The Covington Catholic Times Volume XXVI-Issue V 1600 Dixie Highway, Park Hills, Kentucky 41011 (859) 491-2247 February 2014 Page 2 Reviews Page 4 Editorials Page 5 Student Life Page 11 Sports

Covington Catholic Seniors Once Love is in the Air

Again Claim Prestigious Award By Brian Radcliff Dance is the first and only formal dance open to freshmen at CCH. By Samuel Hatter ating class throughout the state. th With February 14 creep- This year a very large amount of Winners are ing up on us, love is in the air, es- Last freshmen attended the dance, more the finalist pecially between the young men year, Cov- than any of the other grade levels. candidates at Cov Cath and the ladies across ington judged to the street. Saturday, February 8th Catholic The dance ran from eight have the was this year’s annual Coving- was blessed o’clock to midnight. Outside in the best com- ton Catholic Valentine’s Dance. with hav- main foyer students could refresh bination of themselves with drinks and snacks ing two Na- academic The dance was hosted, as tional Merit brought in by parents. Also all stu- achieve- usual, in the gymnasium at Cov dents could have their photos tak- Finalists ments, ex- Cath. In recent years the Valen- in students en by a professional photographer tracurricular tine’s Dance was open to all grade with their dates, or with a group Tanner accomplish- levels at CCH, but this year the Fangman of friends. The word in the halls ments, and this week at CCH is and Jon potential for success in diffi- Wessels, as this is a very rare occur- that junior Noah Gal- cult university studies. Schol- vin, who is known rence. This year, the senior class of arship winners represent less 2014 matched that accomplishment for his crazy dance than one percent of the ini- moves, “danced the by adding two of its own, William tial number of student entrants. McMurtry and Nathan Wichmann. night away” with his Due to rigorous hard work, date Lauren Finn. This is an extremely pres- dedication to studying and im- When asked how the tigious award, as 1.5 million stu- proving their cognitive ability, dance went Fresh- dents from 22,000 high schools and genetics, Nate and Will have man Lauren Lawler across the country enter the compe- beaten the odds and been recog- said, “I had a good tition and take the PSAT/NMSQT nized as finalists. We should all time, the music to apply for this honor. Of those strive to work as hard as they do in wasn’t great, but I 1.5 million, 16,000 are selected as the classroom. Congratulations to did get to dance with National Merit Semifinalists based a sophomore boy.” them both and best of luck to them dance was only open to grades off of their preliminary test results. as they continue their academic 9-11. The senior class was not at These seniors selected are in the As an overall consen- excellence in college next year. Ju- all distraught by this decision, be- top one percent of their gradu- sus, all students from all grade niors, there is a bar that has been cause of their lack of attendance levels invited to the Valen- set; will you match it next year? in recent years. The Valentine’s tine’s Dance had a swell time! Students Excel in Scholastic Writing Competition By Aaron Schilling I Have Seen Outside of my Win- dow: A Tragedy and the Death of Every year, numerous Cov- a Flower,” and senior Aaron Schil- ington Catholic students partici- ling for his writing portfolio of pate in a regional section of the na- six works. Schilling also received tional Scholastic Art and Writing a gold key for his personal mem- Competition. Not only does Cov oir “Observations of a Decidedly Cath have many students submit Content Thespian.” There will be entries every year, but the school an award ceremony held in April is also represented by the many to honor all of these accomplished students from all grade levels who students. win distinguished awards. All of these students de- Many English teachers re- serve these prestigious awards and quire their entire class to submit at equal praise for their time, dedica- least one piece of work to the com- tion, and talent. Writing is not an petition, helping the school gain easy feat for many people—in- a significant amount of represen- cluding some of the previously tation in the awards. Many other freshmen to seniors. These awards Massie, David Rice, junior Adrian mentioned names. Many of these teachers simply encourage their ranged from honorable mentions to Neff, and senior Aaron Schilling. students had to work arduously for students to enter a work that they gold keys in the genres of short sto- A number of students also earned their reward and strong commen- are considerably confident in, and ry, flash fiction, persuasive writing, sliver keys: freshman Logan dation is in order. Congratulations furthermore many students simply poetry, personal essay/memoir, and Franxman for his short story “The to all of the young men who par- enter the competition at their own journalism. A multitude of students White Death,” sophomore David ticipated in this year’s Scholastic accord with the reward of gaining from all grade levels received hon- Rice for his personal essay “Heav- Competition. Your devotion, pas- acclamation for their academic orable mentions for their outstand- en or Hell,” sophomore Coleman sion, and willingness to go above prowess and the chance to exer- ing work including freshman Jaret Sweeney for his persuasive writing and beyond your academic re- cise their creativity. This year, the Schreiver, sophomores Logan piece “Ain’t it America,” sopho- quirements are truly representative distinguished judging panel of the Boyle, Ben Darpel, Chris Fagin, more Lucas Timmerman for his of both Covington Catholic High Scholastic Competition distributed Andy Flood, Sam Hacker, Will poem “A Collection of the Things School and your own talent and twenty-six awards to seventeen Heppler, Mitch Macknight, Ryan work ethic. different Cov Cath students from Reviews Page 2 What’s Hot, What’s Not By Samuel Hatter ketball in, you probably will not be just reached its 10 year anniversary, are seeing an outbreak in flexible, winning any best-dressed awards. establishing his reign of dominance curved TV’s that are capable of It’s the beginning of a over an entire decade. From a pop eventually extinguishing the video new year, bringing on the debate, Sports: Currently, the Winter standpoint, Queen B, Beyonce, is game and DVD consoles that we what will and will not be popu- Olympics is the talk of not only the the top selling self-entitled album. all have, making them pointless as lar this year? After two months, US and Sportscenter, but the entire She is about to start an upcoming the TV can do all of that by itself. most things have not changed world. The United States is tied as tour that will most-likely sell out in from the last few months of 2013. of right now for the most medals a matter of minutes. Miley Cyrus Television/Films: The Walking with 16. On a side note, the NBA still continues to see great results Dead has recently returned for the Fashion: 2014 looks promising for is about to start its second half of on her album Bangerz, but seems second half of its fourth season as all of the classy, hipster-ish dressers the season with Paul George and his to finally be dying down in the me- America’s most-watched cable pro- in the world as slimmer fit clothing Indiana Pacers as the hottest team dia. Her racy antics are less contro- gram in history. Modern Family will appears to be the fad for the next in America looking as the front-run- versial as the worst is accumulat- be airing a new season in the next few months. Sweaters, flannels, ner for the soon-to-be Finals Cham- ing to a new culture where nudity few months and is hoping for re- cardigans, and pea coats are the pions. Baseball season is starting and sexual prowess appears to be sults equivalent to the past seasons. trendy upper wear, while dark col- soon and people do not seem to trendy and cool. If you are a Jus- Frozen seems to be this country’s ored pants seem to be the cool thing be as excited as they have been in tin Bieber fan, you may be disap- favorite movie for both children and to wear. For footwear, you cannot past years. I believe America’s pas- pointed in him as he is pretty much adults, and is highly encouraged as go wrong with a nice dress shoe time is shifting from the diamond ruining his name with his idiotic a must-see. Most other films in 2014 or chukka, but boots seem to be to the field or court. As for this antics that he seems to portray on a have flunked, such asEndless Love, the new go-to thing for high fash- summer, The World Cup will kick weekly basis, ultimately leading to this year’s annual Valentines movie. ioned people, although you cannot off in June in Brazil and that will a major decline in his fans and ego. go wrong with a pair of Vans or most likely be all you hear about on For more news on what retro Jordans. If you are interested ESPN and other sports networks. Technology: Google is looking is trendy and hot, stick with us in wearing NBA socks, basketball to have a breakout year, outfitting as we will keep you updated and