Penn State needs to play like every game is their last

Nick Fest

Staff Writer

Penn State football looks to improve from last year’s 11-2 season and a Fiesta Bowl victory of Washington. Their losses came from an Ohio State team that came back in the fourth quarter to beat PSU by one point. Their second loss came from Michigan State in the final seconds of the game as freshman kicker, Matt Coghlin, nailed a 34-yard field goal to beat the Nittany Lions by 3. If you think of the season as a whole, Penn State were 4 points away from a perfect regular season, a Big Ten Conference Championship game, and potentially a chance at a national championship.

            While they are losing a copious number of starters to the NFL draft, such as Saquon Barkley, Marcus Allen, and DaeSean Hamilton, they are also gaining a lot of talent off of recruiting and more experienced players. Penn State ranked 6th nationally in recruiting, filling spots that need improvement on.

            The college football preseason poll has ranked Penn State number 9 coming into the season. Sitting right behind Miami, and Wisconsin.

Their schedule this year is more difficult than last years, adding Wisconsin to mix, it will stir things up in the Big Ten. Their first 4 games against, Appalachian State, Pitt, Kent State, and Illinois were an easy 4-0 in 4 weeks. But the week after they played Ohio State and look to avenge their comeback defeat. Playing Penn State in Happy Valley is one of the hardest stadiums to play at no matter what team you are. Under the lights, with 100 thousand people screaming cannot be an easy contest. Even if you are a top 5 team in the nation. This is a big reason why Penn State will have an amazing season, because their toughest games are at home where they play best.

After a bad play call, Penn State could not convert on a 4th and 5 causing them to lose the game 27 to 26. After the Coach Franklin felt hurt by the loss, but will use it to grow, “Obviously this is painful, and it hurts,” he said. “But I do think that, when used the right way, this can fuel us to continue to grow and continue to take that next step.” They cannot let this week dictate their season because they play Michigan State the week after, who were one of their two losses last year along with Ohio State. Indiana should be a game where they can catch their breath and breeze by to the next week. Iowa may not seem like a contender, but they gave Penn State a run for their money last year with a 19-20 loss to the Nittany Lions after Quarterback Trace McSorley threw a touchdown pass at the buzzer. Penn State made a statement last year, embarrassing Michigan 42-13. Michigan has been criticized since last year’s loss and is ready to show critics they’re not a joke.

They are a more experienced team this year with a top quarterback and are waiting for Penn State on their home turf on Nov. 3. Beaver Stadium is one of the hardest places to play in the country, but Michigan’s home field is just as hard. Again, PSU will be tested in this matchup. The week after that Penn State has their final big matchup of the regular season as the Big Ten Championship rematch of 2016 is set. Once this week is over the Nittany Lions should be in place for another Big Ten Championship game. The next two weeks should be an easy route coming against Rutgers, and Maryland as they are at the bottom of the Big Ten last year.

            It will without a doubt be an exciting year for coach Franklin and his team, but it will also be a long year if they do not come into every game like it’s their last. They will have to earn every win this. There's no Saquon Barkley to carry them this year. If everyone does their job offensively and defensively, it will be hard to beat them.

Carson Wentz Returns

Mike Borys and Justin Horak

Staff Writers

Eagles Star Quarterback, Carson Wentz, returns to the field for the first time since week fourteen, against the Los Angeles Rams. Wentz suffered a torn ACL and LCL late in the third quarter, after scrambling for a touchdown. Many fans were frightened once they saw Wentz limping off the field. Especially since the Eagles were entering the playoffs in just a few weeks. Wentz finally returned to the field in their week 3 matchup against the Indianapolis Colts. The game took place at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia. When Carson came out on the field before the game fans were electrified.

