6sports
wingspan • march 19, 2010
Imminent expiration of collective bargaining agreement worries fans Camen Royse Asst. Sports Editor
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uper Bowl XLIV was the most viewed broadcast in television history. On Feb. 7, an estimated 106.5 million people tuned in to see who would be crowned champion of America’s most popular sport. In two years, however, there may be no Super Bowl to watch — or a regular season leading up to the big game. The collective bargaining agreement between the National Football League and the NFL Players Association expires after the 2010 season, and if an agreement isn’t reached by March, the owners could lockout the players. “NFL football is the only sport I can sit down and watch without an ounce of boredom,” junior Justin Coccia, an avid NFL fan, said. “If there isn’t any football in 2011, it will leave me without a lot of things to do on Sundays. But some things need to be fixed in a new agreement.” The collective bargaining agreement includes the details, conditions and requirements teams have to meet to sign or release a player. It includes the salary cap a team is granted, so with
no collective bargaining agreement, players and teams have no restrictions in dealing with each other. For example, there would be no minimum salary to pay players, making signing negotiations practically impossible. With no agreement, a work stoppage is almost unavoidable. The players have said they won’t strike, so a lockout, in which the players are not allowed to practice or play at the team’s facility, is more likely. “I think the players should strike. It’s a money-based business. Money is being thrown at the players, the owners and the general managers,” Coccia said. “Without something to keep that in regulation, it just wouldn’t work. The players feel like they deserve more money, and the way their contracts are based I agree with them.” The contracts in the NFL are structured so that when a player signs a multi-million dollar contract, he may only receive half of it. Some of the money included in the overall value of the contract may be tied up in incentives. For instance, one incentive may be that the player must have been in the game at least 30 percent of the snaps during the season. According to Coccia, this seems unfair.
“When a player signs a contract for $45 million dollars and only gets $18 million, it’s just not right,” Coccia said. “I think it needs to be structured like baseball where they are guaranteed every penny of their contract. A lot of these contracts are incentive-based, but when you don’t get on the field or if you’re an older player, most of these incentives can’t be reached.” In 2008, each of the NFL teams decided to terminate the current collective bargaining agreement, which was originally scheduled to end in 2013. The NFL and the NFL Players Association may not agree on a lot of things, but they both want to get a deal done. If, however, a deal isn’t reached by the end of March 2010, many say that a 2011 lockout is inevitable. Ironically, in the same year, the National Basketball Association’s agreement with the NBA Players Association expires. In the NBA, huge player contracts contribute to an estimated loss of $400 million this year. “I hope they figure out a deal and don’t have a strike,” senior Matt Vanwingerden said. “If there’s a strike there will be a lot of lost fans and it’ll take the NBA a while to rebuild their image.”
collective bargaining: (noun) negotiation between organized workers and their employer or employers to determine wages, hours, rules and working conditions.
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Winter sports teams finish up their first 3A seasons Women’s basketball falls in first round of state playoffs
Winter track members place at state meet in Chapel Hill
Matt Thielke Sports Editor
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Wrestling members place at individual state tournament Ryan Duckett Senior Editor
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arely does a wrestler find himself in a win-win situation, but that is exactly what happened to senior Brandon Harrison going into the 119 lb. division quarterfinals of the 3A state wrestling tournament on Feb. 26. If he lost the match, he would have the chance to break the West record for season wins in the consolation rounds. If he won, he would move on to the semifinals. “I told my dad I could lose and get the school record or I could win and go for the state championship,” Harrison said. “He said, ‘I’d rather have you in the finals.’” Fourth-seeded Harrison won the match against Northwest Cabarrus senior Robert Golde, the 2009 state runner-up, and went on to become the state runner-up the next day. Last year, Harrison placed fifth at state. “I was just messing with my dad on that one,” Harrison, the western regional champion, said. “There’s no way I would have lost it.”
