The Blazer | Vol 38 | Issue 4

the Issue4 | Volume 38 | February 2017 | Gardner Edgerton High School | Gardner, Kansas

b MEET THE STAFF: EDITORS IN CHIEF JACYLN ADAMSON BROOKE BOYER COPY EDITORS SAVANNAH COX NIKITA DRAKE STAFF WRITERS JAQUI CAREY CHUCK CLARK

LILLI CLARK MADELINE OWENS MALYNN PIERCE HAYDON WYANT

CONTENTS:

4 5 6 NEWS

SeaWorld whale dies Cheer nationals

EDITORIAL

Not vaccinating endangers children

OPINION

Girls sports recognition Sex education

IN THE KNOW:

Current local, world news in brief By: Lilli Clark and MaLynn Pierce

Kansas City Royals lose beloved pitcher

Police engage in on foot chase through Gardner

On Jan. 22, KC Royals fans lost a beloved player.

Twenty-five year old pitcher Yordano “Ace” Ventura was in a car wreck in his home country, The Dominican Republic.

According to ESPN, “Highway patrol spokesman Jacobo Mateo said Ventura died on a highway leading to the town of Juan Adrian, about 40 miles northwest of Santo Domingo.”

After Ventura’s death was announced many Royals fans started showing up to Kauffman Stadium, leaving flowers, KC Royals gear, and other mementos outside of the stadium. Flags around Kauffman were also lowered to half staff in remembrance of the vibrant young player who lost his life that day.

On Jan. 24, Ventura’s funeral was held in The Dominican Republic. Manager Ned Yost, Eric Hosmer, Mike Moustakas, Salvador Perez, and others were in attendance as well.

“Yordano was a key figure in the Royals’ recent

The Gardner Police force could be found looking for a man in an on-foot pursuit in the area of Grand and Center on Jan. 25.

At approximately 12:00 p.m., the suspect was found trying to leave town on the east side of Gardner. Police pursued him, and the suspect is now in jail.

Police officers walked the field looking for a man who was reported 1 month ago for stealing a car.

“At about 7:30 a.m., a police officer spotted a vehicle that had reportedly been stolen in December” SGT Steve Benz said.

The officer approached the vehicle, which was found wrecked on the cor-

success. His electric talent on the mound helped lead the Royals to two American League pennants and the 2015 World Championship.” Says ESPN. Ace led the Kansas City Royals to the World Series for the first time since 1985.

He threw seven shutout innings for a 10-0 Win that night in honor of his friend Oscar Taveras from the St. Lous Cardinals who had passed away in The Dominican Republic a few days earlier.

Yordano Ventura had a heart-warming story. He had quit school at the age of 14 to work in construction which led to him hearing about a tryout. From there, Ventura gained a spot on the Royals’ Academy in his home town.

Royals’ players showed their love to the young player the morning of the accident.

“ACE I love you my brother. I’m in disbelief and don’t know what to say. I love you ACE”, Eric Hosmer via Twitter.

ner of Grand and Center.

The man then ran from the officer into the open field across from the schools.

The officers surrounded the area and started their on-foot pursuit in that field.

The in field chase included many police cars and officers, firetrucks, and a drone assisting the officers.

Both Grandstar Elementary and Trail Ridge Middle School were put on an abbreviated lock down. The students continued their regular activity in the buildings, but were not allowed to go outside during that time. The abbreviated lock down was lifted at around 9:15 a.m. when the officers cleared the scene.

7 10 12 FEATURE

ENTERTAINMENT

ACTIVITIES

Seeing double

Valentines DIY

Chiefs kingdom

Art hallway murals

Movie reviews

Sports briefs

Sea World Tragedy: By: Savannah Cox

SeaWorld Orlando lost one of their well-known Orca whales, Tilikum on Jan. 6. According to SeaWorld Orlando, Tilikum had been facing serious health issues and had been declining for months. He had been suffering from a “persistent and complicated bacterial lung infection,” according to the park.

Tilikum was the largest whale in SeaWorld Orlando, weighing more than 11,000 pounds.

According to SeaWorld, he was estimated to be around 36 years old when he died, which is old for a captive whale.

According to SeaWorld

of Hurt, in the wild their maximum lifespan is 60 to 70 years for males and 80 to over 100 for females.

