LH Sports by The Little Hawk

Sports

November 3rd, 2017

A Sport of His Own On 8B

PHOTOS BY ADDY SMITH

2B SPORTS

THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | NOVEMBER 3, 2017 Preview

UPCOMINGEVENTS

Nov. GIRLS 3 SWIMMING

CrossCountry Wraps Up

Freshmen To Watch

Four athletes from the Class of 2021 look to contribute to City High programs.

State Meet Marshalltown YMCA

Nov. 8

NCAA SIGNING EVENT

4:30pm City High Commons

Nov. 19

7 Volleyball

5 Stopped at Second Round

Nov. 28

Team hopes eason long prepartion and last minute attention to details

#10 ranked Bettendorf takes down the Little Hawks in three sets to end their State tournament run.

FALL SPORTS BANQUET Fighting Through City High School

Nov. 21

Girls Swimming Prepares for State

BOWLING Colonial Lanes 3:15 pm

BOYS SWIMMING

CR Washington High School 6pm

Cheerleading Aims for Next Level

Frustration Small numbers and lack of size contribute to first losing season for football in three years.

On the Upward Swing

A Sport of His Own

Fencer Joseph Bennett decided to stray away from traditional school sports and do his own thing.

Boys Golf Breaks five-year old record and manages to have fun doing so.

Best Moments of the Fall

A LETTER FROM YOUR EDITOR Addy Smithl Hello Friends, You may or may not have noticed that since the last time we encountered, the temps have dropped to the level that us Iowans refer to as “freezing”. If it’s 45 degrees or below we’re past the cold threshold and onto freezing! With that being said, it was very wise of you to pick up a copy of the November edition Little Hawk to snuggle up with. When you’re finished reading it you could use every single one of its 48 finished pages (surprise! we did it!)

as a blanket. The CMYK ink is certified insulation and much better than any department store polar fleece or polyester. Although you may be currently reading Of Mice and Men or Postville, the Little Hawk is one reading material that you can actually look forward to. In this edition you will find stories about four outstanding freshman athletes, a look into a sport not often talked about, a glance into the cheerleading team’s desires for improvement, and pictures from the best moments this fall has seen. Before I sign out I owe

a huge shoutout to a special dude. Although we may be mistaken for twins more than we’d like to admit, I am so grateful for my little brother Egan’s help. He’s not even on staff but graciously wrote some wonderful stories for me and took some crazy pictures! I might as well take this time to encourage you reading this to come and join my team as well. Unlike eating those last six Oatmeal creme pies or waking up too late to get a spot in the upper lot, this is one decision you won’t regret. That’s all I got. See ya next time!

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SPORTS 3B

THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | NOVEMBER 3, 2017

30th Year, 11th Place The Girls XC team capped off a season filled with first times by continuing a decades-long tradition. By Sylvia Gidal

Esti Brady ‘20 sprints to the finish during the State Meet. Brady placed 40th overall. PHOTO BY SIMEON SMITH Although it came with many challenges, the City High Women’s Cross-Country team was able to reach the moment where they were toeing the line at the State Meet in Fort Dodge for the 30th year in row. This legacy of not only the state tradition but of the value of hard work and perseverance, is what the team has been especially showing throughout this past season. Co-Head Coach Ryan Ahlers has been looking for and noticing this in his athletes this season. “I’d say overall significant improvement is something I’ve been really seeing,” Ahlers said. “Girls making sure that they are holding themselves accountable for working hard and doing the things that you need to do in order to become a better distance runner. That is really enjoyable for me and for Lynn to watch as coaches.” The girls started off in late August at the IMS invitational. Ever since then they have gradually been improving in both times and places. The JV team started at IMS with a win and continued that position for seven out of their eight meets.