shorts, and a hoody, you might want Music: Kanye West is currently all many more people in a new, more give you tips on how to be on top to refrain. Although that clothing is over the headlines while on his Yee- affordable installment of its contro- of things throughout the year. comfortable and great to play bas- zus Tour spanning across the globe. versial technology, Google Glass. His first album, College Dropout, TV’s are becoming smarter and we Childish Gambino – Because the Internet Scot Synth-Pop Sensation By Evan Braun the typical rapper life: drugs, alco- By Andrew Whitacre dreamy keyboards. The songs’ tones hol, and partying. Donald shows us easily penetrate the heart and soul as Childish Gambino (Donald that life isn’t all what we crack it up Chvrches have hit the air- Mayberry’s high-pitch vocals sing Glover) has returned with his most to be. He takes us on a journey of waves with their first, full length of love and humanity while Cook’s ambitious project yet. Donald took self-questioning and self- thought studio album The Bones of What deep vocals add a darker side behind it further than your average music through smooth, vibrant, music. You Believe. With hit songs like the music. Every song is catchy and album, he made it a story. He infused “The Mother We Share”, “Lies” and irresistible yet they possess a rough, animation, plot, music, and video The album is not an anal- “Gun”, the Scottish Synth-Pop band angst-filled and joyful energy. all into one big project; something ogy of critique of the internet, but are making a name for themselves we never seen before from your av- a reflection on life and loneliness in the U.S. Their first single, “The A young band like Chvrches erage rapper/singer. “Because the today. “Because the Internet” may Mother We Share” was the most with a great debut album has plenty Internet” was Donald’s way of dis- be a difficult album to understand played song on Sirius XMU in 2012. of time to grow and put out even tancing himself from other rappers. at first, but as you play through it more fantastic music. Synth-pop is Donald showed us his true person- turns into your own subliminal Chvrches take listeners on quickly being revived in the U.S. ality which went from anywhere to message. This album isn’t meant a ride of wavy, driving synthesizer and especially in Europe and Ch- Nerd-y to world star hip hop rapper. to have one specific meaning; it leads and a pounding bass as lead vrches is on pace for great things and can be anything related to you. The singer Lauren Mayberry’s voice for making an impact in the contin- Lyrically, Donald showed us ratings Donald received on this perfectly melts into the space-like uous trend of electronic pop music. he is as playful and confused as any album are definitely not the num- atmosphere created by Lain Cook’s other person in this world; I feel like ber he deserves; once more music this album was a way of him finally comes from Donald I’m sure the The British are Coming revealing himself. Donald is not tak- critics will change their perspective By Riley Kinsella wait in line for two hours prior to the ing the usual path of telling us about and give him the respect he needs. show’s opening act, The Orwells. One February 10, the in- The Arctic Monkeys put on quite the die rock band The Arctic Monkeys performance as Alex Turner flaunt- made an appearance at the Madison ed his skills on the guitar. The band Theater located in Covington, Ken- enjoys using unique guitar riffs tucky. The concert sold out months and heavy bass guitar leads. Need- prior to the performance, with lines less to say, it was hard to hear my stretching down Madison Avenue own voice by the end of the night. hours before the show even started. The Arctic Monkeys is cur- The Arctic Monkeys con- rently touring throughout other sists of lead singer and guitarist venues in the United States. You Alex Turner, guitarist Jamie Cook, can find plenty of concerts to at- bassist Nick O’Malley, and drum- tend in the Northern Kentucky/ mer Matt Helders. The band is from Greater Cincinnati area at ven- England, but has grown in popular- ues such as The Madison Theater, ity in the United States over the past The Taft Theater, Bogart’s, U.S. few years. Their most recent album Bank Arena, and various other was released 2012 and is titled, AM. places. I highly recommend tak- The band is particularly popular in ing a look at The Arctic Monkeys the Northern Kentucky area due to if you’re a fan of the indie rock the fact that in order to get a good genre; you won’t be disappointed. spot at the Madison Theater I had to Reviews Page 3 Redford Never Disappoints The Not-so-Faithfully Departed By Tommy Lawler ships and faces some storms that would challenge even the most pre- At the age of seventy-sev- pared and experienced sailors. Red- en, Robert Redford is still making ford uses his ingenuity in order to movies; in fact, he just completed keep himself alive; however, some one of his most physically chal- of the challenges presented by the lenging and demanding movies. open ocean are nearly too much for All is Lost, released on November him. Towards the end of the movie, th 7 , 2013, features a sailor (Robert Redford writes a letter, presumably Redford) on a boat in the middle of the paragraph at the beginning, and the ocean all by himself. His char- casts it out in a bottle. acter remains unnamed throughout the movie. The movie begins with The ending of the movie has a short paragraph, the longest piece caused many discussions; depend- of dialogue in the movie; it features ing on your views of life, you could Redford apologizing for unknown interpret it in three separate ways: actions. Besides this dialogue, there an optimistic interpretation, a pessi- is almost no other spoken word in mistic interpretation, and a religious By Andrew Whitacre police are trying to interfere with the entire movie. interpretation. The film earned an their business and crime. Blood is I was recently introduced eighty-seven score on metacritic and spewed and truths are discovered to the greatest mafia crime thriller Redford faces his first chal- has garnered lots of attention from as the mafia and police go back and of the 2000s, The Departed, a film lenge at sea when a container that critics across the United States. It is forth and try to uncover each other’s by Martin Scorcese. The movie, re- has fallen off of a cargo ship floats only an hour and forty-six minutes rats. The ending is Shakespearean leased in 2006, features a superb, into his boat and causes a small and is certainly worth the watch. and leaves the viewer’s mind blown hole in the bow of his ship. From all-star cast of actors: Leonardo Di- from plot twists and unpredictable there, Redford’s luck simply gets Caprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nichol- outcomes. worse. He faces many more hard- son, Mark Wahlberg, Martin Sheen, Alec Baldwin and Vera Farmiga. The title, The Departed, is The Departed is a captivating story a play on the saying, “the faithfully AMC’s The Walking Dead Returns about unfaithfulness, betrayal and departed”. The title intentionally the Irish mafia. leaves out faithfully because a ma- By Riley Kinsella the most highly viewed shows in the jor theme of the movie is unfaith- United States, and shows no sign Set in Boston, The Departed fulness and keeps the “departed” February 9 marked the be- of losing its popularity. Cast of the follows Bill (Leonardo DiCaprio), because of the extensive number ginning of the second half of the television series includes actors and a mole for the Boston Police Force of deaths. Overall, the movie is in- fourth season of AMC’s The Walk- actresses such as Andrew Lincoln, who joins a mafia led by Frank credibly well made and backed up ing Dead. This highly anticipated David Morrisey, Lauren Cohan, Costello (Jack Nicholson) and in- by even better acting. The Departed television took a break from broad- Chandler Riggs, and numerous oth- forms the Boston Police of the ma- won 4 Oscars for Best Motion Pic- casting in mid-November, announc- ers. I highly recommend watching fia’s crime and business regarding ture, Best Achievement in Direct- ing a mid-season finale that left its this show if you enjoy suspenseful stolen microchips. Simultaneously, ing, Best Achievement in Directing one of Frank’s men, Colin Sullivan audience on the edge of their seats. horror TV series. You can find the and Best Writing, Adapting Screen- (Matt Damon) joins the police force first three seasons on Netflix if you play. The mid-season premiere and tips off the mafia whenever the of The Walking Dead proved to haven’t caught up to the fourth sea- be highly successful as it attracted son. nearly 15.8 million viewers on Sun- The Walking Dead is truly day night at 9. The show traces the one of the most captivating televi- journey of individual who have sur- sion shows being broadcasted cur- vived a viral epidemic that wipes rently. Tune in on Sundays at 9:00 out the majority of the human race, p.m. to catch the newest episodes turning them into flesh-eating zom- of the fourth season of The Walking bies. The Walking Dead is one of Dead.

