High Tide Dec. 19, 2014

IGH H

Redondo Union High School Redondo Beach, CA December 19 , 2014 Vol. XCV Edition 7

TIDE

PHOTO BY MATTHEW YONEMURA

Coming home champs

Both the girls volleyball team and cross country runner Amber Gore became State Champions this month. Gore, a senior, was the first runner to win State in RUHS history and girls volleyball saw RUHS’s first Division I volleyball c hampionship. Amber Gore story on page 15; Girls Volleyball story on page 20 Running toward the win. Senior PHOTO BY SANDER FINK

Amber Gore competes in the Mt. SAC race earlier this season.

page 2

High Tide

news

News and Briefs

Frosty’s Festival

Volleyball and Amber Gore Parade

1.

PHOTOS BY SANDER FINK

Celebration. 1.

2.

PHOTOS BY YASMINE GHAZVINI

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas. 1. Senior Jorge Alvarez dressed as Santa and 1.

posed for pictures on stage by the Student Union.. 2.

Sophomore Sharon Joseph paints faces while dressed as an elf.

3.

2.

Girls Volleyball rides in a bus drving through Redondo, celebrating their victory. 2. Dr. Wesley speaks at the ceremony, along with numerous other guest speakers. 3. CIF awards the team won.

Theater Arts club built Holiday Parade float ASB to grant

money to clubs

by Roxanne Labat Theater Arts club presented a float at Redondo Beach’s annual Holiday Parade on Dec. 4 to promote drama’s spring production, “Thoroughly Modern Millie.”

“Our club received an invitation from the city of Redondo Beach,” junior Alec Johnson, Activities Coordinator of Theater Arts club, said. “At first we were going to make it simply a theater theme, but then we figured since our spring production is ‘Thoroughly Modern Millie,’ what better way would there be to promote our show?”

The creation of the float was supervised

by Technical Director Aaron Morgan and drama teacher Justin Baldridge.

“Usually when we build sets for plays we have a lot of paint and wood. We also had brick walls left over from ‘Macbeth.’ All we had to do was cut everything down to the right size and paint the fireplaces,” Johnson said.

About fifteen drama students and members of the tech crew worked on the float for more than three and a half hours over the course of two days.

“It was super nerve-racking because we couldn’t really start building until Wednesday and it was our first time building a float,” senior Alexis Lapp, Theater Arts club president said. “Mr. Baldridge told me that we had to make a float and that I was in charge.

If we were given the opportunity to be in a parade again, I think we’d start earlier. Time management was definitely our biggest issue.”

The club asked junior Lindsey Diethelm to present designs for the float before the Theater Arts board voted on a final design.

“Lindsey is brilliant. She came up with four different versions of the float,” Lapp

by Marie Ona

PHOTO BY TED CAVUS

Not so subliminal advertising. Juniors Reina McGonigle, Kerry Shy, Matt Rizo, and senior Brenden Barley put together their “Thoroughly Modern Millie” float from “Macbeth” set leftovers.

said. “She’s really creative.”

The parade ran through a few of the streets in the Riviera Village and the audience was an estimated 500 to 700 people, according to Johnson.

“Some people on the sides of the float passed out fliers to the families and candy canes to the children,” Johnson said. “It was a great promotional value because a lot of the families from Redondo brought out their kids.”

Lapp also found the parade to be enjoyable.

“It was really cool because I had never walked with a float before,” Lapp said. “We only had a little one, but everyone in the Riv-

iera was so pumped anyway.”

At the end of the parade, the club returned to the auditorium to disassemble the float.

“Many people volunteered to help us take it down. It was bittersweet; we had worked on the float up until the parade, used it for two hours, and then took it down,” Johnson said.

Lapp feels she personally benefitted from the experience of getting to build a float.

“It was a really good time for us to work as a group,” Lapp said. “We were forced to buckle down, use our time wisely, and communicate. It connected us.”

Students can now apply for up to $1500 for ASB grants for the second semester.

They had until Thursday, December 18th to complete and submit their ASB Grant Proposal forms.

“It’s for clubs and any student organizations that work potentially outside the classroom time. ASB set aside some money for this year to be able to help fund activities for clubs and any student organizations that might need help to fund something new they want to try,” ASB director Brooke Mata said.

For example, they will help clubs pay for student conference expenses, guest speakers or fairs.

“The funds for the ASB grant will help kids meet that goal of being able to try those new opportunities,” Mata said. “Or if they need supplies for their club, it can vary depending on what the club’s needs are.”

The grants were put in place to give clubs an opportunity to try new things.

“It will allow the kids to have experiences they wouldn’t potentially have if they didn’t have the funds,” Mata said.

Money given can also help with new supplies and equipment.

“The grants are not for spending on just anything,” Inter-club commissioner Briana Henderson said. “The money has to go to something that’s really needed by the club.”

ASB will accept as many as possible.

“Once we get all the applications in we will review them and see what we can allot and where the allotments of the funds will go,” Mata said.

Dec. 19, 2014

page 3

news

RUHS receives high Niche Scores

Popular school review organization rates RUHS highly among schools in Los Angeles and California

by Malek Chamas RUHS has often been called “the best school in the South Bay”, and now there is some more merit to this nickname. Niche, an online company devoted to collecting data on K-12 schools, colleges, neighborhoods, and cities, has recently ranked RUHS as the 22nd best public high school in the state and the tenth best in the Los Angeles Metro area.

Niche uses dozens of key statistics such as AP enrollment, graduation rate, and state assessment proficiency, but unlike many other ranking systems, it also uses survey responses from thousands of current students, recent alumni, and parents.

“I believe that Redondo, specifically in the last few years, has really improved the culture on campus, and in the community,” Principal Nicole Wesley said. “I really believe that our overall reputation has improved.”

Niche provides some schools with a grade as well as a ranking. RUHS is one of 548 public high schools that received an A+. In order to calculate the ranking and grade of a school, Niche takes multiple sub-grades, each being for a unique category such as Academics or Health & Safety, and combines them. Each sub-grade has its own weight that can be as high as 50%.

While this ranking provides no extra funding for the school, it does give RUHS an increase in recognition.

“It is like being in a classroom and hearing a teacher say ‘great job,’” Assistant Principal Jens Brandt said. “It’s just great news.”

Wesley feels that this positive attention will likely increase respect for RUHS, particularly in the South Bay. “What I am happy to see is that Redondo is no longer considered ‘the underdog’ when

How RUHS is graded

Graduation proficiency

93%

Graduation Rate

81%

National Graduation Rate

VS

79%

78%

Math Proficiency Reading Proficiency

Percent of Population

50

compared to neighboring schools. I really feel that Redondo is a far more respected and desired establishment than we used to be,” Wesley said. “It’s good for us to be recognized publicly.”

Wesley says that students often move to Redondo Beach to come to RBUSD schools, RUHS in particular.

“I believe that there are a number of reasons why Redondo is becoming a destination school,” Wesley said. “People are moving to Redondo to come to Redondo schools.”

Partly due to these new students moving to RUHS, the number of students enrolled at RUHS is expected to eventually reach 3,000.

“In the admin. team, we joke around when we see rankings like this. We always go, ‘Oh, here we go, more people are going to want to come here,’ and that’s a good problem to have,” Wesley said. “We are going to con-

How RUHS compares

Test Scores Average SAT

tinue to be a destination school, and we are going to figure out ways to accommodate more students.”

Wesley believes that in order for RUHS to keep its high status, the school will need to use new ways to communicate with parents.

“I think that we can do a better job at communicating and reaching out,” Wesley said. “While we post accolades and information on our website and Infinite campus, and we do e-mail and phone blasts, I still think there’s more available avenues to communicate with the community.”

Both Wesley and Brandt hope to see positive improvements and an increase in rank for RUHS in the next few years.

“I do not see us being stagnant,” Wesley said. “I just see us moving along this path where people want to work here, visit here, and live here.”

Niche School Scores

1790

4.33

Redondo Union

National SAT Average

1730

4.33

Mira Costa

Average ACT

4.00

West Torrance

4.00

South Torrance

4.00

North Torrance

27

National ACT Average

Racial Diversity on Campus

26

49%

Best Public High Schools in the Los Angeles Metro Area

25%

25

13% 7% 0

1% White

Hispanic Asian

1%

African Pacific Multiracial American Islander

Race

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

What School?

Where is it?

Los Angeles Fullerton Rancho Palos Verdes Palos Verdes Peninsula Palos Verdes Estates Palos Verdes High San Marino High San Marino CA Academy of Math & Science Carson Northwood High Irvine Orange County School of the Arts Santa Ana University High Irvine Redondo Union Redondo Beach Granada Hills Charter Troy High

INFORMATION FROM NICHE.COM

page 4

High Tide

opinion

Social media is fanning flames Social media has assumed a new, dangerous role in protests: the facilitator of protests with no leader. It’s time that we look at the risks of modern movements.

