The Shield, 03/26/14

hieldSS a i n t T h o m as A q ui n as Hig h S c ho ol

the

March 26, 2014 Volume 26, Issue 8

Tweets of the Month Upcoming Weather

Countdown

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Thursday

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Inside

SAINTS’ SURPRISE SEND-OFF

Theology teacher Leo Brown shakes senior Mikaela Hult’s hand during his surprise send-off ceremony to Afghanistan on March 11. Brown is a first sergeant with the U.S. Air Force Reserve’s 442nd Fighter Wing Maintenance Group, and this is his first deployment over-seas. Brown will be returning home sometime next fall to hopefully begin teaching again in January of 2015.

Photo by MICHELE GRESS

90%

332,845

71,400

35%

of Aquinas students know someone who has served or is serving in the military.

of Aquinas students know someone who is currently serving.

people currently serve as active personnel in the Air Force.

people currently serve as reserve personnel in the Air Force.

Statistics from The Shield email poll (87 responses) and Wikipedia.

Page layout by Annie Schugart.

“Any man or woman willing to die for their country [and] protect these great states deserves to be sent off in such fashion. Mr. Brown was shocked by our send-off, and that taught me that a true American hero expects no praise, needs no fame and no million dollar check to be willing to go into harms ways for the good of others.” - P.J. Hopfinger, sophomore “The send-off is what shows that Aquinas is more than just a school, it’s a family. It’s very sad to see him leave, but we’re all praying he returns safe.” - Ellena Siscos, senior “The send-off was one of the most touching things I’ve seen at Aquinas.”- Kelsey Weyhofen, junior “Mr. Brown is one in a million. He has taught me so much in and outside the classroom. He has taught me the importance of being the best version of myself.” - Maddy McCormick, junior “I am really going to miss Mr Brown. He is my favorite teacher, and we’re really proud of him and how he’s serving the U.S., but I’ll be really glad when he returns home.” - Mia Power, freshman “It is truly admirable that he is so willing to leave everything to do whatever he can to serve our country and to fight for freedom and democracy in Afghanistan, and I hope he re-turns home safe.” - Chris Rosebrough, junior “I think that Mr. Brown’s send-off, though it is sad, teaches each of us to be strong in what we do and that we must do what we can for everyone even if we aren’t serving.” - Blyhe Dorrian, freshman

“Mr. Brown is a true solider and has had such an impact on every-one, and he is so inspiring. I can’t wait to see what he does for our country. I know it will be amazing.” - Elizabeth Navickas, senior

Yearbook Faces

DeadlinesPage A2

Yik Yak Arises

ConcernPage A3

Celebrity Look-Alikes

Pages A4-5

Students Raise

Unique PetsPage A6

NCAA PredictionsPage B2

Last Look: Spring BreakPage B4

THE BEST OF SOCIAL MEDIAPage A8

Seniors Audition For CollegesPage B1

OPINIONSPage A7

A2 The Shield March 26, 2014Campus News

The school magazine fundraiser took a dip in sales this year due to untimely snow days and lack of participation by disinter-ested students.

The fundraiser is run through Great American Fundraising and is scheduled far in advance.

Director of Special Events Teresa Ahrens said, “Originally we scheduled it in between two Kairos trips that didn’t allow for any snow days.”

Aquinas then had three snow days and could not make up the turn-in days because Great American Fundraising was booked. Sales were also hurt this year due to lack of participation by students. Out of 164 students polled, 98 Saints (60 percent) did not even take the packet home.

“Part of it had to due with the guy talking on the intercom,” Activities Direc-tor Sarah Burgess said. “When he came on at the end of the day, I’m sure most of the students weren’t even listening. We need to get the sales pitch more in the students’ faces and get them excited about it like they do for other fundraisers.”

Only the freshmen went to the meet-ing about the magazine sale this year.

“What students need to be aware of is that this fundraiser is all for them,” Ahrens said. “They need to know that this money is given to Student Council for different events during the year. Without this money, events like hall decorating wouldn’t happen. It also goes to clubs. When Teens for Life went to Topeka, it paid for the bus and for their lunches.”

This year, less money was raised for events and so there will have to be some cutbacks this year.

“When asked for money, Dr. Ford usually says yes,” Ahrens said. “Now he is not going to be able to say yes all the time when a certain sport or club needs money.”

The way the snow days hit this year was unfortunate, but the sales for next year need to be higher so that clubs and sports can continue to be funded.