1518 Dixie Hwy 859-261-4939 Bill and Traci Gregg

6:30am-10pm Mondays-Thursdays 6:30am-12am Fridays 7am-12am Saturdays 7am-7pm Sundays Editorials Page 4 Call of Duty: Ghosts How ‘Bout Some Waffles? By Thomas Hiltz technologically-superior global By Merik Berling locations now have Touch Tunes. power. In Call of Duty: Ghosts you Touch Tunes is a frequently updat- th On November 5 of this year, don’t just create a class, as was a “The Most American Res- ed music jukebox that plays music a new installment of the incredibly monotonous part of the previous taurant in the World” said frequent from your selections. Touch Tunes popular Call of Duty game series games, you create a soldier. Choose eater Corey Craig. Waffle House also has an app that allows a cus- was released to millions of anxious the head, body type, head-gear and is most famous for their delicious tomer to pick music to be played out gamers waiting to see what the fran- equipment, and you can even create waffles but also their biscuits, grits, of the jukebox from picking music chise has to offer with its new game. a female soldier for the first time. and hash browns. There are many selections on their smart phone The game features over 20,000 pos- different types of waffles. You can without getting out of their seat. This installment in the Call sible combinations; you can create order from Chocolate Chip, Pecan, of Duty series, titles “Ghosts”, de- the soldier you’ve always wanted. Blueberry, and Peanut Butter. There From the Great food to signed by the company Activision, And each soldier you create will are also many different ways to or- Great times, Waffle House is always features a fresh dynamic where also have his or her own load-outs. der hash browns from plain, smoth- a great place to relax. They are open players are on the side of a crippled ered, covered, chunked, diced, pep- 24/7 and never disappoint a cus- nation fighting not for freedom, So far the game has re- pered, capped, topped, and country. tomer. Whether you are looking for or liberty, but simply to survive. ceived great feedback from the Also another great menu item that a great breakfast dinner, or even a 10 years after a devastating mass gaming community as the newest everyone loves is their always fresh midnight snack, Waffle House will event, the nation’s borders and the first person shooter, and Activision coffee. Their coffee includes a Spe- always be open ready to take your balance of global power have been hopes to see their number of play- cialty Dark Roast, Classic Blend, order. So come on in, the Coffee is permanently changed. As for what’s ers rise throughout the year. If first and Premium Decaf. hot and the Waffles are reading to left of the nation’s Special Opera- person shooters and fast paced ac- be prepared. tions forces, a mysterious group tion are what you look for in games, Great times and great peo- known only as “Ghosts” leads the pick up a copy of Call of Duty: ple are awaiting you’re presence in fight back against a newly emerged, Ghosts today and join the fight. Waffle House. Many Waffle House Weather Takes Its Toll on the Education System By Brian Radcliff The program is designed privilege of having a home com- efit nearly as much as being in the to avoid schools having classes puter which would make online classroom. Even so, I believe the Due to the record break- well into June. Some of the prob- make up days nearly impossible. new system will prove very effec- ing low temperatures during the lems that are bound to arise with tive. Although it has some flaws, 2013-2014 school year many pub- the new program are confusion on From a conservative stand it is only needed when there are lic schools in Kentucky and Ohio how to work the system, lack of point the new system is perfect for an extreme amount of snow days. have had over ten “snow days”. ability for teachers to literally teach making up days without actually The overabundance of days off has students, and some students not having to add them onto the end of Therefore, it will not need prompted a reaction from the Ohio having internet access at home. In the year. But from an educational to be put into use very often in the Governor; who stated next year today’s society most homes have stand point it is much harder to long run and should not make a schools in Ohio will have the op- at least one computer, and several actually “teach” students through significant difference in the learn- tion to make up school days online have one per family member. But a simple online assignment. The ing opportunities of Ohio public instead of at the end of the year. some students still do not have the students will most likely not ben- school students. But they may lose some valuable sled riding time! Olympic Village Woes By Johnny Thiel had two years to fix these problems.

The 2014 Olympics in Some of the more humor- Sochi, Russia, thus far have got- ous problems are the unfinished ten off to a rocky start. So far, rooms and the amount of stray dogs Olympic officials have had to deal walking around the Olympic vil- with terrorist threats, gay rights lage. Some examples of the unfin- issues, and most recently prob- ished rooms are missing doorknobs, lems within the Olympic villages. missing light bulbs, and unfinished workout room in the hotel. If some- These problems include one wanted to use the workout room, dark yellow water, bugs in the cot- they would first have to put the ma- tages and food, unfinished rooms, chines in the workout together. As Olympic Village Room strange bathroom rules, a shortage for the stray dogs around the Olym- of pillows, and an excess of stray pic village, this issue was made pub- Slam-a-Ram dogs walking around the Olym- lic when one dog walked into the By Nick Cheesman and last year’s champion, Terrence pic village. Journalists have re- stadium and proceeded to walk onto ported all of these problems upon Ross. Paul George, who plays for the track where the opening cer- The most anticipated event the Indiana Pacers, is the clear fa- their arrival to their hotels. The emony was taking place. Although in all of the NBA All Star Weekend dark yellow water looks more like vorite. He has shown his superior this situation was rather humor- is most definitely the Slam Dunk dunking ability throughout the sea- beer than anything and journalists ous at the time, it could potentially Contest brought to you by Sprite. son with a break away “360” dunk were told not to drink or even use be dangerous if one of these dogs in one of his games. That dunk had the water until it was fixed. As for The Slam Dunk Contest were to bite an athlete or a reporter. the NBA fan base talking for awhile is a very entertaining event that is the problems regarding the food about Paul’s extreme dunking abil- widely anticipated each year. The in the Olympic village there have The Russian government ity. This is also the first time in over last few years, this contest has not been multiple reports of bugs being had two years to prepare for per- 25 years that three All-Stars are seen as many fan-favorite con- found in honey as well in the pan- haps the biggest public event in competing in this. The last time that testants, but that has changed this tries where the food was supposed their modern history and it appears has happened, Michael Jordan took year. Many NBA followers have to be stored. Needless to say, those that they did not start preparing home the title in a very competitive expressed their excitement via staying in the villages have been until maybe a week before. One event. Hopefully this year will be Twitter over the players that will not only disappointed, but also dis- can only hope that the athletes are as entertaining as it is hoped to be. be participating this year. The con- gusted regarding these problems better prepared than the Russians testants for the contest are Paul given that the Russian government in charge of the Olympics were. Be sure to tune in Febru- George, John Wall, Ben Mclemore, ary 15, 2014 at 8 p.m. ET to watch Harrison Barnes, Damian Lilliard, this year’s Slam Dunk Contest. Student Life Page 5 Campbell Urges Students to Speak Up