Editorial

Despite being geographically separated from the events of the last several weeks, we’ve been directly and instantly linked to them by social media. We were affected in some way, regardless of personal opinion, by the St. Louis County grand jury decision not to indict Officer Darren Wilson, as well as the similar result in New York where Daniel Pantaleo was not put on trial.

On Facebook, on Tumblr, on Twitter, we have voices that can be heard across the country. Social media platforms like Twitter have allowed us to communicate directly with protesters, to hear their words and see straight through their eyes.

In an environment like Twitter, where 52,000 tweets per minute followed the Wilson decision, emotions spiked dangerously as reactions online heightened tensions— this was the fervor that leads to change, the passion that leads to progress. But, it was not taken advantage of correctly.

The same forum that allows us to instantly witness events also allows for the spread of rumors and for the circulation of misinformation. This same forum is what led to escalation, to violence, to the loss of the protesters’ message in smoke and tear gas.

A social media approach to social justice is crowd sourced, and is thus uncontrollable. Because our voice on social media, while loud, is so often diffused and varied, it’s often largely leaderless in a very dangerous way—without a captain to manage the

mob, to push for peaceful demonstrations, that leaderlessness can lead to unfortunate violence, as we saw in Ferguson.

Without a Dr. King, for example, to lead peacefully and keep crowds in check, it’s the responsibility of protesters as a group and as a part of a larger movement to ensure that demonstrations don’t escalate violently.

Many were disillusioned with the Ferguson protests after the riots and looting began, and many public figures were quick to try to discredit and invalidate the protesters, to label them and drown out their message in admonishments and condemnations.

Movements like this need a speaker, a leader, someone to guide the movement peacefully and ensure its validity. Without a leader, protests become anarchy.

This is the internet age, where the individual is empowered by social media to have his or her voice heard. We’re now in an era where leaders like Dr. King are harder to find. Without a leader, protesters must hold themselves accountable to the the movement they represent. Without a steady hand to guide a movement, it is up to protesters as individuals to prevent the escalation to riots, to fires, to looting—the point where their message is lost in flames and shattered glass. In Ferguson, they failed to make their point peacefully. However, their movement has spread around the country—in this and all future protests in this age, it is up to individuals, empowered by social media, to make a peaceful change.

#

ILLUSTRATION BY LUMA WEGMAN

Editorial Board Leaderless protests facilitated by social media are more likely to become violent.

vote

6 3

Social media gives us the voice we deserve, and the violence was unavoidable.

# ILLUSTRATION BY KAITA PANNOR

Dec. 19, 2014

opinion

Letters to the Editor

page 5

If you have an opinion about one of the articles, letters can be sent to the editor at hightideonline@gmail.com.

We reserve the right to edit them for content, grammar, and space constraints. Letters must be signed and are not guaranteed to be printed.

Please keep letters to a maximum of 250 words. Longer guest opinions are also accepted.

High Tide

staff

Editor in Chief: Allegra Peelor

Managing Editor: Alejandro Quevedo News Editor: Jason Rochlin Opinion Editor: Christopher Paludi Features Editors: Yasmeen El-Hasan;

Vaidehi Gandhi; Caterina Hyneman; Shawn Mallen; Shaniya Markalanda; Amanda Shaw

Sports Editors: Nina Gomez; Sophie Maguy

Design Editor: Grace Zoerner

Cody’s

Writing Editors: Stella Gianoukakis; Kayla Nicholls

Photo Editors: Ted Cavus; Chandler Ross

Concerns

Copy Editors: Joseph Blakely; Kira Bowen Online Editors: Vivian Lam; Romy Moreno

Photographers: Dinah Aiad; Samantha

Bendall; Jennifer Blanco; Madison Brooks; Erin Czulewicz; Daniel Green; Janelle Howe; Lexi Kleen; Carla Macar; Masha Pescheryakova; Laua’e Schweitzer; Tyler Wunderli; Adam Yorke

Illustrators: Steven Bell-Nixon; Kaita

PHOTO BY CHANDLER ROSS

Pannor; Luma Wegman

by Cody Williams

Staff Writers: Dinah Aiad; Gianna Aqui-

College! You’ve all heard about it. It’s that big shiny place where you can party, meet intelligent people, find your true identity and watch football games every weekend. It’s arguably the best experience ever, lasting around four years and costing only a small fortune. But before one can step foot inside the university of their choice and hand over an increasingly absurd amount of money for a piece of paper and a handshake, a lengthy process called “applying to college” must happen first.

Although the ridiculous amounts of fun and knowledge are well worth the hassle, applying to college and making a decision as to what college to attend has the potential to become an unnecessarily expensive process. According to collegeapps.com, the average high school senior applies to six to eight different schools, and with the cost of application fees ranging typically from $40 to $80, the financial impact is already felt. Additionally, SAT, ACT, and AP score reports must be sent to the schools, further increasing the cost of the process.

lina; Samantha Bendall; Jennifer Blanco; Madison Brooks; Malek Chamas; Jason Clebowicz; Isabella Cordero; Erin Czulewicz; Kelly Dickinson; Micah Ezzes; Lizzie Fauver; Yasamin Fazeli; Jason Fong; Camille Gerson; Daniel Green; Ilene Guerrero; Zach Hatakeyama; Kayla Hiken; Jessica Johnson; Massa Kassab; Brittany Ketting; Jon Mallen; Marie Ona; Kaita Pannor; Sadie Pearson; Masha Pescheryakova; Samaya Rubio; Reema Saad; Laua’e Schweitzer; Parker Scott; Mylene Silver; Ava Uema; Simrun Ursani; Tyler Wunderli; Adam Yorke High Tide dedicates itself to producing a high-quality publication that both informs and entertains the entire student body.

This is a wholly student-managed, designed, and written newspaper that focuses on school and community events.

High Tide is published by the journalism class at Redondo Union High School, One Sea Hawk Way, Redondo Beach, CA 90277.

Signed commentaries and editorial cartoons represent the opinions of the staff writer or cartoonist and in no way reflect the opinions of the rest of the staff.

College applications shouldn’t cost anything, let alone the exorbitant amounts they do now.

But what if we look at the application process from a broader perspective? Now the cost of applying can also include the $50 SAT and or the $35 (possibly $50.50 depending on the school) ACT testing fees, each test typically taken twice. Also, any cost for additional tutoring or coursework for test preparation can be included, adding hundreds of dollars more to the total cost of the application process. And of course, nobody is going to make a final decision without visiting the schools they have applied to. According to marketplace.org, the average high school senior spends around $3,500 on college trips and visits, arguably the most important step in finding the college that fits best.

With all of these necessary expenses combined, the total cost of the application process has the potential to become a financial nuisance for the average family (excluding those that qualify for test fee and application fee waivers). If the application process is approached with a frivolous attitude it is all too easy to find oneself spending thousands of dollars before any accep-

ILLUSTRATION BY KAITA PANNOR

tance letters are received, possibly making all the money, time and patience invested in the process pointless. In today’s competitive academic environment, nobody is guaranteed admission.

It’s understood that colleges and organizations like the the College Board exist to make a profit and use the hopeful high school senior to their full advantage. But when do these expenses become excessive and too much for the average student to bear? Where is the line between procedural and needless spending drawn? These questions are important for future seniors to handle if the discontent with the application process cost is prevalent. But in the mean time, the vicious and painfully expensive cycle will continue. The process of paying to take a test, paying to send test scores, paying a school to receive an application, all to be deemed worthy of paying tuition, will continue until seniors have spent every last dime in their college funds and find themselves living a miserable life working a menial job.

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High Tide

features

Expression that lasts a lifetime Isaac Vizcarra shows his personality through tattoos

“ Since my parents let me get tattoos, I thought I would honor them.

”

“ I got the cross and

“ I had bones tattooed

the Monster symbols for the fun of it. They look cool.

on my arms because I want to be a doctor.

”

”

by Gianna Aquilina Isaac Vizcarra is always getting second glances and strange looks while he walks through the school. Vizcarra’s six tattoos leave impressions on people, whether good or bad.

Sophomore Isaac Vizcarra got his first tattoo when he was 14 years old. He has a cross, dragon, tiger, monster symbol, skeleton, and mom and dad tattoo.

Each tattoo he got has a different meaning behind it.

“I got the tiger for speed and the dragon for strength. I have the monster symbol on my wrist for energy,” he said.

