The Student Newspaper of Hamilton County Senior High School

The BurroWMcLeansboro, Illinois March 2008Vol. 5, Issue 6

Fox places second at state

The 3 point shoot-out ended with a bangfor Hamilton County. Junior Seth Thomasadvanced all the way from Hamilton CountyRegional, through Benton Sectionals, toplacing second individually at statecompetition in Peoria.

On March 6 at approximately 5 p.m.Thomas was headed into the preliminaryround with 31 of the best shooters fromaround the state of Illinois, making him the32nd. After all 32 shooters took their turn,only four were able to advance. Thomas tiedfor the best score that round making 12 of 15threes, which advanced him to the final four.

Thomas said, “I was just excited aboutmaking it to state, but making it to the FinalFour was awesome.”

The following day around 8 p.m., Thomascompeted for the state championship in thefinal round, but fell short by only one shot.

“I will remember this for a long time. I hada lot of fun and met a lot of new people,”Thomas added.

Christian Thompson, from WaltherLutheran was the champion with 10 basketsmade. Thomas had nine, Justin Kunz ofBraidwood and T.J. McNelis of Aurora bothfinished with seven.

Junior Kane Smith said, “I’m proud ofWhether you remember being pinched

for not wearing green as a child or spendtime in your church learning/noting aparticular Saint, St. Patrick’s Day is commonly

Seth. We made a good run this year andhopefully we can do it again.”

Smith accompanied Thomas as theyadvanced to the Benton Sectional, beforeSmith was eliminated, just one step awayfrom state.

Carbondale tuition pricesset to sky- rocket

Students at Southern Illinois Universityof Carbondale may have to start paying morefor their tuition. More than $450 per semesteris what the University is considering toincrease the tuition by.

Students entering their fifth year as anundergraduate could also an increase ofabout $195 per semester.

$54 in athletic fees is another proposedincrease. The increase in tuition wages willnot affect most current students, becauseof a state law that requires student’s tuitionto be locked for four years.

If prices do go up, then it might changemany students’ minds of enrolling at SIUC.

Jacob HarrawoodThe Burrow

Samantha RussellThe Burrow

Jonathon CantrellThe Burrow

Students want to spend as money than theyhave to. If one wants to go to the collegethen the price shouldn’t matter if he or shewants to attend at the school.

Several students that recently enrolledat SIUC have changed to Southern IllinoisUniversity Edwardsville. This may not bebecause of the price changes, but severalstudents at Hamilton County who havethought about going to SIUC have changedtheir minds to SIUE.

Senior Orry Taylor plans to go to RendLake for his first two years of college,because of the fact that it would be the sameeducation, but will cost less. For severalstudents going to Rend Lake first is easier,because they say they don’t want to jumpinto a four year college or a university andnot be able to handle it.

Journalism students place at SISPA

On Feb. 26, both the journalism II andadvanced journalism classes took a field tripto participate in the Southern Illinois StudentPublication Association (SISPA)competition. The event was held at in theStudent Center at Southern IllinoisUniversity in Carbondale.

The contests consisted of differentsituations in which students were to eitherwrite, interview or organize for a high schoolnewspaper.

The group entered the day with a not-too-bad record after bringing home twoawards last year, both of which were in theediting category. But with the past behindthem, the hard work presently put forthbegan to win more than anyone expected.

Of the 13 students that accompanied thejournalism teacher Mrs. April Jordan, 7ofthem left with awards. Senior SamanthaRussell was awarded an honorary mentionfor her editorial story. Junior JonathanCantrell won third place in the news writingcompetition. Sophomores Brittni Blades andBrittney Brewer also brought back a thirdplace award for their efforts in the newspaperworkshop. Winning first place was seniorsLuke Bowman and Jeff Robinson along withjunior Matt Bryson in the newspaperworkshop.

Although some of the students did notplace, they too brought home knowledgethat can be useful to the school andthemselves. They gained the experience andthe knowledge of what it takes to besuccessful in today’s media.

Brian HarlandThe Burrow

Junior Seth Thomas places second at thestate 3 point shootout.

Several members of The Burrow Staff proudly display their awards before leavingSIU-C campus.

Who’s behind the Saint ofSt. Patrick’s Day?

Stories Worthskipping to:

Weight Loss War- Wall 4

Are you on YouTube- Bryson 2

Pale is the new tan- Morlan 4

celebrated throughout this country.St. Patrick’s Day is the holiday marking

the death of St. Patrick, a man who droveslavery out of Ireland and introducedChristianity. St. Patrick, himself, was sold asa slave in his teens. He died at the age of 76on March 17, 461.