By Aaron Schilling Wayne Campbell visited Cov Cath on prescription medication can lead family member influenced by ad- to inform the students of drugs. to heroin addiction. The video not diction; Campbell’s final message On February 2, the Cov- However, this was not an average, only presented the testimonies of was to simply build up the cour- ington Catholic student body spent everyday high school drug speech. recovering addicts, it presented the age to tell someone about the prob- Presidents’ Day in school to make Campbell spoke of the dangers of pleas of the parents of young men lem, and in doing so save a life. up for the excessive amount of snow drugs on a unique and personal and women who were affected by level. The talk began with a series of videos that presented staggering statistics on drug abuse in America, specifically prescription drugs; for instance, although the United States makes up only five percent of the world’s population, it uses eighty percent of all prescription drugs in the worldwide. The video was a truly effective tactic in keeping the students’ attention as opposed to simply lecturing them. After recap- ping the video’s information on the United States and our specific re- gion’s involvement in drug abuse, Campbell played the introduction to a video entitled “Tyler’s Light.” The introduction reenacted how ad- prescription drugs or heroin, many This talk was not designed diction to drugs can occur and how of whom lost their battle. The plea to tell teenagers what not do; its in- quickly it can consume one’s life. of these parents was to “Speak up. tention was not to lecture or scold. The introduction concluded with Save a life,” the motto of the Ty- This speech simply pleaded students days over the past few months. How- Campbell himself speaking of his ler’s Light program. This was the to “speak up, and save a life,” a ever, the students did not technically son Tyler’s struggle with drug ad- central message of Campbell’s truly simple yet powerfully influen- have to endure a full day of school, diction. Campbell then addressed speech. Throughout his time of tial message if properly carried out, as after their first three periods, the students with the story of his speaking to high schoolers about and following this moving talk, one they were graced with an assembly. son and how his addiction to drug’s drugs, he has learned the ineffec- would most certainly believe that no Cov Cath student will receive this In partnership with the eventually took his life. The story tiveness in simply telling kids to of Tyler as well as many testimo- not do drugs. Instead he implored message lightly. Thanks to Wayne Drug Free Club of America whose Campbell, countless students have membership consists of a substan- nies of recovering addicts on the the students of Cov Cath to seek video reflected on how dependence help whenever they see a friend or learned from his story and will now tial amount of Cov Cath students, apply the motto to their lives in order to always remember Tyler’s light. Literary Magazine Receives Accolades from NCTE By Bradley Couch out of all the schools in Kentucky. The NCTE Program recognizes Last year’s Literary Maga- students, teachers, and schools for zine Working Title was selected to producing excellent literary maga- receive a rank of Excellent in the zines. It encourages schools to seek 2013 NCTE Program to recog- excellence in writing and school- nize Excellence in Student Liter- wide participation in production. ary Magazines. Excellent is the second highest award right be- This award is a testament hind Superior. Covington Catho- to the hard-working students who lic along with Assumption and spent so much time on preparing an Paul Lawrence Dunbar High excellent literary magazine. The ed- School in Louisville and Lexing- itors of the magazine were last year’s ton received the rank of Excellent. graduates Max Williamson and Jimmy Stratman. They, along with Covington Catholic High advisor Mrs. Ruth, are commended School was one of the top schools for their hard work and dedication. Student Life Page 6 Covington Catholic West Point Leaders By Garrett D. Atchison if the student were to attend West Point. The sem- of conduct that will help the young leaders for later in life. West Point’s primary goal is to train, th A seminar was held on Friday, February 7 educate, and inspire the young cadets, so that each and sophomore and junior students were select- cadet is properly instilled with the values, be- ed to participate in an event set up by a couple of liefs, and morals to continue in the Marine Corp. leaders from West Point to give students the feel- ing of being at a Military Academy. The students Both of the Covington Catholic Colonels that that were selected to represent Covington Catho- attended said, “it was an amazing experience and lic were David Rice and Chris Holthaus. Teacher that everyone was so friendly.” Both David Rice Andy Zerhusen was also chosen to go along. and Chris Holthaus agreed that they would both go to the seminar again if given the opportunity This seminar’s primary goal was to focus because it was such a life-changing experience. on the values and beliefs of each student, as well as the principles and values that would be taught inar also focused on decision making and a code

Academic Team Participates in Governor’s Cup By Keith Radcliff (which consists of Jeremiah Greer, Mike Henn, swept the top three spots: Jeremiah Greer- 1st, Mitch MacKnight, Logan Boyle, and Keith Rad- Sean Nemann – 2nd, Keith Radcliff – 3rd. All three It is officially the winter; that means roar- cliff) started off the contest, a double elimination students contesting in the Science also placed ing basketball games, splashing swim meets, and bracket tournament, by competing against a rival in the top five with Jeremiah Greer taking first, eventful bowling matches. Moreover, the winter Newport Central Catholic team to which they Mitch MacKnight in third, and Logan Boyle in is also home to the “playoffs” for the Academic lost by twenty in the regular season. The Colo- fifth. Adam Hermann, placing fourth, was the Team Colonels—Governor’s Cup. Governor’s nels showed much improvement from their pre- only Colonel to place in the top five in Language Cup is a state-wide academic competition that vious meeting, but still could not manage to pull Arts. In Social Studies, Mike Henn took first consists of three levels: districts, regionals, and out the win; they lost by six. Next, they faced place and Mitch Macknight took fourth place. state. At each level, schools compete in quick the Holmes Bulldog in an elimination match. It recall (teams of 4 people competing against was a nail-bitter; CCH narrowly won the match At the end of the competition, points are each other to see who can buzz in and answer by a margin of one point. After the win, spirits awarded to each school based on the final stand- the most questions correctly) and written as- were high going into the next matchup against ing of their quick recall team and the placement sessments (individual tests in the subject areas our counterparts at Notre Dame Academy. The of their students in the written assessments. After of Math, Science, Language Arts, Composi- Colonels led by six at half time, but unfortunate- all the points were tallied, Covington Catholic tion, Arts and Humanities, and Social Studies). ly could not hold on to the lead and barely lost to came out victorious, beating second place Notre rd Dame by a significant eleven points. This is the After a long season of competing in the Pandas by two points; thus, they came in 3 in the district, which brings an end to season for the second time in a row that the Colonels have quick recall matches with schools throughout won the District Governor’s Cup Competition. the area, our Academic Team began the post- Colonel Quick Recall team because only the top season by traveling to Holmes on Saturday, two teams from Districts move on to Regionals. Next for the Academic Team Colo- th January 25 (quick recall competition) and Fortunately, the Colonels were much nels, all of the students that placed in the Monday, January 27th (written assessments). more successful on the written assessments. In top five of their events will be competing in the Regional Competition. Good luck to all! On Saturday, the quick recall team the Math, Mr. Parrot’s AP Calculus Mathletes

CCH Participates in Regional Youth Leadership Program By Jake Kleier and compassionate leadership, selfless vol- the 40 other juniors from the area, two from unteerism and responsible citizenship.” Re- each participating high school. This group of The Regional Youth Leadership Program gional Youth Leadership is sponsored by students learns leadership skills from adults in is a non- profit organization that takes students dozens of companies including Ohio Na- the community that are in positions that require from the Greater tional Financial Services, NKU, Time War- leadership qualities. For example, Adrian and Cincinnati area ner Cable, and Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. his co-leaders took a trip to Cincinnati Chil- and teaches them dren’s Hospital and followed one of the doc- leadership skills Covington Catholic has its own student, tor’s around for the day. When asked what his they can apply Adrian Neff, this year taking part in the Regional favorite thing about being a part of the Regional to other aspects Youth Leadership program. Adrian was selected Youth Leadership Program, Adrian said, “It of life. The pro- by Mr. Tony Barczak, guidance counselor at Cov opens new doors to me. I see things I wouldn’t gram is “designed Cath, out of 9 other applications turned in by CCH have had the opportunity to see before.” to motivate and juniors. The applications consisted of a list of the empower youth student’s extracurricular activities, and three es- Mr. Barczak is already taking ap- to make a posi- say questions. Out of the ten applicants, two were plications for next year’s Regional Youth tive difference chosen: Adrian and Evan Lyons. Unfortunately, Leadership, so if you want to learn how to in our commu- Evan left CCH before the leadership program be a good leader, submit an application. nities by devel- began, so Adrian is now the lone representative. oping life dedi- cated to effective Once a month Adrian gets together with Student Life Page 7 Shakespeare Competition Finals By Aaron Schilling were expected to perform a monologue by sight that they had never performed The Cincinnati branch of before. The judges chose a top three the English Speaking Union’s 2014 from these six finalists. The third place Shakespeare competition came to winner from Finnytown won the prize a close on Saturday March 1. Cov of 200 dollars. The second place win- Cath senior Aaron Schilling partici- ner (last year’s third place winner) from pated in both the semifinals (the pre- Campbell County won 350 dollars, and vious Saturday February 22) and the in addition to 1,000 dollars, the first place finals for the second year in a row. winner (last year’s second place winner) from SCPA will also compete in the na- After placing first among tional competition held in New York City. students from all grade levels in the competition held at CCH, Schilling Head of the English department and co- moved on to compete in the semifi- ordinator of the Shakespeare competition nals held at Cincinnati Playhouse in at CCH Mrs. Diane Ruth looks to next the Park. In the semifinal round, a to- year with the hopes of a more successful tal of twelve students competed for The final round of the competition took year for Cov Cath in the competition. As the six slots available for finalists. Students per- place at the Cincinnati Shakespeare Company. In Aaron Schilling participated for the final time formed a prepared Shakespeare monologue and addition to Cov Cath, the schools of the six fi- this year, Mrs. Ruth will put her faith in a new sonnet on the Playhouse stage in front of many nalists included Notre Dame, Campbell County, competitor next year. So good luck to Mrs. Ruth distinguished judges who would determine a top Finnytown, the School for the Creative and Per- in the years to come and a sincere congratula- six to move on to the final competition. The judg- forming Arts, and Mother of Mercy. In addition tions to all of the finalists for their hard work and es ranged from actors to professors to members to their prepared monologue and sonnet, students dedication. It is truly a rare thing to see teenag- of the English Speaking Union. Aaron Schilling also performed a cold reading in front of a new ers interested in theatre, let alone Shakespeare, placed among these six finalists and proceeded set of judges. Competitors were given multiple and we are extremely lucky that this is passion to compete in the finals the following week. selections from different Shakespeare plays and is fueled both by our schools and our cities.

