“Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might.” Ephesians 6:10 Valley Christian High School100 Skyway Drive, San Jose CA 95111

Volume 29 Number 6 Warrior.ValleyChristian.netThursday, April 5, 2012arriorW THE VALLEY CHRISTIAN

SYNOPSYS SCIENCE FAIR

Under the leadership of Ms. Jennifer Gerlach and Mr. Howell Ivy, AMSE students participated in the 2012 Synopsys Science Fair.PAGE 5

INSIDE

FELLOWSHIP OF CHRISTIAN ATHLETES - THURSDAYS AT LUNCH ROOM 215G

PRAYER

BIG LOVE FOR

SIZELOVEKEEP ON PRAYING!

VCHS students Jimmy Wu works on the PCB.

Valley Christian High School’s very own Fashion Club wanted to do something different and spectacular to give the seniors one last chance to leave something behind, while also being creative and fun!

Fashion Show took place in the Conservatory’s rehearsal hall, directed by the leaders of the club President Annalisa Lopez, Co-President Kayla Ross, Senior Secretary Allie Ragen, and Senior Treasurer Bethany Laven. “We wanted the club to be known at Valley,” commented Ross. “We wanted the seniors to have something to give away, and leave their legacy.” Parents, friends, and relatives gathered before the show to participate in a silent auction, selling hair products from Great Clips, front row seats at graduation, beach wear, and even a personal one-on-one photo shoot with senior Drew Osumi. When entering the rehearsal hall, audience

with the latest fashion icons and coupons to their favorite and exclusive stores. Finally, it was show time! Each senior came out one by one, showing off their apparel and fancy styles. The clothing stores featured in the show included Executive Lifestyle, Original Penguin, Old Navy, C28, Underground, Blue Jean Bar, Men’s Warehouse, and much more! “It was a little

nerve-racking being a model,” said senior Rebecca Nydam, “but it was a really fun and laid back experience! If I could, I would

experience professional models showing us how to pose and walk the runway, so we could have something to practice off of,” claimed senior Lucas Ajlouny. “I want to come back and help next year.” Fashion

By Andrea CoopersmithContributing Writer

Seniors Leave Their Legacy

VC NanoLab Travels to ISS

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Seniors Jocelyn Horsager and Reed Starkey model designer outfits on the catwalk at the Valley Christian Fashion Show on March 25.

Club and the seniors teamed up with a Christian organization called World Vision to donate the money raised to To Build a Well, a charity organization who builds wells in Africa. Wrapping the show up with one last bow, the seniors of 2012 certainly left their

with smiles and high hopes for the future.

Students from Valley Christian’s ISS Program are back again this year on their newest expedition, sending seven different experiments to the International Space Station. The program has expanded beyond the school limits to include three new partner schools from across California: Fremont Christian High School, Faith Christian High School, and Whittier Christian High school. The positive reputation and popularity of this program has resulted in an increase in members and team mentors dedicated to making this project a success.

Of the seven experiments sent to the International Space Station, four of them were designed and built by the students of Valley Christian’s ISS Program. On March 7, the units traveled to the ISS station from French Guinea to the European ATV-3 Space Cargo Vehicle, and are staying for a month while data is collected. Two units will be sent to the ISS and one will be returned to earth via the Russian Soyuz return capsule.

This year’s ISS experiment,

many experiments (MicroLabs) into less volume than occupied last year. Cleverly designed micro-electronic modules, along with state-of-the-art miniaturized payload science experiments makes this year’s project especially exciting. In addition, the student and mentors at Valley Christian High School’s AMSE Institute are teaching students and mentors at three other California high schools how to do this as well.

LIGHTHOUSE MEETS EVERY FRIDAY AT LUNCH IN STUDIO 218

Provided By the VCHS ISS Team

THE WARRIOR THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2012NEWS - 2

Want to advertise in The Warrior? Contact Diann Fugate at

dfugate vcs.net for information.Note: The Warrior is a nonprofit

publication which is published throughout the school year by the associated student body of

Valley Christian High School. Views expressed in The Warrior are those of the student writers and do not necessarily represent the views of

the school, staff, and/or its students. All type and layouts are created in The Warrior

newsroom, Room 215. The Warrior is printed at Fricke-Parks Press, Union City, California.

Hannah LozinskiEditor-in-Chief

Jamie KeenerFeatures Editor

Sarah KoenigSports Editor

Drew OsumiPhoto Editor

Alec Varsamis Business Manager

WARRIOR STAFF

The WARRIOR 2011-2012

Lindsey Allen Bethany Birondo

Alexis CoriniBrittany Creel

Jordan Dawkins

On On March 16, Apple released their newest addition to the iPad family. The improvements to the iPad are numerous. The new iPad has four times more pixels than the iPad 2, with three million pixels. An HDTV only has two million pixels. The A5X chip provides more power to the screen while speeding up the rest of the tablet. The new iPad still gets a tremendous amount of battery life, with ten hours. The iSight camera has been up-graded to five megapixels, and it can shoot 1080p HD video. iPad now runs on 4G LTE with lighting fast speeds. Also the iPad can be its own personal hotspot giving away a Wi-fi signal to up to five other devices. The new iPad’s pricing starts at $499.

IN THE NEWS by Alec Varsamis

Jamie DequineKara HintonEddie SaoudKiley Stokes

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS & PHOTOGRAPHERS

Anika AhujaNia Hayden

Katelyn DietzOlivia Chui

Victoria StaffordAndre Huy PhanSamantha Chong

Alicia LiuJonathan AllenNardin Sarkis

Andrea CoopersmithThao NguyenAdora Choi

Claire KarlssonJayla Grant

Shannon TranEugenia ParkAndrew LungShelby HetrickRichard Geraffo

Joanna NamMariah Sander

Federal Appeals Ruling on Prop. 8

On February 7, a federal three-judge from the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the voter approved Proposition 8 is deemed unconstitutional to deny the right of marriage to gay people. Same sex marriage will not resume in the near future. The appeal will most likely head to Washington and have the eleven-judge U.S. Supreme Court rule on the proposition. The judges said that the ban of marriage to same-sex couples violated the U.S. Constitution’s guarantees of equal protection and due process.

Restaurant ReviewBy Alec Varsamis

Business Manager

At Oikos University in Oakland, California, there was a shooting that killed sev-en people and several were hurt. Suspect One Goh, an ex student, admitted his involve-ment in the shooting, saying that one female administrator and some of the students were the main objects of the rampage. The administrator is not among the injured. The suspect said that the some students teased him, and “were not treating him respectfully.” Police suspect he reloaded his .45 caliber semi-automatic pistol at least once, and only stopped shooting because he heard people calling 911. Six women and one man were killed on April 2, with ages ranging from their 20’s to 40’s. Thankfully Goh has been arrested by police in Alameda California, and has admitted his involvement in the shooting. Goh is currently being held without bail. Police say he is cooperating, but is not particularly remorseful.

Shooting at East Oakland University

Apple Releases “Resolutionary” New iPad

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1 World Trade Center Stretching for the Sky The new World Trade Center has reached a new milestone. On April 2, 1 World Trade Center reached one hundred floors, and will soon surpass the Empire State Building in another four feet. The Empire State Building is one hundred and two floors, and 1 World Trade Center will be one hundred and four. It is estimated that in a couple of months the building will be the tallest building in New York. A problem with the new building is the cost. Since 2008, the cost has gone up $3.8 billion. Both New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and New Jersey Gover-nor Chris Christie said the cost increase was “staggering.” The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey own the land, which is currently being leased by Larry Silverstein. Both of them will have to pay for the increased cost. Thankfully some third party groups will help pay back the debt, but the Port Authority will still have to pay roughly $9 billion. The Largest building of the complex is nearing completion, but there are plans for five office towers, a 9/11 memorial, a 9/11 museum, a subway sta-tion, and a performing arts center. The second building has been postponed for because of a lack of tenants.

Ramen Shalala *** out of 5 $ 698 W Dana St. Mountain View, CA 94041. Shalala has good ramen, but not great. If I am in the mood for ramen it is worth the wait, and they have a relatively small res-taurant. Expect to wait a while for dinner on the weekends. The ramen style is the newer Miso ramen with Tonkotsu broth, a mix of pork and chicken broth, and corn and onions, and nori, as well as other toppings adorn the ramen.

