TILGHMAN BELLPADUCAH TILGHMAN HIGH SCHOOL 2400 WASHINGTON STREET PADUCAH, KENTUCKY MON. FEB. 25, 2012 VOL. 89 NO. 1

THE

Tilghman teams continue dominationat District and Regional competitions

by Miles Butler

by Alicia Humphrey and Katie Paxton

by Lilly Burba

Academic Teamand FPS Team

All-State Choir

Congratulations to the PT Academic Team on winning the District Governor’s Cup at Lone Oak. The Quick Recall Team placed 1st, its members including Erin Bur-ba, Lilly Burba, Miles Butler, Reese Butler, Marissa Davis, Trae Hampton, Will Han-cock, Avery Harriman, Justin Holt, Jacob Holtgrewe, Parker Loyd, Catherine Miller, and Andrew Zaninovich. The FPS Team also placed 1st. At Regionals, PT placed 2nd overall, with Quick Recall taking 3rd place and FPS winning 1st. Many students also placed in Individual Assessments: Arts & Humanities: Catherine Miller (1st at Districts, 3rd at Regionals), Meg Han-cock (3rd at Districts, 5th at Regionals), Andrew Zaninovich (5th at Districts)Composition: Will Hancock (1st at Dis-tricts and Regionals), Alicia Humphrey (4th at Districts) Language Arts: Marissa Davis (1st at Dis-tricts and Regionals), Avery Harriman (2nd at Districts), Lilly Burba (4th at Districts, 5th at Regionals)Mathematics: Reese Butler (2nd at Dis-tricts, 5th at Regionals)Science: Erin Burba (1st at Districts), Jacob Holtgrewe (3rd at Districts), Trae Hampton (4th at Districts)Social Studies: Andrew Zaninovich (1st at Districts), Will Hancock (3rd at Districts, 1st at Regionals).

Future Problem Solving team, pictured above from left to right: Catherine Miller, Caroline Washer, Alicia Humphrey, Lilly Burba, and Savanna Whelan. Photo by Katie Paxton.

Science Bowlby Andrew Zaninovich

The Paducah Tilghman Speech team celebrates after winning the Regional championship. Photo courtesy of Martha Emmons.

PT Speech Team

PT students recently participated in the Regional Science Bowl, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy. The team placed 3rd overall against nineteen other teams. Students Erin Burba, Trae Hamp-ton, Jacob Holtgrewe, Parker Loyd, and Andrew Zaninovich competed for PT. The tournament was double elimination, and Tilghman’s two losses came against the teams that eventually placed 1st and 2nd. This is only the second year that PT has competed in the tournament, and the team looks to continue improving for next year.

Tilghman students in All State choir, from left to right: Back row: Alicia Humphrey, Katie Pax-ton, Cason Walden, Maggie Malone, Blake Denson, Jailon Chism. Front row: Juanya Moss, Millie Wyatt, Megan Golden, Andi Boyd, Darrion Woodall. Photo courtesy of Wayne Walden.

The Science Bowl team, pictured from left to right: Back row: Jacob Holtgrewe, Trae Hamp-ton, Andrew Zaninovich, Parker Loyd. Front row: Mrs. Chris Wynne, Erin Burba. Photo provided by Mrs. Chris Wynne.

Congratulations are in order for the Paducah Tilghman Speech Team for their excellent first-place performance at the Regional Tournament! On February 9th, the team loaded up their vehicles and jour-neyed to Murray State University to com-pete against other schools for a Regional title. The team also competed for spots for individual team members at the State Com-petition. This was a unique competition for speech teams because only three entries per category were allowed per team, whereas at most other tournaments, teams are al-lowed unlimited entries into each catego-ry. This meant that, with a total of twelve categories, Paducah Tilghman’s Speech Team’s best thirty-six entries were against the thirty-six best entries from all of the other schools entered in the competition! Despite the limited fleet, the Speech Team did quite well. In addition to the twenty-three entries already guaranteed a place at State prior to this event, nine entries earned their State-level spot at this tour-nament. The team was able to secure an overall first-place finish in the sweepstakes. Another different part of this competition is that most tournaments, only the top six competitors are rewarded, but at this com-petition, all competitors having rankings from each of the two preliminary rounds adding to a score of 7 or less were recog-nized for their accomplishments. This al-lows for more students to be acknowledged for their hard work throughout this year. Most are just recognized as being a State qualifier, but awards are also given to the top two entries in each category. Tilghman had an impressive five first-place finishes: Victoria Potter in Impromptu Speaking, Extemporaneous Speaking, and Original Oratory; the duo of Cade Perfili and Sa-vanna Whelan in Improvisational Duo; and Yasmine Martinez in Poetry. The PT Speech Team also took home six Regional runner-up titles: the duo of Katie Paxton and Savanna Whelan in Duo Interpreta-tion; Will Hancock in Impromptu Speak-ing and Original Oratory; Savanna Whelan in Declamation; Alex Goreing in Dramatic Interpretation; and Caleb Farley in Humor-ous Interpretation. The Speech Team’s qualifying group was rounded out by Broadcasting: Reed Harriman, Will Han-cock, and Daly Spicer; Declamation: Cass-ie Arboleda; Dramatic Interpretation: Iesha Alexander and Elizabeth Behrens; Extem-poraneous Speaking: Jacob Holtgrewe and Cole Spicer; Humorous Interpreta-tion: Hannah Massa and Cason Walden; Original Oratory: Meg Hancock; Prose: Lilly Burba and Yasmine Martinez; and Storytelling: Erin Burba, Meg Hancock, and Tristen Miller. There are also some Speech students who will be competing in Public Forum Debate at the State level. However, this event did not require that students earn a place through qualification. Calloway County was the overall Re-gional runner-up, and Marshall County came in third place. These team members earned spots at the Kentucky High School Speech League (KHSSL) State Tourna-ment to be held March 14-16 at University of Kentucky. Selected team members will also be performing at the Catholic Forensic League (CFL) National Qualifying Tourna-ment on March 2nd at LaRue County High School and the National Forensic League (NFL) District Competition on March 22nd-23rd at Centre College. Congratulations to the Paducah Tilghman Speech Team!