The JV girls kept a consistent rhythm for competition while improving on their own times. “I would say the weekend going from the Super meet to Sterling I thought was kind of a turning point in our season,” said Ahlers. “The Divisional meet was also very good and solid. We had a lot of season’s bests and PRs.” Like the JV, the Varsity group also started strong. They had a few bumps along the way but they believe that no matter what happens, their effort and support of each other is what matters in the end. Varsity runner Bridget Brown ‘18, thinks about this as she finishes her final high school cross country season. “Last year I had a really epic season,” Brown said. “So I came into this season expecting more of myself than what I really got. But I do think effort-wise, I gave it all I had. I think I was a pretty important part of the team which I am very proud of. We’ve overcome a lot of obstacles and I think if we’re trying our best, no matter what happens, it’s gonna turn out okay.” It was unsure what would be needed for the team to qualify for state this year and continue the 30 year legacy. The girls found it at the dis-

trict meet on October 18th at City High’s home course, Ashton. Esti Brady ‘20 feels like they all clicked and got it in time for state. “At our meet at districts, we really all came together and performed as well as we could have as a team,” Brady said. “I think that that gave us a huge confidence boost for state.” On top of the usual hardships involved with cross country, this year broke a record for the number of girls on the team. With over 90 athletes, the coaching staff emphasized pushing the girls to give a complete effort and not to stop the drive. “I’d say the biggest challenge is always just putting in the work throughout the whole season,” said Ahlers. “This is the biggest team ever in City High Girl’s history so that was pretty cool and that’s a fun challenge. The logistics of practices and making sure everyone’s putting in the work. I would say towards the end, at districts, that was a challenge to qualify for the 30th year in a row and we did.” At the State Meet in Fort Dodge, the Little Hawks placed eleventh as a team. Amelia Morrow ‘18 led all finishers with a 23rd place finish.

Anna Lindower ‘19 competes at the State Meet. PHOTO BY SIMEON SMITH

A note to XC By Simeon Smith OPINION One of the best quotes I have ever heard is, “real athletes run miles not yards.” That is what we do here in cross-country. The top tier runners do upwards of 40 miles a week. Even in doing that, no runner can reach their full potential without summer running, where average runners turn into stars. Cross-country is a very tough sport that at times leaves you with nothing left, yet everyone on the team still gets up and runs again the next day. Maybe it is the running, maybe the coaches or the camaraderie of the team. I have run track and cross-country, swam, and played baseball. Even with all of these sports I have never felt more of a love for my fellow teammates than I have in cross-country. When I asked my teammates what their favorite part of cross country was, Caden Turnbough 20’ said it was, “It’s one big family.” Even Quenton Max ‘18, the top runner on the team, said, “It’s all about the team. It’s super fun team to be a part

of.” Cross-country is not about who wins and who loses. It is about making it as a team. I have run cross country since 8th grade and gone to every race. The person who gets the most cheering isn’t the first place runner, isn’t the second, not even the third, but the last person. Not only do teammates cheer, but everyone does. At the Pleasant Valley race this year one of my teammates hurt his leg, but was determined to finish strong. Seeing him come down that final stretch was amazing. Every City High boy and girl was running alongside him. As we passed people sitting on the side they joined in too. This is what cross- country is all about. To build that camaraderie, we have tons of team activities, but the two that we love the most are Frisbee and our team dinners at Zio’s. During the summer after we ran anywhere from 3-7 miles we will play Frisbee. Not only did the current runners enjoy this but we had former runners like Michael Taylor and Matt Dodge come to play as well as future runners from the

“WE DON’T JUST RUN MILES, WE RUN MILES AS A FAMILY.” SIMEON SMITH ‘19

Quenton Max ‘18 was the only State qualifier for the boys team. He finished 83rd. PHOTO BY SIMEON SMITH

