belmont Hill for over seventy years; Charles Sellman ’53 won a contest with over fifty entries for the newspaper’s name, and in the Fall of 1953 the staff sent their first issue to the printers. Lots about The Panel has changed since its beginning – there were advertisements and Business managers until 1990, for example. Maybe a century from now, the editors will look back upon this issue, maybe they will not, but I hope that

Adam Richins

Mission

our mission, written decades ago by Editor-in-Chief Robert Banker ’54, and seen on the left, still rings true today as it did then. ☐

Look Inside The Panel Pages 2-4: News Page 5-8: Opinions Page 8: Arts Page 9-11: Sports Page 12: Fun

B elmont Hill NEWS

Pa g e 2

T he Panel

Devin McCourty Speaks About Character in Chapel

By Nathan Zhang ’26 & Adrian Tan ’25 Panel Staff On October 3rd, long-time New England Patriots star safety and philanthropist Devin McCourty delivered an inspirational speech at the Hamilton Chapel. He discussed the topics of character and positive masculinity with the Belmont Hill audience. As a standout collegiate player at Rutgers, McCourty was drafted in the first round of the 2010 NFL Draft by the New England Patriots. Throughout his career, he has won three Super Bowls and stood out as a team captain for an impressive twelve of the thirteen seasons he played in.

Off the field, McCourty and his twin brother, Jason, started an initiative called Tackle Sickle Cell, which has raised substantial funds over the years.

After his retirement following the 2022 NFL season, he began a new career in television as a commentator for NBC’s Football Night in America while remaining dedicated to supporting research and treatment for sickle cell disease.

Under the warm lights of the Chapel, Devin McCourty spoke openly about character and positive masculinity through the lens of a professional

football player. When he first joined the Patriots, he set a high standard for himself. His goal was to impress the coaches and demonstrate to his teammates that he could work hard and be accountable. After an outstanding rookie year, he was selected by his teammates to be a defensive captain alongside Pa-

triots legends Jerod Mayo and Vince Wilfork. Although he did not know what he could bring to the defense, he quickly found his footing on the team and became a leader that the younger players could admire and learn from.

When asked about character, McCourty suggested, “When you’re down, and your team is struggling, that’s when your character shows.” He brought up a recent incident involving the Washington Commanders, whose players could

not execute the desired play due to physical exhaustion. Through this example, he highlighted the importance of putting in the work even when nobody is watching, as the results will show later on. He added, “When you’re training, don’t cut corners because you may need those later. That’s character.”

Furthermore, McCourty defined character as the willingness to explore new experiences and constantly challenge oneself. Whether on the football field or as a TV commentator, he embraces all kinds of setbacks and challenges.

McCourty emphasized the importance of embracing vulnerability in the context of positive masculinity. In May 2020, he received devastating news from his wife’s doctor, revealing their baby had passed away in the womb eight months into pregnancy. At his most fragile time, he reached out to his brother, texted his group of Patriots defenders, and received an outpouring of support. Rather than holding back all of his emotions and despite the need to calm and reassure his wife, he allowed himself to cry in front of his teammates.

He encouraged Belmont Hill students to embrace vulnerability and recognize that they are not alone in their struggles.

McCourty wrapped up his speech with remarks about his work as an activist in the New England Patriots organization. During the 2016 NFL season, McCourty led his team in discussing injustices in the United States, including racism and police brutality. He showed solidarity by peacefully protesting during the national anthem before every Patriots game, raising his fist or kneeling. Before the Super Bowl against the Philadelphia Eagles, he spoke to Jonathan Kraft, ’82, President of the New England Patriots, to publish an op-ed and be the voice of people who dedicated their lives to helping others.

McCourty concluded his talk with a strong statement that resonates with every Belmont Hill student sitting in the Chapel: “You have a reason to be here (at BH). A common goal. Graduate and be successful.” ☐

Haverhill, Harvard, and other surrounding towns and organizations all competing to play at Gillette Stadium in the postseason.

Due to the prize, the atmosphere is similar to, if not rowdier than any other sporting event, with games coming down to the last play and cheers booming throughout the spectators.

Belmont Hill students help to set up,

referee, and manage the games, but are also deeply involved with the players themselves.

Kicking field goals, running routes, and punting are just some of the pre-game warmups that BH volunteers will join the athletes in. The BH students’ feedback has been that the athletes are amazing to be around, always putting a smile on everyone’s faces, ex-

ceptionally talkative, and have an endless, loving passion for the game. As Gabe Umlas ’25 put it, “Immediately when you meet the athletes, you can see how happy they are to be there.” The athletes have not only made every Sunday memorable, but have inspired the boys to always find a way to do what they love.

As the flag-football season at BH approaches its last few weeks, the stakes will rise, providing for exhilarating games to watch. More importantly, the BH students involved will take the initiative to make the last weeks of the regular season unforgettable for the athletes, including good reffing, a healthy dose of candy on the snack table, and a modified Loop. ☐

Devin McCourty in Chapel

Adam Richins

Belmont Hill Volunteers At Special Olympic Games

By TZ Snail ’26 Panel Staff

Belmont Hill has hosted Special Olympics flag-football games on the varsity football field every Sunday since the beginning of September. These events were organized due to the efforts of Mrs. Phinney. The Special Olympics is a yearlong program, aiming to provide sports training and athletic competition for children and adults with physical and mental disabilities. The program, founded in 1968, has grown from a backyard summer camp, to a global movement, hosting 32 Olympic-type sports, and supporting over five-million athletes, and many more fans and volunteers from around the globe.

Athletes play four highly intense games each week, with teams from Belmont,

Student Volunteers L to R: TZ Snail ’26, William Hennigar ’26, and Patrick Snail ’28

Facebook

Form I Students Learn About Belmont Hill Traditions

By Nathan Zhang ’26 Panel Staff On Tuesday, October 3rd, 2023, Form I explored Belmont Hill’s unique symbols and traditions and discussed their connections to the school’s mission statement. This special event, “Welcome to Belmont Hill: A Tour of Traditions,” helped newly enrolled seventh-graders deeply understand Belmont Hill’s rich heritage and values.

First Formers started the morning by discovering beloved Belmont Hill traditions passed down for decades. Mr. Schneider discussed the significance of the sextant as our school’s symbol.

He emphasized that sextant symbolizes how Belmont Hill helps guide and navigate students through their educational journey, preparing them for success in the future. After his speech, the students visited the art building to admire the panels, intricately carved artworks made by seniors every year.

Mr. Kaplan elaborated on the different categories of these wooden carvings and the importance of leaving a lasting legacy at this school. Students’ panels aren’t merely decorative objects; they also convey their creators’ unique life

stories and community contributions.

Following a short intermission with Milk and Cookies, the second part of the day explored the various dedications around campus. First Formers gathered around the war memorial in the Academic Quad where Mr. Bradley shared the touching stories of thirteen alumni who sacrificed their lives serving and protecting the country. Subsequently, the students proceeded to the benches dedicated to the late Henry B. Sawyer, Jr. ’32 and G. Clifford Goodband, Jr. According to the interviews of three First Formers, this part of the day was the most fascinating. Finn Davis ’29 described the stories as “incredi-

Mr. Collins ‘93 Speaking

BH Communications

ble” as he realized the meaning of these benches on our campus. This inspiring journey concluded with a talk by Mr. Martin ’65 about the history of Hamilton Chapel, providing the students with a deep understanding of the Chapel’s legacy within the school community.

To wrap up the morning, the seventh-graders learned about the recent efforts made by faculty and students to make the campus more inclusive and welcoming for students of diverse backgrounds. Mr. Collins ’93 addressed the students about how a student initiative led to the installation of large banners reading “You Matter” in both the Jordan Athletic Center and the Library Corridor. Ms. Zener and alumnus Bryce Anderson ’19 spoke about the removal of the bell and its historical significance, which led to its relocation to a museum in Concord. After a short lunch break, the students rode buses to the Robbins House in Concord, where the bell had been transported a few years ago, and they learned about the importance of student initiative and research in enhancing the lives of future classmates.

When asked about his reflections on the day, Ben Jones, ’29, said it was an overall great “experience where we

learned all about the school,” with all aspects of campus life touched, from traditions to student leadership. Kai Fuse ’29 found the story behind the bell particularly intriguing and expressed a desire to participate in student initiatives similar to the “You Matter” banners and removal of the bell.

Form I Tradition Day was deemed a great success by both the teachers who planned and organized it and the students who participated in the exploration around the school. Mrs. Hamilton and the Head of School, Mr. Schneider, worked extensively during the summer months to roll out this particular day during the school year for the Class of 2029.

Mr. Sullivan, the Director of the Middle School, said that he hopes that “[The first formers] have a real sense of the incredible history here and heard some of the important names that were integral in the school’s culture.” When asked about the possibility of hosting a similar event for older students, he replied that although there have yet to be concrete plans, the organizers behind the event have suggested the possibility of one in the future. ☐

Novemb er 2 , 2 023

B elmont HIll NEWS

Pa g e 3

East Campus Parking Lot Development Underway

By Luke Trevisan ’24 Panel Staff Construction has broken ground on the new Belmont Hill East Campus. Having begun in late August, trees have since been removed from part of the lot acquired by the school.

The surrounding area, including Prospect Street in September and Park Ave in October, has seen road closures and detours as the work on the lot interferes with the main roads.

The East Campus project will feature a 43,500-square-foot parking lot, with 143 parking spaces. This addition looks to take some of the stress off the Jordan Lot and Church Lot. Also, a brand new facilities building will be erected, replacing the old maintenance buildings behind the Chapel. One entrance will lead north onto Park Ave and another south onto Prospect Street.

A walkway and crosswalk will extend across the street, with more sidewalk laid down and electronic signage.

Currently, while faculty, seniors, and some eligible juniors have the opportunity to park in the Jordan Lot on campus, younger boys must park across Route 2, in the St. Paul Evangelical Lutheran Church parking lot. If boys miss the timed shuttles running between the lots, they need to walk 10 minutes through two busy intersections.

