April 2009

1 April, 209 Freedom Area High School’s Student Newspaper Freedom, Pennsylvania Volume I, Issue VII

After a successful attempt to introduce an after-school robotics program this year, FHS has decided to add the robotics class into the curriculum for the 2010-2011 school year. The class will be taught by Mr. Pickard, with programming assis-tance from Mrs. Milanovich

. Five of Freedom‟s male

students, accompanied by Milano-vich and Pickard, attended a ro-botics competition in Pittsburgh earlier in the year.

Juniors Matt Sherlock

and Trevor Polaski got involved in the project through Milano-vich‟s first period IT Essentials class. “They [Milanovich and Pickard] took a summer class on robotics and then brought their ideas to the school,” said Polaski.

Sherlock‟s first place in

the competition proved the test program to be a success. Al-though the original intent was for

the students to build the robots from a book the teachers provided, Polaski and Sherlock used their own ideas instead.

“We went free-lance and used whatever spare parts we could find,” Polaski commented.

The boys agreed that the programming was the most difficult part of the process. They pro-grammed their two robots to run on their own power for the first part of the competition. “It took a lot of time,” adds Polaski. “We only got it right about ten

minutes before the competition started.” Although building the robots involved

a lot of trial and error for the students, they did enjoy constructing the actual models. “Matt and I sometimes spent full school days protect-ing, designing, and enforcing the robots so that they would perform well,” Polaski reminisces. He also added that he is considering

taking the robotics class next year; however, his participation will be largely based upon the supplies that will be provided to build the ro-bots. Polaski says he‟d like to see the class

go to some bigger competitions in the upcom-ing years. Sherlock‟s first place finish qualified him for the finals in Texas, but he was not able to attend.

Junior Boys Bring Robots to Life

Polaski and Sherlock show off the robots they built through a test

program at Freedom for a Pittsburgh robotics competition.

Marissa Ritorto leads some of her softball teammates in dancing the electric slide at the MORP.

Kelly Follmer, Editor-in-chief

Photo by Chris Rooney

Photo by Chris Rooney

FHS Press 1 April, 2009 2

New Ways to Learn

Kelly Follmer, Editor-in-chief

The 15 districts of Beaver

County and Lincoln High School in

Ellwood City have partnered with the

Regional Choice Initiative to provide

more choices for their students. Thanks

to a grant from the Federal govern-

ment, students from these 16 schools

can take classes online, at other

schools, and even earn college credits.

FHS is one of the participants

in the RCI program. “It [RCI] provides

students with more choices in classes

by taking advantage of the latest ad-

vances in technology,” commented

Rita Kaplin, one of the counselors at

Freedom.

There are four main parts of

RCI. The first is called “Open Seats,”

which allows students to travel to

other, near-by high schools to take

classes that are not a part of the cur-

riculum at their home school. Some of

these classes are also offered online by

using “polycom,” an interactive way

for students to learn using computers.

Junior Sara Murphy and sophomore

Sadie Schweinsberg are enrolled in a

Japanese class through polycom. “I

like the class, but there are some prob-

lems,” added Murphy.

So far, there have been some

issues with equipment and the differ-

ence in the schedule also causes some

problems. Murphy also commented,

“It‟s hard because sometimes the

teacher gets distracted when someone

in the class asks a question.” Kaplin

adds that, “[The traveling] requires a

lot of scheduling coordination, so it‟s

better for us to use the online courses

right now.” Classes taken through the

“Open Seats” program are not factored

into the GPA or class rank of the Free-

dom students because they are consid-

ered elective credits.

The second feature program in

RCI is called “Dual Enrollment.”

Through this course, high school stu-

dents can take college classes at local

universities, such as Penn State, CCBC,

and Clarion University, in order to earn

college credits.

These classes can be factored

into a student‟s schedule or taken outside

of regular school hours. Senior Ashley

Adams participated in the program when

she took a English Composition I class at

CCBC the first semester. Adams thought

the class was cool because there was

more of a focus on literature rather than

grammar. “I learned a lot that I probably

wouldn‟t have learned here at Freedom,”

said Adams.

She also enjoyed that classroom

discussions covered more controversial

topics than are allowed in the Freedom

curriculum. Other students from Free-

dom have taken classes such as Ameri-

can Sign Language and Physiology.

Most of the students have found them to

be interesting enhancements to the Free-

dom curriculum.

Third in the Regional Choice

Initiative is the Cyber Class program.

Through this option, high school students

may take online classes. There are a great

variety of courses offered, however it is

not a viable choice for every student. “It

is important to have a strong student with

the right personality,” said Kaplin. “They

also have to understand the responsibility

that comes with taking an online course.”

