The WarriorNiskayuna High School February 4, 2011 Volume 37, Issue 17

a student-run publication since 1974, now weekly

Inside this issue...Star Wars review,page 6

Skiing season continues,page 7

Stand for the pledge,page 5

by AnnA Lochte

news

For many students, snow days mean waking up, finding out there is no school, going back to bed, building snow creatures, and relaxing for the rest of the day. For freshman Amoha Ramanath a snow day is a day to hang out with friends, relax, and not worry about tests, quizzes, and school. For some students even the an-ticipation of a snow day can cause excitement. Freshman Conor McDonough stated, “I bank on there being a snow day and just sleep in and not do any homework due the day of a predicted snow day.” However, some students like to get their homework done the night before so they don’t have to ruin their snow day with home-work. But for Superintendent Kevin Baughman and the direc-tor of transportation, Thomas O’Donnell, snow days mean waking up at four o’clock in the morning and surveying the roads.

Niskayuna is located in upstate New York which is known to be one of the snowiest places in the United States; this means that there can be many snowy days. On average Niskayuna receives 63.9 inches of snow a year. It ranks number twenty-three on the “Top 101 cities with the highest average snowfall a year.” New York State requires 180 days of learning a year, in Niskayuna there are

187 school days. The Niskayuna school district allots five snow days a year. “The amount of snow days also depends on the amount faculty days. Since we had to go to

school during Regent’s week this year that is also a factor in being able to have more snow days this year as well,” according to high school Principal John Rickert. If Niskayuna exceeds the given amount of snow days, school will be scheduled during student holidays and spring and winter

break to make up the missed days. When calling a snow day

Baughman is already preparing 24-48 hours before the predicted snow fall. Baughman checks the

weather forecast in advance. The day before a possible snow day the superintendent, the assistant superintendent, and the director of transportation come together to discuss possible cancellations and announcements for the sign at the high school and the televi-sion. Around four o’clock in the

morning, O’Donnell surveys all of the roads in the school district. At about 4:40 in the morning, Baughman speaks with super-intendents from other school districts, and other Niskayuna school officials. He also checks the weather forecast periodi-cally. By 5:15 a decision is made. School activities that could be affected by the snow also impact the snow day or delay decision.

In Niskayuna, the district will have a delay for two hours. “The amount of delays are unlimited since we will still attend school on those days,” stated Rickert. Characteristics for a delay include ice that will eventually turn into rain, minimal amounts of snow, and clear, safe roadways. “Delays also give plows enough time to clear the roads,” said Rickert. For a full cancellation, it depends on the amount of snow and the time it actually snows. “If it comes at midnight, we have sufficient time to clean up and open school. If it comes at five o’clock in the morning, we face new challenges,” Baughman stated. Ice is also a factor for a cancellation. Although many students take snow days for granted, the snow day process is much more involved than a stu-dent would expect. At the time of printing the district has had three snow days, and one delay. Let’s hope for some more snow days because we can have more!

Snow days make fun for students

Warrior Photo/ Maura GriffithFLURRIES MAKE FUN: Juniors Sarah Miner, Jackson Montrym, and Tim Rice enjoy the snow pile created in front of the school, in hopes that more snow is to come.

2 The WarriorNews February 4, 2011

by emiLy o’brien

news

This past weekend, twelve members of Model United Nations participated in the four-day Ivy League Model United Nations Conference (ILMUNC) in Philadelphia. Rep-resenting Bosnia and Herzegovina, delegates from the high school participated in a variety of committees simulating issues from the past, present and possible future. The confer-ence is considered the premier Model United Nations conference in America and drew over 2,300 delegates from around the world.

Each delegate from the high school chose from a sample of the committees offered at the conference, each with two general top-ics that would be discussed. Before arriving to the conference, delegates did extensive research on the topics they were given as well as their country’s position on that topic.

