March 18 Issue

The Pitch

Walter Johnson High School

March 18, 2013

Volume 58 Issue 6

6400 Rock Spring Drive, Bethesda, MD 20814

Getting Snappy

Snapchat app provides new mode for teen sexting

By Claudia Nguyen The summer before his freshman year, MCPS senior Mason Daniels* began spending time with a girl he had met a few months earlier at summer camp. After exchanging numerous flirtatious text messages and partaking in several Skype sessions, the girl surprised Daniels with a topless photo of herself...

“Snapchat” continued on page 3

*Name has been changed

Photo by Emily Cosentino

ADHD:

Dangerous distraction or creative catalyst?

By Caroline Steel

students with this disorder, making it harder for them to concentrate and focus.

Licensed certified social worker Julie Baron, who works with teens around the D.C. area, specializes in the mental health of adolescents in a clinical setting. She said there are three prongs of ADHD: hyperactivity, inattention and impulsivity, and added that students can have any combination of the three.

“Given the different ways or combination of ways ADHD can manifest, it impacts teens in the areas of academic [activities] and other performance-related activities, [as well as] social, emotional and relational [or] family functioning,” she said.

For many students, school is boring. There is the occasional cool fact, amusing video or engaging class, but, for the most part, you do not attend school to have fun. Every day, hour after hour, students are told to pay attention, be quiet and focus. For the average student, maintaining a steady attention span throughout the day is exhausting. But for those with ADHD, focusing is even more of a challenge.

ADHD is a relatively common problem among teens. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that in 2007, 11.9 percent of children aged seven to 14 were diagnosed with ADHD in the state of Maryland. According to that estimate, WJ would have around 150 “ADHD” continued on page 4

rial, o t i d E -8 pgs. 5

Inside, Check Out:

Students spring into Europe Teachers organize spring break trips to Spain, Italy and Europe

By Audrey Marek

Each spring break, groups of WJ students spread out across the globe on staff run trips. There are several options for these students, including trips around the sights of Spain, Italy and other European destinations. The trips to Spain and Italy are designed for high-level language students, who are in Spanish or Italian four and above. The Europe trip is designated for juniors and seniors, and is more focused on the experience of the trip itself than on the educational value. This year, foreign language teachers Maria Cavallini and Lucia Liang are heading the Italian and Spanish trips, respectively, while the Europe trip is being led by history teacher Fred Delello.

“Spring” continued on page 4

Photo courtesy of Maria Cavallini

The 2012 Italy trip traveled to many famous landmarks, including the Arch of Constantine.

Feature, pgs. 13-16 Arts and Ent.,

pgs. 9-12 Sports, pgs. 17-20

NEWS

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Pitch 2 wjpitch.com M FRO Follow the WJ Pitch on Twitter! @TheWJPitch

NEW! Use the QR Code to access more articles on www.wjpitch.com!

WJ celebrates Black History Month with assembly

By Sarah Schecker

On Feb. 28, WJ’s Black Student Union (BSU) honored National Black History Month with its annual assembly that had previously been held during a double third period in years past. However, due to a new policy regarding student assemblies, the show occurred during an extended lunch period resulting in lower attendance.

WJ Jazz Ensemble kicked off the event, setting the tone for the rest of the show. The auditorium then came alive during Pop Fly show choir’s performance of The Jackson 5’s “ABC” and “I Want You Back.” Throughout the rest of the assembly, other BSU members performed songs by notable African American artists...

Photo by Sarah Schecker

Sophomore Darien Djourabtchi sings “It’s a Man’s World” by James Brown at the Black History Month assembly.

Opinion Blast: A Nation in Depression Steenkamp, a celebrity in her own right. Pistorius and his lawyers hold that the shooting was accidental, with One of the more prevalent stories on the global Pistorius mistaking his longtime girlfriend for a robscene over the last month has been the gripping saga ber. He shot blindly into the bathroom door, only finding out after it was his girlfriend in the bathroom. of Olympian Oscar Pistorius’ murder charges.

Conflicting evidence The paraplegic sprinter was a inspiration to many during his ground breaking participation in the 2012 ruins Pistorius’ story of Summer Olympics, racing against able-bodied ath- sadness and misfortune. letes and advancing to the 200m final. His jersey Neighbors’ reports of loud number swap with eventual winner Kirani James was fighting sounds and a bloodied cricket bat was found in a moment crystallized in Olympic history.

These feel-good moments have been stained with the residence, complicatthe negative ink of the last month, as Pistorius was ing matters. Pistorius’ next charged with the murder of his girlfriend Reeva court date is set in June...

MARCH 18, 2013

LETTER FROM THE EDITORS

Dear Pitch Readers, This month we are tackling a series of important topics pertaining to high school life.The News section investigates teen sexting, and, as seniors begin to hear back from colleges they applied to, Feature examines the affordability of a higher education. Additionally, in the spirit of March Madness, our center spread is devoted to making over two seniors, Ty Glover and Sarah Norkola-Smith, in our annual “March Makeover Madness.” Also, be sure to check out Arts & Entertainment for the latest on music festivals, playlists and smartphone apps.

Lastly, the Sports section covers the winter All-Pitch team, as well as athletes of the month, seniors Megan Spurrell and Barry Mangold.

We hope you enjoy this issue, and please let us know if you have any questions, comments, concerns or ideas. Follow us on twitter @ thewjpitch and “like” The Pitch on Facebook. For weekly updates on the latest at WJ, check out wjpitch.com!

Sincerely, Print Editors-in-Chief Sari Amiel & Phillip Resnick, and Online Editor-in-Chief Megan Chun

By Dashel Lewis

To read more articles, visit www.wjpitch.com

Corrections from our February issue: Page 9, 18: Sarah Schecker’s name was spelled incorrectly.

Page 17: Alex Horick’s name was spelled incorrectly.

Page 20: Jon Ohlrich is a sophomore, not a junior as stated in the article.

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MARCH 18, 2013

NEWS

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Snapchat app provides new mode for teen sexting “Snapchat” continued from page 1

By Claudia Nguyen While Daniels’* situation may seem risqué or taboo, this occurrence is not uncommon with teens today. Over the past few years, technology has allowed for easier means of communication, and incidents of sexting have dramatically increased, especially among teenagers. According to a random sampling of 200 WJ students, 39 percent of those surveyed said they had either sent or received a text message containing sexual or sexually suggestive content. WJ’s statistics are identical to that of a recent study commissioned

by The National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, which also reported that 39 percent of teens had participated in sexting before.

Outside of the virtual world, Daniels and the girl he sexted also engaged in sexual relations for a period of time. Since then, he has continued sexting, and added that the first incident gave him increased confidence to ask for explicit photos from other girls on occasion.

“Sometimes I’ll ask a girl I’ve been flirting with, but only if I think she would be okay with it,” said Daniels. “I wouldn’t ever pressure a girl into doing it if she didn’t want to.”

Daniels added that one of the key components of sexting is trust. He said that it is most important for a person to completely trust whomever they choose to send a sext due to the danger of having the photo seen by unintended viewers.

This issue arose in the Bethesda area in early 2010, when police investigated a sexting issue at Pyle Middle School. According to a Washington Post article written in April of that year, a student attending the middle school allegedly rented his iPod Touch to his peers who clicked through images of female classmates and other girls in various states of undress.

University of Pennsylvania psychology professor Thai Van said that teenagers’ impulsive nature could explain why sexting occurs. “[Adolescents] are oftentimes less likely to think about the consequences of their actions, and so they insert themselves into risky situations,” said Van. He added that although sexting is a result of the desire to achieve sexual stimulation or satisfaction from

an individual whom one finds attractive, this can often be a superficial motive.

“There exists a complicated spectrum of reasons that could explain why people would choose to sext,” said Van. “It could arise from the desire to feel wanted or appealing, often resultant from deeper self-esteem issues, or could be from the simple risk-factor; some teenagers just want to act… rebellious. But oftentimes it’s not simple, and is usually a combination of many different factors. When considering the more in-depth psychological reasons, there is no one answer for why people [sext].”

Although sexting has been an issue for teens for a few years, a new instant picture messaging app, Snapchat, has recently gained popularity. Snapchat was launched in September 2011, but has grown to become one of the most downloaded smartphone apps in the past few months. The app allows people to take photos, record videos, add text and drawings and send them to a controlled list of recipients. Users set a time limit for how long recipients can view their photos, a maximum of 10 seconds, before the content is deleted from the recipient’s device and the company’s servers.

While many teens use it as a creative way to send humorous photos to friends, Snapchat has also been utilized as a new method for sexting.

Daniels said he has recently received explicit photos through Snapchat, but added it has only been a few, and the majority he receives are through text messaging.

Some argue that the temporary nature of Snapchat’s messages makes it safer when sending sexually explicit content. Additionally, the sender is informed by the Data from a random sampling of 200 WJ students during their fourth period classes on March 12, 2013. app if the recipient captures the photo permanently by taking a screenshot.

“I think the idea of [Snapchat] somehow being safer is irrational,” said Van. “Even if the person who sends the photo knows that a screenshot was taken, they still couldn’t stop the person they sent it to from doing who knows what with that content.”

Infographic by Claudia Nguyen A second person could take a photo of the Snapchat recipient’s phone with a second device, which would prevent the sender from knowing the image was cap*Name has been changed to protect the student’s tured by a third party. identity.

Students want information on local crimes

and many students feel they have the right to know about violent occurrences that concern everyone.

While crime involving minors cannot be found on With spring nearing, it is finally warm again, and many students will frantically return to Georgetown public record, the Public Information Office (PIO), a Square to experience open lunch.This means G-Square section of the Police Department, keeps files reportwill be filled with students, food and fighting. There is ing incidence of the crimes.