In Ireland, the St. Patrick’s Festival is 5days long and has become popular onlywithin the past 10 years. St. Patrick’s Day iscelebrated with more enthusiasm in theUnited States, particularly in New York, thanit is in Ireland. St. Patrick’s Day takes placeduring the religious tradition of Lent. InIreland on March 17, eating meat is commonduring the feasts, despite Catholicism beingthe accepted religion.

Wearing the color green to represent“The Emerald Island” of Ireland is a commontradition in the United States. Many Irishbelieve green in an unlucky color, despitewhat we believe. The shamrock is anotherpopular custom on St. Patrick’s Day. St.Patrick used the shamrock to explain to thepeople the trinity, The Father, The Son, andThe Holy Ghost.

Editorial 2

Easter is a time of candy eating and egghunting for all ages. However it also has areligious significance to many of theChristian faith. Easter was made by theCatholic church to celebrate Christ’sresurrection. Don’t ask me how the bunnyand eggs came in (maybe something aboutthe Passover feast and ‘rebirth’). It is alsothe end of the Lenten partial fast, which isdone in remembrance of Christ’s forty daysand nights of fasting in the wilderness. Eventhough fasting and remembering Christ’svictory over death are important and goodthings to do, should they be set aside to onetime of the year?

The fasting for forty days and forty nightsdoes show faith and wanting to get closer toGod, unless you only do if for the sake oftradition. Prayer and fasting has beenrecommended though the new Testamentand examples are found all over the oldTestament. Yet all these occasions are donewith meekness and the pure want of drawingcloser to the lord, of focusing on him. Weare also told that we should fast in secret,that we should not be as the hypocrites who

Bible hunt: Easter

put on a show when fasting. It doesn’t helpat all.

Now I myself don’t attend to lent orEaster, but that does not mean I don’t fast orcelebrate Christ’s resurrection. True I do notfast as often as I should, but I do fast withreverence and supplication and prayer,focusing fully on God. I also celebrate theresurrection of Jesus every day. I am notsaying that I believe those that celebrateEaster in a religious sense don’t rememberJesus being raised from the dead any othertime.

I believe that celebrating Easter becauseit is Easter is wrong. It is just a name for aday on which Christians remember andrejoice in Christ’s resurrection. The actionis what we should be given importanceinstead of the day itself. Yes, Easter is setfor the time in which Christ arose from thedead. However it should not be stronger thanany other day, for each day should be asstrong in rejoicing and thankfulness as manyChristians have on Easter.

As much as Thanksgiving should not bethe only day that we are thankful for thephysical blessings the Lord has given us,Easter should not be the only day that ourrejoicing and thankfulness of the gift ofChrist is at its strongest.

A growing number of people are usingvideo cameras to capture important orentertaining moments in everyday life. Withthe help of one of the most entertaining siteson the web,www.youtube.com,anyone can enjoythe great moments.

With Youtube,anyone can becomea celebrity. Manypeople havebecome globallyknown, such asChris Crocker, whois a Brittany Spearsfanatic and also alittle off-kilter.Being a celebrityisn’t the only thing that makes Youtube sogreat. It’s also great for keeping in touch withfriends and family over great distances byusing videos to talk to each other. You don’t

Are YOU on YOUTUBE?

Lucas AdkissonThe Burrow

Lucas AdkissonThe Burrow

even have to wait for your show to comeon the television, just sit down at thecomputer and watch your show or clipsof your show. Music videos are also agreat feature on Youtube.

Youtube also has its faults. Becauseanyone can post on Youtube, sometimesyou find the clips blurry or just plain bad.If one was to find a video as such then

they couldcomment on itusing thec o m m e n tfeature. Ifc o m m e n t i n gisn’t your thingand you want togive visualmessages andthen just replywith a videoreply.

Youtube ish a n d s - d o w n

one of the best websites to date and alsoallows your videos to be posted on any ofyour favorite site such as Myspace, Bebo,or Facebook.

Matthew BrysonThe Burrow

Students can hardly ever wait for summer.Having only a Christmas break and a shortspring break, they arbitrarily drag their feetthrough their monotonous days until a truebreak raises its beautiful head. They wouldhardly ever think year-round school is a goodidea. Especially around here. Students don’trealize, however, that there are many benefitsto year-round school.

A typical year-round school structure is

Bettering the schoolexperience

two to one (two months of school, one monthbreak). Starting in January you actually getfour months of R&R all together. Since it’snot all at one time, you can stand the eightmonths of school. Also, with the shorterbreaks in between the school months you’llremember more when you come back. Don’tworry about, say, Christmas. Decemberwould be a break month. You’ll also getThanksgiving off but not much else duringthe school months.

Indeed, year-round school helps witheducational productivity and lowers thestress levels of high school students. All inall a very good idea.