On February 6th-8th, eleven choral stu-dents from Tilghman were part of the KMEA All-State Choir in Louisville. Af-ter a competitive audition of singing in front of a board of judges and sightreading with only a minute of preparation, eleven of thirteen PTHS students were chosen.High school students from all over the state make up the three All-State choirs: SATB (mixed male and female), SSA (all female), and TTBB (all male). The tal-ented musicians who were selected to be a part of this program were Andi Boyd (SATB, A1), Jailon Chism (TTBB, B1), Blake Denson (TTBB, B2), Megan Golden (SATB, S1), Alicia Humphrey (SATB, S2), Maggie Malone (SSA, S2), Juanya Moss (SATB, T1), Katie Paxton (SATB, A2), Ca-son Walden (SATB, T1), Darrion Woodall (SATB, T1), and Millie Wyatt (SATB, S2). After intense rehearsals over two days, all three choirs had the honor of performing on February 8th at the Kentucky Center.

PT Academic Team, pictured from left to right: Back row: Reese Bulter, Megan Cantwell, Will Hancock, Andrew Zaninovich, Trae Hampton, Parker Loyd, Justin Holt, Jacob Holtgrewe. Front row: Mrs. Chris Wynne, Avery Harriman, Marissa Davis, Lilly Burba, Catherine Miller, Caroline Washer, Erin Burba, Mrs. Karen Smith. Photo courtesy of Justin Hancock.

T H E T I L G H M A N B E L L P

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E 2 COMMENTARY

...A Wag of the Finger

A Tip of the Hat...

The Tilghman Bell The Tilghman Bell, a producT of The journalism class, is an open forum for sTudenT expression and is disTriBuTed monThly To The

sTudenTs of paducah Tilghman high school free of charge.

ediTor-in-chief: alicia humphrey

co-ediTors: Will hancock, kaTie paxTon

Business managers: margareT hines, makayla holT, susannah Wilson

feaTure ediTors: lilly BurBa, saBel overlin, cole spicer

commenTary ediTors: megan canTWell, andreW Zaninovich

adverTising ediTor: avery harriman

a&e ediTors: Will hancock, caTherine miller

sporTs ediTor: mckenZi BelT, miles BuTler, jordan kendall

sTaff WriTers: jacoB Blankenship, miles BuTler, lilly BurBa, me-gan canTWell, Will hancock, avery harriman, margareT hines, makayla holT, amanda hooker, alicia humphrey, jordan kendall, caTherine miller, maTTheW moore, saBel overlin, kaTie paxTon, Will smiTh, cole spicer, cason Walden, emily WhiTson, audrey WiThroW, andreW Zaninovich

phoTographers: kaTie paxTon, Will smiTh, savanna Whelan

advisor: susan hancock

“Wag of the Finger” and “Tip of the Hat” are trademarks of Stephen Colbert and his TV show, The Colbert Report.

Neither Paducah Tilghman nor The Bell Staff claim any own-ership of these trademarks.

by Katie Paxton and Andrew Zaninovich

A tip of the hat goes to The Okee Dokee Brothers for winning a Grammy for the Best Children’s Al-bum: Can You Canoe? Why they wouldn’t broadcast the presentation of this award live is beyond us.

A tip of the hat goes to the Baltimore Ravens for winning the Superbowl. After losing four of their last five regular season games, the Ravens were able to turn it around and advance all the way to the championship, where they were able to defeat the San Francisco 49ers with a score of 34-31. Balti-more’s victory was also key in promoting John Harbaugh to the status of his mother’s favorite child.