“A good way to get people excited about this is through competition,” Burgess

said. “Not through class competition because that hasn’t worked, but by competi-tion between those who benefit from it.”

Her idea is that clubs and sports have to participate and sell magazines in order to get funding, which shouldn’t be difficult because in Johnson County, more than 80 per-cent of households buy magazines.

Many students are willing to sell but think that Aquinas needs to change what they sell.

Cookie dough has been a favorite

among students to replace the magazines. The biggest problem with this is many of the Catholic elementary schools in the area

sell cookie dough and the Aquinas administration does not want to get in direct competition with them. Other items such as trash bags would also come into competi-tion with the grade

schools. “Cookie dough sounds good at first,”

Ahrens said. “Then you realize that it’s really cumbersome; refrigerating it all and

distributing it to the student body would be a very hard task.” She added, “It’s not very nutritional.”

In comparison to other items, mag-azines are a good choice. Just about 40 percent of the total amount sold is given to the school; very few other fundraisers will get that high of a percent from the product.

“This fundraiser is for [the students]. All the other ones we do go to other people and our students do a great job with those,” Ahrens said. “However, this is the one time a year that [students] are given an opportunity to raise money for themselves.” g

The staff of Saint Thomas Aquinas’s Medallion Yearbook faced its first major deadline that required 112 pages to be sent off to the publisher by Monday.

Though this energetic staff of ladies have been working persistently all year, the Monday deadline and two upcoming deadlines are certainly adding stress to their sched-ules and are requir-ing the staff to work harder than ever to complete their spreads on time.

As Co-Edi-tor-In-Chief Hope Thompson put it, “It’s crunch time.”

The efforts of the persistent and hard working yearbook staff often go unnoticed at Aquinas since their work is only showcased once a year. The production of the Medallion, however, is not an annual, one-time process. It is a work-in-progress that comes together with dedication from the staff throughout the entire year.

Whether it is attending countless school activities to snap the perfect picture, interviewing students to give the yearbook a real insight into the Aquinas life, or being creative in producing spreads, these ladies will not stop

until a final product is produced. There is only one thing standing in their way: deadlines.

The staff has had three class-required deadlines so far, ex-plained Co-Editor-In-Chief Han-nah Ney. These are meant to keep the staff working hard throughout the semester and to give them a way to pace themselves in the de-velopment of their spreads. The week of spring break is the first

real deadline for the printer, Wals-worth Publishing. The pressure is mounting as final edits are put in place, and double-checked pages are checked again.

“It’s definitely more stressful now,” Thompson said. “All year we’ve been editing, but now we have to put it all together and send the pages in.”

The yearbook process progresses throughout the year. Thompson and Ney said the spring semester is a lot harder. A lot of time first semester is spent teaching new members how to use programs and become proficient at making their creative

ideas a reality on the computer. Second semester, everyone knows what they are doing, and everyone knows their role. This allows for more responsibility and gets more work done.

At this point in the year, the staff is at full-throttle, and the worry is no longer in how to accomplish their goal but rather the time in which they have to ac-

complish it. Even after Monday’s 112-page deadline, the Medallion will have 185 pages remaining with their final deadline having to wait until after state champion-ships are complete.

“We will pretty much live in that back room for the next three months,” Thompson said.

Despite all of the hard work and long hours that are required

to produce the yearbook each year, the Medallion staff never fails to accomplish the feat of pre-serving the memories of a school year in beautifully- designed book.

This year is no different, with 20 talented girls dedicated to the process of producing a final copy that students will treasure for the rest of their lives. g

YEARBOOK STRESSES OVER DEADLINES

The Medallion staff faces major deadlines in order to publish the Aquinas yearbook.by JORDAN EBERHARDYReporter

“All year we’ve been editing, but now we have to put it all together

and send the pages in.”

HOPE THOMPSONYearbook Co-Editor-in-Chief

Photo by JORDAN EBERHARDY | The ShieldThe yearbook staff works diligently during fifth hour, when the class meets, to complete their yearbook spreads. From left to right: Co-Editor-in-Chief Hope Thompson, Adviser Matt Hallauer, junior Natalie Gart-land and junior Abby Pope.

MAGAZINE SALES DECLINEAdministration speaks out about alternative fundraising ideas.

by JORDAN BARTZOpinions Editor

“This is the one time a year that [students] are given an opportunity

to raise money for themselves.”

TERESA AHRENSDirector of Special Events

The Shield A3 March 26, 2014

Campus News

Students may soon find themselves with a significantly different standardized testing and college admissions experience as the state and colleges across the country explore different options.