“Bosnia and Herzegovina was difficult to research,” said junior Maddie DeBlock, “It is a relatively new country and hasn’t really had the chance to be super active in world issues yet.” DeBlock, along with freshman Sophie Kemp participated in the Social, Humanitarian and Cultural Committee which debated and found solutions to Honor Killings and Human Rights Connections to the Commercial Sex Industry. DeBlock and Kemp received recognition for their work as delegates at the end of the conference.

Freshman Alisha Desai also received recog-

nition for her participation in the simulated United Nations Children Fund. “It was kind of hard because it was my first conference,” said Desai, “but I quickly made friends with other kids and it turned out to be a really great experience.”

The remaining representa-tives were active in committees coming from each of the four divisions: General Assembly, which had the largest com-mittees, Economic and Social Council, Specialized Agencies, and Crisis and Regional which had the smallest committees. Committee topics varied from ways to better poor Israeli-Muslim relations, further de-veloping a way to regulate the production of nuclear weap-onry, the 1975 Cambodian genocide and even how to save a sinking Maldives set in 2050.

Over the course of the four day conference, delegates attended six sessions of com-mittee meetings, totaling over 18 hours of intense debate over the assigned topics. During these sessions, delegates were required to dress in western

business attire and had to follow traditional Parliamen-tary Procedures, same as in the actual United Nations.

In each committee, the goal was to draft at least one resolution, which was then voted on and hope-fully passed by a majority of the representatievs in that committee for each topic assigned. However, in many cases with the larger com-mittees, this did not always happen as debate continued long enough where the many stages it takes to pass a reso-lution were never completed.

Also included in the confer-ence was a delegate reception on Friday night featuring a video from Invisible Chil-dren, a charity focused on the children in Africa, and a student band from UPenn called Slowdance Chubby, an

alternative rock band. Saturday night brought the delegate dance, with a live DJ and free Red Bull which turned out to be a huge success.

In addition to attending the conference, delegates from the high school were able to tour Philadelphia under the watch of the trip chaperones, math teacher Angela Netoski and her husband. The group walked down what came to be known as “Diagonal Street” and up to the famous steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art like Sylvester Stalone in “Rocky”. Desai, along with the rest of the members of the trip, would like to thank the chaperones saying, “Mr. and Mrs. Netoski did such a good job taking care of us. I wouldn’t have been able to handle a bunch of teenagers for that long like they did.”

Model UN meets every Wed. after school and is always looking for new members. In addition to attending the two away conferences each year, the club holds a single committee debate to get their members up to speed which this year had the theme of Harry Potter where everyone was assigned a character to emu-late. “Model UN is so much fun,” proclaimed Desai, “I would recommend it to everyone.”

Model UN goes to Ph i l l y

Photo Credit / Alisha DesaiYO ADRIAN: The delegates pose with a statue of Rocky Balboa before climbing the stairs of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, just as Rocky did in the movie for training.

Photo Credit / Alisha DesaiDIAGONAL STREET: This street became a frequent route for the delegates, ending at Independence Hall.

3February 4, 2011The Warrior News

Hea l th expo i s a successby LAurA mueLLer

news

On Thursday, Jan. 20, the high school was lucky enough to have the opportunity to offer an extra educational experience to its students. A health fair was held in both of the gyms throughout the day. Students were able to roam from booth to booth to gather information ranging from topics such as skin care, and bullying to even the exercise currently sweeping the nation, “Zumba.”

While some booths were run by students, others were managed by visiting specialists. These interactions be-tween the students ad-ministering the booths and the specialists, were a good way of working on communi-cation skills and pro-vided a hands-on method of learn-ing that is beneficial for young adults. Though the health fair was more than equipped for any student as an educational supple-ment, some saw the health fair as

an opportunity to be released from gym class, take candy from the tables and crack jokes about the more controversial topics. Sopho-more Ooty Melius said, “Well I liked going because I got to miss study hall.” Pamphlets on sexu-

ally transmitted diseases were strewn across public areas, in-cluding the hallways and library. However, some students mocked certain serious topics of which many thought inappropriate.