Because there is no teacher to supervise

their work, online courses are more de-

manding of the student themselves and

require a student to demonstrate good

time management skills. Students must

be capable of independent work.

“Turn of Education” is phase

four for RCI. This option is for students

who are behind on their credits in high

school or who want to return to school to

earn their diploma. Classes are offered

through an online curriculum.

Governor Teaches Class At Freedom

Governor Ed Rendell continues to develop the classrooms of Pennsyl-vania towards the future. The “Classrooms for the Future” grant of $300 million dollars makes this claim quite evident.

The distribution of technology to

the high schools of Pennsylvania allows for many more learning opportunities, one of which Governor Rendell is spon-soring personally. In November, our governor was able to teach a civics/economy lesson to students from ten dif-ferent schools in Pennsylvania over the internet. Mr. Partridge‟s 6th block was able to take advantage of this opportunity by using a Polycom system. With this device, a webcam, and a projector, the students were able to create a live inter-active classroom with the governor. Topics such as Pennsylvania‟s budget, the presidential election, voting, and state political issues were addressed. Question and answer sessions were set to personalize the experience as well. Mrs. Rendell, federal judge, also taught some of the lesson.

The entire purpose of the discus-sion was to bring together the youth of Pennsylvania and give them a chance to experience a once in a lifetime chance. Stephanie Holsinger commented, "It's nice to see that we have the ability to communicate with someone like the gov-ernor so easily."

You may be wondering what this has to do with you. Speaking with the governor may not interest you, but the technology used in this instance can be applied to many others.

Online video conferencing tech-nology such as the Polycom system can open doors to any career path. From watching surgeries to greeting our troops overseas, teacher Mr. Hickey says that there is definitely a bright future for this technology.

The World Affairs Club hopes to use this method of communication to speak with students in Odessa, Ukraine. Governor Ed Rendell has provided Free-dom and many other Pennsylvanian schools with yet another chance to grasp the future in a new creative way.

Jordan Cinderich, Staff

Tune Teamwork

Eleven band students from Freedom High traveled to Rochester High School to

participate in the yearly county band festival.

Kelly Follmer, Editor-in-chief

On Friday, March 20, band stu-dents from every school in Beaver county gathered at Rochester Area High School for the 2009 County Band Festi-val. Eleven students from Freedom High School attended the event, along with several musicians from the middle school. The musicians practiced for three hours on Thursday night, and then

returned to Rochester early Saturday morning to continue the rehearsal. After an all day practice, stu-dents gathered in the cafeteria for a ban-quet. The middle school students took the stage at 7:30 to begin the concert. The high school students followed soon afterwards, performing the pieces that they had spent the day practicing.

Photo by Darlene Hilliard

FHS Press 3 1 April, 2009

Beware the

Ides of March

To be or not to be? That was the question Ms. Ross‟ fifth period class asked themselves when it came time to go to the ever popular Shake-speare competition in Pittsburgh on Thursday, March 19.

With less than a week to pre-pare, no one felt exceptionally confi-dent in their ability to quote the world‟s most confusing playwright.

However, everyone who at-tended battled the lack of practice and executed their monologues with per-fection.

Even those who were a tad shaky at first were able to regain their composure and finish strong with their pieces. Also attending were quite a few rambunctious middle school kids who also share their love of the theatre. So in this case, all‟s well really did end well. However, none of Freedom‟s stu-dents advanced to the final round of the competition.

Sami Jo Smith, Contributing

Writer

As a new plaque is revealed, Scott Challis gives a speech thanking the Freedom community for its support.

Scott’s son, John, lost his battle with cancer this past summer. John will be forever commemorated in the

hearts of his Freedom family.

Photo by Chris Rooney

Honoring a Hero

after you fix whatever is wrong. After a fierce editor-brawl, the opinion that seems to be the stance of the majority of editors is: if the technology fails you, then it is your own fault.

There are so many means of backing files up that there is not much room for excuses. Sometimes there are

outstanding circumstances that are completely and ut-terly out of your control, and within those lines, an extension is understandable. Those conditions are rare though. In the circum-stances that the whole class seems to be having issues, it is obviously not one single person‟s fault. Sometimes technol-ogy just disagrees with you. There are so many means

though to back up files, such as emails and alternate flash drives. Every student needs to utilize these different options and if for some reason, your email gets hacked and every flash drive self-implodes, make sure everything is done early so you can fix anything that does go wrong. Don‟t rely on excuses and an extended deadline.