This Orca was the lead in the documentary ‘Blackfish’ that came out in 2013. The film criticized the way the trainers were treating the whales, and how it was harmful to them. According to NPR, the trainers argued that the whales were behaving aggressively due to stress.

After the film was released, SeaWorld Orlando agreed that this would be the last group of Orcas to live at SeaWorld.

“I’m really upset about Tilikum’s death, but his

Orca whale dies after living a short life in captivity

death was not as horrifying as his life. He lived for human consumption and entertainment as many animals do, and he deserved so much better,” senior Sophie Marsh said.

Tilikum was captured near Iceland at the age of two and has spent the rest of his life in captivity moving from park to park.

According to US Weekly, the whale made headlines when he killed his trainer Dawn Brancheau in 2010.

This was Tilikum’s third attack in twenty years.

After this incident he was confined to a smaller living space within SeaWorld and lived in solitude. The

Cheerleaders take on Dallas Competition team places at NCA Nationals By: Brooke Boyer

NEWS

The competition cheer team traveled to Dallas, Texas Jan. 20 through Jan. 22 for the NCA Nationals. The team earned a spot in the competition by receiving a bid at the NCA summer camp they attended in 2016.

The team performed three times in Dallas in two different competitions.

One of the performances required the girls to do a short cheer in front of the judges called a timeout cheer. The second performance, landed the girls a spot in the finals where they had to do the same cheer again.

“During the performance I just felt a huge adrenaline rush and I was just hoping my team would hit everything and that it would be perfect,”

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senior captain Libby VanRheen said.

There were more than 50 teams competing at nationals. The girls placed 10th in their time-out cheer and 7th in entire the competition.

“It was such a rewarding experience and we saw all our hard work pay off,” senior captain Sydney Borstelman said.

The team has been saving money for the trip since they earned their spot in the competition last summer. They participated in a variety of fundraisers to raise money. Many girls volunteered their time at a local pumpkin patch. The money they saved paid for music, a choreographer, transportation, the hotel, and the competition itself.

“We paid for a choreographer and music

in order to have a great routine,” Borstelman said.

The girls started practicing their routine back in October. They had practices every morning at 5:30 and a few practices after school too.

“This competition was my last time performing as a GEHS cheerleader and I don’t think I could have ended my career any other way,” Borstelman said.

1. The team pose for a photo in front of the BG sign on their first day of competition. The organization had a photo competition where participants submitted photos taken in front of the sign.

2. All of the senior competition cheerleaders pose for a photo together. This was right after the girls had been given their 7th place trophy award.

3. The team poses for a photo after their practice in Dallas. They were allowed one thirty minute practice before their performance on Saturday. All photos courtesy of Sydney Borstelman.

trainers would not go near him and gave him little affection.

“Whales are better than humans.

They’re so amazing that humans should be performing tricks in cages in order to make them happy,” Marsh said.

Tilikum was stressed for most of his life and according to SeaWorld of Hurt most people saw his death as his freedom from the stressful life he lived.

The Orcas at the park now will be the last group of Orcas at SeaWorld Orlando, but there is still a fight for other animals at the park to be freed as well.

Not vaccinating endangers children The staff editorial represents the opinion of The Blazer staff.

Agree 10

Disagree 0

Medical science has made leaps and bounds in the past hundred years. Curing diseases that killed thousands of people and being able to prevent people from ever contracting them. Vaccines are miraculous and available to everyone.

Unfortunately, some people turn their noses up at the medical miracle. People choose not to vaccinate their children against deadly diseases that could be easily prevented. There are currently vaccines for mumps, polio, pertussis, measles, hep B, tetanus and

many others.

According to the World Health Organization, immunization stops an estimated 2 to 3 million deaths every year and 1.5 million more could be saved if the spread of vaccinations were to improve.

There are several groups that exist to convince parents that vaccines are unnecessary and even harmful to children. The most popular theory, that vaccines cause autism, has amassed quite a following. People believe that the combination of vaccines at such a young age leads to autism.

This claim has been put to the test in several different environments and it has been concluded that vaccinations and autism have no

effect on each other.

Another objection to vaccination is religious reasons.

People believe that vaccines and doctors themselves are unnatural and not part of God’s plan. They think if they pray hard enough, they do not have to worry about diseases and their faith will take care of them.