Despite the slight setbacks of immaturity, everywhere in the gyms there were students who were truly engaged, moved, and having a good time with their peers. Groups of people got a taste of Zumba, a method of exercise

involving enjoyable dance moves, and the SAPE club (Stu-dents Advocating for a Positive Environ-ment) handed out slips of paper with simple instructions detailing a small task to complete, with the idea that a simple act of kind-ness could start a chain reaction.

Sophomore Jana Schreer appreciated learning about the damaging effects of sun exposure at the fair. She said, “The skin test was very interesting and in-

forming, I never realized how harmful the suns rays could re-ally be.” She went on to explain that she received information about how to better protect herself from further damage.

There was a booth in the lobby of the back gym that particularly impacted many people. It was a booth about drunk driving. A vid-eo was played on a loop showing one situation that could be a prod-uct of drunk driving. The people that viewed this generally watched seriously with stoic faces, imagin-ing what it would be like to be in this type of a position. People were able to simulate what it would be like to be under the influence of alcohol by wearing impairment goggles, more commonly referred to as “beer goggles.” This helped show and raise awareness to our youth that alcohol takes a serious toll on your body both physically and mentally. Students that participated these types of activities truly took something of greater importance home.

Overall, the high school health expo was definitely valuable. Learning took place in all forms, whether it was from being there directly or indirectly hearing also something a friend learned, health was on the mind and aware-ness was raised in the school. Even the jokesters putting STD pamphlets in the library helped spread the knowledge. There-fore, it was a very effective expo.

Warrior Photo/ Maura GriffithPAMPHLETS GALORE: Several different informative packets were given out to students in hopes that they would take to heart what they had learned.

Snowball Dance:

TickeTS coST $15 aT The Door

STuDenTS may buy TickeTS aheaD of Time for $10 in School During lunch moDS ouTSiDe The cafeTeriaS

The Dance iS february 12, 8-11 p.m.

EDITORIAL POLICIES

Letters to the editor are welcome from all members of the school community, and can be delivered toWarrior staff or sent via

email to: thewarrioropinion@gmail.com. The Warrior reserves the right to edit letters for grammar, length, and content.

Signed opinion articles express the opinions of their creators. Unsigned editorials represent the consensus of the paper’s edito-rial board, consisting of the Opinion section and the Editor-in-

Chief.

The op-ed pages are a forum for students’ opinions and ideas.

The WarriorNiskayuna High School, 1626 Balltown Road, Niskayuna, NY, 12309

http://www.nisk.k12.ny.us/nhs/warrior

For a one-year subscription to The Warrior, please send a check for $25.00 to: The Warrior, c/o Niskayuna High School, 1626 Balltown Road, Niskayuna, NY 12309.

4 The WarriorOpinion

Editor-in-Chief:Jason XuMaggie Jordan

News:Emily O’Brien, Chief EditorSarah Miner, EditorGrace Strong, EditorJackson Montrym, Asst

Opinion:Jason Kasman, EditorDaniel Zhao, EditorTim Rice, Editor

Entertainment:Bhavya Narala, EditorJacob Stewart, Asst

Sports:Michael Held, EditorGeorge Jiao, EditorChristopher Herman, Asst

Magazine:Inga Bagepalli, EditorShikha Dharia, Editor

Advisers: James Edgar Russell McDowell

Additional Staff:Gabriel Holodak, Copy EditorAlison Xu, Copy EditorMaura Griffith, Photo EditorSohaib Syed, Graphics EditorKaitlin Hungershafer, Business ManagerBridget LeMon & Rachel Bickauskas, Distribution ManagersAnna Mattis, Advertising Manager

February 4, 2011

by DAn ZhAo

opinion

Today, we are faced with an issue that deals with us youth directly. It involves our actions and the way they should be dealt with in society. A major question posed to modern legislators and communities alike is whether we as minors should be held less culpable for our actions under the law. Of course, common sense seems to dictate that if a toddler were to snatch something from a grocery store without paying, we wouldn’t treat his or her actions the same way we would for, say, a fourteen year old. However, we appear to be less leinent in our judgements when distinguishing between the actions of a fourteen year old and those of an adult.