East Campus Plans

Belmont Hill Website

Furthermore, during major school events, the parking overflows onto Marsh Street and other side roads which clogs the roads and angers neighbors. Alex Behn ’24, who lives just off campus, said, “The parking lot will help limit parking on the side streets around Belmont Hill, which most of the neighbors will agree is a good thing.” The new parking will be reserved for fac-

ulty and staff, and all driving students will have the safety and ease of parking in the Jordan Lot. When the project is completed, revisions will be made to the Jordan Lot to maximize parking as well as to better facilitate the drop-off and pick-up of students. Behind the Jordan Athletic Center, 26 spots will be paved, as well as bus lanes for visit-

Protesters Outside BH

@belmontwildma on IG

ing teams to park. In the Upper Lot by the admissions office, spaces will be removed to streamline the parent car line, and a sidewalk will be added for students’ safety. The freed-up space of the old facilities buildings sets the stage for a dining hall that could begin construction within the next decade.

A project of this scale does not arise overnight and has been in the works since before the COVID-19 pandemic. Before the arrival of Mr. Schneider, Belmont Hill approached the town about the construction of a parking lot, but the town deferred, requesting a plan. During the pandemic, the planning team drafted a proposal and went through the town bureaucracy to ensure all rules were adhered to.

Through town halls and meetings, Belmont Hill met with town officials and members of the community.

They discussed topics including traffic, stormwater, landscaping, and wildlife to confirm that every aspect would be up to code. After much deliberation, Belmont Hill’s proposal was passed by a 3 to 2 vote of the Belmont town planning board on April 11th of this year.

In late 2021, the Belmont Hill project team held an initial meeting with town officials and approximately 100 neighbors to introduce the project. In early 2022, the project team met again to discuss the progression of plans with local neighbors who directly bordered

the lot. By May of that year, personal meetings were held with the major abutters. Mr. Schneider expressed that “we understand why abutters would be concerned about what they’re looking at in their backyard and the impact and all of that. And we tried really hard to work with the group of people that actually borders the project.”

Eventually, through some concessions, Belmont Hill and the local neighbors came to an agreement on the project.

However, in response to the proposal and development of the project, neighbor-led protests have arisen, accusing the school of handling the job poorly. The primarily voiced focus has been Belmont Hill’s destruction of forestland and natural habitat.

Signs on fences and posters held by environmental advocates read “F in Environmental Activism” and “Honk if you support the environment!”

Backlash has also arisen against Belmont Hill’s buying up of property for school use. As a non-profit, the school is not required by law to pay property taxes to the town. By “taking out a lot of houses,” Keith Dion from Belmont mentioned, “[Belmont is losing] tax revenue for the town.” This issue stems back further than the environmental concerns but has gained traction with the recent purchase of new properties.

While many of the immediate abutters have signed on to the project, the protests have gathered attention from other Belmont residents and members of local communities. On Saturday, September 30th of this year, a sizable group of around 25 people gathered on the rotary circle during the Admission Open House. The group included residents of Belmont but also Arlington and Cambridge. Catherine Scott of Belmont, an organizer of the event, said, “The Hill school’s actions are in contradiction to its mission…[that] it’s educating its students for learning how to negotiate with people, and institutions, giving students skills and how to do that.” When asked how the school could empower its students, she suggested they instruct students on how best to go about projects such as this one.

As part of the Belmont Wild campaign, Ms. Scott of Belmont alleged: “that Belmont Hill school is a bad neighbor to Belmont, that they’ve been asked to make payments in lieu of taxes to the town budget, and that they have so far refused.” Although this argument has found a resurgence in relation to the parking lot project, Head of School Greg Schneider drew a line between the two: “Those are two

Yard Signs outside BH

The Parking Lot Site

Luke Trevisan

separate conversations: what Belmont Hill does for the town and our desire to develop our land,” and emphasized the non-profit’s goal “to really communicate the ways in which we add economic benefit.” While Belmont Hill doesn’t pay the substantial property taxes on the main campus or additional properties in the area, it does pay for services, water, and electricity, and keeps its athletic facilities open to the public.

Listening to the concerns of neighbors and members of the community about the project itself, Belmont Hill has tried to see eye to eye with the worried. In negotiation, Belmont Hill’s primary goal was to ensure that those most affected by the development would be satisfied. Three abutters on Rutledge Road bore the brunt of the property line, and they were immediately contacted to ensure there could be a solution. And although, as Mr. Schneider said, “Belmont Hill has worked really hard to be a good neighbor in a whole bunch of ways,” it hasn’t been able to sway everyone with its changes.

Nevertheless, the project team agreed to concede some items. The planned curb of the parking lot, along with the fence shielding the houses from the lot, was moved back from the property line in order to give the neighbors more privacy. The planned location for the facilities building was also moved back for the same reason.

A proposed above-ground fuel tank was scrapped as there were questions about its safety and visual attractiveness. Finally, the school purchased an additional plot of land in order to redirect the driveway so that headlights would not shine into houses.

The East Campus Project Lot website reads, “We are confident that the updated proposal is sensitive to the environment, wildlife, and landscape of the community… and aligns with our commitment to being a good neighbor.” In response to environmental concerns, the planning team implemented more eco-friendly measures. Electric car charging stations will pop up on both campus lots. The pavement used will be permeable, allowing rainwater to flow through and maintain the natural pattern. Also, 5.35 acres of the 7.06-acre lot will remain vegetated and almost 200 trees along with 1000+ shrubs will be planted to reduce any build-up of a heat sink.

The schedule for the East Campus Parking Lot sets the completion of the lot for the end of the summer of next year. With the other additions, parking will be revamped on campus, made easier and more accessible for The Belmontonian students and visitors alike. ☐

B elmont Hill NEWS

Pa g e 4

Fall

Woodbury

By David Luo ’25 Panel staff

From being called an oompa loompa to coincidentally meeting an experienced paddleboarder, this year’s Woodbury Public Speaking contest yielded interesting stories and lifelong messages from various aspects of life.

The speakers for the finals were TJ Cannistraro ’24, Haden Bottiglieri ’24, Adrian Tan ’25, Brady Paquette ’25, Max Roman ’25, and Teddy Stonestreet ’25.

TJ started the chapel off strong with a speech about how his pious Christian upbringing ultimately led him to embrace different views than his family and to identify as an atheist instead. He connected with many audience members who stated how they experienced similar conflicts over various topics, with one student saying, “TJ’s speech was well performed and delivered a clear message that was relatable for many people.”

Brady then discussed how being short has been a large part of his life, although, as an audience member describes it, “He doesn’t let it get to his head.” His discussion about knowing oneself and not letting one character trait define you highlights how important it is to accept yourself and not be put in a hole dug by your insecurities.

A memorable line for many audience

Cum

members was his idea of “only gaining one inch” whenever he saw the doctor every year, showcasing the hope of growing taller but later realizing that height is not what defines him.

Max told a story about an impromptu sledding adventure on mu-

Mrs. Phinney took the podium with a smile on her face. Overlooking the mass of blazers and ties, she graciously thanked Mr. Scheinder for his warm introduction.

Then, she turned her attention to the podium, searching for something hidden within its shelves. She then rose back up, now with thick red sunglasses in hand, their lenses reflecting the rays projecting from the spotlights above. Calmly, she placed the glasses on the Podium before her, a symbolic gesture the crowd understood immediately.

To begin her speech, Mrs. Phinney emphasized the importance of teamwork.

Reflecting on her emotions during the powerful Chapel held last December in honor of George Phinney, she stated “We are better together.” Then, she shifted her focus to the concept of hard work versus intelligence. To do this, she shared a wolf parable, in which a grandfather tells his grandson that we all have two wolves in our bodies, one which represents darkness and evil, the other light and hope. The winner of this inner conflict will be “whichever one you feed.” Using

Speaking

Teddy spoke about his experience learning about a paddleboarder who battled mental health and promoted mental well-being by performing extreme feats on his paddleboard. Teddy’s speech described how looking around and taking everything in can benefit oneself.

Fall Woodbury Finalists Source: BH Communcations sical instrument cases. His story sugAdrian described how his regests that unforgettable moments are lationship with the piano changed usually spontaneous and that being over time. After pressure from those unexpected is not always a bad thing around him pushed him to succeed in and can lead to lifelong memories. the biggest competition of his life, he

Laude

By Alejandro laidlaw ’25 panel staff

Public

T he Panel

and

lost his passion for playing the piano despite his undeniable skill with the instrument. He later found his passion on his own terms and started to enjoy himself again, further showcasing how just because you are good at something doesn’t mean you enjoy it or should continue doing it. A student said, “It was interesting to hear from someone who is so talented at something and gained accolades because he was pressured and not because he was passionate. I’m sure many people at Belmont Hill feel the same way since everyone is so talented here, and I hope people take Adrian’s message to heart.”

Haden presented about how meaningful relationships with his brothers have impacted his life. His speech showed how you should keep relationships strong since you do not have infinite time to make memories; instead, you should cherish your time.

Another Form V student mentioned, “I feel like this relates to the brotherhood found at Belmont Hill because these relationships will most likely last a lifetime, and it is important to develop these relationships while you’re here.”

Although all the boys exhibited excellence in both the writing and performance of their speeches, Adrian Tan ’25 and Brady Paquette ’25 were named winners of the competition. ☐

Academic

Awards

Chapel

ON

THE

HILL

this analogy, Mrs. Phinney demonstrated how intelligence and outcome feed the bad wolf and, by association, ego, while hard work and a growth mindset feed the good wolf and a thirst for knowledge. With this in mind, she challenged the Chapel to value work ethic over results. She pushed the audience to ask the question, “Did you work for it?” every time they accomplish something. According to Mrs. Phinney, only the things you have to work for truly matter.