Editor-in-Chief:

Managing Editor:

Opinions Editor:

Photography Editor:

A&E Editor:

Copy Editor:

Sports Editor:

Faculty Advisor:

FHS Press is the official student newspaper serving Freedom Area High School, in Freedom, Pennsylvania. The

views presented herein are not representative of the school, faculty, or administration; they are solely the views of

individual student writers. The newspaper accepts and strives to publish signed letters to the editor under 250 words.

To submit comments, press releases, or letters to the editor, or to purchase advertising space in the paper, e-

mail [email protected], or contact Mr. Hartman in Room 114.

Kelly Follmer

[email protected]

Joseph Fubio

[email protected]

Meagen Finnerty

[email protected]

Christopher Rooney

[email protected]

Nolan Rider

[email protected]

Natasha Kerr

[email protected]

Bryan McSorley

[email protected]

Mr. Hartman

[email protected]

FHS Press Staff

Opinions 1 April, 2009 FHS Press Freedom, Pennsylvania

STAFF EDITORIAL:

In the midst of the transition into “the classroom of the future,” tech-nology has now become the dominant icon of our school. Inside these laptops are every single student‟s projects. As most of us have experienced, technol-ogy is not always reliable enough to entrust with hours worth of research and hard work. The problem is that our school is crip-pled by or dependant on technology (whichever way you chose to look at it).

Technology is the sole focus on any project that we are handed, be it a movie, paper, PowerPoint, etc. The question is then brought into play: what do we do when the tech-nology occasionally/inevitably fails us? More so, what does the teacher do? We usually don‟t have a choice in what hap-pens next. It‟s the teacher‟s move.

The teacher can either give you time to fix whatever has happened, such as a corrupted file or a failed save, or he/she can either not accept your project or take points off of it for being late

College is one of the most expensive

things that comes up at the poorest time of

your life. College can cost anywhere on the

upward side of $20,000. In the past few

years, college prices have been rising. But

how can an 18-year-old possibly afford thou-

sands of dollars worth of schooling while he/

she can barely afford a calculator?

Everyone‟s wallets have been af-

fected by the economic crisis. Jobs are not as

easy to come by, and once secured, prices for

everything have increased. Car insurance,

cell phone bills, and an occasional trip to the

mall drain most wallets, as most of us are

experiencing. While we should be saving for

college, we are just trying to get by with

what we already have to pay, and what we

are saving just isn‟t enough.

So what do we do? Do we lower our

standards on what college we attend based on

how much it will cost? It depends. If you are

willing to exert the extra effort in order to

either get a scholarship or work and save

every penny to afford the college of your

choice, all the more power to you. The harder

you work for it, the more you will appreciate

it. But if you feel you have put enough time

and energy into trying to afford college, well,

you can hope for the best and if you don‟t get

in, go somewhere else that isn‟t as demand-

ing. We could cling to the hope that we have

enough money to get through college with

what we already have, which, for the lucky

few, is enough. But most of us need to find

other means in order to pay the hefty sum.

Student loans are becoming more

difficult to obtain due to the weakening econ-

omy. Banks don‟t want to chance losing any

more money by giving loans to students

whose futures are undetermined. Interest

rates are increasing, causing even more prob-

lems with student loans.

Financial aid is a crucial thing for

any student preparing for college. Without it,

going to certain preferential colleges might

be impossible. Above-average grades need to

be maintained, and logically thinking, be-

cause the economy is in such a recession,

only the best applicants will get financial aid.

This being said, even if you do get above-

average grades, it seems reasonable to as-

sume that no financial aid is a sure thing.

College is going to be difficult for

the next several years. Students are going to

have to keep up a job accompanied with a

student loan and financial aid unless he/she is

receiving help from his/her family or other

outstanding circumstances.

Most of us, though, are going to

have a rocky road ahead of us thanks to the

dwindling financial state of the country. Just

try to keep your head above water while sav-

ing for college, and be prepared for a lot of

paperwork applying for any cent a bank, col-

lege, or organization will throw at you for

college.

“...technology is not always

reliable enough to entrust with hours worth of research and hard work…”

Powering Off

Pinchin’ Pennies for College Meagen Finnerty, Opinions Editor

Moral: Hit “Save” every .0027 seconds.

I went to see Avenged Sevenfold in concert last month, and it was an amazing night full of memories. But one thing I can't forget is seeing the lead singer pick up a pair of dog tags that were thrown on stage. He began talking about his support for the soldiers, and I'll never forget this quote: "We're not pro-war at all, but those are good...people over there."