The sudden surge in crime rates among juveniles in the 1990s brought controversy among concerned parents and legislators alike. A surge of leg-islators insisting that juveniles should do “adult time for adult crimes” convinced courts to take on a stronger stance – a stance that punishes juveniles to deter them from committing more crimes instead of trying to rehabilitate juvenile offend-ers. The recent shift, however, is largely unwarranted, and based on faulty assumptions and leg-islators’ misguided passions in “bringing juveniles to justice.”

With emerging discoveries in neuroscience, scientists are beginning to understand more and more that childrens’ brains truly are immature and underde-

veloped, and that their capacity for executive decision-making is significantly lower than that of adults. Laurence Steinburg, a professor of psychology at Temple University, reported that “matu-ration of the brain, including the regulations of impulses, thinking ahead, planning and weighing risk and reward lead to improvements in self-regulation…but they oc-

cur very gradually and are not complete until the mid-twenties.”

Some understandably bring up the objection that within their lifetimes, they’ve encountered teens whose thinking patterns mirrored those of adults, and that it would make no sense to avoid arresting these teens. However, what this objection fails to consider is that an exception to the rule does not constitute that we should treat teens who are advanced beyond their years differently from similarly aged peers. For instance, psychologists often report that child pedophiles’ brains are often underdeveloped and that they do not exhibit the same capacity for impulse control

as similar adult peers. However, it would be absurd to suggest that we treat child pedophiles and rapists more leniently; in fact, we often feel more angered by their heinous crimes. In the same sense, we must treat juveniles based on shared characteristics; thus, if juveniles on average are underdeveloped when it comes to executive decision-making and impulse control, we must treat them on these grounds. To do so otherwise would be to disrespect the fundamental differences between juveniles and adults.

Moreover, children are given abridged rights just about every day — this is not to say that children deserve the full rights of adults, but rather that we shouldn’t be hypocritical as a society. Children are denied rights to drink, smoke, and drive, among other adult rights. If we as a society believe that children are not ready to handle these sorts of rights, then it makes absolutely no sense to punish them similarly as adults; to do so would be to label ourselves as blatant hypocrites.

Insofar as we acknowledge through the rights we give to children that they are intrinsically different both in terms of their biological development and thus the legal rights we afford them, culpability under the law should be no different. Rather, the juve-nile court appears promising in alleviating the concerns we have with the rampant increases in juvenile crime rates. It is of my opinion that through careful and precise rehabilitation, children

can be treated and released back into society as productive adults, treated without the harsher penalties associated with adult courts. Indeed, it seems almost counterintuitive to treat children in adult courts where they can be sanctioned with disenfranchise-ment and permanent criminal records, further disintegrating them from society. It’s safe to say then that the only viable conclu-sion we have to look to is treating juveniles in terms of corrigibility — they are moldable figures who do not deserve the long-lasting effects of adult punishments.

Perhaps we still feel a bit tense when we decide to be more lenient on the teenager who had just com-mitted a felony — I mean, who’s to say that he won’t recommit another horribly atrocious crime? However, the moment we treat juveniles as adults is the moment we become hypocritical and un-forgiving, relentless in our thirst for retribution. Ultimately, the reason we punish criminals — or rather, the reason that we should punish criminals — isn’t to simply satisfy some urge to see justice at works, but to prevent these crimi-nals from recommitting crimes and putting society at risk again. If we truly believe that, we can not stand to simply punish juveniles as harshly as possible, and in the meantime prevent young men and women from having a second chance, but rather rehabilitate them so that they don’t commit crimes in the future. Perhaps we will finally witness a sharp decline in juvenile crime rates.