ACT / SATMore than 850 colleges in the United

States have stopped requiring incoming students to provide an ACT or SAT score. The schools are transitioning because of studies that show GPA to be a better indi-cator of college success.

“Colleges are finding that students can and do succeed in college with a lower test score. ACT/SAT can measure only so much,” College Coun-selor Barb Bruns said. “Others were not nearly as optimistic about the potential changes.”

But Academ-ic Principal Brian Schenck cited poten-tial drawbacks to such a switch.

“There is no way to compare GPAs. With the ACT and SAT, everyone is on the same standard,” said Schenck.

For now, most colleges still look at a combination of different factors includ-ing GPA, standardized tests and extracur-ricular activities.

The College Board, the company that

creates the SAT, has recently announced multiple changes will be made to the SAT in spring 2016. The same changes will be made to the PSAT in the fall of 2015. Significant changes include a change in the scoring of the test which includes eliminating the penalty for wrong answers. The essay will be made optional, and the test will be avail-able both digitally and by print. Additional changes will be made to the content of the math and English sections.

“It won’t be harder, just different than the current format,” said Bruns.

KANSAS ASSESSMENTS

The Kansas Assessments are currently going through a series of changes in order to ensure that they cover the College and Career Readiness Standards (CCRS). The

changes will occur over a three year time span.

The first year of testing, this year, will determine benchmarks for student scores. The next year will allow the state to set baseline data for schools, and the third year will determine whether or not a school is

improving. All three years the test will cover reading, math and science.

The state is also considering allowing high schools to have students take the ACT instead of the assessments. Schenck hopes the state chooses to go with the ACT.

“Our students are used to [the ACT]; it makes more sense and is tried and tested,”

said Schenck. The ultimate result of the chang-

es will be an accelerated curriculum in which some material currently taught in high school could be taught as early as grade school. Schenck does not know how effective these changes will be.

“I question that they keep tweaking the test, so I don’t know [how effective it

is],” said Schenck. Whether they are effective or not,

standardized tests will remain a part of life for most students in Kansas for the next few years. G

“The [PSAT and SAT] won’t be harder, just different than

the current format.”

BARB BRUNSCollege Counselor

BIG TESTS GET MAJOR MAKEOVERS

“Can’t we all agree that Aquinas is the worst,” a Yik Yak post asked.

While Aquinas certainly isn’t the worst, the way this new app is being used may be.

Yik Yak allows for users to post anonymous thoughts—or gos-sip—to be viewed in a news feed by users within a five-mile radius, even though its intention was simply to allow users to see what was going on around them.

“People who use it to lob hate bombs anonymously feel protected from accountability,” Guidance Counselor Laura Cline said. “I think that is why some are drawn to it. It’s cowardly.”

FROM COLLEGES TO HIGH SCHOOLS

The app was not intended to be harmful, according to its creators interviewed for a USA Today article, because it was intended for college campuses. The intention was to al-low students in the closed-area cam-pus to post about campus events, Greek life, complaints, etc.

Yet the app now has gained over 240,000 users since its release in November, according to the USA Today article, and these users aren’t just college students. The app has found its way into high schools and middle schools across the nation, including those in the

Johnson County area. According to a survey conducted by The Shield, 33 percent of Aquinas students have Yik Yak downloaded.

While Yik Yak can certainly have positive uses, the negative effects are problematic. Of the stu-dents who have Yik Yak at Aquinas, 37 percent have seen themselves mentioned on the app, and an additional 35 percent haven’t seen themselves mentioned but have seen their friends’ names mentioned.

Mike Sullivan, Principal of Stu-dent Services, said that although they have had limited problems so far with the app, the school does mon-itor social media in some form or another in order to protect students and the integrity of the school.

“We encourage our students to be disciples of Jesus Christ and make the right decisions in all forms of life, including social media,” Sullivan said.

ANONYMITY CAUSES ISSUESYik Yak has, however, caused

problems in other schools. Sever-al bomb threats have been given

across the country through Yik Yak, suicides have often been linked to social media apps like Yik Yak, and one student was arrested in Alabama for a shooting threat via Yik Yak—even though he thought it would be anonymous.

“Everything has a digital foot-print,” Sullivan said.

AQUINAS TAKES ACTIONAction is being taken across

the nation to prevent the negative effects of Yik Yak, especially in high schools. Yik Yak used GPS services to block the use of Yik Yak on most high school and mid-dle school campuses, according to a TechCrunch article, although the app can still be used at home. Posts can be removed simply by screen-shotting them and sending them to the Yik Yak email. Additionally, once a post receives two “downs” (users can either “up” their favorite posts or “down” ones they don’t like), it is automatically removed.

