Dance Team

Panther Prowler • Feb. 12, 2021

CVUSD updates sports information

Emerson Fuentes-Alabanza Graphic Artist

Golfers look forward to approaching season Nandini Patro Staff Writer Parker Bohl Staff Writer

Swing- Riley O’ Leary, NPHS golfer and junior, gets ready to hit some balls on the course. “As for playing in the spring rather than the fall, I’m actually looking forward to it. We have to walk the courses, and it’s usually really hot during our fall season, so the cooler weather might be a nice change.” O’Leary said. Riley O’Leary/With Permission

Many athletes have been disappointed because of cancelled seasons, but there might just be a chance for the Newbury Park golfers to get back into the sport they love. Although recent changes have forced golf courses to change their usual model, they have been able to continue to operate.

With the new season, many adjustments have been made by both the courses and the players. Riley O’Leary, junior, is one of the eager golfers on the high school team. “COVID is probably going to bring many new regulations. But just like a lot of the other changes that this past year has brought, we’ll just have to adjust to the new normal,” O’Leary said. As of now, golfers are simply practicing on their own since nothing has been officially organized yet. The details of the golf season are arranged by the golf course companies and have not been released yet. No tryouts or team practices have been scheduled either but circumstances may change within the next month due to decreasing case counts.

Though COVID-19 has caused some difficulties, golfers are optimistic about the possible upcoming season. “A lot of [golf courses] have been able to make accommodations, like ensuring spaces between people practicing on the range,” O’Leary said. “Also when you’re playing out on the course, there is a lot of space and not a lot of people, so most courses have been able to open up for playing still.”

Molly McNulty, junior, is another golfer who misses the typical golf season. “COVID has prevented my team from playing together and has kept me from being able to take lessons,” McNulty said. “But at the same time, I have had more room in my schedule to go to the driving range and play on the course with my friends and family, which are still open since golf is a contactless sport.”

Due to these changes, it is unlikely more than two teams will compete at the same course at once, but they will be able to play regardless. Michael Godfrey, assistant principal of athletics, said, “You know, golf is so different… than every other sport. I think they will be able to compete. I don’t know if it’ll be in the exact same capacity where there are multiple teams all going together, it may just be one team against another, but it really shouldn’t be affected too much.”

15 Dance team earns its first virtual win

Dhruv Patel Staff Writer

The NPHS dance team competed for the first time this school year on the weekend of Jan. 30, earning first place in the concept video category. Completely virtual, the competition consisted of video submissions of dance numbers. Despite their first place finish, the dance team encountered numerous difficulties throughout the process and have had to make adjustments to what they do to prepare and compete.

With the dance team’s first competition, they worked hard to compose a memorable video to impress the judges. However, their vision was disrupted when Ventura County returned to a lockdown with stricter regulations. “Before winter break, we were in phase two, which meant the whole team could practice together,” Cameo Carolan, NPHS dance coach, said. “So we were planning this really cool like, concept video with lighting and really awesome stuff. And then we went back to phase one, which means they were pods of 10, and those groups can never interchange.”

The team would normally practice all together in the girl’s athletic room, but this is not possible due to COVID-19. Mia Nelson, a sophomore who has been dancing for 10 years, is adjusting to the new changes. “As of now, we are practicing in pods in-person at the school outside the GAR or over Zoom,” Nelson said. With the practice restrictions, the team can only practice virtually or with a limited number of people in-person, which is a drastic change from a typical season.

Carolan is working to figure out how to continue dancing with the new restrictions. “It’s kind of challenging, we have a mix of in-person and virtual practices. So like today, we have one pod meeting with a coach. So I think that’s nine kids,” Carolan said. The team has also encountered limitations dancing due to being unable to practice in their normal area.

Jenna Mahoney, senior, has been dancing for 8 years, and is slowly acclimating with the changes. “Pre-COVID, we practiced indoors with no restrictions on how close we could touch. It was much easier being on the GAR floor and in front of a mirror,” Mahoney said.

The team is currently trying to find new ways to practice and compete. With the team being separated into pods, it is difficult to practice as a whole group, but Carolan came up with an innovative way to keep the kids safe while practicing together. “What we’re trying to do this week on Wednesday and Friday is actually get both pods to show up,” Carolan said. “But be distanced enough apart either on the football field or on the quad that I can still play the music and they can dance together but separate.”

Competing in virtual competitions is not optimal, but the dance team continues to impress at competitions. The dance team continued their streak and received first place in many categories in their second virtual competition. “Over [Feb. 6th-7th], we had our second virtual competition, where we received 1st place in X-small jazz, 1st place for our concept video, 2nd place in extra small contemporary, 2nd place in contemporary duo and 3rd place in small jazz,” Mahoney said.

The team is staying hopeful for the future and preparing to show their talent at upcoming competitions. “We have virtual competitions that we’re doing right now, and then starting February 20, hopefully everything will be okay for us to have our first in-person competition at Westlake High School,” Carolan said.

Mask up- Mia Nelson, Drew Caswell and Lucy Garrett, sophomores, pose for a photo during their outdoor dance rehearsal. “We have done a very good job adapting to COVID. We are very strict on following guidelines to make sure everyone is safe,” Jenna Mahoney, senior said. Their alterations to their practices are working, as they have won in all the virtual competitions they have been a part of. Cameo Carolan/ With Permission

Football team excels academically Hayden Meixner Staff Writer

The GPAs of this year’s football players prove that NPHS athletes are among the most hard working people out there. Juggling academic work and keeping in tip-top shape is a hard task, but the football team has shown that it is not impossible. Although COVID-19 has kept the athletes from practicing and playing games as a whole team, it has not put a dent in the athletes’ motivation to be the best at what they do.

The football players’ GPAs this school year have been nothing short of stellar, with the average GPA being a 3.34 on the varsity team. “Being a student-athlete, student comes first and that’s something that we really harp on, and are just really proud of the effort that these guys have been able to put in,” Jason Klein, football coach, said. The football athletes are very motivated to be the best versions of themselves both academically and physically.

Trent Dagan, senior and football athlete, has been playing football at NPHS since his freshman year and has kept a high GPA throughout his high school career due to his work ethic. “Just don’t be lazy. Anyone can do it. It’s easy to go hang out with your friends or play video games instead of annotating an article or doing a lab report, you just have to have discipline,” Dagan said.

CDC guidelines state that Ventura County must be in the orange tier for football season to take place, but this has not stopped the team from practicing virtually and in-person. “Now we’re back to kind of being in groups of 15. So we’re just trying to make the best we can out of what we’ve got,” Klein said.

Kyle Mahon, senior, has his fingers crossed that his team will be able to play for his last season in high school. “‘I’m hoping that [there’s] going to be the actual season [where we’re] actually going to get games. I know that there’s plenty of other people that are wishing the same thing, along with me,” Mahon said.

Mahon, as well as the rest of the team, are proud of the accomplishments they have made this year. “I’d also like to add how proud and happy I am about how well our team has held together on the field and performed academically,” Mahon said.

Touchdown- Football athletes gather at Peppertree Park for practice. They stand six feet apart, adhering to social distance guidelines. “You form strong friendships with each person you play with, so when you translate that to the classroom it makes everything you work on together much more efficient and smooth,” Kyle Mahon said. Kyle Mahon/ With Permission