JANUARY 2019

INSIDE THE ISSUE

opinion 5 4 opinion

feature 7

a&e 11

sports 14

the bull’s eye NEWS

•

OPINION

•

FEATURE

•

JANUARY 23, 2019 VOLUME XXXVII, ISSUE V ONLINE AT DBBULLSEYE.COM

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

•

SPORTS

English IV to turn last page in May Next school year, the Expository Reading and Writing course will replace regular senior English.

ANGELA YANG NEWS EDITOR

ANGELA YANG

From left, seniors Meghan Xiang, Karyn Real and Se Ho Kwak received acceptances from top colleges around the nation.

Small crop of applicants reap early affirmations Four Brahma seniors receive early 'yes' from some of the best colleges in U.S. ELIZABETH PENG ASST. NEWS EDITOR While most Diamond Bar High School seniors have turned in their college applications and are waiting to hear from universities, a few Brahmas have already received a “yes.”

Karyn Real was accepted to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology through early action, which is non-binding, and Meghan Xiang was accepted to University of Chi-

cago through early decision, which means accepted students are committed to attending the school. Se Ho Kwak was accepted to Pomona College, and Sunny Yang was accepted to New York University, both of them also through early decision.

MIT was among Real’s top choices because she hopes to obtain a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science, Economics and Data Science.

“Some other factors I considered were undergrad research opportunities and clubs,” Real said via Instagram. “I do taekwondo competitively so it was a plus that MIT has a taekwondo team.”

Although Real has yet to commit to MIT, she said that she is looking forward to meeting some

of her classmates and discovering the various activities and events offered by the school during campus preview weekend.

“I really look forward to continuing taekwondo at the collegiate level at MIT as well as becoming immersed in a challenging learning environment,” Real said.

While Real may go to the East Coast to attend MIT, Xiang will head to the Midwest to major in neuroscience at the University of Chicago.

“What made me want to go here was a combination of its core curriculum, academic prowess, campus and location,” Xiang said via Messenger.

According to Xiang, the core

Students in this year’s senior class will be the last to experience English IV at Diamond Bar High School. Starting next fall, Brahmas who do not take AP, IB or Honors English will be required to enroll in the Expository Reading and Writing Course.

Though few students are familiar with ERWC, the program is not new to the school.

DBHS currently offers three periods, which are composed mostly of Pathways students, who are required to take the class.

This course fulfills state requirements that immediately qualify incoming Cal State University students for placement in General Education English courses required for graduation.

Because the English IV regular

that DBHS currently offers does not meet this criteria, Brahma graduates who don’t meet other conditions of readiness must first finish a summer prerequisite before they can sign up for their GE class.

Other qualifiers include passing the AP Language and Composition and AP Literature exams, scoring a 550 or better on the English portion of the SAT or scoring between 19 and 21 on the English section of the ACT. “If you didn’t do well on the English part of the SAT, or you didn’t take the ACT, then it [comes] down to your high school courses and your GPA,” said Julie Galindo, DBHS Dean of English and Arts.

“Regular English IV does not fall into an accepted course that they would use as a standard to say you fulfilled this requirement.”

Having the ERWC on their transcript, however, guarantees all students meet at least one requirement that would allow them to enter college taking a course that offers credits toward graduation.

According to Galindo, making

ENGLISH ON P. 3

EARLY ON P. 3

Taming cancer on the job After discovering that he had skin cancer, John Martin is now cautious of sun's effects.

ANIKA YATAWARA CONTRIBUTING WRITER Despite the recurrence of a peculiar spot on his right temple, it took Diamond Bar High School health teacher and basketball coach John Martin about four years to seek medical help for what he would later discover to be skin cancer.

“I didn’t know what it was,” Martin said. “It looked like a pimple, so I would just scratch it off and it would just keep coming back.”

Martin said he categorized the unordinary spot as a blemish and continued to ignore it for about four years.

After his wife convinced him to see a doctor, Martin said he was referred to a dermatologist who performed a biopsy. Results came back positive for skin cancer. Martin had surgery on the spot in hopes of

removing the malignant cells. However, this was just the beginning of Martin’s struggles with cancer.

“A few months later [in 2015] I noticed the spot coming back so I had it checked out again, and they realized it was tumor now,” Martin said.

After extracting of the attached tumor, he began radiation treatment. For six months he would go in for about 45 to 60 seconds of radiation, “zapping” the affected area.

Even though Martin had been attending treatment for his tumor, doctors later discovered he had an inflamed lymph node. Martin underwent surgery once again, during which they confirmed the current state of his skin cancer. While the disease had not spread further, he would now have to endure longer sessions of radiation—30 to 40 minutes Monday through Friday

TEACHER ON P. 3

Photo courtesy of HANDINI LESMANA

Drum major Aaron Tamura stands overhead as drumline, marching band and color guard perform their show on the Rose Bowl football field last weekend.

Thundering Herd takes on Rose Bowl

DBHS marching band and color guard performed during the football game's halftime show on Jan. 19.

ERIN LI ASST. OPINION EDITOR

ANGELA YANG

Basketball coach John Martin has been undergoing treatment for skin cancer.

After months of preparation, Diamond Bar High School’s Thundering Herd performed at the NFL Players Association Collegiate Bowl for the second year in a row on Saturday.

The Thundering Herd first caught the attention of the NFLPA

last year, when it came across videos of the band and invited them to perform at the game held at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena. After the group’s Rose Bowl debut last year, the NFLPA hired them again to play this year and has already hired them for the next.

“The NFL Players Association liked what we do for football games, so they hired us to be performers,” DBHS band director Steve Acciani said.

After doing a majority of their preparation for the Rose Bowl in the summer, the DBHS marching band performed its usual halftime

HALFTIME ON P. 12

2

NEWS

JANUARY 23, 2019

THE BULL'S EYE

Snapping up photo victories Six Brahmas win cash prizes in Diamond Bar's annual "Through My Lens" photo contest.

BRUISED BY BREXIT

The U.K. is in a state of turmoil after Parliament voted 432202 against Prime Minister Theresa May’s proposed Brexit plan—a margin of defeat unlike any in modern history for the leading party. Two months before it is scheduled to depart from the European Union, the nation has no clear path forward.

SAMYUKTHA VELLAIYAN ASST. PHOTO EDITOR Six Diamond Bar High School photography students won titles for their captivating photo submissions in Diamond Bar’s annual “Through My Lens” Photo Contest last month.

Every year, the city of Diamond Bar hosts a photo contest, which is open to residents of all ages.

The entrants submitted their city photo in one of five categories: nature, digitally altered, people, pets and places. Within each division, honorable mention recipients were awarded a $50 cash prize, first place winners were given $100 and the overall best photograph winner won $150. In addition to a cash prize, the winners also received certificates and an opportunity to have their photo showcased on the city’s calendar, service guides, monthly newsletter and website to promote the contest.

In the nature category, senior Kelly Yap won first place with her close-up photo of a dragonfly hovering in a garden.

“Since my dad used to be a photographer, there was an old camera lying around, which he didn’t use,” Yap said. “And since I was already interested in the art, like painting and drawing, I decided to start pho-

A CAPITOL BOXING MATCH

Photo courtesy of DBHS

Senior Tiffany Wang's photo, which won honorable mention in the places category, captured the reflection of a bridge leading to the upper quad in a puddle. tography.”

In the same category, junior Ankush Sahgal won honorable mention with a picture depicting a bee resting on a golden yellow flower.

Junior Jimmy Wong also won honorable mention in the pets category. His high-quality photo captured the innocence of a dog playing at Pantera Dog Park. His father is also a photographer and had entered in the contest before. He convinced his son to enter in this year since Wong is currently taking the photography class at DBHS and enjoys taking pictures during his free time.

“I’m kind of competitive and am trying to reach his level of photography,” Wong said. “Entering in

the staff Editors-in-Chief

Amelie Lee, Amy Miyahara

News Editor Asst. News Editors

Angela Yang Renee Elefante, Elizabeth Peng

Opinion Editor Asst. Opinion Editors

Ted Yarmoski Grace Lee, Erin Li

Feature Editor Asst. Feature Editors

Cindy Liu Kristen Sanchez, Kate Zheng

A&E Editor Asst. A&E Editors

Amelie Lee Josh Kim, Maggie Liu

Sports Editor Asst. Sports Editors

Amy Miyahara Ryan Lam, Johnny Wang

Photo Editor Asst. Photo Editors

Amelie Lee Victoria Artale, Tiffany Lee, Samyuktha Vellaiyan

Business Managers Asst. Business Managers Web Editor Asst. Web Editors

Catherine Liu, Cindy Liu Maggie Liu, Nia Mitchell Ted Yarmoski Christina Liu, Samyuktha Vellaiyan

Staff Writers

Emily Koh, Camille McCurry

Adviser

Doug List

contact us Diamond Bar High School, Room 563 21400 Pathfinder Road Diamond Bar, CA 91765 Phone: (909) 594-1405 x33563 Email: eye.editors@gmail.com Business Inquiries: thebullseyebusiness@gmail.com

editorial policy The Bull’s Eye is a public forum that welcomes the views of our readers. Letters to the Editor and Op-Ed pieces will be accepted only if they are signed. The author may, however, request anonymity. The staff reserves the right to edit letters without changing content. You may forward letters to Room 563 or submit them online at dbbullseye.com.

this contest was a way to help me improve my skills.”

In the places category, senior Eric Quach won first place with his submission that portrayed the calming essence of an early morning sunrise in Diamond Bar. Also in this category, senior Tiffany Wang received honorable mention for her photo illustrating the reflection of the DBHS bridge leading to the upper quad in a small pool of water after a rainy day.

Senior Melody Lee’s entry won honorable mention in the digitally altered division. Her edited photograph was a perfectly symmetrical water droplet combined with the reflection of America’s bright red and white stripes.

As the impasse between the White House and House Democrats drags on, Speaker Nancy Pelosi recommended to President Donald Trump that he postpone his annual State of the Union Address or deliver it writing. Trump retaliated by postponing a congressional trip abroad moments before her team was to leave.

SHUTDOWN INDUCES SIDE-EFFECTS

Trash piles lay scattered in national parks. Federal workers are lining up at food banks to alleviate the burden of surviving without pay. Farmers cannot access loans to aid in crop cultivation, and FDA safety inspections have become less frequent.

WOMEN'S MARCH TAKES HIT

After colossal global turnout last January, controversy over possible anti-Semitic ties has dampened the spirit at this year’s repeat Women's March in L.A. Numerous progressive partners cut ties with the event’s leaders for their friendly relationship with a minister known for anti-Jewish comments.

DB team siphons varied science knowledge for fifth place win Science Olympiad continues to compete leading up to Southern Calif. regionals in April.

RENEE ELEFANTE asst. news editor After consistently placing fifth in most of its tournaments this year, Diamond Bar High School’s Science Olympiad placed fifth once again in the Wilson Invitational event last weekend.

Thirty-seven teams participated in the competition at Wilson High School in Hacienda Heights.

“I don’t think the team performed very well because we got fifth place overall even though we got second place last year,” junior Keshav Sriram said. “A lot of our events resulted in 20th places, which is not very good for our standards and lowers our ranking quite a bit.”

Sriram, who has been on DBHS’ team since freshman year, competed in Water Quality, Codebusters, Herpetology and Geologic Mapping, placing first, third, fifth and eighth, respectively.

In the Herpetology event, contestants had to identify reptiles and amphibians.

Meanwhile, senior Hannah Zhang placed second in Anatomy and Physiology, 29th in Protein Modeling and 21st in Disease Detectives.

In the Protein Modeling event, competitors use computers to create a physical model of the CRISPR Cas9 protein, which edits plant and animal cells’ hereditary materials or genomes.

Sophomore Ryan Real placed seventh in Sounds of Music, ninth in Mission Possible, third in Code-

busters and 17th in Write It Do It. Science Olympiad teams compete in regional, state, national and invitational competitions. Invitational competitions do not affect a team’s regional or state rankings but instead serve as preparation for the regional, state and national competitions.

During the events, teams compete in various science-related

“[The team is] a good way to pursue my interests in science while creating new friendships..."

HANNAH ZHANG fields including biology, chemistry and engineering.

Teams strive to obtain the lowest score by reaching first place in their events.

DBHS’ Science Olympiad chooses its team members based on how well they perform in three events

during tryouts at school.

Students who make the cut are then assigned to compete in the events they auditioned for.

Zhang and Real said they hope that Diamond Bar can place higher at the state competitions despite losing some strong seniors from last year.

Zhang has participated in Science Olympiad since seventh grade. “[The team is] a good way to pursue my interests in science while creating new friendships with people that share the same love for science,” Zhang said.