Sophomore Kara Gordon thinks that crime is not no doubt that crime, such as fights between WJ students, exists in Montgomery County. The problem is a significant problem at WJ and she feels grateful for that much of it goes unreported to the student body, that. However, she added that, regardless of the prevalence of the fighting, students should be informed about the crimes that occur on school grounds.

“It is important to know how safe things are around you,” she said. “But you don’t want to scare [students].”

Sophomore Samantha Schwartz agreed. “[Students] definitely have a right,” she said. “Everyone has a right to know [whether] they are safe or not.”

While students wish to be informed about crime that takes place at our school and around Montgomery County, Principal Jennifer Baker stressed that crime is not rePhoto by Wahid Ishrar ally a problem at the school.

Fights like this one (which was staged) occur in Georgetown Square, disrupting com“We have a fairly low crime munity members and harming WJ’s reputation.

By Izzy Salant

rate,” said Baker. “When incidents do occur, we do a good job of investigating and following through.”

While information regarding these various crimes may be readily available through the PIO, it is often not easy to find otherwise. The MCPS Police Department has a record of crime, but the most recent crime record only includes crimes that took place in April of 2012. To get other information, one can turn to the PIO, which has files at the ready.

When it comes to students’ opinions on school fights, many students believe it is immature.

Freshman David Solorio said it seems as though the participants are trying to gain a reputation: they want to be known for being tough and starting fights. Solorio also believes he knows why a lot of the fights occur.

“Stopping crime starts with the parents,” he said. “A lot of peer pressure plays into theft and drugs which can lead to fights. [Avoiding crime requires] a sense of morality.”

Baker added that fighting does not serve a purpose and said there are several possible punishments a student can receive for fighting. The main consequence is suspension, but, if injuries occur, the fight becomes a legal problem and the student can be arrested for assault and recommended for expulsion. Besides having to administer all the different punishments, Baker is upset about the fighting for a different reason.

“When there is fighting out in the community it makes it hard for me to defend open lunch to our community members,” she said.

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NEWS

MARCH 18, 2013

Spring into Europe: Students prepare for teacher-led trips “Spring” continued from page 1

By Audrey Marek Senior Miranda Lingenfelter is attending the Europe trip for the second year in a row, and is looking forward to it.

This year’s trip starts in Rome, and then continues on to Florence and Pisa. In France, the group will be going to Nice and Paris. Lingenfelter said she is very excited about taking the TGV, France’s high-speed train rail service. However, Delello’s group may encounter some problems in Rome due to Easter and the unusual circumstance of a new pope.

“We might not be able to see the Sistine Chapel,” said Lingenfelter.

However, there are plenty of other things to do on this trip, including viewing classic European icons like the Colosseum, the Eiffel tower, the leaning tower of Pisa, Pompeii and the Louvre.

“I think that the trip will be a great range of experiences,” said Lingenfelter, “from the rich history of Rome and Florence, to the beaches of Nice and Monaco, to the arts and culinary cultures of Paris.”

Cavallini is a veteran of these trips as well. She is running the Italian trip, which visits Milan, Venice, Florence, Assisi, Rome, Sienna, the Amalfi Coast, Sorrento, Pompeii and Capri. The trip is part of the Italian program and is held every other year. This year’s tour is titled “The Best of Italy” and focuses on the main cultural exhibitions of the country. The trip also emphasizes group work and social independence for the students.

Cavallini herself lived in Italy for 21

Spain

Italy

Photo courtesy of Maria Cavallini

Last year, students on the Italy trip traveled to the famous Colosseum in Rome.

years, and is always eager to return. “[The trip] is to expose the students of Italian to Italian language and culture,” said Cavallini.

It is a part of the Italian curriculum, a course which goes all the way through AP level.

Another educational trip for foreign language is the Spain trip, headed by Liang. This is her first year taking charge of the trip. It is visiting Granada, Seville, Madrid, Barcelona and Córdoba. Sophomore Caroline Braviak is attending the trip for the first time this year.

“I chose to go on the trip because I have heard so many great things about Spain,” said Braviak, “and it’s a good way to practice my Spanish and experience the culture.”

Braviak also looks forward to learning about the historic influences in Spanish architecture. The trip isn’t all about the

Photo courtesy of Elise Black

The 2012 Spain trip visited Estadio Santiago Bernabeu, the soccer stadium of Real Madrid.

Europe

Photo courtesy of Fred Dellelo

Students that went on the Europe trip last year traveled to various locations to see the sights and experience the cultures.

culture, though.

All of the trips offer a chance for a “I hope to bond with some of my unique and educational high school exfriends that are going as well and just perience. have a fun time in a beautiful country,” said Braviak.

ADHD: Dangerous distraction or creative catalyst?

“ADHD” continued from page 1

By Caroline Steel

Testing accommodations are also generally available. Outside of school, testing accommodations, medicine and Even though students with this disor- behavioral therapy are all available to der do not possess some of these skills students outside of school, depending people generally take for granted, by no on the type and extent of their ADHD. While these measures are helpful, they means are they unintelligent.

“What is so tricky about ADHD is also have their downsides. For example, that so many of these teens are so bright medicine, although potentially helpful, and so can seem very competent and has side effects that can deter students; knowledgeable, but when it comes to some students have even testified to the producing the amount of written out- fact that it alters their behavior. put that is required in high school, it becomes incredibly difficult to manage and maintain good results,” said Junior Alex Dangay said that while Baron. “The really complex dilemma for so many teenagers is that they know ADHD medication generally helps him they are smart but experience failure in focus and communicate, there are times when he doesn’t take it. school.”

“When I’m going to be with friends, I She added that students with ADHD tend to excel most in classes that inter- don’t like to take my meds because I’m more hesitant and awkward when I’m est them.

There are, however, measures in on them,” he said.

Sammy Levine, also a junior with place to help students with ADHD to function in a traditional school setting. ADHD, expressed a similar opinion.

“There are times I don’t take it,” he Within MCPS, section 504 is a plan not specific to students with ADHD, and said. “[Sometimes] I can’t settle my “Parent Academy” workshops are avail- mind down [when I’m on them]”.

Nevertheless, Levine does not feel the able that sometimes will host meetings on how to help students with ADHD. medication changes his personality.

“ADHD allows a lot more ideas to come through. That can lead to the creative process.”

“It gives you more confidence... it doesn’t change you,” he said.

Dangay expressed a similar opinion.

“I consider [ADHD a] part of my personality,” Dangay said. “I don’t often think about it. I’m very comfortable with the fact that I have ADHD.” Like confidence, laziness or optimism, ADHD is simply a facet of students’ personalities that they happen to be genetically wired with.

“It’s more like a brain type,” explained Levine. “Systematic mechanics are difficult; I think more creatively.”

Indeed, Levine is involved in many creative endeavors outside of the school day. He plays upright bass, cello and guitar; he also sings, composes and is currently teaching himself how to play piano. Levine always keeps a notebook with him that he fills with the fleeting ideas that come to him. He called his notes the “ravings of a madman.”

Although ADHD may somewhat hurt students in classes they find to be mundane, it aids others in more creative pursuits.

“ADHD... allows a lot more ideas to come through,” said Levine. “That can lead to the creative process.”

Dangay also said that while ADHD makes it harder to focus on schoolwork, he tends to be able to focus completely when doing something he enjoys.

“When I’m doing something I find

very interesting, like playing bass or reading a good book, I tend to focus almost completely on it,” he said.

Baron concurred, saying that level of interest does have an impact on a student’s ability to maintain attention. “[Students with ADHD] tend to do better in classes where there is high interest for them and a teacher who can engage and take an interest in them,” said Baron.

Nevertheless, a bit of extra time on tests, or a pill each morning, can’t completely overwrite the extra work these students must put forth every day.

Levine noted that quantity over quality seems to be all too prevalent in education. However, he believes that this doesn’t necessarily have to be the case.

“For some reason [school] really emphasize[s] time,” he said. “It doesn’t have to be that way. I love education, [but] I feel like I’m skimming over my education, which I don’t want to do.”

Levine also said that what students are receiving now is more of a cursory education. It sacrifices understanding because of time constraints and in the name of fitting in progressively more content.

“It’s creating discouragement,” Levine said. “In the end, [it goes] against what I feel school’s all about.”

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March 18, 2013

EDITORIAL

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CURVEBALL Feeling anxious? Don’t let the nerves get to you

Photo by Emily Cosentino

By Megan Chun

Sometimes before a big test, class presentation or quiz, I get some kind of nervous, uncomfortable, butterfly-like feeling in my stomach. I become restless, shifting my legs every few seconds: crossed, uncrossed, crossed at the ankle and back to uncrossed.

My fingers start to tap on the desk, and upon an annoyed glare from a classmate, I curl them up in my palm. I press so hard that small, red, moon-shaped crevices are imprinted on my hands for a good 30 seconds. This becomes so habitual that my nail polish chips only at the tips.Yes, I have anxiety, and I’m not afraid to admit it.

I’m most likely not alone, either.

With the stress teens face today, from academics and extracurricular activi-

ties, to the SAT bearing down on all prospective college students, it’s safe to say most of us will feel a crunch at some point in their high school careers.

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, eight percent of teens aged 13 to 18 have an anxiety disorder.

This number seems relatively small, but not all teens experiencing anxiety have a disorder. In fact, many teens who suffer from anxiety have milder, noninhibiting, everyday forms. Anxiety is the body’s natural reaction to the stress it experiences, and everyone handles it

over every ruler-straight line, perfectly creased corner and grammatically correct text. It’s not that I don’t like other people; I just prefer being able to control every aspect of my work. In class, I’m the person you probably love to hate. I re-read text two or three times, I have to write with a .5 mechanical pencil that has exactly two pieces of lead in it and I absolutely must write on binder paper that has reinforcements on the left side of the page. I will refuse to touch your paper if it has “fuzzies” on it from where it was ripped from your notebook, and I

recovery is admitting you have a problem.