South East team. The second best thing the cross-country team has to offer is our team dinner at Zio Johno’s, more commonly known among the runners as “ZIOS”. Walking through the halls at school passing another runner you would hear the joyful screams of “ZIOS” over and over. Every night before a meet, right after practice, we all head over to Zio’s to eat their spaghetti dinner. It has a huge salad, huge spaghetti and half a loaf of garlic bread. We would fill almost the entire restaurant. We even gave them our team’s meet list, so they would know when we would come, because without it it could take them all night to feed so many hungry boys. Many of the seniors’ best memories come from this tradition. Sadly we did not qualify for state, but, to us, the winning and losing doesn’t matter because we don’t just run miles, we run miles as a family.

anie Perrill’s experience learning to love crosscountry was gradual. She has grown up doing road races and trail runs and feels she has been running all of her life, but it wasn’t until seventh grade when she started running on a team that she realized the passion she had for the sport. As a freshman on the Women’s Cross Country team this season, Perrill has proven her ability to run with girls two, and even three, years her senior. “As a freshman that’s something that all the girls and coaches have communicated to me, that I am capable of running with the varsity pack. I hear the words “you’ve earned it” all the time and that’s really uplifting and encouraging when I may be a little scared and skeptical of what I can accomplish.” Beginning the season placing in the top 15 in several freshman/sophomore meets, Perrill then elevated to running extended varsity towards the end of the season. Perrill finished her season as an alternate for the State meet. “At the beginning of the cross country season I wanted to run a varsity race and to help get our team to state - both of those goals have been achieved.” Although Perrill acknowledges that “cross country is an individual sport that requires a lot of mental and physical toughness”, she also knows that having a team makes the experience more enjoyable. After all, the support of her teammates is what drew her to the sport initially. “You’re bettering yourself but you’re also bettering your team by pushing them to be the best they can be, I love knowing that when I’m not feeling my best there is someone else that’s feeling the same way, but they are still giving it their all.” Perill may just be at the beginning of her City High running career, but she doesn’t plan on reserving her talents for her upperclassmen years. “There’s no time but the present to push your limits and test your abilities.”

CROSS-COUNTRY

JANIE PERRILL

“In order to be successful at swimming you have to bring a good attitude to the pool. You also have to commit to a lot of practices a week with dryland (workout outside the pool) and the weight room.” Although Yahashiri says that there are many times when she wishes that she would have more time to spend with her friends outside of school, the results of her labor make her commitment worthwhile. "When you’re at a meet and beat your goal time or PR, that's the best feeling.” In Yahashiri’s first high school swimming season, she has already made her mark. She is a part of the team’s best relays and consistently puts up the team’s top three times in each individual event. Not only does Yahashiri excel in the pool, but in the classroom and on the stage as well. “Before I graduate [I want] to try to have a 4.0 GPA while going to state swim every year I'm at City. I want to make All-State band and SEIBA jazz band in trumpet.”

round the time when Michael Phelps won four gold and two silver medals at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, another swimming great was just getting started. Rika Yahashiri began her fruitful career at the ripe age of eight. She originally began at the Mercer Aquatic Center swimming competitively for the Iowa City Eels, but after a season switched over to welcoming tides of the Campus Recreation and Wellness Center to swim for IFLY. Since then, Yahashiri has spent most days of her year breathing chlorine. Yahashiri’s mentality makes it possible for her to maintain this lifestyle.

SWIMMING

RIKA YAHASHIRI

4B SPORTS

PHOTO COURTESY OF RIKA YAHASHIRI

PHOTO BY JACOB STRATHEARN

PHOTO COURTESY OF RAPHAEL HAMILTON

By Addy Smith

The Class of 2021 offers an abundance of athletic promise, including these four athletes.