Meanwhile, Real joined Science Olympiad in eighth grade.

“I’ve always been interested in science, it’s one of my favorite subjects, and I thought Science Olympiad would be a good way for me to expand my interest,” Real said.

After last Saturday’s competition, the team is preparing for their next competitions at UC Berkeley on Feb. 9 and at Rio Hondo College on Feb. 23.

Photo courtesy of DAWN DAZA

Science Olympiad placed fifth out of 37 at the Wilson Invitational competition last weekend in Hacienda Heights; the top six in each event received medals.

THE BULL'S EYE

JANUARY 23, 2019

NEWS

3

Martin Students organize charity movements adjusts to new lifestyle Chick-Fil-A Leadership Academy and six DBHS clubs service local communities in December.

CAMILLE MCCURRY STAFF WRITER

TEACHER FROM P. 1 for six weeks.

“It burns you inside and out.

The inside of my cheek and tongue was sore from biting down on it, I couldn't open my mouth, I couldn’t eat,” he said.

The effects of cancer on his life has led Martin to be more cautious in daily life and start taking preventative measures.

“Now I’ve got to watch my kids when they’re out in the sun, I have to make sure they’re protected and [are] wearing sunblock,” he said.

When going out, Martin often wears long sleeves and long pants that cover him from the sun as well as sunblock.

His doctor recommends he only go outside for a number of minutes, which means he is no longer coaches outdoor sports, specifically football, which is one of his passions.

“I can’t coach because I can’t go outside, and it’s going to be at least three years before I [can] even think about going outside.” Martin said. But he continues to coach indoors, for girls basketball.

February 2021 will be the last time Martin has to attend a follow up test, and if all comes back clear, he will be able to spend more times in the outdoors, cancer free.

Though he said it has stripped him of his energy and taken a toll on his health, Martin continues to spread awareness and maintains as healthy a lifestyle as he can. If there is one thing he learned from this experience, Martin said, it would be to “wear sunblock.”

December was a month of good deeds for service clubs at Diamond Bar High School.

Six clubs held donation drives throughout the month, collecting various items to give to veterans, the homeless, foster children and others in need.

Key Club’s canned food drive collected the most donations. Members teamed up with National Honors Society, Red Cross, UNICEF, Interact and Leo Club to collect hundreds of cans.

The DBHS and Walnut High School Key Clubs passed the cans they collected to the Walnut Valley Kiwanis Club, which held a holiday food drive with 100 boxes of fresh produce and more than 2,000 cans.

“We donated a lot to poor, individual families who had signed up to receive food beforehand,” sophomore Emily Chen, who serves as an ambassador for the DBHS Key

Photo courtesy of JUSTIN PANLILIO

Walnut High School Key Club advisor Justin Panlilio, along with WHS and DBHS Key Club members, prepare to pack cardboard boxes with donations.

Club to the other Key Clubs, said.

“Many other boxes were donated to local churches, who would then distribute it to their own needy or homeless.”

In addition to helping Key Club with their canned food drive, Red Cross held a Veteran’s Wishlist drive.

The club received 85 donations, which included toiletries, tissues

and other daily necessities. Senior Rachel Wang contributed to more than half of the donations in the drive.

“When our school's Red Cross provided this opportunity to donate items for their Veterans Wishlist, I immediately knew I wanted to do more. I was extremely excited that I had the resources to help,” Wang said. “I ended up donating a total

to 50 hotel toiletries, including 30 soaps, 10 shampoos, and 10 conditioners.”

Another student group held its own service projects for an event called “Do Good December.”

The Chick-Fil-A Leader Academy, composed of athletes from all over campus, split into three groups.

Each group decided on and executed their own service project, and one of the three groups held a blanket drive.

They gave the blankets to a church in Downtown Los Angeles to pass out to the homeless.

“We feel that homeless people, especially in LA, need help,” senior Sean Martin said. “Especially in this cold weather.”

These projects were meant to serve as practice for the group’s goal to complete one big service project at the end of the school year, a tradition that Athletic Director Albert Lim hopes to continue in coming years.

“My goal is to… do it every year,” Lim said. “I don’t know if a lot of groups actually executed it or not, but it’s a good reflection for them leading up to their final service project. A lot of their obstacles were that they were thinking way too big.”

Establishing stronger English foundations ENGLISH FROM P. 1 this switch will grant students who were overwhelmed with other commitments throughout their high school careers a more level playing field when trying to further their education in college.

“UCs [don’t have these requirements because] they’re looking at your scores when you’re coming in,” DBHS GLC Sonja Burns said.

“But the reality is we don’t know where we’re going; most students will still apply to Cal States.”

ERWC is based mainly on noning as well as writing. fiction texts, contrasting it with “You still get some core works of its AP and honliterature, but it’s ors counterparts, more of an emand explores a phasis on college “You still get some varied array of writing,” DBHS core works of literawriting styles ERWC teacher ture, but it's more of students are likeCage Morgan an emphasis on ly to encounter in said. “You read college writing." post-high school more current CAGE MORGAN life, such as in the event articles, inbusiness and meterviews, watch a dia spheres. couple documenIt centers heavily on expository, taries, so there’s more of an emanalytical and argumentative readphasis on social issues.”

The full course consists of 17 modules, but teachers can select which ones to cover throughout the limited time within a school year.

Each module consists of a central topic taught with a corresponding series of reading activities, which is then supplemented with both formal and informal writing assignments. Sometime between May and June, all teachers preparing to teach ERWC next school year will attend a four-day workshop to certify them for instructing the course.

CALCULATING THE FUTURE A LOOK INTO KINDNESS WEEK

DBHS' Kindness Week, to be held throughout the week of Jan. 28, will place a spotlight on acts of kindness.

REVIEWING RECENT RELEASES

ANGELA YANG

From left, DBHS class of 2018 alumni Tiffany Wu, Amy Xia, Derek Su, Grant Wu and Diana Lin spoke to Calculus students about their college experiences in the Golden Horseshoe on the annual Calculus Day, which was on Jan. 11.

Students secure early acceptances EARLY FROM p. 1 curriculum was created to allow students to explore their interests outside of their major.

Xiang also looked at UChicago’s location when she applied to the university. She said she did not want to stay in California for college and wanted to experience something new.

“UChicago is located in Hyde Park, which is a relatively safe community, and public transit can easily take you to downtown Chi-

cago,” Xiang said.

She is looking forward to exploring the Recognized Student Organizations, or RSOs, at UChicago and participating in the legendary UChicago scavenger hunt.

Unlike Real and Xiang, Kwak will be staying in California this fall to major in mathematics/statistics at Pomona College.

“Although I would’ve been okay with going to a school out of state, I do love the beach/mountain/ weather combo here in California,” Kwak said via Instagram.

According to Kwak, the small campus and class sizes appealed to him, as well as the fact that Pomona College is part of the Claremont Colleges, which enable students to get a taste of the other schools in the consortium.

In addition, Kwak said he would like to get to know the large number of international students studying at Pomona.

“I look forward to being able to meet and learn about the different cultures around the world,” Kwak said.

See what Bull's Eye staff members thought about some recent movies, including "Mary Poppins Returns," "Aquaman" and "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse."

ARE NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTIONS OUTDATED?

A Bull's Eye staffer takes a different perspective on the tradition of goal-setting for the new year.

DO COMPANY VALUES WARRANT BOYCOTT? A Bull's Eye writer urges consumers to spread awareness about company beliefs rather than boycott.

OPINION

OPINION: All students should have an equal opportunity at extra credit.

or a student with a borderline grade, nothing is more exciting than hearing their teacher say “extra credit.” Although extra credit can benefit students whose efforts are not reflected in their test scores, not all versions are fair to students.

If students are willing to complete extra assignments or worksheets to receive extra credit, then they should be allowed to receive extra points. As long as all students are given an equal opportunity to earn extra credit, there is nothing wrong with offering it.

If offering bonus points works as a motivation for a student to strengthen their understanding of a subject, then it is a win-win situation for both the student and teacher.

While extra credit may allow for laziness and gives students an excuse not

to study for tests, allowing these students to do worksheets or projects to make up points gives them a chance to still get good grades without being killed by their test scores. Certain people are simply not good test takers, and their poor test performances are not necessarily a reflection of their mastery of the material.

However, extra credit is not always justified. Giving students extra credit for winning classroom games or Kahoots creates a system where often the only students receiving extra credit are the ones who are already doing well in the class and do not need the points.

While you could argue that this system is fair and students who win the extra credit are the most deserving, the point of extra credit should be to give struggling students a chance to

improve their grades. Such activities do not fulfill this purpose and are unnecessary.

Giving extra credit to students for completing activities that cost money should also be eliminated. Students should never feel like they are able to buy a grade in a class.

Though it is commendable to want students to support campus performing art groups or raise money for important causes, some students simply cannot afford to, whether it be money or time-wise, fulfill this type of extra credit.

Though extra credit projects can be beneficial if they align with course curriculum, some projects are offered that require a minimal and mindless effort.

Such extra credit is anti-educational, causing students to complete busy

work to cushion grades instead of learning from a class for the sake of learning. If a teacher plans on offering an extra credit assignment, they should make sure that the material of the assignment will help their students improve their performance, not just their grades, in the class.

Bathroom passes are another example of an unfair extra credit opportunity. While teachers have the right to make sure that their students aren’t leaving class for no reason, giving some students more points than others due to medical issues out of their control doesn’t seem fair to those with overactive bladders.

Not all extra credit is created equal, and teachers should reevaluate the forms that they are offering to ensure fair opportunities for all students.

Extra credit is beneficial to students who have borderline grades. It’s fair because students who go the extra distance should be rewarded.

HARRIS DAUD (10)

[Bathroom passes] pressure people to not to use the bathroom when they really need to use it because of the fact that it’s for extra credit.

SHARON LEE (11)

I appreciate the extra credit because it does help me in case I had a bad test or anything and all of them were really fair.

SHEREEN WU (12)

In English there’s an extra credit opportunity where you say a speech at city hall.

Some are better at these things and do better.

WINSTON CHEN (11)

From the Brahma Perspective The Bull’s Eye conducted a survey of 269 DBHS students about extra credit opportunities.

Have you ever been offered an extra credit opportunity you couldn’t participate in?

YEs

62%

NO

Do you think extra credit can have a big impact on your grades?

YES

87%

NO

Is extra credit skewed towards certain people?

(1 = strongly disagree; 5 = strongly agree) On average, students answered:

2.82

Doing what’s necessary

I

emily koh staff writer

t’s a shame that some students still go the extra mile to gain knowledge at school since you can just do the bare minimum and still get credit for a class.

I am not going to school to actually learn anything, I show up every day because it’s the law.

I’m forced to sit through hours of pointless classes that feed me information I will never use. If I had my way, I would stay home, lay in bed, and watch Netflix all day.

Most people stress out about tests, but luckily, I don’t have that problem. I use the grades app on my phone to calculate the lowest possible grade I can get on a test to maintain a passing grade. This way I can determine whether or not I should even try to study or worry for that matter. As my main goal for high school is to just get enough credits to graduate, why do anything else?

In addition, when the dreaded finals come around, I can decide

which classes I don’t need to study for or care about by using my trusty app.

It allows me to accept a failing grade because I know that I can still pass the class and get the credits I need.

By utilizing this handy app, I just need to get a couple good grades in a class and not worry about the others.

There’s no harm in not paying attention during class a few days in a week or not reading an assigned book if it won’t bring my grade down too much. I can use this extra time to watch Netflix, play video games or even sleep.

If my grade falls below what I need, there is always extra credit to bring it back up. Why would anyone do extra credit for any other reason than to use it as a gradecushion?

It’s ridiculous that high school students have to take so many boring classes, so I just fill up some spaces with sports or T.A. spots. It gives me two easy A’s, without all the studying and hassle. Instead, I can just staple a few papers, grade some work, and even go on my phone or complete worksheets for another class using Slader. When college application time arrives, I can just use my electives to cover my average and unimpressive grades.

If being in high school has taught

SUFFICIENTLY SATIRICAL

me anything, it is that it takes too much hard work to achieve a great GPA. So, why not unburden yourself

and just do the bare minimum to pass and graduate. Clearly, there are no reasons to go above and beyond.

Cartoon courtesy of JAMES TSAO

Ted

EYE EDITORS OF THE

F

JANUARY 23, 2019

THE BULL'S EYE

y

4

I

A public lack of thought

ted yARmoski opinion editor

magine that your job requires memorizing a great deal of information and having to deliver it accurately without stuttering at the risk of being immediately fired and blindly hated by thousands of Americans. Welcome to Jeremy Kappell’s (former) occupation as a meteorologist.