We, the anxiety-ridden people, have the ability to change. It won’t happen overnight, but as time goes on, as you slowly let go of your totalitarian control over your life, things will get better. Try going to sleep before 11 p.m. or skipping homework for one of your easier classes. The world doesn’t end when you forget an assignment and, once you realize this, it becomes easier to let up on yourself. The word “perfect” is a synonym for “impossible,” a definition that many anxiety-ridden folk have a hard time grasping. When you try so hard, you expect more than is humanly possible.

When results fall short of expectations, one wonders where he or she went wrong and feels the pressure to try harder and do better next time. High school advertises itself as four years of advanced learning, in preparation for the real world and college life. But, in reality, it tests so much more than your knowledge of rhetoric, sine functions or the Tokugawa Shogunate: it challenges your ability to know yourself, and know your limits.

“The word ‘perfect’ is a synonym for

‘impossible,’ a definition that many anxietyridden folk have a hard time grasping. ” differently.

Of course, not all of us feel the strain.

From what I have observed, students who are academically motivated, overscheduled, sleep-deprived and possessive of slightly OCD tendencies seem to be affected most. I, for one, have come to realize I am a huge control freak. I despise group projects. I would much rather spend six hours working on something by myself, where I can pore

die a little inside every time I see a pencil smudge. I have only recently become aware of these tendencies, but I’m sure my kindergarten teacher can attest to the likelihood of these behaviors developing from a young age: I was the kid who color coded and sharpened her crayons while the rest of my classmates ate them.

If any of these behaviors sound familiar, don’t be alarmed. The first step to

Daily dose of disrespect:

Talking during the Pledge of Allegiance ByWahid Ishrar

same.

The announcements from the differDuring a typical bell schedule, WJ ent clubs soon end and the “SAT Word students are familiarly greeted by the of the Day” shows up on the Promethehosts of “The Daily Lineup,” WJ’s an board.

Even though the words are morning announcements, as they walk into their second periods. Some listen, usually helpful, many students, again others sleep, but most use the time to including me, choose to continue talkchat with their fellow students. I fall ing instead. However, all conversation should stop when the words “I pledge into the third category.

Between juggling many clubs and allegiance to the flag” is heard, right? honor societies and writing for The But it doesn’t.

The pledge signifies many things. It Pitch, I simply don’t have time for other signifies a nation that is united. It sigcommitments even if I wanted to. So during the announcements, I take the nifies years spent obtaining and then opportunity of having a little time to protecting the freedoms we have in the catch up on the gossip of that particular United States. It signifies the struggle morning. I have observed I am not alone of many civil rights leaders who fought in this endeavor- many students do the -- and still continue to fight -- for their respective causes. It tells the hopeless to never lose hope, and reminds the hopeful to believe in that hope. It tells the impoverished that they have not been forgotten.

But, most importantly, it tells all the citizens of this nation that they live in a country they can, and should, be proud of.

So, if that powerful message can be sent out with only a single senPhoto Courtesy of © Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. tence, shouldn’t it make Students in a school respectfully recite the pledge of allegiance sense for everybody to while standing up.

Photo by Sarah Schecker

People should not take advantage of their freedom to not stand up during the pledge.

stop their gossip when they hear the pledge? I understand not standing up -- I don’t because, as a citizen of Bangladesh, I feel like my allegiance lies more with my native country than with the U.S. Other reasons for not standing up can include protesting against the government, because some feel that by not doing so, they are speaking out against whatever they are displeased with, such as women’s equality or gay rights.

However, talking during the pledge is inappropriate and extremely disrespectful. It is disrespectful to our peers who do take pride in the pledge. It is disrespectful to our teachers. It is disrespectful to the people who work hard every day to produce “The Daily Lineup” (but then again, so is most of what happens in the first three minutes of second period). But most of all, it is disrespectful to the country we live in.

Sure, there are many things that have

caused angst among American citizens in recent years: the rising national debt, corrupt politicians, high rates of unemployment and more. Nevertheless, this same nation is the reason we all go to a school that provides us with a quality public education -- for free. So, the least we can do for the country that makes this possible for us is to stop our conversation for a few seconds to respect one of the core values of our nation, the Pledge of Allegiance.

Let me take a moment to acknowledge that even I am guilty of committing this crime. I have blabbed on, not noticing the swaying flag on the classroom screen. But, from now on, I will make it my mission to stop myself and anyone around me from conversing for just a minute and pay their homage to all the effort that went into building this nation. And so should you.

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EDITORIAL

MARCH 18, 2013

Thousands4Patients

Money, time could be spent on other charities too

CHANGEUP

By Phillip Resnick

The other day I was having a conversation with my mom about my 13-yearold brother Andrew. Andrew is currently in the seventh grade and thinks he is the greatest thing that has happened to the world since the invention of sliced bread. His arrogant, “I know everything and am superior to all of you” attitude is typical of middle school students and has been pushing my buttons lately, but when talking to my mom, she assured me that I too thought I knew absolutely everything and was just as annoying when I was 13.

Despite ignoring (almost) everything my mom said and proceeding to fight with Andrew five minutes later, one of her statements stuck with me. She touched on how Andrew thought he knew everything but was beginning to realize that in fact, he had a lot to learn in life. The more I thought about it, the more it seemed her statement was targeted at me than it was at him.

As a senior in high school, I feel as though I have most of my life figured out. My college plans are essentially set, and I figure that after graduating from college I’ll either find a job or go to graduate school. I do relatively well academically, and other than a handful of insignificant things, like why airplanes have seatbelts (because really, in a plane crash, what is a seatbelt going to do for you?), I feel as though I pretty much have it all figured out.

However, if you took a poll of every teacher at WJ, I would guarantee you that 99 percent of them aren’t where they thought they would be when they were a senior in high school. Almost every adult I talk to about my college plans (which is almost every adult I come into contact with nowadays) has some winding, twisting life story that led them to cities and careers they hadn’t known existed before graduating college.

There is so much pressure for high schoolers to plan out our lives by the time we graduate high school. Many colleges want us to enter their schools next fall with an intended major, even though I can’t tell you what half the “-ologies” they offer are about. I’m sorry, but as a 17-year-old, I don’t know exactly what I want to be doing in 30 years. There are some people who know that they want to be a doctor or lawyer or scientist, and so go and pursue that, and best of luck to you, but the rest of us shouldn’t be expected to have a life plan by the time we turn 18.

It’s a scary thought that we have no clue how our lives are going to pan out, but it’s a fact we have to face as graduation approaches and life after high school begins. I have come to realize that everything won’t work out the way I imagine it will, and so I have begun to prepare for the worst and hope for the best, which is all any of us can do.

Maybe my next fight with Andrew will be over who knows less.

P4P is that during the month of Febru- 13 wells in Africa for schools or comary no other group may collect money munity centers for people without any Another year, another Pennies for for any charity, in order to maximize the clean water. Manna Food Center, an orPatients goal surpassed by the WJ P4P efforts. Therefore, other WJ clubs ganization for ending hunger on the East leadership class. As a community, WJ that represent noble causes are unable Coast, can serve over 240,000 meals for managed to raise over $80,000 for the to receive the charitable donations the that amount of money. That is enough to feed 219 people for an entire year.

Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS). school community has to offer. $80,495 is a lot of money, and can be I admire the SGA and the leadership While this charity is wonderful and our put to great use in multiple ways.

Doclass for their commitment to achieve school is passionate about the cause, at nating this amount to The Water Projtheir goals during this event. They put some point we need to stop P4P and ect would be enough to build almost forth an extraordinary amount of effort donate to another charity. for the cause, yet I believe This isn’t because charit isn’t being used correctly. ity isn’t good or that I hate The amount of money would helping cancer patients, be appreciated by any charbut we have been donatity. Perhaps next year’s SGA ing thousands and thoushould continue with the exsands of dollars to LLS for citement and wholeheartedyears. I feel that there are ness of this year’s SGA, but many other worthy causes with a different charity or in this nation and others goal. who would appreciate the WJ has a lot to give and charity our school has to I feel we should be able to offer. While our current spread the donations around efforts help raise a lot of to other organizations. There money, it has gone too far, are so many good causes out as it now revolves around there and I know we can do beating other schools, like Photo Courtesy of Daryl Vaca so much more for our comWhitman.

WJ exceeded their Pennies for Patients total from last year by over $20,000. munity and the world.

One negative aspect of

By Anders Norberg

College 101

Find a balance between good academics and happiness when picking a college

By JJ Henn

ey while enriching your brain if it makes letter, but a round-trip to Honolulu So seniors, now that you’ve finally you that unhappy. That being said, if you can cost over $2,000. That’s good for a heard back from most, if not all, of get accepted into many competitive nice relaxing vacation, but not ideal for your schools, which one will you go schools, you probably shouldn’t go to a temporary residence while you take to? There are many factors which you that “party school” back-up you applied your classes. should consider when choosing where to for fun. After all, you’re going to colThe other aspect of cost comes into to spend the next four years of your lege for an education and to get a de- play with tuition. Getting into that nice life, along with a lot of money. Fac- gree, not to explore how many different state university is a good accomplishtors include the academic environment, ways you can pass out. ment, but if the tuition is $40,000 to the climate, the school’s relative loca$60,000 per year and will tion to your family’s land you in $150,000 of home, financial costs debt, it may not be worth and a curriculum that it. In-state tuition applies includes your desired to many local colleges, inmajor. cluding the UMD branches Sometimes, prioriat College Park, Baltimore tizing the academic inCounty and St. Mary’s. tegrity of a university Aside from prestigious law can be the downfall firms, no employer will for many students. If look at an undergraduate you find yourself payPhoto Courtesy of © Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. diploma from any of these ing a lot to be in a While some may want to go to higher ranked schools, in-state tuition (what students from schools and immediately County will pay if they go to UMD) costs less, sometimes for the same caliber of refuse to hire you. place which you con- Montgomery education. sider hell and are too Obviously, much thought bogged down with must be put into the colwork, it may have been because a rigCost is another factor that is impor- lege decision process. Remember to orous curriculum took precedence over tant to consider when choosing where weigh all the benefits of a particular your mental well-being. It makes no to enroll. Sure, that beautiful univer- school against its drawbacks, and trust sense to sacrifice your health and mon- sity in Hawaii sent you their acceptance your instincts.