Opa! ***1/2 out of 5 $$ 1384 Lincoln Ave. San Jose, CA 95125 and 27 N Santa Cruz Ave. Los Gatos, CA 95030 and 325 Main St. Los Altos, CA 94022Opa! Has consistently good Greek food. All of the appetizer’s are worth ordering. Their lamb and beef souvlaki’s taste very good, and do not taste gamey. There signature Opa! Fries are delicious with Greek Feta cheese and olive oil sprinkled on top with some oregano. Their Greek Gyros are full of flavor, and they have a great homemade tzatziki sauce on top a traditional gyro. There are vegetarian options available, like shrimp and scallop souvlaki and a seafood pita. This is great for a relatively fast dinner if there is not a wait!

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In Memory

Clayton CliffordClass of 2005

APRIL6-13- Spring Break!7- SAT Testing19- Art Show20- Spring Dance Show Opens28- Junior-Senior Ball

MAY5- SAT Testing7-18- AP Testing10- “Experiments in Comedy and Tragedy” 18- Awards Ceremony21-23- Senior Finals24- Baccalaureate26- Graduation

CALENDARCONSERVATORY EVENTSApril 18, 19, 20 Art Show - JH, HS

April 20, 21 Dream - HS Dance Show

April 23 Cons. Honors Music Recital

May 3 Conservatory at the Mission

May 4 Sleeping Beauty: Kidservator

May 10, 11, 12 Experiments

May 11 Senior Music Recital

May 12 Festival of the Arts Day K-12

May 17, 18, 19 JH Dance Show

May 16, 17, 18, 19 JH Spring Play

May 17 Jr. Conservatory Production

May 18 Springtime at the Villa

May 21 Elementary Family Art Night

May 22 Snapshots - HS Dance

May 25 Senior Dance Recital

Celebrating His ResurrectionBy Bethany BirondoStaff Writer

Easter break is coming up! You know what that means? Sure, people talk about the Easter bunny and vacations, but hopefully they will also take the time to celebrate the true meaning of Easter: the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Easter‘s real meaning is the resurrection of Jesus, the risen Son of God. It shows people that God will judge the world in righteousness, but He has given Christians a new life through the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Christians, through faith in the working of God are spiritually resurrected with Jesus so that they may walk in a new way of life. Easter is not just about rabbits and eggs, though the tradition is not as modern as people believe. The symbol originated with the pagan festival of Eastre, a goddess whose earth form was supposed to a rabbit. The custom of decorating eggs began with the Eastern Orthodox Church. They would dye eggs red in recognition of Christ’s death and resurrection, or green in recognition of the renewal of life in spring. With the real meaning of Easter (as well as the history of the Easter Bunny) in mind, do you know what you’re going to do over break? If not, certainly most churches will have a special Easter service you can attend. Or maybe you want to go Easter egg hunting? Some churches plan to have a big Easter egg hunt, though it’s likely to be only for kids. Hopefully you will enjoy a little family feast to celebrate the resurrection of Christ. However you celebrate Easter, remember what its true meaning is.

THE WARRIORTHURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2012 NEWS - 3

Mr. Sizelove teaches an Ethics class.

By Regina NguyenContributing Writer

Senior Fashion Show

Moments...WarriorBorgs Gear Up for Success

Fire Hydrant Blows While Traffic Slows to a Stop By Hannah Lozinski

Editor-in-Chief

During the most exciting pick-up time in recent Valley Christian memory, a parent hit a fire hydrant on their way down the hill. While the flow of traffic may have stopped, the water didn’t, flooding that part of the hill for days. At approximately 2:45pm, Tues-day, March 15, a car crashed into the fire hydrant, making it explode. Water gushed out immediately, resulting in what people dubbed “The Great Valley Geyser,” or “Im-promptu Baptism” on the Valley Christian Memes page. Students and faculty ran to watch the huge column of water, which reached colossal heights. “It was ridicu-lously high. I was amazed at how much wa-ter there was,” senior Carissa Lee laughed later. It lasted for more than fifteen minutes, as Valley security and maintenance rushed to stop the hydrant. Videos and pictures of the event flooded the internet quickly, and the student body was abuzz for several days. Meanwhile, traffic on the hill was stopped for about ten minutes. Those who had already been on the hill were slowly led out of the school through the back slope, many clueless as to what was going on. Fortunately, Valley was able to stop the hy-drant before any more damage was caused, and school was back to normal the next day, if a little wetter.

For the past three months, Valley Chris-tian High School’s robotics team, the War-riorBorgs, have been gearing up for their competitions. They finished designing, fab-ricating, and programming their robot in a mere six weeks, as well as writing award submissions and sponsorship grant letters. Their first competition was at UC Davis from March 14-17, and the WarriorBorgs came out very successful. With a robot that had to shoot and make baskets as well as balance on a bridge, the team won many of their qualifying matches and went on to play in the quarterfinals, finals. Out of the fifty teams present, the WarriorBorgs earned the title of Regional Finalist, a dif-ficult feat to achieve. Not only that, the

team won the Entrepreneurship Award for their business team, and they were runner-ups for the Industrial Safety Award, which recognizes a team’s effort to practice safe methods. “I’m really proud of our team for the way that we performed at Davis. It was a really fun learning experience for us all, but particularly the drivers. We fought hard to get to the finals and gave it our best shot once we got there. I’m definitely look-ing forward to the next competition,” said Nikhil Jha, a junior who both programs and drives the robot. Next for the WarriorBorgs was the Sili-con Valley Regional, hosted right next door from Valley at the Event Center at San Jose State University, on March 29-31, from 9:30-4:30PM. There were over fifty teams compet-

ing from schools such as Archbishop Mitty, Bellarmine, and Harker. On the first day of competitions, the WarriorBorgs went undefeated, and continued this streak up until the finalist rounds. Valley and the other teams in its alliance lost to Bellar-mine, Mountain View and Menlo Ather-ton in a narrow margin of 63-53 points. WarriorBorgs Team 3256’s record in the Silicon Valley Regional gave them second place in the competition. They also re-ceived a Safety Nomination, and won the Engineering Excellence Award. “It was an incredible season, and we had an amazing robot” senior Jonathan Allen and robotics team member said after the competition. Many students from Valley attended and watched the exciting competition. Thanks to all for supporting the WarriorBorgs!

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The WarriorBorg’s robot shoots hoops during the Silicon Valley Regional. They came in second at this competition.

Students, faculty and staff line the building to watch the geyser of water from the broken fire hydrant.

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THE WARRIOR THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2012NEWS - 4

By Sarah KoenigContributing Writer

Freshmen Attend Warrior Night

Cleats have hit the dirt, runners are at their mark, swimmers are on the block, spikes are hit hard, birdies are made, and serves are being perfected. This can only mean that spring is in the air and Valley Christian athletes are geared up for their season. Valley Christian honors their athletes with a rally each season. The student body gathers together in the gym to encourage these athletes in the upcoming season. Baseball, Softball, Track and Field, Swimming, Boys Golf, Volleyball, and Tennis have begun their seasons in the competitive WCAL.

Being a student athlete at Valley Christian has its challenges, like maintaining above a 2.5 GPA, making time for family and homework. It is difficult for the athletes to have a social

life outside of their sports. These athletes are not only competing against the intense competition in the WCAL, but also against the odds. They are taught discipline and time management, which not only is beneficial to the sport they play, but also in their lives. It is vital for a student athlete to know they have the support of their teachers, students, coaches, and teammates. The Rally reminded the sports that they have people that are supporting them on their athletic journeys. The ASB rally coordinators conclude each rally with prayer for each team’s health and success so that it may be glorifying to God. Captains are in the prayer circle representing their team. The student body wishes their athletes the best of luck in the final games of their season.

As of April 2nd the spring sports WCAL standings are posted. The Warriors

Encouraging Spring Athletes

On the 20th of March, Valley had its Warrior Night in order to further acquaint the incoming freshmen with all the opportunities in store for them. The event lasted for about two hours, with current eighth graders strolling in and out with their parents, ready to discover what lay ahead for them in high school. The night began with a short introductory speech by vice-principal Jennifer Griffin as she greeted the eighth graders and explained the purpose of the night to them. What followed was the promotional video shot by Valley Christian alum Derek Hoekstra, which awed and impressed the audience. A student was

Baseball Team is ranked second, with one loss to Saint Francis, and the Lady Warriors fall at second, just under rival team Archbishop Mitty. Varsity Boys Golf is ranked fifth with a balanced record of 4-4.