            In Wentz first drive back, Carson Wentz connected on a 13-yard touchdown pass to rookie Dallas Goedert. Eagles fan Nick Oz, who was at the game said it was “It was awesome to see Carson back on the field, I nearly teared up.” Obviously, Nick Oz is on the Wentz wagon. The team managed to brush past the Colts with a 20-16 victory at home. Wentz managed to pass for 255 yards on 25 completions along with a touchdown and interception. Also managed to scramble for 10 rushing yards.

            Many Eagles fans at New Hope Solebury High-School were extremely excited about his return. Colts fan, Logan Waterman said, “I’m not surprised they had to bring back their best player to play against the best team in the league.” Even though the Colts were 1-1 at the moment. Not a terrible record, but definitely a good sign to come in the future coming off a 4-12 season last year. If Wentz has a healthy season the Eagles may have another special season.

            Currently, the NFL is coming up to Week 6. The Eagles are 2-3 currently, losing to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Tennessee Titans, and Minnesota Vikings. Recent struggles, losing 3 of their last 4 games does not look too promising. Since the Eagles did win the Super Bowl last year, fans were hoping for another stellar season. Injuries have not helped the Eagles this season either, losing starting running back Jay Ajayi recently tore his ACL, and wide receiver Mike Wallace fractured his fibula. This week's matchup against the New York Giants will be a great game because both teams have a losing record and are at the bottom of the NFC East.

Red Sox are favorites

Michael Lehman 

Staff Writer

With the MLB playoffs starting off Oct. 2 the Boston Red Sox are the favorites to win the World Series. The Red Sox will play the winner of the A.L. Wild Card game between the Yankees and Athletics. 

While the Red Sox may be the favorites to go all the way, that doesn't distract the Houston Astros from winning back to back World Series titles. The Astros finished with the second best record in baseball at 103-59 which is two wins better than the previous year when they finished 101-61 and went on to win the World Series. With their young core of Jose Altuve, Carlos Correa, Alex Bregman, and George Springer healthy and now experienced, the Astros look more dangerous than ever. 

In the National League the Los Angeles Dodgers are heavily favored to reach the World Series and possibly win it. They have the third best chance of winning the World Series. Even though the Brewers finished with the best record in the National League they are still heavy underdogs. They are tied with the Cubs and Yankees for the fourth worst chance to go all the way. If any team can shock the world it’s going to be the Brewers. After trading for outfielder Christian Yelich in late January he has emerged as an all-star and is now the front runner for N.L. M.V.P. Yelich finished with a .326 batting average with 36 home runs and 110 RBI’s. Yelich finished two RBIs and three home runs away from winning the first N.L. triple crown since Joe Medwick in 1937. 

Starting Oct. 2 there will be ten teams in the playoffs. By Oct. 31 there will have been at least 26 games played, but only one team will be standing alone with the Commissioner's Trophy. 