Finally, Mrs. Phinney connected the ideas of putting in the work and growing as a person to her own life. As a college senior, eager to make the US women’s hockey team, she had to work incredibly hard to achieve her goal. Then, after being told by the coach of the team that she was “never going to make the Olympic team,” she dedicated her life to reaching her dream. In the end, she made the team and won a bronze medal in the 2006 Torino Olympic Games.

She credited her ability to accomplish this goal to her finding her “edge.” Looking out into the sea of blazers, she asked the crowd “What is going to bring you to your edge?” Following this, Mrs. Phinney closed with a quote that she holds near to her

HALLOWEEN

Competition

heart: “The gifts we have live on the edges. Find yours. Elevate us.” With that, the crowd erupted into well-deserved applause.

Before the speech, Mr. Schneider recognized the students who had made the honor roll and read the names of those who had earned AP awards. Then, Mr. Harvey honored Mark Price ’24 and Noah Farb ’24 with the American History Prize for their impressive term papers. Next, Dr. Tift rose to the podium to bestow the Profile Prize to William Walton ’25 and Andrew

Waugh ’25. Following the humanities, Mr Sullivan, the new head of middle school, delivered the Middle School Academic Achievement Award to Rylan Dean ’26, Eita Fuse ’26, Jaiden Lee ’26, Brandon Li ’26, Eli Norden ’26, and TZ Snail ’26. Finally, Mr. Schneider announced the first group of Cum Laude Society inductees of the year: Alex Behn ’24, Andrew Bittner ’24, Haden Bottiglieri ’24, Brian Lee ’24, Mark Price ’24, Aaron Stanger ’24, Luke Trevisan ’24, and Kevin Weldon ’24. ☐

Summa Cum Laude Recipients with Mr. Schneider

BH Communications

Novemb er 2 , 2 023

B elmont HIll OPINIONS

Pa g e 5

A Complete Ranking of the Belmont Hill Bathrooms

By Eli Norden ’26 Panel Staff While bathrooms are certainly not why a student would choose one school over another, it is impossible to deny that bathrooms are a critical facility of any academic institution. From preschool through graduate school and generally in one’s everyday life, the look, cleanliness, and overall vibes of where we do our business are essential to our satisfaction. Everybody at Belmont Hill has a favorite bathroom—they may just not know it yet.

Eliot: 3/10 This bathroom is wimpy, cramped, and dirty. 21.6% of students say this bathroom is their least favorite on campus. One student stated that “[he] was in 8th grade as a 4’11 boy, [and] could see over the stall in Eliot.” Another commented, “If I’m having a nice class with Mr. George and I have to go to the bathroom, I have to go down two flights of stairs then down a hallway to one of the worst bathrooms on campus.

The floor is stained for eternity, the layout reminds me of the backrooms, and it smells bad.” Overall, this is not a great bathroom—we recommend avoiding it unless absolutely necessary.

Art Back (near woodshop): 3/10 This bathroom isn’t rated a 1 or 2 because most people probably don’t even know about it. This bathroom gets an extra point for being very nonchalant—I like that. What I don’t like, though, is that the door is broken and that this bathroom is generally old, dirty, and compact. It is certainly possible that this bathroom has not been updated since 1923. “The overall ambiance reminds me of a morgue,” said a passionate student. It is dark and scary in there. I would only recommend using this bathroom once to know where it is. Beyond that, please don’t venture into this dark corner of the art building.

Dining Hall: 3/10 Crowded and small, the Dining Hall bathroom is one of the most overly-used bathrooms on this campus. There is, unfortunately, no more space to expand this bathroom. It is what it is. Every time I use this bathroom, I often have to hold my breath to avoid the stench, and I recommend you do the same. Stay away from

this bathroom as often as possible.

Art Front (near Ceramics): 4/10 Overall, this bathroom is solid.

It’s big, with two stalls and urinals.

However, the urinals are so tightly packed together that using them both at once is physically impossible. One

room has incredible urinal capacity, two stalls, and an automatic dryer. Because so many people use this bathroom, one should expect it not to be the nicest on campus.

Locker Rooms: 5/10 This rating may surprise you, but

Chapel Basement Restroom Luke Trevisan senior described that “the urinal sit- they are a five because they shouldn’t be uation in Art Front is a criminal of- clean. “In the red locker room, there is fense.” I could not agree more. Some- always feces in the toilets that either clog thing must be done. We, the students, them or make it disgusting,” said one call for the administration to create junior. Yes, they are loud, usually dirty, more space between these urinals. and crowded, but that is to be expected; Morse: 5/10 anybody who wishes these bathrooms Morse is just okay. The disparities to be squeaky clean should stop talking. in the upstairs and downstairs bath- They are locker rooms—deal with it. rooms are significant: 43 “bottom 3” Melvoin: 7/10 votes were given to the upstairs one and An excellent go-to bathroom, 26 to the downstairs. The downstairs Melvoin gets the job done. These rebathroom is quite large, with three sinks strooms are clean, and despite the many and urinals. The upstairs bathroom, on students with classes in Melvoin, they the other hand, is small and crowded. are rarely crowded. Thirty-five students Fortunately, both bathrooms are clean. put any Melvoin bathroom as their first No floor on a school campus should choice on campus, and 18 put one as be serviced by only one urinal and one their bottom choice. Above all else, stall. If the upstairs bathroom were less these bathrooms contain arguably the squeezed, Morse would likely be one best sinks on campus: good water presof my favorite bathrooms on campus. sure and automatic faucets top off the Science: 5/10 most dependable bathroom on campus.

Upstairs and downstairs are pracPrenatt: 7/10 tically the same. The only difference “[Prenatt is] a nice quiet bathis that the downstairs bathroom has room, not usually occupied.” While two stalls, while upstairs is a stall and I am not a musician and spend little a urinal. Like Morse, these bathrooms time in Prenatt, when I did my review have no advantages or drawbacks. They of the bathroom on October 12, I was are both just fine. Across the board, pleasantly surprised. The bathroom is these bathrooms were the most neu- spacious, with two urinals and stalls, tral of them all, with few top three or perfect to accommodate multiple perbottom three votes—a perfect five. forming artists at a time and accomJordan Lower: 5/10 modate their needs. The sinks are auNothing special. This bath- tomatic and very lovely, and I would

try and use this bathroom as often as possible if I spent more time in this very modern and comfortable building.

Wadsworth: 8/10 Now, this is a bathroom I can get behind. While not always the cleanest, this restroom provides maximum privacy and has great soap. There isn’t much to say about this bathroom other than that it is awesome. Fifty-seven students put this bathroom as either their second or third choice, often after MacPherson and Chapel Basement. The students agree: this is a perfect and convenient second or third-choice bathroom.

MacPherson: 9/10 “Close to the lunch room, just in case Tony Maws’ ’88 black beans are not sitting well, and in close proximity to the library. This bathroom has it all: convenience, cleanliness, privacy. I love this bathroom.” I don’t know what sums up this luxurious bathroom better than these quotes. I would recommend this bathroom to everybody who has not ventured below the dining hall or is looking for an alternative to the dining hall bathroom.

Chapel Basement: 9/10 Wow. If striping a drive down the first fairway was a restroom, it would be the Chapel basement. I refuse to call this gorgeous chamber a bathroom—it is a restroom. I skip across campus and squeal giddily when I am about to use it. It is the epitome of luxury: “Chapel basement should be the standard for all restrooms on campus. It is a throne fit for a king,” explained a student. This restroom has it all: it is clean and has slick interiors and minimalistic colors; the sinks work amazingly, and the soap is always fabulous. When I returned to school after summer break, I was more excited to become reacquainted with the Chapel basement restroom than to see my friends. The only issue with this restroom, and why I deducted a point, is that the door to the basement is often locked, and the Chapel is out of the way of most students’ daily lives on campus.

A huge thanks to the Belmont Hill maintenance staff for their unrelenting work on keeping our school clean. It is thanks to them that we can enjoy such spiritually ascending places as the MacPherson and Chapel basement restrooms.☐

Should We Have More No-Homework Weekends?

By Will Hennigar ’26 Panel Staff Homework has become a staple of current school culture. Although what homework students do and how long they spend on it varies, everyone has established some routine, and most dread doing it on the weekends.

We put in the time and effort for four nights each week, and although some may argue that homework is generally good for practicing the skills they learned in class, sometimes its quantity can become excessive.

As for weekend homework, it can be challenging to complete because students are most usually exhausted from the week of school, and still face a weekend of extracurriculars.

For students to reach their full potential and have the best experience they can at Belmont Hill, I am strongly in favor of more no-homework weekends.

Based on a recent survey of the Belmont Hill community, more than

85% of people were in favor of having more no-homework weekends. When asked why it would be helpful, many students said they wanted to spend more time with their families. Most students during the week are at school for 9-10 hours a day; when they get home, not only do kids have to complete around 2-3 hours of homework, but they also may have extracurricular activities such as sports practice, music lessons, tutoring and so on. These commitments can leave minimal opportunities to spend valuable time with family, interactions which they will long for in college.

Additionally, many students cited that having more no-homework weekends would help them ease overall stress on the weekends after a long week of school, by spending that time relaxing or doing extracurricular activities. Many students’ weekends are filled with commitments, which can make it hard to complete homework while also finding time to relax. Less homework helps kids discover new

hobbies or passions, spend more time doing the things they like in their free time, or engage in important activities, such as community service work. Furthermore, more no-homework weekends could help seniors focus on college applications and the college process in general. Finding what colleges interest a student, writing essays and studying for and taking the SAT or ACT take up a tremendous amount of time.

A survey done by a researcher at Stanford on some of the negative impacts homework can have on students yielded similar results to the one conducted at Belmont Hill. The participants came from 10 elite high schools, and totaled 4,317 students.

93% of these students went on to college. The purpose of the survey was to see what students thought about homework, and how it affects their well-being. The average time these students spent completing homework each night was 3.1 hours. The study found that too much homework may actually be

counterproductive, and that 1.5 to 2.5 hours of homework is best for students.

I think we could try two ways to accomplish more no-homework weekends. First, we increase the amount of regularly scheduled no-homework weekends each marking period.