A tip of the hat goes to Mean Girls for still being one of the most quotable movies, even though it’s ten years old. Mean Girls is arguably the best movie ever and can be quoted in everyday situations. Except fetch. Fetch will never happen.

A wag of the finger goes to Skechers for one of the most blatant, shameless cases of copyright in-fringement in history: Bob’s. Ranging from the style of the shoe to its name, it’s evident that Skechers has no shame in ripping off Tom’s Shoes. Even though Bob’s are more poorly made than Tom’s, they’re just as expensive. Do everyone a favor, Skechers, and stick to making Shape-Ups in your pathetic at-tempt to make some money.

A wag of the finger goes to half of the Super Bowl lights for spontaneously turning off early in the third quarter of the Super Bowl. The game was on hold for over half an hour and gave the San Francisco 49ers a chance to come back after a Baltimore-dominated first half. Several have attempted to blame Beyonce for simply being too hot for the lights to handle. What we can be sure of, however, is that this is the worst travesty ever to befall New Orleans.

A wag of the finger goes to terrible drivers. Using your blinkers is one of the simplest and most help-ful driving actions, yet terrible drivers rarely utilize this helpful invention. Instead of braking without warning and almost causing a wreck, you can simply flip a small lever an inch up or down and save everyone else a lot of trouble. Also, do everyone else a favor and go the speed limit. Going ten miles an hour under the limit on a one-lane road makes everyone’s day that much worse.

Alexis Ash (11)

Daly Spicer (9)

Nathan Hawkins (10)

Jorge Reyes (12)

“Seriously… Snakes.”

“Getting called on in Mrs. Hancock’s class.”

“That a psychopathic killer clown is going to come at me while I’m sleeping and be like, “Ay yo, Ima stab you in the face right now!” and I’ll be like, “Oh no, I don’t

know what to do.”

“Heights.”

Technical term: Seriously… Ophidiophobia

Technical term: Hancockophobia

Technical term: ThatapsychopathickillerclownisgoingtocomeatmewhileI’msleepingandbelike-

”Ayyo,Imastabyouinthefacerightnow!”-andI’llbelike-

“Ohno,Idon’tknowwhattodo.”-aphobia

Technical term: Acrophobia

What’s Your Phobia?by Savanna Whelan and Will Smith

Photos by Will Smith

Between the successes of the Christopher Nolan Batman films and the Marvel Cinematic Universe (Captain America, Iron Man, The Avengers, etc.), it’s easy to forget that, for many years, the “Super-hero” film genre was filled with cheap, childish films that were easy to ignore. Who would argue that Adam West’s Batman was more serious or relatable than Christian Bale’s? Nobody would.So why is this sudden upswing in the Superhero genre occurring, and what direction will it take? The first question is much easier to answer. The first legitimate film in the “Serious Superhero” genre was Christopher Nolan’s 2005 film Batman Begins. This would be the first film to introduce a hero with real tragedy and a grim, dark story who was still based on a famous hero from American comics. It wasn’t that such stories hadn’t existed before – Nolan’s script was based on multiple real-life Batman comics. However, such a film was the first to ever be successful. Why did Nolan’s film break through into mainstream culture, while such a film never would have before? Perhaps it is because we need a hero again. In the 2008 film, The Dark Knight (Nolan’s sequel to Batman Begins), the primary villain (the Joker) represented America’s fears at the time – a deranged madman, indiscriminately killing civilians in twisted ways. The final entry in Nolan’s trilogy, The Dark Knight Rises, again created a villain based on America’s fears. This time, the villain was class warfare and an eerily violent take on the “Occupy Wall Street” movement. As these villains represt America’s fears, so does Nolan’s Batman represent what may be considered America’s hope: a self-made man with a thirst for justice. A similar attempt to find a new hero for America can be seen in the Marvel cinematic universe, made up of films like Thor, Iron Man 1 and 2, Captain America, and The Avengers. Each of these films stars a hero that is an attempt to find a hero for modern America. They try with Iron Man/ Tony Stark, the suave mechanical genius. He’s portrayed as a hero to the whole of America when he stands up to Congress in Iron Man 2, when he obstinately protects his personal liberty against from what is portrayed as an over-involved Congress. A different tactic comes with the character Captain America/ Steve Rogers, the intensely patriotic war hero. His line in The Avengers, “Would you lay yourself on the wire so the other guy can crawl over?” calls back to the idea of the Saving Private Ryan-style hero, wholly devoted to his comrades. The characters of Batman/ Bruce Wayne, Iron Man/ Tony Stark, Captain America/ Steve Rogers are attempts to discover a new hero for America. Where will this lead? None of the current heroes have been solid heroes for all of America to get behind. Looking to the future, this genre will most likely continue to search for a single hero to fit the mold of the man or woman that all of America can get behind. Perhaps it will be Spider-Man, the awkward teenager. Perhaps it will be Superman, the super-powerful defender of justice. Or perhaps a new hero will rise to the call of America’s call for a hero. Regardless of which hero rises to the call, we as moviegoers will continue to see these serious superhero films. Perhaps, we can see which hero and which film will accept the great responsibility that comes with the great power of being America’s hero.