On Jan. 4, Kappell was live on television when he seemed to stumble in his speech and said “Martin Luther C--n” before correcting himself with “King Jr.” He was fired within 48 hours without a chance to apologize.

This firing and the ensuing overreaction from the public is absolutely sickening and deplorable.

While I do not condone what NBC did, I have to admit that their responsiveness and awareness of how these situations play out in our modern society is impressive. However, it is extremely alarming when there is a predetermined protocol for dealing with anything slightly controversial, suggesting their commonality and increasingly trite nature.

Even after testimonials from many acquaintances, speech pathologists, and even King’s daughter, Kappell has not been given a second chance by the NBC station after his obviously misconstrued utterance.

However, although it may seem like NBC is in the wrong, a different truth that is becoming more evident in our society reveals itself. Society does not allow mistakes.

This principle goes contrary to the human condition and what is so well known by even the smallest children: we all make mistakes. But it seems like the threshold for what is malicious intent and what is an innocent mistake is blurring rapidly.

Kevin Hart’s homophobic comments were mistakes that came with an apology. Filmmaker James Gunn was ousted even after a public letter defended him, correctly identifying him as falling victim to the lack of “due process in the court of public opinion.”

It seems like people have become accustomed to a pattern of vaguely hearing about a story, not bothering to do any research, and bandwagoning onto the side that seems to resemble their core beliefs. With “racial slur” attached to his name in every headline, it is no wonder that Kappell’s story was misunderstood by thousands.

NBC was clearly aware of this when they fired Kappell, knowing that once the association was made, it was only a matter of time before controversy would ensue. And ensue it did. I have no doubt that the people at NBC knew that his mistake was an honest one. However, harboring someone with any controversy in a sensitive area could potentially lead to misguided backlash against the company.

Although it isn’t too much to ask, people still need to learn to read past headlines and make clear distinctions between mistakes and acts of ill intent. We need to act less like the lynching mobs of Salem and use the resources we have available in order to create a complete picture in our minds before taking action against someone’s livelihood. I urge everyone, although we’re just high school students, to strive to see the full picture and as a collective of individuals, we may just be able to make a measurable difference in our society.

THE BULL'S EYE

JANUARY 23, 2019

OPINION

5

Foreign language opens doors to future opportunities

kate zheng asst. feature editor

M

any students view foreign language courses as the least important class on their schedule, often putting in minimal effort. Yet with only 26 percent of Americans identifying themselves as bilingual, the importance of these language classes should be obvious.

Language teachers offer much more than lessons in vocabulary, grammar and pronunciation of a language—it is a chance to further understand the perspective of different people and connect to their different cultures, beliefs and traditions. This cross-cultural connection is rarely discussed in

any other class, and should not be taken for granted.

Yet students continue to neglect these courses, and some common excuses for this are that the classes are too easy or the topics are irrelevant to their interests.

Although this is not an excuse to completely ignore a class, both the class’ curriculum and the students’ mindsets need to change before high schoolers can start regarding these courses as interesting and effective.

If language classes took an even deeper dive into cultural aspects of the language, such as sharing native food with the students or taking a trip to an historical location of that culture, the students’ interests would be more piqued during class. The mindset of students also needs to change, by taking their language class more seriously.

I admit that during my freshman year, I shared the same thought process as a majority of students in Diamond Bar. Since it was one of my easiest classes, I would often put minimal effort and thought into the homework,

Foreign Language The Bull’s Eye conducted a survey of 145 DBHS students about their opinion on foreign language classes.

1. Were you already familiar with the foreign language you are taking?

2.

YES 58.5%

1.

2. Are your foreign language classes the least prioritized classes?

3. Do you believe that these classes will be useful in the future? paying less attention in class. And I am pretty sure a lot of students would agree with me.

For many students at DBHS, the choice of which language class to sign up for is usually determined by what the student already knows or speaks at home. This leads to students taking the class less seriously since it is less stressful.

Yet, there are also students who

3.

choose to challenge themselves by taking a language they are unfamiliar with. Usually when this happens, the student soon dislikes the class, feeling left behind and sometimes intimidated by all the other native speakers. Most of them drop out of foreign language by sophomore or junior year.

The benefits of knowing a second language extend beyond one’s

participants absorb invaluable information along the way.

Which traits do they prefer in a partner, and which are deal breakers? It’s natural for people of any age to find themselves initially attracted to someone’s physical attributes, but it’s only through exposure to the dating process that they realize looks can’t compensate for incompatibility. Likewise, a witty Angela Yang sense of humor or keen intellect News editor can be far more appealing than any chiseled jawline or sculpted set of ut of every possible phase abs. in our lives, there is no betThen there’s the bonus training ter time than high school— in effective communication and the quintessential transition from confrontation, among other interchildhood to young adulthood—to personal skills essential to healthy dip your toes into the vast dating adult life. In every robust relationpool. ship, the couple must learn how to For many teenagers, this period disagree and resolve conflicts withprovides a unique wiggle room for out resentment. Even breakups growth and stumbling that can only shed light on how certain factors be experienced in these four fleetplay into budding love: maybe too ing years. Most likely, we’re not as much affection makes one partner restricted in where we go and what claustrophobic, or maybe one partwe do, courtesy of driver’s licenses ner’s schedule doesn’t leave room and extended curfews. Neither are for romantic commitment. Such iswe yet bound by the full financial sues teach us how to better handle burdens of adulthood. specific situations in the future, or These factors, combined with simply who to avoid. the nascent curiosity that natuBut, naysayers might add, won’t rally drives young minds, form the ups and downs of experimental ideal circumstances for those first romance distract students from adolescent ventures into a world their studies? Sure, that’s possible. outside of pure academics. After It is, however, simply another oball, relationships— stacle course in romantic or othwhich, if you “[Relationship] issues erwise—are the are going to trip, fundamental comyou’d better do teach us to handle ponent of the huso here in adospecific situations in man society that lescence rather the future, or simply must eventually be than have to who to avoid.“ navigated. find your footing Cynical voices for the first time love to object with a reminder when the consequences are much about the short-lived nature of higher out in the professional “high school relationships,” preworld. dicting the inevitable fallout of Choosing to date while in school some dramatic fling doomed to end doesn’t warrant a black-and-white in unnecessary tears and turmoil. selection between academics and a I can’t speak for everybody, but social life. One is not the foil of the I’m certain most 14-year-olds don’t other. And if a student truly cannot go on their first date expecting to juggle both without dropping, then exchange marriage vows in five they surely won’t be able to perfect years with the same kid. Finding it just by starting later, because the a lifelong mate is actually not the load will only get heavier. Trial and immediate priority in this time of error is key to learning responsible self-discovery. The goal, besides management of priorities. just having fun, is to realize who is Whether your attempts at love and isn’t compatible with us. culminate into everlasting happiNevertheless, it would be naive ness or dead-end misery, each unto scoff at teenage infatuation as dertaking is worth the time. It may merely that—because as often as not be clear while peering through young relationships fail, they are the clouded lens of initial pain, but just as capable of budding into no relationship should be reflected steady and reliable love. But reon with regret as long as you mangardless of success or failure, both age to grasp the lessons within.

O Cartoon courtesy of COLIN CHIU

Shutdown at expense of citizens

D

Amy miyahara Editor-in-chief

uring the 2016 presidential campaign, President Trump promised his supporters that he would have a wall built along the southern border to increase security. As evident by the government shutdown, he is dead set on fulfilling this promise, but the action he has taken has come at the expense of the American people.

Trump has continued to insist on the necessity of a wall, despite little evidence that such a wall would be effective. According to the Center for Migration Studies, the number of undocumented immigrants in the U.S. has consistently fallen each year since 2008.

Furthermore, 66 percent of the undocumented population that entered the U.S. in 2014 were people who overstayed their visas, an issue that a massive wall will not solve.

Republican Sen. Lindsey Gra-

YES 77.3%

Relationships in high school allow growth

Estranged exams

ham has referred to the wall as “a metaphor for border security,” but it seems irrational to spend billions of dollars on a project if its primary function is figurative.

Though Trump’s insistence on a wall is likely due to his desire to follow through with his campaign promises to keep the support of his base, if he were really set on consistency, Congress wouldn’t even have to worry about funding the wall—he would maintain his promise that Mexico would pay for it (though he now claims that he never said this).

Though he has taken to Twitter to blame the Democrats, Trump’s failure to compromise is largely responsible for the shutdown, and his speech two weeks ago shows that he has no intentions of giving in. But regardless of one’s opinions on who is to blame, both sides need to come to terms with the fact that ending the shutdown should be a priority, even if it means having make sacrifices. The health and safety of the American people should come before making a partisan statement.

In the crossfire of the conflict, the American people are suffering the consequences, something that administration was clearly unprepared to deal with at the onset of the shutdown. While the situation continues, 800,000 federal employees are either being required to

YES 53.7%

high school, boosting internship opportunities in college or career opportunities in the workfield.

Bilingual candidates applying for jobs, internships or chances to study abroad, especially in areas such as healthcare, education or international business, are often viewed more favorably than those who only speak their native language. According to Money.com, some bilingual job candidates are given salary premiums. A second language also opens the door to a greater variety of occupations to choose from.

It is also true that many students will never learn more than the basics of their chosen foreign language; who knows if they will even remember the basics in the future? But that is another story.

Most colleges require two years of foreign language before acceptance, so high schools have a legitimate reason to be labeling these courses as mandatory. Instead of viewing these classes mere requirements, students should see foreign language classes as an opportunity to expand cultural and occupational horizons.

work without pay or are being furloughed.

Programs like Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program don’t have funding approved, which will have major consequences for people who rely on food stamps to eat. The lack of funding for the National Park Service has allowed unsupervised visitors to trash many parks.

Trump has displayed pride in his actions, stating that he is willing to keep the shutdown going for “months or even years.” It is one thing to refuse to compromise, but when this stubbornness comes at the expense of the people whom he is supposed to be protecting, his personal agenda needs to take a backseat.

Even without the president’s approval, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has the power to potentially end the shutdown by having the Senate vote on a spending bill. Trump could veto the bill, but this could be overridden with a two-thirds majority vote in Congress. Though this outcome is unlikely, McConnell’s failure to even introduce the bill to the Senate shows his desire to protect his party’s interests above the interests of the nation.

The partisan fighting needs to stop, and Trump needs to realize that ending the shutdown should be the first priority.

6

FEATURE

JANUARY 23, 2019

THE BULL'S EYE

Let’s trash these 2018 trends Fashion and pop culture were swept up by some truly baffling trends last year. Many of these crazes seemed designed intentionally to go viral. As we start the new year, assistant feature editor Kristen Sanchez offers a list of tragic trends that should retire.

Ugly Sneakers

Tik Tok

The rebranded Musical.ly app is unfortunately back once again in the form of the app TikTok. The platform is meant for creating Clunky orthopedic shoes like Balenand sharing short music videos where many, quite ciaga’s, Louis Vuitton Archlights and Triliterally, find their 15 seconds of fame. The ple S Trainers emerged as popular from ceonce ludicrously famous “Musers” have lebrity street style and are usually paired with returned to become TikTok famous for equally unflattering baggy clothes to complete the Of t e n more tasteless videos that quickly popularized “dad” look. This tacky trend looks more worn on the lose their entertainment value. like something you could buy from Costco for $15 and tip of the nose They are pointless, unfunny wouldn’t be nearly as expensive, popular or praised for high and made in an and the epitome of trash fashion without the designer name attached. Save yourarray of colors, these content that so many self the time and bypass this trend or at least save oddly shaped glasses teenagers waste yourself the money and pick yourself up a come in many forms and their time on. pair from the men’s section of your loIt’s were made popular quickly after cal Payless Shoe store instead hard to the dreadful “clout” glasses phase for a truly authentic dad remember a of 2018.

Though initially worn as a gag, look. time when Flossing these glasses quickly fell into circulation and Dabbing were seen in the fashion world after personalities like as chuckle-worthy gags raththe Kardashians and Emma Chamberlain er than as annoyances that are now had us convinced convinced that these sure to get you a look of disgust from “Matrix”-inspired glasses were actually many of your peers. This shows how long this attractive. Nevertheless, the reality trend has dragged on for. Flossing and Dabbing is that these dysfunctional is dead---the hand in between the crook of the arm accessories are almost gesture as well as the nonsensical dance move have lost as moronic as they are their charm but have become second nature to many. Bad unflattering and should be habits that have made their way into songs, video games, left in 2018. music videos and into the daily lives of many. It may be hard to shake, but these nonsensical gags have done their time.