Editors-in-Chief Sari Amiel Phillip Resnick Megan Chun* News Editors Claudia Nguyen Izzy Salant* Caroline Steel* Asst. News Editor Izzy Salant Editorial Editors Nathaniel Rees Dashel Lewis* Asst. Editorial Editor Wahid Ishrar Feature Editors Ellie Jorling

Asst. Feature Editors Christine Bersabal* Grace Leslau* Arts & Entertainment Editor Emily Cosentino Sabrina Clarke* Asst. Arts & Ent. Editor Audrey Marek Sports Editors Ian Morrison Ben Resnick* Asst. Sports Editor Ben Resnick

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STAFF

The Pitch is published eight times a year by the students of Walter Johnson High School, 6400 Rock Spring Drive, Bethesda, Md. 20814. Advertising and subscription rates are available by calling 301-803-7184. Editorial opinions represent those of The Pitch staff and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the staff, faculty or student body. We welcome letters, articles, photographs and artwork, to be submitted to room 193 or e-mailed to thepitch@walterjohnson.com. The Pitch is an award-winning paper that works towards providing the student body with accurate, as well as credible, information.

Columbia Scholastic Press Association Gold Medalist 2009

Maryland HS Journalism Award Best Newspaper Overall Third Place 2009-2010

American Scholastic Press Association First Place 2010-2011

Photo Editors Wahid Ishrar Emily Cosentino

Business/PR Manager Claudia Nguyen

Photographers Sarah Schecker Hope Marshall

Head Staff Writer

Cartoonists Caroline Steel Sarah Chipman Advisor Sylvie Ellen Copy Editors Sari Amiel Megan Chun

Anders Norberg Staff Writers JJ Henn Michael Lumbuku Melissa Wainaina Hope Marshall Adriana Del Grosso Selma Stearns Sean Poosson Sarah Schecker *Online Editors

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EDITORIAL

Up Bat

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at

Michael Spak

Every year during March, 68 of the top college basketball teams in the country meet in the March Madness tournament to decide which is the best team. The Pitch asked the students who should take the title.

All Photos by Wahid Ishrar

Junior

“[I am supporting] Georgetown University because both of my parents went there.”

Emily Burk

Sophomore

“[I am supporting] Georgetown University because they are doing really great this year and I want someone from this area to win.”

Q: Which team are you supporting for March Madness and why?

Cassandra Hill Freshman

“[I am supporting] University of Miami because my cousin went there.”

Milo Bodde Senior

“I just REALLY want Duke University to lose because everyone hates Duke.”

Claire Weitzner Junior

“[I am supporting] anyone other than Kentucky University because I support the underdogs.”

Matt Konapelsky Junior

“[I am supporting] Duke because Coach [Mike Krzyzewski] is a great coach.”

Shawn Schwarz

Freshman

“[I am supporting] University of North Carolina because most of my family went there.”

Lital Firestone

Senior

“[I am supporting] Duke University because my boyfriend goes there.”

Maxx Espinosa

Sophomore

“[I am supporting] the Florida Gators because all the players are awesome.”

Elinor Cohen

Junior

“[I am supporting] Florida State University because my brother lives in Florida and he supports them.”

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EDITORIAL

MARCH 18, 2013

Virtual violence breeds real-life violence

By Selma Stearns Photo by Wahid Ishrar

Rees’s Pieces

By Nathaniel Rees

It’s the war of the words. It seems a little dramatic, but as the new Common Core English standards place nonfiction in a struggle against fiction texts, the “war of the words” rings true.

The Common Core standards, which have been implemented in 46 states and D.C., call for public schools to ramp up the use of nonfiction texts in class so that twelfth graders will read mostly “informational texts.” Those who agree with the new standards, like The National Governors Association, believe that students in public schools will struggle in college because they lack the ability to comprehend complex nonfiction texts.

However, many teachers mourn the new standards. The Common Core makes teachers cut novels and works of poetry that they love to make room for nonfiction texts. According to a Washington Post interview with Jamie Highfill, an 8th grade teacher at Woodland Junior High School in Fayetteville, Ark., informational texts bore students.

“With informational text, there isn’t that human connection that you get with literature. And the kids are shutting down,” said Highfill, who was named middle school teacher of the year in Ark. in 2011.

Whatever happened to creativity?

English provides a gateway into other worlds and stories that have the remarkable power to transform our own worlds at the same time. “To Kill a Mockingbird,” for example, provided a wonderful example of the strength of the human spirit, and Atticus Finch’s heroic and fearless actions to prevent a lynching stick in readers’ minds forever -- something that Alexis de Tocqueville’s “Democracy in America,” on the suggested Common Core reading list, will never accomplish.

Nonfiction is an important component of a well-rounded education. But, considering that nonfiction articles and texts are already read in history and science classes, the texts should not be implemented into English studies.

Even if, as David Coleman, creator of the standards, says, students are lacking in the amount of nonfiction they read, then what about the steadily declining amount of creativity in students?

Creativity helps students solve problems and look at the world from new perspectives and angles. Creativity can provide the world with the next Leonardo Da Vinci-esque thinker, the next great musician, artist or writer, but as evidenced by the Common Core, apparently, reading nonfiction is more important.

As long as the Common Core standards are implemented, creativity in students will plummet as fantastic texts lie on dusty bookshelves while nonfiction texts become the norm.

And parents wonder why their kids seem so disconnected from school.

Studies have shown that children exposed to violence in the media tend to be more aggressive people.

A 1993 report by the National Academy of Sciences concluded that, “overall, the vast majority of studies...showed that exposure to television violence resulted in increased aggressive behavior”.

This is partly due to the psychological phenomenon of desensitization, where people see shocking things so often that they are not shocked or disturbed by them anymore. This would mean that if kids see violence in movies and video games all the time and they were to see a machine gun in real life, then the level of shock or surprise would be much lower.

Teenagers can also be conditioned to think violence is cool because they associate a TV show that they like, such as “Dexter,” with enjoying themselves.

However when enjoyment is paired with violence, such as when kids watch Dexter murder his victims, teens can think that violence is fun.

Children’s brains are very moldable, and they imitate what they see others do, especially if their hero is doing it.

If they see Superman fighting and using violence, they will likely think that is an acceptable and even helpful thing to do because the “good guy” does it.

In a study conducted at the University of Michigan from 1977-1992, children

were tracked from the age of six or seven to their early 20s, and children of all genders who had been exposed to violent media were much more aggressive in their adult lives.

They were also more likely to physically punish their children and commit criminal acts. This relationship existed across the board, controlling for variables such as socioeconomic status and parenting styles.

Another problem that needs to be taken into account is a cycle of aggressive behavior. For instance, imagine a child watches violent shows and grows up to be aggressive toward his or her children. Then, even if these children are not exposed to exceptionally violent media, they will likely be aggressive towards their children because they modeled their behavior off of their parents, which will start a long chain of aggressive people.

Violent video games are also a problem. Though violent games, like Grand Theft Auto are rated M for Mature, there are a lot of children under the recommended age who have access to and play these games, possibly because their parents don’t find them inappropriate.

Playing video games, or even playing soldiers or “Cowboys and Indians” as a

Cartoon by Caroline Steel

child, may be worse than simply watching a movie that includes violence because the children are the ones shooting people, stabbing them, throwing bombs or driving a tank. They learn from doing, and they remember this graphic and violent behavior their whole lives.

It can be argued that violent media does not directly cause aggression, but after the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, there were many “copycats” of the terrorists including bomb threats and anthrax hoaxes. After the murders at Columbine High School in 1999, many teenagers across America threatened to commit similiar crimes. In both of these cases, if there had been no media coverage, people would not have been inspired to commit these crimes.

POINT/COUNTERPOINT Violence in the Media Guns kill, controllers don’t

By Andriana Del Grosso Some parents might tell their children to cover their eyes and ears when they are watching violent scenes in a movie.

Violent media is commonplace in many households, but many sources state that its presence in our daily lives might not be connected to real-world violence.

You can thank the First Amendment for your right to run, guns blazing, through a battle-damaged, virtual war zone. The real-life equivalent of the same scenario is generally reserved for those enlisted in military service. Militaristic violence is popular among gamers and movie enthusiasts, but other forms of violence aren’t spared. Games like “Grand Theft Auto” positively portray exaggerated feats of casual homicide and crime, and movies such as the recent “Django Unchained” feature murder scene-by-scene.

According to data collected by The Washington Post, the average American spends around $45 a year on video games. Comparatively, a person living in The Netherlands spends about twice that amount. However, the number of gun-related murders in the U.S. is almost seven times as large as the number of murders in The Netherlands.

Does the entertainment industry fuel

a surge of violence as an outlet for anger? In 2012, there was an 18 percent jump in violent crimes in the U.S., according to the Bureau of Justice.

To observers, tragedies in real life might bear a resemblance to violent images promoted by the media. Many agree, regardless of how people choose to entertain themselves, tragedies will occur and any reduction in the amount of violence children see in pop culture will not pose a solution to the problem.

