NHS XC Update: Peshek PRs by a Minute; Chris Cammarata and Matt Firth Medal

Joshua House

Staff Writer

Congratulations to the Lions Cross Country Team on a strong start to the season at the Moravian and Ablington Invitationals. The boys’ team placed 3rd out of 18 at Moravian with strong performances by Junior Chris Cammarata medaling with a time of 17:19 in 9th and Senior Matt Peshek 17:22 in 11th. (That’s about a 5:30 pace per mile) The girls’ team had a great first race with the fastest time ran by Senior Tabitha Liucci (22:41) and a strong performance by Freshman Danielle Herbert (23:35). Also notable performance by JV medalist Matt Firth coming in the Top 10 with a time of 19:26 (6:15 per mile).

 The following week at the Abington Invitational performances were decent even with the brutal 90+ temperatures. Senior Matt Peshek ran a quick 17:43 on the hilly course which landed him 14th and a medal. Girls’ runner Julia Mycek came back from missing Moravian to run a strong 23:10 followed by another strong performance of Danielle Herbert (24:23). Injuries were a problem with Chris Cammarata dropping out due to a calf injury, and Tabitha Liucci did not run due to illness. The JV team only ran a 3k due to the these temperatures with notable performances by Seniors Evan Patrohay (11:29) and Eric Luo (11:30).

 Both the boys’ and girls’ teams have remained strong even with the loss of Head Coach Mike Clarke and four varsity runners on both teams.

 Varsity runner Eric Cammarata said: “All that matters is districts.”

 Also with the boys’ team being bumped up to AA it will make it even that much harder for states. They both look to make an impact on their big upcoming race on Sept. 24 at Hershey Park’s Foundation Invitational where over 130 teams will participate.

New Hope-Solebury Girls' Volleyball is ready

Brooke Black, Jacqueline Vergis, Caroline Maloney

Staff Writers

“The New Hope-Solebury Girls’ Volleyball team is looking fresh this season, quite literally” says senior Caroline Maloney.

 Coach Roy Watson has started his fourth season at NH-S by integrating the new freshmen talent that he has to work with. The team has played three games this fall season and has already won two out of the three. The loss was to Octorara High School, where our girls endured a nail biting five set fight that ultimately ended in favor of the Braves, a team who traveled two hours to the home of the Lady Lions just to play.

 Interestingly enough, unlike past years, this season the varsity lineup consists of almost half freshman players. Linked to this is the time and energy these girls have put into their club volleyball experiences out of season. Coach Watson has always encouraged the girls to go out for club, and this year we’re really seeing the impact of his tireless work ethic and passion to pass on his love for the game. Like previous years, several girls attended the Penn State volleyball camp along with the annual week-long skills camp held here at New Hope in July. A lot of the freshmen coming into the high school from the middle school had an opportunity to bond with the upperclassmen, including captains Skylar Sherman, Caleigh Roach and Rachel McMahon, before the season had begun.

 The team is currently represented by all four grades, with varsity captains in both senior and junior classes. The captains have enjoyed the mix of ages, giving them different skill sets and new knowledge added to the team. The team is confident that they will continue to succeed throughout the 2016 fall season with Coach Roy Watson and Coach Chris Marchok.

Baseball team looks forward to a great year

Justin Horak and Deven Smith

Staff Writers

Fall baseball was started this year to help improve the game play of the team for the spring season. This fall season the team has practice every Wednesday from 6 p.m. to 7.30 p.m. each week for six weeks. The head coach of varsity and this fall league team is Tony Vlahovic. Coach Len Lehman of the spring JV team is the assistant coach.

 The team has a strong underclassmen roster including  freshman,  Will Renson, Justin Horak,and Cameron Mertz, and sophomores: Michael Lehman, Jack Gawson, Blake Doherty, Derek Smith, and Connor Campbell. The team is led by two seniors and captains, Chris Thompson and Danny Doherty.