Right now, Belmont Hill only has one no-homework weekend in the entire school year, and that is during the Admissions Open House. However, I believe we should implement at least 1-2 no-homework weekends per marking period. For the first marking period the no-homework weekend would continue as the Open House weekend.

In the second marking period, the no-homework weekend would be the weekend before Thanksgiving break. In the third marking period, it would be during the mud weeks. For the fourth marking period, it would be during Party with a Purpose. The reason to have these weekends is so that the no-homework weekends are spaced out evenly throughout the school year. ☐

B elmont Hill OPINIONS

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T he Panel

A Deeper Look into Ron DeSantis’s Campaign Failure

By Brandon Li ’26 Panel Staff If you’ve been following the Republican presidential primary over the past year, you may have noticed that Ron DeSantis’s campaign has completely flopped. According to FiveThirtyEight, his polling average for the Republican primary managed to climb within 10 percentage points of Trump in January, but the gap has now widened to more than 40 points.

How did this happen? Heading into 2023, all the factors seemed to align for the Florida governor. Trump was losing favor with the Republican establishment as a result of his numerous legal challenges and his poor endorsements during the congressional midterm elections. Conservative media outlets, especially those owned

by Australian tycoon Rupert Murdoch, were starting to give DeSantis favorable coverage over Trump. An ecstatic New York Post had branded him “DeFuture” following his landslide victory in the Florida gubernatorial election. Everything seemed to be going his way, so what happened?

Starting with the obvious mistake, DeSantis simply announced his campaign too late. He was hesitant to capitalize on the wave of support for him near the end of 2022, instead opting to wait until late May of this year to formally announce his pres-

idential candidacy. Some speculate that he was waiting for certain pieces of hyper-conservative legislation to pass in Florida before officially starting his campaign so that he could tout them as part of “his accomplishments.”

These include a 6-week abortion ban, restrictions on the teaching of gender identity in schools, and looser regula-

as a strong candidate while DeSantis was left looking weak and indecisive.

Another reason for DeSantis’s failure of a campaign is his perceived lack of charisma, which has hindered his ability to meaningfully connect with voters and get his message across.

He has been described as “a meatball,” “a robot acting like a human,” and as

Ron DeSantis Speaking

Google Images

tis’s effort to be more likable has led to a few painfully contrived moments.

In one instance, DeSantis unnaturally erupted in laughter in response to a joke made by a potential voter.

In another, he awkwardly attempted to smile on the stage of the first Republican primary debate but forgot that eyes also needed to show emotion while doing so. This awkward behavior stands in stark contrast to Trump, who, as Business Insider India points out, is “a trained TV personality who relishes in political theater.”

All these mistakes aside, if Ron DeSantis wants to pull together his struggling campaign, he must face what he has avoided for so long – directly criticizing his main competitor for the Republican nomination, Donald Trump. Recent polling shows that DeSantis stands a chance against Biden in a hypothetical general election matchup; however, he is getting completely swept away by Trump in polling for the Republican primary.

For the longest time, DeSantis has been marketed as the best alternative to Trump, who was falling out of favor with the Republican establishment.

However, now that Trump has resurged in popularity, DeSantis must find a clear and decisive pitch to make to voters over why he should be preferred over the former president. Otherwise, this ambitious Florida governor might just have to wait another four years. ☐

tions on concealed weapons. However, according to Reuters, these pieces of legislation only turned away major donors for DeSantis’s campaign, who worried that they would “turn off moderate voters and make DeSantis unelectable.” This was a major miscalculation from DeSantis’s campaign, as Trump was given the time to rebound

having “the personality of a piece of paper.” The core of his campaign seems to recognize the problem this presents to his election chances: In a leaked video of DeSantis preparing for a debate, one of his advisors instructs him to write “LIKABLE” at the top of his notes as a constant reminder on the debate stage. However, DeSan-

Biden’s victory in Georgia. The hush money trial will begin on March 25, 2024 at the height of the 2024 presidential campaign.

Though one might presume that these indictments would reduce support for the former president, Trump has only become more favored in light of them. The accusations, and specifically the resulting mugshot, ironically improved his popularity amongst the Right, who believe the trials are one big smear campaign fabricated by the Left.

According to NBC News, as of Oct. 21st, Trump is beating his Republican opposition by a long shot in the polls, with the support of roughly 52% of Republicans, and has raised over $7 million in campaign funds since the mugshots were taken in August. By contrast, his closest runner up, Ron DeSantis, polls at just 14% of the Republican vote.

The charges have improved Trump’s popularity amongst conservatives, but this

may not be the unintentional win the Right is celebrating. All of the indictment trial dates take place between March and May of 2024, campaign season. As the accused, Trump will be required to be in person at the trials, keeping him off the campaign trail and missing critical opportunities to hold rallies and connect with voters. While this may hinder Trump’s success in the general elections, it may not necessarily guarantee the re-election of Joe Biden, whom the Democratic National Committee has already chosen as their democratic candidate.

Joe Biden’s approval ratings are not robust, with 54.1% of Americans disapproving of him as of Oct. 26 according to ABC News. A poll from Reuters on Oct. 10 displays that 92% or Republicans disapprove while only 17% of Democrats disapprove.

Because of this, Biden may have Trump off his back, but he’ll just have to deal with one

of the other candidates: Vivek Ramaswamy, Ron DeSantis, Tim Scott, Nikki Haley, or Robert F. Kennedy Jr. who stands as a democratic opponent. Given Biden’s declining popularity and lack of charisma as compared to his rivals, it’s very possible that he’ll lose to a contestor. It is also entirely possible, assuming acquitted on all accounts, that Trump wins the election, regardless of his ability to campaign due to his popularity amongst the conservatives alone. However, another contestant to Biden such as Nikki Haley or RFK may be able to attract more voters from more parties, and may be able to do so more aptly without Trump as a threat. Either way, while it is possible the indictments may cost Trump the election, they are unlikely to win it for Joe. ☐

ton played just 33 games and a significant decrease in minutes per game.

By contrast, the Celtics have improved both their defense and their offense this offseason. After trading Marcus Smart, the Celtics upgraded to Jrue Holiday who is just as good a defender, but much better on offense. Combined with Derrick White, Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Kristaps Porzingis, the Celtics now have the best defense in the league. Additionally, they have plenty of offense. With Holiday and Porzingis on board (both of whom were 20 point-per-game scorers last year), Tatum and Brown, no longer have to shoulder the entire offense. Most of the Celtics losses last season happened when both the stars, Tatum and Brown scored below their respective averages.

Now that more explosive scorers have been added, that will not be the case this year. There are injury concerns for Kristaps, but I think that if his minutes are managed well, then he won’t get hurt.

Even without Jrue and Kristaps, the Celtics played well head-to-head against the Bucks. On Christmas day last year, the Celtics outscored the Bucks 139-118 behind a 40 ball from Tatum. In their second meeting on February 14th, The Bucks won in overtime, but the Celtics were benching Tatum, Brown, and Smart. Then, in their third and final meeting, the Celtics destroyed them 140-99, with Tatum and Brown combining for 70 points.

Various sites, including Yahoo Sports, claim that the Celtics traded away all of their depth. Nevertheless, the Celtics bench consists of players like Al Horford, Oshae Brisset, Payton Pritchard, Sam Hauser, and Jordan Walsh. Though getting older, the 37-year-old Horford shot over 44 percent from 3 last year and is a viable defender at either power forward or center.

Newly signed free agent, Oshae Brissett, is a well-above-average defender and can hold his own on offense. One

of the shiftiest players in the league and a very accurate 3-point shooter (nearly 40% over 3 years), Payton Pritchard could pose a problem for opposing defenders as long as he gets more minutes.

The Celtics clearly believe in Pritchard both now and for the future, as they recently handed him a four year contract extension. Speaking of 3-pointers, one of the best catch-and-shoot players in the league, Sam Hauser, adds great spacing to the floor whenever he is on the court. Lamar Stevens and rookie Jordan Walsh both are solid bench options but will probably only get minutes if there are injuries. But a short man rotation is all the Celtics need this season. The Celtics will win more games than the Bucks this season due to better defense and depth, which will set Boston up for a deep playoff run.☐

Trump Indictments’ Effect on the 2024 Election

By Will Achtmeyer ’26 Panel Staff Former President Donald Trump has been indicted four times since March on both state and federal charges, resulting in 91 felony counts and making him the first U.S. President to have been brought up on criminal charges. The first indictment by the State of New York in March involves hush money payments to porn actress Stormy Daniels using campaign funds and, in turn, falsifying business records. The second by Federal prosecutors in June, charged Trump with mishandling sensitive documents and conspiracy to obstruct the government. In August, he was federally charged with obstruction of the 2020 election, and later that month, he was charged with similar state counts pertaining to efforts to overturn President Joe

Why the Celtics are Favored over the Bucks in the East

By Ben Adams ’25 Panel Staff The NBA world was shaken a few weeks ago when Damian Lillard was dealt to the Bucks in a Blockbuster deal including Jrue Holiday and more. This trade immediately propelled the Bucks to become the betting favorites to win the Eastern Conference by Points Bet, closely followed by the Celtics. However, I think that the Celtics should be first.

While the Bucks did improve offensively by getting Damian Lillard, he limits them on defense. Jrue Holiday was arguably the best perimeter defender in the league last year. With both Giannis and Jrue, the Bucks had one of the best defenses in the league, but they have now given that up.

Some of the Bucks’ best players spent much of the season on the bench.

While Giannis played consistently, Dame only played 58 games (29 the preceding season), and Khris Middle-

B elmont HIll OPINIONS

Novemb er 2 , 2 023

Should

Form

By Brandon Li ’26 Panel Staff Belmont Hill would be better off having Form III in the Upper School instead of the Middle School. Most students at BH disagree with me on this, as out of 184 respondents, over 68.5% disagreed with the statement “Form III should be in the upper school,” with the remaining 31.5% agreeing. This topic may seem relatively insignificant – after all, aren’t we just talking about changing Form III’s classification label and making some modifications to its daily block schedule? However, this switch is actually very relevant to students’ experience at BH. There’s a reason why it’s the norm for schools across the country to assign the 9th grade as the first year of high school: it’s simply the best system to prepare students for college and for life beyond.