Sullivan said he encourages stu-dents to “not put up with [bullying]” on social media, but he also said the Overland Park police would get in-volved if situations became serious.

Besides monitoring social me-dia, Aquinas administration plans to also bring in a digital expert speaker to talk to students about how posts on social media can affect students in the long run for colleges, scholar-ships, and jobs, according to Sullivan.

“I call it Yik Yuk for obvious reasons,” Cline said. g

YIK YAK STIRS CONTROVERSY

A new social media app allows users to post anonymously, causing controversy not only at Aquinas but at high schools across the nation.

by ANNIE SCHUGARTEditor-in-Chief

No67%

Yes.37%

No, but I’ve seen friends’ names

mentioned. 35%

No, but I’ve seen names mentioned.

26%

Other 2%

Yes33%

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by KATIE BERNARDReporter

While Kansas reformats its assessments, colleges reconsider admission tests.

Statistics based off The Shield’s email poll with 87 responses.

Although Aquinas has had limited problems so far, the school does mon-itor social media in some

form or another.

Verizon 8:55 AM 100%

New Hot

Photo illustration by KATIE BERNARD | The ShieldWhile some schools are leaning away from standardized tests, students still take the test.

A6 The Shield March 26, 2014Features

Millions of people have pet dogs, cats, fish, rabbits, birds, hamsters, and snakes. But these animals were too ordinary for freshmen Molly Watson and An-sley Reynolds and junior Shelby Doria. They decided to ditch the standard and become the owners of three uncommon pets.

Freddy the DuckOwner: Molly Watson

Six years ago at a farmers’ market, Molly saw a “cute” new-born duck. She bought him for five dollars, named him Freddy, and brought him home.

Freddy sleeps in a kennel in Molly’s basement. During the winter, Freddy is allowed to freely walk around the house. During the spring and summer, he spends most of his time in the backyard.

Molly loves Freddy because

he loves her. “He is only nice to certain

people, including me,” she said.Despite her love of her pet

duck, Molly wouldn’t recommend owning one.

She said, “They poop con-stantly! And they probably aren’t the best family pets.”

Chief the HorseOwner: Shelby Doria

Shelby Doria has ridden horses for 11 years, competitively for eight. She has been showing in the Low Jr. Jumpers since she was nine.

In December 2012, she began riding her horse, Chief. Chief is a 12-year-old Holsteiner imported from Germany. Shelby keeps him in the stables at White Fox Manor and rides him six days a week. Shelby and Chief travel to shows outside of Kansas two or three times a month.

“I love horses in general. They’re like big dogs,” Shelby said. “I love riding because it teaches you

time-management in your life, and it teaches you patience because you’re dealing with a 1,200-pound animal.”

Last year, she and Chief qualified for the North Amer-ican League High Children’s Jumper Finals and the United States Equestrian Federation Hunt Seat Medal Finals. They traveled to Pennsylva-nia and com-peted against more than 200 riders from across the United States. She and Chief were even broadcasted on the USEF Network.

On weekends that Chief and Shelby don’t have a show, they either train at home or trav-el to different clinics across the country. They have trained with top trainers, judges, and even olympic riders.

Chief is much more than a

pet to Shelby; he’s a teammate that requires a lot of attention and time. Chief requires new shoes every six weeks, injections, and chiropractic work.

“Having a horse is a huge responsibility, but you want to keep him safe, since he does the

same for you. Riding is a really tough sport both physically and mentally and an awesome workout,” she said. “The accomplish-ments earned

are worth the hours spent at the barn.”

Over the past year of prac-ticing, traveling, riding, and caring for Chief, Shelby has grown very close to him.

“Developing a trusting relationship with a horse, your teammate, is a totally awesome experience,” Shelby said.

Bella the MonkeyOwner: Ansley Reynolds

Six months ago, Ansley Reynolds saw a fluffy newborn monkey at the mall and decided to buy it. She named her Bella. She said that she thought the monkey was “cute and little and fun to carry in [her] pocket.”

Bella is a sugar glider monkey, which looks similar to a mix of a squirrel and a monkey. Sugar gliders are able to fly through the air, sim-ilar to flying squirrels. Occasion-ally sugar gliders are referred to as “pocket pets.” This is because, like Ansley said, they love to be carried around in pockets or pouches. Bella is kept in a cage.