The rebirth of the superhero filmby Will Hancock

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3COMMENTARY

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by Makayla Holt

PT’s lunch lines: two is better than one As we’re all aware, a few new rules and changes have recently been presented in the Blue Room. The double lunch line in the Blue Room that we became ac-customed to earlier this year at Paducah Tilgh-man has been replaced by a new one-line pro-cess. Whether or not this was meant to speed things up or satisfy our hunger in a more effi-cient process, it doesn’t seem to be improving anything at all. Accord-ing to most students, the new arrangement has only made their lives more complicated, and many students are leav-ing the cafeteria hungry on a daily basis. A large amount of our lunch pe-riod is being taken up just standing in line for food, leaving little to no time to actually eat. “Things moved a lot quicker when there were two lines,” says Matt Moore (11). Not to mention, it seems unfair that the students who have a class far from the lunch room have to be in the back of the line every day. These students don’t have the same advantage as those who have class closer to the lunch room.

Basically, there are only two options for those in the back of the line: 1) to eat the cold, picked-over food that has probably been tossed around and man-handled,

or 2) to not eat at all, go-ing to class hungry and in a bad mood. Obviously, neither option seems ap-pealing. What could be done, then, to improve this desolate situation? Tilgh-man needs to reinstate the two-line system, but while we’re at it, it could be made even better by adding a separate register to handle the second line. This would speed up the entire process by serving twice as many students in the same amount of time. In a lunch that is less than thirty minutes, every ex-tra second that students

can spend eating instead of waiting in line is highly appreciated. As a student body, it is time to speak up. We need the two lunch lines again. Until then, students can do their part and have their badges and money in order when they get to the register. For now, here’s to the kids that get stuck at the back of the line every day!

On the list of things that high school students should already know but somehow don’t, one item heav-ily outweighs the others: basic grammar skills. “But what’s even the point of knowing grammar?” a preco-cious sixteen-year-old asks with a self-satisfied smirk. “It’s not like we’re ever going to actually use it in our real lives.” This apathetic attitude towards grammar seems to be the norm in the vast majority of teenag-ers, a mindset only magnified by society’s growing overreliance on technology. In a world dominated by spellcheck and autocorrect, what’s even the point of wasting your time and energy learning comma-related knowledge? One word: communication. Whether your primary mode of communication is by talking, texting, or tweeting, a general understanding of the basic con-cepts of English grammar is necessary in order to com-municate fully and maturely. So, here it is: a brief sum-mary of basic grammar rules that you honestly should have learned by now:

You’re/Your This is easily the most prevalent and most infuri-ating grammar mistake that people make. So, people of Tilghman, listen hard and listen close: “you’re” is a contraction of the words “you” and “are,” while “your” is possessive. “Your grammar mistakes highlight the fact that you’re lazy and/or ignorant” would be an ex-cellent example of both forms being used in a single sentence.

Affect/Effect In regards to this troublesome pair, keep this rule of thumb in mind: “affect” is always a verb while “effect” is usually a noun. For example, “This book affected the way I view the world” and “One of the effects of the book was to influence my worldview” would be an example of using both words in similar sentences.

There/Their/They’re I’m pretty sure that this is the most heavily enforced English lesson of first grade, so by now you have no excuse. “There” means a place, “their” is possessive, and “they’re” is a contraction of the words “they” and “are.”

A Lot“A lot,” as in, having a lot of something, is two separate words. If you’ve ever wondered why that squiggly red line appears under “alot,” now you know!

To/Too Once again, this is another oft-forgotten elementary school grammar lesson. “To” is a preposition, used to link words in a sentence, like in, “Let’s go to the game!” “Too” is used as a synonym for “as well” or “also.” For example, “I want to go to the game, too!”

Basic Spelling People on the Internet come up with VERY creative ways to spell the word “definitely.” “Defiantly” is a completely different word, and “definantly” isn’t even a word. All you have to do is add an –ly to the end of the word “definite!” It’s not that hard.

Other commonly misspelled words include judgment (there’s only one ‘e’), curiosity (there is only one ‘u’), and separate (the letter after ‘p’ should be an ‘a’, not an ‘e’). Don’t just rely on autocorrect or spellcheck to fix your mediocre spelling. While doing so is certainly tempting, an overreliance on technology will only hurt oneself in the long run.