Lenient punishments for minors?

“To do so otherwise would be to disrespect the fundamental differences between juveniles and adults.”

American enlightened ideals. This is the truth. Everyone has the same liberties. We will all be treated equal. We will receive justice when we are wronged. This is the thinking that the founding fathers made, and these last six words comprise of the true backbone of the great United States of America.

It’s not much. You are just saying you agree to these ideals. And seriously, if you can’t stand yourself up, look straight at the flag, shut up about that crazy party last night, and recite these words, you will be doing your-self and your country a major disservice. And for those of you who don’t say it, you make me sick. You are unpatriotic, and undeserving of the liberties that are stated in the Pledge. Thomas Jefferson rolls over in his grave every time he thinks of your pa-

thetic face. Yes, you are trying to be an individual, and you

are succeeding. Every day, more and more

people neglect to recite these

w o r d s

5February 4, 2011The Warrior Opinion

ALL OPINIONS expressed on the op-ed pages represent the individual viewpoints of their authors. The content does not necessarily represent the views of The Warrior, the high school, the school district, or the Board of Education.

by Jeff wiLk

opinion

The flag does many things for you. It defends your liber-ties, rights, and freedoms. It gives you the opportunity for economic prosperity, and it al-lows you to succeed. It protects your friends and family, and it protects those overseas. It gives you a voice. And what does it ask in return? For you to stand, and pledge your allegiance.

Throughout my observations, it has become apparent that the degeneration of society has gone so far as to corrupt the basic principles of the country’s last form of nationalism. You could be a raging hippie or a hardcore conservative, a Republican or a Democrat, a Catholic or a Muslim, one thing unites this nation: the pledge we state in the morning.

Why people don’t recite this with pride and honor is beyond me. Maybe liberals hate America so much that they refuse to take part in its fundamental tradi-tions, or conservatives say that America has been corrupted from its true values that were originally coined in the pledge. Maybe taking 30 seconds out of peoples social lives will be to great of a burden for them to cope with. Who knows. But we know one thing: people in high school are not proud of their country.

Let’s examine the words more closely: I pledge Alle-giance, to the Flag, of the United States of America.

Simply enough, you, a sworn in, naturalized, American citizen will serve and remain loyal to your ruling government; in this case, it is the United States of America.

And to the Republic, for which it stands. Referring to the Original founding fathers. They crafted this new nation back in 1776. The founding fathers based this nation’s government on a republic, to not oppress its citizens as the king did to its colonists. They gave you, the people, power. They put their lives on the line, not

to seize government under their supreme control, but to distribute it equally throughout the people.

One Nation, Under God, indivisible. We are one nation. We will always be one nation. We are a nation that is governed under the natural laws laid down by God. Thou shall not kill? Sound familiar? That’s because it’s illegal to kill in the United States. Thou shall not lie? Thou shall not bear false witness against thy neighbor? These natural laws run our nation.

This brings us to the topic of being indivisible. “Oh, but it’s so totally cool to be different, I’m an individual, not a conformist, sick man”. These thoughts will be the destruction of our nation. Our country, under one flag, one constitution, one desire to suc-ceed, and one oath, will never falter or split from within.

W i t h l i b -erty and jus-tice for all.

The end-ing is the true em-b o d i -m e n t of the

throughout America. Yes, you have freedom of speech, but this is one time where you have to ask yourself “what has my country done for me, and how can I show I’m thankful.” If you don’t recite the pledge, the thou-sands who have died preserving this country died in vain. You are dishonoring their names, as well as dishonoring every single person in the room with you.

So my final statement-next time when you see the pledge, show a little national pride and turn around. By doing so, you are setting a good example, and paying dues to your coun-try, and those who serve it.

Complete this opinion!“The Pledge...”