It is perfectly fine to have faith and even to pray when someone is sick, but it is also important that medical professionals be able to do their jobs and help people.

Vaccines have saved millions of people’s lives and have prevented the mass spread of life threatening diseases. If a child is not vaccinated, it affects not just them but the people around them. If a vaccine is not re-

Follow us @GEHSNews

done when the appropriate age is reached or if adults do not receive vaccines before traveling to other countries, there is very little to stop the contamination of a lot of people.

Of course people can exempt from vaccinations for religious or ethical reasons but it is ludicrous that they would want to. A few shots could save the life of a child and some people want to ignore this simple solution.

People should live their own life however they see fit, but they should not force their children to suffer because of some squabble they have with modern medicine. Vaccines are safe, available, and should be utilized by everyone.

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2016 Editorial Policies The Blazer is the official publication of Gardner Edgerton High School, printed by Osage Graphics in Burlingame, KS. This is a student publication and may contain controversial matter. Gardner Edgerton School District No. 231 and its board members, and employees disclaim any responsibility for its content; it is not an expression of school district policy. Operating as an open forum, students and editors are solely responsible for the content of this student publication.

Opinions represent the views of the individual writer, not the staff as a whole, with the exception of the editorial.

Letters to the editor are welcome and must be no longer than 300 words, typed and signed by the author. Letters will be considered and published on a space-available basis. The Blazer staff reserves the right to edit all submitted material for content and libel.

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Recognition they deserve By: Lilli Clark

Throughout history, women tend to get the short end of the stick when it comes to earning respect for the sports they play.

Boys’ sports tend to get more acceptance and fans than girls’ sports do.

These things have certainly changed in time, but women still are not getting the credit that they deserve in sports, especially since they work as hard as men do.

Women’s sports did come later in time since women did not have rights back then, but since then times have changed and women’s sports have become bigger

around the world. Yet, they do not get enough notice from fans and TV networks.

As one may flip through the sports channels on their TV you see, the NFL, NBA, MLS, and the MLB. The women’s sports are always broadcasted on smaller TV networks since for some reason they do not get as many viewers.

One may wonder why all of this happens. Are women not good enough? Do men think women’s sports are a joke? It’s upsetting to think that playing a sport at a high level does not attract fans because you are a woman.

People may say that, “Girls are not good at sports,” or

“Women never win so fans do not go.” Females deserve the same recognition that boy’s sports get, without a doubt.

One may be at a boys’ soccer game and the student section is going crazy, and cheering on the boys.

Come spring, girls’ soccer games are starting and the student section is half the size that it is for the boys in the fall.

Fans are not the main part of why women’s sports are not recognized, men and women’s pay is also different. When the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team won the World Cup in 2015 the team won $2

million dollars. The year before that when the German Men’s Soccer Team won in 2014 they took away $35 million dollars, additionally any team that got knocked out in the first round left with $8 million dollars which is four times as much as he Women’s championship team.

Hopefully in the future women’s sports will become as popular as men’s.

As for now, women continue to strive for their goals and get the appreciation they have been playing for all these years.

Abstain from abstinence Sex education necessary for health, safety of teens By: MaLynn Pierce

OPINION

Health and sex educations classes in high schools around the world have focused on teaching students abstinence rather than safe sex. Telling teenagers not to have sex is like telling a lion not to hunt. The no is never going to actually be effective.

When we as teenagers are told no, we like to go and do the thing we were told not to do just to spite the person who said no. Teenagers are going to have sex, no matter how protective their parents are, no matter how much health class says no, it’s going to happen.

What schools need to start doing is being proactive, not reactive. Meaning teach the

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proper way to do it, rather than say do not do it at all.

According to Planned Parenthood, “Sex education programs that are balanced and realistic, encourage students to postpone sex until they are older, and promote safer-sex practices among those who choose to be sexually active have been proven effective at delaying first intercourse and increasing use of contraception among sexually active youth.”

Teaching about what goes where and how babies happen is productive for the youth of America in the sense that it may stop teenagers because repercussions do indeed exist.

There are arguments against teaching sex in classrooms. Some parents

are very protective, and do not want their kid to learn about it. Or some students are too immature to not laugh when they hear the word “sex.”