Subjunctive Mood If you are stating a wish or desire of doubtful plausi-bility, you must use a different, specific verb tense and mood: the past tense in the subjunctive mood. Believe it or not, it’s much simpler than it sounds. It mostly af-fects the verb “to be” when it follows the word “if,” as in, “If I were you, I’d try harder in school.” Because the speaker is proposing a hypothetical situation (denoted by the word “if”), the subjective “were” would be the proper verb choice. In other words, saying “If I was you…” in pretty much any context is wrong. Musical artists screw this up ALL of the time, further cementing both their own ineptitude and the ignorance of their en-tire following. Justin Bieber’s popular (and extremely grating) hit “Boyfriend” is a prime example of the oft-ignored past subjunctive tense. Grammatically speak-ing, the chorus of that song should begin with, “If I were your boyfriend” rather than, “If I was your boy-friend.” But don’t worry, America, we can always just blame Canada for Bieber’s incompetence.

Semicolons, Colons, and Dashes—oh my! It is really easy to misuse this complex trifecta. Semi-colons are used primarily for two reasons: to connect related clauses that could otherwise stand alone and to make more detailed lists. “My favorite food is chicken; in fact, I like most types of poultry” and “Someday, I would like to visit Rome, Italy; Paris, France; and Vienna, Austria” would be examples of both used cor-rectly in a sentence. Colons, however, are mainly used to direct attention to a connected idea that could not stand alone as its own sentence. Here’s an example of a colon used properly in a sentence: “Lunch at Tilghman lacks two things: enough tables for sitting and enough time for eating.” Dashes are probably the most con-fusing of these three punctuation marks, as their rules aren’t nearly as defined. Their most common purpose is to set of material in a sentence for emphasis when a comma would not suffice. For example, “The chores that I must do after school—washing the dishes, walk-ing the dog, and cleaning my room—will not take too long.” Admittedly, the territories of these three punctuation marks often overlap, so a good rule of thumb in regards to using them all in a paper would be, “Less is more.”

The whole purpose of grammar is to facilitate writ-ten and verbal communication in the easiest, most ef-fective way possible. Mixing up “your” and “you’re” is not just highlighting your own laziness—it is marking you as ignorant and incapable of basic communication. While the complexities of the English language may seem downright ridiculous at times, holding a working knowledge of grammar basics is necessary to facilitate communication—even in the modern, technologically advanced world.

Know you’re grammarby Catherine Miller

Is flopping harming sports?

by Miles Butler

Flopping is a topic that has been widely de-bated for several years now, especially in bas-ketball and soccer. Flopping is when a player falls down on purpose with little or no contact from the opposing player. This can give the illusion to the referee that a foul has occurred when in reality, there was no foul at all, just a good acting job. Is flopping a “part of the game” or is it a fake and cheap tactic? Flopping is certainly a part of the game. If a player does a good enough acting job to convince the referee that there was a foul on the play, he has earned the foul call. It is the referee’s job to determine if a foul has been committed, and a referee is not easily fooled. Tricking them is often a very difficult feat. The NBA has established new rules that can allow for players to be fined tens of thousands of dollars for flopping. This is simply absurd! I believe that players should only be punished if they are caught in the act. However, I do not feel like fining them is necessary. If a player is caught flopping, he should be given a foul. Since a player in the NBA only has 6 fouls to give before being out for the rest of the game, this would make flopping much more of a risk. However, if the referee doesn’t catch the player flop, then no punishment whatsoever should be issued to the player. Flopping is also a big deal in soccer. There have been countless players who have been kicked out of games when they never even made contact with the opposing player. This happens when an opposing player does such a great acting job that he even fools a trained referee into thinking there was a foul. Again, I do think a player should receive a minor pun-ishment, such as a foul, if caught flopping. However, no punishment should be given if the player did a good enough job to fool a referee. Tilghman soccer player Jake Humphrey (11) shares my opinion of flopping. “Flopping is an art. It takes a special talent in order to do it suc-cessfully,” Humphrey said. Jake and I under-stand, unlike most people, that flopping is not an easy thing to do. Those that have mastered the art should not be penalized for doing so. While some say that flopping should come to an end in sports, it should and will continue to be an interesting part of games for years to come. Although some say that it is cheap and fake, flopping can be hard to differentiate from a real foul or real contact and certainly takes real skill.

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4 NEWS

NEWS

Calendar & News Briefs

The PTHS Mock Trial Team will be attending State competition on March 8th-9th. Good luck, Mock Trial!

The PTHS Speech and De-bate Team will be attend-ing State competition on March 14th-16th. Good luck,

Speech Team!

The Boys’ Regional Basket-ball tournament will begin on February 25th, followed by the Girl’s Regional Bas-ketball tournament begin-ning on the 27th. Be sure to cheer on our players at Murray State University

on their road to State!

The first PTHS Varsity Tennis match is on March 7th against Murray High School at home. Come

cheer them on!

The first PTHS Track and Field meet is on March 12th at Marshall County. Good

luck, Track and Field!

The first PTHS Varsity Softball game will on March 15th in Pope County,

IL. Good luck!

The first PTHS Varsity Baseball game will be on March 7th vs. Carlisle High School at home. Come cheer them on at 5 P.M.!

Juniors will be taking the ACT

on March 5th.

