Her legs were still burning but that wasn’t on her mind at all. She heard all the screams and cheering from people at the fin-ish line. As she crossed she couldn’t help but smile as she realized all her work for the last few years have finally paid off. For junior Taylor Somers finally being able to turn all the miles of train-ing into a cross country gold med-al was the ultimate reward. The road to a gold medal wasn’t an easy one for Somers though. Even though she got 3rd place at state both her freshman and sophomore year, she wasn’t talked about much around the cross country community or even at her school. That is because she was constantly in the shadow of former Patriot star runner Ka-tie Spencer. But Somers did find positives in being in the shadow behind Spencer every day. “It was nice because now I’m a much better runner than I would’ve been if I just came in and was the fastest girl right away. I really had to push myself to try and get up next to her in workouts or races.” Races were especially hard for Taylor as she was constantly getting second or third and could never quite get to the head of the pack in her first two years. Somers described the second and third places finishes as “frus-trating” but acknowledged that it made her work even harder than she even had before.

When junior year came around though she had her eyes on the gold as the two people who had beat her at state the last two years, including Spencer, had graduated and gone to college. In Somers first race of

the year she was able to finally get that victory that had been eluding her for two years. Taylor said it felt “amazing” to finally be on top and get a victory. She said getting that first win was important for confidence as well as it “gave insight to how the rest of the season would turn out.” That first race certainly was a preview for what was to come that year as she won every single one of her races in the regular season and at districts.

When the state cross coun-try meet came up though she said she was a little bit nervous. Yes, she had won every race until that point but this was the biggest and hardest race to win. The states top runners were looking to see if they could keep pace and maybe upset the favored Somers. However, all they saw was her back as she ran away from the competition. She came and first and could fi-nally be called “State champion Taylor Somers.” “It was amazing because I felt like all my work from the last two years had paid off” Somers said. She did how-ever mention that it wasn’t all that mattered while saying “I don’t really feel much different because I have so many more goals I want to accomplish.”

When asked about those goals and what she hopes the future holds she wasn’t shy about what she wanted saying “Next year I would like to repeat as the state champ.” She also said she would like to go to a Division 1 college to run either track or cross country and would like to leave her mark as one of the states top runners. It certainly isn’t far fetched to think she may even leave as the best runner the state has ever seen. Only 10 seconds off the state record time in cross country, it is very plausible she could beat that time. It wouldn’t come easy but nothing in her career has and that is what has made her so great.

Taylor Somers was recognized for winning State Cross Coun-try at the Varsity football game, the same day the State Meet took place. Photo by Allyssa Hynes

Taylor Somers sprints into the spotlightNoah DartmannStaff Reporter

Taylor Somers Photo by Allyssa Hynes

Sewing club hits the seam A new club has been added to Millard South’s extensive cache: sewing club. The club was recently founded by junior Cass Bruns and is being sponsored by Family and Consumer Science teacher Barb Vanderbeek. The club was created not only to help students learn how to sew and create, but to also help the community. “I started the club sort of accidentally after quitting marching band,” Bruns said. “I really enjoyed sewing, and Mrs. Vanderbeek told me she was willing to help me start a

club for it.” Sewing is valuable skill that is often forgotten in the modern age. When something rips, it is often that people will throw it away and buy something different to replace it rather than taking the time to fix it. Sewing can help save tons of money, especially when students are off to col-lege and don’t have the finances to ‘toss and buy.’ Bruns explains, “[Sewing] gives people a hobby, uses a lot of creativity and gives you a free range of how you want your project to turn out, and gives you the satisfaction of wear-ing something you made yourself,” she said. Bruns also explains that the club does more than sewing. There will also be crocheting, embroidery, and recycling of old clothes. The club has also decided to do community service works. “Some of the projects we make will go back into the community, from making clothes for the homes to blankets for the humane society,” Bruns said. This is a great way for students who don’t have a lot of time for community service work but who also would like to help out those in need, and in turn provides great services to charities. “If someone has a cause that they strongly believe in, we can almost definitely make time to donate!” Bruns said. Bruns said she believes that this club would be an amazing asset for the student body. “Sewing club is a fun and accepting group!” she said. “Everyone who comes is positive, upbeat, and friendly. Even if you don’t know how to sew or you worry you’re too bad at it, stop by! You might be surprised.” The club meets Thursdays after school in room 217.

Billie RoperManaging Editor

Freshman sewing club member Ashley Hild bastes the neck of her tank top she sewed from a pat-tern. Hild said she has learned to sew on her own and through classes in school and has a sewing machine of her own at home. Photo by Christine Kaldahl

Sewing club founder Cass Bruns looks through donated fabric. Bruns said she founded the club not only to help students learn to sew but also to help the community. Photo by Christine Kaldahl

Contest Entry for Kelly Gregory

Fruitcake should really be called fruitfake About a month ago, I was your aver-age, normal teenager. I sang in the choir, I did math homework (HAHA, RIGHT) and I drove my car to Quiktrip. Every

day was a wonderful day. The sun was shining, the clouds were fluffy, and I had all the time in the world to play on my Nintendo Wii. But then my whole world came crashing

down around me. That dreaded day in November changed my life. Allow me to begin. That dreary day started out like any other great day in the life of Kelly Gregory. My life was awe-some! My mom and I drove to church that morning, and so far, everything was great. The church service went swimmingly, and there was a decent amount of people there. That Sunday though, there was no coffee hour (usually the time we have brunch prepared by a parishioner). So, naturally, mom and I decided to go out to eat instead. My mom suggested a place, and it just so happened to be Cracker Barrel, so conveniently placed up 144th street. We got there, unknowing of the terror that was waiting for us. We were seated at a table, and I ordered my usual, a biscuits and gravy breakfast. That’s right- I remember the meal I had that day. The food was amazing. I didn’t finish it all, but it didn’t matter at that point. Then I made my first big mistake; I mentioned to my mom that the choir was singing a song about fruitcake. After we got done eating, we walked around the store for a little bit. I looked at the Husker gear and the candy and all of the hats. My mom was looking at some cool music boxes sitting by the register. That’s when she called me over. She pointed at the fruitcake and picked it up. I was curi-ous about trying it because of the song we were going to sing about it in choir. Purchasing the fruitcake was my second big mistake. We drove home, the gross beast glaring at me in the back seat. My mom parked the car in the garage, and I walked upstairs, fruitcake in hand. I grabbed a knife, and opened the box containing my worst nightmares. I cut into the so-called “cake.” I put the slice on my tongue, and chewed. At first, I was unsure of what was happening to my taste buds. I thought they were indifferent to it, but the more I chewed, the more I began to realize that fruitcake was the devil’s cre-ation. I chewed it enough to swallow, and immediately washed the horror out of my mouth. So, if any of you kids were wonder-ing, fruitcake is horrible, and it doesn’t deserve a life in the real world. Take my word for it. Beware of the horridness of the worst “cake” on earth.

Kelly GregoryStaff Reporter