He also got the tattoo of his bones on his arm because he finds anatomy interesting. The cross is the only tattoo that doesn’t have a meaning to it. It was his first tattoo and he “just felt like getting it”.

Even though he got some of his tattoos

PHOTOS BY TED CAVUS

just because he felt like it he does not regret getting any of his tattoos. They all are a part of him and very important to him.

Isaacs’s interest in tattoos started when he was very young. He decided, at age five, that he was going to get many tattoos.

“Ever since I was little I liked that type of art. My dad and I used to watch tattoo shows and they always fascinated me. That’s when I decided I wanted tattoos, “he said.

Isaacs’s interest in tattoos creates the possibility of a career with them.

“I would love to be a tattoo artist as a secondary job to my music or medical career,” Vizcarra said.

When he asked his parents to get his first tattoo they said yes immediately.

“I think his tattoos are nice, tattoos in general are a nice way of expression besides his music. I think they’re great just as long as

he doesn’t get too many all at once,” Patricia Vizcarra, Isaac’s mother, said.

Vizcarra decision to get tattoos came with some potential problems of judgement. He believes that people who judge others who get tattoos are unjustified.

“People with tattoos should not be judged because of their appearance. People with tattoos are just as good as people without,” he said.

While Isaac finds it extremely “annoying and hard” that people judge him by his appearance, he doesn’t let it get to him.

“Judging someone because of their looks shows a lack of maturity. If you judge someone based off how they look rather than how they act then you’re not judging their character. We are all the same. There is no difference from people with tattoos or people without.” Vizcarra said.

Dec. 19, 2014 Christmas spirit and festivities begin early for freshman Peter Jacobson. He and his family have been participating in the fun of Candy Cane Lane for about 12 years.

Jacobson’s favorite part of living on Candy Cane Lane is the amount of people who show up to see the lights and decorations.

“It’s more fun when there are more people. I like going around when there are a lot of people because I get to see them say ‘oh cool!’ at decorations and see them have fun,” he said. “I look forward to each season when it’s closer to Christmas because we have little parties and I get to meet a lot of people in the area.”

According to Jacobson, Candy Cane Lane season is a time for his family to bond.

“When we decorate, it brings us all together. After decorating, we and our neighbors walk around to see the lights and decorations together,” Jacobson said. “One year, we got a golf cart before it was banned and drove around the neighborhood. You can’t drive around a golf cart anymore unless you have a license.”

Jacobson and his family sets up a hot chocolate stand every weekend during December.

“By having a hot chocolate stand, we can interact with a bunch of people,” he said.

“We can raise $200 a night and probably over $1000 a season. We use the money to buy whatever we want. I bought toys with the money before and we use it to buy more hot chocolate.”

page 7

features

‘Tis the Season

Peter Jacobson explains living in “Candy Cane Lane” and his love for holiday festivities

by Vivian Lam

Some like it hot.

PHOTO BY TED CAVUS

Jacobson sells hot chocolate to people sightseeing at Candy Cane Lane.

His family decorates each year, but the lights and decorations have not changed much over the years.

“We try to get bigger and better, it’s kind of hard for people to see our yard because we have hedges. I thought of an idea to have a Santa riding on a sleigh from one palm tree to another, but we haven’t tried that yet,” Jacobson said. “I like my family’s surfing Santa the most because even though there are others, those are a little uglier and not as nice. Ours is a cute blow-up.”

According to Jacobson, his house is unable to participate in the decorating contest every year.

“It really sucks that we can’t be in the contest,” he said. “We live right on the edge of Candy Cane Lane in Redondo and the contest is in Torrance. We’re like two houses away from Torrance, but we still get a lot of people coming by.”

Christmas comes earlier for Jacobson and his family because they live on Candy Cane Lane. They start holiday things earlier than everyone else, like buying their Christmas tree right after Thanksgiving.

“When you live in that area, Christmas is a lot more fun because there is a lot more to look forward to until break,” he said. “Right now, I wear my Santa hat early in the month because I live there and because the people there feel more into holiday mood. In the beginning of December, it feels like Christmas time the entire month because every time I come home, there are lights and Santas.”

He cheers the team to success

Saltsman assumed duties as cheer coach this season

Spirited away.

Initially looking forward to a normal year of being Athletic Director, Andy Saltsman did not expect to learn that he was the official head coach and manager of the cheer team.

Saltsman took over the cheer team after last year’s coach, Amanda Murray resigned only two days before school started for “personal reasons”. He had no time to fill the position before the year started, so he filled in.

“I’m considered head coach by name, but my coaches are a couple of other women who come in and do the actual cheers, like the choreography and the stunting, themselves. I’m more of the manager of the group right now,” Saltsman said.

If cheer or any of the 25 other school sports lacks a head coach, the job goes immediately to Saltsman. Saltsman has to manage budgets, order uniforms, and get the team transportation to competitions and games.

His responsibilities do not include learning the cheers or teaching the team choreography, rather he has the JV, Varsity, and Assistant Coaches to help him with the hands-on part of the program.

Although he did not have a choice of whether or not to be the team’s head coach, he does enjoy it and he believes the girls enjoy it as well.

“Saltsman has helped us a lot this year,

by Samaya Rubio

Saltsman is looking for a new head coach, but “unfortunately” cannot find one because most people who get hired for cheer jobs are hired in March or April so they have time to get ready for the beginning of the school year.

Many cheer coaches are not currently available due to prior commitments or the relatively small amount of preparation time, according to Senior Keely Brooks. Brooks said that this has impacted the team.

“It’s tough for both the JV and Varsity teams because he’s had a couple of individuals come and try to help us out, but none of them have committed their time to us,” Brooks said.

PHOTO COURTESY OF LAURYN ALEJO

Saltsman acted as a manager for the team while allowing captains to be more involved. He also brought in temporary coaches to teach the girls new choreography and techniques.

but mostly, he has put the varsity captains, Suzanne Cole and Amber Thibodeaux in charge of the team which is hard sometimes because you’re having other students grade students,” Brooks said.

Saltsman is learning a lot about patience through his involvement with the cheer team considering he has never dealt with forty-two girls in a class or on a field. He hopes that the girls learned something from him as well.

“I don’t think they’ve learned anything from me cheer-wise but I hope they learned something in terms of character or integrity, responsibility or communication,” Saltsman said.

page 8

High Tide

features

Taking on the runway Sophomore Kierra Damone models in her free time

by Kayla Hiken As the light flashes and she poses for the camera, sophomore Kierra Damone has a smile across her face and she is in a happy place.

She started modeling because one of her mom’s friends had suggested it. She modeled as a baby, but according to Damone, her mom took her out of it until she was old enough to make her own decision.

For Damone, modeling is not just about posing, but also about the experience.

“I enjoy meeting new people and getting to dress up in clothes I normally would not wear,” Damone said.

According to Melinda Damone, Kierra’s mom Kierra made the decision to model on her own because she enjoys exploring all the different aspects such a career has to offer.

“I think just the experience of meeting new people, getting new ideas and seeing what the other side is like is what Kierra enjoys most,” Mrs. Damone said.

Damone has just recently made the decision to get back into modeling and is still getting back into the routine of it. As of now, she models about once or twice every month. While she tries to take all the modeling jobs she can, she has had to turn some down because of school.

“If I have to miss a lot of school, then I won’t do the shoot because school comes first. I do, however, have a tutor that helps me when I do miss school so that I don’t fall behind,” Damone said.

For Damone to get the modeling job, she has to audition first. If she has the desired look for the company, she readies herself for the photoshoot, which lasts between one and five hours.

“Throughout the shoot, you may go through multiple outfit changes and repeat. If they are happy with the pictures, the shoot will go by

quicker,” Damone said.

During the shoot, Damone poses as she is told to in order to get the job done, but alo rembers to enjoy her time there.

“Nothing is really going through my head; I just pose how they want me to during the shoot.

I have a lot of fun throughout the shoot, and with modeling in general, and I would say that it makes me feel happy,” Damone said.

In the past, she modeled for companies including Gymboree, New Balance, Babies R Us, Scripps, and JCPenny.

“Her modeling includes print work, commercials, shows, ads, and runway, and she models mostly fashion, clothing and shoes,” Mrs. Damone said.

Also interested in acting, Damone uses the skills she learns from modeling to boost her acting career.

“It’s a lot easier to get into character faster when I act. They both require you to be confident in what you’re doing, and you have to be able to have anything thrown at you and quickly change your mindset,” Damone said.

Her mom completely supports her modeling and acting decisions.

“I want her to do whatever she wants to do.

As long as she is a good student and she’s happy, that’s all I care about. I have no expectations for her. I just want her to make good choices, and if this is what she wants, then I’m going to support it,” Mrs. Damone said.