Clearly, freshman year is an important one. It’s the first year where grades, disciplinary violations, and extracurricular participation all count for college. Whereas the role of a 7th or 8th grader is to enjoy life and act like a middle schooler, the role of a high schooler is to start the transition to adulthood and to build a resume for college. In most schools across the world, having the 9th grade serve as the first year of high school helps to emphasize this momentous transition to students. The label of being a “high schooler” serves as a constant reminder to freshmen that courses, grades, and extra-curric-

III

Be

in

the

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ulars start to actually matter, and that these things should be taken seriously.

As a result, there is internal pressure on the student to start joining clubs, developing career interests, and generally to start becoming an adult. At Belmont Hill, this is not the case. Under

is something that I experienced going into this school year as a sophomore, and I’m sure the same is true of many others at Belmont Hill as well.

Of course, there is the leadership argument to consider in favor of keeping Form III in the Middle

Belmont Hill Students

the current system at BH, where Form III is considered part of the “Middle School,” many students do not immediately recognize the importance of this shift to high school, and continue engaging in unproductive middle school behaviors for yet another year. The experience of “shifting to the high school mindset” that students would typically be forced to undergo in freshman year is postponed to sophomore year. The end result is that students have one less year to prepare for the rigors of college and life beyond, and have to scramble to compensate for the lost time. This

School. Belmont Hill’s website states that “Ninth Grade at Belmont Hill is unique in that the boys become the leaders of the Middle School rather than the bottom of an Upper School.”

However, I believe that this offers little to no value to members of Form III. The “leadership effect” would only apply if the Middle School was kept separate and independent from the Upper School, both in terms of physical location and in terms of the student body’s perception. Otherwise, it would be hard to claim that boys from Form I and II specifically look

higher-quality meals than ever before.

In October, our team of reviewers have calculated an average score of 6.8/10 for all entries. Moreover, our two food critics have been hard at work, tasting, judging, and reviewing lunches in a mission to find the Meal of the Month.

There were many honorable mentions, including the Soy-Glazed Chicken, of which a student said that “The soy glaze in my mouth was delicious” -- or the Italian Sausage and Risotto, which featured a “sauce that pairs nicely with the meat”. In the end, the Chicken Shawarma won the title of Meal of the Month. The shawarma perfectly blended a soft doughy flatbread and flavorful chicken, along with a

side of mixed grains and various vegetables. Reviewers found the seasoning and sauces particularly notable. Upon finishing his meal, one sophomore described the chicken as: “legit - a testament to the cooking capabilities of Tony Maws and his cooking staff ”.

Our 2 critics rated the meal as a 9 and 8.5 out of 10, respectively. This score proves the Chicken Shawarma is a great meal, and it would certainly be a welcome option for future lunch rotations.

On the sweet side, in October the kitchen crew impressed us with an average dessert score of 7.1/10. Featured treats included the famed Galaxy Bars, which were described as “a mix of every good dessert in one,” and the delicious

Adam Richins

up to Form III as leaders, as opposed to boys in Form V and Form VI. After all, there is no point in assigning Form III to a leadership position in the Middle School when the only real distinction between the Middle School and the Upper School is based on scheduling. While it’s true that there are minor leadership opportunities for members of Form III, such as serving as the leaders of middle school clubs, this is insignificant compared to the benefits of having an extra year of high school that I have previously detailed.

I have to acknowledge that this entire article is speculative at the moment, as Mr. Bradley has confirmed that having Form III in the Upper School is currently impossible from a logistical perspective. The school would have to find a way to fit four forms of students into an already-packed lunchroom, and there would be various complications relating to practice space for Upper School sports.

Regardless, if Belmont Hill ever gets the chance, it’s clear that the student body would be much better off with the addition of Form III to the Upper School. Thousands of students have passed through this school, and I wonder: For any one of those alumni, what if making that mental transition a year earlier was the key, missing ingredient that could have resulted in a major breakthrough in life and led to extraordinary success? ☐

Meal of the Month: Ranking Each School

By Rhett Curtis ’26 and Jack Ramanathan ’26 Panel Staff Welcome to the first edition of our monthly series of articles where we rate, review, and discuss the meals of the past month! This month was full of many fun dishes, from cultural plates to a classic beef burger. Without further ado, let’s dive in.

Tony Maws ’88, chef Randi Burger, and the hospitality of the FLIK staff have delivered once again an amazing month of lunches. Highlights include the Al Pastor Taco Bowl and the Chicken Mozzarella Sandwich. Day in and day out, the boys have been provided with

School?

Lunch

White Chocolate Cranberry Cookies.

However, it was the Chocolate Bread Pudding that took the crown. The soft, chocolatey-rich bread, described as “a truly decadent dessert”, is the pinnacle of all sweet treats, and ultimately earned a score of 9.5 and 8.5 out of 10.

After a great month of exquisite food, the next month has many more promising meals to look forward to. Dishes such as the Steak Teriyaki, Herb Garlic Chicken, and Five Spice Grilled Turkey Breasts will soon be tasted by members of the Belmont Hill community. Find out our rating for the next month of food in the next edition of The Panel.☐

DOTI: Should Mac Jones Start for the Patriots?

By Luke Trevisan’24 and Lev Tolkoff ’24 Panel Staff The New England Patriots are off to an interesting start in the 20232024 NFL season. With two historic losses, close games against the Eagles and Raiders, and a thrilling win against the Bills, it has been a rollercoaster ride for Patriots fans used to seeing wins. Amid the struggle, fans and analysts alike have questioned some choices on the team. The biggest debate has been over starting quarterback Mac Jones, who has faced the brunt of the criticism as the face of the team. We will debate his validity below.

For Starting Mac: The New England Patriots have had a challenging start to their season.

This is a fact. A 2-5 record puts them at the bottom of the barrel and things aren’t looking good for the playoff hopes.

However, those two numbers aren’t en-

tirely reflective of what happened. Yes, Bill Belichick had his worst two defeats since anyone can remember, and, yes, they barely beat the Jets. But they also came close to a victory against the formidable Eagles and came back to triumph over the Bills. Mac Jones may be at fault for some of the Pats’ struggles, but he also has undoubtedly made some good plays, and his support systems around him haven’t stepped up.

A lot of people forget that Mac Jones played for Alabama, and Nick Saban doesn’t let just anyone play for his QB position. While this season hasn’t been the prettiest, two seasons ago, Jones led the Patriots to the playoffs, a major achievement following Tom Brady’s departure. Mac does have problems, including his mobility in the pocket and split-second decisions.

However, he still has what it takes to be a successful quarterback. He’s proved himself with the deep ball throws, tossing it up to Davante Parker in the Raid-

ers game, who unfortunately dropped it. Against the Bills, he led the Pats on two touchdown drives in the fourth quarter alone, going 11 of 13 for 127 yards. He also has acknowledged the areas in which he needs to improve and strives to grow in, stating “I need to do a better job” after their loss to the Saints.

Outside of what Mac can control, the tools and resources around him are subpar, limiting his ability to make big plays. The most flagrant problem this season has been the offensive line. Ranked 31st in the league

by FTN, they have been plagued by injuries and inexperience. The constant swapping of linemen and lack of consistency means the unit can’t make any progress toward becoming successful. They are near the top of the league in sacks and pressures allowed, not making Mac Jones’s life any easier.

Also, the Patriots have a below-average receiving core, ranked 29th in the league by Pro Football Focus. In the

offseason, they traded Jakobi Meyers to the Raiders and passed over an opportunity to get Deandre Hopkins. Jones’s current weapons can’t get open and thus force him to make riskier throws.

The faults of Mac Jones are exasperated by the lackluster offense.

If he is given better opportunities to make plays, he can prove himself to be the quarterback which he has displayed in some pivotal moments this year.

Against Starting Mac: With the 2-5 start to the season, something in the Patriots organization needs to change. After painfully watching the first seven games of the season, there is a reason for the worst start the Patriots have had in over twenty years: Mac Jones.

The former fifteenth-overall pick has had a bizarre career so far. After an excellent rookie season, an almost surefire rookie of the year campaign, the title was taken by one of the greatest rookie wide receiver seasons of all time by

Be lmont Hill OPINIONS/A RTS

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Mac

Jones

Continued

Ja’Marr Chase. After this season, most Patriots fans, myself included, thought we found another guy. The dynasty had been reignited, and another fifteen years of success was almost a given. He was composed in the pocket, top five in accuracy, and had a level of knowledge for the game similar to a player in his tenth season. However, in his second season, he took a significant step back, looking nothing like his rookie season.

Many people blamed this on his offensive coordinator, Matt Patricia, a former defensive coordinator. But, this offseason, the Patriots chose a new coordinator, Bill O’Brian, the Texans failed head coach but an incredible offensive coordinator.

So, with a revamped offense, the best tight-end duo in the league in Hunter Henry and Mike Gesicki, there was nothing in the way to hold Mac Jones back from another great season.

To say this has not been the case is an understatement. He has thrown for more than 250+ passing yards in only two games this season, coupled with seven interceptions for only seven touchdowns; he has been a bottom-five quarterback in the league.

For those who say that it is not only Mac’s fault, that is true to a certain extent. Yes, the Patriots do not have a great receiving core, but in games where Mac did not have a turnover, the Patriots are 2-0, while in those he had a turnover, 0-5.

Mac’s strengths are ball security,

accuracy, and confidence in his play.

So far, he has nine turnovers, a lackluster sixty-six percent accuracy, and has been benched twice in the fourth quarter. Outside of that, he is an immobile check-down artist with a weak arm, the antithesis of the modern-age quarterback. While maybe twenty years ago, Mac Jones would have been a prototypical quarterback and had a great career, that is not the style of play that has evolved in the last ten years. Looking at any top ten teams in the league, they all have mobile quarterbacks who can sling it downfield with a flick of the wrist. This is the future of the league.