Fantastic Foreign Festivities By Brian Menke Foreign Language Week was a tradition very important to Mr. Kaelin, but his retirement has not brought a complete end to festivities at Cov Cath. The Hofbrahaus accordion player at lunch and the foreign food lunches were not a part of the week this year, but several other traditions remained. Covington Catholic has three foreign language classes that are not independent study: Span- ish, German, and Latin. Each class has a designated day in which each student brings in a food dish that is made in their language class’s countries of origin. They share their foods and enjoy a foreign food feast, but the festivities do not end there. The Spanish classes watch the Disney and Pixar clas- sics Lion King and Finding Nemo. The twist is that they are not in English, but Spanish. The Latin class also watches the movie Spartacus which gives an insight into the Latin culture of the past. Foreign Language Week was a well-deserved break from the hard work of learning another language, and gave the student’s more insight into the culture of the people who speak the language they are learning. Left: Mr. Balskus inflicts the “Atomic Flick” on one of his feast- ing Latin students.

Confetti of Spaghetti

By Brian Menke The dinner was a success, bringing in a large number of people hungry for a delicious meal The annual Spaghetti Dinner and Fine Far Left: The Jazz provided by Covington Catholic. Proceeds from Band entertains the Arts Festival was held at Covington Catholic on the dinner benefit CCH. crowd. Left: Mrs. Sunday, February 23rd. Murrer makes the dessert table look en- For a small price, adults and children en- ticing. joyed delicious spaghetti and meatballs, salad, bread, dessert and drinks. Visitors were serenad- ed with Jazz music from alumni including Justin Schmitt and Will Huber, along with music from the Chamber Choir and CCH/NDA Band. Apart from fine dining and music, the dinner offered a large collection of work from the Cov Cath art, CAD, and graphic design classes. Art work hung the halls of CCH for the viewing of every visitor. Student Life Page 8 New Tastes From Around the Globe Video Game By David Wessels Covington Catholic’s own Mr. Durham Pandemonium (Music Teacher) brought a tasty dish from Mo- th On February 9 , members of the CCH rocco.He is not of Morrocan decent himself, but By Brian Menke Culture Club congregated in the school caf- he prepared the treat wonderfully, and it was eteria for a food tasting of cultural delica- delectable. His dishes were Lamb Tajine, Par- The CCH Art Club hosted 3 video game cies from around the world. Moderator Diane mesan CousCous Cheese Millet. It was all very tournaments open to all Colonels. They were Ruth along with President Will McMurtury ar- scrumptous. The lamb tajine had a sweet taste to played on three different gaming systems, out- ranged for several volunteers to serve up some it that made it seem like we were eating a dessert. lining recent history of video game systems. dishes from their country or culture of origin. It was unexpected in a meat dish. The first tournament involved playing A fellow CCH student, Daniel Mounir, The last tasty dish was from the Phil- Super Smash Bros. on the Nintendo 64. The com- has a family tree that spans all the way to the ippines. Mrs. Kemp brought the most amaz- petition included 8 teams of two players. In the land of Egypt. His mother, Iman Bastaw- ing pork dish that the students could not end, after fierce competition, Junior Skyler Koch ros, made an Egyptian dish that she called get enough of. After the meal she taught and Sophomore Cody Caldon were victorious. Kofta and also some salad to complement it. the attendants a few Filipino dances. The second tournament involved President Will McMurtry’s mother, Although the members of Culture Club used of a more current system, the Nintendo Dr. Garrigas, brought a Puerto Rican special may have been hesitant to try all these new dish- GameCube. Each of the sixteen players com- called arroz con grandules. This was a mix of es, they were pleasantly surprised at the enjoy- peted in Mario Kart Double Dash and Sopho- rice, meat, and spice that was new to most able new tastes and left the tasting with a fond- more Jacob Nurre out raced everyone to win. of the members. It was very different from ness for the new tastes and their hunger satisfied. any of the Mexican food that the students en- The final tournament involved play- joy at places such as Chipotle or Montoya’s. ing Wii Bowling, the most current game sys- tem of the three tournaments. After many spares, strikes, and gutterballs, the Sophomore team of Adam Wessels and Andrew Hellm- ueller were named the bowling champions. Each contestant who participated in the three tournaments agreed that the games were a delightful way to have fun inside while the winter weather outside is frightful.

Mrs. Bastawros explains some of the Egyptian dishes that she shared with the group. Matt Schmahl demonstrates his fast footwork during a Filipino dance. Get Up and Dance By Nick Cheesman different instruments, teaching students to play in this club and has loved the club so far. When new instruments, and also teaching students to asked about the club, he answered, “Music is a There is a new club here at Cov- read music. The moderator of this new club, Mr. very important aspect in my life and this club ington Catholic that caters to music lovers. Thamann, has a unique background in music and lets me get together with fellow colonels who is a good fit for this club. The club meets once enjoy the same interests.” Antonio and other Music Club is a brand new club at Cov- a month in the Multi-Purpose Room for a mu- colonels have enjoyed this exciting club so far. ington Catholic High School. This is a popular sic-filled get-together. The students very much club that is just starting up. The main point of this enjoy these meetings and hope that this club Most new clubs at Covington Catho- club is to instill music into the lives of Covington continues to be successful in the future. Junior lic tend to die out, but hopefully the Mu- Catholic students. They do this by not only just colonel, Antonio Spiritoso, is a present member sic Club can stay firm and break the streak. listening to a variety of music, but also playing

Cov Cath Gets a Taste of Another Culture By Riley Kinsella today. The conference is held in Louisville, Ken- another perspective as they analyze the cultures tucky for three days and two nights, providing the of countries they are chosen to represent. Miso KUNA, the Kentucky United Nations As- students of Covington Catholic High School the Rokvic, a student of Bosnian descent (a country sembly, is a way for students to become cultur- opportunity to travel and represent their school in adjacent to Serbia) served to be an excellent rep- ally enlightened through simulated diplomacy. an area other than the Northern Kentucky region. resentative at KUNA. When asked about his ex- This year, Covington Catholic High perience at KUNA, Miso replied, “It was prob- The Kentucky United Nations Assem- School is representing the country of Serbia at ably one of the most fun experiences of my life. bly is an annual event that allows students to KUNA, with students Miso Rokvic, Walt Men- It was an all-around exciting event. My favorite experience cultures and world issues from a ke, Daniel Foster, Cullen Lewis, Aaron Buckley, part was the global village, an activity where different perspective than normal. Congratula- Adrian Neff, Caleb Summe, Nathan Urban, Nick people presented different items from countries tions to the Covington Catholic High School Heeb, Ryan Arlinghaus, and Todd Sheets serv- around the world.” Activities within the assembly students participating in KUNA on a success- ing as ambassadors. Students that participate include writing, presenting, debating, and voting ful year of experiencing cultural diversity. in KUNA are able to look at the world through on certain subjects that are relevant to the world World News Page 9 Ukraine Revolt By Evan Braun The main issue is that President Yanu- of the city. Ukraine is looking like anarchy. kovych’s decision to back out of the free trade Protests in Ukraine have reached new agreement caused an economic political issue. It’s possible the protests may have heights. The reports coming in estimate that Protests began a week after the decision back in peaked; at least that’s what we hope for. Neigh- around one million people took part in the re- late November. Things started to get so violent boring countries want the current Gov. staff to cent rally in Kiev’s Independence Square. that Ukraine securities had to step in and use resign and want a new Gov. to step in. Momen- These numbers surpass the Orange revolt back anything they had to scatter and diminish the tum is slowing down, Boxer Vitali Klitschko is in 2004, protests which also focused on the op- protesting group. Buildings are being burned and helping to lead the protests but also control it to position of President Viktor. Whatever is bound destroyed. Destroyed cars can be seen through- a minimum. Ukraine is definitely going through to happen is unpredictable, only time will tell. out the streets and scattered groups of fire from some struggles right now and all we can hope for Molotov cocktails can be seen on the sidewalks is a resolve of the violence and disagreements. Olympics in Sochi Gathers Worldwide Attention By Austin Obehausen the city was not better prepared for the games and that construction was not completed prior to The Winter Olympics come around once their arrival. The city did everything possible every four years. They are a spectacle watched to try and fix these issues as soon as possible. around the world. The Winter Olympics in- clude events such as: Alpine Skiing, Curling, The most important part of the Olym- Snowboarding, Ice Hockey, and Speed Skating. pics, the events, have been spectacular. Many historical performances and milestones have This year the games are being held in been made during the games. Adelina Sot- Sochi, Russia. Much controversy has surround- nikova, became Russia’s first women’s fig- ed Sochi, and if they were prepared to be an ure skating singles Gold Medalist with her Olympic Venue. The biggest concern was se- upset of South Korea’s Yuna Kim. Ameri- curity. Multiple threats of terrorism have been can superstar snowboarder Shaun White gave made on the games, but Sochi was prepared and a disappointing performance when he failed had over 70,000 armed police in the city of just to medal in his best event, Men’s Half-Pipe. 40,000 people. The hotels in which the report- ers and athletes were staying in were mostly The United States came in sec- unfinished. They had broken door handles, un- ond in the medal count with a total of 28 painted walls, and discolored water. Many of medals. Russia came in first with a to- the reporters and athletes were outraged that tal of 33 medals, 13 of which were golds. Polar Vortex Strikes U.S.