Ansley said that Bella is very easy to care for, but she only bonds with one or two people. Sugar gliders are great family pets. They are lovable, sociable, and typically friendly towards people.

“She is so much fun to watch run around and play,” Ansley said. g

by JANIE BACHKORAReporter

“The accomplishments earned are worth the hours

spent at the barn.”

SHELBY DORIAJunior

Photos courtesy SHELBY DORIA and MOLLY WATSON(Left) Junior Shelby Doria competes with her horse, Chief. Doria and Chief travel to shows outside of Kansas two to three times a month. (Right) Molly Watson showcases her pet duck, Freddy. During the winter months, Freddy walks freely around her house and during the warmer months, Freddy spends his time in the backyard.

DucksHorses

monkeysoh my!and

and

March 26, 2014 The Shield A7Opinions

Saint Thomas Aquinas High School

hieldSthe

11411 Pflumm RoadOverland Park, KS 66215

913-319-2460www.stasaints.net/shield

EDITOR-IN-CHIEFAnnie Schugart

CAMPUS NEWS EDITORBryan Zack

OPINIONS EDITORJordan Bartz

SPORTS EDITORTroy Hilderhof

CENTERSPREAD/FEATURES EDITOR

Annie Schugart

REPORTERSJanie BachkoraKatie Bernard

Jordan EberhardyJackson McElroy

ADVISERMatt Hallauer

MISSION STATEMENTThe Shield is a newspaper sponsored by Saint Thom-as Aquinas High School and produced by its stu-dents to provide informa-tion, entertainment, and open forum, as well as a learning experience for its staff members. The goal of The Shield’s staff is to meet professional journalism standards. Staff members are responsible for the content of the newspaper and strive to report news accurately, objectively, and completely. The Shield is an open forum for student expression and aims to communicate the con-cerns of the student body as well as the faculty, staff, and Aquinas community.

ADVERTISINGThe Shield sells advertisements to help with publication costs. All ads will be subject to the same scrutiny as stories. The Shield will not print any ob-scenities or any ads promoting products illegal to those under the age of 18. For advertising, please call (913) 319-2460, send an email to [email protected], or visit www.stasaints.net/shield

SUBSCRIPTIONSSubscriptions to The Shield are $2 per issue. Subscriptions can be sent to Saint Thomas Aquinas High School c/o Matt Hallauer.

LETTER POLICYLetters may be accepted by The Shield, provided that they are signed and do not contain libel-ous statements. The Shield re-serves the right to edit the letters for grammar, obscenity, or space consideration, and also reserves the right to not print a letter.

THE BOTTOM LINE: Opinions of Aquinas students, based off 175 student responses

to an poll sent via e-mail.

Want to see your opinion published on

this page?The Shield welcomes

opinion articles from any Aquinas student or faculty

member as we seek to be the voice of Aquinas, and ap-proved opinion

articles will be pub-lished on this page.

If you are interest-ed in writing an

opinion article or helping out in any way, please con-

tact editor-in-chief Annie Schugart at ASchugart14@sta-

saints.net

NOT A FAN OF ‘FAN OF THE GAME’

This new Fan of the Game initiative has motivated and inspired students to go beyond the classic blue/gold shirt game attire into innovative, school-spir-ited outfits. While I agree with the mission of Fan of the Game, I have recently noticed that the majority of recipients of Fan of the Game seem to be seniors.

I realize that a senior receiv-ing the Fan of The Game award creates yet another memory that they can hold on to, but I believe that this reward should be given to the underclassmen as well. I have witnessed many juniors, sophomores and even freshmen show up to the pre-game dressed in theme, bleeding blue and gold, just to watch Fan of the Game

be given to yet another senior. This is quite discouraging for underclassmen. Arriving early and dressing with extreme school spirit to cheer on the Saints is obviously a reward in itself, but doing all of this weekly in hopes

of winning the coveted Fan of the Game award and failing every time is unfair and dispiriting.

Sharing the Fan of the Game award with students from every grade would further support

school spirit. Maybe the question we should be asking is, “Who is choosing Fan of the Game?” Maybe the process should be more impartial, as there is a good chance a strong bias is present.

Also, are they taking into

account not only the attire of the contestants but the effort put forth cheering and time put in showing up early? I understand that seniors have earned the right to sit in the first few rows and

in no way do I want to take that honor from them, but whoever is selecting the Fan of the Game winner needs to take time to recognize all students making an effort to dress elaborately and cheer wholeheartedly regardless of how old they are and where their class sits. After all, being a good fan involves more than just attire, so the award should be based on several other factors.