Currently, Damone is not thinking about modeling as a future career; she is focusing on school.

“My goal for now is to get good grades and to get into a good college,” Damone said. “As long as I am happy with modeling and acting, I will continue doing it.”

1.

Queen of the runway. 1. Damone poses at one of her photo

shoots. “I enjoy meeting new people and getting to dress up in clothes I wouldn’t normally wear,” she said. 2. Damone enjoys herself while posing in front of a colorful backdrop. 3. Damone poses for a close up. 4. Damone is ready to play a character in Tornado Alley. Her character is called Mariah Trent and the show is based on the true story of Trent and her family getting sucked into a tornado. As a survivor of the catastrophe she suffered many wounds. “It’s a lot easier to get into character faster when I act. They both require you to be confident in what you’re doing, and you have to be able to have anything thrown at you and quickly change your mindset.”

2.

3..

4.

Dec. 19, 2014

features

Following the story

page 9

New Comedy Sports team prepares for the year and competitions

by Samaya Rubio When they step out onto the stage, the outside world melts away. All they think about now is the scene they have been given. They are following a story, not a script.

They are the Comedy Sports team.

They all want to become a group that helps people, inspires people as well as influences them to be something more than ordinary.

“Drama is a place where you find something you’re passionate about and you find your place in the world,” junior Duke Robinson said.

The team is “extremely” close-knit and supportive of each other. They help each other strive toward group success.

“I’ve made so many friends that I would have never known if I didn’t do drama here.

All my friends are drama friends now,” junior Jacob Reno said.

They also have a very good relationship with drama teacher Justin Baldridge. He helps the team letting them use his room, coordinating their competitions, and giving them pointers. Reno, Robinson along with the other founders, Reina McGonigle and Jesse Licon, make most of the improvements to the team.

“Everyone is excellent at improv, but they

Play

your

heart

by Vivian Lam

out

Besides being in the school’s marching band, sophomores Teà Leksunthon and Oliver Escalante decided to participate in the

all have one thing that stands out whenever they do a scene,” Reno said, “It’s their signature, amazing thing.”

They also need to establish the scenario and characters well because, if they don’t, the other team members are “dragging them along” through the scene. “[You establish characters] really, with the way you move. A lot of it has to do with pantomiming and the way you talk. It all depends on what your character is,” Robinson said.

After selecting the 12 members of the team, they spend hours practicing on Fridays after school for the competitions in February. Beforehand, all the teams are “nice” to each other because they respect each others’ talents and all have a “passion for drama”. All the teams are nervous before they get onstage, but as soon as they do, “it’s like nothing can stop [them]”.

“It’s kind of a mixture of nervousness and excitement because if you mess up, it’s not funny and then it’s kind of embarrassing. But it’s really exciting when you do get a positive response, it feels amazing,” Robinson said.

At the competitions, there are two rounds: one when the judges decide what the actors will perform and one when the team decides. When the judges decide, the

team has fifteen seconds to set up the stage and then have to start acting out the scene they have been given. Sometimes, the audience gives suggestions, giving the team a little more time to think.

Once both teams have performed, the judges ask the audience who performed better, and the audience claps for the team they like. Whoever gets the most applause earns five points. There are also words and phrases that, when they are all used, get three extra points.

The Comedy Sports team is new to RUHS, but not to the other bay league schools.

They heard about the competitions through other schools, raised money all of last year, and signed up this year. They are very “proud” to be part of the first year the program has been at Redondo.

The club believes that drama program and improv clubs are great ways to meet people and learn more about yourself through something that is “fun and rewarding”.

“The thing about drama is that people open up completely, because when you act, you have to show all the emotion there is inside of you. You’re being friends with someone who’s honest and you know all about them,” Robinson said.

Asia America Youth Symphony to develop their interest and skill in music.

Escalante believes that music is an art that focuses on sound, which can really get into a person’s head.

“Depending on the style, it could speak to someone more than others. I enjoy jazz because it’s laid back, free, and sometimes action-packed, or blues because it can convey emotion through a sad song, even with simple lyrics,” he said. “Plain instrumental is like a conversation between two instruments, one speaks with its notes then the other replies. Classical just soothes the mind

with its beautiful chords.”

Leksunthon recommended Escalante to audition for a trumpet seat in the symphony after participating in it herself last year. Because of this, Escalante decided to audition after attending one of their concerts.

“The concert was surreal, the visuals were not needed as much as the music. It just made me lean back in the chair and relax. Music is just a very happy experience to me,” Escalante said. “The balance of each instrument showed they focused on the music, and focus can create great sound. Every dynamic was executed very well and, as a passion of mine, music just speaks more to me if it’s done well.”

Leksunthon re-auditioned along with Escalante in September and October. She is “excited” to be a returning member of the symphony.

“It’s really fun to be a part of the symphony. I’m not the newbie anymore so I kinda have a handle on it and I already know some people so it’s nice,” she said. “I feel really good to be there, knowing that I auditioned and got in because of that; I was able to get accepted over others.”

Thanks to Leksunthon’s experience, she was able to assure Escalante’s success in getting into the symphony.

“I was a bit scared, but I was mostly anxious because I was almost positive I was getting in based on what my friend told me,” he said. “They were lacking in trumpets the year

PHOTO COURTESY OF RUHSBANDBOOSTERS.COM

Fanfare. Escalante warms up with marching band before competition. “I enjoy jazz because it’s laid back, free, and sometimes action-packed even with simple lyrics,” he said. PHOTO COURTESY OF RUHS

PHOTO BY LAUA’E SCHWEITZER

Getting into character. Reno does some

improv during a weekly club meeting in the Black Box theatre. “The thing about drama is that people open up completely, you have to show all the emotion there is inside of you,” he said.

before, and from what I heard, one wasn’t very good, and I was confident in my playing ability.”

According to Leksunthon, people in the symphony are more dedicated committed than marching band. Escalante agrees with her based on his observations during the concert and audition.

“At the symphony, everyone is there to work and they want to be there. The people in the symphony are more dedicated, I guess, since it’s out of school. They are just really good musicians,” Leksunthon said. “Sometimes in band, you can slack off a bit.”

Leksunthon believes that managing both marching band and the symphony is “not that difficult.”

“Band doesn’t usually do anything on Sundays and practices are on Sundays, which is only two to three hours,” Leksunthon said.

“We rehearse for the two concerts in May.” Since the practices do not start until January, Escalante can only look forward to the experience he can gain from being in the Asia America Youth Symphony.

“I’m looking forward to meeting the director, from what I’ve heard he’s friendly and very good, so hopefully he will take the scores and turn them into music,” he said.

“Hopefully, there will be a bit of a challenge in the pieces I play. I want to improve as a musician and that means I have to play a more diverse range of songs, scaling with different styles to different difficulty levels.”

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High Tide

center

Dec. 19, 2014

center

page 11

Students attend protests in the wake of the St. Louis Grand Jury’s decision not to indict Darren Wilson.

by Vaidehi Gandhi They march through the road with angry and upset faces illuminated by the streetlights. The sound of helicopters overhead and sirens is constant as they chant “No justice, no peace.” A shattered mask falls from a swollen face, while the disturbing thump of police’s batons on backs resonates in her ears.

Junior Zoe Stephenson attended a Ferguson protest in Culver City on Nov. 21 to get the Supreme Court to take on the case of Michael Brown.

“I’m fed up with the way our system works. There’s still a lot of discrimination in our country that shouldn’t be around,” Stephenson said. “All my beliefs tie into this and I was really upset that people aren’t seeing other human beings as people just because of their skin color.”

She left from her friend’s home at 9:30 p.m., reaching the protest at 10.

“There were the most cops I had seen in my entire life just walking up to where the protest was,” she said. “We were in front of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) building with cops in riot gear guarding us.”

Stephenson found that the people were nice and “super” supportive.

“That all had really good views on life. A lot of them were people of color who were marching so that their children wouldn’t have to, which I really appreciated,” Stephenson said.

She believes that blogging and such spreads the word, but also that nothing will change without action.

“I wouldn’t feel right standing aside and not being a part of something to help fix it,” she said. “I would prefer to get arrested a hundred times and have our system change rather than just sit aside and do nothing.”

Junior Sadie Pearson also attended a Ferguson protest also in Downtown Los Angeles.

“When I went, I saw there were a lot of different groups of people--even little kids-protesting and voicing their opinion peacefully,” Pearson said. “It was interesting to see all these people come together.”

Pearson supports the notion of going to protests and believes their protest was successful. “[Protests] can help enlighten you and allow you to see what goes on rather than second-handedly experience it from what others tell you or from the news,” she said.