Boys Varsity Volleyball and Tennis are at sixth place with one league win, but are looking for more with their young teams. Varsity Girls and Boys Swimming are sitting at third place, but hope to move up in their final meets of the WCAL. Varsity Boys Track and Field is in last, but only due to the fact that they do not have enough athletes for events. Individually the boys run as men and are taking first in their heats. The Varsity Girls Track and field falls short at fifth place, also due to the face of a lack of competitors. Individually the Lady Warriors are consistently improving in their events.

overheard whispering, “I want to go to Valley now!” Following the video was a short speech by the counselors, where they further elaborated on the stations set up around the school and then invited the students and their parents to visit each session and learn more about the various areas of Valley life. These areas encompassed the three “A”s in Valley Christian: academics, athletics, and the arts. Throughout the night, the admitted freshmen had the chance to ask questions about not only the conservatory, various academic courses offered and athletic programs, but they also had the chance to get a closer look at the extracurricular activities offered in high school. One of the most intriguing exhibits was the Robotics

booth, where they had various exhibits of their projects on display in order for the freshmen to see. ASB also had a booth manned by ASB President Jack Murphy and Internal Affairs Samantha Chong where they gave out free class shirts, answered any questions about the school clubs and explained the role of ASB in Valley Christian. The freshmen left Valley Christian that night satisfied in the knowledge that their first year in high school promised to be a fruitful one. Tyler, an eighth grader, was bubbling over with excitement as he said, “I can’t wait for my freshman year. It’s going to be so much fun!”

By Samantha ChongContributing Writer

Fathers & Daughters Enjoy

Their Dance

THE WARRIORTHURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2012 NEWS - 5

Synopsys Science Fair Results By Alexis Corini

Staff Writer

Of the 170 classes being offered next year at Valley Christian High School, thirteen of them are new offerings. There is one new class in Applied Technology, one in Bible, three in Communications, one in Foreign Language, and seven in Human Performance. In Applied Technology, the new course offered, called Digital Electronics, “[exposes] students to the process of combinational and sequential logic design, teamwork, communication methods, engineering standards and technical documentation.” Students can take the class from sophomore year on. They must be enrolled in or have completed Algebra II and Engineering or Principles of Engineering. This elective counts toward Technology for graduation credits. The Bible Department is offering a new course for students interested in college and professional sports titled A Christian Perspective of Sports (Human Performance). It is designed for students to understand what it truly means to be a Christian athlete. The class also includes outreach, in which students go to a local elementary school and share their abilities with the younger students. This class is offered to juniors and seniors only. Broadcast Journalism, one of three new classes offered in the Communications Department, is offered to all students. In this class, students will learn to report, write and produce television and radio news. They learn the principles of production and how to operate a working television newsroom. Students will produce the TV News, KVCH Warrior Radio and Sports webcasts. The Communications Department is also offering Speech, a one-semester elective offered to sophomores-seniors. It emphasizes the basic concepts of speaking, especially between a single speaker and an audience. Students will also be able to enter external speech competitions. Debate, another one-semester class requires students to have taken Speech already, mainly because it builds upon those skills. It teaches standard debate techniques, and enables students to reach decisions based on evidence and reaching. Students will also be able to enter external debate competitions. In the Foreign Language Department, Honors Spanish III will be offered next year for juniors and seniors. It helps prepare students for Spanish IV and AP Spanish. They also learn to accurately exchange information in Spanish. The assignments are more challenging than regular Spanish III. The Human Performance/Physical Education department is offering seven new classes, all of which are one-semester classes. The first new class, History of American Sport, is offered to sophomores, juniors, and seniors. Students will learn to understand American sports, gain a broader knowledge of the complexities of sports, and the historical evolution of American sporting practices over time. The class is project-oriented, and uses online resources as well as the classroom. Lifetime Fitness, a class offered to freshmen only, “teaches skills necessary to achieve and improve cardiovascular fitness, muscle strength, muscle endurance, body composition, and flexibility.” It promotes physically active behavior to encourage physical activity after graduation. Health and Wellness will also be offered to freshmen only. It teaches the impact of choices on all aspects of personal health – physical, mental, emotional, social, spiritual, and environmental. It also teaches information and skills necessary for making healthy decisions now and in the future. There are also four classes being offered for athletes – Concepts, Methods, and Techniques of Baseball; Concepts, Methods, and Techniques of Basketball; Concepts, Methods, and Techniques of Volleyball, and Concepts, Methods, and Techniques of Water Polo. CMAT Baseball, a class for boys only, teaches and improves baseball skills. CMAT Basketball offers an opportunity for boys and girls to pursue all aspects of basketball and learn to glorify God through sports. CMAT Volleyball, for girls only, helps girls understand all aspects of volleyball. CMAT Water Polo challenges students to use their spiritual gifts through sports and teaches them the history and evolution of the sport. Each of these classes is offered to sophomores, juniors, and seniors.

New Classes for 2012-2013

From Ms. Jennifer Gerlach

21 Students entered (10 Projects)

9 students won prizes (5 Projects)

Summary:1st place – 1 project

2nd place – 3 Projects3rd place – 1 Project

Honorable Mention – 1 ProjectCertificates/Other – 9 Projects

Cash - $650 to students, $200 to Valley

Congratulations to All Who Entered Projects!

THE WARRIOR THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2012NEWS - 6

By Kara HintonStaff Writer

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What has been called the most antici-pated movie of the year has finally been released. Based on the book series by Su-zanne Collins, The Hunger Games have been wildly popular among teenagers. The movie came out on March 23, 2012 and grossed $155 million on opening weekend, topping even Twilight’s debut. The movie and book take place in a futuristic country, which is divided up into 12 districts. Each district sends a boy and a girl from the ages of 12-18 to fight in the Hunger Games. The Hunger Games is a game to the death, where the last one standing wins. The main characters in the Games were Katniss Everdeen (Jen-nifer Lawrence) and Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson) who were from District 12.

Of course, they end up... well, you’ll have to see the movie! I really enjoyed this movie because of how closely the movie was to the book, based on the details. Most movies miss a lot of important parts that only the book mentions. In my opinion, if you did not read the books, you could get very lost while watching the movie. The movie is very fast-paced and without the knowledge of what the story is about, it could get con-fusing very fast. I would rate this movie a 4 out of 5 because of how close the movie was to the book. The movie alone, I would give it a 3.75 out of 5 because the pace was just a bit too fast. All in all, I would DEFI-NITELY recommend this movie. The next movie’s planned release date is November 2013.

In Review: The Hunger Games

By Kara HintonStaff Writer

What is all this hype in San Jose about DeAndre Brackensick on American Idol? Well it’s because this high school senior is FROM San Jose and is looking to win it all. Brackensick attends Oak

Grove High School, not too far from Valley. He said in an interview with American Idol, “My parents told me that I started singing

HG Author in Review: By Jamie Dequine The Hunger Games has been a widespread phenomenon around the world, but little is known about the ideas behind the pages. Suzanne Collins, a brilliant writer of age 45 fell down a rabbit hole when it came to thinking up the trilogy of a bloodthirsty battle for survival. Growing up, Collins was a theatric, and lived in Connecticut. She later worked for Nickelodeon writing many story lines, some of which included The Mystery Files of Shelby Woo, Little Bear, and Oswald. She was also the head writer for Scholastic Entertainment’s Clifford’s Puppy Days. Collins has also written a series entitled, The Underland Chronicles, about a boy discovering a new world under New York. It was in New York where Collins came up with the idea for the Hunger Games while thinking about the classic Alice in Wonderland. What would it be like to fall down a manhole of New York rather than a rabbit hole? Thus the series of

By Lindsey Allen If you do not want to see The Hunger Games unlike the many movie enthusiasts, then you probably haven’t read the books. The best selling Hunger Games book came out in 2008 and the rest of the trilogy was published soon after. The popularity has not stopped for the four years that it has been out; a steady stream of people is coming into book stores all over the country to purchase the series before and after the movie’s first showing on Friday, March 23. The Hunger Games is a funny name, but it does have a meaning. The book is not about people playing games at the dinner table, if that is what it seems like. In the book in the future in a country called Panem, the cruel and all-powerful

American Idol Hopeful From SJ in the Top 9from the age of two.” He has always had a passion for singing, but did not realize that he was actually good until the age of 8. Brackensick auditioned at the San Francisco auditions. The judges were captivated by his performance and loved him from the beginning. Although he did receive a wildcard into the Top 10, he has still been really singing his heart out. Brackensick is mostly known for his Hawaiian heritage. On YouTube, Brackensick has posted videos of himself singing traditional Hawaiian songs and even hula dancing. Brackensick will not be able to make it through without your votes. Make sure to help DeAndre Brackensick to make it all the way, even win!