That line just repeats in my head over and over. A childhood friend of mine is a member of the Air Force, and is stationed in Japan. I haven't seen her in years. I'm very thankful she's not in Iraq, but I still miss her a lot. I support the peo-ple who have to fight in Iraq for whatever rea-son we're still there. And when people see the "support our troops" stickers, they feel like that person is pro-war.

That is SO far from the truth. I support every man and woman that has set foot on for-eign soil, but I think that it's time for this war to be over. I think that there is no reason for innocent people to keep losing their lives, or come home so mentally scarred that they can no longer function in society.

Pro-war more or less means that you support the reasons America is involved in the War in Iraq, and that you think we were (and still are) right to be there.

Pro-soldier pretty much means you support the people being forced to fight, but aren‟t behind the reasoning of the troops being there in the first place.

I'm sure there are people out there that are still pro-war and think we should keep sending troops into the Middle East, but I think in the recent years, the actual war is losing support.

Although, you can‟t hate the people being forced to fight in it.

That's my main point. These people are being forced to fight in this war that's just becoming more and more pointless each and every day. I understand that it's not a draft, and people sign up for the Army, but some don't expect being sent to Iraq. There are some that are sent to Iraq, return home, and then are forced to go back. It takes a lot to recover from a war, and some people never do. And that's the biggest shame.

"Those are good...people over there." That state-ment means so much. There are so many people in Iraq and Afghanistan seeing things that no human be-

ing should ever see, and they don't deserve it. My best friend Mike came up to me one day and said, "I had a high school buddy get blown up in Afghanistan. He's not coming home." Did he deserve that? Did his friend deserve to not say goodbye to his family one last time, or to never have a beer with his friends again? Did he deserve to die? I highly doubt a 20-something-year-old did enough evil deeds in his short lifetime

to deserve to die in a foreign country without his fam-ily and friends around him.

This is obviously an OPINION about all of this Middle East conflict/war/whatever you choose to call it. You can disagree with my view on the war, but you can‟t argue that those are not good people fighting it. I don‟t think a sub-ject like this needs to be swept under

the rug and hushed because you're scared of causing a political debate. The point of my article was not to get people angry about the war, or stir up political drama. It was simply to point out that no matter what, THOSE

ARE GOOD PEOPLE, and in times like this, they're going to need all the support they can get.

FHS Press 1 April, 2009 5

Katie

Pope

OFF

TICKED

It‟s time for a crash-course on the Opinions Section of FHS Press. It seems as though our purpose as the staff of this paper has been quite misconstrued. Our purpose is not to tell you how to live your life or handle your relationships (although I‟m sure everyone has an opinion on the right way to do things).

The simple purpose is to give everyone here a chance to speak their mind on whatever topic seems to be plaguing them at the moment; be it the spaghetti we had for lunch, or the annoying driver who tailgated you the whole way home who you would really love to give some much-needed driving tips to.

Yes, these opinions do run the risk of upsetting some people, but as does everything from as small as the song that was playing when the radio, to the slightly more obnoxious issues such as the gas prices that are draining our wallets.

If you have an issue with an article that was written, we would love to have you write (or, due to the thrills of modern technology, type) a letter to the editor. By choosing to devote those few minutes you would otherwise spend complaining, to putting to-gether a letter that you want put in the paper, you owe

yourself a pat on the back for handling conflicting opinions in a mature manner.

Letters to the editor will NOT be edited for content, as long as you keep things mature and at an appropriate level. The Opinions Section is meant to be an open forum for students or faculty of good ol‟ FHS. Most students don‟t take the opportunity that is presented here. If you have an issue, this is your chance to get it out without causing drama.

If you have something that you want to get out that is not in response to an article, then take initiative to become a part of the paper. The best way to fix something is from the inside-out. All you have to do is type up whatever you are thinking, and as long as what you have to say is school-appropriate, the only editing done to it will be for grammar.

The Opinions Section‟s purpose is to get people to think about things and people around them, with a bit of self-evaluation mixed in. It is in no way meant to upset people or spark any negativity, just what the authors feel is truth. We also now have a website, so just visit http://my.hsj.org/pa/freedom/

fhs/ to post feedback on any article that‟s been pub-lished.

If you have an opinion about something, or have a comment regarding an article that has been pre-viously published, just email the Opinions Editor (yours truly) at [email protected]. We all

need to take every opportunity to say what we feel needs to be heard, and every method of do-ing so needs to be exhausted. The paper was made to give students a chance to speak out, and this opportunity needs to be explored more thoroughly by students here at FHS. By doing so, opinions of the student

body can get out in a mature and easily ac-cessible manner. Every operation has flaws, and while we may not be perfect, we work hard to put out a paper with articles that

interest you. This was the purpose of FHS Press. Success in

our mission lies within your success of making a stand and putting your ideas on paper for all to read. In the words of Judge Walter Malone, “The greatest thing a man can do in this world is to make the most possible out of the stuff that has been given him. This is suc-cess, and there is no other.”