Tiger Woods achieves 80th win

Jake Menz
Staff Writer

After a five year drought, Tiger Woods is back on top of the PGA tour. On Sept. 23, at East Lake Golf Club in Georgia, Tiger Woods did the impossible and won the Tour Championship. Tiger shot 65, 68, 65, and 71 through the four day span. This win earned Tiger $1.62 million and 2,000 FedEx Cup points. Woods had a flawless round on Saturday, scoring birdies on six of his first seven holes. Finishing in second and third place of the tournament was Billy Horschel and Dustin Johnson.
This dominating victory from Tiger Woods came as a shock to the golf community because many believed Tiger would never play professional golf again, let alone win another tournament after all his back troubles. In the past, the world witnessed a spiral of unfortunate events with Tiger`s father passing away in 2006 and his divorce in 2010 all mixed in with reoccurring back injuries. Tiger Woods began to stumble away from golf. Suddenly he was not as dominant and so slowly disappeared from the golf world. But as many doubted and looked upon with uncertainty, Tiger proved them all wrong and made his way back slowly but surely.
This 80th win now puts Woods only two back from the most wins of all time. Tiger is second to Sam Snead who has 82 wins. Tiger with 80 is now 17 ahead of Jack Nicklaus with 63 wins. After his monumental victory, Tiger exclaimed, “I've been sitting on 79 for about  five years now and to get 80, it's a pretty damn good feeling.”  But this win did not come completely out of the blue. This year has been what many would call a “comeback year” for Tiger. He has come very close to winning other tournaments this year but could never seem to finish the job when he needed to. Woods had seven other top ten finishes this year, including a second place finish at the Valspar Championship. This excitement around Tiger is real as NBC Sports Group’s final round of the Tour Championship earned a 5.21 overnight rating. This made it the highest-rated PGA Tour telecast of 2018 (excluding majors). There is a new excitement around golf for those who have watched and played the game for years and those who have not. Everyone wants to be a part of Tiger Woods making history. As we continue to analyze and follow Tiger it will become interesting to see if he can get to 83 wins and break the record for most wins in PGA history. Although, with 80 wins, only 14 of those are major tournaments that he has won.
This year in golf has had mixed results with many of the previous years favorites such as Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas, Dustin Johnson, and Rory Mcllroy who all went without a major victory in 2018. There has not been a clear front runner to a lot of the tournaments in golf and sometimes that can leave fans confused as to who to root for and who to focus on. But with the return of Tiger this year, all of that has changed. Countless people come together at each golf tournament and follow, watch, and root for Tiger Woods. He is back at the center of the stage for mainstream golf. Tiger has not only broken barriers that almost everyone was skeptical of happening, but also created a stronger a community of previous and new fans of golf. This 80th win is one of the greatest comebacks of all time in the history of sports and will not be forgotten for years to come.

Girls Soccer roars to a BAL victory

Lila Datz and Rylie Hepp
Staff Writers

The Girls Soccer team has had a super successful season so far, and dreams of winning the BAL have finally become a reality this season. The team went undefeated in league games, and also fought hard against all the other teams they have faced. The team's record is 11-1-5, and all of the games that didn’t come out in the girls’ favor, were tight and competitive ones.
  Although the team has been doing well, they have lost three of their starting players this season to injury. Maddie Hausner, a senior, was injured very early in the season, which was a devastating loss to the team due to the fact that she played a vital role in the midfield.
  Senior, Hannah DeVito, said: “I was really sad when we lost Maddie at our first game because we were both really excited to play our senior year together. Then when we lost, Logan and Meghan (two more of the team’s starters) she said, “our team had to recover again, and I’m really proud of us for doing that.”
Although there have been relatively prominent downs for the team, the ups most definitely outweigh them.
  After some players had no choice but to sit out this year, the team’s natural chemistry remains, and it has gotten them through the season. Phoenixville, a very large and talented school when it comes to soccer, was surprisingly given a run for their money while playing the Lady Lions. Their team was not expecting to put a substantial amount of effort into what was supposed to be an easy game, but New Hope did not go down without a fight. The game was held at 0-0 up until the final seconds where Phoenixville scored off a penalty kick. But New Hope bounced back just seconds later and tied it up with a great goal. The game went into overtime and a goal was scored by Phoenixville for the win. Even though New Hope didn’t get the result they wanted, the team was still proud of how they were able to keep up with such a talented team and show them that a small school like New Hope can be talented too.
  Another example of the team’s determination was when they battled  Lower Moreland, a team they haven’t beaten for the BAL title in years. The girls worked hard from the first time the whistle blew to the last and were rewarded with a 2-0 victory. Due to this astonishing win, the BAL title was secured. Now the team will move straight into Districts, so don't forget to root for the Girls Soccer team, because everyone loves an underdog.