By Neal Stansel were set across the country. Western and Central Kentucky hit below zero during the Polar Vor- This winter, or Polar Vortex as it has tex, which was record breaking. Not only were been notoriously called, is record break- schools affected, but also other business and ing this year, bringing some of the low- corporations. Through the nation about 3,600 est below freezing temperatures and snow. flights were cancelled in one day alone due to the bitter cold and snow. Many people went to go A “Polar Vortex” is basically an artic tor- buy out grocery stores and super markets as they nado of extremely cold air located tens of thou- stockpiled for the impending weather to come. sands of feet in the air. Twenty-six states were under the polar vortex; Schools were closed and Despite the dangerous temperatures and residents were warned to stay inside. Frostbite numerous school closings due to the weather, and hypothermia can set in between degrees Covington Catholic kept its doors open; 90-min- below 15 to 30. The coldest air was hitting the ute delays were all that was needed to get the Dakotas and Minnesota, which clocked tem- Colonels into class. David A. Armstrong, Presi- peratures of 20 degrees below zero. At its low- dent and Chief Executive Officer of Thomas est, the wind chill in Minnesota was a numbing More College, called Covington Catholic “the minus 50 in Flag Island. These are temperatures toughest school in America” for braving be- the United States had no seen in a long time. On low freezing temperatures and risking hypo- January 7, at least 49 record lows for the day thermia all for the sake of class. Go Colonels! Superbowl Brings Disappointment for Many By Tyler O’Connell The game failed to live up to the expecta- the Hawks’ defense. From that point on, it was a tions of a superbowl. From the very first snap the complete route, ending in a 43-8 Seahawks’ vic- The last game of the year in the NFL featured Broncos seemed to be completely out of it and the tory. The Seahawks piled on the points, and every two teams that were considered the best on opposite Seahawks were on fire. The first offensive snap of time it seemed that Peyton Manning might stage a sides of the ball. On one side there was veteran quar- the game was fumbled and resulted in a safety for comeback he would throw a costly interception. terback Peyton manning leading the Denver The magnitude of the game can sometimes Broncos and a record setting offense, and on result in one-sided victories when things the other side was a young Seahawks team do not go well at first for a team, and that led by the number one defense in the league, is what I believe happened to the Broncos. led by Richard Sherman. Most of the atten- tion before the game was directed towards Some of the major take-aways from this game Richard Sherman’s controversial comments are Peyton Manning’s failure to deliver in the following their last second victory against clutch, and the fact that a team with no play- the Forty-Niners when Sherman went on ers that had any superbowl experience, and a tirade about how he was the best corner I an undersized second-year quarterback was the league. Everyone assumed it would be able to win the big one. Russel Wilson’s suc- an exciting, even game between the num- cess will lead other teams to take undersized, ber one offense and number one defense. athletic quarterbacks more seriously com- ing out of college, such as Johnny Manziel. In the Community Page 10 Evolution vs. Creation

By Andrew Whitacre minute discussion primarily about to answer these but insisted that the In conclusion, there was no how the earth is millions of years beauty of science is that scientists real winner because neither side Bill Nye the Science Guy old, space and the invalidity of a are still researching and trying to could fully provide evidence that and Ken Ham, CEO of Answers book translated many times over find a way to answer these questions their side is the one, true answer in Genesis, went head to head in 3 millenniums. through observa- to the question of the battle between Afterwards, tion. Ham stated origins. Bill Nye Evolutionists and the debate pace that all of these an- made it clear that Creationists at a de- picked up as Nye swers can be found Creationism is not bate at the Creation and Ham were in one book, The capable of mak- Museum in Peters- given a chance Bible, and with ing predictions the burg, Kentucky. The to rebuttal and this explanation way science can, debate was broad- then counter re- he seems to have but Ham made casted via YouTube buttal each oth- the upper hand th a firm argument on February 4 . er. Both debat- throughout the that there is a God The topic discussed ers were quick, Q&A. Ham’s shin- who had to put the was “Is creation- witty and well prepared to defend ing Q&A is con- whole universe ism a viable model of origins in his stance and make counter argu- cluded by the question “Do you in motion. Today’s modern era of today’s modern scientific era?” ments. Lastly, Nye and Ham had believe the entire Bible should be scientific discovery is always ex- two minutes per question during taken literally?” He answers by Ham led the debate with a panding and growing and we may a Q&A. Nye was asked questions saying that the Bible should be tak- 30 minute discussion about some never know our true origins; we that science did not have answers en “naturally” and not “literally”. of the major topics throughout the are entitled to belief what we know to yet, such as “How did conscious- He said that there were problems debated: the belief that the earth thus far and for Creationists that ness come from matter?” or “How where men use Scripture to justify is 6,000 years old, Noah’s ark and is satisfying, but for Evolution- did the atoms that created the Big marrying multiple women, but that the difference between “kinds” and ists it is a challenge to keep work- Bang get there?”. Nye was not able is not a “natural” interpretation. “species”. Nye followed with a 30 ing, researching and discovering. There Was Water Everywhere By Johnny Thiel The most probable cause problems of the water main bursting and that it took her nearly forty min- of the pipes bursting was the was that parking spots were cover- utes to actually get off of school This winter has been quite pipes freezing due to extremely ing in ice. This meant that some grounds due to backed up traffic. the struggle for most schools, but low temperatures Tuesday night. Panda drivers had to park on snow Notre Dame Academy encoun- The water main bursting resulted drifts and in the middle of the roads. Notre Dame Academy’s tered possibly the biggest ob- some very pleased Pandas. The This led to some confusion and dif- water main was not completely re- stacle of the school year to date. whole school was dismissed at one ficulty when the students were dis- paired until the following Thurs- th On Tuesday, February 11 the o’clock opposed to their normal missed. Senior Panda Maddie Rose day, but nevertheless the lack of main waterline at Notre Dame dismissal time of two-forty five. said, “The traffic situation was quite running water did not stop the burst and flooded the parking lot. a mess, but it didn’t make me too Pandas from going back to school One of the more challenging mad because I was still out early!” for the full time the next day. Sports Page 11 JV Basketball Number One on the Court and in Our Hearts By Bradley Couch By Johnny Thiel sive offense. Matthew Thiel and Jake Dressman both played outstanding defense on the big men JV Basketball The freshman basketball team capped and guards of the Thoroughbreds respectively. their season off with a championship over the The Junior Varsity basketball team Newport Central Catholic Thoroughbreds Mon- At the most high pressure moment of the has had a great season this year. They day night in the Jack Kaelin Freshman Re- game Jake Dressman came up in the most clutch have only lost 3 games and won a total gional Basketball Tournament. The freshman way possible by knocking down two free throws of 16, making for an outstanding record. basketball Colonels finished their season with at the end of regulation to send the game to over- The JV Colonels won the Region, de- a record of twenty one wins and two losses. time. The Colonels and Thoroughbreds battled feating Cooper in the finals. The starting squad the whole three minute overtime period, and again was Andy Flood, Kyle Beck, Noah Lenhof, The Colonels avenged their earlier over- a freshman Colonel stepped up in a high pressure Will Heppler, and Mathew Shumate. It was a time loss to the Thoroughbreds with a forty-one situation. Being down two with four seconds to great finish to a great season. The game was a to thirty-six double overtime win. The game play, Guard Max Bishop knocked down two free total blowout, and the score doesn’t even matter. was closely contested from the tip-off with nei- throws to again tie the game and send the game ther side ever gaining a lead of more than seven to a second overtime. In the second overtime the The JV Colonels will be the future points. The Colonels seemed to have a distinct Colonels began to pull away by playing stiff de- of the Varsity squad because of the 5 se- advantage with the size of Hunter Zigelmeyer fense and knocking down tightly contested shots. niors that will be graduating this May. The and Brent Angel, but the Thoroughbreds were JV basketball Colonels have big shoes to able to keep the game close with their three- When it was all said and done, the fresh- fill with the great Varsity Team on the court. point and free throw shooting. The Colonels’ man basketball team celebrated at half court and bench players had a huge impact on the game cut down the nets as Champions of the Jack Kae- by providing great defense as well as impres- lin Freshman Regional Basketball Tournament. Swimmers Perform Strongly at Regional Meet