FHS Crossword

Take a Hint Meagen Finnerty,

Opinions Editor

Pro-Soldier vs.

Pro-War

Solution:

Crossword by Meagan Stewart

FHS Press 101

Photo by: Chris Rooney

ACROSS

2 The magazine our school was listed in.

4 ______ contains fish scales.

5 The only animal with four knees.

8 ______ are made out of horsehairs.

DOWN

1 This animal has striped skin, not just striped fur.

3 The fear of teeth.

6 The average caterpillar has 248 _____ in its head.

7 This animal can hear ultrasound.

FHS Press 6 1 April, 2009

Arts & Entertainment March 2009: The Month That Everyone Seems to be Irish

1 April, 2009 FHS Press Freedom, Pennsylvania

HOT: Big Hair - Leg Warmers - ‘80s NOT: Straight Hair - Cold Legs - 2000’s

and Jenn Cantella. Everybody was laughing and having a good time. The girls of the softball team all enjoyed themselves and danced together that night.

The night was watched over by our fa-vorite teachers, Ms. Clear, Mrs. Burger. Mr Lentz was a guest DJ that definitely brought the house down. He took requests and played an as-sortment of „80s hits.

The evening of wonderment was spon-sored by our softball team and the profits went to support them. They had an open table full of food for the students to buy. Wings, cookies, chips candy, pop, and just about anything else you could think of was there.

When all was said and done, we all left laughing, having a good time. It was an amazing night, and an original idea. I hope that I get to experience it all again next year.

Nolan Rider

A&E Editor

You enter. There is fog flowing across your feet. You hear music, the blazing high screech of a guitar solo from a god. The smell of hairspray is thick in the air. Lights shine in your face, sensory overload. You see your friends across the room standing next to a stack of speak-ers bounces with the thud of the bass blasting through them. Your friends are jumping to the beat of music. Hair, leather, beads are everywhere.

That was your first experience as you walked through the doors of the Morp. The food, the music, the friends, the chaperones and the DJ all led up to a night of complete and utter amaz-ingness. We weren‟t alive in the „80s, but our par-ents had a good time back in the day. What‟s a more perfect way to celebrate our parents‟ youth than to relive it ourselves for a night?

With around 70 people in attendance, al-most of all of which were dressed for the occa-sion, the cafeteria was turned into an „80s heaven. Music from Journey, Madonna, and Michael Jack-son played through the night, with the occasional treat from the present.

Entertainment also included Mr. Hernan-dez line dancing to country songs with members of our track team, and a karaoke duo by Mr. Lentz

The Scoop

Name: The Morp

Theme: The „80s

Chaperones: Mrs. Ritorto, Mrs.

Berger, Ms. Clear, Mr. Boggs, and

Mrs. Kemerer

DJ: Mr. Lentz

Tickets Sold: Around 70

Profits: About $450

With big hair, neon colors, and a feel good vibe, the Morp was truly done in 1980s fash-ion. This year, the Morp was held by the girls soft-ball team in an attempt at raising money for their boosters to be able to purchase things like hoodies and other equipment.

With roughly 70 tickets sold and conces-sions like pop, chips, candy, and wings, the team was able to raise these necessary funds. The dance was a success at raising around $450 in profits alone.

Because the theme was 1980s, it seems only natural that a majority of the music be from the era of Van Halen and Pink Floyd. Did I forget to mention that the DJ was our previous vice-principal, Mr. Lentz? He rocked the house playing hits from the „80s and today.

To go along with the „80s theme, students dressed in baggy, brightly colored clothes that were the fashion of the time. Girls had hair pumped with hairspray to give it maximum vol-ume. Boys wore tee-shirts with bands from the „80s on them. It was a flash back to a year we‟ve never seen.

We must not forget that the dance would not have been possible without the help of chaper-ones like Mrs. Burger, Miss Clear, Bill Boggs, Mrs. Ritorto, and Mrs. Kemerer.

Joey Fubio

Managing Editor

Students having fun at the „80s themed “Morp”– Pic by Chris Rooney

Reliving Our Parents’ Youth

FHS Press 1 April, 2009 8

Mr. Saludis – Chemistry teacher or scientific mastermind? Mr. Saludis is Dr. Xavier from the X-men. He doesn‟t just find superheroes and train them, we‟re pretty sure he has the power to cre-ate them himself with just the power of his own mind. He has the ability to give any Chem student a headache within the first few seconds of explaining their homework problems.