So underclassman, keep cheering. Get to the games early, dress crazily, and support the Saints always. And whoever is choosing this award, recognize that we, too, have school spir-it. We deserve to win, too. Just because we haven’t been here for more than three years and can’t sit in the very front row doesn’t mean we aren’t leading, out-standing, dedicated, passionate, deserving fans.

by MADI HOLMESGuest to The Shield

School Spirit will be even further enhanced if the “Fan of the Game” award was given to spirited underclassmen, not just seniors.

I have witnessed many juniors, sophomores, and even freshmen bleeding blue and gold, just to watch the Fan of the Game be given to yet

another senior.

hieldStheHow to view video in

STEP ONE: Download the free “Aurasma” app.

The Shield is excited to announce that we are one of the first schools in the nation to bring pictures to life, effectively merging print jour-nalism with broadcast journalism using the

Aurasma app. Here’s how to get started!

If you don’t have a smartphone or similar device, check out our videos on the Saint Thomas Aquinas Shield Youtube account.

STEP THREE: Click the search button (magnifying glass) on the bottom of the screen. Search “Saint Thom-as Aquinas HS.” Click the one above.

STEP FOUR: Click “Follow.”STEP FIVE: Click this (bottom) to return to the cam-era. Hover over an image and watch the picture come alive!STEP TWO: Open the app

and click this button at the bottom of the screen:

This symbol means there is a video that goes along with the picture.

MOST USED SOCIAL MEDIA BY

AQUINAS STUDENTS

2014 SAINTS SPRING BREAK

Staying in KCVacation in the U.S.Vacation outside the U.S.Aquinas pilgrimage to RomeAquinas mission tripNon-Aquinas mission trip

March 26, 2014The Shield A8Features

social mediathe best of Aquinas

Senior Maggie Boone has always wanted to pursue a music career.

“Ever since I can remember, I’ve loved to sing and perform,” said Boone.

Students have to audition in order to get accepted into a music program, performing arts school, or even receive general music scholarships. These auditions are in addition to the standard application routine that seniors undertake. The audition process takes several months and varies on the school that one is applying to. The process can become tedious because students apply to different schools. These students chasing a music career can audition for several different schools, each with their own audition process. Luckily for Boone, she was only deciding between two: The Uni-versity of Kansas and Benedictine College.

Senior Kathleen Mitchell is looking at many schools. She also has had several varying auditions.

Mitchell explains, “usually you have to prepare two 32 bar cuts of stylistically contrasting musical the-atre songs, two contrasting monologues, and participate in a group dance audition. One school also required an aria and a choreographed solo dance.”

Mitchell started applying around October, right

before Saint Thomas Aquinas’ performance of “All Shook Up,” in which she was the lead. She hasn’t stopped since.

“I just got done with my last audition [in early March].”

Often the audition will include a short interview. These questions ask “Why music?,” “When did your passion for music begin?,” and “What do you plan to do with music?”

Maggie Boone is looking forward to attending Benedictine College next year.

“I’m most looking forward to the idea of studying

music all day and not being required to take other subjects too.”

Pursuing music entails a lot of music-focused study, not your typical math and science. Music theory, music history, foreign languages, and composition are

other classes music majors choose to take. Depending on the school, some even have to learn an instrument or take required piano lessons.

Mitchell, on the other hand, is excited to meet other musicians.

“I’m most looking forward to being surrounded by people who are as passionate about musical theatre as I am, and the chance to better my craft,” she said.

By participating in show choir, chorale, and the school musicals, students receive the usual vocal practice, and some even get lessons for their college audition.

“It’s very exciting to see my students pursue music,” Director of Choral Activites Joe Heidesch said. “It is great to see students follow a passion that I share with them.”

Heidesch is looked upon to write letters of recommendations for the few students trying to get accpeted each year into a music program.

No matter what musical activities they participat-ed in during high school, both girls credit their choir friends and supporters for their success and willingness to keep performing.

“Support is really necessary in this stressful, com-petitive field,” said Mitchell, crediting her supporters throughout the years.

“It’s amazing,” Boone said, “to be in a community who loves music as much as I do.” g

SENIORS PURSUING MUSIC

GO THROUGH GRUELING AUDITIONS

“I’m most looking forward to being surrounded by people who are as passionate about

musical theater as I am.