“...is an important way to demonstrate our loy-alty to our country.”

-Chris Grygiel

“...is a monotonus chant that makes us seem like we’re in a cult.”

-Matt Trigger and Caroline Codd

“... loses, its meaning when said every day.”

-Inga Bagepalli

“...outdated.”-Harry Yoder

S t a n d f o r t h e p l e d g e !

6 February 4, 2011 The WarriorEntertainment

‘Star Wars’ sequel forcefully failsby kevin bibicoff

entertAinment

Your Enter ta inment FixFor the week of 2/4 until 2/10

Movies: Sanctum, The Roommate, Cold Weather, The Other Woman, Waiting Forever

Video Games: Earthrise, Mario Sports Mix, Sniper: Ghost Warrior, Dungeons

DVD Releases: I Spit on Your Grave, Beauty and the Briefcase, It’s Kind of a Funny Story, Drop Dead Gorgeous, You Again, Life as We Know It

Books: In the Blink of an Eye, The Pioneer Woman, The Big Short, As One: Inside the Doomsday Machine, The Perfect Mistress

by miLes tepper

entertAinment

Star Wars: Force Unleashed II, the sequel to the bestselling game of the same name, was released on Oct. 26, 2010. While widely anticipated by audiences due to the spectacular teasers that had been released starting Dec. 12, 2009, the eventual follow- through fell short of expectations.

The game’s main character, Starkiller, is Darth Vader’s secret apprentice who may or may not have died at the end of the first game. Then, he was supposedly cloned in between the first and second games. The main story arc is the search for the truth of whether or not you are a clone or just being lied to by Darth Vader. This gets boring fast. The dialogue between characters is constantly

ruined by lines like: “I’m a clone, I’m not a clone. You’re a clone, you’re not a clone.” When the characters weren’t talking about that, Starkiller just whines about finding the girl he’s in love with, Juno. If I ever hear the words

“Where’s Juno?” again I’ll go crazy. While the gameplay was good,

it got repetitive and, by the end of the game, most of the play

was button mashing. This wasn’t too bad as there were special attacks that occurred every so often from mashing; trying to accomplish any of these attacks in a traditional, ordered, calm way, usually failed. The graphics were impressive, however, and the cinematics were awesome. Sadly, the game was incredibly short and was finished in about five hours total, so the amount of time you can actually enjoy the graphics is tiny. I’m glad I got the game on sale because it is most definitely not worth the $60 (on Xbox 360 and Playsta-tion 3) one must normally pay.

This game would have been better as downloadable content for the first game, as there weren’t any differences between this game and the first besides the story

and the additional lightsaber. I’ve played DLCs for games that took longer to complete than this game (here’s looking to you, “Point Lookout” for Fallout 3). It would have been much better if Lucasarts actually put some time and thought into the game and released something that I could call a full-fledged game without laughing. Overall, the game was full of bad dialogue, bad story lines, repetitive game-play, and bugs; I was truthfully thankful and surprised when the game ended: thankful because it ended so soon, and surprised because I doubted there was any good left in the world that would make the pain end. This game gets 5 out of 10 stars because all the swill looked spectacu-lar with the amazing graphics.

http://dualshockers.com/

FIGHTING WITH FORCE: The main character fights off evil in the 2010 sequel.

2 0 1 1 O s c a r p r e d i c t i o n s It’s that time of year again. With the

Golden Globes just having finished a couple of weeks ago, a new arrival awaits in Hol-lywood. On Feb. 27, one of the biggest film awards will be handed out, the Oscars. Last Tuesday, the nominations were announced.