Hunger Games: Movie Review

books were sprung and lead to a worldwide phenomenon of teenage girl and her fight for survival in an arena amongst many bloodthirsty teens.

HG Book in Review:

government forces two randomly chosen children ages twelve through eighteen from each of the twelve districts to fight in an arena in a massive duel to the death called the Hunger Games. Every person has to watch the children from their own districts try to come out alive against the other poor children. Only one person can live, and that one person is showered with wealth and prizes in an otherwise poor country. Katniss Everdeen lives with her depressed mother and little twelve-year-old sister named Primrose in extreme poverty in District 12. She is an expertly talented hunter, and goes hunting with her best friend Gale outside the district, even though it is illegal. She provides for her family by selling her catches to the baker and his son Peeta. When it comes time for the reaping, where the government picks the children out of a raffle, the first name that comes out is Primrose Everdeen. Imagine the thoughts in Katniss’ head when her only sister is chosen. Instead of letting her sister die, she volunteers for her to be put in

the Hunger Games. The next name that is called is Peeta Mellark, the boy that helped her through the times when she was close to starvation. Now she must fight against a person she loves knowing that only one of them could live, if one of them even gets to live. Preparations for the game take place, as all the kids are pampered and prepared to show off their looks and talents before the death match. The competition is fierce, but there is also a little girl named Rue that reminds Katniss of Primrose. Her natural reflex is to protect her during the games, but she knows that only one can live. Everything that these children are being forced to do go against their nature. The books have drawn so much attention to their audience, because of the emotional attachment that the reader makes with the characters. The books have been so popular for a reason, so if you haven’t read them yet, go do so!

By Kiley StokesStaff Writer

THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2012 FEATURES - 7http://warrior.vcs.net/

FEATURES

PHOTOGRAPHS BY CINDY TORODE

Titanic’s Last Hurrah Valley Christian’s popular theater production of Titanic the Musical comes to a close with a moving success. Unlike the well-known Hollywood version, starring Jack and Rose, this musical focused on the individual stories of several groups of people on the ship. The history of the RMS Titanic was integrated in an accurate and realistic manner in this fantastic production and made this devastating story both entertaining and educational. The cast spent every waking moment devoted to the success of the show by practicing their lines, and attending rehearsals each day. They poured themselves into performing at their best, and it was clearly worth their hard work. Every cast member showed their passion for acting and singing on stage with their convincing performances each show. The students continued to bond with one another through each show and rehearsal

they spent together. They were encouraging to one another and developed closely-knit relationships with one another that cannot be easily broken. With riveting technology, music, and special effects, the audience was taken back at the realistic staging of the sinking Titanic. The live student made orchestra played the music in accordance with the show, making it even more of an experience to the audience. Also, it was made obvious that the special effects took a lot of effort and time to produce such an awesome show. Valley Christian freshman Alexis Corini said, “The music, lighting, and special effects made me feel like I was truly there on the ship myself.” The performances and touching stories of each individual on the ship brought most of the audience to tears. This heartbreaking story was not portrayed simply as sad and historical, but it also brought the audience to life with entertaining circumstances and quick-witted humor. Alexis Corini stated, “The

By Katelyn DietzContributing Writer

Marching Band Prepares for Trip to China

Art Collector Leads Class

at Valley

On Wednesday afternoon, March 14, art collector and classical guitarist Christian Lee conducted an art master class. He displayed works from his exten-sive collection from artists that included Pi-casso, Fabergé and Pasqualini, sharing his experiences with Valley Christian students and faculty in the Conservatory. More than fifty members of APUS History, AP Art History, AP Studio Art and other history buffs attended the class. Mr. Lee began with a classical guitar per-formance, and continued discussing the importance of art in our world and how to properly appreciate it. He permitted stu-dents to interact with him during the display, allowing them to touch and hold pieces like a nineteenth century Fabergé teaspoon and the last piece that famed designer Valentino ever created. After the class ended, some other pieces from his collections were on display for the enjoyment of Valley Christian stu-dents. These included a 6th century BCE Iraqi statue of a goddess and engravings done during the Italian Renaissance. “It was an incredible experience” junior Jamie Keener said, “He needs to come back every year!” That was not the extent of Mr. Lee’s involvement with Valley Christian though. He loaned several works from his Titanic collection, which were put on dis-play during the musical theater production. Valley Christian students designed the ex-hibit and acted as docents for the artifacts during intermission of almost every perfor-mance. They shared their expertise on the artifacts: original newspapers for 1912 fea-turing the disaster, a picture signed by the last survivor, a letter written by another and a poster from the 1980’s that was an exact replica of the original, made using the same materials. After Titanic was over, Mr. Lee gaveafinalpresentationonTuesday,April3 at night in the Conservatory. Those who had participated in the project were invited to view the artwork one last time and en-joy desert and another classical guitar per-formance. Mr. Lee and his collection were greatly appreciated at Valley.

Mr. Lee’s Picasso “Pour Bernard” (For Bernard) was a gift to his young

grandson in 1954.

By Hannah LozinskiEditor-in-Chief

Though their season technically finishedinNovember,theValleyChristianMarching Band is gearing up for another major trip, destination: Beijing, China. In past years the marching band has been to Los Angeles, Orlando, Florida, Cambodia, and everywhere in between. The band will depart the day after Easter, Monday, April 9, on a long and exhausting fourteen hour plane trip to spend the rest of their break in Beijing.

The VC marching band has the amazing opportunity of marching in the 2013 Rose Bowl Parade in Pasadena, Cali-fornia, one of the most well known parades worldwide. To create a special theme for their audition into the parade, the band teamed up with another high school band in Beijing, China. The two bands will come together to represent the coming together of two cultures, of east and west, and create one united band. Though their trip to China is sure to be fun, the band will also have the chance to meet the Beijing band and work hard in rehearsals. The Beijing band

will also come to the U.S. in December of this year in order to rehearse with the VC marching band and head to the Rose Bowl Parade. Along with marching in the Rose Bowl, all participating bands will get to march in Disneyland. The marching band will have a busy schedule this upcoming year, not only having to put together their regularfieldshow,butalsohaving topre-parefortheparadeheldonNewYearsDay,which isastaggeringfivemile route.Theband is sure to give a memorable perfor-mance as they make their way toward the 2013 Rose Bowl Parade.

show was a moving experience for us all. I have studied the Titanic for years, and this production helped me truly understand this tragic story in a new light.” The audience’s response to the show was emotional and proved the show to be a success. Valley Christian was represented well by the cast, directors, audience, and other members involved in this production. Every cast member poured their hearts out on stage and off, as they brought the audience to the edge of their seats each night. They were good examples of what it means to “Do all things heartily unto the Lord.” Each of the cast members has said they will miss being a part of the production, but look forward to being involved in future performances. As Titanic comes to a close, it is time to wave goodbye to the sinking ship and look forward to experiencing the next lively endeavor Valley Christian’s theater might host next.

Junior Tyler Valdez and senior Jessica Lubke played Mr. and Mrs. Strauss in the production.

The Titanic cast members conclude the show.

Seniors Kevin Callisch and Melina Rapazzini in Titanic.

THE WARRIOR FEATURES - 8THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2012

By The ISS Team

ISS TAKES OFFPhotos provided by The ISS Team

The goal of this experiment was to grow the bacteria Bacillus Subtilius aboard the ISS station. The students in this group first spent numerous hours of research in order to become familiar with the bacteria and its liv-ing requirements. After gaining foundational knowledge, students broke off into smaller groups to specialize in the areas of: programming, experi-mentation, electric design, and module building. This specialization cut down wasted time and allowed rapid progress in each area. The experi-ment layout consisted of two bags connected by tubes, one bag containing the bacteria, and the other containing its food. The growth will be mea-sured primarily by pictures from a camera, which will show how large the colony of bacteria has become in the bag.

Biology

Electromagnetic/Ferrofluid:

Hypothesis: Through the use of digitally operated magnetic fields, it is believed the suspended ferro fluid will conform to the usual aspects of magnetic interaction, while allowing for a significantly more motion and agitation due to the lack of apparent gravity.