Well, here is the thing, sheltered kids tend to be the rebels, and those immature students need to be educated too. Ultimately, teaching safe sex has more benefits than not teaching it because at some point in their lives, they are going to need to know what to do and how to prevent unintended pregnancies or diseases.

Planned Parenthood also conducted surveys around America and found that “63% of teens aged 15–17 would like more information on the different methods of contraception avail-

able; 29 percent would like more information on how to use condoms; and 59 percent would like more information on where to go to get tested for HIV and other STIs.” When looking at the big picture, a lot of teenagers want to learn about safety, not just about spiritual health. People here at this high school probably want to learn about it. Yes, health class is meant to teach about the health triangle and nutrition, however, no matter what anyone says, sex is just a regular part of life, and better to be educated about it, rather than be uninformed about it.

By: Brooke Boyer

Amanda Vega

What is the best part about being a twin?

Knowing that you always have someone there with you so you are never alone.

What is the worst part?

Having to share absolutely everything of yours Do you match clothes often?

We actually don’t match clothes often, but we wear simple outfits.

Have you ever had a funny experience where someone thought you were the other twin?

When we were younger, Amber liked this boy and she was too afraid to talk to him, so I went up to him and pretended to be her.

How different would your life be without each other?

My life would be extremely different without my sister. I don’t think I would be the same person without her. She is my best friend and the person I go to for everything.

Tom Fabing

What is the best part about being a twin?

We have the same classes and she can help me with my homework.

What is the worst part?

She is older than me.

Do you match clothes often?

We never match on purpose but sometimes we wear the same color things accidently.

Have you ever had a funny experience where someone thought you were the other twin?

People like to joke about it because I have long hair, but I don’t think it has ever happened for real.

How different would your life be without each other?

I’m sure it would be a lot different but I guess I wouldn’t know for sure.

Amber Vega

What is the best part about being a twin?

I always have someone there for me. I’m never alone, and I always have my best friend by my side.

What is the worst part?

Having to share everything.

Do you match clothes often?

We don’t match completely. What we do a lot is wear the same shoes and pants, but never the same shirts.

Have you ever had a funny experience where someone thought you were the other twin?

My mom would mix us up, so she would make Amanda do my chores for me, so I got out of chores for the day.

How different would your life be without each other?

My life would be completely different. I don’t like to think about it because I don’t want to think of a life without my best friend.

Erin Fabing

What is the best part about being a twin?

The best part is having another sibling that’s easy to relate to because they’re the same age and generally know all the same people.

What is the worst part?

The questions people ask without thinking first, like “wait so you were born on the same day?”

Do you match clothes often?

We don’t match on purpose, but every few weeks we will both walk downstairs wearing similar things.

Have you ever had a funny experience where someone thought you were the other twin?

I don’t think people have ever mixed us up.

How different would your life be without each other?

My life would be extremely different. It’s just like asking what it would be like without a different sibling. My family would have a missing piece.

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FEATURE

Seeing double:

what its like growing up with a twin

Paint with all the

By: Jaclyn Adamson A trip down the 700 hallway is now equivalent to walking through an art gallery. Dozens of students have donated time and energy to create large murals in the art hallway.

The pieces are colorful, intricate, and put a spin on a classic piece of art. “(The murals) are an idea that the teachers in the Art department have been knocking around for a while,” art teacher Dave

1. This mural was painted by seniors Eden Weyend, Meghan Christine, and Kiley Collier. From the first sketches to the finished product, it took them around four weeks.

“As a group we tried to create something that symbolizes where we are from, but we wanted to include a piece from pop culture,” Collier said.

This painting, based on The Wizard of Oz, shows the yellow brick road leading up to the emerald palace of GEHS. This mural is one of the more colorful ones in the hallway.

“I like knowing that a lot of people will see it because we worked really hard on it and it’s something that I’m proud of,” Christine said.

The group liked working together because they were able to bounce ideas off of each other and they enjoyed talking and watching each other work. Photo by Jaclyn Adamson

Kalkman said.

This year, the department put in a request to use the art hallway for murals and it was approved. Kalkman’s class was then given the task to create a mural that takes pieces from the past and

1.

2.

3.