PHOTO BY EGAN SMITH

FRESHMEN ATHLETES TO WATCH

THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | NOVEMBER 3, 2017

ost third graders are just learning to tell time and experimenting with chapter books. Raphael Hamilton was learning how to play football at the same time. Starting his career off with the Iowa City East (ICE) football league in 3rd grade, he experimented with being lineman, fullback, and linebacker before moving to quarterback in 7th grade. This year, Hamilton played starting quarterback on the combined freshmansophomore squad. “I’ve been learning a lot from the older guys. My best decisions this year were to hand off the ball to Tonka Hickman who had something like 25 rushing touchdowns behind great blocking from our line.” Hamilton played City High baseball over the summer and is looking forward to basketball and track later this year. One of his favorite parts about sports, and football in general, is the team environment. “We’ve been through a lot as a team, and it’s great to pick each other up after a tough game, and share each other’s successes. It’s not possible to be successful as an individual in football unless everyone on the team buys in and does his job. We started to come together as a team this year and to see a little bit of success.” Hamilton is willing to put in the work necessary to build off of that glimpse of success for future seasons. “Over the next year, I’d like to get bigger, faster, and stronger, and improve my decision making. Since our numbers are down, I’d also like to recruit a few more guys to join us next year.” A regular attendee of City High football games since he was four years old, Hamilton has bled red and white since a young age. “It’s a special atmosphere on Bates Field under the lights with the marching band and all the fans, and it’s a privilege to represent City High and get a chance to play there.” Despite the varsity team’s 2-7 record this season, Hamilton has high hopes for the City High Football program in the upcoming years. “I’d like to dirty up Liberty High’s shiny new uniforms and admire the Boot in the City High trophy case for the next three years. I think that if we stick together as a team and work hard that we have a chance to be competing for State Championships.”

FOOTBALL

RAPHAEL HAMILTON

eemed the “fastest kid at Kirkwood Elementary School” by his teachers and peers, Blessings Pongo has been known all his life for his speed. Pongo hopes to contribute that speed to the City High program this spring. Although he doesn’t run in the off season, Pongo has thought about joining a local track club to develop his speed and become stronger for the school season. Despite the fact that speed is typically thought of as something you’re either born with or you’re not, competitors like Pongo understand that what makes a good runner extends beyond natural ability. “Running the right way and doing what my coaches tell me based on how I should run the race or relay really helps me a lot.” Pongo will join sprinters like Zach Jones ‘18 and Max DePrenger ‘19 on the track in a few months, and Pongo hopes to be right up with them. He has his sights set on accomplish big things during his time here at City. “Before I graduate is just to be remembered as one of the best athletes to do this sport and also my other goal is to at least break one or more school long time track record.”

TRACK & FIELD

BLESSINGS PONGO

THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | NOVEMBER 3, 2017

GOLF

FOOTBALL

Fighting Through Frustration Small numbers and lack of size contribute to first losing season in three years.

Boys Golf breaks five year record, and has fun while doing it.

series of obstacles led to an atypical season for the two and seven Little Hawk Football team. Zach Jones ‘18 believes his team dealt with disbelief from the press. “We overcame a lot of doubt as reporters wrote us off in almost every game,” Jones said. In addition to external barriers, when it came to game time, the Little Hawks faced many physical barriers as well. “We can scheme all we want, but in a physical game it’s hard to win some [games] when the other guy is just stronger and more powerful than we are,” Head Coach Dan Sabers said. Quarterback Bryce Hunger ‘18, is also frustrated with the team’s numbers this year. “We had to deal with not having a very big team given the fact that not many people went out, but it is what it is.” Although the team’s lack of size was a challenge throughout the season, Coach Sabers believed his players dealt with their circumstances. “That was one of the biggest challenges we had to overcome and kids responded very well to that.” Coming off of a playoff-advancing season last year, but having lost key members of that squad, this year’s team was forced to scramble to fill some large gaps. “Well we certainly wanted to win more, there’s no question about that. We’re just not used to 2-7 seasons,” Sabers said. The team might not have been satisfied with their record, but players like Zach Jones remained motivated by other factors. “I can’t say that I’m satisfied with how the season turned out, but I can say I’m satisfied with my team, coaches, and players for sticking