“The point of a protest is to make a commotion and spread the news, which I would say we did well.”

Despite that, she was also afraid of the consequences and getting in trouble.

2.

PHOTOS 1, 2 , AND 4 BY SADIE PEARSON, 3 COURTESY OF ZOE STEPHENSON

Civil protest. 1. Junior Sadie Pearson joins crowds in downtown LA protesting the Grand Jury’s decision. 2 and 4. Those gathered were outraged by the perceived racism behind Brown’s death and other recent deaths such as Eric Gerner’s and Tamir Rice’s. 3. Here, junior Zoe Stephenson is detained at a similar protest.

1.

“I didn’t see anything bad and it seemed pretty peaceful to me,” Pearson said. “But I know that some people got arrested and the idea worries me.”

Stephenson, however, was one of the protesters to get arrested.

“They started pushing us back, and when we didn’t move they started beating us and then chased us for about a block, when another row of policemen came and blocked us off,” she said.

Her group was blocked off by policemen in riot gear from all four sides, ziptied, then taken to the police station. The adults were charged with disorderly conduct and damaging public property, while Stephenson was simply given a curfew ticket, for being

a minor.

“We were so shocked that we got arrested. We threw nothing, we hurt nobody, we spoke our voices, we didn’t touch any of the cops unless they hit us first,” she said. “I was surprised that they found something to charge us with, because we didn’t do anything wrong.”

Stephenson felt defenseless and upset by the situation.

“I felt really sad because I knew that if I did anything back to them or if any person of color I was with did anything, they would most likely be killed,” she said. “It was just sad that these people are here fighting for their basic human rights and are getting beaten.”

Stephenson felt happy that she was able

to do stand up for the cause.

“The fact that an incident happening across the country impacted the whole world made me feel happy that I was able to support it,” she said. “People need to acknowledge that these injustices are happening and speak out against it. What really matters is that they realize what is happening.”

If people do go to protests, Stephenson believes that they should be peaceful.

“There’s so many people that go to protests just to go to protests, and that’s not what it’s about. I wouldn’t want anyone else to get involved in a bad scenario,” she said.

“You need to be there with the right people and for the right cause.”

4.

3.

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High Tide

features

Around Redondo

What is your opinion of the Lounge? compiled by Stella Gianoukakis, photos by Chandler Ross

“

It is a cool place to hang out after school with your friends.

”

D’Mitri Williams, 11

“

I like it because I got focused on my work and so know I have no homework.

“

“

”

Kevin Martinez, 10

“

I thought it went well and it went as planned. I hope it continues to go well.

”

Payton Thatcher, 12

“

I think that it is fun and a good way to be social in school.

Chantelle Sinkler, 10

”

“

It is a great place to do your homework and study.

”

Bryan Natareno, 11

“

I like the free pizza. It is fun.

”

Nicholas Choi, 9

Lounge opens after school ILLUSTRATION BY CHRISTIAN REZA

by Isabella Cordero The Lounge opened Tuesday, Dec. 16, at 3-5 in the bingo room.

The idea of providing a place where students could go after school that was “fun, productive, and gregarious,” according to Student Advisor and supervisor of the program, Adam Genovese, has become a reality every Tuesday from 3-5.

“After school, there’re just a lot of people hanging out on Diamond Street, hanging out at McDonald’s, hanging out at Starbucks, or just roaming around, which probably means they’re not very productive,” Genovese said.

“So we figured, why not bring them here, and provide those things for them?”

The Lounge has refreshments and pizza at the closing of each session, with plenty of snacks for its duration. Students can eat while hanging out with friends while enjoying music and recreation on the larger side of the bingo room, or the “social side.”

“We have pool tables, Ping-Pong tables, board games, sometimes even special video game nights, and eventually we’ll let kids guest DJ,” Amanda Duran, a Spanish teacher involved in the program said.

Not only is there a social side, but there is also a study side, according to Genovese. The smaller half of the bingo room consists of tables and chairs where students can read, sit quietly, do homework, and get help from

tutors. These tutors are juniors who are “intelligent and reliable,” and “able to tutor five to ten different subjects.”

After contacting certain teachers for recommendations, Genovese successfully made a selection.

PHOTO BY CHANDLER ROSS “We’re talking Breaktime. D’Mitri Williams plays pool at the Lounge. about help from excellent students with great personali“With the combination of our services, ties, who are serving as tutors and mentors,” we’re just hoping the Lounge will be an inGenovese said. credible program,” Genovese said.

The Connectedness Committee—a comLike most privileges, the students have mittee of RUHS administrators, some teach- “expectations,” according to Genovese. ers, and students, working to help their fel- Those who attend the Lounge sessions must low peers really connect to campus—came be responsible and respectful, and if that up with the Lounge. does not happen, the supervising staff will “Obviously, we have our ideas as adults, have a conversation with the student. but we’re not in a student’s mind, so we have “The hope is that everyone will just be so students on the committee,” Genovese said. positive because they’re enjoying the expe“And we don’t just have the typical AP/Hon- rience that we won’t really have to address ors, captain of the sports team, president those issues,” Genovese said. of the yearbook kind of students, but also According to Duran, there are not really the underclassmen, and those not involved any regulations, but more “guidelines” for in clubs or activities—we have people who how those involved in the program “want could really speak on behalf of their community to look.”

“We want our community to be a place that demographic.” where people are respectful of other peoCurrently, RUHS is in a partple, willing to feel comfortable being themnership with Freedom4U, a selves, or are able to voice their opinions in a non-profit organization headed by Dr. Greg Allen, a local psy- nice way,” Duran said. “I think it’s more about chologist. He is funding some how you want to be treated, not what you aspects of the Lounge and pro- shouldn’t do.”

The Connectedness Committee is “really viding help as well as superviexcited” about the Lounge, and hopes many sion in the form of counselors students will attend the upcoming sesand college students who can sions, according to Genovese, and continue connect to high schoolers. Acattending.

In fact, the kids who show up to cording to Duran, Freedom4U, which is a youth group, spe- three sessions will get “special” student-decializes in providing activities, signed Lounge t-shirts.

“Everyone is welcome,” Genovese said. counselors, service opportu“We want it to be something everybody can nities, and just a place to hang PHOTO BY CHANDLER ROSS enjoy, students and staff.” out for kids.

Study hall. Kris Seo finishes and gets help on his English homework.

Dec. 19, 2014

page 13

features

Oikawa holds leadership position at VCYC

by Lizzie Fauver

The Volunteer Center Youth Coalition (VCYC) is an organization which brings together teenagers from all over the South Bay to volunteer and put together events, honoring different members of the community. Junior Gweneth Oikawa does all these things all while holding the position as vice president.

Oikawa says that the VCYC has something that can appeal to anyone. For Oikawa, the appeal was to find something that can help her get involved with her community.

“I was just like every other teenager. I would sit, watch T.V., and needed to get out of the house,” Oikawa said. “My mom told me to volunteer because it’s fun, looks good on a college application, and you are getting a feel for different things.”

All members of VCYC work hard in order to put on events that reflect their appreciation for their community.

“We have four major events throughout the year. For the rest of the year, we volunteer individually,” Oikawa said. “Our whole focus is to just give back to the community. “ For Oikawa, Having the role of vice president results in many responsibilities; including long hours at work planning for upcoming events.

“A typical week is a committee meeting for an hour or two, a lot of emails, and general body meetings that can last around three hours. We talk about and discuss upcoming volunteer opportunities and events that each subcommittee is organizing,” Oikawa said.

One event that stands out to Oikawa in

particular was one that honored the memory 9/11.

“The best thing I’ve done was plan my own event from start to finish. One of our four national days of service that starts the school year is 9/11 National Day of Service. It makes a huge impact for the people we help and it holds a lot of weight behind it. It sets the tone for the rest of the year,” Oikawa said.

Oikawa felt the need to produce a good event, which meant she needed to devote more time than usual into the project.

“The year before our event wasn’t that great, so I felt the need to try especially hard to improve it. It was a frustrating process and I put a lot of work into it, but it was worth it because we ended up going to the National Guard Base and threw a big event for the servicemen there. It was our way of showing how much we appreciate them.”

Oikawa believes that the hard work the club demands has benefited her in many ways.

“You learn a lot leadership wise, I have done so many things I never thought I’d be able to do. I got an opportunity to be on an interview panel and teach my own seminar on volunteerism. It gets me out in the community and enables me to volunteer with different areas of the community which are really valuable,” Oikawa said.

Oikawa enjoys being heavily involved with the club, and hopes that other people get the opportunity to experience and participate in it too.