Best Picture: The King’s Speech, The Social Network, The Fighter, Black Swan, True Grit, Inception, The Kids Are All Right, Toy Story 3, Winter’s Bone, 127 Hours

Best Director: Darren Aronofsky (Black Swan), Joel and Ethan Coen (True Grit), David Fincher (The Social Network), Tom Hooper (The King’s Speech), David O. Russell (The Fighter)

Best Actor: Javier Bardem (Biutiful), Jeff Bridges (True Grit), Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network), Colin Firth (The King’s Speech), James Franco (127 Hours)

Best Actress: Annette Bening (The Kids Are All Right), Nicole Kidman (Rabbit Hole), Jenni-fer Lawrence (Winter’s Bone), Natalie Portman (Black Swan), Michelle Williams (Blue Valentine)

Best Supporting Actor: Christian Bale (The Fighter), John Hawkes (Winter’s Bone), Jeremy Renner (The Town), Mark Ruffalo (The Kids Are All Right), Geoffrey Rush (The King’s Speech)

Best Supporting Actress: Amy Adams (The Fighter), Helena Bonham Carter (The King’s Speech), Melissa Leo (The Fighter), Hailee Stein-feld, (True Grit), Jacki Weaver (Animal Kingdom)

Best Animated Feature: Toy Story 3, The Illusionist, How To Train Your Dragon

With 12 votes, the Best Picture favorite, The King’s Speech, leads in nominations, followed by the Coen brother’s True Grit with 10, and The Social Network with 8. So far, the favorite for Best Director is David Fincher for The Social Network, although his Facebook film is looking like a close second for Best Picture to The King’s Speech. The Best Actress race is a tight one between Natalie Portman and Annette Bening, while the Best Supporting Acting races seem to be mostly wrapped up between The Fighter’s Christian Bale and Melissa Leo. The biggest snubs seem to be Inception’s Christopher Nolan being ignored for Best Director, The Social Network’s An-drew Garfield for Best Supporting Actor, Black Swan’s Mila Kunis for Best Support-ing Actress, and Ben Affleck’s heist thriller, The Town, for Best Picture. As the ceremony is trying to appeal more to younger viewers,

this year’s hosts are actors James Franco and Anne Hathaway. Be sure to expect lots of music in this year’s show, and not as many jokes as there have been in the past few years.

http://popdose.com/revival-house-2010-oscar

SAY HELLO TO OSCAR: The famous, tiny, gold man is presented to each winner as a token of their talent.

http://justjared.buzznet.com/2011/01/24/

MR. AND MRS. OSCAR: Franco and Hathaway team up to present the 2011 Oscars.

7February 4, 2011The Warrior Sports

Ski team looks strong for sectionalsby nick foremAn

sports

After a great performance last year at Sectionals, the Niskayuna varsity ski team looks forward to the challenge of excelling again and maybe even winning Section-als. Sectionals will take place on

Photo Credit / Konrad WeeberIT’S ALL DOWNHILL FROM HERE: Senior Dominic Weeber comfortably makes a difficult turn at Lake Placid.

Feb. 15 at Gore Mountain. Last year, the varsity boys ski team placed second at Sectionals be-cause of the strong performances of the Weeber brothers. Senior Dominic Weeber won the Giant Slalom event and sophomore Philip Weeber placed second in the Giant Slalom and third in the Sla-lom. Great job Weeber brothers!

The varsity girls ski team is having a solid year with many nice finishes from new members and returning members, who are working hard to improve at their weekly races. The team

consists of two eighth graders, Annabelle Feist and Hannah Christian, freshman Danielle Skufuca, sophomores Carly Semi-ner, Kelsey McDermott, Ally Mayo, and Emma Millspaugh, and junior Kate Malcolm, making it a very young and enthusiastic team.

Freshman Ned Feist, coming off of a solid season last year, looks to have another great year. He has already had multiple top ten finishes in both Slalom and Giant Slalom. Feist proves to be a contender this year, and the Weeber brothers better sharpen their edges to keep ahead of Feist!