 The team has games every weekend against teams that are from 30 to 60 minutes away from New Hope. The team had it’s first home game this past Saturday, where New Hope dominated 16-1. The team had another game on Sunday that was about 1 hour and a half away New Hope won that game as well,  9-1. The Fall ball league is about getting ready for the upcoming high school season in the Spring, getting to know your coaches, making new friends, and just having fun and playing the sport that you love to play.

 Speaking of the coaches, Coach Vlahovic is a very knowledgeable of the game and extremely nice to all the players, same with Coach Lehman. They're both very good coaches because if someone makes a mistake some coaches usually would yell at them but they don’t even raise their voices.. They usually say shake it off and get the next one, then they will explain what that person did wrong. They will correct the mistake and make sure it will not happen in the future. The coaches care more about people learning the game then the result of the game itself.  In the winter the baseball team will be having winter workouts indoors not on the high school campus. Usually the team has winter workouts in the middle school gym but now the team can't do that because of the construction. Winter workouts will now be in Doylestown and will be comprised of going to the cages to just keep hitting so that the team stays loose and keep improving until the season starts. When the season starts, New Hope will hopefully take to the field in March (weather permitting) and start working on all things baseball to get ready for high school baseball!.

 In closing, the whole team is excited for both the fall and springs seasons and play America’s pastime! Coach Vlahovic has been the head coach for the Varsity team for multiple years now but this year is the second year for Coach Lehman and the team is excited to be coached by both.  All of the freshmen and sophomores on the fall league team have experience being coached by Coach Lehman because they also had him as a middle school baseball coach before he moved up to high school. The team is looking forward to a great baseball experience at New Hope-Solebury with our teammates and Coach Vlahovic and Coach Lehman!  

College football starts out crazier than ever

Brendan Shadle & Blake Doherty

Staff Writers

Only 2 weeks deep, and college football has been berserk. With the combination of the NFL & MLB postseason coming up, sports fanatics go crazy this time a year. Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays have made college football fans sit at the edge of their seats, from the outstanding competition and number of upsets in the NCAA.  

   Week 1 offered four major upsets including a #3 Oklahoma, #5 LSU, #16 UCLA, and #10 Notre Dame falling to Texas in double overtime. Week 2 added another two “Top 25” teams falling to unranked opponents. Central Michigan took out #22 Oklahoma State on a lateral on the 12 yard line that turned into a miraculous fourth quarter touchdown.  

  There were also a number of blowouts throughout the two weeks of. #23 Baylor, #1 Alabama, #6 Ohio State, #7 Michigan, #21 Oklahoma State, and #19 Louisville were some of the teams that absolutely obliterated their opponents, with a combined score differential of 331 points, with each team winning by more than 45 points (all were week 1 rankings.) Week 2 also started off with another bang. The week 2 opener included #13 Louisville derailing Syracuse, outscoring them 28-7 in the first quarter alone. Louisville quarterback, Lamar Jackson, is the defining college football right now and making a statement. The heisman contender already has 8 touchdowns through the air and the ground, and more than one-thousand combined yards. Lamar Jackson and the explosive offense rank 1st among all NCAA in offense and average a little less than 700 per game. While the defense doesn’t receive much recognition because of the high octane offense, the cardinals defense also remains in the top 25 this year as well. The heisman candidate and #10 Louisville are taking on #10 Florida State at its home stage September 17th. Can the cardinals continue their success in hopes of making the college football playoffs, and earning themselves a their first ever national championship?

NHS Lacrosse season is coming up

Parker Cane and Will Kelley

Staff Writers

This summer, New Hope-Solebury had a summer lacrosse team. The games were every Wednesday from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. The team had up rising ninth graders to twelve graders. The NHS lacrosse team did fairly poor last season with a 5-11 record. In the summer, Coach Corino offered new players and veteran players the chance to play in a league called Arrowhead. Arrowhead is a league that has different schools with grades to 9th to 12th. This is to help out beginners and experienced players. New Hope’s record during the Arrowhead season was 2-4. This year, especially since lacrosse has became such a popular sport in the nation, the team had a lot of new players that needed game experience before the regular season rolled around.