“I’ve been trying to get people from RUHS to join and it’s been harder than I thought it

was going to be,” Oikawa said. “I would definitely encourage all people to join if they are motivated and want to help. We have many different types of people; athletes, journalists, people on the yearbook staff, and many others. If you are on top of things and want to help out this is a good place for you.”

Overall, Oikawa has had a positive experience with the club, through meeting new people and engaging in her community.

“I really enjoy it.

It’s a little stressful being VP because I

send out emails. The schedule is also pretty variating so sometimes I work two hours a week, and sometimes fifteen. But I love helping the community and I love the people in the club,” Oikawa said.

1.

2.

PHOTOS COURTSEY OF GWENNETH OIKAWA

In memory of 9/11. 1. Oikawa stands with one of the generals of the national guard. 2. Oikawa and her fellow volunteers showing off their 9/11 memorial.

Band holds annual winter concert

1.

Drummer girl. 1. Saffi Yapp plays the timpani. 2. Wind en-

semble performed “Christmas Spirit” and “Fantasy Carols” at last night’s concert. “Out of all the bands I like wind ensemble the best because everybody in that band has a high level of playing and they are more serious,” senior Ariana Talaie, playing the trumpet, said.

2.

PHOTOS BY CHANDLER ROSS

page 14

features

High Tide

Seizure Procedure

Junior Kerry Shy cured her epilepsy with surgery and no longer has seizures

by Allegra Peelor

2.7 50 1in26 1in10 40

million Americans have epilepsy million people have epilepsy worldwide

70%

people will eventually develop epilepsy people will have at least one seizure

different types of seizures

of seizures have no known cause

ILLUSTRATIONS BY LULU WEGMAN

information from http://www.mayoclinic.org/ and http://epilepsy. about.com/od/Epilepsy-Basics/fl/Epilepsy-Statistics.htm

Shaking, convulsions, tremors. This was junior Kerry Shy’s reality for four years of her life--until July 2013.

Shy had her first seizure in sixth grade and was soon put on many different medications. According to Shy, the medicines which were meant to slow down her brain and prevent her epilepsy, also slowed down her thinking and memory. Eventually her body would adapt to the medications and they would stop having effects on her and thus stop benefitting her.

“In addition to the seizures I had to take a lot of medicine, which all had side effects, and I would have so many seizures a day by the end of it,” Shy said. “They weren’t always the blackout ones but I would be shaking and stuff. I would also do this kind of laugh thing and sometimes it would be small and I could just say I sneezed or hiccupped or something, but sometimes it’d be uncontrollable, lasting for a couple minutes.”

Shy’s mother, Chris Shy, says that she and her husband constantly worried about Shy’s health before the surgery.

“We would worry every day when we sent her to school if she would have seizures,” Mrs. Shy said. “I had to go to school a few times to pick her up because she was having too many seizures. Things can change so quickly.

One minute everything’s fine and the next it’s focused on epilepsy.”

Prior to brain surgery, Shy’s doctors said she would not be able to walk or talk for months following the surgery, so Shy’s parents had hesitations.

“They said she wasn’t going to be able to walk or talk for quite some time so we had to make the big decision of was it worth it, knowing that she had so many seizures before,” Mrs. Shy said. “She was starting to have grand mal seizures, so we knew that was the best decision.”

Shy was “nervous” before the surgery because of the possible repercussions but she ended up walking out of the hospital after only three days of recovery, a “special case.”

“I felt pretty nervous because they were about to cut into my head,” Shy said. “I remember them wheeling me away and then they put me under anesthesia. When I woke up and I had a lot more IVs in me. I found that I could move right away. I felt really sore but then we realized I’m not having any seizures.”

For Mrs. Shy, seeing her daughter walk out of the hospital three days after her head was split open was unlike anything else.

“It was surreal to have her walk out,” Mrs. Shy said. “It was the feeling that we did it--our lives would go back to normal.’”

Now that Shy does not have seizures anymore, she is able to participate in activities that she was not able to before, such as drama. This fall, only a year after brain surgery, Shy performed in Macbeth.

“In ninth grade I teched but I had seizures, which would be embarrassing,” Shy said. “To go on stage and not worry about having a seizure was good.”

Mrs. Shy agrees that Shy has had more opportunities to find out who she really is now that she does not have to worry about having seizures.

“Before [the surgery] we would wonder if she would be able to get through the day without having a seizure,” Mrs. Shy said. “Now we are able to focus on her being a regular teenager. She’s off of a lot of meds, which would slow down her brain, and now she’s becoming more of herself.”

Dec. 19, 2014

page 15

sports

Gore wins state championship

by Yasamin Fazeli

Amber Gore made RUHS history last month when she became the first RUHS student to win the cross country CIF Division II State Championship.

Gore, a senior, won the state final race with a time of seventeen minutes and twenty-two seconds, only nine seconds ahead of the second-place competitor.

“Cross country is three miles, so we had just passed the two mile mark and I started to pull away from the girl in second place and I knew that I had a chance,” Gore said.

“When I pulled away from the two mile mark it became much more of a reality. I told myself, ‘oh you can actually win this’ and I think just that excitement got to me and I just tried to kick it in all the way home.”

Although the outcome of the race was in her favor, the entirety of the race was not easy for Gore.

“Within the first mile, the race seemed to be going out really fast and that’s not usually how I like to start a race out. I like to be a little more conservative so I’ll have something for those two and three mile marks,” Gore said. So when the leader started to pull away from the mile I got really discouraged and I thought, ‘oh maybe you can’t do this’ but I’m glad that I mentally stayed in it because the outcome was favorable.“ After much practice, Gore has trained herself to focus on positive thoughts throughout races.

“It takes a lot of practice and I just have to talk to myself throughout the race and tell myself, ‘okay you can do this. Out with the negative thoughts and in with the positive

thoughts.’”

Coach Julie Ferron is especially proud of Gore for winning the “tough” Division II championship.

“We’ve had CIF and state champions before in track, but this is the first time anyone has ever won it in cross country and it’s quite an accomplishment,” Ferron said. “At this point she is the fastest girl to ever come out of the entire South Bay.” Gore only began cross country sophomore year, but has enjoyed running track since the age of five.

“I truly felt my passion for running when I went out for club track,” Gore said. “Of course, my coaches helped a lot along the way too.”

Gore was on varsity track freshman year, and decided to continue cross country sophomore year.

“She didn’t come up for cross country her freshman year and had no interest,” Ferron said. “She got talked into it by various members of the team as well as the coaches and decided to give it a try her sophomore year.”

Ferron sees Gore’s talent in cross country and believes Gore is a distance runner above anything else.

“She really is a distance runner,” Ferron said.

“That’s what she excels at. That was what she did well in and she came up from the very beginning and made an impact on the team.”

Gore stresses the impact her team and coaches have on her.

“Not many people know cross country as a team sport, but I’m not just running for myself to win, I’m also helping contribute to the team score so running with my teammates, who are like

my sisters, is really important,” Gore said.

Ferron also recognizes the extreme importance of teamwork in cross country and emphasizes Gore’s important leading role on the team.

“You’re really running for each other,” Ferron said.

“Unlike track, which is an individual sport, you run as a team. The top five runners score, so your whole goal is to support your teammates, run as a team, and that’s how your team improves. Amber led our team to such a high place in the state championships.”

Amber also looks up to other runners such as Jordan Hasay, a silver medalist at in the Youth World Championships, to improve on both her mental and physical skills in cross country.

“Jordan Hasay came and talked to my team before state and she was talking about how we need to be able to trust ourselves and don’t have any doubt in ourselves because of all the training we put in this year,” Gore said.

Gore’s coaches and teammates are extremely proud of her for both her Bay League, CIF and State wins.

“We’re all very excited for her and all of her hard work. She’s still in the recruiting process. We’re not sure exactly what school she’s going to be going to but whatever university is lucky enough to get her, they’ve got a star,” Ferron said.

Gore feels very lucky to have ended her cross country season in such a positive way.

“When I stood on the podium, it felt really empowering. I feel really happy that I could end my senior year in cross country like this,” Gore said.

More on Amber Gore...

Fastest 800 meters:

2:10.76

Fastest race: 17:03 at Mt. SAC

Favorite experience:

State meet

What she’ll miss the most:

Racing with her “incredible’ teammates

Advice to future runners:

No matter how hard the training gets, just remember that it will all be worth it in the end.

Beeline. Senior Amber Gore competes in the Mt. SAC meet.

PHOTO BY PETER TRAN

page 16

sports

High Tide

2.

Controlling the court.

1. Sophomore Billy Preston attempts a lay-up during their tournament.

2. Junior Cameron Williams protects the ball 3. RUHS scores during a home game.

1.