On the Upward Swing By Egan Smith

By Egan Smith

Marquel Poole ‘18 escapes a defender. PHOTO BY EGAN SMITH it out and fighting hard throughout the whole season ends. season.” Jones said.“We actually came together “You look at the Josey Jewell’s of the world and well as a team this year and built a strong familythey are just constantly competing. I want to like relationship.” talk to the kids a lot about how you compete no Instead of getting discouraged by their winmatter where it is, whether it’s in the classroom loss ratio, this year’s squad chose to celebrate the or against yourself. .” small victories along the way. Zach Jones displayed that competitiveness “Winning homecoming is always special.” by breaking four records this season: most Sabers said. receptions in a game, most yards and receptions In addition to believing in praising his team’s in a career, and most receptions in a singlesmall victories, Coach Sabers recognizes that season. He ended the season with 77 receptions larger life lessons can be drawn from football. for 1,045 yards and 10 touchdowns. He wants the values his players develop on the “[It] felt great to know that you’re number one football field to stay with them even after the in your specific category,” Jones said.

Volleyball Stopped at Second Round

A three set loss to #10 ranked Bettendorf ended the Little Hawks’ run for State.

SPORTS 5B

The City High golf team is very familiar with the process of repetition and consistency. “We were at the golf course 4 days a week over the summer,” Devin Rutt ‘19 said. Rutt stresses that it is very important to get in the habit of practicing with intent and not just going through the motions. “Learning how to practice was a big step for us. You can go out to the range and hit balls with no purpose for an hour or you can hit balls at the range for 15 minutes and practice with purpose,” Rutt said. Because of their dedication, the team had plenty of feats this season. One of the most prized accomplishments was beating Cedar Rapids Prairie on their home course. Winston Lui ‘18 believed his team was a clear underdog in the meet but because they did everything right that day they came out beating Prairie. “Beating Prairie surprised everyone at the meet. On the ride home we were all laughing and having fun,” Lui said. Rutt believes the atmosphere his team has created helps them practice and train. “It’s such a fun team aspect that we’ve created. Great team to hangout with and have a good time. We are also able to hang out with each other and have a good time,” Rutt said. Leadership from the upperclassmen was a main component of the team’s success this year. As one of the leaders on the team Rutt makes sure the underclassmen aren’t “screwing around” and makes sure that they feel welcomed. “You have to make sure they’re engaging with the team and not just messing around at practice,” Rutt said. The team also brushed up on the records this year by shooting the lowest they’ve ever shot in 5 years at Waterloo. “Every team has their good and bad days, but knowing that we did the best in the school is a great feeling,” Lui said.

By Addy Smith

irst, they took down Davenport West. Up The Little Hawks bounced next was an Iowa high back and made the second set school volleyball powthe closest of the night. erhouse, Bettendorf. A trip to “We each had strong mothe U.S. Cellular Center for ments and times when things the State tournament was on were just off. Unfortunately the line. our errors probably cost us “Heading into the game a few sets,” Law said. “Betwe knew it was going to be a tendorf was able to capitalize challenge. But playing them on our errors and even when multiple times earlier in the we had strong attacks, their season we saw that we were defense was excellent. They able to play with them. I was rarely let the ball drop.” excited for another chance, Unable to recover from the maybe coming out on top deficit, the Little Hawks lost this time,” Outside Hitter to Bettendorf in three sets, Ellie Evans ‘19 said. ending their run for the State In order to give a team tournament. with only five losses a run for “For me, and the team as their money, the young Little well, I knew that to stay in the Hawk squad experimented game we had to do all our jobs with new plays while simultaas well as we could,” Evans neously concentrating on the said. “We had to be able to Mia Loughran ‘20 tips the ball over the net. PHOTO BY ALEXIS DUBRAVA fundamentals. keep consistent for all sets “We focused a lot on the of the match, which we just system to avoid those players.” little things like technique while passing and weren’t quite able to do.” In a packed gymnasium on the night of the running some different plays than we usually Although the match didn’t go how they match Bettendorf didn’t hesitate and came out do,” Kelsey Law ‘20 said. wanted it to, the team plans to use this loss as right off the bat playing like the experienced Additionally, the team focused on how to motivation for the future. team they are, winning the first set 25-12. decrease the damage players like Ally Grothusen, “We saw that we are able to compete with “I think in the beginning we came out with Caroline Baer, and Emma Ostrom are capable teams like Bett so I think that’ll be a motivator,” a lot of jitters. We were making more mistakes of causing. Evans said. “Knowing that all the same players than usual which put us in a really bad situa“Bettendorf has several really strong playtion,” Evans said. “We were trying to make plays will be back on the court next year is key because ers. We knew we had to defend their middles now we can keep building on what we had last that weren’t in our comfort zone and we weren’t and outside hitters and try to keep them out of season instead of having to start from scratch.” communicating as well was we could’ve.