Ms. Ross – Ms. Ross is Storm from X-men. If you‟ve ever seen her an-gry, you would know why. When she gets mad, we all expect lightening to crash from the sky and the windows to blow in. I will recommend that you don‟t steal a video from her. She may seem like an in-nocent English teacher, but that is not the case. As Shakespeare said, “Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned” Sadly enough, Jesse Johnson was not made aware of this earlier in the school year.

Mr. Hartman – Mr. Hartman is best fit as Aqua Man. If you didn‟t know, he was born underwater. He spent his childhood chillin‟ with his homie SpongeBob. He was raised by dolphins off of the Florida Keyes. He was actu-ally the one that found Nemo. Stop by his room sometime and ask him to speak dolphinese for you; he‟s fluent.

Mr. Tinker – Tink is Flash, „nough said. If Mr. Tinker were a police officer, no one would get away. Tink was the first person to break the land speed record, on one leg.

Oh yeah, and Zach Burns calls the title of The Joker.

Nolan Rider

A&E Editor

Saving the World, One Student at a Time

Dr. Staub – The big man has to be Captain America. He is the leader of our su-perhero crew. And he‟s as patriotic as it gets. I mean geeze, he‟s the one we hear saying the Pledge of Allegiance every morning on our wonderful D-TV.

Miss Sosko- Maybe the fiercest teacher in the school. Freshmen history stu-dents have to watch their backs with this one. I have taken a punch or two from Sosko before, and the only super hero that I can think of for her has to be Wonder Woman. If only she was allowed to fight the evil that are her students.

Mr. Hernandez – Ok, this one is a given. Mr. Hernandez has the strength of fifty underclassmen, and a gorilla. Although he‟s not green, I still think he has the power to throw a tank. Mr. Hernandez can bench press a bushel of busses, a gaggle of garbage trucks, a school of space shuttles…etc. You wouldn‟t like him when he‟s angry.

We all see our teachers as heroes, but how far do we actually take it?

Freedom teachers as super sheroes - Pic by: Katie Pope

FHS Press 9 1 April, 2009

The J-Birds

Even though we are a small high school,

we still have an abundance of artistic talents. We have students participating in Drama Club, Theatre Arts, Art Class, and other artistic programs offered at Freedom. Whether it is performing, writing, or drawing, the work that comes out of this school seems to be incredible.

I recently sat down with a student artist, Courtney Frain, and talked with her about her latest creations. Courtney is a very artistic creative per-son. She painted a wonderfully colorful painting of birds. She was inspired by a picture she noticed on the internet while looking for unique designs for a tattoo. This is shown in her drawing. Her back-ground is a fleshy color that is masterfully blended to give the illusion of skin.

The birds in the painting are colorful, wispy looking, and appear to be floating on the skin background. The separate colors represent dif-ferent emotions that we all experience in everyday life. She describes the colors as the multi-faceted stages of emotions that make us all human.

There is an inscription at the bottom of the painting that reads “A bird does not sing because it has an answer, it sings because it has a song.” She says that this quote came from a display she saw at the aviary.

To her it symbolized the freedom that birds have. When most people think of birds‟ freedom, they think about the ability to fly. Courtney sees their true freedom in the melody and songs that

Courtney Frain with her latest painting: The J- Birds - Pic by Chris Rooney

they sing. It represents her freedom as a person and the freedom she demonstrates as an artist when she expresses herself in her paintings.

This painting is her favorite piece she has done so far. She claims it is “her baby”. It took her a total of three weeks to complete, working on it every day and in her art class. I watched this

wonderful creation come to life. Every day, I was more and more impressed. I got to see the utter joy in her eyes every time she showed me the progress that she made.

Nolan Rider

A&E Editor

Freedom, Pennsylvania

Sports 1 April, 2009 FHS Press Freedom, Pennsylvania FHS Press

This season, the softball team is trying to

reach the playoffs for the first time in a many years.

The Softball team is led by head coach Brandi Berger,

and assistants Bill Boggs and Andrea Clear. This is

the second year that this staff has been together and

they are leading a young and talented squad.

Pitching is one of the strongest points on the

softball team. The team is led by junior Savannah

Grossetti. Grossetti has been pitching varsity since

early in her freshman year.

Last year she was one of the most feared

pitchers in the section. Marissa Ritorto is the woman

responsible for catching one of Beaver County‟s most

feared pitchers. She has plenty of experience catching

her pitches by being the catcher all of last year and

many years growing up.

Defense is one of softball‟s many phases on

which the softball team prides themselves. This infield

is anchored by junior shortstop, Alysa Schell.