Boys basketball steps up

by Tyler Wunderli The basketball team has not quite lived up to their own expectations so far this year and, according to Junior Duncan LomenzoTorres, will need to improve in order to do well in the Tarkanian Classic in Las Vegas this weekend.

Lomenzo-Torres believes they need to work hard if they want to get better.

“We need to get everybody on the same page and have everybody work hard at the same time,” Lomenzo-Torres said.

However, according to Lomenzo-Torres, the team trusts in their ability to improve.

They want to win and be as successful as they have been in former years.

“This year we’ve been sort of struggling in practice, and in the games we’ve been struggling to get wins, but I think we could

become potentially a better team,” Lomenzo-Torres said.

Senior Ryan Reeves believes they are already improving and wants them to keep working and giving their best effort.

“I don’t think we have done as well as we would have liked so far but we are getting better every day. We are learning from the past games and are becoming a better overall team,” Reeves said.

The Tarkanian Classic is a large tournament in Las Vegas with teams from around the country. RUHS wants to play to the best of their abilities to succeed in this nationwide tournament.

“I’m looking forward to the competition in Vegas,” Reeves said. “It’s a national caliber tournament and will definitely be a good test for us.”

Lomenzo-Torres agrees that the teams should be pretty good and pose a challenge to them.

“We’re expecting to face a lot of good competition, so that’s where it’ll be pretty tough to see if we can all come together as a team,” Lomenzo-Torres said.

Overall, the players believe they are able to perform better than they have so far, becuase they feel they have the necessary talent to improve if they keep working. When game time comes, the players know they must play hard and take advantage of their work in practice.

“We need to all work on showing up for the big games and just playing really hard,” Lomenzo-Torres said. “Everyone can pretty much handle the ball well, everybody’s athletic and plays defense well. We can all run,

3.

PHOTOS BY MATTHEW YONEMURA

there’s not one person that’s slower than the next.”

Reeves feels that when the time comes, each they will play as a team and to the best of their ability in order to get the tough win, even though they still need some work.

“I feel like our team is balanced and everyone has the ability to step up when we need them to,” Reeves said. “We need to continue to work on converting defensive stops into baskets, as well as team rebounding on the defensive and offensive ends.”

Both Reeves and Lomenzo-Torres believe that the Tarkanian Classic should prove to be a worthy gauge for how the rest of the season will go.

“I think we are realizing that we can’t take any games for granted,” Reeves said. “We have to play as hard as possible.”

Dec. 19 , 2014

page 17

sports

Girls water polo successfully kicks off season

After starting their season off with a new coach, the team plays up to expectations by placing fourth in the Benson Cup tournament and prepares for Torrance

by Kayla Hiken The girl’s water polo team has been working hard in practice in order to continue doing well this season and for their game against Torrance today.

“I think we are really going to do well. We have been playing really well as a team and we are more united and well rounded this year,” senior Dinah Aiad said.

In practice, they have been conditioning and improving their skills through scrimmaging, such as executing their plays as much as they can, as well as trying to stay focused together as a team.

“To prepare for the game, we are really going to work our plays and shots, but mainly defense. Our strengths as a team are working together and coming out with great intensity. However, some of the things we need to work on is staying focused before and during games, and staying open on offense,” sophomore Mia Furman said.

Along with improving their skills as a team, the girls mentioned some things that each player can do individually to help the team out.

“As individuals, I think that we can all work on getting open for the ball and working on taking our time so we can take good shots,” Furman said.

Based off of past games with Torrance, the girls know that the team has a great coach and that they can’t be underestimated.

“I think going into this game we definitely

PHOTO BY JANELLE HOWE

Successful start.

Team captain senior Dinah Aiad attempts to pass the ball to a teammate during the game against Chadwick last Wednesday.

Boys soccer works on developing younger team

by Jessica Johnson

Focused on the field. Senior Manny

Carillo dribbles the ball down the field. Photo

by Chandler Ross.

With one win, two losses, and one tie, the boys soccer team has faced a tough pre-season, but are very hopeful for the season and upcoming tournament.

Last year the majority of the team was made up of seniors, so the returning players this year were faced with the challenge of rebuilding the team.

“We only have four returning varsity players. Most teams would look at that as a disadvantage, but we have a lot of young, talented players who are filling the spaces our old seniors left wonderfully. That being said, some of the underclassmen are still getting used to the increased physicality of varsity,” junior Ryan Wadhams said.

The boys have the South High Tournament over break and they are facing some of the best teams in the area.

“The first game will be against West High School who are a good example of a challenging team that we will face in this tournament, but I have no doubt that if we play our game we have a good chance to win our games. We will give it our best and hope to advance to the finals,” captain senior Justin Leavitt said.

With five freshmen, four sophomores, five juniors, and seven seniors the team is considered to be very young. Yet, Captain Manny Carrillo believes they can still be a “competitive team”.

Leavitt believes that losing the seniors last year has not affected their outlook on the upcoming season but had only served to “motivate” them to improve upon their record from last season.

In the last game, they played Millikan and tied the team 3-3. This is actually reassuring to the players because Millikan is ranked tenth in the state and according to Carillo it sends a message for just how competitive they can be. “ We have a team of extremely talented individuals, what our team really needs is chemistry and that’s something we are all working hard to achieve for our season,” Leavitt says.

have the speed and communication skills to outplay them. If we put all of what we’ve been practicing together, it should be a good win for us,” sophomore Maddie McCaw said.

Along with their strengths against the Torrance team, the girls have also been working on strategies for this game.

“We are going to go into the game with strong defense and a string counter attack.

We are going to play hard and use what we’ve learned in practice,” Aiad said.

The team is not only preparing for their game against Torrance, but they are also preparing for their games coming up. By winning this game against Torrance, it will help them achieve their goal for later in the season.

“We are all working hard this year to get as many wins as we can and make it to CIF on our own - without a wildcard. All of us have great expectations to win most of our games this year, and knowing how good we are already doing this season, we are well on our way to our goal,” Furman said.

As of now though, the team is excited for their upcoming game against Torrance and believe they are going to do well.

“I think if we really start to get serious about winning, there’s going to be an endless potential for our team this year. Overall, if we play like we have been, we’ll be able to beat Torrance no problem. But you never know, so we’re going to go out trying our hardest,” McCaw said.

Carrillo believes that the team has a very good chance of winning the tournament if they “play their game.”

Practice intensity has increased to get the new players on varsity to get them used to that same intensity on the field eliminating the possibility of a possible loss in CIF because of physicality or conditioning. “ I believe we can adjust and we can have a great season together,” Wadhams said.

The returning and new varsity players are excited about the growth and development this season because of the number of returning varsity players they will have next year.

“The low number of seniors this year promises a strong, veteran team next year,” Wadhams said.

The boys seem to have high hopes and aspirations for their season even with the challenge of a young team “Our team has really come together as a whole. I think we’ve played level with some grade A teams,” Wadhams said. “We were unable to finish our chances this past week on Thursday against Animo and had a few problems in the back that led to a loss. I’m hoping that inspires the guys to come all out for the tournament and win the whole thing.”

page 18

High Tide

sports

Athletes to watch . . .

Wrestling ‘ready’ for Brute Classic

by Mylene Silver

Boys Basketball Billy Preston

“ usHeagives shot

blocking presence on the defensive end and he is able to score from various places on the floor.

”

PHOTO BY MATTHEW YONEMURA

Sophomore Billy Preston acts as a central aspect of the team. Earlier this season, on November 28th, he earned the “Player of the Game” award against St. John Bosco.

-Ryan Reeves, 12 PHOTO BY JANELLE HOWE

Pin him down. Sophomore Jason Fong competes in the wrestling tournament last weekend.

Surf

Basketball to compete in Santa Barbara

Kyle Beatty

by Jason Clebowicz

is “oneKyle of the

best surfers on the team and has really contributed to our wins.

He charges [the waves] and is a cool kid.

PHOTO BY KAMILA AOURAGH

Beatty finished first place in shortboard last week in a meet against South Torrance and has consistently lead Redondo to high place finishes this season.

Wrestling will be competing in the Brute Classic Tournament in La Puente at Bishop Amat High School this weekend.

“We need to work on a few minor things like positioning.

We’re all around good and we seem ready, but we just need more intensity and pressure towards the other team,” junior Josh Martinez said. “We come to practice, and sometimes tournaments, and we might not give it 100%, but we need extra support from our coaches to go and win and do our best.”

Brute Classic is an individual tournament that will be attended by schools throughout the Inland Empire.

“Bishop Amat, the school that’s hosting, always has tough kids. Every single weight class is tough. Long Beach Poly and North View are super tough, and so are John Glen and Los Altos. There are really no schools that are weak,” Coach Arond Schonberg said. “It should be fun, it’ll give the kids an oppor-

tunity to wrestle some decent competition.”