Purpose: The purpose of the experiment is to further our understanding of the interaction of magnetic fields, and the resulting magnetic fields. Through manipulating electromagnets, we create a variable uninfluenced area of magnetic interaction allowing for inspection. This provides a win-dow into the pure nature of magnetic attraction, free from major influ-ence of the earths pull.

ElectroplatingThe Electroplating experiment will study the effects of actually doing electro-plating of of gold and bronze in microgravity aboard the ISS and comparing the results of identical electro-plating on earth. Samples of electroplating in space and on the ground will be analyzed with Valley Christian's Atomic Force Microscope to compare the topography and consistency of the plating levels upon the metals.

Hypothesis:The plants will germinate and grow in the absence of significant gravity, mirroring the conditions on Earth.

We are conducting this experiment to provide future space travelers with the capability to grow plants in micro gravity environment in order obtain nutrients and oxygen, two key components in the sustentation of life. But more than that, the goal of the ISS program is to honor God and shine His creations, plants, in a different world.

Purpose: To grow basil, snapdragon, Wisconsin fast plant, and purple coneflower in a micro gravity environment. Obviously, many factors come into play, such as, but not limited to, temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide con-sumption, water consumption, as well as the proper software in order to these mechanisms to function.

Plant Growth

The Experiments:

THE WARRIOR THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2012FEATURES - 9

The Groups:

PurposeOur groups purpose is to create ideas on how to allow the other teams experiments to survive in orbit. For example, in order to support our plant group, we are creating a system that allows water to flow into the soil of the plant on command. We are also modifying the cube set in order to cre-ate specific temperatures for each environment. We also are adjusting the cube sets so that they will be able to endure the release of pressure while in orbit.

Mission statementThe main purpose for our group is to help maintain the experiments of all the other groups. While the other teams experiments are in the cube lab, the experiments will have no resources that will allow them to survive in their normal manner.

Systems IntegrationThe involvement of students conducting experiments and research proj-ects aboard the international space station needs to be shared with other school through the form of media coordination and planning between school administrations. PR teams are critical for developing these type of connections and getting the information about these revolutionary proj-ects out to the public to promote growth in cube stat experiments through-out high schools across the world. This years PR teams learned important lessons in scheduling and coordinating meetings with students from other school across the journey of this years cube stat project. In addition the team learned how to bring different aspects of each project in order to explain the importance of high school's growth in regards to scientific studies and exploration.

Public Relations

THE WARRIOR THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2012FEATURES - 10

Theater Students to Perform in Scotland

Title

By Jacqueline FarmerContributing Writer

This summer, several students from the Valley Christian Conservatory will be traveling to Scotland to perform in the 2012 Fringe Festival in Edinburgh Scotland. The theater program at VCHS was selected from hundreds of applications to participate in this program. There are 21 students trav-eling to produce this well-known comedy. The set will be built and then transported to Scotland, as will the costumes and props. This opportunity is a great way for VCS

to share their talents and their school with many other schools throughout the world. As the students continue to prepare for this trip, they are also responsible to raise funds for the expense of the trip. Each student has been active in the numerous fund rais-ers. If you eat breakfast, you can help these students achieve their goals by joining them for breakfast on May 19. Or when you are doing your spring cleaning, set your E-Waste aside and bring it to the drop off at Valley on April 22. The actors who will be attending and representing Valley Christian Schools are:

Kelly Bailey, Emily Bainbridge, Eddie Barsoumian, Virginia Cook, Maddie Faircloth, Alexis Garrett, Josh Hoefling, Jarren Jones, Michelle Joo, Daniel Krum, Mitchel Mayes, Ryan Orlando, Eliana Schoenberg, Laura Scurti, Rachel Steeves, Lindsay Trevino, Tyler Valdez, and Andrea Wigginton The technical team members who will be supporting the actors are:Rachel Eager, Eric Fahrner and Jack Griffin. Check out what your fellow Valley Chris-tian Warriors are saying about the upcom-

ing trip on the website. Visit us at vctheatre.net/scotland to get the latest on what is hap-pening.

UPCOMING FUND-RAISERS 4/21: E-Waste Drop-off at Valley Christian5/19: Applebees BreakfastThru 6/30: E-Waste at E-Waste site (www.greenmouse.com )Thru 7/1: Sponsorships, cash donations close on the website

Singin’ in the Big AppleBy Katelyn DietzContributing Writer

The Room 107 Jazz Vocal En-semble has already had a successful year, earning incredible praise from clinicians and winning first place at the Folsom Jazz Festival for the second year in a row. The jazz choir now has the opportunity to travel to New York, New York and perform at the DCINY (Distinguished Concerts Interna-tional New York) Vocal Jazz Festival with Phil Mattson, who is the guest director. Phil Mattson is well known for his exceptional vocal jazz arrangements and has worked with many famous jazz vocalists. Room 107 will depart for the “Big Apple” on Wednesday night and spend time seeing the sights and, of course, gear-ing up for their big performance that will take place on Easter Sunday in Town Hall at seven. The festival lasts from April 5-8 and features different college and high school vocal ensembles from Kansas, Ari-zona, California, and Wyoming. Guest art-ist Michele Weir, currently working as a teacher at University of California, Los An-

geles, will also make an appearance. Mi-chele Weir is one of the leading vocal jazz artists of today. She has her own publishing company and was music supervisor for the well known animated film Prince of Egypt. The VC vocal jazz ensemble is sure to not only have a great time looking around New York, but will also give what is sure to be an unforgettable performance.

Members of Room 107 perform during a concert.

Strings Group to Hawaii Seventeen students will enjoy the sun, sand and surf of Waikiki, while at the same time performing beautiful classical music in a variety of venues. They are trav-eling with Mr. Scott Homer and Mrs. Lily Homer, the VCS string teachers, to beauti-ful Hawaii over Spring Break. While on the island, they will visit Punahou School, the school where President Obama attended when he lived in Hawaii. They will enjoy a musical exchange with the students. Also on the agenda is a tribute performance at the Pearl Harbor Memorial on the U.S.S. Missouri, followed by a performance at the Ala Moana Shopping Center. Their final performance will be at the University of Hawaii, at the 2012 Heritage Festival. The String Ensemble and Early Music Ensem-ble will perform separately at this festival.In addition to performing, the students have lots of island delights in store as they will take a sunset cruise on the world’s larg-est Polynesian Catamaran, hike Diamond

Provided By the ConservatoryHead, snorkel at the famous Hanauma Bay Nature Park, and tour the Pearl Harbor Me-morial. Let’s wish them all Aloha, for a fun, safe and memorable performance trip.

Members of the string ensemble pose before a concert.

THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2012 SPORTS - 11www.gowarriors.netSPORTS

Hockey Makes Its Mark

By Eddie SaoudStaff Writer

The gun is shot, and the runners take off. This year’s 2011-2012 season for track and field has gotten off to a great start. All the running events have been filled up by many Warrior athletes. There are a total of 68 students on the Track and Field team, a majority of them doing track events. Many of the athletes are returning players, but there are also a lot of new faces.

Besides the meets, there are also invitationals, which are more for the varsity athletes. The varsity runners are well-prepared and serious about running. New school records have been popping up, especially in the 100 meters. Definitely in the future, there will be many more.

Practices have been rough. The runners, jumpers, and throwers are all divided up, and work on their specific event. Some days are intense; others are relaxing because of track meets the next day. Even through all the hectic schedules, Coach Tammie Marshall really stresses the fact that as athletes, we glorify and honor God through our running.

All the athletes have been doing extremely well, blowing away the competition in the last two meets. Kara Hinton said, “Since it is still only the beginning of the season, we still have a lot to look forward. I am really excited!”

The varsity team has been so close to beating teams, but they are looking for a definite win next week.

By Kara Hinton Staff Writer

By Sarah KoenigSports Editor

As the season rages on, Valley Christian is fantastically showcasing its multitude of talented athletes. On both the track and the field, Warrior athletes are furiously competing, performing well in invitationals and dual-meets alike. In the latest invitational, where athletes from all over the Bay Area traveled to compete at St. Francis, the Warriors’ field competitors did not disappoint.

As the lone jumper at the invitational, Kristen Sato was relentless. She placed third in the Triple Jump with a distance of 36-05.5 and dominated the long jump with a distance of 17-10.