Flo

ssi

ng

and

Sm

Dab

bin

l G l al

s e s as

g

Real talk with real teens around world

Victoria Artalie Asst. photo EDITOR With 7.7 billion people in the world, Diamond Bar High School junior Michael Cheng believes that everyone should have a chance to be heard.

Cheng’s nonprofit foundation, Culture Bloom, gives students around the world a space to share their opinions on current global issues through video conferences.

In November, Cheng held his first video conference, during which participants compared the Chinese and U.S. educational systems. The 30 people who participated in the discussion included students from Australia, India, China and Kenya. “ I try to keep it confined so everyone’s voice is heard, and they can express their opinions,” Cheng said. “I usually try to choose around 30 people at maximum to participate at a time.”

More recently, on Jan. 20, he had a discussion with 15 foreign students from those same countries about cultural stereotyping.

Cheng initially wanted to increase cultural awareness in the U.S. by partnering with Chinese publications that were willing to donate books to the U.S. However, Cheng abandoned this idea when he realized that he wanted to focus on working to get students to be culturally aware and involved in issues outside of the U.S..

“I want to try and get more people and more students involved not only at Diamond Bar High School, but other local schools and students from other nations,” Cheng said. “I want to get students interested in what goes on in different

nations.”

He ultimately decided to focus on global issues instead of just national issues after attending the MIT Launch X summer camp for entrepreneurs.

At camp, Cheng connected with students from around the world who started their own organizations. They now play a big role in advertising Culture Bloom to students around the globe.

“I don’t think I would be able to do this without all my team members giving me guidance to connect to new people around the world,” Cheng said.

Cheng facilitates international student discussion through a video conference app named Zoom.

T h o s e interested in the discussion log onto the app to chat with one another face to face about a certain global issue. Cheng plans on holding an online discussion every month examining different aspects of global issues.

“I think that any issue is global and affects everyone’s lives, not just a single nation,” Cheng said.

Photos courtesy of MEGAN LY

The Ly family gathered together at a reunion in the country side of South Vietnam during the winter break.

An unexpected family reunion Samyuktha Vellaiyan Asst. photo editor For Diamond Bar High School senior Megan Ly, what started out as visiting her grandmother in Vietnam over winter break soon snowballed into discovering an unknown side of her family tree.

Ly and her family were convinced to travel to Vietnam for the first time when her grandmother, Thi Dung Lytram, insisted they visit her over winter break. Ly’s grandparents and parents immigrated to America near the end of the Vietnam War. After living in the U.S. for about 45 years, Lytram decided to permanently return to Vietnam four years ago, residing with her family in her homeland while staying close to her religion, Caodaism.

In the south countryside of Vietnam, Lytram introduced them to her prestigious Cao Dai temple, which she helped fund. In the temple, Ly’s grandmother leads prayers and conducts religious speeches for the 300 people who visit.

There, Ly’s family found out about a recent addition to their family: Lytram’s goddaughter, Minh. She was adopted by Lytram at age 44 after Minh’s parents had passed away. Together, they lead the temple on a daily basis.

Later, on New Year’s Day, Ly and her family arrived at her uncle’s house expecting to eat lunch with a few relatives. Little did they know that their grandmother had arranged a huge family gathering with their father’s entire extended family. That day, Ly found out that she had five grandaunts, 15 cousins and nine aunts and uncles that she had never met.

“I didn’t really know we had so many relatives in Vietnam,” Ly said. “I have a big family—three other siblings and parents in America—but when I went to Vietnam, there were so many people.”

According to Ly, the gathering was a great way to trace her roots and learn about the forebears of her family. Every since, she has been very close with her relatives.

“It was really interesting getting to know them because I didn’t even know they existed, and I still talk to them now. They still DM me on Instagram and message me through Facebook,” Ly said.

Ly admired the true meaning behind this trip, and she considers it more valuable than any other trip she has gone to before.

“Usually in our trips we always go on vacation and relax, but this time, there is so much culture and family attached to it,” Ly said. “I learned about my ancestry and what my family is doing there, so it was very interesting and culture

shocking.”

After her eye-opening experience during winter break, Ly has high hopes to meet her maternal relatives in Vietnam, especially since she may be revisiting Vietnam during the summer.

“There are so many people on my dad’s side and it made me think, ‘wow, maybe I have more family on my mom’s side too that I don’t know about,” Ly said.

The Ly family is welcomed by their grandmother at an airport in Vietnam.

THE BULL'S EYE

JANUARY 23, 2019

FEATURE

7

Mat h t e acher f inds h e r ze n Emily Koh Staff Writer One Diamond Bar High School math teacher has introduced her classroom to the relaxing practice of yoga and is working to make it more available to all students on campus.

Isabella Chiang is stretching out and bringing her yoga philosophy and exercises to DBHS. Chiang became a certified yoga instructor over the previous summer and has been practicing the activity for the past two to three years.

“It’s not just a physical exercise but it helps me mentally and emotionally, and it’s such a well-rounded practice and it helps with so many aspects of your life so that’s why I love doing it,” Chiang said.

When Chiang was first introduced to yoga as a college student,

she saw it as a boring exercise with extremely slow stretches. However, after graduation, Chiang took another yoga class and returned with a newfound passion. “[The instructors] didn’t just focus on the physical aspect of, but they tied in the philosophy of it and how it can be used to help you with your social-emotional wellbeing,” Chiang said.

Chiang took an unconventional path to earning her certification by taking a route made specifically for teachers.

She took a social-emotional well-being class, completing her training within just three months, compared to the one-year option that most people take.

Chiang received her certification over the past summer after four classes, in which she learned a different aspects of yoga: physical poses, philosophy, human anatomy and social-emotional well-being.

She took these courses daily from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. until she fulfilled the instructor requirement of 200 hours.

Due to her busy schedule prepping for classes, Chiang hasn’t been able to teach at a studio yet, but she hopes

to utilize her certification and bring a yoga class to DBHS. She has already taken small steps in integrating her practice of yoga with her job on campus. “[In] the first three to five minutes of all my classes, we do mind-

ful breathing and mindful movement exercises,” Chiang said, “I think most of my students really appreciate the first few minutes of class— they’re able to collect themselves and just be aware of how their body is feeling.”

Chiang hopes to open up the practice of yoga not just to the students in her class but to the entire campus through a class or an after-school activity. Yet, there are several challenges to her plan, such as the cost of equipment for yoga mats and props that help with poses and practice spaces.

For Chiang, yoga has helped her manage her stress

and keep calm under frustrating situations she may encounter. She hopes that her class serve a similar purpose for her students, giving them a place to relax and let go of their stress.

“Just being a high school student can take a toll on not just your physical well-being but people’s social-emotional well-being, so I would love to use it as a way to give kids a tool to deal with any stress that they might have in their life,” Chiang said.

Saving students’ grades Tiffany Lee Asst. photo EDITOR Seeing your grades drop is never a welcoming sight. But help is not far away.

The Diamond Bar High School California Scholarship Federation provides peer tutoring to give struggling students the help they need. The club was established in 2001, and operates under the motto “Scholarships for Service.” Its purpose is to give support to students who need additional tutoring and help out the local community through volunteering events.

“At first I joined reluctantly because my mom told me too, but

then I found out that it was actually really fun,” co-president Daniel Huang, “I kind of had an addiction to volunteering and it transitioned into me doing a lot for the club and why I pursue the officer role as well.”

The club hosts the peer tutoring service for free after school on Mondays to Thursdays, from 3-4:30 p.m., teaching an average of 30 to 40 students weekly.

“The club volunteers in many other outside local events, such as Bread of Angels, as well as Quail Summit Science Olympiad,” co-president Ryan Li said, “We also have a range of other volunteer events such as elderly homes as well as at city events.”

TIFFANY LEE

Isabella Garrett, left, and Berince Tang work together on math homework.

To become a peer tutor, a member must have a GPA of 3.5 and have taken the class that they want to tutor for. Adviser Jennifer Burns confirms their qualifications.

“It helps me a lot in math because I don’t have to do it at home,” sophomore Thomas Nahue said, “I studied my homework and it improved my test score and I also understand the concepts.”

“CSF provides peer tutoring, which is available to all students on campus. [It] has helped countless students improve their grades, including me personally,” Li said, “It’s essentially killing two birds with one stone for us.”

CSF offers statewide scholarships, including the $1000 Outstanding Sealbearer and the Seymour Memorial Award, offering up to $5000, that both require nominations, while the Michelson scholarship offers $1000 with an essay requirement. The CSF scholarship offered for DBHS students requires an application and an essay.

To join, an applicant must be a junior, senior or a sophomore in their second semester with an overall GPA of 3.0. Ones who have completed four semesters of more than 16 volunteer hours will earn a sash and cord for graduation.

Photos courtesy of JESSYCA HARRISON

A future in focus

Alumna Jessyica Harrison holds up her camera as an assistant camerman.

Samyuktha Vellaiyan Asst. photo EDITOR Since she graduated from Diamond Bar High School in 2011, Jessyca Harrison has been pursuing her dream of working in the entertainment industry.

Mostly working as a second assistant cameraman, Harrison has worked on such television series as “Pretty Little Liars” and “American Crime Story.” Her job is to keep the entire camera department operating smoothly by managing every piece of gear, planning ahead for camera needs and help in the hiring of the camera crew. She also assists the first assistant cameraman with camera positioning, lens changes, battery changes and film loading.

The process to getting the job as

an AC was definitely not easy, according to Harrison.

“I faked it until I made it,” Harrison said via email. “Every opportunity that was presented to me, whether it be something easy or something hard, I accepted it.

I worked so hard, doing free jobs, favor jobs, absolutely terrible jobs just to get experience.”

Harrison has also been part of the crew for feature films, “20th

alumna ON P. 12 Century

COLIMA BURGER Downtown Los Angeles is filled with countless Mexican food establishments and this authentic restaurant is bit of a hidden gem.

Though the guacamole on this order reminded me of a bucket of Nickelodeon green slime, I can definitely say that these fries taste way better than they look. The thick chili verde guacamole sauce was smooth and tasty on top of the slightly crisp but thick fries.

Though spicier than I expected, it was not unbearable and went perfectly with the horchata drink I got with it. The order of the $4.50 guacamole fries was surprisingly not heavy and can be shared with a friend, though I easily could have finished the entire plate by myself.

This order of fries served more as a meal than a snack or side dish— and rightfully so since they were the most expensive fries. At $10.95, the fries had serving portions large enough to feed two people. This clean restaurant right outside of Harkins Theatres proved great for satisfying both french fry and Mexican food cravings at once.

The thin crispy fries were delicious and it was obvious this french fry dish had the highest quality ingredients with delightfully smelling cheddar cheese, fresh guacamole, tasty sour cream and tender meat.

Surprisingly, they were still good as reheated leftovers which is a really big accomplishment as far as french fries go.

As far as side dishes go, french fries are a popular go-to item.

Though many have fast food chain fry favorites, here are some lesser known specialty fries that we think give fast food chains a run for their money.

BY: KRISTEN SANCHEZ

The chicken and waffles restaurant in the Shoppes at Chino Hills is a trendy little eatery with reasonably priced food— having their popular specialty fries at $7.95, serving the perfect amount for two.

These fries won for best presentation with its drizzled sour cream and sprinkled chives over golden waffle cut beauties. However, the Irish Nachos tasted mediocre to me. The cheese sauce had a similar look and consistency of In-N- Out spread only not nearly as delectable. The applewood bacon was skimped out on. Though tasty on its own, it was ruined when mixed with the odd cheese sauce and I found myself eating the untouched fries on the plate instead.

This small mom-and-pop joint on the edge of Rowland Heights sells its fries at the most reasonable price of all the places I visited. While you cannot beat the price of $5.95 for the enormous serving portions, which is large enough for four people, these fries were still my least favorite of the bunch. The chili was flavorless, and the bland sauce tasted more like a bean dip To make matters worse, the cheese could not save the flat taste of the chili, as the cheese shavings didnot look or taste appetizing at all.

Though the plate of fries smelled delicious at first, the lack of flavor was extremely disappointing, and the thick cut fries were limp and soggy, missing that special crisp.

8

FEATURE

JANUARY 23, 2018

THE BULL'S EYE

Hidden Gems of DBHS Popular Diamond Bar High School electives such as Photography and Marching Band have spent years in the spotlight, capturing the attention of many students. However, here are a few elective classes teaching specialized skills that many students might be unaware of.