Desensitization is an argument which states that committing violent crimes

any different psychologically from other people. While these games promote violent images and encourage users to spend hours inactively sitting in front of a screen, we can’t necessarily name them the culprit. In fact, a U.S. Secret Service study conducted in 2002 of individuals involved in school shootings found that only 12 percent were drawn to playing violent video games and 27 percent were drawn to watching violent films.

Is it fair to peg individuals who commit violence as products of their environment when avoiding violent media is a near impossibility?

Ninety-nine percent of households in America have a television, and thousands of copies of video games depicting crime are sold daily. We are a generation of bystanders entertained in a warravaged world but, surprisingly, Cartoon by Caroline Steel the vast majority of us aren’t within a virtual reality has a negative compelled to pursue any of our alleged effect on how people sympathize with virtual urges in reality. victims in real life. Mowing down civilThere’s not enough evidence to sugians, even in a video game, and witness- gest tragedies will stop happening if ing violence on TV, understandably pose parents simply shield their children’s serious moral issues for some people. eyes. Peoples’ actions in real life, detriBased on the popularity of violent vid- mental or otherwise, aren’t due entireeo games, including the “Call of Duty” ly to any form of entertainment, and and “Halo” series, it can be inferred that as a society we can’t afford to overlook the majority of people who play violent any and all other possible causes. games or watch violent movies aren’t

9 Field trips provide creative outlet for learning

By Grace Leslau Field trips are an opportunity for WJ students to enjoy themselves outside of school and a way for teachers to incorporate classroom material in a handson activity. While elementary school is peppered with trips to parks museums and zoos, high school field trips are much less frequent. WJ’s location is ideal for field trips because of its proximity to the nation’s capital.

Every year WJ’s Latin American Studies class, along with help from teacher Debra Delavan, selects a venue for their annual field trip. This year, the class visited the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center in Silver Spring in order to view a Bolivian movie, followed by a lunch at a nearby Cuban restaurant. Delavan introduced her class to the content of the film in advance so the students were

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MARCH 18, 2013

tion is the best and most reliable means.

Several years ago, after months of planning a trip with her sophomore NSL class to visit Congress, buses came two hours late, and so one group of students completely missed a tour.

In addition, field trips incur many administrative tasks that can be timeconsuming and tedious for the teacher.

Students also miss material in their other classes when they go on a field trip. These hurdles often can discourage teachers from planning and taking their students on field trips.

However, field trips are a way to expose students to classroom curriculum outside of the classroom and develop bonds between students. “[A field trip] helps build classroom camaraderie,” said Delavan. “Students get to know each other better.”

The AP Comparative Government class recently visited the State Depart-

you experience things first “When hand, they stick with you better, and you remember them. ”

familiar with the film. The field trip was a valuable experience, and students learned about cinematography as well as the history and beliefs in Bolivia. The restaurant Cubanos introduced students to Cuban culture and cuisine.

“When you experience things first hand, they stick with you better, and you remember them,” said Delavan.

However, planning a field trip can be challenging. One of the biggest difficulties teachers face when planning a field trip is scheduling buses. School buses can be used on a restricted schedule, because they are only available after nine a.m. and must return by one p.m. to take students to and from schools across the county. Alternative transportation can often be very expensive.

To overcome transportation challenges, Delavan took her class to the theater via public transportation. She learned from experience that public transporta-

ment for a policy briefing on China. The class covers Chinese government, so the policy briefing was an opportunity for students to apply what they learned about the structure of the Chinese government to real issues that pertain to the United States as well as China.

“Hopefully, they are learning the connections between the study of political institutions and how it is applied to leadership in 21st century governing,” said teacher Tim Rodman.

On March 12, the class visited the Embassy of Russia for a policy briefing on Russia as well as a tour. Before coordinating a field trip, Rodman weighs the pros and cons of the field trip so that he can be assured students are not missing class without due cause.

FEATURE

Photo courtesy of Tim Rodman

WJ’s AP Comparative Government class visits the U.S. State Department to witness a briefing on U.S. policy regarding China.

“Field trips are designed to enhance the educational experience of what students learn in the classroom and apply it,” said Rodman.

The Child Development II class will also go on two field trips this year. The class took preschoolers to Build-ABear in December, where high school students were paired with preschoolers and aided them in selecting a bear and decorating it. In April, the class will go to the National Zoo. For students in Child Development, field trips present

curriculum. The week before the zoo trip, the student will teach the preschoolers about the different animals they will see at the zoo as well as their diets and habitats.

Pokress and other teachers face organizational challenges when planning field trips. Usually Pokress uses money from the preschoolers’ tuition to fund field trips. Additionally, safety is always a concern when leaving the school with young children.

However, ultimately the educational

further responsibilities.

“On field trips, [students] are personally responsible for a child’s safety in a public open space,” said teacher Connie Pokress.

Beyond the field trip itself, students are also responsible for planning the field trip and incorporating it into the

value of a field trip depends on how well organized and executed it is.

“Well planned field trips can be a wonderful addition to classroom learning but the cost and time students are out of other classes are always considerations,” said Pokress.

trips are designed to enhance the “Field educational experience of what students learn in the classroom and apply it. ”

Left: Child Development II student, junior Brenna Cooper with preschooler Zaph at Build-a-Bear on a field trip.

Right: Tim Rodman and his AP Comparative Government class at the Russian Embassy.

Photo courtesy of Connie Pokress

Photo courtesy of Tim Rodman

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FEATURE

MARCH 18 , 2013

March Make

It’s that time of year again--flowers bloom, temperatures rise and The Pit up from Feature editor Ellie Jorling, Online Feature editor Christine Bersa

Ty Glover, Senior makeover was] the “ [The most surprising and fun event that has happened to me in the past seven years.

”

Button-down: $49.00, Urban Outfitters

Khaki shorts: $44.50, PacSun

Sneakers: $29.00, Urban Outfitters All photos by Ellie Jorling and Christine Bersabal

Glover gets his hair washed by stylist Gloria and cut by stylist Demetrios at Bella Bethesda Salon.

Where we purchased these Bella Bethesda Salon 4733 Elm St. 2nd Floor Bethesda, MD 20814 301-718-9111 www.bellabethesda.com Glover and Sports Editor Ian Morrison discuss possible outfit ideas in Urban Outfitters.

Francesca’s Collections 4844 Bethesda Ave. #14 Bethesda, MD 20814 301-652-1084 www.francescas.com

Urban O Mall 7101 De Bethesd 301-767 www.urb

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MARCH 18, 2013

FEATURE

eover Madness

11

tch does makeovers! Two lucky seniors had the opportunity for a style switchabal and Sports editor Ian Morrison.

Sarah Norkola-Smith, Senior feel more girly and polished “ I[after the makeover]. ”

Pleated cardigan: $38.00 (on sale for $19.00)

Necklace: $24.00

Belt: $14.00

Crochet dress: $44.00 Francesca’s Collections*

Oxfords: $38.00 *All clothes and accessories on Sarah are from Francesca’s Collections.

Norkola-Smith has her hair and make-up done at Bella Bethesda Salon by stylists (from left) Khang, Gloria and Kathryn.

e looks:

Outfitters Westfield Montgomery

emocracy Blvd. #1310 da, MD 20817 7-1626 banoutfitters.com

PacSun Westfield Montgomery Mall 7101 Democracy Blvd. #2254 Bethesda, MD 20817 301-365-2630 www.pacsun.com

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FEATURE

MARCH 18, 2013

Seniors break the bank to pay for college

By Ellie Jorling and Sari Amiel

At this time of year, many seniors are waiting to hear from colleges, and have not yet decided where they will go.

Money may be a major factor in their decision of which school to attend.

“I chose what schools to apply to because of the major,” said senior Jennifer Chen. “I think the school I’m going to go to out of those ones is because of the money.”

Chen was accepted into accelerated pharmaceutical programs at both Rutgers University and University of Pittsburgh. She would prefer to go to Pittsburgh, but will not do so unless she receives additional scholarships. “[Pittsburgh] has a better program, but it’s more expensive,” she said.

With the merit-based scholarships she has received already, she will have to pay $14,000 for Rutgers and $23,000 for Pittsburgh. She also filled out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), which students must complete in order to get loans or grants from the federal government. However, Chen is not hopeful about receiving money.

“I don’t feel like I’m very rich but I think compared to other people that are out there [I am],” said Chen. “My sister applied [for aid] before, but she never [received] anything, but we have more [of a] chance because we’re both going to be in college now.”

While lower-income families ostensibly qualify for financial aid, and affluent families might better afford the

high tuition costs, middle class families often struggle to finance higher education. Many private schools figure in the range of $40,000, as do public schools for out-of-state students. With the costs of room, board and books taken into account, schools can even cost close to $60,000. With all of these costs considered, one year of college costs about twice as much as a new Toyota Prius and more than a down-payment on a house.

However, this is a singularly American problem. In the UK, the average education cost is $5,288, in Germany, it is $933 and in France, it is $585.

“I think [tuition is] overpriced,” said guidance counselor Julie Kim. “It’s too high. The average college is $50,000.

It’s too much for a parent to pay.”

More and more students attend instate and community colleges in order to spend less money on their higher education. Additionally, many students apply to schools abroad, particularly schools in Canada and the UK. In recent years, the number of students at WJ applying to and enrolling in McGill University in Montreal has increased.

As a counselor, Kim’s impact on the financial aid process consists of advising students who would qualify for aid.

She believes it is difficult for a student whose family income is average to obtain federal aid, but cites private grants, loans and work-study programs as alternative options.

“We do our college conference in our senior year, and we do explain a little bit about financial aid, because if they have siblings going to school they could

qualify for loans, grants, or whatever they can get,” said Kim. “[There’s also a] financial aid workshop given during the winter in MCPS.” College and career counselor Gayle Evans has a larger role in advising students about financial aid.