This year’s Sectionals will take place at Gore Mountain, which will be the team’s most challeng-ing course yet. The Giant Slalom course is by far the longest and steepest involving higher speeds. Ned Feist, Weeber brothers, An-

nabelle Feist, Christian, and Sku-fuca all ski for Gore’s mountain team, giving them home mountain advantage. The Gore Mountain race hill known as the “Twister” is very long with varied terrain. Since it is a long course with many flats, it suits the speed skier mak-

ing it very important to carry all your speed. This course differs from most of the courses that the team has skied so far. Times at Gore vary from a minute to a min-ute and 30 seconds, compared to courses at other mountains which vary from 30 to 40 seconds.

The most recent race for the varsity ski team was on Martin Luther King Day and was the varsity boys’ best race this year. In the Giant Slalom, the Weeber brothers and Feist finished in the top ten and senior Nicholas Fore-man finished in the top twenty.

With these victories, Niskayuna finished second to Saratoga with this year’s best performance. Dominic Weeber stated, “We’ve been looking pretty strong this year, providing nobody important eats it. Since Queensbury never keeps it together at Sectionals we

might get a shot at states.” The team has been training hard for Sectionals and has high hopes. Junior Mike Rudolf commented on the team’s hope for this year’s Sectionals, “We are looking pretty good this year. We are trying to top our second place finish at Sectionals from last year. It’s been a good year regardless.”

The Niskayuna varsity ski team has had a good start and hopes to continue its success. Good luck to the Warriors as they advance into the rest of the year and best of luck at Sectionals!

February 4, 2011 The WarriorSports

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Mohawks

1/22 @ Shaker/ColonieLost 2-1Next Game:2/4 @ Bethlehem

Boys Basketball

1/28 @ ColmbiaLost 60-51Next Game:2/4 vs. Shaker

Girls Basketball

1/28 vs. ColumbiaWon 43-34Next Game:2/4 @ Shaker

8

Don’t forget to recycle this issue when you finish reading it!

Mohawk hockey games prove to be an enjoyable winter past time for Niskayunians. Some games this season have had a turn out of over one hundred fans. The Mohawks have a record of 6-8-1 for all games they’ve played, including out of league game. By the middle of a sports season, the teammates usually have become united as a family. It’s

easy when you see each other every day af-ter school for a couple of hours, but also in the hallways in between classes or at lunch.

But there is something that is different about the Mohawks from other Niskayuna teams. The Mohawks are comprised of two schools: Niskayuna High School and Sche-nectady High School. Though there are only three kids from Schenectady, the kids from Niskayuna get a chance to meet new people from a type of environment other than their own. Combining schools like this team does is a great idea because it allows kids from

different schools to meet and make new friends from other places, and maybe to gain a little perspective on things. Chances are, you will meet some cool people. There is nothing like spending an hour and a half on the ice every day to form new friendships.

“Honestly, everyone on the team is really nice and they are all good kids. Anyone on the team would do anything for one an-other,” says sophomore player Ben Fisher.

The Mohawks also take a lot of pride in their team. It is hard to walk down the hall and not spot a Mohawks jersey or jacket somewhere in the crowd. Like football and soccer, the boys get sup-port from the girls by letting them wear their jerseys on game days. It’s a good way to get the school involved and inter-ested in the team.

This team also treats its players well. You will some-times hear about practices at four on Saturday mornings because it’s the only time that the rink is

available. This is not true for our players. They have practice everyday for an hour and a half after school and the practices are “fun and helpful,” according to one Mohawk team member. “I love watching them play. They’re a great team and I can’t wait for the next game,” says junior Katie Wells. “I love going to Mo-hawks games. There’s so much energy from all the fans!” says sophomore Catherine Kaucic.

All in all, the Mohawks are looking strong as the season progresses. They are a great team overall and everyone seems to love the Mohawks. Best of luck to them as their season goes on!

C h e c k u s o u t !by cAmiLA GrAnDe

sports

Photo Credit / Frankie CermakPAY ATTENTION: Fans and a Mohawks player watch as the puck gets passed back and forth.