The throwers for the Warriors also performed quite admirably. Ronna Stone dominated the Frosh/Soph shot put competition with a distance of 32-00.5, nearly 3 feet past second place. If she was placed in the varsity heat, Stone would have placed fifth, being a mere half inch away from fourth place. Priscilla Shing also competed in the Frosh/Soph shot put throwing a solid mark of 22-01. In the boy’s section, senior Theodore King placed fourth with a throw of 48-11. King recently improved on that throw at Mitty eclipsing 49 feet as he steadily improves to the 50-foot threshold. As he has already surpassed the school record this early in the season, by quite a margin at that, it’s fair to say King has established himself as Valley Christian’s all-time best thrower.

Valley also competed well in the discus ring. Placing eleventh, Kristen Uda threw a solid distance of 81-06. Although she has not thrown discus in an invitational, fellow thrower Ronna Stone has also shown her skill in the discus, throwing approximately 78 feet in the dual meet against Sacred Heart, and throwing over 77 this week at Mitty. For the boys, King placed fifth, throwing a remarkable mark of 130-07. As this is his first year throwing the discus, he still seems to have much room for improvement. Although he did not throw at the invitational, sophomore Samuel Acomb also established himself as a promising athlete for the Warriors throwing 101-07 in the dual meet against Sacred Heart. With many meets still on the horizon, be it invitational or dual, all of the Warriors still have several chances to improve. Truly, they have proved that this season won’t be simply another season, but a memorable one for VC track and field.

Track & Field Going Strong

FELLOWSHIP OF CHRISTIAN ATHLETES THURSDAYS AT LUNCH - ROOM 215G

Boys Ice Hockey team is making a statement as one of Valley Christian’s athletic club sports. Valley Christian started their program in the Sharks Ice HP High School Hockey League, along sided fierce competitor Bellarmine, in 2000 with only four teams. Since then the Sharks league has grown to include nearly 19 teams currently playing in the Junior Varsity Division and could reach a total of 34 teams once the Varsity division begins play in mid-March. Valley Christian and Bellarmine have moved out of the league to experience more competition in the Northern California High School Hockey League, which includes teams from Archbishop Mitty and Cardinal Newman. These four teams split off from the Sharks League to provide each other with challenging competition and create a stronger program for Bay Area teams. It was important to build a hockey community in the Bay Area, as well as California and when the California Amateur Hockey Association decided to hold the first state tournament of its kind, pinning the top teams against each other only the most elite teams would qualify; two from Northern California and two from Southern California. Valley Christian and Bellarmine were the two Northern California teams that were invited to the Inaugural California Amateur Hockey Association High School State Championship.

These two teams have battled against each other many times, but together they would travel to Anaheim where they would face Santa Margarita Catholic out of Rancho Santa Margarita, and JSerra Catholic from San Juan Capistrano. Sophomore center, Tyson McLellan felt nervous, but excited to play with his teammates and see what they could accomplish. When meeting in Anaheim the boys were set to play Bellarmine first. It was a battle and boys just came up short one goal in a final score of 3-2. It was a tough loss, but the boys would have to recuperate as they were up against Santa Margarita, a strong southern California opponent. Although the boys lost 7-2, they were not discouraged and finished out the tournament with a victory against JSerra Catholic 5-4. Warriors’ goalie Justin Hubert played an outstanding tournament in the net for his teammates. The Warriors

placed 3rd in the State tournament, an accomplishment the club has never received. Santa Margarita took 1st in California, with Bellarmine just behind them. The Warriors were blessed to be a part of the tournament and although they were invited to compete in the USA High School Hockey Nationals, they respectfully declined. These Warrior athletes have made tremendous achievements, not only for their school, but their sport. Valley Christian has not always received the recognition it deserves, but they have made an accomplishment that will not go forgotten. The Warriors could not have achieved their success without the salutary commitment by Head Coach Josh Brendes and his assistant coaches and young leadership from senior captain Chris Campbell and his assistant sophomore captains, Peter Romanchuck and Tyson McLellan.

THE WARRIOR THURSDAY APRIL 5, 2012SPORTS - 12

By Sam ChongContributing Writer

It’s been a wet season. The rain that dominated most of late March rained out a few matches, but the VC boys tennis teams did not let them stop them from working all season. Both JV and varsity have been training hard in order to compete against some of the higher-ranked teams, and both teams have come close to winning some very tough matches. The boys JV team has shown some incredibly strong performances this year. Following a convincing win over Archbishop Riordan, they came close to upsetting strong teams like St. Ignatius and Sacred Heart. While they were unable to pull off an upset, in both circumstances they showed their tenacity and provided a strong base for next year’s JV and varsity teams. The JV boys are currently in their second half of the season and will wrap up by late April with their last home game being on

the 19th against Junipero Serra High School. Similarly, the boys varsity team has worked extremely hard this year and their record reflects the amount of work put into their games. Early on in the season, they traveled to Fresno and managed to clinch third place in the California High School Boys Tennis Classic. Following that win, they asserted their dominance with a 7-0 sweep against Archbishop Riordan High School. Although their streak faltered against power players Archbishop Mitty, the players still did their best and walked away satisfied knowing that they had the ability to beat some of the stronger players on the other teams. What makes the future of the team even stronger is the presence of four freshmen on the team—namely Kyle Chin, Samuel Han, Druthi Srirama and Trent Tayrien—thus ensuring another strong source of talent for future years in the tennis program. Said Michael Klajbor, a junior: “This season has been one of the best ever.

Bryce McKelvie challenges his opponent.

March was a big month for the swim team, as they finally started competing against other schools. The team opened March at an overnight swim meet in Roseville, California. Valley traveled the Roseville Invitational Swim Meet to compete against over ten other teams from the greater Sacramento area. This year, the girls swam competitively. Junior Nicole Feldman swam the 100-yard butterfly and 100 yard individual medley. Feldman

placed seventh in the 100-yard butterfly, scoring many points for her team. Senior Kate Staskus competed in the 100-yard backstroke, dropping four seconds off of her personal best time. These girls were just a small part of the team that contributed to the girl’s team taking first in the whole meet! Not only was this meet a chance to improve times and compete, but it is also a great opportunity for the swim team to bond and hang out together. Valley Christian opened up leagues swimming against Archbishop Mitty, and this meet was the boy’s chance

Boys Tennis Suffers Rainy Season

Valley Christian Swim Team Dominates MeetsBy Nicole Kramer

and Nicole FeldmanContributing Writers

to shine. Senior Michael Nunan led the team in points anchoring both the 200-yard medley relay and the 400-yard freestyle relay, as well as taking first place in the 200-yard freestyle and the 500-yard freestyle. Sophomore Zach Lowenstein also competed hard, scoring first in both the 50-yard freestyle and the 100-yard freestyle. Even with these fabulous individual swims, it was an extremely close score at the start of the last event: the 400-yard freestyle relay. Lowenstein started the race, giving his team a lead of about one and a half body lengths. It was easy swimming after that

for juniors Brian Ciccoletti and Michael Hoefling. Senior Michael Nunan anchored the relay securing first place in the race, as well as first place in the meet over Mitty. It was a close meet, and the boys were able to pull ahead by 6 measly points to take the victory. The last home meet for the seniors is Thursday, April 5 against St. Francis. It will be a close match for both the boys and girls teams so come and support the Valley Christian swim team and cheer on the seniors in their last home meet!

Our four freshmen have given stellar performances, and the entire team has made this year exciting and fun. We’re so much better than last year, placing third in our division at the Fresno Team Tennis tournament. I am having a ton of fun and this is one incredible season!” The boys varsity team is heading into their second half of their season and will be playing away matches all throughout this week. Their last home match will be the 17th of April against Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory. Come out and support either the JV or varsity home matches - you won’t be disappointed!