FEATURE

2. This mural was painted by junior Rachel Thorstenberg and sophomore Katie Prado. It displays two sides of the same face, one in turmoil and one in a state of happiness. Photo by Jaclyn Adamson 3. Reminiscent of Andy Warhol’s work, this mural promotes the cause of saving bees. It was painted by sophomore Skyler Falkner and junior Logan Morgan. Photo by Jaclyn Adamson

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relate them to the present.

The murals were a team project. Groups of two or three would work together to come up with ideas and complete the painting.

“The students work together to come up with

colors on the wall

together to come up with the ideas,” Kalkman said. “The quality goes up when they work together and when they know that the other students will see them.”

Students are getting the chance to leave their

4.

mark on the school. These pieces that line each side of the hallway are seen by hundreds of students every day.

“It’s kind of intimidating,” senior Kiley Collier said.

“Because teenagers are not nice, and extremely critical.”

The main technique students learn from these murals is color mixing.

Colors do not stop when they meet each other, they interact and form new colors together. This is an important aspect of painting not just with murals, but in

general.

The murals will continue down the 700 hallway and even further when the new addition is added on.

The murals will be up in the school for a while and are a good way to spread and encourage creativity in students.

4. This mural is reminiscent of Starry Night Over the Rhone but features the St. Louis arch and the city behind it.

“I really liked the idea of turning stars into city light because it really fit the prompt of modernizing old paintings,” junior Lyla Phillips said.

This painting took a few weeks as well and Phillips was joined by another student, sophomore Karen Axe. “My partner Karen was really important to the project. She helped a lot even if she doesn’t think so,” Phillips said.

The mural showcases lot of color mixing, which is one of the main goals of these murals.

“I’m proud of the mural, even if it isn’t the best. I worked hard on it and I like that other people get to see it,” Phillips said. Photo by Jaclyn Adamson

5.

6.

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FEATURE

5. There are many old paintings that feature a couple under an umbrella and this mural by senior Jordan Morris creates a simple yet timeless design. Photo by Jaclyn Adamson 6. Junior Paige Bilsten created a mural that puts a modern Statue of Liberty spin on Van Gogh’s Starry Night. Photo by Jaclyn Adamson

Valentine’s Day DIY

By: Nikita Drake

chocolate directions: Gather all covered 1) plies strawberries

step one

step four

candy jar

step two

step five

supplies:

. Strawberries . Plate . Fork . Sprinkles . Chocolate . Knife . Bowl

Cut

the tops off of

2) the strawberries

the choc3) Microwave olate in a bowl until it

is fully melted.

a fork, dip the 4) Using strawberries into the

chocolate until a thin layer covers the entire shape.

5)

After, add sprinkles as desired.

directions:

1)

Gather all the supplies

supplies:

the flower pot, . 1 Four inch flower pot 2) Paint the dip tray and with the drip tray included wooden handle ball any color of your choice. . 1 Wooden handle . 1 Clear bowl to fit on top Once they dry, turn of pot, around three and a 3) the flower pot upside half inches

ENTERTAINMENT

. Hot glue gun . Paint brush . Candy . Paint of any color 10

the sup-

step one

step three

step four

step five

down and glue the glass bowl on top of it. glue the 4) Next, wooden handle to

the bottom of the dip tray.

5)

Fill with candy and put the lid on.

Blazer movie reviews

By Charles Clark

Rogue One is the tale of the group of people who were able to steal the plans for the Death Star from the empire. Starting with the engineer Galen Erso trying to protect his family from being captured by the empire while they try to convince him to build the design a weapon of mass destruction.

The focus then switches to his daughter, Jyn Erso.

Jyn’s story consists of a mysterious past leading to being in an Empire prison camp. The Rebellion then captures her from the camp due to her connection with her father and the super weapon he is making for the Empire.

There she meets Cassian Andor, a rebel captain with an uncanny sense for survival, and his robotic companion, K-2SO. They are sent on a mission to find out about the super weapon being made from a pilot who de-

Doctor Stange

Benedict Cumberbatch as Doctor Strange in his socerer style outfit. Photo courtesy of Marvel

fected from the Empire.

Through a series of many events and meeting new people who tag along with them for the adventure they make an attempt at attacking the Empire’s storage planet in an attempt to steal the plans for the Death Star to find the weakness Galen had made into it.