  The team only had about 15 players last season. Some players were in their first year of the sport while others had been playing for a long time. The team last year was mostly made up of five-six experienced players and the rest learning or not as experienced. Most of the scoring was generated by the attack and some midfield, the attack consisting of  Devin Bock, Liam Curran, and Matt Firth For the team.The team has some incoming freshmen who are experienced and can contribute to the team at a high level. This year New Hope will have about 30 players. Due to the multitude of increase in new players, the defense was made up of Matt Kilgariff, Derek Donohoe, and Will Ebeling. They were solid last year but allowed too many goals. The midfield, made up of Nolan Curran, Nils Dahlin, Jay Macdowell, Ryan Stephens, and Ryan Meyers,  was strong carrying a stable defense and offense.The goalie, Chris Braun was a first year player but was surprisingly skilled and good for a first year player.

  In the winter, the team does weightlifting along with a lot of different drills to get the team ready for the season. Coach Cornio offers an option of box lacrosse, box lacrosse is lacrosse played in a gym or court with sidewalls and no out of bounds. Players get practice passing, shooting, jukes, stick skills and game like experience. Overall lacrosse is a fun sport to play and recommend to anyone who is interested in playing.

Carson Wentz Is the Future In Philly

Clay Asplundh and Oliver Colvin

Staff Writers

The Eagles have been through a constant struggle to find a quarterback that can satisfy their offensive needs. Although they have had returning quarterbacks such as Michael Vick and Sam Bradford, none have truly proven that they can be successful with the team. The last true Eagles quarterback was Donovan McNabb. McNabb was with the Eagles for about 11 seasons and while criticized a lot, was able to find success with the team. McNabb achieved six Pro Bowl selections, six NFC East division titles, eight playoff appearances, five appearances in the NFC Championship game, and an appearance in Super Bowl XXXIX. Hopefully, this season a quarterback will emerge to win a starting spot on the Eagles.

 The Eagles are hoping this new man can be Carson Wentz, whom they drafted with the 2nd overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft out of North Dakota State University. Coming from a D-1AA program that didn’t face top college talent, there were questions about how his game could translate to the NFL level. However, Wentz silenced his haters with a near perfect debut, throwing for almost 300 yards on 22 of 37 passing along with tossing two touchdowns. Wentz showed perfect placement on both touchdowns and gave the Eagles big plays down the field that they had been lacking under previous quarterback Sam Bradford. Fans went wild as they saw the work of a possible franchise QB.

 Carson Wentz wasn’t the only impressive showing on Sunday. The defense stifled RG3 and the Browns all game and showed the aggressiveness that was on display in the preseason. Constant pressure was forced by Fletcher Cox, Brandon Graham and Connor Barwin as they all forced sacks and constant pressure. The Eagles have a bright season and may finally have a chance to win the Superbowl.

Football from a freshmen's perspective

Connor Fitzgerald and Rhys McCollum
Staff Writers

This fall season the New Hope- Solebury class of 2020 has begun their first high school football season. These freshmen include  Lear Asplundh, Michael Borys, Connor Fitzgerald, Zach Griffiths, Hunter Kouchi, Christian Keating, Michael Les, Thomas Raupp, and Rhys McCollum. Although some freshmen were originally hesitant about joining the team, at this point they are so glad they committed. Everyone is having fun and doing their best to contribute their full heart into the team.

 It was a bit nerve wracking going into the weight room for the first time being only in eighth grade and not knowing how to do the workouts or not being nearly as strong or as experienced as the upper-classmen. After a few practices in the weight room, along with help from coaches and upper-classmen, the exercises became easy. During the offseason, lifting was Monday, Wednesday, and Friday right after school from 2:45-4:00. In March, offensive and defensive off season practices started. This was a completely different concept than weight lifting, having to relearn technique and tackling from previous Pop Warner experience.