E

R U T C E T I H C R A In Architecture, Brahmas learn and use computer aid drafting, which incorporates digital architecture and engineering, to virtually sketch their designs. In the seven years since this class first started, students have created designs for houses, bridges, motel restrooms for the handicapped and

crime scenes for the Forensic Science class. Last year, Architecture students worked in teams of four to design and produce a tealight, which is a candle in a thin, small plastic cup. Architecture has 100 students enrolled this year and is taught by An Tran, who has been teaching the class for the past three years and has worked in the field

for eight years. Junior Saarth Trivedi has been enrolled in the class for three years and decided to take this class because he has been interested in designing buildings ever since he was young.

“I’ve learned a lot of life skills such as being more confident, being more responsible with my work, being more organized and respectful to others,” Trivedi said.

AMELIE LEE

Architechure students used a laser cutter to carve designs onto wooden lanterns for a drafting program.

VIRTUAL ENTERPRISES

Photo courtesy of DBHS.ORG

Virutal enterprise students showcased their skills by presenting their business plan to industry judges, who gave them a final score.

Virtual Enterprises teaches students about the fundamentals of how a business runs by operating the class as a business.

Students work in a “company” and take on the various business positions in departments like marketing and information technology. They also create products such as in-

TRANSITION AND WORKABILITY Photo courtesy of WVUSD

The transition class collected holiday donations for children outside of Walmart.

STAGECRAFT

AMELIE LEE

Junior Kenneth Ov constructs a backstage prop in class.

surance, publishing, apps and fashion. This year, the class’ product is a medical vending machine that sells bandaids, alcohol wipes and diabetic kits.

The class is taught by Sabrina Ruiz-Emmons, who worked in finance for 10 years. Senior Serena Yeh, who has been taking the

The Transition class, previously known as Lifeskills, focuses on helping Specialized Academic Instruction students learn how to adjust from high school life to college life. Teacher Tanya Aparicio leads the class in various activities, such as cooking classes that occur twice a week where students learn how to cook with fresh ingredients grown from the school garden.

Aparicio uses the money she collects from recycling around campus to buy the ingredients needed for the cooking classes.

The class is paid for by Workability I, a state-funded grant

In Stagecraft, students have the opportunity to help out Drama’s fall and spring productions. Students can work the stage lights and sound system or help build sets. Inside the Stagecraft classroom, students sketch set and costume designs and create cut lists, which describes what materials are needed during construction.

When building the sets, students use table saws, chop saws, band saws, staple guns, screws and many other devices. In the recent produc-

class since last year, enrolled in the class since she wants to major in business.

“I learned a lot about how a business works and communication and how leaders have to communicate with other people,” Yeh said.

which provides services for the 137 students in the DBHS Workability program. Patricia Dimas coordinates the students’ field trips to colleges or various businesses in the community and conducts career assessments to help them figure out what career is right for them.

She has also formed partnerships with Walmart, Smart & Final and Round Table Pizza, who employ the students and give them paychecks every month.

“I just felt like I was born to do this job,” Dimas said. “It was something that I’ve always had an interest in and it’s quite gratifying. It brings me true joy to be able to help our students.”

tion of “Suite Surrender,” the Stagecraft students designed and constructed the hotel room’s walls and furniture. Stagecraft, which has been around since 2006 and currently has 37 students enrolled, is taught by Jenna Riley, who is a freelance designer at Cypress College and a technician at many theaters. Junior Camille Jackson, who has taken this class for the past three years, decided to enroll af-

ter hearing positive feedback from her brother, who also took the class.

“I’ve developed a skill to communicate better with people rather than being by myself,” Jackson said. “Now, I can go out and talk to people easier when I have to work shows because you can’t stay to yourself. You have to have good communication so everyone knows what’s going on.”

DESIGN BY KATE ZHENG WRITTEN BY RENEE ELEFANTE

THE BULL'S EYE

JANUARY 23, 2019

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

9

Pushing for academy diversity An a&e commentary maggie Liu asst. a&e Editor

“magic number,” the total number of votes divided by the number of possible nominees plus one, in order to become a nominee. In most instances the “magic number” is not reached, so the selection with the fewest votes is dropped and second place votes become first place votes. This voting process is the same for voting on the winners.

The core of the Academy Awards is the Academy members who annually vote for the nominees and winners. As of January 2017, there were over 6,000 members in the Academy. There has been a drastic increase in membership since then due to the Academy inviting 774 members.

The new members are more diverse than previous years. According to an investigation by the Los Angeles Times in 2012, 94 percent of members were caucasian and 77 percent of members were male. The Academy disclosed in 2017 that 13 percent of members were people of color and 28 percent of members were female.

The 2017 Academy Awards saw two African-American performers, Mahershala Ali and Viola Davis, win Oscars and “Moonlight,” the story of a black drug dealer, take home the Best Picture Oscar over the popular musical “La La Land.” The previous year, only one high profile nomination, for Mexican direc-

A

t 13.5 inches tall and 8.5 pounds, the “Oscar” has been the entertainment industry’s symbolic stamp of approval for films since 1929.

But the past few years have seen big changes to that industry group that hands out those awards.

For two years, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has been actively trying to diversify their members due to controversy in 2016.

The backlash was ignited because all leading and supporting acting nominees were white. The incident was then appropriately referred to as #Oscarstoowhite. Despite the efforts of the Academy, without changing its rules for admitting new members, it will take many years, if ever, for the Academy to be representative of the greater population.

To be admitted into the Academy, one must be promoted by two members who are a part of the same branch. After being promoted, the proposed member must meet a multitude of requirements such as meeting the requisites of the individual branch and getting approved by the Academy’s Board of Governors.

The nature of admitting new members is based on connections and having a bond with existing members. This exclusivity is a barrier for groups in the film industry that have been traditionally discriminated against: people of color and women.

The actual voting process is even more complicated. Members from each branch (actors, directors, set designers, composers, etc.) rank their preferred nominees. A selection must reach a

27%

tor Alejandro Iñárritu, went to a person of color.

The significantly more diverse class of new members is a step in the right direction for the film industry. However, the root of the problem still lies in the lack of minorities in major roles and as directors. Without disenfranchised peoples highlighted on the big screen, the diversity in the Academy is not of any value. The industry needs to continue to encourage minority directors and actors that reflect the diverse American population.

With box office hits like “Get Out” in 2017 and “Crazy Rich Asians” in 2018, minorities are proving that they are capable of producing profitable films.

However, these movies are both outliers, and the film industry must still take huge strides forward in order to diversify.

28%

25%

13% People of color

2015

total membership

2016

2017

Overall Female Membership

106 Brahmas top picks for Oscar winners Best Actress Emily Blunt: 47% Lady Gaga: 31% Olivia Colman: 9% Elise Fisher: 5%

Best Picture Black Panther: 57% Bohemian Rhapsody: 34% The Favourite: 7% Green Book: 3%

DESIGN BY MAGGIE LIU & JOSH KIM

Best Actor Rami Malek: 46% Bradley Cooper:17% Christian Bale: 27% John David Washington:10% ©Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences®

10

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

arts & Eics Disturbing YouTube content Amelie Lee editor-in-chief

I

f you’ve ever spent time with a relative under the age of six who watches YouTube, you’ve probably seen dozens of toy unwrapping videos and have heard the Finger Family counting song one too many times. Channels targeting kids, like “Ryan ToysReview” or “Seven Awesome Kids” rack up millions of views, profiting because of parents who plop an iPad in front of their children for hours, letting auto-play screen video after video of animated cartoons and family-friendly pranks.

While most content for children on YouTube is innocent, several figures and companies have recently called attention to a darker side of YouTube Kids. In early 2017, YouTube news commentator Philip DeFranco discussed what has been named “Elsa-gate,” bringing to light hundreds of channels that manipulate the YouTube algorithm by posting videos of cartoon characters engaging in disturbing behavior—with thousands of videos showing violent and sexual content featuring animated or live action adaptations of characters like Spider-Man and Elsa from Frozen.

These videos are tagged under children’s categories, and due to YouTube’s auto-play feature, parents who put on an innocent toy unwrapping video might have exposed their young children to inappropriate content. Some of these videos have millions of views— and even more alarmingly—most are monetized. Nobody is quite sure where these videos are from, but YouTube has claimed to be working on fixing the problem, deleting over 150,000 videos.

This phenomenon has received a bit of attention: technology and media expert James Bridle gave a TED Talk last April, saying that although YouTube’s vetting process has made some improvements, that effort hasn’t been enough. And as disturbing content continues to be monetized and shown to kids months after YouTube improved their safeguards, I have to agree.

YouTube has never done a very good job in determining what is appropriate and inappropriate for advertisements, receiving backlash for quietly demonetizing smaller channels and LGBTQ content, while actively promoting controversial figures like Logan Paul. While few know exactly how YouTube vets videos, the company should be working on AI that can ensure that family-friendly content is indeed family-friendly, and hiring more human moderators to discern exactly what is appropriate to be shown to the public. As the largest platform for broadcast creators, YouTube isn’t going to disappear anytime soon, making it all the more important for them to improve their system of monetization and advertising.

While the increase in safeguarding and moderators was a step in the right direction, YouTube needs to be more conscious of things— whether it be channels being demonetized for talking about mental health, or the children on the other side of the screen seeing Peppa Pig abduct and murder someone.

Amelie Lee and Amy Miyahara write the Arts & Entertainment column on alternating issues.

JANUARY 23, 2019

THE BULL'S EYE

GLASS

NOW SHOWING

The film’s reliance on previous installments to introduce the characters in “Glass” makes it an unapproachable mess for viewers unfamiliar with Shyamalan’s complex universe.

ted yarmoski opinion editor I walked into this movie fresh, not having seen the previous two M. Night Shyamalan films in the “Unbreakable” trilogy that “Glass” is a part of. Despite my lack of knowledge, I expected that the movie would stand on its own without the necessity of other content to enable enjoyment. “Glass” did not stand on its own.

While it is expected that the plot would be summarized about here, I feel incapable of doing so after watching this film. It is so convoluted and disorganized that no newcomer to Shyamalan’s world could comprehend how everything ties together. Basically, Elijah Price (Samuel L. Jackson), David Dunn (Bruce Willis), and Kevin Wendell Crumb (James McAvoy) spend the movie fighting for their identities against forces that refuse to accept them.

Any entertainment value stems from the challenge of putting everything together and coming to realizations as new details were revealed, so spoiling the plot further will completely sap any enjoyment for potential viewers.

The first half of the movie was a confusing mess that seemed to have no focus.

Although I welcome deviations from the straightforward and simplistic plots of other action-packed superhero movies, a garbled storyline isn’t any better. The film

introduces a new situation or character almost every 10 minutes, making it a struggle to keep up with the plot.

As far as characters go, very few were memorable enough for me to even recall their names, with the exception of Crumb. James McAvoy’s portrayal of Crumb was extremely well-acted and entertaining. His scenes were the best in the film solely due to his presence.

However, it was very obvious that viewers are expected to have wacthed the previous two films in order to understand the behaviors

and motives of the characters in the movie.

Aside from the confusing elements, the practical aspects of the film were solid. The score featured drawn-out, tension-building pieces that established the moody and almost sinister atmosphere. The cinematography was also impressive. Though complicated camera angles added to the confusion, they also changed the entire feel of many scenes for the better. I even tensed up at times during the close personal shots of fighting or struggling.

However, some shots were unnecessary and failed at their intended dramatic effect. For example, as characters read various documents, vital information was displayed for only seconds at a time. While it was nice to be seeing from the eyes of the characters, I would have easily missed the key information if I was not paying such close attention.

While “Glass” left me intrigued, it ultimately failed to deliver a cohesive and engaging plot in its attempt to break away from common tropes of the genre.

Photo courtesy of SCREENRANT

“Glass,” in its opening week, grossed $47 million in North America and $89.1 million worldwide.

Playing up to high expectations Cindy Liu Feature Editor There was a roar of applause as Emily Yang strode across the stage, past her usual chair in the orchestra, to stand in the front of the ensemble as a soloist. As the orchestra began the first few notes of the piece, Yang raised her bow to her violin for her solo performance as the 2018 Claremont Young Musicians Orchestra Concerto Competition winner.

The Diamond Bar High School junior has always been immersed in music as her mother, Dr. Amanda Yang, teaches violin and piano.

In Emily’s freshman year of high school, she started attending the Colburn School in Los Angeles to study with Samuel Fischer, a professional violinist who studied at The Juilliard School in New York City and serves as the concertmaster of the Riverside County Philharmonic. At Colburn, Yang became more serious about the instrument because of Fischer’s high expectations.

“Music has been in my life forever,” Yang said.

“When I first switched to Colburn, [my challenge was] practicing to my teacher’s expectations.