8th Grade Transition Night will be on

March 21st.

Commentary pgs. 2, 3News pgs. 1, 4

Features pgs. 5, 6, 8A&E pgs. 9, 10

Sports pgs. 11, 12

Index

Interest

Guidance

Sports

The Tilghman Bell would like to congratulate Ka-mari Turnley on being selected as the February Ro-tary Scholar. As a guest of the local Rotary Club, Turn-ley will join other selected seniors to meet Rotary mem-bers and actively participate in and learn about rel-evant community

affairs. Scholars have the opportunity to listen to the guest speakers that the Rotary Club invites to the weekly meetings and mingle with community leaders. When asked about being selected as a Rotary Scholar, Kamari stated, “It is an honor that they chose me and I enjoyed the opportu-nity to meet influential people in Paducah.” Kamari is a member of the Concert, Pep, and Marching Bands, Na-tional Honor Society, Beta Club, and Spanish Club. After high school, Kamari plans to attend the University of Kentucky and become an anesthesiologist.

Turnley selected as February’sRotary Scholar

by Cole Spicer

Photo by Will Smith

Every week, the Paducah Sun chooses one senior from a local high school to feature on the front page for their academic accom-plishments, community service, and leadership. The Bell would like to congratulate Tilghman’s Victoria Potter and for being se-lected as Teen of the Week for the week of January 21st, 2013 and Brock Sigler for being selected as Teen of the Week for the week of February 11th, 2013. Victoria is involved in Speech,

Mock Trial, Tennis, Cheerleading, Student Council, National Honor Society, and Beta Club, as well as various out-of-school activities. Pot-ter has been accepted and plans to at-tend Vanderbilt University in the fall, hopefully majoring in engineering. Brock is a part of National Honor Society, Student Council, Beta Club, Mock Trial, Tennis, and Soccer. He plans to attend the University of Ken-tucky this fall to follow a pre-medical curriculum. He said, “I was honored that I could represent Tilghman.”

Potter and Sigler chosen as Teens of the Weekby Jacob Blankenship and Andrew Zaninovich

Photo by Will Smith Photo by Savanna Whelan

Paducah Tilghman sophomore Madison Wurth has been selected to be one of two Kentucky representatives to the Na-tional Environmental Youth Summit in Wash-ington, D.C. this summer. Madison was selected as one of 250 teens from across the nation to attend this week-long summit in the Capital, where she will take part in seminars, work on projects, and visit the National Zoo and Aquarium. Madison told the Bell that she discovered this National Summit through the mail, and, after researching it online, applied. Wurth says that “It’s a huge honor just to be accepted,” and that she’s excited to visit the nation’s capital. Madison hopes to use this experience to expand her future oppor-tunities. Madison agrees that the Summit will, “look good on college applications,” which she hopes will help her in two years. Once she’s in college, Madison plans to study marine biology, and hopes to work as a marine biologist or environmental scientist. According to Madison, “This would be a first step toward that goal.”

Wurth represents Kentucky at National Summit

by Will Hancock

PTHS Interact Club receives charter from Paducah Rotary Club

The PTHS Interact Club received a Rotary International Charter at the Rotary Club of Paducah’s January 30th meeting. Mckenzi Belt, the PTHS Interact Club’s President, accepted the charter from Sandra My-ers, the District Interact Chair. The Rotary Inter-national Charter makes the PTHS Interact Club a certified organization and a part of the Rotary Club. The requirements to receive the Rotary Inter-national Charter were at least 15 members, a local Rotary Club sponsor, and local and international service projects. The

PTHS Interact Club has around 25 members and has participated in multiple service projects. Service projects this year include writing letters to soldiers on active duty during the holiday season, sorting toys for the Salvation Army, and helping with a drop-off for victims of Hurricane Sandy. When asked about the club, Mr. Rich said, “I am honored to be a faculty advisor for such a worthwhile organization.” The PTHS Interact Club officers for the 2012-2013 school year are President Mckenzie Belt, Vice President Miles Butler, Secretary Cassie Arboleda, Treasurer Meredith Morris, and Board Member Mad-die Morris.

Lopez contributes to contest for the deaf

Photo by Will Smith

Photo provided by Interact Club

Photo by Will Smith

by Cole Spicer

The Tilghman Bell would like to congratulate Jessica Lopez on her contribution to the travelling blue horse of the 2012 Student Art Con-test for deaf students in Kentucky! The horse, a collaborative piece of artwork, has contributions from various deaf students from around the state. Tilghman’s own Jessica Lopez contributed a poem and an illustration of flowers and angels on the horse’s neck. Lopez says that she was inspired by a picture of a flower, which led not only to her depictions of angels and flowers, but also her poem. Her poem follows the theme of the competition, “every word mat-ters.” Lopez’s take on this theme is expressed in her poem and her beautiful depictions, as “a picture is worth a thousand words.” The blue horse covered in similar pieces of artwork will visit the schools of all the contributors, stopping in Tilghman during the week of February 19-22. The horse will travel to Bowling Green next.