Winston Lui ‘18 takes a swing. PHOTO BY JONATHAN ROGERS

SPORTS 7B

THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | NOVEMBER 3, 2017

LEFT: Jamie Dykes ‘19 cheers during the first football game against Linn-Mar. ABOVE: Cheerleaders do push-ups for the number of points on the scorebord. PHOTOS BY ADDY SMITH

Building from the Base By Addy Smith

Dedication and returning experience allows cheerleading team to up their game.

lthough the cheerleading team consists of only 12 people, that doesn’t stop them from having growing goals. “We are stronger as a team and this year we have a better bond than the other years. We have more returning people so the skill level is already higher so we can work on improving rather than getting everyone that’s new up to speed,” Charlisa Overton ‘18 said. In addition to having a higher level of skill this season, the cheerleaders have put in the work in the weightroom necessary to success. “My squad did a great job preparing for the season during the off season, by attending the summer weightlifting sessions and continued that during the fall as well. That was important for the team because their goal was to more advanced stunts and to do that we needed to get stronger,” Coach Lucy Joseph said.

Another crucial part of accomplishing advanced stunts is trust. Due to being with each other at least six days a week and having a group chat, the squad has become a very close-knit group. “As a base, I think all of the people on the bottom have to get to know the people you are working with and try to trust each other and watch each other when you are doing everything to make sure no matter what that she does not touch the floor,” Overton said. Whereas trust is the most important part of being a base, confidence is inarguably just as crucial for flyers. “Confidence is a big thing. There are times when I am too scared to do a stunt. Then when you are scared you mess up and it really prohibits you,” Madeline Kimm ‘19 said. “And we have people that have never done anything related to cheerleading before high school cheer.”

Despite a disappointing season for the football season, through advanced stunts and team chemistry, the cheerleading team has been able to further accomplish their main goal: having fun. “We try to focus on the crowd and having fun, like let’s make sure the crowd has fun. [Our mindset] is to keep up the good spirit over here because it’s the only way the boys are going to get any kind of support is from the crowd,” Kimm said. The cheerleading team wants to extend the camarederie that they are familiar with within their team to the student section as well. “We want the student body to understand that we are working really hard so that they can have a good time and that the football players can have a good time. We just want to have that kind of mutual respect for each other,” Kimm said. Coach Joseph believes that having

a large student section will help accomplish that goal. “I would love to see more students come out and cheer on all City High programs and work with the cheerleaders to do that,” Joseph said. In order to be able to work hard for other City High teams, the cheer squad prepares rigorously. “For football season we get to practice at 6am, we start and do announcements, we run and we stretch and work on kicks and jumps; just to get ready. Then we work on either game day stuff or suff we would do in a competition and then finish up with stunting and conditioning,” Kimm said. The hard work seems to be paying off. Overton, Kimm, and Katelyn Ortiz ‘19 made the 2017 Iowa Cheer Coaches Honor Bowl, and Overton and Lauren Grove ‘20 made it to the Shrine Bowl. Ortiz and Overton are also both UCA All-Americans.