Colburn was a big jump for me in my musical career, and it was just telling myself that I had

Photo courtesy of EMILY YANG

Junior Emily Yang was the concermaster last year for the All-Southern California Honor Symphony Orchestra. to practice every day to be better.”

After three years of playing with the DBHS Symphony Orchestra, Yang is now the assistant concertmaster. “[She’s] one of the best [violinist] I’ve had in my 30-year career. She’s incredibly gifted, not just in technical skills, but she understands music at a very deep level,” band director Steve Acciani said. “She just has a type of industriousness that is infectious with the whole orchestra.”

Outside the school orchestra, Yang is also heavily involved in music extracurriculars

ranging from competitions to orchestras. In eighth grade, Yang was selected to play for CYMO. While Yang started out in the back rows as a second violinist, she continued practicing over the years and rise through the ranks until she finally became the assistant concertmaster. Last year, Yang auditioned for the 2018 CYMO Concerto Competition as a personal challenge to prove herself.

“I was really shocked, honestly.

My stand partner, who is first chair concertmaster, was really good too so I was not expecting to win at all,” Yang said. “After the competition, I went home and I cried because I didn’t know I would win.”

Last year, Yang reached another major milestone in her music journey when she was selected to play as the concertmaster for the All-Southern California Honor Symphony Orchestra.

“In orchestras, just being able to

sit in front is really nice compared to sitting in the back because it’s like I’ve gotten so far,” Yang said.

“It’s nice to know that I put in so much work and at the end accomplish stuff.”

Yang also won the Junior Chamber Music’s Young Musicians Concerto Competition as a sophomore and played “Barber Violin Concerto” as a soloist with the orchestra.

While Yang initially focused mainly on learning the technicalities of playing the violin, she has now learned to take a step back and tune into the emotions of the pieces she plays.

“During performances, I’m like ‘don’t miss this shift’ and ‘don’t mess up’-- that’s what’s going on through my head,” Yang said. “But over time, as I practice more, I get more familiar with the piece. I just enjoy it, be like ‘this is me,’ try to [give more expression] and just enjoy myself with it more.”

THE BULL'S EYE

JANUARY 23, 2019

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

11

instagram handles olivia hwang: @cloudystori megan lee: @spicyscribbles natalie kim: @natk.creates Photos at left courtesy of OLIVIA HUANG

social media.

Sophomore Olivia Hwang has 15,000 followers on her Instagram, @cloudystori, where she publishes Entranced by the rise and fall of her work through a bullet journal. each stroke, many Diamond Bar Bullet journaling, a way for people High School students have been into write out their thoughts or plans spired to learn the art of calligrathrough art and calligraphy, alphy. With the rise of art accounts, lows individuals to intertwine imthese students have decided to ages and drawings alongside text. showcase their passion through Hwang uses this format to convey multiple daily experiences. “[I used] events in my day—something in nature or a movie I watched.”

Hwang said. “It helps me relieve stress and wind down from my day.”

Hwang started bullet journaling after observing her friends do the same, and has since been able to meet a community of bullet journalists that help provide feedback on her work.

“My advice is don’t be scared to try it, experiment Photo courtesy of NATALIE KIM with your style and be patient Junior Natalie Kim has been doing lettering/ because it takes a while,” Hwang said. Sophomore Mecalligraphy since her sophomore year.

CHrstina Liu Asst. web Editor

gan Lee, who goes by @spicyscribbles on Instagram, first discovered her passion for calligraphy in fifth grade, when her after-school teacher demonstrated some of her calligraphy skills in class. Left in awe, Lee returned home and searched for examples of gothic-style calligraphy online and began to mimic the style.

“At my first attempts people were like ‘oh that’s so crusty, anyone can do this,’ so I was like ‘I’m going to show them!” Lee said.

Since her first exposure to gothic calligraphy, Lee has since tried various forms of calligraphy such as brush calligraphy and pointed-pen calligraphy.

Lee said her initial goal for her calligraphy account was to keep track of her progress with monthly posts, but has recently been considering it as a potential future career opportunity.

“It’s pretty gratifying to see likes but also I feel if I can get my account big enough then it would be easier to start a business,” Lee said.

Junior Natalie Kim displays her love for calligraphy on her Instagram, @ natk.creates.

Kim practices the art of hand lettering, a style similar to calligraphy but more focused on illustrating the letters. Kim said Photo courtesy of MEGAN LEE that lettering Sophomore Megan Lee started calligraphy in fifth grade. appealed to her because eos by calligraphy artists such as of its appearance, flexibility and AmandaRachLee. freedom of interpretation.

“You kind of start off with copy“I’m more into faux calligraphy, ing other peoples’ styles because and utilizing different styles of you want to learn how to do it,” text like creating block letters or Kim said. “Everyone personally adding a shadow behind a letter,” has their own handwriting, so it’s Kim said. kind of the same thing applied to Having started lettering last calligraphy. Once you find your year, Kim’s first exposure was style you’ll discover it’s different.” through watching Youtube vid-

VALERIE WESTER The junior placed second in the 2018 Korean American Day Art Contest Catherine Liu Business Manager “Hibiscus syriacus” to represent South Korea; “Kimjongilia” to represent North Korea; an olive branch to represent the peace between the two countries: Valerie Wester kept these symbols in mind when she came up with her watercolor painting that won second place in the 2018 Korean American Day Art Contest.

“It was really surreal that I actually won, especially on the first try,” the Diamond Bar High School junior said.

Wester was introduced to the competition in her art studio class by DBHS art teacher, Vianney Hwang, at the beginning of the school year. With only three months to work on her piece, Wester said she had difficulties with deciding what to paint within the theme, “Finding Beauty and Spirit in Korean History.” However, Wester was able to come up with her final product by thinking back to the 2018 Olympics.

“There was a segment on the news where they would ask a bunch of Korean [competitors] that were going to the Olympics about how they felt about North and South Korea combining teams,” Wester said. “They were like ‘We love it.

We really want to be one with our brothers and sisters again’ and

Photo courtesy of ERIN LAI

Varsity Song in their costumes for their jazz routine at Yorba Linda High School.

Pom-Poms Out for U.S.A. Spirit

Victoria Artale asst. PHOTO Editor

Photo courtesy of VALERIE WESTER

Junior Valerie Wester won $50 in the 2018 Korean American Day Art Contest. that really inspired me.”

The painting depicts the Korean peninsula in the center long with an olive branch that portrays the long-time division between he two nations. The background of her drawing has hibiscus syriacus, a species of flower, on South Korea’s side and Kimjongilia, another flower named after former North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il, on North Korea’s side.

The competition was open to all students, ranging from kindergarten to 12th grade. Each piece submitted was assessed based on the artist’s grade level, and Wester placed second in the 11th grade category.

She was awarded $50 during an

awards ceremony held on Jan. 13 at the Korean Education Center in Los Angeles along with the other winners and received a 2019 calendar featuring her art along with other winners’ work.

“Walking up the stage, I was actually really nervous,” Wester said.

“This had made me consider some options for art schools in California.”

Although she began studying art in elementary school, Wester said that it was only recently that she became more serious about pursuing art as a major. As a self taught artist, Wester said that this award has opened her eyes to possibly continuing the studies of art in college.

After cheering all football season, Diamond Bar High School’s Song team packed their pom-poms and dance shoes for the U.S.A. Spirit Regionals.

The Brahmas placed fourth in Varsity Jazz and fifth in Advanced Pom at the first Regional competition at University High School in Irvine on Dec. 8, and placed fifth in Advanced Pom and sixth in Varsity Jazz at their latest regional competition at Yorba Linda High School on Jan. 12.

“We are all just looking out for each other, since competition can be a nerve racking experience, but win or lose, we’re all in it together,” Ariel Cardona said via Instagram.

The scoring criteria was separated into different categories, including choreography, how well the stage was used, technique, showmanship and uniformity.

Song arrived to the competitions early to perfect their jazz routine to Michael Jackson’s “Dangerous” and their pom-pom routine to a remix with multiple songs.

“Overall, I think I did pretty well in executing the technical parts of the dance, but I still have some

things to work on,” sophomore Caitlyn Nguyen said via Instagram.

After performing at varsity football games and the first pep rally of the schoolyear, the team was excited and ready to start competition season.

“My goal for this competition season is for us to place in the top three teams,” captain Erin Lai, a junior, said via Instagram. “It will be hard since we are in the advanced division, but I believe we can do it.”

The team has not won nationals since 2014, but regionals has set a goal for the team to help them improve before nationals on Feb. 22.

“We’re hoping to score higher at the next competition and improve our performance quality,” Nguyen said. “Hopefully, our energy is a lot higher and we will perform well for the crowd and judges.”

Although the competition results were not exceptional, Lai is hopeful that the girls will learn from this experience and improve before nationals.

“We deserve the awards that we got,” Lai said. “However I think with the knowledge of our first competitions, we can use that to branch off and grow in our next competitions.”

12

THE BULL'S EYE

BUSINESS

JANUARY 23, 2019

A career behind Banding up for Rose Bowl the camera lens HALFTIME FROM P. 1

ALUMNA FROM P. 7 Century Women,” “The Yellow Birds” and “The Red Man,” along numerous short films and television series. While filming, she has worked alongside such famous actors as Annette Bening in “20th Century Women,” Jennifer Aniston in “The Yellow Birds” and Shay Mitchell in “Pretty Little Liars.”

According to Harrison, she was inspired to pursue a career in the film industry while learning about the production for the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy.

“The locations, effects and production value of those films really sparked my need to be creative and make a living in the business,” Harrison said.

During Harrison’s time at DBHS, she took the Digital Video Production class for a few years, which she said solidified her desire to make movies for a living.

She used her basic knowledge of editing and set skills to jump start her career.

After graduating from DBHS, Harrison attended the 18-month program at Los Angeles Film School, graduating with an Associate of Arts degree in 2013.

In college, she applied for production assistant jobs following her professors’ suggestions. However, she did not receive any responses for job offerings.

During a trip to lighting company, Mole Richardson, Harrison met the owner, who invited her to meet some student filmmakers at

the American Film Institute.

“They asked if I could ‘second AC’ on their school projects,” Harrison said. “Though I had no clue what a second did, I said yes.

There, they taught me some of the basic duties of my job.”

Since then, she has received job offers for several TV series, feature films, short films and movies.

She is currently the second AC for the TV series “Weird City.”

Two months ago, Harrison came to DBHS to talk to the Pathways Academy students about her journey into the industry and the steps she took to achieve her goals. She advised students who aspire to join the competitive entertainment industry to be diligent.

“Never give up, work so insanely hard and know that you will have to make a lot of sacrifices to get ahead in this crazy business,” Harrison said.

show for the season—composed of “Believer” by Imagine Dragons, “50 Ways to Say Goodbye” by Train and “Africa” by Toto.

Marching band practiced separately from color guard a majority of the time, with musical guidance from Acciani, choreography from marching band instructor Casey Bindl and music director Marie Sato helping with both aspects.

“Because this is not a competition, we can perform for the right reasons, which is to entertain the crowds,” Acciani said. “When we compete, we have to be very specific about how we do things to match the judging criteria.”

Due to heavy rain during the week leading up to the Collegiate Bowl, color guard only had a few hours to practice on the Friday before the performance.

The team, however, had been rehearsing the show since last summer.

“Personally, performing at the

Rose Bowl was an opportunity for me to just enjoy the performance and have fun,” senior color guard captain Brad Chang said. “As for the team, the rookies were able to get some experience with performing in front of an audience outside of school.”

Attending the Rose Bowl gave the Brahmas a new perspective on performing, according to students,

and they hope to attend similar events in the future.

“I’m nothing more than proud of our program. We’ve come such a long way and performing at the Rose Bowl one last time was the best way to end it,” senior band vice president John Lee said. “It was our final time wearing the uniforms and I’ll miss marching band, my family, so much.”

THE BULL'S EYE

JANUARY 23, 2019

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

13

New year, new reads “Parkland: The Birth of a Movement” Following the 2018 shooting and the teenage activists that arose from tragedy, Dave Cullen’s account of what happened at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School will be released a year after the shooting. Cullen is known for his 2009 account of the Columbine shootings.

“On the Come Up”

Author of New York Times best-seller “The Hate U Give,” Angie Thomas will release her second young-adult novel in February. Thomas said that the novel was “a homage to hip-hop,” following 16-year-old aspiring rapper Bri as her family deals with poverty.

“Here and Now and Then”

Family man and time traveller Kin Stewart works to reconcile his job as a time-travelling secret agent from 2142 and his domestic life in the early 2000’s. Author Mike Chen’s sci-fi debut brings an emotional connection to the time travelling world this month.