The BurroWHamilton County Senior

High1 Fox Lane

McLeansboro, Illinois

The Burrow is the student newspaper ofHamilton County Senior High

and is produced by theJournalism & Desktop Publishing classes

under the instruction ofMrs. April Jordan and Mrs. Lisa Auten.

Co-EditorsBrian Harland & Michaela Morlan

Business ManagerJonathan Cantrell

Lucas AdkissonBrittni BladesLuke BowmanBrittney BrewerMathew Bryson

Staff WritersJonathan Cantrell

Jacob NorrisBrandi CahillMorgan BarnettBecca Biggerstaff

Layout Designers

Jacob HarrawoodJeffrey RobinsonSamantha RussellArissa VineyardRachel Wall

Seniors Samantha York and Rhet Vaughan cuddle with a bunny in Mr. Johnson’s room.

Senior Derek Files is enjoying his July schooling.

Brittany AnselmentLeslie WheelerKalila raganChris Zarek

News 3

Freshman Daniel Kirsh enjoying his healthy meal.

Eating right equals prizes

Brittney BrewerThe Burrow

Samantha RussellThe Burrow

From left to right:: Director Mike Johnson, Freshman Kira Irons, Seniors Nicholas Burke, Cortney Byers,and Lucas Adkisson strike a pose in front of the set during one of the final rehearsals.

There is a reason we ‘spring forward’

Time to ‘spring forward’Arissa VineyardThe Burrow

Eating healthy doesn’t have to be boring.Students can make March a healthy monthin their lives. HCHS is participating inNational Nutrition Month and making itreally cool.

The ladies who run our cafeteria aregiving away prizes for eating healthy. Theygive students a ticket for having three of thefive food groups on their trays. At the end ofboth lunches, Monday through Thursday, Mr.Scott reads off the winning ticket numbers.The students whose numbers are calledreceive two pencils, a pen, and a free sideitem.

On Fridays, Mr. Scott draws one ticket;the student with this ticket will win a giftcertificate to Mimmo’s or Autens.

On the last Thursday before Spring Break,the prize selection changes. They will be givingDVDs, and another mystery prize, which thecafeteria staff had not yet decided on.

Ask about ourscholarshipopportunities.

611 S. MarshallMcLeansboro, IL

643-2361 Ext. 220

The school play, “The Bachelor King”, ishaving its début performance March 13 hereat the high school. Mr. Mike Johnson and Ms.Katie Crain are the directors of the play andthe cast includes seniors Cortney Byers,Samantha Russell, Lucas Adkisson, NicholasBurke, Jeff Robinson, Mollie Gonzalez andRachel Campbell; sophomores Chris Zarek,Jason Litherland, Stephanie Smith and KirstiAuten; freshmen Kira Irons, Hannah Hill, JedHolloman and Alex Lewis. Junior High extrasinclude Gloria Arndt, Samantha Davis andJulia Reynolds. A succeeding performance of“The Bachelor King” will be held thefollowing night at the same time here in thehigh school commons area.

With activities of all types going onthrough the school year, the cast of this

The Bachelor King finally performedafter numerous delays

On March 9, the central time zone gainedan hour of daylight due to daylight savingstime. What is daylight savings? Accordingto National Geographic’s website, daylightsavings is a system to reduce electricity usewithin a day’s time.

The idea is thought to have come fromBenjamin Franklin in the year 1784. In ajournal he wrote that “if they set the clocksback an hour it would save time so peoplewon’t have to get up as early and light acandle.”

In the year 1942, President Franklin D.Roosevelt issued “War time.” This was ayear-round time-saving system during WorldWar II, which was established to conserveenergy. After “war time” ended in 1945, manystates adopted their own time saving systems.

In the year 1966, the Congress passed theUniform Time Act, which required somestates to set their clocks forward an hourduring the spring and set them back an hourduring the fall.

The only states exempt from the daylight-savings system are Hawaii and most of

Arizona.Freshman Sydney Walker said, “I like

the time change. I just don’t like the factthat when it is eight at night it still lookslike daytime.”

Although some students scoff at theticket system while saying “we eat how wewant,” other students appreciate therewards. Sophomore Breana Linder said,“I like how they are putting the effort inhaving us eat healthy.”

Teachers are exempt from the ticket andreward system in the commons area, butbiology teacher Mr. Vallowe said, “I likebeing an omnivore.”

Teenagers and children in America runa high risk for obesity, partly becauseAmerica is a ‘fast food country.’ Manyathletes grab food on the go. Even thoughthey are athletic, these kids still have thesame chance becoming obese.