THE WARRIORTHURSDAY APRIL 5, 2012 SPORTS - 13

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Baseball Makes an Impact at 12-2

Frosh and JV Baseball Take on League

At this point it is no secret that the Warriors are rolling into CCS at full speed. With a 12-1 record, Valley is whipping out everyone who dares to cross their path. On Friday, March 9, the Warriors battled against Jesuit High School. Valley fought hard and swiped the win away from Jesuit. Valley then went onto fight Elk Grove High school. The Warriors came to win however, “The Thundering Herd” would not let happen. Elk grove was up 4-0 in the top of the 1st inning. However, Valley would not go down without a fight. The Warriors made a run in the bottom of the 2nd inning. But, that was no match for Elk Grove. The Herd came back with a run in the 5th, 6th, and 7th inning. Closing the game at 7-1, making this the one of the only losses of Valley’s season so far. However, the Warriors did not get down, they kept their heads up and flexed their muscles against Mitty on March 13th. The Monarchs did not stand a chance as Valley marched onto their home turf ready to pound whatever victim dared to step foot on their field. By the top of the 5th inning the game was already over. Valley has pummeled the Monarchs 3-0, making an astounding recovery from their heart breaking loss to Elk Grove. Valley did not stop there. They then went onto play Riordan. Tied at the top of the 1st inning, 1-1. Some may have thought this would be a close game. However, Valley was ready to take the victory. The Warriors hit Riordan hard with three runs in the bottom of the 2nd inning, taking the game away at 4-1. On March 30, Valley was ready to battle as they played one of their biggest rivals, Bellarmine. Both teams were 0-0 until the Warriors decided to put some points on the empty score board that hung above. Valley finished the game

with a 1-0 victory against the Bells. Valley then went onto battle Sacred Heart Prep. Up 2-0 in the bottom of the 2nd inning Valley thought the game was over. However, Sacred Heart was not going down without a fight. The Gators came back with three runs in the top of the 5th. However, the Warriors were not shaken. Valley snatched the win from the Gators, and took the victory at 5-3. Hungry for their next game, Valley battled Saint Ignatius. Valley scored a run in the first inning, leading 1-0. However, the Warriors were in the market for a more brutal beating than that. Hungry for more, the Warriors closed the 3-0. The Warriors then went onto play against Saint Francis in

which they fought hard but came up short. The Warriors lost to the Lancers with a close game of 0-1. As Valley walked off the Lancer field, they held their heads high ready to battle against their next opponent. Meanwhile, Bryson Brigman, is shining in the spotlight. Coming in with the top 50 recruits for 2014, Bryson is cruising in at number 2. With a batting average of .354, it is no question that Valley is carrying some young talent. As if being number 2 was not fulfilling enough, Brigman has been chosen to be on the sixteen and under Junior National Team as a freshman, a huge honor for any sport especially for one as competitive as baseball.

By Brittany CreelStaff Writer

The boys junior varsity baseball team is 6-5 so far. The game at San Benito concluded in a loss 3-12. The boys tried hard, but unfortunately couldn’t pull a win from that game. The next game against California High School unfortunately end-ed in a loss 3-9. Another hard fought game. The Warriors hard work paid off in their next game against Homestead High School. They won 7-4. Unfortunately their next two games against St. Mary’s High School and Jesuit High School ended in a 5-8 loss and a 1-5 loss respectively. The prospects began to look up for the squad when they won their games against Elk Grove 13-0, and against Archbishop Mitty 2-1. The boys went on a winning streak with Bellarmine (1-0), Sacred Heart Cathe-dral (7-1), and San Ignatius (2-7). The next game against Saint Francis High School ended in a loss ending the five game win-ning streak.

On February 27, the Warriors Var-sity Boys Golf team officially began their season. With some very talented players on the team, the Warriors are establishing themselves as a CCS golfing power. At the Diablo Country Club, the team played in their first tournament of the year, the De La Salle invitational which in-cluded twenty three schools from around the Bay Area and some individual golfers. The Warriors finished with a score of 440 for the five players representing Valley. Ju-nior Matthew Ashley led the team with a score of 77 for the event. The varsity team may have lost their first match against Saint Francis, but quickly swung into shape, winning the Sa-cred Heart match a week later 216-219. Af-ter the De La Salle tournament, they beat Junipero Serra High School 201-205 at Silver Creek Golf Course. The team lost to Mitty at the challenging Boulder Ridge Golf Course on March 20, but tied Bellar-mine at Corde Valle the next day, 194-194. They won against Sacred Hear again, 203-217 on March 29, making their current re-cord 4-4-1. To determine the winner of a golf match, the best five scores from each team are added, and the team with the low-est score wins. Composed of freshman, sopho-mores, juniors and a senior, the junior var-sity team is working on improving their golf game. So far, they have won Sacred Heart Prep in both matches, and put up a strong fight in the matches they lost. Both the JV and varsity teams are honing their golf skills to finish the season strong.

By Hannah LozinskiEditor-in-Chief

Golf Swings into Shape

The freshman baseball team is doing great with a record of 8-1. Their first game against San Benito High School ended with the score of 13-4. The boys de-molished them with great defense and great batting. The next game against California High School was a loss 9-11. The team al-most won but the loss was of little conse-quence as they would soon go on a winning streak. The boys started their winning streak with Saint Mary’s High School with a win of 5-2. Then next game against Je-suit High School was win 7-5. Followed by Archbishop Mitty (9-0), Archbishop Rior-dan (22-0), Bellarmine (7-3), Sacred Heart Cathedral (18-0), and Saint Francis High School (5-1). So far, the boys are at a seven game winning streak. The boys take mat-ters into their own hands and make sure ev-erything gets done to where the other team walks away with a loss. Good job boys!

THE WARRIORTHURSDAY APRIL 5, 2012 SPORTS - 14

Come Out & Support Boys VolleyballBy Alec Verasmis

Staff Writerthere, ready to hit the ball over and ace the other side, as he usually does.

The JV and varsity teams both have been crippled with many injuries. The varsity boys are missing junior Trevor del Rosario due to an ankle injury, as well as junior Ross Jones and senior Jason Baker due to unspecified reasons. The JV boys have had recurring injuries in sophomore Greg Nau and currently freshman Alexander Abaunza has sustained a chipped shoulder, but should be coming back in about one week. Sophomore Tyler Malone injured his ankle during the Saint Francis game on March 29, and it has wreaked havoc on their lineup, having to make changes such as freshman Derek Snyder and junior Randy Cho switching and taking Malone’s opposite hitter position.

Thankfully, there are still three home games left, and they should be great matches to watch. On April twenty-sixth both the JV and varsity boys volleyball players will be playing Junipero Serra High School, and they would love to have a large home crowd for their final game!

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Captain Drew Osumi doing work.

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As the season is coming to a close, both varsity and junior varsity boys volleyball are pushing for more wins, trying to get into the WCAL (West Catholic Athletic League) championships. The varsity players are hopeful for more wins, since they only have won two regular season games, not including tournaments. At the Saratoga High School and Leigh Tournament the varsity boys have done stellar work, pulling out wins both times. There is one tournament left on April 20, at the highly athletic Bellarmine Invitational.

On Tuesday April 2, the boys beat James Lick High School for their second league win. Senior captain Drew Osumi and freshman Steve Kerr shared the libero position that night, digging all the hit and tipped balls from the Comets. Senior Trenton Mcnelly and junior Michael White put up brick wall blocks, jousting balls and letting them fall on the other side of the court for many points. Everything seemed to come together for the boys. Their record may not look the best at 5-16, but the season is looking up and the Warriors

are absolutely aspiring to win more games and improve their record.

The Warriors junior varsity team has a better record than the varsity team, garnering a record of 6-9, coming off of a win on April 2. At the beginning of the season, the boys looked like a ragtag group of so called “volleyball players,” but it really looked like the junior varsity team was playing jungle ball. The Warriors beat Leigh High School on March 8 and Junipero Serra on March 20. On March 17, the boys played at the Los Gatos Tournament and placed third out of about ten teams, placing them behind Bellarmine College Prep and Mount Madonna High School.

During the games, sophomore Andrew Warnock led the team as captain. Warnock, while on the court, sent up stellar sets for outside hitter sophomore Jeevan Vase or freshman Erik Skjerven to slam the ball straight into area one on the other side of the court for a point. The JV libero sophomore Mark Muendelein protects the back half of the court with his excellent digging and diving skills, attempting to touch every single ball that comes his way. If Warnock cannot set any of his front row hitters, Muendelein is always