Although the story is there and they had the potential for an amazing movie Rogue One falls flat on its face. It was not an issue of acting, but rather an issue of timing.

They tried to show an entire story arc of characters in only one movie and it just was not enough to make you truly become invested into the characters. So when all of the characters eventually die, you do not really feel anything. This is because you have known the characters for all of an hour and a half. Another problem with the movie is that if you have not watched the en-

tire first trilogy of Star Wars fighting. you do not truly know the The special effects were weight of the actions taken amazing and led to many in Rogue One to retrieve the beautiful scenes and imagplans for the Death Star. ery. The CGI did a good job One of the appeals of of making the space battle this movie is that it shows seem real which has been a side of the war we had a struggle of the previous never seen before. It shows films. a war without the Jedi and In essence the movie was the Force. It gives the mov- not bad, but it had many ie a more human feel and glaring flaws. These flaws makes the characters more come about when comrelatable. pared to the expectations It also made the battle that this movie had before scenes more exciting and its initial release. Despite this fun to watch. It was less I would say it’s worth a 6/10. about one person dominating the battlefield and more about the collective Movie poster featuring Jyn Erso with Darth Vader and groups

In recent years Marvel has put its mark onto the movie industry and made superhero movies a staple of the theater. This time around they explored a lesser known Marvel hero, Doctor Strange.

Stephen Strange, played

by Benedict Cumberbatch, is a well known surgeon who, due to distracted driving, gets into a car wreck that leaves his hands with nerve damage. This leads to him no longer being able to practice and leaves him to live without a calling in life.

In the search for a fix, he finds himself in Kathmandu, Nepal. There he comes

into the company of sorcerers who begin to teach him their ways.

Initially his progress is slow, but eventually he starts to excel beyond the others and eventually learns about the recent betrayal that took place in the sanctuary.

He spends the rest of the movie defending the sanctuaries from the traitors and Dormammu of the Dark Dimension, a place where time does not exist and they could live forever.

The movie features many trippy scenes and awe inspiring special effects. The fight sequences do not disappoint and the story is fair-

the Death Star. Photo courtesy of Disney

ly well set.

Where this movie fails is the acting. Everyone except Benedict Cumberbatch seemed to have given a performance that just wanted to make me cringe.

Cringey moments aside the movie overall was not bad and it was very enjoyable with moments of good comedy and an Avengers tie in with Chris Hemsworth appearing as Thor in the after credits scene. If I had to put a numeric value to art I’d give Doctor Strange a solid 8/10.

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ENTERTAINMENT

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

Welcome to Chiefs Kingdom

Overview of 2016-17 season, divisional playoff game By: Haydon Wyant

Sports

The Kansas City Chiefs are a young and upcoming team who found tremendous success with the fourth hardest schedule in the NFL for the 2016-2017 season. Everything was lining up, and everyone knows that in order to win championships odd things start to happen.

We need only look back to the Kansas City Royals World Series run in 2015 to see this. Alex Gordon’s 9th inning home run which tied the game and sent it into extra innings where the Royals would take game one, Daniel Murphy’s errors, Eric Hosmer making it to the plate, etc.

The entire season was going this way for the Chiefs, even though some of their star players were out of commission.

The Chiefs defense led the NFL in takeaways this season, turning 6 against the New York Jets alone.

This season they had 8 red zone takeaways and scored a whopping 32 points off of those turnovers.

For example, when the Chiefs defeated the NFC Champion Atlanta Falcons earlier in the season. With a late deficit the Falcons went for the two point conversion which was intercepted in the endzone by Eric Berry who then returned the interception not for a pick6 but rather a pick-2. This is the first time that has happened since the NFL first began back in 1920. The Chiefs won the game 29-28.

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Rookie sensation Tyreek Hill went on an absolute terror of a season which made both special teams and defenses worry every time he got the football.

His lightening fast speed and unmatched acceleration allowed him to sprint away with a franchise record 12 touchdowns by a rookie. He also set another franchise record by having the longest punt return in Chiefs history of 95 yards earlier this season.

Through some sort of miracle the Kansas City Chiefs won the AFC West, a first round bye becoming the number two seed in the Playoffs.

I bought tickets to the Divisional game at Arrowhead Stadium against the Pittsburgh Steelers and was ecstatic to attend the game.