By Thomas Hiltz With the swim season entering its final lap, the AquaColonels competed against the rest of the region on February 16th, after a two-day delay from inclement weather. This resulted in a one-day regional event, no preliminary time trials. The pressure was on for the Colonels, as they had only one shot per race at a state-qualifying time. The meet was an overall success and the Colonels performed well under pressure, placing seven team members on the all-region team. The all-region team consisted of sophomore Brendan Meyer, senior Zach Smith, junior Todd Sheets, junior Mike Summe, sophomore Jake Lenstch, junior Rob Newman, and senior Chase Vennefron. Vennefron was also named the official Male Competitor of the regional meet. His meet accomplishments included 1st place overall in the 200 IM and 100 Breastroke. He also broke the region record with his 100 Breastroke swim. After a strong showing of their capabilities, the team is prepared to head to state to take on the 25-time consequetive state champs: St Xavier Louisville. This year promises the closest competition between the two teams and with this in mind, the team rests up for the big meet on ly two weeks away. The State meet begins February 27th and ends on March 1st.

The Cov Cath Swim Team gets pepped up for Regions. Sports Page 12 Junior IBL Semifinals

By Sam Dressman The Intramural Basketball League is well under way into week five now. Last year’s cham- pionship winner Team Wagner will be looking to defend the title. They’ve had a great start so far, but the team fell short of perfection already with their first loss this week. Team Helbling squeezed out a victory winning 83-80 in a come from be- hind underdog win. Other contenders for the championship this year are teams Guenther and Ruwe. With the past few Wagner victories being close, and the week 5 loss, Team Ruwe thinks they will win that match up when the time comes in week 8. Guenther is lacking in size, but they have a couple really good shooters. All three of these teams have the same re- cord of 4-1. Guenther’s only loss came to Team Ruwe in week 4. The game was somewhat close throughout until later on they started to pull away and finally won 57-49. Ruwe had their one loss earlier in the season in some fluke game against a very low ranking team. They claim it was because they were missing their superstar, Ruwe himself. We will see how these three teams play out the rest of the season. So far they all are tied in re- cord, but Ruwe showing an advantage in the win Above: Drew DeMarsh demonstrates his best jumping versus Guenther. Guenther will soon show how skills while reffing the games. they can make up for that loss when they play team Wagner. There is a great chance, though, that Wag- ner will come out on top because of all the athleticism they have. The 10 Pin First Track Meet By Andrew Whitacre Proves Successful By Bradley Couch February ended the season for the Colonel Interscholastic Bowling Team. The The Colonels Varsity track team headed elite group of bowlers had a strong, promis- up to Cedarville, Ohio for the first meet of the year. ing season but could not pull it off in the end. The meet was indoors, seeing as there was still

th snow on the ground. The Colonels made a strong Regionals rolled around on January 30 at showing, placing 8th out of a field of over 40 teams. Erlanger Super Bowl, and the top Colonel bowl- ing squad was beaten out by Cooper in an intense There were some outstanding finishes by 5 round baker game. Cooper outscored the Colo- the Track Colonels. The Colonels 4x800 placed nels 3-2, which put a devastating halt to the out- 2nd out of a big field. The 4x800 members are standing season the team had. The following day, Bradley Couch, Adam Flynn, Austin Flynn, and individuals took place, and David Hacker and Sean Panoushek, and they will be a contender Alex Riedinger both bowled impressive games at the end of the season this year. There were which gave them a one-way ticket down to state. numerous sprinters that finished top 8 in their sprinting events. In the 200m dash Jake Erpen- The state bowling tournament was held on th th th th beck placed 5 and Logan McDowell placed 8 . February 13 and 14 at Collins Eastland Bowl- The 4x200 also had a good finish, placing th5 out ing Lane in Lexington. David Hacker and Alex of the huge field of teams. The 4x200 team con- Riedinger participated in the state individual’s sists of Jake Erpenbeck, Logan McDowell, Lee tournament. They each bowled 6 games but un- McClure, and AJ Skubak. They will also contin- fortunately were not able to come out on top. Da- ue to improve and be a force to be reckoned with. vid Hacker placed 29th and Alex Riedinger 23rd. The track Colonels started off the sea- The Interscholastic Bowling Team had a son very well with the 8th place finish. It was a great season with a not so great ending. The team fun meet to watch, and the team will continue to consisted of 16 bowlers, 11 of which were se- improve. The Track Team is the team to watch niors. This season was the last shot the Colonels for when it comes to the end of the season. had at going for a state title for the next few years. Sports Page 13 Varsity Basketball Team to Finish the Season Off Strong By Keith Radcliff ably the second hardest game of their regular Southwestern Indiana) and Chaminade Julienne season schedule. The sell-out game, which con- (a team from Dayton, Ohio), both by significant Covington Catholic’s winter sports tained over two thousand people, was a con- margins of twenty or more. Disaster struck at season is full of exciting, successful teams tinually back-and-forth game that required the the Royal 8 Hardwood Classic when the Colo- such as bowling, wrestling, and swimming; Colonels to play at their best for a straight thirty nels, due to shooting problems and ball-han- however, none of them compare to our surg- two minutes; thankfully, Cov Cath was able to dling issues, suffered their first loss to Fairfield ing, dominate Varsity basketball team. To emerge victorious with an 87-77 victory. Next, 69-78; however, they did not let this loss bring date, their record is an impressive 19-1, with the Colonels faced their biggest challenge of the down their spirits, as they have not lost since. wins ranging from blowouts to nail-bitters. year, Newport Central Catholic; unfortunately, due to improper conditions (the gym floor was February has barely begun, yet it has During the new calendar year, the team already seen its fair share of Colonel Crazy ac- has faced a wide range of opponents from Ohio wet, causing players to slid, slip, and fall), the game was cancelled at halftime with Cov Cath tion, on the court and in the stands. On Febru- and all across Kentucky. After returning home ary 1st, Cov Cath faced the Raiders of Ryle from their remarkable 1st place finish in the Sun- owning a promising 35-30 lead. The game is unlikely to be rescheduled since both teams High School. The game was particularly close coast Holiday Classic Championship in Sara- throughout the first three quarters; the owner of sota, Florida, the Colonels continued their hot have highly competitive, busy schedules re- maining until the post-season and since it is not the lead was extremely volatile, changing every streak by demolishing Cincinnati St. Xaiver and few minutes. Fortunately, the Colonels ran away Highlands. Afterwards, they faced their district a district-seeding game. Then, our Varsity bas- ketball team rolled over Corydon (a team from with the game in the fourth quarter and ended up rival Holmes High School, which was argu- winning by a margin of 16, 73-57. That night, Nick Ruthsatz, as usual, was a stand–out per- former with 25 points and countless impressive defense plays. He was joined by Mark Schult, who had 15 points and numerous rebounds, and Cole VonHandorf, who had 14 points. Two days later on the 3rd, the Colonels faced their 35th dis- trict rival Beechwood High School. The entire game a blowout with Cov Cath dominating in all aspects: rebounds, points, assists, and blocks. They won by a score of 87-42. On the bright side, since the game was not close, the players who normally rarely see the floor were able to clock valuable minutes in order to better their skills for the post-season and next year. The stand- outs of the night were Ruthsatz with 31 points, VonHandorf with 12 points, and Ben Heppler, a three-point shooting specialist, with 8 points. Coming up for the Colonels is the final dis- trict seeding game against Holy Cross on Friday, February 7th and other important, difficult games against Dixie Heights High School on February 14th at the Bank of Kentucky Center and Moeller High School on February 15th at Moeller. Let’s continue our unyielding support for the Cov- ington Catholic Varsity basketball team as they end their regular season and set their sights on a Regional, and maybe even State Championship.