Now, Mac Jones is not necessarily a bad quarterback; that is not the debate. It is whether he is the future for the Pats, and the answer is an overwhelming no. The Patriots must adapt to the new style of play, and we can not get bogged down in the stubbornness of our old methods. If the Patriots want to win a Super Bowl anytime in the next ten years, they must draft a new-age quarterback like Caleb Williams or Drake Maye in this draft class and accept that Tom Brady is gone.

The Patriots dynasty is dead, but they are making decisions as if the greatest quarterback of all time is still under center; he is gone. It is abundantly clear something has to change, and that something starts with finishing the season with Mac sending him somewhere else in the offseason and drafting a new face of the franchise.☐

Online Editor Alex Laidlaw ’25

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T he Panel

Editor-In-Chief Kevin Weldon ’24

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Article Support Editor

Assistant Editors

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Executive Editors

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The Panel, founded in 1953, is the official school newspaper of the Belmont Hill School. The Panel is the voice of the student body. We publish articles that are of consequence to the students, as well as the school communities. The views expressed in The Panel belong solely to the authors and editors and do not necessarily represent the student body, faculty or administration of the school. Any comment about the content should be addressed directly to the editors. The Panel encourages responsible opinion in the form of Letters to the Editor. We reserve the right to edit all submissions for length and content. Copyright © 2023 The Panel. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form without prior written permission of the Editor-in-Chief. Published by the Belmont Printing Co., Belmont, MA 02478.

Belmont Hill’s Fastest Growing Art: Videography

Antwane Mills ’26 @oreo.prod on IG the work of Artist of the Issue, Daniel Slatkavitz ’24, to stories about the inner workings of First Form Art. Each episode is well worth the watch and makes one feel proud to be a part of Belmont Hill.

Behind the scenes of each episode are hours of shooting, compiling, and editing, spanning over many months. Indeed, while the viewer

only sees a 5-minute video, work on the most recent episode can be dated back to 2022, when Mr. Duarte and a handful of students interested in making videos founded BHTV. Over the course of last spring, Mr. Duarte and the other aspiring videographers spent dozens of hours editing clips, paying attention to every last detail in order to make the perfect video on Daniel Slakavitz’s ’24 incredible talents. The end result: a work of art, something enjoyable to listen to and captivating to watch. The introduction consists of a black-and-white video with calming music in the background, followed by a shot from the perspective of an old film camera with the nostalgic film sprocket on the side.

Later on, a grainy shot reminiscent of a film made in the 70s, with a flicker of pale orange light transitioning it seamlessly back to black and white.

However, the best part about videography on campus is not how good the videos are, or the stories they tell, but how much it is growing. Media Club is hosted every Friday in Mr. Duarte’s classroom in Robsham, where each day a growing number of students participate in the art of videography,

photography, and more. Over the past couple years, videography has grown from a taboo on campus, one student, Mason Iandorio ’26 said, “I remember 2 years ago, [Garrett Theberge ’24] was really the only one with a camera, and people looked at him and wondered what he was doing, but now every game we have minimum 5 or 6 people standing around taking videos.’’ Now, however, videography has never been larger, and there is no better time to start. Anyone who wants to hone their skills in videography or editing now has a wealth of knowledge they can tap into by asking other students, as well as a club dedicated to helping people learn more. As Mason Iandorio ’26 put it, “It’s an open environment with no expectations. You come in with an idea and they do their best to help you accomplish it. They’re very open with what they do and don’t know, and are totally happy to learn with you.” ☐

art is deep-rooted in who he is, his once hobby is now one of his life’s true passions, it is sure to last a lifetime.

From a young age, art intere​​sted Daniel. Over time, he has learned to appreciate the fine details, things which are often missed within different mediums. Daniel expressed that he “learned to understand that photography is more than just sunset pictures and lifestyle pictures.” For Daniel, art is similar to sports, as it can only be truly experienced through one’s actions. Going

forward, Daniel finds art open to many possible definitions; he believes that art has no boundaries, no rules, and should be anything that makes someone happy.

Daniel extends his thanks to Mr. Duarte who played a prominent role in kindling his passion for photography. He also credits his curiosity for music as the cornerstone of his digital music passion. Having taken Photo 1, Advanced Photo, and, currently, AP Photography, he also creates work in his free time outside of school. His

artwork is a place for creativity and expression, where Daniel feels like he can express his true self. Daniel adds, “There is no wrong or right answer, so I am able to freely express my feelings.”

“Life changing,” were the words he used to describe his passion for the experience. He views it as an escape from reality, which allows for him to truly express himself. The Panel thanks Daniel for his impressive art work, and wishes him the best of luck in future endeavors. ☐

By Bradford Adams ’26 Panel Staff Last year, students gathered in the Chapel to welcome one of our most esteemed guest speakers, director David Kelley. In his speech, he discussed videography, and what went on behind the scenes in the making of a TV show.

But what is videography? For most people, they would probably say that it seems like it is something similar to photography, or something that deals with making short videos on a phone.

In fact, videography is defined as the process of making films on a camera.

But videography is so much more than just pulling out a phone and taking a video. The beauty of videography does not lie within the camera, but within the person operating it, using their imagination to shoot scenes that they later, painstakingly edit together, in order to create beautiful works of art.

To see this, one does not have to look any further than our very own Belmont Hill TV (BHTV). Founded this year, BHTV puts out videos every few weeks, each one demonstrating a Belmont Hill story with a unique perspective. Videos range from features on

Artist

of

By Ethan Xie ’26 Panel Staff Daniel Slatkavitz ’24 has put a spotlight on photography and digital music within the Belmont Hill community. A recent episode of BHTV well depicted his skills, where it put on display his passion for digital music and he talked about his connection to the art, including how he makes each soundtrack. Daniel’s passion for

the

Issue:

Daniel

Slatkavitz

’24

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B elmont HIll Sp orts

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Athlete of the Issue: Alexander Vittal ’24 Bobo Update

By Noah Farb ’24 Panel Staff Alex Vittal ’24 has been an integral part of Belmont Hill Varsity Soccer since entering the school in his Sophomore year. Alex started playing soccer at the age of 4 and had a long journey across multiple teams and states before finally making it to Belmont Hill. This season, his teammates elected him captain of the team due to his leadership, hard work, and accountability to the squad.

In 2023, Alex has excelled individually, scoring 11 goals and assisting 5 so far in the ISL, while helping propel the team to a promising 7-31 start in the ISL through the team’s first 11 games as of October 29th.

The impressive record includes a massive homecoming win over Nobles, a team previously ranked 4th in New England at the time of the match, in which Alex peppered the scoresheet with two goals and two assists. When asked about that victory, Alex responded “it was a great team performance, and everyone helped to close it out in the end.”

His friend, teammate, and co-captain Sean Scales ’24 was amazed by Alex’s performance in the match, saying “he was everywhere. He had a mission that day, and nobody was going to stop him.”

Along with his teammates, Coach

Jake Bobo and coach Pete Carroll

Alex Vittal ‘24 Adam Richins Montoya also notices Alex’s commit- table and jockeys for a postseason spot, ment both on and off the field, remark- stating that the team’s goals are to “being about “[his] incredible skill” while come closer as a team and qualify for the also commenting that Alex “is a great NEPSAC Class A tournament.” The Panindividual with great family values.” el congratulates Alex, Coach Montoya, With only a few regular season and the rest of the Varsity Soccer team games left, Alex helps to continue to for their strong start to the season and push the team in ISL play as the team wishes them luck as they pursue an ISL fights for a position in the top of the Title and NEPSAC postseason berth. ☐ Jake Bobo scoring a TD

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Google Images

Head of The Charles Race XC Aims for ISL Title

By Duncan Kilbride ’24 Panel Staff On October 22, four Belmont Hill crews competed in the world-renowned Head of the Charles Regatta. Continuing this longstanding Belmont Hill tradition, all boats demonstrated their skill and fitness along the 4702-meter course, despite both the enormous headwind and a chaotic startline.

This year, the Crew team fielded an unprecedented number of boats, with entries in both the Youth 8+ and Youth Coxed 4X events, and two other entries in the Youth 4+ event.

In the Youth 8+ boat, coxed by Gabriel Umlas ’25, from stern to bow were Kevin Weldon ’24, George Carroll ’25, Tyler Smith ’26, TZ Snail ’26, Luke Trevisan ’24, Fitz Courtney ’26, Ethan Xie ’26, and Daniel Xie ’24. They finished 74th place.

In the 4X boat, coxed by Aar-

on Stanger ’24, from stern to bow were Gabe Simmons ’24, Duncan Kilbride ’24, Julian Boutin ’24, and Alex Schmidek ’24. They finished in 33rd place.

In the A 4+ boat, coxed by Brian Lee ’24, from stern to bow were Nathan Pappas ’24, Will Walton ’25, Andrew Bittner ’24, and Jack Kastner ’25. They finished in 21st place.

Finally, in the B 4+ boat, coxed

by Max Glick ’24, from stern to bow were Lev Tolkoff ’24, Vince Mezzanotti ’25, Alex White ’25, and Luke Guleserian ’24. They finished in 41st place.