“Internment”

Coming out in March, Samira Ahmed’s fantasy novel is set in a near-future dystopia where Muslim-American citizens are sent to internment camps. The book follows teenage Layla and her family as she works to overcome a system of oppression.

“The Love & Lies of Rukhsana Ali”

Sabina Khan’s first novel follows a rebellious teenage girl working to figure out how to come out to her conservative Muslim family. Faced with discrimination and traditionalism, Rukhsana tries to find her identity in the world around her.

Written by AMELIE LEE Design by AMY MIYAHARA

14

SPORTS

JANUARY 23, 2019

THE BULL'S EYE

Brahma’s offensive force dominates league BOYS BASKETBALL Myles Corey leads the team to a 6-0 undefeated record. johnny wang ASST. sports Editor The Diamond Bar High School boys basketball team is tearing up the competition in the Mt. Baldy League, going undefeated while maintaining an overall record of 16-6.

“I think we have a really good team and can do well in CIF if we can keep improving. As boring as this may sound, basketball more often than not boils down to fundamentals,” head coach Henry Frierson said.

After the break, the boys played several league games against Chaffey, Don Lugo and Montclair for the first time, and Chino and Ontario for the second time. The Brahmas remain undefeated in league with a record of 6-0.

All of their league matches were blow-outs for the dominant Brahmas. In the first game back against Chaffey, the team maintained their lead from the first quarter to the final buzzer, winning 69-45.

Senior Corey had another amazing night at the home gym, dropping 24 points and 4 steals. Though no one else broke double digit points, senior Bryan Reyes was on

the glass the entire night, grabbing 19 rebounds out of the team’s 41.

Even though Brahmas outclassed Chaffey, DB couldn’t score efficiently from the field, missing 16 layups and shooting 41.5 percent from the field.

In the game against Don Lugo, senior Mike Gao started at center after coming off an ankle sprain during winter break. Corey had a solid shooting night, scoring 36 points and going 50 percent off 12 shots from the three-point line.

Though Reyes wasn’t hitting his shots, he contributed to the offense in other ways with 4 assists and 9 offensive rebounds, giving the boys a second chance to score.

Senior Justin Herrera had a great defensive game with 5 steals and only 2 fouls. The game ended in a 30 point victory, 74-44.

The boys also had no trouble dealing with Montclair to claim first in league for themselves. Both Herrera and Corey had a efficient shooting night, going 100% from beyond the arc and Reyes had a double-double with 14 points and 17 rebounds. Four players in the starting line-up had double digit points: Corey, Herrera, Reyes and senior Amir Hunter.

They also performed well on the defensive side of things. Gao had 5 blocks and sophomore Blake Davis had 4 steals.

Against Chino, the boys won by 52 points, 94 - 42. Senior Gavin Clements was explosive off the bench,

AMELIE LEE

Sophomore Blake Davis gathers the rebound and looks for a teammate to pass to in the victory against Montclair, 77-57. dropping 21 points and 4 assists.

Myles, Hunter, and Gao all had double digit points; Reyes collected another 15 rebounds and Herrera had 6 assists.

Overall, the Brahmas had very solid showings against all league opponents, winning all of their games by 20 points or more.

Though the Brahmas are faring well in tournaments, winning two out of the four they played in, Fri-

erson still isn’t satisfied enough with the team’s performance. He expects the boys to be winning all tournaments they participate in.

According to Maxpreps, the team is in the Top five for most points scored for in the season in California’s 2A division. However, Frierson wants the team to improve in other ways aside from their offensive capabilities.

“Rebounding and setting good

screens have been issues for us trying to address,” Frierson said.

With Gao back in the line-up and the team ready for CIF, Frierson has high hopes for the team to achieve a Top eight status in their division, which includes teams from across Southern California.

“We can easily be a better team.

We just have to make our shots, and play our brand of basketball,” Gao said.

Wrestlers expect to pin a position at CIF WRESTLING Moving away from conditioning, the Brahmas are prioritizing technique to finish strong.

Victoria artale asst. photo EDITOR

SAMYUKTHA VELLAIYAN

Sophomore Emily Le made a goal in the girl’s blowout game against Don Lugo, 6-1, the highest they’ve scored since 2015.

Crossing midseason undefeated

GIRLS SOCCER The Lady Brahmas benefit from tough preseason matches.

abella Montelongo-Lisak, with an assist by junior Marissa Vasquez.

In their second league match against Chaffey, the Brahmas dominated the Tigers, 4-0. Vasquez scored two goals and both Montelongo-Lisak and sophomore Julia christina liu Ruelas scored a goal. asst. web editor “We pretty much controlled the game for the most part against Diamond Bar High School girls Chaffey,” Franco said. “We have soccer head coach Matt Franco atjust been lacking that killer intributes the team’s league success stinct of attacking the ball, and to the preseason matches against once we started doing it we started Division I and II teams. The Brahgetting some goals.” mas lead the league with a record The team cruised to a win in their of 6-0. third league “We are playmatch against "Its’ just making sure ing a little weakDon Lugo, 6-1. they are staying er competition Junior Madiconsistent and doing this league so son Bernardino it’s just making scored two goals what we worked on...” sure they are while senior MATT FRANCO staying consisOlivia Valdivia, tent and doing Vasquez, Ruela, what we worked Le and Monon against the tougher teams,” telongo-Liska scored single goals.

Franco said.

In their fourth match against the In the team’s first Mt. Baldy Chino Cowboys, the Brahmas won, match against Ontario, the Lady 4-2. Valdivia scored two goals while Brahmas defeated the Jaguars 2-1. freshmens Alina Valdez and ShanThe two goals were scored by sophtelle Luna scored single goals. omore Emily Le and freshmen IsThey continued this winning

streak in their fifth match against Montclair, 2-1. Junior Kaitlyn Morales and Vasquez both scored a goal.

The team had another dominating win in their sixth match against the Cowboys, 5-0. Vasquez scored two goals while Valdivia, Beaulieu and Le all scored single shots to bring in the win. The team will be having another league match today in a home game against Ontario.

According to Franco, Midfielder Vasquez has been one of the key players on the field.

“When she’s on the field, the girls tend to look for her a lot,” Franco said. “They feed off of her work ethic and her ability to create, and when she’s playing well, the other girls play well off of her.”

According to senior Jordyn Beaulieu, because the Brahmas have trouble scoring, they have focused their practices around finishing their shots at the goal as well as improving their defensive line.

“If we finish this season anywhere other than first place, it’s not because anyone was better than us, it’s because we didn’t want it enough,” Beaulieu said via Instagram.

Moving away from its summer training methods, Diamond Bar High School’s wrestling team is focusing on improving technique that they hope will push them to CIF. “Right now we are doing a lot more technical work along with situational wrestling,” coach Andre Bonafe said via email. “This is the point of the season where the most improvement will be made.”

After the first match against Walnut High School ended in a tie, the team defeated Ontario High School 58-24 and Chaffey High School 52-29. Last Thursday, the Brahmas were defeated by Montclair High School, 44-36.

With CIF around the corner, Banafe said he believed that athletes such as senior captain Connor Diamond will have a breakthrough later this season.

“Connor Diamond is expected to do well,” Bonafe said. “He has earned a spot in the state rankings as an honorable mention, which soon will become an actual ranking if he keeps doing what he’s been doing.”

Despite the team being male-dominated, girls such as sophomore Claudia Gomez continue to contribute to the team. Gomez carries a 3-4 individual record this season.

“This year the girls haven’t been doing the best, we all lost our matches against Walnut. We are going to a tournament for girls [only] where we are going to do better,” Gomez said via Instagram.

The all-girl match took place Jan. 18-19 at Ayala High School, where Gomez and junior Sooyeon Eun each posted 4 wins and 1 loss on the first day. That qualified them for the second day of the tournament, ending with Eun in sixth place and Gomez in seventh.

Now in mid-season, the team is practicing more form work along with wrestling situation techniques, instead of the large amount of cardio they did at the beginning of the season. Along with Diamond, senior Andrew Cardiel and junior Dylan Wong round out the leadership on the team.

The team’s final league match is on Feb. 2 against Don Lugo High School.

“We definitely will have multiple people going to CIF. I also expect to have few break through to the CIF Masters tournament.” Bonafe said in an interview at the beginning of the season. “We have some hopefuls for CIF State tournament too, so I’m excited and want to push my team to make sure these things happen.”

VICTORIA ARTALE

Senior Christopher Perez won his 152 weight class match against Montclair.

THE BULL'S EYE

JANUARY 23, 2019

SPORTS

15

Pursuing freerunning at greater heights After finding mainstream sports uninteresting, Owen Yee turned to parkour for its appealing acrobatics.

Elizabeth peng asst. news EDITOR While many students athletes spend their weekends practicing basketball or soccer, Diamond Bar High School junior Owen Yee works on his flips and maneuverability in a less popular sport: parkour.

In parkour, the participant moves quickly and overcomes existing structures such as walls, rails and uneven ground to reach a destination. People can practice parkour recreationally or competitively.

The word parkour originated from a French military obstacle course called “parcours du combattant.”

“I started parkour not just because it was flashy, but also because I was horrible at other sports, especially soccer and basketball, which I had played for most of my elementary school years,” Yee said via Instagram.

Yee first learned how to do parkour at a gym in Covina when he was in fifth grade. He now trains at Firestorm Freerunning in Santa Ana, which offers classes in tumbling, tricking, parkour, aerial silks, breakdance and trampoline.

“My gym teaches a combination of parkour and tricking known as freerunning. I practice flipping, vaulting, tricking, bar movement, and some tumbling,” Yee said.

He said he practices parkour

in the gym every Sunday night, sometimes staying later to build his skills more during open gym, which is when the gym allows everyone train on their own. Yee has not participated in parkour competitions, but he is training to join his gym’s competition team.

When he started practicing parkour again before his freshman year, he intended to build strength and endurance for track and field.

Even though he joined drumline instead of track, Yee said the parkour training boosted his confidence and made it easier for him to march for longer times with a heavy drum.

“The most important thing I learned while practicing parkour was how to break down and comprehend techniques,” Yee said. “As with most movement and tricking based activities, parkour has damaging consequences.”

Yee said he also started parkour because of his interest in the television series “American Ninja Warrior.” In this sports entertainment show, competitors attempt to complete a number of difficult obstacle courses in hopes of being named an American Ninja Warrior.

The gym Yee currently goes to offers a Ninja Warrior class, which teaches skills in areas including gymnastics, rock climbing and parkour and helps those taking the class develop their stamina to overcome obstacles from “American Ninja Warrior.”

“I am definitely interested in participating in ‘American Ninja Warrior,’” Yee said. “I have attempted several of the obstacles from the show at my gym including the salmon ladder and the warped wall.”

SAMYUKTHA VELLAIYAN

Senior Kristina Mariani goes one on one with the goalie after getting free from Chaffey’s defenders in the close contest.

Ladies in place to win a title

WATER POLO Undefeated in league, the team improved after tournament struggles. grace lee asst. opinion editor

Thriving in the new league undefeated with a record of 5-0, the Diamond Bar High School girls water polo team is well on its way to win the league title.

In the first league game, the Lady Brahmas dominated Chino Hills 18-7, and continued with their winning streak, solidly defeating Ontario 14-1, Chaffey 10-8, Don Lugo 14-4 and Montclair 13-6. After moving up to the Mt. Baldy League in Division Four, the Brahmas are generally facing teams in league matches that they have never gone against before.

“The season has been good so far. We are undefeated in league…

I expected it to be up and down in

the beginning, but currently we are performing very well,” coach Devin Hunter said via email.

According to senior Natalie Marron, the team has faced difficulties with teamwork because of the lack of returning players from last season. She said that this weakness has led to sub-par communication in the water during games, resulting in players making mistakes and not being “on the same page.”

“With all the seniors that graduated, we are basically playing with a new team. This is the first year some of us have played with one another and that lack of connection can really show,” Marron said via Instagram. “We are starting to get into a rhythm with each other and hopefully it shows in our games.”

Recently, DBHS girls water polo participated in the Claremont Tournament, finishing with a record of 1-3. The Brahmas lost to Poway 13-3, Valhalla 14-8 and West Hills 14-8, but salvaged a win against Warren 12-4. Despite the disappointing results, Marron said

that the tournament helped identify their weakness.

“We all [got] really frustrated with one another… We can be doing good one second and then there is one bad move and everyone completely shuts down on one another.

These tournaments seemed to help us see where our weaknesses are,” Marron said.