Nick Ruthsatz speedily dribbles past the opposing team. Sophomore IBL Freshman IBL Final Goes to Overtime By Jake Kleier By Samuel Hatter four to thirty-four, with Hunter Beard scoring a game-high twenty-seven points. Team Mashni Sophomore IBL updates to fol- This year’s IBL season is flying by, as we then beat Team Schrand sixty-one to fifty-one, low. After five weeks is play the playing are already approaching week six. The battle for with Schrand beaing the leading scorer again. field is very competitive and fun to watch. the best record in the freshman class ensues and so Next came the first close game of the night, Team far Team Breen is in the lead with a record of 5-0. Schutt over Team Niehaus sixty-six to sixty-two. The sophomore class has talented ath- Anthony Bosch scored twenty-two points and letes which explains why all the teams are some- Week four of league play included Team Gunnar Benson added fourteen. Following that what close in the standings. Team Fischer is the Schabell winning 61-50 over team Weickgen- nail biter Team Breen rolled over Team Schabell, reigning champion and they are off to the same nant. Team captain Colton Schabell led with handing them their first loss of the season with great start they had a year ago with a record of team in scoring, dropping thirteen points, and a score of fifty-four to forty-two- Ryan Eckerle 4-1, with leading scorers Jacob Nurre and Jake Weickgennant and Knochelman both added was the star of the game dropping eight buckets Fischer giving the team a chance to repeat. Team fourteen. The next game was between Team for sixteen points. The final game of the night Heimbrock is the only undefeated team at 5-0 Reisiger and Team Shelton, with Team Re- was up, and Team Shelton faced Team Franxman, with Nathan Sucher and Blake Heimbrock as isiger winning 51-39. Shelton led the game in losing fifty-two to forty-nine in overtime. Gus leading scorers. Team Darpel is also 4-1and scoring with nineteen points. Following that, Halpin led all scorers with twenty-five points. Team Boyle struggling with a record of 1-4. Team Niehaus and Team Mashni faced off in a Individual standouts so far include Ben Dress- blowout victory for Team Niehaus, winning in After five weeks, Team Breen is in man, Jake Fischer, Decker Schwartz, and Johnny a mercy rule fifty-eight to twenty-seven. - Jor the lead with a 5-0 record; Schabell, Mashni, Schaffstein. All have led their respective teams dan Tuemler led all scorers with thirteen. Clos- Franxman, and Reisiger are tied in second at to multiple victories chasing after the glory ing the night, Team Schrand tried to pick up its 4-1; Team Schutt is tied with Team Shelton for achieved for winning an IBL Championship. first win over Team Schutt, but came two points third at 3-2; Team Niehaus is sitting in fourth at shy as they lost forty-three to forty-one. De- 2-3; and Teams Schrand and Weickgennant are It is going to be a tight race down the stretch spite losing, Max Schrand added twenty points. placed comfortably in last with records of 0-5. for the rest of the season, good luck to all teams. With only a few weeks left, it will be interest- Week five came around and Team Re- ing to see how the rest of the season plays out. isiger dominated team Weickgennant seventy- Sports Page 14 Semifinals Senior IBL Leaves Championship Up for Grabs Covington By Brian Radcliff One of the most popular ac- Catholic tivities among students at Coving- ton Catholic is the Intramural Bas- ketball League (IBL). This year the Times Staff senior league consists of eight teams made up of ten players. The eight captains were chosen randomly by Advisor: coach Hovan. Afterwards, these Mrs. Diane Ruth eight students chose their teams in a normal draft style. This year’s captains are Michael Brunot, Na- Newspaper Editors: than LaMarre, Noah Wilmink, C.J. Riley Kinsella Moellering, Jacob Tomlin, Mar- Jake Kleier cus Delhinger, Jacob Kleier, and reigning champion Sean Nemann. Above: Corey Craig from Team Dehlinger puts one up with ease against Alex Riedinger. Staff: After four weeks of play Garrett Atchison the top three teams, according to the league in least amount of passes. game was in their four point nail-bit- record, are Tomlin, Nemann, and er against Team Berns junior year. Merik Berling Moellering. These three teams are The worst team this year, Evan Braun the only undefeated teams left in and every year thus far, is Team At the end of the regular Brunot. In the past four years of Michael Brunot the league. Also, Teams Nemann season Team Tomlin is the only and Tomlin are the only two teams IBL Team Brunot has managed to undefeated team in the bracket, Nick Cheesman thus far to take down the all mighty lose every game they ever played. with Team Nemann close behind Bradley Couch faculty team. Some of the top scor- Some would call this impres- with only one loss. While Team Corey Craig ers this year are Joe Walsburger, sive, while others would call it Tomlin is the favorite, the cham- Grant Schriever, CJ Moellering, just plain sad. The closest Team pionship is surely up for grabs! Sam Dressman and Conner Brown who also leads Brunot has ever come to winning a Sam Hatter Thomas Hiltz Riley Kinsella Historic Wrestling Season Comes to a Close Jake Kleier tling to in November and have been going Tommy Lawler pin their at it ever since, practicing vigor- opponent ously every day after school. The Brian Menke without results of the hard work have been Jason Meyer stepping astonishing, as we have had at least Austin Oberhausen out of one wrestler place at every match the ring. we have participated in. Stand out Tyler O’Connell Competi- wrestlers this year have been Harri- Matt Quinn tions are son Tucker, a sophomore in the 152 Brian Radcliff either lb. weight class, and Joe Marino, a between heavy-weight wrestler. Joe recently Keith Radcliff three came in third place at the regional Aaron Schilling teams, championship this past Friday, Feb- Neal Stansel where ruary 14th at Conner High School, all three allowing him to advance to the state Johnny Thiel teams face finals, making him the first wrestler David Wessels Above: Joe Marino plans his strategy for taking down his opponent. each other in Cov Cath history to make it to individu- state on February 21st. Andrew Whitacre By Samuel Hatter ally, seeing who comes out with the Overall, this has been a The first season of wrestling best record, or a much larger com- strong year for the twenty-six mem- Photographers: in Cov Cath history is quickly com- petition where wrestlers are thrown ber Colonel team. Coach Johnson Matt Quinn ing to a close, as we only have one into a pool by weight class, facing was proud of the way his men chal- wrestler left in competition. It has off with wrestlers from many other Michael Brunot lenged themselves every day and been a long first year for the Colo- schools. became tough, strong wrestlers. The nels, but they have made major im- This year, none of our wres- wrestlers will have a month or so Ads Manager: provements and come extremely far tlers had any past experience, so it off before they start their off-season as a team. Tommy Lawler was a challenge for Coach John- weight lifting. Their goals for next For those who do not under- son to craft his wrestlers into the year are to have more students join stand wrestling, it is a sport where men he wanted them to ultimately the team, to get better every day, individuals face-off on a mat, bat- be. The wrestlers started training and to have more athletes make it to state.