She started playing softball her freshman year

but had played baseball growing-up and uses the fun-

damentals she learned then to play softball. Other

fielding stand-outs for the softball teams are fellow

infielders Mackenzie Kemerer, Jenn Cantella, and

centerfielder Katy Ross. All of these players have

been performing at a high level throughout this sea-

son.

One of the most important components of the

game of softball is hitting. Each player on the team

takes hitting seriously. The focus of the softball team

is to get on base, because base runners turn into runs,

and runs win ballgames.

Talent, hustle, and hard work are the main

components in making a good team great. The softball

team possesses these key components, and the players

are continuing to develop their skills in order to make

the 2009 season a one for the ages.

Softball team on track

for historic season

Bryan McSorley

Sports Editor

It is the biggest game of the year for Freedom‟s

baseball team, and leading them on the mound is

pitcher Cole Lentz. Behind him is his impermeable

defense. Without any qualms, everyone knows Free-

dom will be difficult to defeat.

This scene is one that Cole

Lentz thinks about all the time

and a scene that he has lived

many times since the begin-

ning of his high school ca-

reer. Cole wants the ball in

his hands when the game

is on the line. Lentz is one

of the most feared pitchers

in Beaver County this year.

He has solidified himself as a

top pitcher by retaining a lot of

game experience since being a freshman. He

has won many games over the past few years, including

shutting out heavily favored Blackhawk, ending Austin

Wolf‟s 36 game hit streak in the Legion semifinals and

throwing a no-hitter against Avonworth last spring.

When speaking of pitching in these situations Lentz

said, “I like having the pressure on me.”

Preparing for these pressure situations can be

tough for any pitcher, so Lentz always follows the same

pregame routine. Lentz likes to listen to as much music

as he can during the school day. The music eases his

mind and prepares him for the challenge that awaits

him after school. After school, he begins his pre-

game ritual by putting war paint on his face. His rit-

ual then includes running to get the blood flowing in

his body. This is followed by a deep and thorough

stretch to prevent an injuries or pulled muscles. After

stretching, he loosens up his arm by long tossing.

When his arm is good and loose, Lentz begins to

warm up on mound. After maintaining control of

all his pitches, Lentz is ready to pitch.

Lentz can hardly describe the

emotions he feels when he is on the

pitchers‟ mound. His favorite thing

about pitching is knowing that he

can overpower hitters when he is

on his “A” game.

He has the pitcher‟s men-

tality that he can‟t be touched. He

says, “I can‟t hear anything except for

what I am thinking in my mind, about the

next pitch. I like to take it one pitch at a time.”

Although Lentz is a great pitcher, he relies

on a great defense to make plays behind him when

players do hit the ball of him. Also Lentz can throw

as many scoreless innings that he can, but Freedom‟s

offense has to produce runs to win.

Freedom should have no problem scoring

runs this year a talented core of hitters that make

things happen by putting the ball in play. With Lentz

and the other pitchers, along with the other members

of the baseball team meshing together Freedom will

be an extremely difficult team to beat.

On the Mound

with Cole Lentz

Bryan McSorley

Sports Editor

Photo by Anthony Lang

~ “I like having the

pressure on me.” Cole Lentz

~

Cole Lentz throws a fastball against Ellwood City on Monday the 23. Lentz stuck out 14 Wolverines in a 2-1 victory.

Freedom‟s tightly woven softball team is on track for a successful season.

Photo by Marissa Ritorto

FHS Press 11 FHS Press 1 April, 2009

Player Biographies

Grade: 11

Sport(s): Miss Grosetti is a member

of the varsity softball and volleyball

teams.

Position(s): During softball season,

she is a pitcher. During volleyball,

she plays as a front row hitter.

Why does (s)he play: Grosetti says,

“I have been playing since I was lit-

tle. I just enjoy the sport.”

Who is his/her favorite coach: She

said her favorite coaches are Mrs.

Burger and Miss Clear. This is be-

cause both are her softball coaches.

Her favorite professional athlete: Her favorite professional is Olympic

gold medalist, Jennie Finch. She did

not specify why Mrs. Finch is her

favorite, but who wouldn‟t wish to

aspire to such greatness in the sport?

Her favorite memory of high

school athletics: Grosetti‟s favorite

athletics memory, in high school, is

from last year. She says that during

softball season, while playing

Northgate, she hit her first ever over

the fence, home run.

Grade: 11

Sport(s): Jeremy is a member of the

Baseball and Football teams.

Position(s): Jeremy is the Shortstop

for the baseball team and is a defen-

sive back for the football team.