In general, it seems to be a good ideafor the school to push for healthy eatinghabits. If students eat healthy they will havemore energy, and more awareness of thingsgoing on around us, including in theclassroom. Eating healthy gives HCHSstudents the chance to not become anotherstatistic. Not to mention the fact thatresearch has shown better test scores andgrades from students eating healthy.

production has had a hard time getting ittogether. With scholastic bowl, church andfamily functions the play has been set backfrom its original date in January to March.

Mr. Johnson said scheduling practice onstage in the commons area is “impossible”and it’s easy to see why. Betweencheerleading, track and basketball practicesthe commons area was occupied.

The cast would like to thank Mr. Payneand Mrs. Fries and their classes forgraciously designing the set and costumes.

Throughout the course of practicing therehave been drop-outs, sicknesses and plainrebelling against certain areas in thisproduction. Yet, despite the delays, the castand crew are looking forward to a successfulevent.

Senior Nicholas Burke is quoted assaying it’s going to be the “best play ever.”

Mr. Johnson had to say, “It’s going to begreat. The kids have been great.”

Features 4

After 10 long weeks, Hamilton CountySenior High is going to start fourth quarterout by going on Spring Break.

Even with snow days, students are readyto get out of school and have one week offto do whatever they want.

Junior Kaitlyn Sloan plans to sit on thebeaches of the Bahamas during SpringBreak. Swimming, shopping, tanning andrelaxing at the Atlantis Hotel.

Sloan said, “I am not going to miss schoolat all.”

Flying out from Dayton, Ohio on Wed.,

Jonathan CantrellThe Burrow

Getting away from HCHSfor a week

March 18, she will spend a full week there.Jokingly Sloan said, “I’m never comingback.”

Seniors Jamie McGovern, Ashley Miller,Lacy Vineyard and Erica Vaughan all planto stay close to Hamilton County. Spendingthe week at McGovern’s house, the girls planto make random country laps, hang in town,and get a lot of sleep. During the day, theyplan to go shopping, go out to eat and tanfor prom.

Miller said, “I can’t wait till Spring Break,and to get away from school.”

Vineyard said, “As long as I’m away fromschool and can sleep in, then I don’t carewhat we do.”

Even though Sloan and several others,including senior band members, plan to getout of the state, many plan to just stay intown and be with a few friends and get awayfrom everyone else.

Do’s and dont’s for cellphone users and abusers

Brittni BladesThe Burrow

Do people think it’s polite to answer theircell phone in a restaurant, movie theater, orpublic transit! There are times where theanswer is yes, but most of the time it’sunnecessary. Whenever hanging with afriend, try to keep calls as short as possible.Talking on the phone for too long makes theperson you’re with feel less important than

the caller. Also, when with a big group ofpeople, leave the room don’t interrupt theirconversation.

If on a date or with a very importantperson it will be impressing for ignoringincoming calls saying, “We’ll talk later.”Unless it’s an important call, excuse politelybefore taking it. Sometimes it’s alright totake calls in public places or in a linesomewhere if you speak very softly anddon’t use inappropriate language.

Really remember to put the phone onvibrate whenever in church, theaters ormeetings. If it goes off, quickly hit the endbutton and turn off the phone. Everyoneforgets something now and then, but havethe decency to do something about it.Whenever there’s a bad connection, don’tyell; call them back with better signal.

According to Joanna L. Krotz, who writesabout cell phone etiquette: 10 dos and don’tsstated 72 percent of Americans agree thatusers’ worst cell phone habit is having loudconversations in public. SophomoreBreanna Brock said, “I hate wheneverpeople talk so loud on their cell phones, it’srude and annoying.”

One 20 minute tanning session increasesthe chance of getting melanoma by 55percent.

According to www.coolnurse.com,between 20,000 and 24,000 salons are listedin the Yellow Pages, claiming 22 million plusclients each year.

“I tan all the time! I guess I’ve neverreally thought about what I’m doing to myskin, but I feel better about myself when I’mdark,” senior Jayla Stephens said.

Most people believe that people tan onlyto get darker, however this is not always true.According to www.theita.com, a well-knownside effect of exposing the skin to ultraviolet(UV) light is the production of vitamin D.

“It’s fine if you don’t over do it. I only

Michaela MorlanThe Burrow

Pale becomes the new tantan to get ready for dances. I don’t think Ihave to be dark during the winter,” juniorBrooke Biggerstaff said.

In the United States, the indoor tanningindustry (ITI), currently estimated at $5billion, inaccurately advertises vitamin Dproduction and UV protection as healthbenefits of tanning. People who tan in anindoor tanning facility may be susceptibleto skin cancer due to unrestricted,uninhibited, long-term UV radiationexposure.

While many believe that indoor tanningis safer than outdoor tanning, many of thesame health risks, including skin cancer,skin/eye burns, photo aging, photo-drugreactions and alterations of the immunesystem are associated with this activity.