KATHLEEN MITCHELLSenior

Some seniors just have to submit an application to a college, others may have to prove their athletic talents, but a few

seniors spend months rehearsing for acceptance.

hieldStheMarch 26, 2014 Volume 26, Issue 8

SPORTSar ts +

by JACKSON McELROYReporter

Page design by Annie Schugart, editor-in-chief.

Photo by RACHEL SPENNER | The MedallionSenior Kathleen Mitchell performs with senior Grant Mayfield in “All Shook Up,” the fall musical. Mitchell has spent her fall and winter auditioning for colleges as she plans to pursue musical theater.

B2 The Shield March 26, 2014Sports

EXPERTS MAKE MADNESS PREDICTIONS

Pete Andrews

Kyle Bollig

MadelineCrume

Mia Power

Rick Hetzel

By Bryan Zack, Campus News editor

Which men’s team do you think is going to win the tournament?

Who is your Cinderella team, or a team that achieves far greater success than expected?

How do you think the local teams will do?

Which highly-ranked team do you believe could be upset early?

Which women’s team do you think will win the tournament?

Florida. They’ve played a tough schedule and had a lot of quality wins. But I’ll be cheering for Iowa State!

Creighton- they’re not very high ranked but they’ve been playing really well and I feel like they could go far in the tournament

I totally believe in Wichita State to make at least Elite Eight and hopefully another Final Four. They’ve definitely had a stronger schedule than people give them credit for, and yet they’re still undefeated.

I expect K-State to win their first and maybe second game.

I don’t think KU will make it further than Sweet 16 or Elite Eight but I also kind of feel like it depends on when exactly Embiid will be able to play again.

Villanova, espe-cially after being upset in the Big East tourna-ment.

Connecticut

I think Kansas will win the tournament.

I think Creighton is the biggest Cinderella.

KU and WSU will compete far in the tourna-ment, KSU will win one game only, and MU will lose in the first round of the NIT.

Virginia or Villanova could be upset early.

Connecticut

This year should be really exciting as I think there are quite a few teams that have a great opportunity to win it. I really like how Florida is playing right now.

To be honest I don’t get to follow NCAA basketball that well until after my season is over. So I don’t get to see enough to pick a dark horse team.I do like teams that have a good point guard this time of year.

KU commits so many turnovers and Embiid is hurting. Nadir has to play very well for them to have any chance. When he goes, KU goes, and Nadir is very inconsistent.

KSU is interesting but they will be out fairly early.

Wichita Sate has the record but have not played a very tough schedule. They did go far last year and come in with a good seed so they should go a ways in the tourney.

It really all depends on the match-up as that is really what basketball is about. KU, de-pending on what team they play, could disappoint.

Not sure if I would ever pick a team year in and year out but UConn. How-ever Notre Dame is playing well.

Kansas University will win it all.

Harvard

KU will win it all, KSU will make it to Sweet 16 then lose, WSU will lose in either the first or second game, and MU probably won’t make the tournament.

Florida

Notre Dame

Syracuse. Jim Boeheim is the best coach in the country. When that is combined with the talent of Tyler Ennis and the experience of CJ Fair it makes them dangerous, even though they’ve struggled down the stretch. Another team I like is Florida.

If Creighton can be con-sidered a Cinderella, I pick them. With McDermott, Grant Gibbs, and Ethan Wragge, they are dangerous and can beat anyone even they are making threes. And Tyler Clement’s my boy. Also, Shacka Smart and VCU know how to win in March. Always fun to watch.

KU: Loses in the Sweet 16

KSU: Loses in the 2nd round. Not enough leader-ship to make a run.

WSU: Loses in the Elite 8 to the No. 2 seed.

KU. If Embiid isn’t 100%, Wig-gins doesn’t score 20, and Tharpe turns the ball over, as he tends to do, they are very vulnerable.

UCONN. Geno is a NCAAW legend.

Predictions were made prior to Selection Sunday

AQUINAS RUGBY TAKES ON IRELAND FOR SPRING BREAK

The Shield B3March 26, 2014Sports

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“The Honors program enhances your college educationand provides opportunities to gain hands-on experiencein areas of interest.”

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Johnson County Community College’s Honors Program stimulates and challengesacademically talented students. An Honors application is required for admission. For moreinformation, call Pat Decker at 913-469-8500, ext. 2512, or visit www.jccc.edu/honors

by TROY HILDERHOFSports Editor

The Saints’ rugby team travels to Ireland over their spring break to tour the country and play elite Ireland rugby teams.