Why does he play: Jeremy plays

because of the intensity he gets

when stepping up to the plate

Who is his favorite coach: Coach

Kemerer is Jeremy‟s favorite coach.

Jeremy said, “He pushes me harder

than any man has ever been pushed

before.”

Hisfavorite pro athlete: Michelle

Kwan is Mr. Herzog‟s favorite pro-

fessional athlete. Jeremy stated,

“She is so graceful and does what

she does just the way I like it ;)”

His favorite memory of high

school athletics: His favorite mem-

ory of high school sports was his

sophomore year in football when he

swatted the ball away from Jonathan

Baldwin.

Grade: 12

Sport(s): Miss Adams is an integral

part of the girls‟ track and field

team.

Position(s): Ashley throw shot put

and discus for the track team.

Why does she play: Ashley plays

for new challenges and the thrill of

victory.

Who is her favorite coach: This is

an easy question for Miss Adams.

Her favorite coach is Mr. Beyer be-

cause in her opinion she would not

be where she is today without him.

Her favorite pro athlete: Ashley‟s

favorite athlete is Roger Federer be-

cause he is the best tennis player on

the planet, deals with more pressure

than any man, and still gives back to

his fans.

Her favorite memory of high

school athletics: Her favorite mem-

ory are her trips to States. In her

opinion missing school and playing

games all day is “awesome.”

Grade: 12

Sport(s): Jacob is a member of the-

Football, Track & Field, and Swim-

ming teams.

Position(s): Mr. Simpson plays Tight

End, Linebacker, throws Javelin,

High Jumps, and swims the 200 me-

ter dash and 50meter freestyle.

Why does he play: “I just like to be

active and play different sports. I like

to be competitive.”

Who is his favorite coach: Coach

McGee is Jacob‟s favorite because he

would help him out the most and

showed him through everything. Also

Miss Sosko because she pushed him

to swim.

His favorite pro athlete: Barry

Sanders because of his speed and mo-

bility, and also Cody Morgan. He‟s

not a pro, but he‟s Jacob‟s idol.

His favorite memory of high school

athletics: “I made it to the MAC

swim meet my first swim meet of my

first and last year. Playing football

with John Challis was a special mo-

ment for me also.”

Tournament and finish a record setting season

with a National Championship victory.

One month ago it looked as if the Pittsburgh

Penguins might actually miss the playoffs. Now

one month later, we are wondering who will be

able to knock them out of the playoff picture.

On February 25, the Pens beat the Islanders

and started a 12-game point streak. The Two

Headed Monster of Evgeni Malkin and Sidney

Crosby is still lead the Penguins. Malkin eclipsed

the 100-point mark and Crosby is very close.

Malkin remains at the top of the NHL scoring

chart, while Crosby is close behind fighting with

Alex Ovechkin for second. The Penguins are currently

in the playoffs. They are fighting for fifth place in the Eastern Conference. The Pens will keep on fighting and try to make an-other run at the Stanley Cup.

Next comes the famous Final Four

followed by, of course, the champi-

onship game.

This year Pitt earned their

first ever # 1 seed. Pittsburgh‟s

men‟s basketball team had one their most successful

regular seasons ever. They boasted a record of 28-4

and had a conference record of 15-3. The Panthers

were undefeated at the home this year.

Pitt has now reached the tournament a school

record eight straight years. They are one of eight

schools to have won at least one game in those eight

trips. Prior to this year‟s tournament, Pitt was one of

six teams that have advanced to four of the last seven

Sweet 16‟s.

The Panthers fall and soar with DeJuan Blair.

He averages a double-double but they are winless

when he fouls out. Pitt should have a great chance to

go all the way if Blair can stay out of foul trouble.

Hopefully Pitt will avenge their loss in the Big East

Savannah

Grossetti

Jacob

Simpson

Jeremy

Herzog

Ashley

Adams

It is March and everyone is ready for

spring. But spring isn‟t the only thing people are

looking forward to. There is also the NCAA

Tournament. The NCAA Tournament has been

around for 70 years. It starts out with 64 teams.

The teams are picked by a selection committee.

There is a bracket and schools are placed in it

depending on their regions

The selection committee picks the seed

(rank) that each team is. The 1 seed plays

the 16 seed; the 2 seed plays the 15 seed and

so on and so forth.

Teams compete to get to the

Round of 32. Then if they win

again, they advance to the

Sweet 16 and then the Elite 8.

March Madness and the Redhot Pens Robert Deane

Contributing Writer

Photo by Chris

Rooney

Photo by Chris

Rooney

Photo by Chris

Rooney

Photo by

Anthony Lang

FHS Press 12 1 April, 2009