Another tournament that the girls competed in was the DBHS Winter Classic. With a record of 3-2, the Lady Brahmas dominated over Rowland 13-8, La Mirada 14-9 and JSerra 8-5, although they lost to Buena Park 11-5.

To continue doing well in league, the girls spend the first half of practice swimming and conditioning and the second half drilling and shooting. According to Marron, the team is focusing on building up endurance.

“We have proven so far to be the best team in the league. Playoffs will be tough now being in Division Four… [but] it will provide some challenges that I look forward to,” Hunter said.

On the rim for spot in CIF playoffs GIRLS BASKETBALL Upand-down season in new league makes every game important.

with RYAN LAM and JOHNNY WANG

An All-star rewind: a mix of new and old

ryan lam asst. sports editor The Diamond Bar High School girls basketball season has been a rocky one, going from tough losses to blowout wins.

The team struggled against Irvine, losing 54-30, Don Lugo, 4929, and Chino, 44-36, but crushed Chaffey, 54-7, and managed a close win versus Montclair, 44-41.

The variety of skill levels of their opponents has impacted the way the coaching staff and players approach practice.

“It’s definitely way easier to learn from games like Irvine, because usually when you lose and don’t play well, you make a lot of mistakes and it’s easy to see where you went wrong. Whereas opposed to when you have huge wins when everything looks good,” head coach Marcus Hughes said.

Because the team has been missing a lot of shot attempts in recent games, the players practice different scoring situations, such as shooting off screens and driving into an open lane. Watching videos of past games also helped the players with correcting their movement and situational awareness.

“The Don Lugo game was tough because our shots weren’t falling.

We’ve definitely learned that it’s important to keep up the intensity even when shots aren’t falling and that talking is key,” senior starter Angela Hung said. “We’ve also been looking at film and seeing what mistakes we made and cor-

E

AMELIE LEE

Senior Sarah Milik attempts to kick out the ball in their second loss in Mt. Baldy.

recting them.” amount, it always hurts when Despite shots not falling for the you’re missing some of your best Lady Brahmas against Don Lugo, players, but what it did was force Hung helped secure a win in their some of the other girls to step up,” next game against Montclair, conHughes said. “Although we didn’t tributing 17 points for the team. necessarily win any games, a lot of The loss against Chino was surthe girls got a chance to get better.” prising for the Junior Karen Brahmas who Shao took advan"We’ve been preparbeat them by tage of the opporing and we’re ready 28 points earlitunity as she avfor the test." er in the league eraged 18.3 points season. During per game during MARCUS HUGHES the game, the the tournament, team led in and was also inpoints up until the end of the strumental to the only win the first half, but Chino approached Lady Brahmas had. the second half differently and the Nearing the end of their league Lady Brahmas were unable to reseason, the team heads into their spond. eighth game in fourth place, and The team had a rough tourin the running for CIF playoffs. nament experience over winter Hughes feels optimistic about the break, which Hughes looked at upcoming game against Chaffey, as a learning experience. Though who is last in the league. the team finished the Buena Park “We definitely feel good about tournament 1-3, the experience it, it is an important game—every gave other players a chance to get league game is an important game playing time due to the absence when your goal is to try to win of multiple starters from vacation league. We’ve been preparing and and injury. we’re ready for the test,” Hughes “It affected the team a decent said.

very year, people from all over the world flock to watch one of the biggest U.S. sports events of the year: the NBA All-Star Game. This event features some of the most talented players in the league as voted by the fans, media and players themselves.

In the 68th NBA All-Star Game, several recognized greats such as Lebron James (2.8 million votes) and Stephen Curry (2.1 million) have secured their spot on a roster as the top players in the league.

However, a young blood and a familiar face have also earned an appearance: up-and-coming European rookie Luka Doncic (2.2 million) and veteran Derrick Rose (2 million).

Dallas Mavericks’ Doncic has already proved that he is a remarkable talent, having taken the league by storm, averaging 19.8 points, 6.7 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game.

Not only has he been able to create shots with his unique step back, but he also has the vision of a proper point guard. Doncic has been surrounded by the media, and some even believe he is on par with future Hall of Famer Dirk Nowitzki. Though still a rookie, he is sure to spark some highlights in the AllStar Game.

On the other hand, Rose has resurrected his declining career with hard work, moving from a second-rate player to a key sixth man

for the Minnesota Timberwolves.

In the last three years, he increased his game point average from a single digit to averaging nearly 20 points per game.

Also, his passing is back to peak level, averaging around five assists per game. The 30-year-old has found his flow again, and it will be nostalgic to watch D. Rose back on the All-star court again.

These players deserve a chance in the spotlight because of their phenomenal performances over the season, but some rankings for other players are unreasonable.

Despite playing in a couple games this season, Demarcus Cousins ranks tenth in voting in the Western Conference for the backcourt. Since he was a powerhouse of a center last year, many fans want to see him play again.

However, this placement takes away from those who have improved their game and shown their skills this year.

For example, Serge Ibaka has changed the game by being a defensive monster and small-ball center who can take the three. Not only has Ibaka been hidden from the spotlight, but there also are many other players that are not given enough appreciation.

Although there will be a couple players who aren’t “All-Star” material making it to the roster this year, the game, on Feb. 17, will no doubt be as exciting as ever.

16

SPORTS

JANUARY 23, 2019

THE BULL'S EYE

Upcoming Games and Recent Scores Boys Basketball Chino 94-42 W

@Chino 44-36 L

Chino 5-0 W

Chino 2-0 W

Montclair 44-36 L

Montclair 13-6 W

Montclair 77-57W

Montclair 44-41W

Montclair 2-1 W

Montclair 3-0 L

Don Lugo 48-30 W

Don Lugo 14-4 W

Don Lugo 74-44 W @Chaffey 1/24

Don Lugo 49-29 L

Chino 4-2 W

Chaffey 1/25

Ontario 1/23

@Don Lugo 1/29

Chaffey 1/25

Chino 3-0 W @Ontario 1/23 @Chaffey 1/25

Chaffey 52-29 W Ontario 58-24 W @Montclair Finals 2/2

Chaffey 10-8 W @Chaffey 1/24 Don Lugo 1/28

T F H O E E M T E

on

d

TH

Co

nn

ON

ATHL

Don Lugo 1/29

Girls Basketball

er diam

Although Diamond was out in his second year, he placed seventh at CIF Championships last season. josh kim asst. A&e editor For varsity captain Conner Diamond, wrestling has been a way to learn how to succeed, on and off of the mat. The senior has been part of the wrestling team since his freshman year.

“What has driven me to wrestle is the feeling of success,” Diamond said via Instagram. “It’s like no other feeling, and I like living the lifestyle it has taught me: persever-

ance, passion and the importance of hard work.”

Diamond attributes his success to his friends, family and coaches helping him in any way possible.

“My parents were the ones who would drive me around to all the places to compete and train,” Diamond said. “And my coaches spent a lot of one on one time with me…

My drilling partners are always pushing me and always making me work harder.”

A typical training session for Diamond consists of practicing

INGRID CHAN

Last season Diamond (bottom), placed sixth at the Carter Tournament and Top 12 at the C Tournament of Champions. common moves he uses in matches, speed drills, live wrestling and sprints. After each session, Diamond stays for a couple of minutes to wrestle with alumni who often visit.

“Conner, he is definitely the most hardworking guy in the room,” wrestling coach Andre Bonafe said.

“He’s the first one there, he puts in a lot of extra work… Any kind of effort in order to get him to where he needs to be, he puts in that effort, no matter what.”

During his freshman year, Diamond was inspired to join wrestling due to his family. From then on, Diamond began to get a feel for the sport.

However, in his sophomore year, Diamond’s growth was put on hold

when he broke his collarbone and was forced to stay on the sidelines for the season.

Coming back from his injury, Diamond dedicated himself to improving his game. Understanding that there was much he missed out on, Diamond took every opportunity to catch up.

“I lifted every day, took any chance I had to wrestle, went to camps for wrestling and most importantly, I would wrestle with people who had a lot of success in the sport,” Diamond said.

Though he doesn’t wrestle for any other teams, he competes as an individual at outside tournaments in the offseason. He has placed in multiple tournaments, including the Carter Classic, Mann Classic

and the Ed Spring Holiday Classic.

Wrestling has left its mark on Diamond’s personal life as well.

“Of some sorts and the year before, I had a confidence issue. But since I had trained so hard for so long, my confidence went up,” Diamond said. “Not only did my ability in wrestling go up; I started to notice that my grades started to go up... Working hard like that has benefitted all aspects of my life.”

Diamond said that he looks forward to pursuing wrestling at the collegiate level.

“Right now, I just plan on wrestling at Mt. SAC,” he said. “I know the coaches there and it’s close to home, and I’ll then hopefully find out where I would want to go after that.”

Good chemistry with Crossfit competitions Since 2017, teacher Malinalli Cooke has trained with her husband in the high-intensity sport. tiffany lee asst. photo EDITOR While many teachers enjoy relaxing after a long day of teaching, DBHS chemistry and earth science teacher Malinalli Cooke puts on her workout clothes and heads to her CrossFit gym. As a high-intensity competitive fitness program, CrossFit incorporates a variety of sports and workout exercises to promote health and strength.

After three months of training, Cooke competed at her gym, Crossfit Insurgent. She has taken part of three competitions so far.

“By nature, I am a competitive person. In college and high school, I ran competitively and in club after college,” Cooke said.

At first, it was just Cooke’s husband who competed. After a year, Cooke gave into her husband’s encouragement to try the sport, and has been training with him ever since.

Due to their busy work schedules, the couple work out separately during the week and together during the weekends. Both of them go to the CrossFit classes together for about an hour. Cooke uses an app on her phone called SugarWOD to show her a “work out of

the day”.

To prepare for her competitions, she said that she stays away from eating anything heavy, such as junk and fried foods and attends an extra class in the weeks leading up to the competition.

In competitions, she is required to lift weights, do pullups, and other various exercises to compete with others. The competitions are based on a point system, and whoever completes the workouts the quickest gets the most points.

When all the workout points are added together, the person with the highest score is the winner.

In her very first competition, Cooke competed in the beginner division on a three-person team and placed first. She partnered with her husband during her second competition and earned first place.

They moved up to the Intermediate division after their second competition.

One of the biggest obstacles that Cooke has faced is her small stature. Because of this, she is yet not able to lift the weight that many of the other women are able to lift, which is the sole reason why she couldn’t compete in the higher divisions during competitions.

Their next competition will be at the Sparta Races on Sunday. They will train as normal, as well as completing three- to five-mile runs.

“I’m nervous. I’ve never done an obstacle-type competition before,” Cooke said. “I’m very competitive so I want to do well, even though I have no prior experience.”

VICTORIA ARTALE

Junior goalie Ethan Lu clears the ball to his teammates in the match against Chaffey, which Diamond Bar won, 1-0.

Brahmas look for opportunities

BOYS SOCCER Mt. Baldy league motivates the boys to refine their skills on both ends of the field. josh kim asst. a&e editor The Diamond Bar High School boys soccer team has established a firm grasp on how to succeed in the Mt. Baldy League.

The boys are currently 9-7-2 in the season and are playing against Ontario today.

“The league this year is definitely more challenging than last year,” senior captain Dwight Ritchie said.

“We have not faced many of the teams in our league this year, but this team definitely has the talent to come out on top.”

The team is still working on im-

proving movement off the ball and finishing their shots properly.

“We still need work on communication, particularly on the back end,” head coach Kemp Wells said.

“Our defense has potential to be very strong. Individually, they are all very solid players. If they communicate and work together better, they can be one of the stronger defenses in the league.”

Ritchie also feels the team needs to improve in putting away goals when given the opportunity to do so.

“Our offense has many opportunities to score and we really need to put those chances away when we are given them,” Ritchie said.

However, with the boys’ ability to create multiple opportunities for shots in a match, the majority of the team’s wins before and during the league have been been won by large margins.

They defeated Cerritos 6-2, Chi-

no 3-0 and Ontario 3-1.

“We have a team that overall has some pretty good balance to it,” Wells said. “In a couple of spots, our twos, coming off of the bench, aren’t that far behind the ones.”

In the Ontario Christian Tournament, the boys went 1-3, losing to Troy, Riverside Prep and Ganesha.

In the game against Ganesha, the team lost in a shootout, 4-3.

“We just didn’t play very well.

We gave up some bad goals early in both games and after we gave up bad goals early we couldn’t recover,” Wells said.

Wells still has high expectations for the team despite their performance at the tournament.

“Hopefully getting some players back and a little more focus and drive for winning league, that tends to be a little more important for nearly every aspect of our game, than just playing in a tournament,” he said.