“I’ve done it yes, but it is extremely badfor your skin and I wouldn’t recommenddoing it,” School nurse Rhonda Tracy stated.

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Hamilton County High School is now thehome of a new type of competition: weightloss. Seniors Holden Jackson and EthanFrench are gearing up to get healthy througha competitive and rigorous weight lossprogram entitled “Team Wiggins.”

Team Wiggins is led by senior NickWiggins. He is helping Jackson and Frenchget into shape through weight training,running and dieting.

“Holden and Ethan came to me wantingmy help to get them into shape because theywanted to be healthier,” Wiggins stated.

Even though both French and Jacksonshare a common goal, their plans in how toachieve it differ. Jackson is running a mileand a half daily. French is doing these thingsand also weight training when he has thetime.

While Jackson stopped drinking sodasand started eating salads, French is simplydrinking more water and eating less duringeach meal.

Even though their weight loss plans differ,they are currently neck and neck in thecompetition, with Jackson currently leadingwith 15 pounds lost, while French trails 5pounds behind.

Jackson is proud of his current progressbut believes he shouldn’t take all the credithimself.

“I would like to thank my mom, CrissAngel and Team Wiggins for their dedicationand support,” said Jackson.

Although this is a competition, Frenchbelieves it's about much more.

“It’s not about winning or losing, as longas we become healthier together,” Frenchstated.

Weight loss wars

Senior Nick Wiggins helps fellow senior HoldenJackson weigh in, and watches senior Ethan Frenchpump some iron.

Rachel WallThe Burrow

Hamilton County Lumber“Everything for the Home Builder”

400 West MarketMcLeansboro, IL 62859

618-643-2823618-643-3777

5Profiles

STUDENTS

Freshman Kelsey Ann Bowman is oneof HCHS bubbly personalities. Bowman’s

favorite class is second hour Englishwith Miss. Allred and her favorite

teacher is Miss. Cockrum. Sheenjoys listening to Blind

Melon and her favoritemovie is “Superbad.” She is

currently a member of theFoxes softball team. Over spring

break she plans to play softball andduring Easter she will be spending time

with family. Her favorite high schoolmemory to date is having a ‘dance off’ with,Nikki Ojala before a basketball game.

Junior Krista Beth Welch is one ofHCHS’ more original students. She

thinks high school sucks but herfavorite teacher is Mrs. Jordan. Her

favorite movie is “EdwardScissor Hands” and her

favorite band isDashboard. Welch is kind

of worried about quarterexams, but plans on having a lot

of fun and camping over Easter andspring break. She is not participating

in any spring sports. She says, “I’m notmuch of a sports fan although I have been

getting my pickle ball on in P.E.”

Senior Chase Danger Griswold isa respected member of the student body.His favorite classes are any with JeffRobinson. Griswold’s favorite teacheris Doc. In his free time he enjoyswatching the movie “Brokeback

Mountain” and listening to hisfavorite band the Spice Girls.

When most students arefretting over quarter examshe says, “Nah I’m a genius”.

His favorite high schoolmemories include all the times

tagging along with Michael Bowersto witness all the amazing stuff he does.His spring break plans include dragonhunting in Canada and he says “I’ll bevery busy over Easter because I am theEaster bunny. Griswold is lookingforward to graduation saying “I havebeen waiting for six years”.

Chas

e

Griswold

JOSH

HALL

Sophomore Josh Hall is one ofHCHS’ friendly faces. Josh’s favorite

classes are any with Doc or Mr.Payne. His favorite movie is

“Good Luck Chuck” and hisfavorite band is the CharlieDaniels Band. He is on the

Foxes baseball team. Hisfavorite high school memory is

when “Cole tried to whoop Hamson.”Josh’s spring break and Easter plans are

to play baseball.

Krist

a

Welch

Bowman

Kelse

y

Jeff RobinsonThe Burrow

Mr. DennisD. Lynch is astudent favorite amongthe staff at HCHS. He goes byseveral nicknames but the only oneapproved for print is “Doc”. He teachestransportation, welding and junior highshop. He says his favorite class to teach is“Prep period, and I’m really good at it”.He chose not to give up anything for Lenthe said “I don’t do that anymore. I lentout my new car one time, to my best friendand got it back with an empty gas tankand a missing rear fender.” He also says,“I ask myself everyday why I got into high

schooleducation

and at present Iam still unsure why.

Maybe it was because I was young, foolishand under the misconception that you couldteach something new to someone who alreadyknows everything.” He enjoys working atHCHS, “ Feeling young at heart and beingtold all my life, by my mother, that I will nevergrow up, makes me feel very fortunate to beworking at HCHS because I fit right in. Doc’sspring break plans include sitting on his frontporch and relaxing.