The Steelers were one of the four losses the Chiefs had this season and quite frankly they got it handed to them, with a final score of 43-14. That was a different team who had not yet found their niche and was haunted by injuries, but that game was out of everyone’s minds.

The parking lot was electric and buzzed with tailgate parties, loud music, and an overall feeling of excitement was putting everyone in a great mood.

Within 5 minutes of the game starting I got a headache from the amount of noise and

screaming. The Steelers drove the ball down the field and kicked a field goal.

Copy and paste that last sentence five times and that is how Pittsburgh won the game.

With a final score of 1816 the Chiefs fell on that Sunday night. The Chiefs defense did a phenomenal job but the offense was plagued with dropped passes, missed blocks, and missed opportunities.

When the Chiefs scored their second touchdown in the 4th quarter to bring their deficit to 2 points with only a few minutes left in the game, they went for the two point conversion.

Arrowhead Stadium erupted and we thought the impossible had been done and the Chiefs had just tied the game. A lone yellow flag lay on the field and Arrowhead went quiet... A

10-yard holding penalty on Eric Fischer brought the Chiefs back to the 12 yard line, wiping out the 2-point conversion. Needless to say, the Chiefs did not succeed on their second attempt needed to take the game to overtime, and Chiefs fans, including myself, exited the stadium.

No words can really describe how everyone felt.

Walking up the spiral ramps faint chants of people shouting “Let’s go Royals!” could be heard. Walking back to my car, stepping over crushed beer cans and passing the once lively tailgate parties, myself and my fellow Chiefs fans were not sad or depressed. We were hopeful. Hopeful for the Chiefs next season and excited for Royals in just a few short months. Until next season Kansas City. Your time is not over.

Left: The stadium is packed full of cheering fans.

Above: Couple walking towards Arrowhead Stadium from the parking lot, glowing with excitement Photos by: Haydon Wyant

Shining, shouting student section

By: Jaqui Carey Throughout the last couple of years, Gardner Edgerton’s student section has made a name for themselves.

From Friday night football games to away basketball games, senior Nolan Fuzzell describes the student section to be “loud, obnoxious and energetic.”

Even though there are multiple students who participates in the student section, there are some students who do not participate for other reasons such as simply not wanting to come out and support their school or because they have to work.

“I don’t usually have time to attend games because I work,” junior Matthew Becker said.

“But when I have the opportunity to, I go to the games.”

According to an anonymous survey, some students do not participate because they are fearful they will get made fun of by their peers for showing school spirit.

“You just have to get over your fear,” Fuzzell said. “You just have to be loud and everyone will like you if you participate and be yourself. Do not be scared to support your team

just because your peers and encouraging them When it comes to won’t accept you for it. to work hard out there” the athletes out on the Just be a fan.”

Fuzzell said. court, who says that the Senior Dylan Mars is Not only is the stu- louder the student secanother student who dent section a place to tion is, the better they participates in the stu- cheer on and support play. dent section. Mars be- your athletes, it’s place “As an athlete, I feel lieves that the student to “hang out with my when I see my friends section is like a family. friends and just have at my soccer games “I feel like as a school fun,” Mars said. Students being as competitive and as a family we are often reminded and as can be, it makes me should come out and encouraged by social fight harder and makes support one another. media, athletes and me think, ‘If I can win I don’t really think it’s other peers to go and this, it makes them feel about the sports part. be involved in school satisfied’ so it makes me It’s about supporting events. They are also play hard,” Mars said. your friends and what reminded of the theme Everyone is encourthey love,” Mars said. of the game, where the aged to come out and Mars and Fuzzell are game is located and the support their boys and two of the few students start time. girls in blue no matter who attend almost ev“Student council what the event is. ery school sporting comes up with a theme “If you come sit event. Both boys are that everyone can do, through one of their known as “student sec- not just some people. games, they will come tion leaders” because If someone needs to out and support you. they help lead the stu- know the theme, just Support for your dent section in chants follow social media like friends and they’ll supand cheers. me but we usually find port you for sure,” Mars Fuzzell started at- out by word of mouth,” said. tending school events Fuzzell said. his sophomore year and has attended almost every game so that he could support his fellow friends on the teams and show school spirit.