   After a few months of off season, seven on sevens, mini camp, and summer camp was right around the corner. During seven on sevens, our team played short scrimmages against other teams like Academy of the New Church, CB West, Georgetown Academy, and CRN. For the freshmen, these 7 on 7’s were  intimidating yet eye opening. This was our first time playing other high school teams in an actual game day like scenario. Once our nerves relaxed and we ran the first couple of plays, we realized that it was a lot of fun and a great learning experience as freshmen.

   Overall, the upperclassmen were nice and welcoming to the incoming freshman. The team as a whole works together whether you are on the varsity team or not. Every player on the team is counted on to contribute. Outside of the football field the team also has a very good relationship. Whether it’s team dinners, going to the pool at someone's house, or seeing each other in school, the team gets along very well.

Tennis Tents Destroyed

Lauren Walinski

Staff Writer

On September 14, the Girls’ Tennis team arrived at practice to find their two tents had been flipped and damaged. The tents, both personal property provided by team members, were used as shade during practice and especially games to help team members cool down when not playing.

The two tents, a black one and a slightly larger white one, were found flipped upside down by their usual spots next to the tennis court entrance. The tents were tangled together, and when they were separated it became clear only the black tent could be salvaged. While the black tent was somewhat bent, it was still useful. The white tent, however, was bent in some places and flat-out broken in others. The tarp over top was also discovered to have some holes. The cause of the destruction is unclear; some say wind while others say vandals.

 The tents had both been left up the night before with the tarps on, making them easier targets for wind. However, the white tent had been staked into the ground to keep it from blowing away and there had been no wind on the previous night. The motive for possibly vandalising the tents is unclear. Anyone with information should report it to district office.

Photo by Lauren Walinski

NHS Girls' Soccer Team holds their own against Dock

Tara Cooney

Staff Writer

The New Hope-Solebury Girls’ Soccer Team pulled up to their rival school, Christopher Dock, on Friday, Sept. 9. The girls were blasting music and getting pumped for the varsity game, hoping to shut-out Dock for the first time in four years. Walking out onto the field, the players faced their biggest competition, knowing that Dock expected to defeat them easily. Many of the girls were anxious for the game to begin. During stretching, starters played keep-away while all other varsity and swing players shot on goalie, Hannah Reszka, to get her ready. Nerves were very high when, at seven o’clock, the whistle blew. The girls began one of the hardest and most intense games of their high school careers.

 For the entire first half, New Hope’s defense battled Dock’s forwards, holding the ball calmly and with confidence. Transitioning the ball up the field, our midfielders were matching the Dock players, dribbling and passing with speed. They sent balls forward to the offenders, though no goal was achieved from either team, and the first half concluded. After reminders from the coach and a pep talk from captain, Bella DeVito, the girls were determined as they jogged back onto the field for the second half. Again New Hope’s defense dominated over Dock’s offenders, and no goals were allowed. The Lady Lions’ midfield was controlling the game by maintaining possession and starting to transition the ball forward for more scoring opportunities. As the second half came to an end, the score still remained a tie with zero goals from either team. The game went into overtime.

 All of the supporters and the team’s bench were holding their breath as the first ten minutes of sudden death overtime began. With all of the energy they had left, the girls continued to play fast and strategically until the time was up. After only a few minutes to breath and drink some water, second overtime began. The last ten minutes were extremely impressive being that all the girls were exhausted and still played with a hundred percent effort. Continuing to protect the goal, the defense distributed quickly forward while the midfielders controlled and sent to the offenders. Everyone played at a highly intense speed, and, by the time the last whistle blew to end the game, the girls had left absolutely every bit of energy they had out on the field.

 For the first time in four years, the players had shut out their rival school, Christopher Dock with a final score of zero to zero. By the impressive way the girls played, it is clear New-Hope Solebury Girls’ Soccer is in for a season with better playing and higher competition than ever before.