Martinez tries not to feel the pressure before a tournament and is “feeling good” going into Brute Classic.

“Sometimes I don’t feel confident. But what Schonberg says all of the time to us during practice is the first battle we face, is in our minds. We first have to prepare ourselves and make sure we’re ready to go on the mat and wrestle,” Martinez said. “And if we win that mental fight, and tell ourselves that we can go out there and win, then we’ve already won.”

The wrestlers are working on creating less distance with more pressure and intensity, according to Martinez.

“There’s a couple kids that I think are on the border of doing great things. They just need to be more consistent,” Schonberg said. “Nick Webb, our little freshman, has been kind of a stand out. He’s awesome because he listens, he believes in what the coaches have to tell him, and he’s already had his first victory at his very first tournament. The match that he won went to sudden death. That victory ignited our whole team and unified us when we watched how hard he fought.

And here he is, the smallest guy on the team, with the biggest heart.”

According to Martinez, the environment at practices has been “pretty intense”.

“They’re starting to work hard for me in practice. I force them to switch out of their weight class so they get used to wrestling people of different sizes, different shapes, and different levels of strength,” Schonberg said. “I find that when I make them switch, wrestling practice is very productive.”

The competition at Brute Classic is good, but not discouraging, according to Schonberg.

“It’ll be a handful of pretty tough teams. I consider this like a mid level tournament, meaning that you’ll get some kids who aren’t so tough in their weight class, and then you’ll get some really tough kids,” Schonberg said. “This is a good mid level tournament to build them up and build their confidence.”

”

-Hali Honea, 10

After a “frustrating” third place finish in the Battle of the Beach Tournament, girls basketball plans to come out in “full force” for their upcoming games in the Santa Barbara Tournament of Champions.

The tournament will be held at San Marcos and Santa Barbara High Schools.

Returning teams will include the number one team in Ventura county, Ventura High school, and nationally ranked Sierra Canyon High School.

With an overall record of 3-1, including an overtime win by four points and loss by 1, the team plans on eliminating errors made at the Battle of the Beach Tournament.

“Coming into the tournament, our first week of practice was very sluggish,” senior Tori Lee said. “It showed in our first game when we started off really slow and without any excitement or aggressiveness. But we eventually gained it back by the end of the match and scraped out a win in overtime. From then on I think we realized how important it was to keep up our intensity through start to finish.”

Despite initial struggles, the team finished with only one loss while forward Ami Nyingifa and point guard Nao Shiota

PHOTO BY CHANDLER ROSS

Ballin. In a tournament earlier this season, senior Tori Lee attempts to steal the ball from an opponent.

earned All-Tournament awards.

Their first game will be against Lakewood’s St. Joseph High School this weekend and the tournament will carry over into the following week of vacation.

“I’m excited to be able to return and competitive at such a competitive event. This year I feel strongly about our chances of winning the tournament and the coachability of our team to learn from earlier games,” Lee said.

Dec. 19, 2014

page 19

sports

Surf defeats South Torrance

by Zach Hatakeyama

The surf team beat South Torrance 103-47 last week.

Sophomores Kyle Beatty and Tate Curran both took first place in boys shortboard and sophomore Hali Honea taking first place in girls shortboard, along with a number of other competitors placing in second and third.

The team turned out to be successful despite rough conditions in the water.

“The waves were four to six feet with the occasional sets

that were really tough to paddle through,” Honea said. “All of the surfers did a great job despite the wave size.”

Even though they had practice before the competition, much of the team was not prepared for the conditions they faced.

“Some of the competitors have surfed [in water] like that before, but as a whole, the team hasn’t gotten the chance to practice in those conditions,” Honea said.

The team places some of their success on the competitors that know how to surf on such conditions.

“That morning was an unusually big day for a contest. I assume we won the bodyboard heat because Kyle [Beatty] will go on anything,” Curran said.

Even though he placed first in his heat, Beatty still set a goal for personal improvement.

“I didn’t really do a real turn the whole heat. It was pretty difficult out in the water for me,” Beatty said.

Sophomore Frank Volk is proud of his team for performing through their nerves and the rough conditions “Our shredders had determination in their eyes and they knew what they had to do - face fear. They charged the waves and did what they do best: got fully covered by nature itself,” Volk said. “We smoked the competition and I look forward to seeing them rip even harder in the future.”

The surf team is looking forward to their contest with Palos Verdes High School and the All Stars Contest at the end of the season.

“We just need to surf, have fun, and stay confident,” Honea said. “We also wanted to thank the administrators for coming to support us as well.”

Beatty believes that if the team continues on this streak, they will remain successful.

“I think the team did everything we could- we did pretty well,” he said. “If we keep surfing contests like [this] one, we could easily be the best surf team n the South Bay.”

Shred the gnar. 1. Sophomore Emma Waldinger com1.

2.

petes in a shortboard competition earlier this season. 2.

Sophomore Tate Curran surfs in the shortboard competition, that he placed first in, last week.

PHOTO BY KAMILA AOURAGH

Girls soccer beats Santa Monica

by Adam Yorke

Last Saturday, girls soccer defeated Santa Monica 2-1, increasing their record to 7-1-1.

“We just wanted to go out there and show them who was the better team and that we shouldn’t have tied. In the second half we put a lot of pressure on them, forcing the other team to make defensive mistakes,” senior Marissa Marshall said.

The team attributes much of their success to Coach Shelly Marsden.

“Shelly has taken our communication skills to a whole different level. She emphasizes that we should make the little things count because we are all team players,” freshman Savannah Martinez said.

Marshall appreciates how Marsden is a coach that listens to the player’s voices.

“She asks us captains what we want to do or what we think we need to work on in practice which really helps us see for ourselves what the flaws in our game are. She’s a part of our success, but I think the biggest reason is everyone just coming out together as a unit every game. We trust eachother out there and that’s huge,” Marshall said.

RUHS started off the season strong and believes that winning league and possibly CIF is a very attainable goal.

“We’ve just been putting a lot of goals in the back of the net. Our defense has been pretty solid too. Overall though, I think we are just super confident out on the field. We know we are a good team and can compete with anyone and having that mindset really works out for the best,” Marshall said Their first league game will be on Jan. 13 against Inglewood, but senior Kristina Williamson predicts their hardest competition will be local rivals Mira Costa and Peninsula.

“We plan to come out hard for every minute. We will need patience, heart, and adversity in order to make a statement

for ourselves. I believe in every one of my teammates and I know we have all the qualities and talent to go far this year,” Williamson said.

Over break the team will be training regularly with their last preseason games occurring at the beginning of January.

“This team is different from the years I’ve been playing and I think it’s because we all contribute a special talent to the team. We all are very different players with many strengths that mix really well together. That’s ultimately been the key to our success so far,” Williamson said.

Fancy footwork. Senior Michaela Marin gets the pass off before getting side tackled.

PHOTO BY CHANDLER ROSS

Girls volleyball makes RUHS history

by Chris Paludi The girls volleyball team won the CIF State Championship last week, defeating Pitman in the final in three sets.

“The best team, the team that wins, has to have the best companionship and teamwork and love for each other, and I think our team was by far the best at those things,” junior Megan Rice said.

Coming off of a “dramatic” semifinal game comeback win against Mater Dei, the team felt confident.

“After we were pushed so far in that game but still won, we weren’t going to the final to lose. I think that we had the mindset that we were going to win,” Rice said.

Rice said that coach Tommy Chaffins has been one

of their chief motivators throughout the season.

“We were always trying to get better, every single time we got into practice,” Rice said. “Chaffins says that ‘you’re either going to get better or you’re going to get worse, so make sure it’s the right one’ and we really try to follow that.”

Chaffins says his love for the team stems largely from the girls’ competitive spirit.

“The thing that I preach, because they know how factual this is, is that we have a competitive greatness on our team,” Chaffins said. “These girls are so competitive: any time there’s a drill or competition, it’s on.”

Despite being an “excellent” team all season, according to Chaffins, the team never stopped trying to improve.

“Obviously if you could, you’d win every single point, and so we really have a mindset that we can always do better,” Rice said. “That mentality comes from every single girl on the team -- we’re all super competitive and we all have that mindset. That season-long mentality of constantly needing to get better led to us dominating the championship game like we did, and I think we left no doubt in our minds or those of anyone else that we were the best team there.”

Chaffins spoke about how much coaching the first team to win the state title means to him personally.

“For us to be the first girls team to win the state title, the first team to win a state title in the highest division, is unbelievably special to me,” Chaffins said.

“I’m glad it was this group.”