Mr. Chad PhillipPayne is a fresh face at HCHSthis year. He has no nicknames butadvises this, “I have never been in themilitary so do not call me Major Payneunless you want one”. He got into highschool education because he feels it is hispatriotic duty to his country to educatethe youth of America, plus he lovessawdust. He had quite a few classes in

high school. Hesaid, Mr. Lynch’s

classes were always fun, Mr. Vallowes werefun but tough, Mr. Kirkpatrick’s were toughbut he tried to make them fun”. Mr. Paynehas enjoyed his first year at Hamilton County.He says, “This is the best school I haveworked with in my ten year career. I do wishwe were at the old building because of all thememories. Over spring break Mr. Payne planson a lot of a lot of rest and relaxation.

TEACHERS

Mr. Ly

nch

Mr. Pa

yne

6 Sports

The infield is being raked, pine tar is be-ing brought out and Coach Jeff Gray is mak-ing the new line-up for the 2008 season.Hamilton County Senior High Foxes Var-sity boy’s baseball season has begun.

The baseball teams will play a total of36 games this year. The coaches, along withthe team, have great intentions of beatingtheir 18-13 record from last year. “I thinkwe could be really strong this year if ourpitching stays strong. Our hitting and defenseare our two best assets right now,” CoachGray said.

The Foxes first game will be on March

Foxes swing for the fences

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18 at Edwards County. The team is definitelyanticipating their first game, and hoping fora victory. The team’s first home game willbe March 25 against Waltonville at 4:30.

Coach Gray is looking forward to this yearbecause this is his first group of seniors he’shad since they were in junior high. “It’s gonnabe tough loosing my 7 seniors. This is the firstgroup I’ve had since they were 7th graders.They’ve all put in a lot of time and dedicationand I appreciate that,” Gray added.

“I’ve grown up with these guys since 7thgrade and I can’t believe this is our last yearplaying ball together. It’s sad, but I think we’reall kind of ready to go our separate ways. Ireally hope we’re able to make our last yeartogether memorable,” senior Tanner Spicuzzastated.

The Burrow Apr. 08–Fairfield 4:30 HomeApr. 09–Hardin County 4:30 AwayApr. 10–Cairo 4:30 HomeApr.12–Marissa 11:00 HomeApr.14–Grayville 4:30 HomeApr.15–Johntston City 4:30 AwayApr.16–NCOE 4:30 HomeApr.17–Trico 4:30 HomeApr.18–Waltonville 4:30 AwayApr.19–Galatia 10:00 HomeApr..21–Elderado 6:00 HomeApr.22–Ziegler Royalton 4:30 Away

BASEBALLApr.23–Gallatin County 4:30AwayApr.24–Carmi 4:30 HomeApr.25–West Frankfort 4:30 HomeApr.28–Wayne City 4:00 AwayApr.29–Carrier Mills 4:30 HomeApr.30–Woodlawn 4:30 HomeMay1–Elkville Elverado 4:30 HomeMay2–Carterville 4:30 AwayMay6–Elderado 6:00AwayMay7–Thompsonville 4:00 AwayMay9–Benton 4:30 HomeMay10–Galatia 10:00 Away

Michaela Morlan

Senior Rhet Vaughan takes hispractice swings before steppingin the box.

Senior Orry Taylor steps up to the plate. Senior Brody Mitchell gets loose before the game.

Freshman Steven Lemmonspitches a win for the JV Foxes.

7SportsNew look forCardinals

Track is just beginning

The track season is coming to an awfullyquick start; with their first meet on March20 at West Frankfort. Last season the boysand girls both finished 8th in the BlackDiamond Conference, which is veryrespectable.

Senior Justin Williams is looking forwardto the season. He said, “I think we’ll be prettygood as a team, and individually we have alot of strong runners and jumpers.”

The Foxes’ track teams are hoping to seepeople at their meets to show some support.

Sophomore Breanna Brock said, “Thegirls this year won’t be bad, and individuallywe will do just fine. I can’t wait till our trackmeet.”

BoysApr. 23 – Carmi Invite 4:00 AwayMay 3 – Harrisburg TBA AwayMay 8 – BDC 4:00 AwayMay 12 – West Frankfort 4:00 AwayMay 16 – Sectional 4:00 AwayCOEDMar. 18 – Benton 4:00 AwayMar. 20 – West Frankfort 3:45 AwayMar. 25 – West Frankfort 3:45 AwayMar. 26 – Carmi 4:00 AwayApr. 18 – Fairfield 4:00 AwayGirlsApr. 16 – Carmi 4:00 AwayApr. 24 – Fairfield 4:00 AwayApr. 30 – BDC 4:00 AwayMay 9 – Sectional 4:00 Away

Track

Brian HarlandThe Burrow

Luke BowmanThe Burrow

Coming off of a 9-and-16 record lastseason, the Lady Foxes softball team beganpreparing for what looks to be a toughseason. Coach Chrissy Cockrum’s tworeturning seniors and well-preparedfreshmen keep the hopes of the team high.