Although currently only individual cheerleaders are able to cheer beyond the City High boundaries, Coach Joseph would like for her entire team to be able to compete in front of judges. “[I want] to increase our numbers next year because I would like to have a competition squad. With the help of my seniors and returning cheerleaders we’re hoping to start the cheerleading program back up at South East Junior High.” Even with all of the time they spend practicing, the cheer team still makes a point to volunteer at multiple for community events and organizations throughout the year. “We like to give back and we like to show people that because there are a lot of stereotypes about cheerleaders and what they are kind of like. We want to show them that we actually care about what we are doing and our school and our community,” Kimm said.

SWIMMING

Girls Gear Up for State By Addy Smith

H ABOVE: Clara Froeschner ‘18 swims breaststroke. PHOTO BY EVA BAILEY BELOW: A City swimmer competes during their dual meet against Williamsburg. PHOTO BY EDEN KNOOP

eading into the State Meet tomorrow, the girl swimmers have been preparing to be as physically ready as possible. They’ve been tapering for two weeks and have overcome the midseason bout of sickness that swept its way through the team in September. Last Saturday in Marshalltown, the team qualified a medley relay and a 200 free relay. Trinity Sadecky ‘20 and Carly Weigel ‘20 both punched their ticket in the 200 free. Sadecky is also swimming the 500 and Weigel the 100 backstroke. Sadecky went into the Regional Meet with one goal. “Drop time. Make State.” Among the state-qualifiers are two seniors, one freshman, and two sophomores. A team that is comprised of mostly underclassmen is believed to be as a positive. “We have a lot of new underclassmen, like freshman, who have really changed the team dynamic this year,” Captain Clara Froeschner ‘18 said. “I

think they’re becoming the program. My freshman year we had 12 people, and half of the team were freshmenNow, we’re having bigger and bigger freshman classes coming in which adds depth.” The added depth resulted in the program’s largest team in history

“I THINK WE CAN STEP UP AGAINST ALMOST ANYBODY IN THE STATE.” COACH ZANE HUGO which contributed to the Regional meet’s fastest times of the season. The 200 free relay is .4 seconds away from breaking the school record. “It’s the time of year where I expect a lot of fast swims so I wasn’t surprised that people dropped time, but some of them were pretty big drops that I was pretty happy with,” Hugo

said. “Now it’s just a matter of what can we do to make those fast swims even faster. We’re looking for improvement anywhere we can find it.” In order to do that, Hugo believes that focusing on the details is what will make the difference. “We focus a lot at the beginning of the season on improving our physical fitness and we’ll test that throughout the season. As we get towards the end of the season, we’ll focus more on strength and power and improving our technique in order to have good technique when we are going as fast as we can.” With this added focus on the “little things” and the endurance built up throughout the season, Hugo believes his team has great potential for success at the State meet. “We had a winning record in the conference this year and we have a strong conference for swimming, so I think that shows that we can step up against almost anybody in the state.”

8B SPORTS

THE LITTLE HAWK | THELITTLEHAWK.COM | NOVEMBER 3, 2017 Photo Gallery

B e s t O f Fa l l

1. Eric Thomas ‘18 sprints to the finish during the District Meet. PHOTO BY PAULA MOMPIO 2. Naomi Meurice ‘19 cheers on the Little Hawk Voleyball team. PHOTO BY ALEXIS DUBRAVA 3. Freshman football players rehydrate on the sidelines. PHOTO BY GABE BAIRD

4. Zach Jones ‘18 reaches up to grab a touchdown pass durin the Little Hawks’ season closer against Davenport North. PHOTO BY EGAN SMITH 5. Volleyball players celebrate after scoring a point during the Battle of the Spike. PHOTO BY ALEXIS DUBRAVA 6. Members of Vicious and Delicious react after scoring a touchdown in Powderpuff Football. PHOTO BY OLIVIA BAIRD