“I love supporting all my friends The student section sports their America wear. The section has a different theme at every on the teams game and every student is invited to participate. Photo by Jaqui Carey

By: Savannah Cox & Maddie Owens

Girls Basketball Senior Cassidy Androff How do you feel the season began?

The season started out pretty good. I started out pretty good, but it’s a team sport so we all have to contribute.

Junior Taylor Carpenter

What is your favorite memory?

This girl fell, so I went and grabbed the ball and I tripped over her and face planted but I still passed the ball to Skylar and she still made a layup. But I completely ate hardwood.

Photo by: Brooke Boyer

Photo by: Brooke Boyer

Senior Anthony Reed

Photo by: Jaqui Carey

What’s one thing you think the team could improve on?

Photo by: Brooke Boyer

Sophomore Lucas Soza

Wrestling

Sophomore Kaiden Chindavong How has the season been so far?

It’s been going very good. I’ve had a great time.

The team is great, and overall I’ve improved greatly.

Junior Jackson Flowers

What do you love the most about wrestling?

The challenge. Because not many people are able to do some of the things that wrestlers do. I take pride in being able to do that.

Sophomore Taven Ewbank

What is one interesting thing that has happened to the team thus far?

Bus rides.

Right now our shooting is kind of lower than we’d like it to be. I think it just kind of comes with practice, and slowing down while taking shots, so that way you feel confident with it.

Photo by: Jaqui Carey

What did the team do best this season?

Putting in all the hard work at practice because we already have more wins than we did last season.

Does basketball affect your studies positively or negatively?

Positively because during basketball season, mom is on me a lot harder to get my stuff done.

Senior Devan Toomey What do you look for in a teammate?

Someone who shares the ball and knows the offense really well and just always encouraging.

What will you miss about basketball after you graduate?

ACTIVITIES

I’ll miss hanging out with my teammates all the time and being able to have that team bonding during the season.

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Boys Basketball

Bowling

Senior Baylie Walker

Photo by: Jolene Ford

Photo by: Jolene Ford

How has the season gone so far?

The season just started, but it has been going good.

What do you do to prepare for meets?

To prepare for meets we have practices a couple of times a week and sometimes we will get together and go bowling with friends on the team.

Senior Zach Bass

Photo by: Jolene Ford

Photo by: Jaqui Carey

How long have you been bowling?

This is my first year.

What do you like about it?

I love how relaxed it is and I love the people involved and the coaches.

Senior Maddie Allen

Senior Madi Weber

What do you think are the most important things to make the squad more successful?

The most important thing to a successful squad is cooperation and determination. You have to be willing to work together as a team and be the best group you can be in order to succeed.

What are the most important traits for a cheerleader to possess?

The most important traits of a cheerleader would have to be leadership and flexibility. Not just in the physical sense but the emotional sense. You have to be willing to try new things and get out of your comfort zone.

Senior Libby VanRheen

What is your favorite cheer memory?

My favorite cheer memory was going to Dallas, Texas this past weekend and competing at NCA Nationals with my team. It was such a good experience and I was happy I was able to spend it with such a great group of girls.

Do you plan to cheer in college?

It would be fun to cheer in college but it requires a lot of traveling and I’m just going to focus on school.

Cheerleading

Photo by: Peyton Dial

Photo by: Peyton Dial

Dance

Photo by: Peyton Dial

Senior Paige Riggs

How has competition season been going for the team/you as an individual?

It has been going really well. At our first competition we placed first for mix and lyrical and second in jazz. As an individual I was able to place second with my solo.

What does the team do to prepare for competition?

In order to prepare for competition we have numerous practices to make sure all of our dances look the best they can. It takes a lot of work, but it’s all worth it in the end.

Senior Lauren Haag

How long have you been dancing?

I have been dancing since the 5th grade, so 8 years now.

If you could give a piece of advice to a future Blazerette what would it be?

Be present in every moment and to cherish each second you’re given with your teammates and coaches. Soon you won’t know where time went.

Photo by: Jaqui Carey

Photo by: Jaqui Carey

15

ACTIVITIES

How has the competition season been going for the team?

The team has done a great job and have all been really dedicated and put all the effort they could into the routine.

What do you do to mentally prepare yourself before a competition?

Before each competition we have a big team circle where we encourage each other and say what we need to work on.