“I would hope that… all [students] fill out their FAFSA,” said Evans. “I think it’s pretty easy if you just get on and answer the questions probably you can finish it up in half an hour.”

In addition, Evans has scholarship application forms in her room and informs students of financial aid meetings, which the county offers at various locations multiple times a year.

Unlike Evans, Kim feels that the fi-

nancial aid application process is complicated, and suggests that students and parents use a tutorial website called FSA coach to facilitate this process.

“It’s a lot of information,” said Kim. “I think a kid can get lost, and lose interest, and they probably end up being discouraged.”

Kim also said that students can get private scholarships and look online for other scholarship opportunities. Evans also directs students who ask her about aid to scholarships.

“There are plenty of scholarships out there that are not financial need, so it’s just a matter of how much you want to put into it,” she said.

Source: Global Higher Education Rankings 2010, Times Higher Education World Rankings 20112012

Infographic by Grace Leslau

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MARCH 18, 2013

M U S I C F E S T I V A L S

By MelissaWainaina and Hope Marshall

Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival (Manchester, Tenn.)

Although far from home, Bonnaroo is attracting many WJ students. With musicians like the Lumineers, Macklemore and Ryan Lewis, Paul McCartPhoto courtesy of official Bonnarooo website ney, Passion Pit and Mumford and Sons, Comedic actor Donald Glover chan- tickets are selling out fast. Currently, nels his hip hop alter ego “Childish the presales are sold out and only the Gambino” at Bonnaroo ‘12. most expensive tickets are left. For a three-day pass, tickets are selling for $269.50. Aside from the performances, Bonnaroo will be offering other activities for the music lovers, such as the silent disco, which allows the participants to dance to their own beats with their own music players.

Firefly Music Festival (Dover, Del.) This year, Firefly’s lineup is better than ever. The best of the lineup includes Red Hot Chili Peppers, Foster the People, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Photo courtesy of official Firefly website The Lumineers, Calvin Two Firefly goers are setting up camp.

Harris, MGMT, Vampire Weekend, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, Kendrick Lamar, Ellie Goulding, Zedd and many more.

“I’m really excited to see all the bands, especially Red Hot Chili Peppers,” said first-time festival goer senior Samantha Chemali.

With prices running from $148 to $238, music lovers were eager to buy, causing the show to be completely sold out by March. With an extra $140, up to four people can buy a “general tent camping,” allowing the group to stay overnight for three days from June 21 to 23.

Vans Warped Tour (Columbia, Md.) If you like alternative rock, meet and greets and vans, then this is the festival for you.With more than 200 bands and activities, you’ll be sure to find something you’ll love.

“I saw All Time Low, and The Summer Set and I crowd surfed and Photo courtesy of Nicki Stamler it was awesome,” said senior and The crowd at the Merriweather pavil- two-year Vans Warped Tour attendee ion is pictured from backstage at the Nicki Stamler.

2012 Vans Warped Tour.

This festival is a one-day event full of raffles, cool fashion stations and even informational stations for Invisible Children Amnesty International and other non-profit organizations.

“I definitely recommend it, but you have to be comfortable and accustomed to standing around in the heat,” said Stamler. “You also have to eat a good breakfast and lunch, as well as drink a lot of water.”

Catch this festival on July 10. Tickets range from $23.50-$45.00 and are selling out fast, so get them while they’re available.

Sweetlife (Columbia, Md.) If you like a little bit of Hip Hop, Indie, indie-folk and indie-electro, this is the festival for you. With artists like underground hip hop rapper Kendrick Lamar, indieelectro band Phoenix and Passion Pit, it will be sure to host a good time with awesome live music.

This festival is all about keeping Photo courtesy of official Sweetlife website green, with stations that help in- This is the official poster for Sweetlife. form you how to get in the green habit by recycling, eating right and saving energy.Tickets run from $75$150. Be sure to catch this rock’n green festival on May 11 at 12 p.m.

This event is open to all ages.

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

MARCH 18, 2013

By Emily Cosentino

To be up-to-date in the 21st century, you must possess the world at your fingertips. How do you do that? Using these little things called smartphones. Here is a guide to taking full advantage of your smartphone and using its wide array of applications.

PICTURES:

Snapchat: Instead of the regular text messages that have been available for years, try using Snapchat. Take a picture or video of anything, and write your message on top of the photo or even draw right on the photo to make fun, ridiculous pictures. Send serious messages, draw silly faces or convey just about anything you would write in a text message, except with a picture attached to it. The unique aspect is you choose how long you want the recipient to be able to view your message, and when those one to 10 seconds are up, the message disappears and can’t be viewed again.

Split Pic: This app is fun because you can make a completely unrealistic picture. There are a few different formats to choose from.You can take a few pictures at one time and make them into one picture. There are tons of fun and creative ways you can use this, and then share the pictures with your friends. Once a week, there is a message sent out to users containing the most creative Split Pic of the week, which can spark fun ideas about how to use this simple app.

MUSIC:

Shazam (left) and Songza (right) provide songs and information about them.

All photos by Emily Cosentino

Split Pic (left) and Snapchat (right) can help you customize your pictures and share them with others.

Shazam: If there is a song playing on the radio, in a movie or in a videogame, you can press Shazam and it will listen to the song and give you its name, its lyrics, if available, and a direct link to iTunes, YouTube and other ways to listen to or buy the song. Shazam is being integrated into other areas as well. A commercial for the military is using the app to provide viewers with an easy to access link to their website.

Songza: Other applications get a lot of downloads are ones that create playlists for you. Pandora is commonly used, and a less common app is Songza. Songza, depending on the time of day that you access the app, will come up with probable activities that you are engaging in. Based on the result, the app then provides you with a choice of probable atmospheres or moods and, from that, it creates a playlist.

FASHION:

Pinterest: Pinterest has many different categories, ranging from fashion to recipes. If you are trying to look up new makeup tips, how to get rid of acne, how to wear a scarf a thousand ways or anything you want to get an expansive public opinion on, then Pinterest will have it. Also, this is a place where you can not only “pin” things to view them later, but upload pictures of your own for others to view.

Magazines: Almost all of the tabloids you can find at your local grocery store will have the same print version online and ready to download onto your smartphone. This can be a way to always have a magazine on the go, or be able to take screenshots of all your favorite fashion styles and celebrities.There are plenty of non-mainstream magazines that are free on your smartphone. Even some of the mainstream magazines have free online versions of articles that differ from the print articles, but are still just as interesting. You can find sports magazines, fashion magazines, business magazines and many other genres.

GAMES:

Flow (left) and Temple Run 2 (right) are fun games to keep you entertained.

Newstand (left) and Pinterest (right) will get you caught up on the latest fashions.

Flow Free: If you have a skill in spatial intelligence, this is a fun game that allows you to calm down and relax. All you have to do is connect the colorful links together. The only thing is, when you’re working with a 9x9 board and 10 flows, it can get very tricky.

Fun Run: Fun Run is a entertaining game that can get a little disturbing. There are animals racing against each other with traps and skills that you can use in order to come in first place.You can play individually and train on the courses, race against random online players to win points and get a higher rank or play against your friends one on one or in a group of four.

Temple Run 2: If you enjoyed the first Temple Run, the new adventures and graphics in this game will get you addicted the second you start. It is a plain sequel to Temple Run that involves new courses to run on, but has the same theme. There are also versions of Temple Run that are specific to movies like “Brave” and “Wizard of Oz” on the yellow brick road.

ORGANIZATION:

Dropbox: Manage your pictures, documents and power points. Any picture that you take on your phone will upload to the online cloud that is on the Internet. From here, you can log onto any computer and log into your Dropbox to access all of your photos. It works in reverse, too; if you put any documents on your Dropbox from a computer, they will immediately download on your phone as well.

InClass:InClass can help you keep track of all of your assignments. There is a task list to show you all of the tasks that you have to complete within the next week. There are calendar views that show you and let you know how the next month’s academic schedule is playing out and there are lists for everything you have to do in one day, or what you have to do per class. This app can help you stay organized.

OTHER:

I’d Cap That (left) and Stumble Upon (right) can be fun ways to pass the time and for laughs.

Dropbox (left) and InClass (right) help you stay organized when it comes to classes, documents or pictures.

I’d Cap That: This is an app that will make you laugh. You can take any picture from your camera roll and I’d Cap That will make up random captions and add it to the picture. Sometimes it doesn’t make sense, and sometimes it fits perfectly, but either way, it usually ends in a bunch of laughs because of how ridiculous it can be. Warning: it can be offensive and dirty.

Stumble Upon: StumbleUpon.com is a site that basically directs you to web pages based on your interests. When you first sign up, you check a bunch of things that interest you, and it basically begins to set up a sort of personalized profile for you.

Then you click the Stumble button, and it directs you to websites based on your interests. Each rating adds data to your profile, so the more you use it, the more interesting stuff it delivers. Additionally, you can select a certain category and receive results exclusively from that category until it is un-selected once again.

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MARCH 18, 2013

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Playlists for every mood

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Here are some playlists made with the help of Musicovery.com, a website and app similar to Pandora Radio in that listeners can search for an artist or song, or they can use an interactive grid with four moods: Energetic, Positive, Calm and Dark.