“We have some freshmen who know whatit takes to get the job done so I think we canmake something of this season,” seniorSamantha York said.

Freshman Kira Irons stated, “I know the

The St. Louis Cardinals are known to betough contenders at the playoff level, but asthe 2008 season rolls around, St. Louis ismore focused on rebuilding. As the off-season went by, the Cardinals decided torelease and trade a few players.

Players such as Jim Edmonds, ScottRolen and David Eckstein, who combinedfor nine All-Star selections, 10 Gold Glovesand 118 post-season game appearanceswhile wearing a St. Louis uniform.

Edmonds asked to be traded afterrealizing his playing time would bediminished after the Cardinals brought in,top prospect Colby Rasmus, although theyoung star might not start the year in themajors.

Rolen also asked to be dealt after heclashed repeatedly with manager Tony LaRussa. Eckstein was simply allowed to walkout as a free agent.

Jacob Harrawood The Burrow

Senior Kyle Ragan said, “The Cardinalsprobably won’t be in the World Series, butthey will be playoff contenders. I’d say theBoston Red Sox will repeat this year.”

So with Spring Training in full-swing,which direction are the Cardinals headed?

According to stlcardinals.com, La Russasaid, “I think we’re putting together a teamto contend for a championship. I think we’regoing to be very competitive. We’re goingto have guys on the position-player side thatwill provide a lot of energy and attention toexecution.”

La Russa also thinks with pitchers MarkMulder and Chris Carpenter getting healthy,the bullpen will definitely be solid.

Senior Brody Mitchell said, “With a lotof new players, if they can stay healthy, they(Cardinals) could make playoffs. But I doubtthey can make it to the World Series.”

Lady Foxes hitting off anew season

teams we’re playing are good, but we’rebetter.”The season for the Lady Foxes startsat Mt. Vernon on March 20. The girls’ firsthome game will be March 25 against theHarrisburg Lady Bulldogs. With the aid ofthe new batting cage, the girls are able towork and improve their hitting skills.

“Now we have more tools to help us getbetter and hopefully take us to a season thatwill be remembered after the season is over,”York said.

Although the weather has limited theLady Foxes’ practices, the anxiousness can’tbe measured.

“I can’t wait until we get to showeveryone what we can do,” Irons said.

SOFTBALLApr. 8– Fairfield 4:30 Away

Apr. 9– Hardin County 4:30 Away

Apr. 10– Mt. Carmel 4:30 Away

Apr. 14– Grayville 4:30 Home

Apr. 15– Johnston City 4:30 Home

Apr. 17– Trico 4:30 Away

Apr. 19– West Frankfort 4:30 Away

Apr. 21– Vienna 4:30 Away

Apr. 22– Zeigler Royalton 4:30 Home

Apr. 24– Carmi 4:30 Away

Apr. 26– Elkville Elverado TBA Away

Apr. 28– Wayne City 4:00 Away

May 1– Elkville Elverado 4:30 Away

May 2– Caterville 4:30 Home

May 6– Eldorado 4:30 Home

May 7– Benton 4:30 Home

May 8– Crab Orchard 4:30 Home

Freshman Kayla Kreher pitches at the season opener

Freshman Kayla Kreher takes a practice swingbefore stepping into the box.

Freshman Kelsey Bowman rounds second

Senior Nikki Ojala comes set at shortstop

A & E8

Everyone knows the guy who canlevitate, go through a wood chipper, and getran over by a 12- ton roller. They know himas Criss Angel, the Mind Freak. Somestudents at HCHS are really into him, and

Criss Angel: Mind freak or just plain creep?

Seniors Holden Jackson, Luke Bowman, Nick Wiggins, and Ethan French show off their new shirts, which boast “Criss Angel” on the front, and “1 Loyal Freak” on the back.

The BurrowLuke Bowman call themselves loyal freaks. Seniors Holden

Jackson and Nicholas Wiggins, afterwatching Criss levitate across a side walk,are firm believers in him.

Senior Nicholas Wiggins said, “CrissAngel is for real, he’s not like David Blaine- his magic is fake. [Angel] may have soldhis soul to the devil or something like thatbut his tricks are the real thing.”

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‘Carbon’ is anything but acopy

One of the best racing games out rightnow is Need for Speed: Carbon. Need forSpeed: Carbon picks up where the playerleft off in Most Wanted, driving out ofRockport in his recently-retrieved BMW.

