Class Acts

Luke Vasquez is Spreading His Artistic Wings

CLASS ACTS

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Luke Vasquez says he’s been drawing for as long as he can remember.

“My dad draws a lot,” said Vasquez, “And I remember watching him draw and thinking how cool it was. So, I started trying to recreate the characters I saw on TV and in video games.”

While the focus of much of his art continues to be those kinds of character creations, his art teacher recently challenged him to tackle a new medium for the school district’s art contest.

“It’s called a ‘landscape Polaroid painting’ because it looks like a little Polaroid picture,” said Vasquez. “I painted a vacation spot in the aspect ratio of a small, square card stock using watercolors.”

The scene Vasquez painted was of a spot at Broken Bow Lake where he and his family had vacationed. While the scene was a familiar one, the project was particularly challenging because he didn’t have much experience with watercolors.

“I’ve used acrylic and color pencils a lot, but this was really my first time working with watercolors,” said Vasquez.

Even though it was his first time working in that medium, Vasquez walked away with a first place prize. While he was happy to have won, he says there’s still a lot of room for improvement.

“There were definitely some things I could have done better,” said Vasquez. “The grass didn’t look very good, but I was really happy with how the water and the reflections on the lake turned out.”

Vasquez says that art will continue to play a big role in his life. Among his first high school courses as a freshman is a graphic design class. But he’s already looking beyond high school and college at a career that will benefit greatly from his artistic passions

“I want to try and get a job as a video game designer and developer,” said Vasquez. “I’ve already been making video games and it does require some art.”

Now that junior high is in the rear-view mirror, Vasquez says he wants to make sure he gives credit to those who have helped him so far.

“My parents obviously encourage and support me,” said Vasquez. “I also want to give a shout-out to my art teacher, because she really challenged and helped me in junior high.”

SPORTS BY ROB MORRIS

Jaguars and Sabercats Snag Backto-Back State Championships

It was a splendid spring season for Moore Public Schools athletic teams. The Westmoore High School men's track team won their second consecutive state 6A championship, running away from the field in Ardmore. And the Southmoore High School slow-pitch softball team claimed a 6A title at Hall of Fame Stadium to go along with their 6A state fastpitch title from this past fall.

Coaches for both teams say these achievements are rare and require a lot of work.

Sabercat head coach James Lingo says the slow pitch team came together at just the right time.

"It's easy sometimes to let your guard down in the spring. But these girls stayed focused throughout," said Lingo. "You know, we had our bumps in the road like any normal team does. That included getting whipped by a pretty good Washington team on our home field. But the girls rallied in the end."

Senior Taylor Gleim says a team-only meeting helped spark their post-season rampage.

"We had a meeting in the locker room, and we all came together," said Gleim. "We talked about what we're going to work on, and this is what we need to do to win. We wrote it all down and put everything on the board. And ever since that talk, we skyrocketed."

Lexi Hernandez, also a senior, says that talk helped a lot. But she adds that this group of players has been together so long it added a layer of trust to the mix.

"A lot of us even grew up playing together," said Hernandez. "I feel like it's good that we have done that, and we all can trust each other, and we know what we're all capable of doing. We just know how to lean on each other when we kind of need it."

A few miles to the north of the Sabercats, the Westmoore track team was gearing up to defend their 6A state championship from 2021. Senior Angel Hedrick said the team headed into the post-season knowing they had a target on their backs.

"You know, we had people tell us everybody's coming after you now," said Hedrick. They kept saying it was going to be harder. But really, it was a breeze."

That may sound like bragging, but remember that Dizzy Dean once said, "It ain't braggin' if you go out and to it."

And the Jaguars went out and did it, winning the 2022 6A state track title with a whopping total of 165 points. Head coach Tim Grantham says that's a remarkable point total.

"We scored 165 points at the State Meet, the most ever scored at the 6A level," said Grantham. "I suppose that speaks to the depth of our program we've got. It's not just hundred-meter sprinters. We also two-milers, we've got hurdles, and everything in between."

Senior Kevin Williams says the goal of a back-to-back title was always on his and his teammates' minds.

"It's crazy to say, but it's always been on our minds from the beginning of last year," said Williams. "It's a great goal to achieve and a great feeling. But we did work awfully hard to get back here."

Senior Dev King says the feeling of a back-to-back team title is one he'll never forget.

"I glad we did this again," said King. "Especially being a senior, it makes it really nice to have two championships. That's something people will never forget."

And the lone junior on the Jaguar relay team, Xavier Simpkins, shares the same appreciation as his teammates for the rare back-to-back achievement.

"I just tried to do what I could for the team and help out because I didn't really do as good as I wanted last year," said Simpkins. "But we still won last year, too. And this year we just came back. You know, we had to do it again.

Senior Dev King says the feeling of a back-toback team title is one he’ll never forget.

“I glad we did this again,” said King. “Especially being a senior, it makes it really nice to have two championships. That’s something people will always remember.

And the lone junior on the Jaguar relay team, Xavier Simpkins, shares the same appreciation as his teammates for the rare back-to-back achievement.

“I just tried to do what I could for the team and help out, because last year, I didn't really do as good as I wanted,” said Simpkins. “But we still won last year, too. And this year we just came back. You know, we had to do it again.