THE WARRIORTHURSDAY APRIL 5, 2012 SPORTS - 15

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So far, the Lady Warriors are at an astounding 9-3 for their record. The girls played Los Gatos High School and ended up walking away with a win 14-6. The girls came out banging with a four run lead against Los Gatos. However, Los Gatos returned with six runs to jump into a two-run lead against the Warriors. The Warriors recognized what they had to do, so they pulled together and got one run in the third inning, two runs in the fourth inning, one run in the fifth inning, and six runs in the sixth inning while shutting the other team down on defense, not allowing another run to score for the rest of the game. There was amazing defense played by Giana Cavallaro, Krystal Rock, Kimmie Figone, Mary Hall, Jackie Brown, Marisa Lerma, Tori Gutierrez, Marcella Kay, and the Warriors winning pitcher, Brynne Fitzpatrick. The next game was against Pioneer. The Warriors fought, but unfortunately couldn’t come out on top for the ten-inning game. The Warriors scored one run in he third inning, as well as Pioneer. In the fifth inning, Pioneer scored another run. The girls tried to come back scoring one run in the sixth inning and shutting Pioneer out while on defense. But in the tenth inning, Pioneer scored two runs while the Warriors scored one. It was hard fought game. The next game against Mitty also

ended in defeat. The girls held Mitty with tough defense for three innings, but Mitty scored two runs in the fourth inning. It’s okay. We will get them next time. Things turned around for the girls in their game against Leigh. The Warriors won 7-1. The Warriors decided to take the game into their own hands and scored five runs in the fourth inning. Leigh wasn’t too fond of that, so they came back with one run. But that’s not enough to stop the Warriors! The Warriors came back with one run in the fifth inning and another run in the sixth inning while keeping the other team scoreless for the rest of the game. The girls started a winning streak playing Sacred Heart Cathedral. The Warriors won with an outstanding score of 9-0 making that their second shut out of the season. The Warriors broke out of the gates scoring one run in the first inning, one in the second, six in the third, and one in the fourth. The girls played in the Charlie Miguel tournament on Saturday, March 17. They started with playing Capuchino High School. The Warriors walked away with a win 3-1 with the winning pitcher, Liz Hawkins. The next game they played that day was against Hillsdale High School. The Warriors clinched another victory 3-1. Hillsdale got one run in the first inning, however the Warriors came back with one run in the fourth inning and two runs in the

sixth inning. The tournament would continue the following weekend. The next game for the Warriors ended in a win 7-1 against St. Francis. The Warriors jumped into a six run lead early in the game. St. Francis tried to come back with one run in the fifth inning, but the Warriors got that run back in the same inning. The Warriors finished it off with great defense. The next game was against Notre Dame. The Warriors took care of business and won 12-1. In the first inning, the Warriors jumped out with one run. Notre Dame then came back with one run to tie the ball game up. The Warriors saw it was a whole different ball game and scored eleven runs in the top of the fourth inning. The Warriors wrapped it up early finishing with five innings. The Charlie Miguel tournament continues… The Warriors played Leland High School for the semi-finals. This game ended in a win with the score being 5-3. The girls scored one run in the first inning, one run in the second inning, one run in the third inning, and two runs in the fourth inning. Leland tried to make the game interesting by scoring three runs in the fifth inning, but the Warriors’ defense is not something to be taken lightly. The championship game against Santa Catalina ended in a victory 5-3. In

Varsity Softballers Fight Hard This Season

JV Softball Getting Ready To End Season With a Bang

the first inning, Santa Catalina scored one run, in the third inning, one run, and in the fourth, one run. The Warriors were down three runs at the start of the fifth inning. But, the Warriors dug deep and scored one run in the fifth inning and four runs in the seventh inning, giving them the title of champions. The next league game against Presentation High School ended in a close victory for the Warriors. Presentation jumped out to a lead in the fourth inning, scoring two runs. The Warriors earned those runs back in the sixth inning, tying the ball game. At the top of the seventh inning, the Warriors had Ashley Lara on second base as the winning run. Jordan Dawkins hit a high bouncer over the pitchers head, driving in Ashley Lara for the win. Brynne Fitzpatrick pitched an outstanding game with Tori Gutierrez with game saving catches in right field and Liz Hawkins hitting bombs to the fences. So far the girls have been on a 9-game winning streak. They have been playing like one full unit every game and have done an excellent job of picking each other up when a player is down. The girls have worked hard to be where they are today with sharp defense and great hitting. Also the girls are praying for a fast recovery for Mrs. Debbie, the record keeper. The girls appreciate her dedicating her time to be at all of the games.

By Alexis CoriniStaff Writer

The junior varsity softball team, after having their scheduled first game against Oak Grove High School rained out, came out to their home field and played their first game against Los Gatos High School on March 8. They lost, unfortunately, with a final score of 11-3. Of the four games the next week, the first was against Mitty, always a tough competitor in all sports at Valley. They started the game playing well, giving up only one run in each of the first two innings. However, they could not get their bats working and the game quickly slipped from their grasp. They let four runs score in the third inning, and four more in the fourth, ending the game on a mercy-rule at the end of four innings with a 10-0 score. The girls played Leigh High School the next day, and did not come out well. They gave up ten runs in the first three innings, only scoring three themselves. Neither team scored in the next two innings, but Leigh scored two more runs in the sixth. The game ended after the sixth inning because of a lack of time. The final score was 12-3. The girls decided that they had had enough with losing by eight or more runs, and resolved to play their hardest the next game. On the 15, they all piled into the bus and made their way to San

Francisco to play Sacred Hard Cathedral Prep. Unfortunately, they got lost several times on the way to the game; they were dropped off once at where they thought the field was, only to discover no one was there. After waiting for the bus to pick them up again, they finally found the field, but arriving at 3:30pm, the time the game was originally scheduled to start. After a hurried warm-up that included truncated throwing and almost no batting, they started the game in the rain. The girls quickly learned that when they worked together and played their best, they could win. They came out hitting their best and scored thirteen runs in the first inning, only giving up three themselves. In the next three innings, they scored a total of twelve more runs, ending the game with a 25-9 victory. There was a total of five home runs in the game, with one hit by Alexis Corini, Mikayla Ehlenberger, Carly Pritchett, and two by Maria Diotalevi. Unfortunately, one great game was not enough to start a win streak. The next game, against Saint Ignatius College Prep, was a loss 12-3. The following week, on March 20, the girls headed off to Saint Francis High School in the heat. They gave up one run in the first inning and two in the third, leaving the score 3-0 after three innings. Valley held Saint Francis from scoring for the rest of the game. They scored one run in the sixth inning, but it was not good

enough to secure a win. The girls lost 3-1 after a hard-fought game. Two days later, on March 22, the girls squeezed into the bus with the varsity team and headed off to Salinas to play Notre Dame High School Salinas. Valley started off hitting, scoring one run in the first inning and giving up none. They gave up one run to the Notre Dame in the second inning. In the third inning, Valley scored three quick runs, but the opposing team responded with two of their own in the bottom half of the inning. No one scored in the fourth inning, leaving the score 4-3 a little more than half way into the game. In the fifth inning, Valley scored two runs and held Notre Dame, and both teams scored one run in the sixth. It was 7-4 going into the bottom of the seventh inning, and Valley just had to hold them to two runs or less to secure a well-earned victory over Notre Dame. They gave up just one run in the seventh, shutting down the Notre Dame Spirit effectively and winning 7-5. The next day the girls rode to Los Gatos High School to play their freshman/sophomore team. They didn’t hit well in the first inning, and the bats stayed quiet the entire game; the girls only scored one run all game. Their defense looked flawless in the first inning, but began cracking early in the second. They gave up two runs in the second inning and one in both the fourth and fifth. Neither

team scored in the sixth or seventh inning, leaving the game to end 4-1 with Valley on the losing side. On March 27, Valley played Presentation High School at home. They only gave up two runs in the inning, but then gave up one in the third, four in the fourth, and one in the fifth. Valley scored three runs in the fifth inning and one in the sixth, but it was not enough, especially after the sixth inning, in which Presentation scored eight runs. Due to time restraint, the game was cut off after six innings, and the game ended 16-4. The girls played the Notre Dame High School Belmont Lions on March 30, and drove to Belmont. Notre Dame scored two runs early in the first inning. The Warriors quickly scored three runs in response, leaving the game 3-2. The Lions scored another two runs. In the top of the sixth inning, Valley came back with a bang, scoring eight runs. However, Notre Dame responded with their own bats, scoring seven runs and sending the game into a suspenseful seventh inning tied 11-11. Both teams held each other in the seventh inning, and the game went into overtime. Brianna Zoltie scored in the top of the eighth inning, leaving the score 12-11. However, the Lions quickly put runners on second and third base, and a well-placed double down the left field line drove both runners in, ending the game 13-12.

THE WARRIOR THURSDAY APRIL 5, 2012PAGE - 16

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Artist’s CornerFeatured Art:Shrouded Crew

By Bethany Birondo

Left to Right: Lumiere Astuce, Grace Castillo, Blake Anderson, Lily Emerson

They are characters from Beth-any Birondo’s in-progress book series, Shrouded Means. Their ultimate goal is to end the tyrant’s rule, but in order to do so, they must always stick together.

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DNow & Forever Studios Photo Contest - Awards given to Mrs. Cindy Torode’s photo students.