The game is set inside the fictional cityof Palmont which is next to Rockport, andwas used in Need for Speed: Most Wanted.

This game is great because of the choiceof cars and the customization process.Players can choose from many licensed carsdivided into three classes: tuners, musclecars and exotic cars. There are many carsunder each of these categories making 46different vehicles to choose from.

Carbon also features the Canadian actressand model Emmanuelle Vaugier, who playsNikki, the player’s main source of help andally in the career storyline.

Game play is very fast paced. Theprimary goal is to win races in different areasand ultimatly to win the area for the gang.

Matt BrysonThe Burrow

When winning one also gets upgrades andcash for the vehicles. Winning races isn’teasy, but one has the chance to hire crewmembers to assist them in the races bybumping people out of their way or showingthem shortcuts.

Apart from racing, there is also free roam,where one can roam the city and causemayhem by speeding and messing with thepolice.

Getting caught by police will cost themthough. Money won when racing will gotowards paying their tickets. Their crew,however, helps them out by distracting cops.

This game is the best in the Need forSpeed series so far. The games continue toget better and better. Carbon will notdisappoint even the experienced gamer.

Degrassi: The Next Generation is takingteenage life to a whole new level. The starsof Degrassi are now older and starting toface a lot of different real life issues, like,pregnancy, drugs, eating disorders and death.In recent seasons they “went there,” but thisseason, by far, is the best.

In the first new episode of this season,Caitlin is back and is up to no good. Caitlinwas in recent seasons and was a formerDegrassi student before the new characterswere added. Ellie, who is known to be veryquite and a little bit shy, is supposed tointerview Caitlin about her new movie.While Caitlin is in town she hooks up withJesse, Ellie’s boyfriend. Ellie walks in andis really upset with Caitlin and Jesse. Whileinterviewing Caitlin, Ellie becomes veryopinionated about Caitlin. Ellie decides shedoesn’t want to be with Jesse anymore. Themoral of this episode would have to be thatboys aren’t everything they think they are.

Degrassi tackles real teenproblems

Brittney BrewerThe Burrow

The second episode was about promotingPurple Dragon, a high energy drink. Theyaudition “Purple Dragon girls,” who mustfit into and look good in short dresses.Emma, who has had problems with herweight in recent seasons, is against thecampaign at first, but decides it’s easier togo along with it than to be the voice againstit. She tries out to be a ‘purple dragon girl’and makes it. She is going to drink PurpleDragon when another girl takes it from herbecause the drink is high in calories andcarbs. The other girl points out that Emmais already in the biggest size they have.Emma uses this as an opportunity to take astand.

She takes the dress off in front of theentire school and clearly makes her point.This episode was awesome. Everyone thinksEmma is a goody two-shoes, but this episodeproves she is a real teenager and she has awild-side to her.

The other two episodes have been lessnotable. This season by far is the best season.The only thing wrong is that J.T. York ismissing. J.T. was killed last season, in thesaddest episode ever, by Degrassi’s rivalteam.

Degrassi is a good teen show. It goes‘there.’

Another movie starring Will Ferrell,Semi Pro came out in theaters Feb. 29. WillFerrell plays the main character Jackie

Will Ferrell returns to theaters for his new movieMoon. He is the owner, coach, and forwardfor the Flint Michigan Tropics. They are ateam getting ready to be put out of business.Moon wants his team to be in the NBA, sohe convinces the commissioner to put thefour best teams in the NBA instead of justthe teams with the most fans.

Moon really wasn’t like a coach he neverran plays or anything he just goofed off withhis team. So the team decided to makeWoody Harrelson, a NBA veteran andteammate, take over the team. Before theywould win they had to play the game insteadof their usual passing it to Clarence, whowould score all their points.

Some of the funnier moments in thismovie are including a ridiculous crunch-time camera angle of Will Ferrell shooting

Each time people watch Angel they aremore amazed.

“It just fascinates me that someone canwalk up walls, and swallow a quarter thatgoes down his arm and cuts it out with a realknife. This guy is for real, it’s that easy,”said Wiggins.

Junior Brandon Biggerstaff said, “CrissAngel? Please! That guy is so fake. And

anyway, if he sold his soul to the devil Iwouldn’t give him a penny.”

So there it is – both sides of a controversialtopic. A lot of people have heard a lot about CrissAngel lately. It’s hard to say if it is real or not;nobody really knows.

One can find more information about CrissAngel on the Internet. He is on numerous sites,but he also has his own at www.crissangel.com.

Brittni BladesThe Burrow

free throws granny-style in short-shorts. Itwas amusing to see Moon try to pull in abigger fan base by creating and performinga halftime show because his business is

failing.This movie was overall hilarious, and I

would recommend others to seeing it!