A special thank you to everyone who came out to support the athletes and the dining team along with the Alumni House who graciously set up a buffet-style breakfast for athletes and spectators alike. As the Head of the Charles comes to an end, Belmont Hill Crew now looks forward to the Spring season, only a few months away. ☐

cure an instant victory. However, due

By Henry Buckley-Jones ’25 & TZ Snail to some of our important runners be’26 ing injured, it’s difficult to tell whether Panel Staff the outcome could have been different, While some might say the had the whole team raced. As Coach Cross-Country team has had a rocky Trautz put it: “We were missing some season due to its losses against Nobles important pieces.” Most recently, the and Tabor, the team has still clearly team obtained a nerve-wracking vicshown dominance in the ISL. The team tory against St. Sebastians, taking the excelled in the early season as both the win by only a single point and ruining JV and Varsity squads decisively won Sebs’ homecoming. Knowing Sebs had their races; significant victories over a strong top three, Belmont Hill’s goal Middlesex on their home turf and over was to place one runner in between Groton at homecoming provided the in order to prevent a sweep. The plan team with a sense of accomplishment succeeded, with Belmont Hill not only and a surge of confidence. The team’s scoring a runner in 3rd, but also fillprimary rival, Nobles & Greenough, ing in places 5 through 11. Looking proved to be a challenge which the toward the end of the season, captains team wasn’t quite ready for. On Mil- Aaron Stanger ’24 and Miles Sandoton’s rainy andmuddy course, the top ski ’24 are confident. The Panel Staff four Nobles runners managed to slip wishes the Cross Country Team good ahead of our leading varsity pack to se- luck with the rest of their season. ☐

Controversial Liverpool Game Deciding VAR Decision

By Ben Gong ’26 & Luke Guleserian ’24 Panel Staff Liverpool and Tottenham’s September 30th matchup ended with the Reds losing their first match of the Premier League season 1-2. Losing to the top team in the table would usually be chalked up to a difficult game, but numerous VAR (Video Assistant Referee) mishaps led to conversations concerning whether the match was potentially rigged and how the current refereeing system is in desperate need of a revamp.

Most controversially, a goal scored by Liverpool forward Luis Diaz was deemed offside and not counted in the final score. However, the replays clearly showed Diaz to be onside, and the VAR supported an onside decision, suggesting that the goal should stand.

Initially, the on-field decision ruled the goal offside. Yet,VAR official Darren England mistakenly believed

that the initial on-field decision was onside, as the player was clearly onside.

Thinking that he was just reaffirming the on-field official’s decision, England reported to the center referee that his decision, thought by England to be onside, was correct; yet, due to the miscommunication, the on-field official received the decision as stating that Diaz was offside, and the goal was disallowed.

Under Premier League rules, a decision cannot be reviewed after play has restarted, and Tottenham smartly took a quick free-kick before more discussion could be made between the referees. The VAR team realized the error very quickly, just seconds after play restarted, and began to panic.

They decided that instead of fairness and breaking the rule of changing a decision after play resumed, they reaffirmed their protocol and followed the rules to a T, not allowing the goal.

Many pundits, players, and fans were infuriated by the incompetence of the Premier League officiating– this decision was crucial to the match result, which in turn significantly affected the league standings. This match alone could also have broader impacts on the season– imagine if Liverpool loses the Premier League title by a point or two just because of this game.

Liverpool also felt they received an unjust second red card through a pair of soft yellow cards called against Diogo Jota. Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp requested a replay of the match following the obvious officiating mistake. Without the series of suspicious decisions by referee Simon Hooper and the VAR officials, Liverpool would undoubtedly be first in the Premier League standings right now.

This is not the first occasion in which the VAR team has blundered terribly– just last season, Arsenal tied

Brentford after Ivan Toney levelled the game for Brentford through an offside goal. In that instance, VAR was too busy making one incorrect offside decision that they forgot to draw the lines in the pass that led to the goal. At that stage of the season, the incorrect decision was a crucial blow in Arsenal’s title race.

With this accumulation of human VAR errors, broader implications can be made. Almost all the VAR refereeing mistakes have favored one team through sabotaging their rivals: Manchester City. These refereeing mistakes could have been genuine human errors, but many speculate that there is underlying corruption influencing these decisions. ☐

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Coach

Richards

&

T he Panel

Calloway

HOCR

Results

and

Boats

Similarly on Sunday, October 22nd, 2023, Mr. Calloway competed in the Men’s Club 8+. Dr. Calloway rowed for Riverside Boat Club in Cambridge. His boat placed 5th, with a time of 14:32. Riverside entered three 8+s in the Men’s Club 8+ event, of which Mr. Calloway is in the first Varsity 8+.

The training plan for Coach Calloway’s boat is similar to the BH crew training plan except with a lot more volume, as he states that it is “because we are older and have been rowing longer.” Also, because all of the members of the crew have full-time jobs, the training schedule is very different. Their crew practices six times a week, but they either practice at 5:30 in the morning or 6:00 at night.

Last year, Mr. Calloway’s club, Riverside Boat Club, took third behind two of Harvard and Brown’s lower boats, making them the fastest club that year.

This year, they finished 5th. He points out that he’s not just looking at those seeded above him as he says, “we are gunning for them, but you can’t take anybody seeded behind you for granted”.

To earn a spot on the top boat, Mr. Calloway has had erg tests and multiple seat races, similar to our own selections at Belmont Hill. Seat rac-

ing is where you have two boats lined up against each other and two people in the same seat race against each other and then switch boats and race again. This is one of the main ways in which water boat selections are made.

Coach Calloway said that last year, two of the seniors asked if he still gets nervous for erg tests and other forms of selection, to which he responded, “It’s nerve-wracking and very emotional. You are competing directly with your friends and teammates in a very public way. Everyone can see the margins. That kind of competition can make me lose sleep, lose my appetite, etc.” Even after rowing for more than 15 years, these same struggles still affect him, but knowing these struggles allows him to understand what the kids on the BH crew team are going through.

“I know exactly what our boys are feeling whenever they sit down to an erg test or climb over the gunwales to compete against their best friend because I’m doing it too.”☐

The American team was outpaced the en- spite the final result, had a very strong tire Cup and showed very little fight. performance, including a chip-in to Varsity golfer Jack Mazur ’25 said, win a hole on day two. Other than Max, “Max Homa was one of the only bright however, Team USA was rather pathetic Rory McIlroy shed a tear as he spots for Team USA.” Max Homa, de- and did not seem to care nearly as much watched Team USA celebrate their victory in the 2021 Ryder Cup. From September 29th to October 1st, 2023, McIlroy, the Northern Ireland Native, finally got his revenge by leading Team Europe to a dominant victory over a talented USA team. The Ryder Cup is one of the most anticipated golf events in the world. Every two years, a team of the best golfers from the USA and a team of the best golfers in Europe embark on a competition. This year’s USA team consisted of stars like Scottie Scheffler, Max Homa, Justin Thomas, and Jordan Spieth, among others. Team Europe boasted talent like Viktor Hovland, Jon Rahm, Tommy Fleetwood, and Rory McIlroy.

This year’s cup ended with a final score of 16.5 to 11.5 in Europe’s favor. Ryder Cup Google Images

as Team Europe. “The European team was better prepared and seemed to care more,” said Jack Mazur ’25.This year’s Cup also contained some drama as hostilities between the two teams grew as the days passed. There was an incident between McIlroy and the caddie of Scottie Scheffler in which the caddie waived his hat in McIlroy’s face ahead of a putt, which resulted in the golfer releasing a verbal barrage at Scheffler and his caddie. Later in the cup, Team USA waved their caps to the fans after Patrick Cantlay won his match as a retort to McIlroy and Team Europe.

Despite the final result, the tournament was still fascinating and a few sparks from Team USA such as a Max Homa chip-in and a long, round-winning Patrick Cantlay putt kept things intriguing and fun to watch. It is clear that Team USA has some work to do before the next Ryder Cup in 2025 in New York, but, nonetheless, this year’s Cup was an enjoyable one. ☐

By George Carroll ’25 & Vince Mezzanotte ’25 Panel Staff On Saturday, October 21st, 2023, Mr. Richards competed in the 59th annual Head of the Charles Regatta in the Men’s Grand Master Fours starting at 10:16 a.m. His boat placed third, with a time of 17:54. Coach Richards and his crew previously won two consecutive Head of the Charles races last year and the year before.

Coach Richards and his crew, Richard Sampson, Greg Wilkins, and Jake Everett, three of whom have been rowing together since 2004, have been sticking to a diligent training plan consisting of around 5 workouts a week, and roughly 3 of which consist of on-water training out of the Belmont Hill boathouse. Coach Richards is known for pushing the Belmont Hill Crew team to their limits during practice, but he makes sure to do similar workouts with his crew to put them in the best position possible for regattas.

Coach Richard’s journey with this specific crew started in 2004 when they competed in the 40+ four event at Head of the Charles. The crew had large aspirations; however, the day before the

Ryder

Cup

big regatta, the stroke seat blew out his back and was unable to row. The boat did not let this misfortune define them, however. They came back the next year and dethroned the reigning winners, the 1980 Rowing Club, and started a legacy.

The following year, the crew hoped to win their second HOCR in a row; however, they got off to a slow start. Coach Richard’s oar got stuck on a buoy very early in a race, causing them to turn completely perpendicular to the race course, resulting in a loss of many seconds. Despite this catastrophe early on, they fought back to win their second HOCR. From 2004 to 2008, Coach Richards and his boatmates won every single HOCR, making their biggest win streak of 5 years in a row.

More recently, Coach Richards and his crew have been competing in the 50+ four, and this year in the Grand Master four. Their success has not been limited to the 5 year streak in the 40+ four. They won twice in the 50+ four, with one of the wins even setting a new course record for the age bracket. In 2021, the crew won HOCR again, and in 2022, they started yet another winning streak.

This year, Coach Richards and his crew finished a strong 3rd place.

2023:

By Christopher McEvoy ’25 & Andrew Hildebrandt ’25 Panel Staff

Reactions

Belmont Hill Varsity Soccer Continues to Impress

By Christopher McEvoy ’25 & Andrew Hildebrandt ’25 Panel Staff

the dominant teams in the ISL, and Belmont Hill dismantled their team with a substantial victory. When asked about his favorite moment of the season, Alexander Vittal ’24 said, “When we beat Nobles, it was not a game we were supposed to win, so it was a special game.”

The team has made tremendous

progress from last season and has improved drastically in many areas.