By Selma Stearns

Positive: For when you

Dark: To satisfy

want uplifting tunes

- “Love Train”

By Man Ray

those rainy day needs - “Monday”

By Ludovico Einaudi

- “Replay”

By Iyaz

- “Wonder”

By Soap and Skin

- “Good Life (feat. TPain)”

By Kanye West

- “Madness”

By Muse - “Less Words”

By Old Earth

- “The Sweet Escape”

By Gwen Stefani

- “One Night Bland”

By Megan Podwin

- “She Will Be Loved”

By Maroon 5

- “Pictures of You”

- “I Won’t Give Up”

By Jason Mraz Calm: When just kick-

By The Cure

ing back and relaxing

Energetic: For when you need to get pumped up

- “Credo” ByJohn Geggie

- “The World It Softly Lulls (Amin Payne Remix)”

By Hiatus Kaiyote

- “Prelude n°7”

By Messiaen

- “Far End of the Graveyard”

By Ghosting Season

- “Diaphanes”

By Dhafer Youssef Graphic made by Emily Cosentino

- “Symphony 3-Andante”

By Nielsen

- “Never Back Down”

By Manic Bloom - “This House is a Circus”

By Arctic Monkeys

- “Piano Sonata K.457 Adagio”

By Mozart

- “Kill in Black with Amélie”

By ViC

- “Le Jardin D’Hiver”

- “You and Me”

By Plain

ByJacky Terrasson

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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Third Base: Emily and Audrey’s Day Off

By Emily Cosentino and Audrey Marek

Everybody has those days where they have a stomach ache or maybe a cold that just miraculously disappears.

(Spoiler alert: it was never there in the first place!) On such days, one may find oneself home alone with all day to waste. Here are a few tips on how to be sick, Ferris Buller style.

12:00 p.m.: Wake up.

All photos by Emily Cosentino

12:30 p.m.: Sock skate around the house in boxers, as seen in the Tom Cruise classic, “Risky Business.” This apparel is not limited to swim team spirit, and an upside is that pants are not necessary. This activity works best on wood or tile floors, as it is not very effective on carpet. It’s fun regardless of your gender.

1:00 p.m.: Eat everything in your house.

All photos by Audrey Marek

Scented candles and unique holders create a nice ambiance with smell and sight.

By Audrey Marek

Also, prisms can be hung from windows. During the day, they cast colored light across the floor. They can be found very cheaply, and can be hung using suction cups so no damage is done to the window. Candle holders and covers with cut-outs in the sides cast images on the walls at night, like a projector screen.

If you don’t have access to fresh flowers, or you find them too difficult to maintain, fake flowers achieve a very similar effect. There are also some paper crafts that can create the same look. Brightly colored origami paper can be used to make small flowers, with simple online instructions. If floral isn’t your favorite, many other designs, like cranes, other animals and some intricate geometric shapes, can be folded to perfection relatively easily. These can be attached to string and hung from curtain rods or from other easily seen places. If these little touches aren’t enough to reinvent your room, there are more no-

A sampling of spring: How to brighten up your living space

As spring approaches, you may be starting to tire of the dull winter colors in your bedroom and bathroom. Pretty soon, buds will begin to appear on the trees, and it would be a shame for your surroundings to still match a gray sky. There are quick and simple ways to spice up your space for spring, with small touches that will make all the difference.

2:00 p.m.: Floral print on materials like bed sheets or lamp Look at pictures of cute shades is a fantastic option. If you want to go more 3D, animals on the Internet. fresh flowers brighten up any room and add a touch of Nothing cures sickness life.

They can also create a pleasant scent in the room. like a little fuzz therapy; However, if a natural scent is not strong enough to satjust ask Calvin. Even isfy, there are other simple options that create a nice if you can’t haz cheese atmosphere.

Scented candles, oil diffusers and other burger, the cats on the sweet-smelling products can improve a room’s ambiInternet still can. ance. However, candles may be less ideal; it is easy to 3:00 p.m.: accidentally leave them unattended and they can be a Argue with com- fire hazard. If you’re willing to take the risk, though, plete strangers over they can literally brighten the room. There are other the Internet about options for unusual lighting as well. Electric candles, the most irrelevant which are battery-run, can be placed around and subject you can find. turned on in the evenings for a nice ambiance. Some You’d better win, candles like these come with built-in automatic timbecause otherwise ers so they turn on automatically at a certain time. someone might think that the Harlem Shake is actually an art.

4:45 p.m.: (Arguing can take a while). Sock dance around your house to your iPod singing at the top of your lungs; dance like nobody’s watching! Because guess what... no one is!

Continuously throughout the day: Watch about eight seasons of a TV show in one day.

You know you’ve been meaning to.

Just knock out all those series your friends have been recommending for ages at once. My recommendations: “Friends” and “XFiles.” If you’re struggling with the idea of over 96 hours of television in a 24 hour day, just watch multiple episodes at the same time. I’m sure you can figure it out.

MARCH 18, 2013

A bulletin board styled for spring brings a personal touch to your room.

Bright flowers placed as strategic accents can create a variety of interesting looks in rooms around your house.

ticeable options as well. Many WJ students are very artistically talented, and even those who are taking Photo 1 for the sole purpose of earning an art credit may still occasionally create something they are proud of. Hanging personal art around a room not only adds a unique and unexpected touch, but boosts confidence and provides a sense of achievement whenever you walk in and see it. It can also act as a conversation starter and point of interest when friends come over.

If you’re not artistically savvy, there are other easy ways to add personal decorations to a room. A bulletin board is a convenient way to fill up an empty wall, and can be a very unique display. If the plain brown cork is a little dull, covering it in wrapping paper gives your room a nice bright background. It is also simple to take it down and change the color every once in a while to keep things interesting. Once it’s up, the board can be accessorized with photos of family and friends, or just favorite images. A creative way to bring some smiles is by displaying some favorite comics and cartoons. This too can keep the conversation moving with friends, and display your interests. If you run out of objects to complete the board with, you can always matte some of the images that you feel are most important.

If you tire of your winter-themed walls but don’t want to turn to the usual posters, these cheap or homemade items can push you into a spring mentality. Get a jump start on the warm weather so when it finally comes, you can enjoy it both indoors and out.

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MARCH 18, 2013

SPORTS

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SPORTS

MARCH 18, 2013

WJ Athletics: Spring Previews

Boys’ Volleyball

Track and Field Co-ed Volleyball

Photo by Wahid Ishrar

Photo by Wahid Ishrar

Sophomore middle hitter Yeon Cho practices blocking.

By Sean Poosson

Despite only returning five players, the boys’ volleyball team remains positive in its hopes for this season. Led by senior captain Ian Morrison, the boys are looking to make good progress this season. Morrison, who plays outside hitter, is backed by key players such as junior hitter Adam Brami and sophomore Raphael Moura, who will anchor the back row. The team’s first match is on March 21 at home against Richard Montgomery.

Photo by Wahid Ishrar

Senior Gina Fischetti returns as one of just two seniors on co-ed volleyball this season. She will anchor the back line.

By Sean Poosson

This year’s co-ed volleyball team has one major difference from the teams of past years. In a change from his past rules, head coach Bill Morris is allowing senior girls to participate on the team. This allows for experienced talent on the team, such as senior Gina Fischetti. Fischetti, fellow senior Corry Straathof and juniors Brigid Morris and Victoria Ansarah all played on the very successful girls’ varsity volleyball team this past fall. They are joined by several less experienced but talented players, and are hoping for a successful season nonetheless. The team’s first match is March 21 at home against Richard Montgomery.

Boys’ Lacrosse

Senior Colby College commit Nathaniel Rees trains in preparation for the spring season.

By Sean Poosson

The track and field team is returning a strong squad this year. Under coaches Tom Martin and Tom Rogers, the team is looking for a solid season this year, building off of a strong 2012 season. The boys’ team graduated a great senior class last year composed of runners such as Josh Ellis, Scott Sheehan and Elad Covaliu.The team consists of key runners including Nathaniel Rees, Daniel Kosogof and Melanie Cirillo. The first meet is April 3, against Churchill and Gaithersburg at Churchill High School.

Girls’ Lacrosse

Photo by Wahid Ishrar

Photo courtesy of Dave Dabney

Boys’ lacrosse has worked on both skill and fitness this preseason, with hopes to exceed last year’s performance.

Junior midfielder Janie Hammaker returns for her third season on the varsity girls’ lacrosse team.

By Sean Poosson

By JJ Henn

The boys’ varsity lacrosse team finished with a record of 9-3 last season, and looks to improve upon that this spring. Following the loss of key players Jake Verner, Cole Miller and Tony Verlich, this year’s class is looking to step up. This year’s team, though, has plenty of players to watch. The lineup includes seniors Matthew Radack, Timmy Seppi and All-American goalie Gerritt Molloy. After a close loss in the regional semifinals last year, the boys are looking to make a run at the regional title this year under the leadership of third-year head coach Alan Pohorlyes. The team’s first game is March 21, at Gaithersburg High School.

This year’s girls’ team will greatly rely on the bond between coach Gary Reburn and the senior players. Last year the girls won their first playoff game but had to forfeit their second one due to violating a rule pertaining to red cards. This year’s team contains four returning starters, including seniors Cori Caggiano and Valerie Campanella and juniors Courtney Bruch and Janie Hammaker. The girls open up their season this year against Gaithersburg at home on March 21.

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MARCH 18, 2013

SPORTS

Gymnastics Boys’ Tennis

Charging the mound

By Ian Morrison

Photo by Wahid Ishrar

Boys’ tennis practices every day, led by coach Mike Laukaitis, who is also the girls’ tennis coach.

By Sean Poosson

Photo by Wahid Ishrar

Senior Libby Rice practices on the uneven bars.

By JJ Henn

This year’s lineup of gymnasts includes senior captain Grace Leslau and senior Guillmette Bodenreider, along with juniors Shannon McDonough, Ella Wu and Annie Heffernan. Coach Ursula Bright has consistently put up good results, as the 2011 team won the county meet and the 2012 team placed second. Their first home meet is against rival B-CC, which beat WJ at the county-level competition after spring break of last year. Major gymnastic rivals include Whitman, Montgomery Blair and Sherwood. County championships this year will be held at WJ, where the girls look to repeat their 2011 performance. The Wildcats won divisionals last year, while managing to remain undefeated in their matches.