by Will Hancock

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5FEATURESA Day in the Life of Mr. Stacey Overlin

Tips to help you survive the third quarter

Just call me Dear Abby...

by Sabel Overlin

by Megan Cantwell and Avery Harriman

You know the people we’re talking about. You can recognize them by that knowing smirk they wear as they walk down the hallway, planning the weddings of random strangers, or when they suddenly stop talking in the middle of conversation as they realize they know who your soul mate is and must decide where the proposal will take place. They always get angry whenever you try to set them up with someone, but they have no qualms about setting you up with the entire student body. These are the confessions of a matchmaker… I started the morning by updating my wedding blog – it’s never too ear-ly to plan for the future, especially when the future is inevitable. And by the inevitable future, I mean the unavoidable wedding of my best friend. Our first hour begins by observing closely how she breathes around her designated match. Breathing status: normal. Is her face flushed? Slightly. It must mean love. Time to investigate further. Second hour mainly consisted of holding up fabric swatches and com-paring them with her complexion. I had just decided on green when she saw me and shook her head. She’s right – blue would look much better with the groom. I hazarded a very subtle glance towards her future hus-band. She hit me and told me to stop staring at him with a creepy grin. He raised his eyebrows in confusion. They’d be perfect together. After two classes of no progress, it was time to take action. I waited until I saw her designated love walking down the hallway, unaware, to enact my plan. By my plan, of course, I mean shoving her into him with deadly force. It worked out just like a scene from The Notebook. He captured her in his arms… then dropped her along with all her books. We need to work on that. After a day full of romantic success (and death glares from my best friend), I printed off the seating arrangement for their wedding and pulled out my old romance novels for more ideas. Locking them in a room with-out food and water until they confess their love for each other? Maybe next time.

1st quarter has the novelty of back to school. 2nd quarter leads up to Christmas break. 4th quarter is the end of the year. The 3rd quarter leaves us bored, slacking, and longing for a break. We’re starting to get up a few minutes later each morning, wearing sweatpants more often than we’d like to admit, and putting off even the easiest assignments. Students walk around complaining about how useless school will be whenever they become (insert unattainable profession here), and teachers are starting to say, “This just won’t cut it in (insert your next grade level here).” Follow these steps to make it through 3rd quarter limbo until summer break is in sight. Start Summer Scheduling-Right now summer break seems to be a far off, mystical time. We might make it, we might not. However, if you go ahead and start planning vacations/jobs/activities now, you will realize just how soon summer really is. Though it might not feel like it right now, summer vacation will be here before you know it. Get outside-When the sky is a consistent grey, the temperature is dropping into the teens, and there are no outdoor sports going on, it’s the last thing anyone wants to do. Going for a quick walk around the block, however, can revive and refresh you on a day where homework is the last thing you want to do. Remember, exercise gives you endorphins, and endorphins make you happy. Go to Sleep-At this point in the year, students wear their late nights as merit badges, when really this is when we need sleep the most. It may seem like a good

idea to stay up to the point where an entire night’s sleep is really more of a long nap, but you will always regret it in the morning. Get back on a normal sleep cycle by going to sleep at a reasonable hour to avoid being a grouch the next day. Be Pleasant-Instead of sulking in class, huffing whenever tests are scheduled, and back-talking when getting swept, try just being pleasant. It might not seem like it, but teachers are probably ready to get out of school, too. You’re not impressing any teachers by being grouchy, so you might as well give it a rest. Avoid Clichés-Yes, we all know you hate Mondays, have senioritis, are so tired, and are ready to get out of this “stupid school.” Crazy thing is, the rest of us feel the same way. Save your breath and avoid annoying everyone within earshot by not complaining about obvious nuisances. Chances are no one cares. Be thankful-During the third quarter, we all start to slack a little. Why would you do that math assignment when you could take a nap after school? However, with such a long quarter, procrastinators should be rejoicing. This means more time to make up for those awful early quarter grades and to fish out that missing assignment floating around in your backpack that you just know you’ll clean out sometime this weekend. Even though some of these steps might seem impossible right now, make them a habit and they will come more easily to you. Try to incorporate just a few of these tips into your routine to make the rest of the year a bit more bearable.

Confessions of the perpetual matchmaker

by Sabel Overlin

Dear Abby, My parents really want me to attend the University of Kentucky to major in engineering. This is what my father did and now what my sister has decided to do, but it is just not for me. What should I say to them? I don’t want to crush their dreams for me.Sincerely, Frazzled about College

Dear Frazzled about College, First and foremost, I think it is very important to pursue studies that are compatible with your interests. Your parents may be a little disappointed, but this is your future and they will understand. If there is anything your parents do not want, it is for you to be unhappy with what you have chosen to do with the rest of your life. Deciding what to do with your life after high school is the first real decision you make on your own; it is important to take into consid-eration others’ opinions, but ultimately the decision is yours—even if they don’t approve. You should explain to them that maybe their expectations of you were unrealistic and now you simply feel trapped by this obligation they have put on you. Remind them that college is a time to trust you to remember everything they have taught you to get you ready to go out into the world. Make peace with your parents, though; they will eventually accept and respect your change in academic focus. It is very important to stand behind the people you care about, even when you don’t completely agree with their choices.