“Team chemistry has been our strength compared to last year. I think we have great team chemistry; the captains have done a great job gelling the team together,” said Coach Montoya. Despite the success, Coach Montoya still

This year’s Varsity soccer team is one of the most exciting in recent memory. The team has already shown both talent and grit, off to a fast start with multiple dominating performances this season. The team is led by Captains Alexander Vittal ’24 and Sean Scales ’24.

Offensively, Alexander Vittal ’24 and Jack Bartlett ’26 have both gotten off to successful starts. Alexander Vittal ’24 has 11 goals and five assists so far in the ISL. Defensively, William Umscheid ’25 has had a terrific start to the season, locking down opposing players.

On October 18th, Emerson Walker ’25 won Man of the Match for his outstanding defensive play against Middlesex.

Without a doubt, the most impressive performance put on by the Varsity soccer team this year was their Belmont Hill Varsity Soccer 4-2 win against Nobles. Nobles is one of

Adam Richins

believes there is progress to be made.

“I think in games we could finish a little bit more. We are creating some good opportunities if we can just get the ball in the net. The BB&N game was a good example.” Besides the Nobles game, the team has also had impressive performances in a 6-1 win against Groton and a 2-1 win against a highly-ranked Middlesex team.

Looking forward to the rest of the season, Belmont Hill has a highly anticipated game against the number one ranked team in the ISL: Milton. The team also has a match against Roxbury Latin, who looks to be a formidable opponent. The team currently holds an ISL record of 5-2-1 and an overall record of 7-3-1. With the season coming to a close in just under a month, the varsity soccer team is still very much in contention to win the ISL title, and the Panel Staff wishes them the best of luck in the remainder of their season. ☐

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Fucillo Era Off to Hot Start: Varsity Football Dominates

By Will Hennigar ’26 Panel Staff Building on their 3-1 record, the football team traveled to Braintree to take on Thayer for a Friday night lights game on October 20. Belmont Hill built a comfortable 14-0 lead at halftime, and remained in control for the rest of the game, winning 34-12. The win was highlighted by a great effort all around, particularly from the defensive and offensive line, which includes Pete Fiumara ’24, Tommy Rupley ’25, Sampson Onuoha ’25, Ford Webb ’25, Harrison DeWitt ’25, Antwane Mills ’26 and Nick “Moose” Fiumara ’26. The defensive line registered multiple sacks and tackles for a loss, and the offensive line helped the team rush for 276 yards.

Additionally, Marcus Griffin ’26 had another great game, finding the endzone three times and taking home the Boston Globe Player of the Week for the second time this season, as well as Boston Herald Player of the week.

In week one, the team had a tough loss to Lawrence Academy, but rebounded nicely by taking care of business at Roxbury Latin, 31-0. Belmont Hill dominated from start to finish, going up 24-0 at halftime, and got their 7th win in a row against RL. Running back Marcus Griffin ’26 was named Boston Globe

Player of the Weekand finished with 186 yards and two touchdowns.

Captain Luke Travaglini ’24 thinks that the team has “come together so much since the start of the season. I believe it is one of the most close-knit teams I have ever been on.” He says, “I think that there were a lot of positives that came out of our game against Lawrence Academy although the game obviously did not end up how we wanted. [On September 30], against Roxbury Latin, our offense clicked and our defense remained strong, providing confidence and energy going forward.”

As for the game against St. Sebastian’s earlier this season, Luke noticed the excitement among the team and the focus during practice. On Saturday, October 7, Belmont Hill triumphed over St. Seb’s for the first time since 2018, winning 36-23. Belmont Hill jumped out to a 20-0 lead in the second quarter, and led 23-13 at halftime.

To start off the second half, St. Sebastian’s kicked a field goal, making it 2316. Next, however, Jordan Summers ’25 made a huge play, returning the kickoff for a touchdown, his second of the day. Belmont Hill then scored two more touchdowns, making it 36-16. St. Seb’s answered with a touchdown towards the end of the fourth quarter, but could not recover the onside kick, and

BH bled out the clock. Belmont Hill won the game by a final score of 36-23.

Luke also stated, “I think that in order to be better than last year, we need to do a better job at dealing with adversity. We need to ensure that we are there for one another when times get hard.”

The team did a great job of handling adversity on Saturday, as in the second quarter St. Seb’s started to get back in the game, but the team overcame this and closed out the game nicely.

Captain Pete Fiumara ’24 shared his thoughts on the game and how the season so far has gone: “I think what separates this year from the previous years is the amount of fun the guys are having. In the past, we were all tense before the game worrying about messing up, rather than making the big play which we did from the opening kickoff.

He stated, “I believe this is the most talented team we have had so far from the 3 years I’ve been on Varsity. I also believe we were extremely well-coached and prepared for this game.” Pete additionally said beating Seb’s this year was a great accomplishment for him. “​​I will remember that for the rest of my life. Senior year at home, after losing to them 2 years in a row was a dream come true.

I am happy with the win, but not satisfied as we still have more games left.”

Furthemore, Pete said “I think this win is a huge confidence boost

for the boys, reminding us we are a great football team. If we play with the same swagger we played with against Sebs, we are as good as any other team in the league or New England in general. It is one of many steps completed to compete for an ISL Championship and contend for a bowl game.”

Coach Fulham thinks the win over Seb’s was the result of the effort that everyone on the team puts in every day. He says that everyone has been “supportive, focused, and enthusiastic teammates, and we strive to play aggressive, disciplined, fundamentally sound football.”

The following week, on Saturday, October 14, the team spoiled Rivers’s homecoming game. Business was taken care of, as Belmont Hill controlled the entire game from start to finish and won 35-7.

This past Saturday, BB&N came to Belmont Hill their historic rivalry. Throwing punches back and forth during the first half, they ended the first half tied 14-14. Right out of halftime, BB&N scored to take their first lead of the game at 21-14. After the score reached 28-28, Belmont Hill reached its stride scored twice more for an eventual end score of 42-28. It was a great offensive day for the team, with quarterback Reis Little ’26 accumulating 249 yards and a whopping six touchdowns, three of which were his own. ☐

Jrue Holiday Traded As Celtics Aim for a Championship

By Ben Gong ’26 & Justin Li ’26 Panel Staff

Holiday, age 33, will also bring tremendous experience to a relatively young Celtics team. BH basketball player Brady Palladino ’26 said: “I am extremely pleased with the Celtics trade for Jrue Holiday. It really hurts to give up Robert Williams because I think he could develop into a top center in the

league.” In the short term, Jrue Holiday will be crucial in giving us a strong team for the NBA championship this season, a sentiment that Yamin Ibrahim ’27 shares concerning the trade.

However, the trade would see fan-favorite Robert Williams’ departure, which made many fans sad-

On Sunday, October 1st, the Celtics obtained former Milwaukee Bucks All-Star guard Jrue Holiday from the Portland Trail Blazers.

He was traded as part of the deal that sent fellow All-Star Damian Lillard to the Bucks, pairing him with Giannis Antetokounmpo, making the team arguably even more formidable.

Despite having never won Defensive Player of the Year, Holiday is considered one of the best defenders in the league, being an All-Defense selection five times. In fact, in an anonymous survey held by The Athletic last year, NBA players themselves rated Jrue Holiday as the best defensive player in the NBA by a considerable margin.

As an established quality player, Jrue Holiday

Google Images

denedby the decision. Sixth Man of the Year Malcolm Brogdon was also traded, but in the grand scheme of the trade, Belmont Hill students such as Jackson Hurd ’26 expressed that the positives outweigh the negatives, as Brogdon and Williams have been somewhat injury-prone in the past.

The goal of the Boston Celtics this season, as with many in the past, is “championship or bust,” encapsulated

by Brady: “We have too much talent to shoot for anything less.” The reliability of Jrue Holiday with his defensive capabilities and playmaking capacity should overshadow the losses of the young Robert Williams and Malcolm Brogdon, at least for the near future.

Though building a championship team is what the Celtics need to do this year, this trade may not ultimately prove to be beneficial over the long term.☐

Travis Kelce Makes Taylor Swift Relevant Again

By Brady Paquette ’25 Panel Staff

times in the box alongside, Donna, and various other family members of the star quarterback for the Chiefs, Patrick Mahomes. Even though it seems they have only been dating for a few weeks, it feels like the whole world is waiting for the next step in their relationship.

With the amount of success both figures have acquired, it’s easy to make assumptions about the authenticity of the relationship and whether it is a

so-called “internet trap.” When asked about his thoughts on the buzz, Ben Adams ’25 stated, “I think it’s real although I understand the skepticism behind it being fake. I think Taylor Swift is more famous and a lot more influential.” With the speculation of whether the relationship is a publicity scheme or not, one thing is for sure: the fans can’t get enough! Eagerly awaiting an official statement, fans are confident that

With a fusion between the sports and music worlds, headlines are ablaze with the unexpected pairing of Kansas City Chiefs star tight end, Travis Kelce, and the global pop sensation, Taylor Swift. The nature of their connection has sparked a social media buzz with speculation that the world’s hottest couple is in the making.

The high-profile relationship started after Kelce attended Taylor’s Eras Tour. Kelce’s effort to make a move on the star occurred backstage after she had performed. The tight end gave Taylor a friendship bracelet with his phone number written on it, beginning the spark of what would come to be worldwide fascination. In return for Kelce’s efforts, Taylor has been seen attending almost every one of the Kansas City Chiefs’ games, featured numerous Travis Kelce & Taylor Swift

Google Images

a new bridge has formed between the sports and entertainment industries: one that is likely to stay. With the rapid growth of information around the two spreading, memes and other jokes are as well. On Instagram reels, many videos highlight guys dressed up as Taylor singing a song about football and what a future breakup could look like for the famous singer-songwriter, known for her hits about past relationships.

Ultimately, the question isn’t whether the love connection between a football player and a pop star is real; it’s whether or not we want to admit that this social situation is what we need right now. With everything that is going on in today’s world, it’s fair to assume that the dose of sunshine that is the internet sensation of two popular stars is what we need to break through the stormy clouds of political warfare that continue to erupt.☐

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XC recovery run

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