Tiger Woods experiences a comeback season

Parker Cane and Lear Asplundh
Staff Writers

Tiger Woods could feel the energy and excitement as he made his way to the 18th green on Sept. 23 at the Tour Championship. It was a remarkable scene as thousands of spectators followed him on his walk to victory while chanting and cheering his name as he was about get his 80th PGA Tour win.
    But his ride to the finish line did not come easy. The PGA tour officially starts November of every year. In November, 2017 Tiger Woods was coming off back surgery and a DUI. To everyone, the game of golf seemed irrelevant to Tiger’s future. His World Golf Ranking has dropped to an all time low over 1000. Tiger was determined to bounce back and prove everyone wrong by playing in the Farmers Insurance Open late January. He played well and proved everyone, to keep an eye on him. Although at his next event a month later, the Genesis Open, he missed the cut after two days and stated: “I didn't really play that well. I missed every tee shot left, and I did not putt well, didn't feel very good on the greens, and consequently never made a run. I knew I had to make a run on that back nine, and I went the other way.”
    The next three tournaments Woods played better; he tied for second at the Valspar Championship in March. This got people talking as his world golf ranking skyrocketed to 88 come beginning of April. At the first major of the season, The Masters, Tiger struggled to hit fairways and fell short of reaching 15 majors; he is second to Jack Nicklaus who won 19. Mid June brought PGA’s second major of the year, The U.S. Open. The U.S. Open typically does not favor players like Tiger as there's thick rough, skinny fairways, and a very lengthy course. Tiger missed the cut focusing on bouncing back with the final three months remaining. A month later brought the third major of the season.
    Carnoustie, located in Scotland, showed glimpses of vintage Tiger as in the final round he led with seven holes remaining, but failed to close. Three weeks later, Tiger competed for the last major championship in the 2018 season. Tiger trailed by two strokes entering the final round and failed to cut the lead, losing by two. Tiger entered the FedEx Cup playoffs world rank 51 hoping to capture his first win in five years and 80th PGA tour win. Entering the FedEx Cup playoffs, Tiger set a goal to participate in every tournament, as only top 50 move on to the next tournament. Tiger was able to make it to the last tournament at East Lake golf club, Georgia. Woods shared the lead after the first day and was confident he could win to close out the season. After solid second and third rounds, Woods set himself with a lead going into the final day. Tiger finished Sunday winning by two strokes, for his first win in five years. "I was pretty emotional when Rory [McIlroy] was tapping out, he was finishing out,'' Woods said. "I looked around, and the tournament was over because I'd already put the bunker shot on the green, and I'd won 80. 80 is a big number. I've been sitting on 79 for about five years now, and to get 80 is a pretty damned good feeling.''

New Hope-Solebury Footballs Upcoming Game Could Affect Their Playoff Chances

Charles Bray and John Ryan
Staff Writers

Friday, Oct. 12, our New Hope-Solebury Lions are facing a tough opponent, Springfield Montgomery County High School. This matchup is a make or break for the entrance to the playoffs. New Hope is coming off a fresh Oct. 4 win against the Academy of Palumbo in South Philadelphia.
The team is currently going strong, with five wins and two losses. After New Hopes last game, wide receiver John Flavin said: “This is a great team win, but we have big business to take care of next week.” Furthermore, for the game next week against Springfield, it will be an interesting test for the Lions.
    New Hope only has three games left, meaning every game counts in order to get a playoff spot in districts, so they cannot take Springfield lightly. The Lions crushed Springfield last year by a large margin, however, they dramatically improved this year by having a record of 4-2, and with the Lions being away for a night road game, the Springfield crowd hopes to unnerve the Lions.
    However, if New Hope takes a loss in this game, their playoff hopes will be shattered because they will not have enough points to make it into the district matchup against either Conwell Egan, Pope John Paul IV, or School Of The Future. Going into the Springfield matchup, the starting Offensive line led by senior offensive guard John Mangan hopes to continue dominating opposing defensive lines, by getting pancakes on other players. As for skill position players, Pat Cooney, Pat Tangradi, and Mike Borys hope to have big games both catching and running the ball all over the Springfield defense. Hopefully, our Lions will head into Springfield on Friday night and bring back home a WIN!