An exciting year lies ahead for the boys’ tennis team.

Under coach Mike Laukaitis, the boys hope for a lot of success this season. Last year saw graduated senior Jordan Krasner at the state tournament, and the boys hope to do even better this season. Key players this year include senior Matt Skay, sophomore Justin New and junior Guy Beven. The team’s first match is on March 22 against Paint Branch at Blake High School.

Baseball

Softball

Photo by Wahid Ishrar

WJ softball prepares for the season with scrimmages in addition to their daily practices.

By JJ Henn Coach Jamie Ahearn and the girls’ softball team went 6-9 last season, but managed to take down Richard Montgomery in the playoffs before losing to Magruder. The team lost quite a few key players, including pitcher Bethany Buel, center fielder Sarah Bernstein and right fielder Hannah Flesch, but this year the team looks to build off of last season. The team will be led by senior first baseman Amy Caplon, along with senior pitcher Annie Scalet and junior Sarah Duncan. The girls open their season on March 22 vs. Clarksburg, a very talented team that beat the girls 13-4 last season. The girls will look for crucial victories this year against rivals Whitman, Wootton and Churchill as they try to make a run at the division title.

Photo courtesy of Steven Groobert

Senior Justin Hom takes infield practice.

By JJ Henn

Headed by their charismatic coach Christopher Murray, boys’ baseball is trying to build off of their 13-6 finish last year. Led by senior pitcher Gus Gill, the boys start their season with two home games against Quince Orchard and Clarksburg. The team’s strengths this year include its defense, led by Tyler Green at first base and both Gill and Hom at shortstop, along with its healthy line-up, following the return of middle-infield and pitcher Hom. This year’s team is very deep and looks to take down rivals B-CC and Whitman. Last year’s squad beat B-CC twice in the regular season before B-CC managed to turn the tables for the first game of the playoffs.

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We live in what has been deemed the “technological era,” where humans have developed computerized equipment to make every small task easier and more efficient. In some ways these changes have been revolutionary and irreplaceable, but in others they are simply unnecessary. Technological advancements have invaded the sports world in recent decades, and following the recent approval of goal line technology for the 2013 FIFA World Cup in Brazil, yet another sport has been drawn to the use of electronics to assist in refereeing.

In preparation for the 2013 World Cup in Brazil, FIFA officials have called for the use of goal-line technology to assist in ruling balls in or out of the goal.

This is part of an effort to ensure all goals are called correctly. Though this is important, the same effect may be achieved by placing a referee on the goal-line, with his or her only job to be to call when a goal is scored. This is the system currently used in the UEFA Champions League, and it has been successful thus far.

Yes, goal-line technology makes refereeing decisions more accurate and precise, but it also may have detrimental effects on game speed. In many sports, games have slowed down, and I fear this has harmed the excitement felt by fans.

Video review isn’t the only thing that slows down games: In almost all sports “T.V. timeouts” are taken simply to air commercials, in addition to the standard tactical timeouts taken by teams. These commercial breaks occur throughout games, and can be blamed for the slow nature of modern professional sports.

Since the 80s, when video review was first used for officiating in the NFL, football has become progressively slower. Now, throughout the course of a game, instant replay is frequently used to perfect calls. Combined with football’s already slow nature, the result is a four-hour football game with constant commercial breaks and timeouts for booth reviews.

Basketball has also experienced similar effects since the use of instant replay technology began. Plays may be reviewed at the referee’s discretion, and as a result many stoppages in the game occur. At these stoppages, people must endure extra minutes of commercials or a commentator’s rambling. These minutes add up, and the result is a 48-minute game which lasts around two hours. Not including half-time, that’s about an hour of stoppages.

As leagues continue to rely on sponsors and ads for money, and refereeing becomes more technologically dependent, games will only continue to slow down.

Soccer is currently one of the very few remaining sports that does not have any commercials outside of the 10-minute halftime break, and I believe this is the way sports should be. People simply should not have to designate hours of their day to watch a game that lasts no more than an hour. A 90-minute soccer game takes around 100-minutes to watch once you tack on half-time, whereas a 48-minute basketball game takes even longer.

Sure, in some sports occasional break time is needed for warm-ups and recovery, but I believe Coors Light commercials every 15 minutes are a bit unnecessary.

But alas, soccer has begun to integrate technology into refereeing, and the same grim, slow future may lay ahead.

If the current system of using referees already works, and ensures a fast-flowing game, I see no reason to convert to using technology. This change comes with kinks that will undoubtedly need to be fixed. This will be time consuming, and I hope for the sake of the game these kinks are worked out before in-game use, because the last thing sports fans need is another slowmoving sport.

Sports

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What’s Inside Spring Sports previews

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Ian Morrison’s column Charging the Mound

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Winter All-Pitch Team MARCH 18, 2013

Male athlete of the season

By Ben Resnick

Barry Mangold

Barry Mangold’s record-setting high school swimming carrer dramatically concluded Feb. 23 when, a day after dislocating his shoulder, Mangold won two individual state titles, including a state record in the 50-yard freestyle, and helped lead the boys’ Photo courtesy of Andrew Ship swim and dive team to Mangold competes at the state championship meet, his last ever its second consecutive meet for WJ. state championship. “[The team] goes to every meet and Mangold broke into the high school we know we need to take what we swimming scene his freshman year want; we are not given [anything],” said when he came in ninth place in the 200 Mangold.

-yard freestyle. Mangold, however, kept One of Mangold’s proudest moimproving each year and was named ments as a WJ swimmer was tying for second team All-Met his junior year. first in the 100-yard freestyle event at This year, he was named to the first Metros, the biggest high school meet team All-Gazette for his performance in in the D.C. area that hosts swimmers the 50-yard freestyle. from both public and private schools.

Mangold credits his success to the conMangold will swim for University tinuity in his coaching. Jamie Grimes, of Virginia next year and he hopes to his coach since seventh grade, provided achieve similar success as the collegiate the leadership and guidance that Manlevel. gold needed to succeed.

When Mangold reflects on his high Mangold holds two individual WJ school career, he will reminisce about records in the 50 and 100-yard freestyle the team’s success. events and was also part of a record set“WJ did good and looked good doing ting 200-yard freestyle relay team. it,” said Mangold.

Although Mangold has set many records in his time at WJ, he is most proud of the team’s success.

Chris Root

Swimming, Sr.

Root swam to a second place finish in the 100-yard freestyle and finished fifth in the 50yard freestyle at the state meet.

Tommy Branthover

Wrestling, Sr.

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Branthover had an outstanding season, finishing fourth at the regional tournament.

Jean Marc Nugent

Swimming, Jr.

This junior finished his season with sixth place finishes in both the 100-yard breaststroke and 200-yard individual medley at states.

Innocent Okocha

Wrestling, Sr.

Okocha had a stellar senior year winning both the county and regional tournament.

Sophia Kuvan

Swimming, Jr.

Female athlete of the season

By Michael Lumbuku

Megan Spurrell, senior point guard on the WJ girls’ varsity basketball team, emerged this season as one of the top athletes in the county. The team built on last year’s success, finishing 18-6 with a 7-3 conference record, good for a second place conference finish. Spurrell emerged as a leader early in the year, leading with both her demeanor and her play. Her leadership both on and off the court earned her the team’s MVP award at the end of the season.

“Megan is an all-around good athlete; she’s athletic, she’s smart and she tries every play,” said head girls’ basketball coach Lindsey Zegowitz.

Photo by Sarah Schecker

Natsumi Horikawa

Swimming, Jr.

Swim’s junior captain won the 200-yard freestyle, her strongest event, at states.

Colin McCoy

Sean Poosson

Wrestling, Sr.

As a three-year varsity player, Spurrell’s knowledge of basketball has grown. Along with her physical ability, it provides a lethal combonation for opponents. Spurrell’s teammates looked to her in the crucial moments of the game because of her ability to control the tempo. Her role as a point guard allowed her to facilitate the offense, while also adjusting her defense for each game.

“When games got tight, I would always relax,” said Spurrell. “I knew that my team looked up to me, so I had to step up and do my part.”

Spurrell’s excellence did not only show in her performance on the basketball court but also in her academics. Spurrell earned WJ’s Scholar-Athlete Award along with her MVP award and takes part in other sports and extracurriculars. Earlier this year she was a member of the varsity girls’ tennis team, and she is currently running outdoor track.

“Spurrell is the perfect example of a student athlete,” said Zegowitz. “She gives a lot of effort on and off of the [basketball] court, and sets a great example for the other players.”

Spurrell was named to the Montgomery County Senior All-Star game, which was played yesterday.

Senior Megan Spurrell looks up the floor to make a play.

New to the swim team this season, Kuvan came second in the 200 and 500-yard freestyle at states.

McCoy finished his career by breaking Elad Covaliu’s school record for most career varsity match wins.

Megan Spurrell

Boys Basketball, Sr.

Poosson averaged 13 PPG and dominated the paint offensively and defensively.

Daniel Kosogof

Bijan Fardoust

Bocce, Sr.

Fardoust helped lead the Bocce team to a third place finish at the south division championship.

Michael Lumbuku

Boys Basketball, Sr.

The Wildcats’ go-to scorer averaged 13 PPG and had four doubledoubles.

Indoor Track, Jr.

Kosogof capped off a terrific junior season with a 4:35 mile at the regional meet, good for a third place finish.

Marisa Gilman

Girls Basketball, Sr.

Gilman had a breakout senior season, scoring in double figures five times.

All-Pitch photos by Sarah Schecker, Wahid Ishrar and Ben Resnick