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JAMES’ UPHOLSTE O T R U
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hree West students walked into the indoor track stadium at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, awed by the huge numbers of runners present. The three were West’s representatives at the 1A/2A/3A indoor track state meet on Feb. 20. “We all walked into the top level of the track, with huge teams with a lot of athletes,” senior Matt Thielke said. “It was awesome knowing the three of us made it to state, even though we were from such a small team.” Seniors Keenan Young, Meredith Foster and Thielke were the three qualifiers from West. Young placed 10th in the men’s high jump, Foster placed 16th in the women’s high jump and Thielke placed fourth in the 500-meter dash. During the 2008-2009 season, only 2009 graduate Jonathan Newton had qualified for the state meet. Coach Walt Fletcher said he considers the season a success. “This was my first year coaching indoor track, and it was a learning experience for me, I had to learn the new events,” Fletcher said. “Most of our athletes were also in other sports, so our team was small. Indoor track was used as primarily training for the outdoor track season in the spring, and I think it was a good way to get a step ahead of other athletes.”
Photo used with permission of Lifetouch
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mprovement is something every team looks for, and the women’s basketball team improved from its 20082009 season. The Lady Falcons basketball season came to an end with a 44-68 loss to Erwin during the first round of the sectional playoffs. “We played better than people expected us to against a good team like Erwin, but it was really sad that we lost, especially for us seniors,” senior Summer Kremer said. The game was even more disheartening for senior Meredith Foster, who had to watch her team lose from the bench. Foster injured her ankle on senior night during a game against Franklin. “When I rolled my ankle during that game, my first thought was that I was going to be unable to help out my team as well as finish out the season that we all worked hard for,” Foster said. The team made improvements from the previous season, when they finished 6-16. Kremer said she attributes the improvement to hard work. “We all worked hard during our practices and executed better during the games,” Kremer said. “We were also stronger mentally, and we had the ability to compete against teams that may have been better than us.” Looking to next season, the Lady Falcons will return seven seniors, many of whom have played on the varsity team since their freshman seasons. “Next year the team will be much stronger with more experience,” Kremer said. “I think the team will be in good Record: hands with the all rising seniors and their leadership experience.”
Holding On Struggling for the ball, freshman Kalen Orr tries to gain possession at Hendersonville on Dec. 9. The junior varsity team beat the Bearcats, 46-27. Harrison was pinned by Robinson’s Dominic Parisi in an intense match. “I put him on his back during the first period and just ran out of time. I kind of freaked him out there for a little bit and then probably picked the wrong position going into the second period,” Harrison said. “I shouldn’t have chosen bottom; I should have stayed on my feet.” Three West wrestlers, in addition to Harrison, qualified for the state tournament, a total number twice that of last year. Junior Trae Hemphill concluded his season in the consolation semifinals, while senior Josh Littauer and sophomore Jesus Vera ended their tournament runs in the consolation quarterfinals. The West team also had a strong showing at the 3A regional tournament on Feb. 21 at St. Stephens High, tying Fred T. Foard, the team that defeated West in the dualteam playoffs, for fourth. Harrison earned the regional championship while Vera took the 112 lb. division runner-up title. Hemphill and Littauer, in the heavyweight and 160 lb. divisions, both placed fourth. The top four wrestlers from each division advanced to the state tournament. “Next year I expect to place at state. Record: I think I did pretty well this year; it’s only my second year of wrestling,” Vera said.
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Men’s basketball head coach steps down at season’s end by the
numbers
162
record for career wrestling wins set by senior Brandon Harrison
26
number of wins Harrison broke the old record by
13
number of missed matches this season due to weather
Kevin Robinson Asst. Sports Editor
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fter a 9-14 season, Head Coach Rob Bliss announced his resignation from the basketball team. His record in four seasons at West was 57-46. “I just thought that this is what was best for the school. A team and its players are supposed to move forward over the course of a year, and we went backward,” Bliss said. “It felt like it was the right time for it.” Bliss will continue as a social studies teacher, and administrators are now looking for a new head coach. “It will be different without him on the bench with us. He is the only coach I’ve had in high school,” junior Kevin Thomas said. “I hope we can find someone like him to replace him.” The Falcons ended their season with a 67-80 playoff loss at Enka. “Enka was very good team; we played them three times, and each time we got a little closer, but they had a lot of talent and size,” senior Colby Thelen said. Next season, Thomas and other juniors who saw playing time will be the team leaders and will attempt to turn this year’s learning experience into a winning record. “I’m excited about next year; Kevin (Thomas), Karl (Bernadas) and I are Record: working really hard in the off-season to get better,” junior Jordan Bell said.
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