Most people would like to go some place warm for spring break, but for the Saint Thomas Aquinas rugby team, they went somewhere far from warm sands and relaxation.

This year, the Aquinas rugby team fund raised enough money to travel to Ireland to experience international rugby and foreign culture.

The cost of a trip to Ireland for an entire rugby team, the coaches, equipment, and jerseys is not cheap. Throughout the year, the team had to get togeth-er and fund raise enough money to substantially reduce the overall cost of the trip.

Wine Tasting

The first fundraiser the team put on was a Wine Tasting event that was held at the Mills Farm Clubhouse in January which helped fund money to pay for the team’s equipment and coaches’ travel expenses.

Mouse Races

The second fundraiser was held at Prince of Peace in Feb-ruary. In the basement, hundreds gathered as the team organized a system of different mouse-related betting games. The two events were the ‘Mouse Races’ and ‘Mouse Roulette.’

The events held raised enough money to pay for a signif-icant amount of the funds for the players’ trips.

When the team was in Ireland, they didn’t just play rugby the whole time. Some days, the team would visit some of Ireland’s well-known iconic tourist spots.

The team visited the Cliffs of Moher, two different rugby stadiums, and the Guinness Brewery.

The Aquinas rugby team has bad enormous success. They have won state for the past six years, have gone to nationals the past three years, and are currently ranked ninth in the nation.

This spring break, the Aqui-nas rugby team took their talents to Ireland to face some of the top premier rugby programs in the world.

The first thing the team did once they got to Ireland was have a training session with one of Munter’s professional coaches. Munster is one of the top profes-sional rugby clubs in Europe.

On the second day, the team had their first game against Old Crescent Rugby Club which Aqui-nas won 14-12.

“It was cool to play at such a high level of rugby that we’re not able to experience in the States,” Jack Casey said. Casey is co-cap-tain of the team and hopes to con-tinue his rugby career in college.

Two days later, Aquinas played top-ranked St. Muchen and lost 35-12.

“Being able to play in Ireland was a great learning experience for the team,” Co-Captain Joe Connor said. “We can definitely benefit from the trip by taking what we’ve learned in Ireland back home.”

For the third and final game, Aquinas played Westport Rugby Club and won 32-5.

“In the final game we were able to use all the skills we learned from the previous games and training on the tour,” junior Ste-phen Flaspohler said.

The Aquinas rugby team left for Ireland March 14 and got back March 23. During that week, the team learned many skills that will help benefit their play for the rest of the season and help achieve their overall goal: winning nationals.g

Fundraisers

TourismRugby

Photos courtesy of JACK CASEY and ISAAC SCHMIDTThe team visited the Cliffs of Moher (left) and looked over Dublin on top of the Guinness Brewery (right).

Photo courtesy of JACK CASEY Aviva Stadium where the team went into the locker rooms and walked onto the field.

Photo courtesy of JACK CASEYMunster Stadium, where the team watched a professional game and

were able to see the facilities and locker rooms.

B4 The Shield March 26, 2014

Last Look

SAINTS ON A MISSION

Photo courtesy KELSEY BEASLEY Photo courtesy KELSEY BEASLEY(Left) Seniors Luke Henes, Kelsey Beasley, Alex VanPelt, Erin Rheinberger and Makenzie Elder smile outside of St. Peter’s Basilica. (Right) The seniors on the pil-grimage to Rome waited in Vatican City to see Pope Francis. The trip was from March 16 to 24.

Photos above by MATT HALLAUER | The ShieldTop: Sophomore Michael Lynch hammers away to knock a board loose during the first day of the sophomore class mission trip in New Orleans. The sophomores salvaged lumber and cleared the lot for one family who lost their home to Hurricane Isaac, then they began clear-ing out a house for a second family.

Middle left: Chaperone Tim Ramaekers and sophomore Matthew Malir pry siding off the peak of the house on March 17, the first day of work.

Middle right: Chris Schilling and Jacob Leikam smash plywood with sledghammers on March 19, the final work day of the trip. The group had tried prying up the wood, but some parts were so rotten that it was quicker to smash it so they could salvage the reusable lumber below. The pile of lumber behind them was wood salvaged by the sophomores so the family can build a shed or garage for their new home. The sophomores spent their final day in New Orleans on a swamp boat alligator tour and touring the French Quarter.

Photo by JORDAN BARTZ | The ShieldBottom right: Juniors Tim McCormick, Nick Reddin and Paige Klimas work on a house on the junior mission trip in San Juan, Texas.