XOXO,

ACT WorkshopTeachers: Kelly Walden and

Reigh Anne SeifertMarch 2, 9, 16, 23

$250Call or Text 559-1467 for info.

Surprising as it may be, Mr. Overlin is not always the straight-laced assistant principal you see at school. Sure, he might badger you at school about loitering in the hallways, blatant PDA, or not having your badge, but at home he is really just like anyone else’s dad. A typical morning for Mr. Overlin begins at 5:30 with a cup of coffee and CNN. After waking up a bit, he lets his puppy, Piper, out. Piper is a mischievous black beagle mix that he adopted from the Humane Society last summer. Since joining the family in June, our resident demon hound has destroyed three leashes, demolished an entire bedspread, and required us to build a fence in the backyard. By 6:45, every-one is out of the house and headed to school. Mr. Overlin and his favorite child, Sabel, head to Tilgh-man while listening to either the Sirius XM ESPN channel or 80’s on 8. By 6:50, Mr. Overlin is already in his office and ready to start his busy schedule. While at school, Mr. Overlin is usually working to get students col-lege ready, going to meetings concerning curriculum, benchmarks, and student achievement, and giving tours to prospective students. He works with the Central Office to make sure that Tilghman students continue to excel academically and prepare for their future. After a long day at work, Mr. Overlin is always ready to get home. By about 3:15, Mr. Overlin is usually back at the house ready to help with homework, take Piper on a walk, or sometimes take a power nap. Around 6:00, he is ready to make some type of manly man dinner. His favorites are burgers, steak,

meatloaf, or most anything else fea-turing meat. After dinner, the fam-ily usually watches some TV show together. It is usually “Walking Dead,” college football, or “House of Anubis.” Above all else, though, would be “Duck Dynasty.” While Mr. Overlin appreciates all the char-acters, he feels a real connection with the insightful redneck, Jase. On the weekends, you can usually find him tinkering in his hand-built construction workshop, at the Dog Park, working in the yard, or just hanging out around the house. Some may not realize this, but Mr. Overlin is a Tilghman graduate himself. He graduated in the class of 1987 and was named Mr. Tilgh-man. While he was here, Mr. Over-lin played offensive line on the foot-ball team, was named an All-State player, and threw shot put and dis-cus. After graduating, he majored in Political Science at the United States Naval Academy, where he

also played on the football and rugby teams. Later, he got his Master’s degree from Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio. Before he became assistant principal, Mr. Overlin has taught Biology, Physics, and Psychology and also coached football at Tilghman.

Assistant Principal Overlin sits at his desk in the Guidance Office. Photo by Will Smith.

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LOOK-A-LIKESby Savanna Whelan and Will Smith

This Month in Historyby Will Hancock

Try some red velvet white chocolate chip cookies

by Emily Whitson and Margaret Hines

Need a way to satisfy your sweet tooth? These delicious morsels should do the trick. These cookies are unique in the fact that they have a red velvet base with just a hint of white choc-olate! This perfect combination will have your mouth watering from the moment you take them out of the oven. Plus, what is better than chocolate chip cookies and red velvet cake?

Ingredients:•1 ½ cups flour •2 ½ Tbsp cocoa powder•1 tsp cornstarch•¾ tsp baking powder•¼ tsp salt•½ cup granulated sugar•1 tsp distilled white vinegar •1 large egg•1 ½ tsp vanilla extract•1 ½ tsp red food coloring•¾ cup white chocolate chips, divided

Directions:1.Preheat oven to 375 degrees.2.In a bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.3.In a mixer, whip together butter, sugar, and vinegar until pale and puffy, or for about 3 to 4 minutes. 4.Mix in the egg, vanilla extract, and red food coloring until thoroughly blended. 5.Slowly add in the dry ingredients from step 2. 6.Mix in the white chocolate chips.7.Scoop dough out and shape into balls. 8.Transfer to Silpat or parchment paper lined baking sheets.9.Bake in preheated oven for 9-11 minutes. 10.Allow them to cool on cookie sheet before transferring to wire rack to cool. 11.Eat up! Source: http://www.cookingclassy.com/2012/08/red-velvet-white-chocolate-chip-cookies/

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On February 2nd, 1848, the United States and Mexico signed the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, which formally ended the Mexican-American War. This treaty included the cession of Califor-nia, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, and parts of Nevada to the U.S. from Mexico. The Mexican-American War saw repeated American victories, from names both old – including Revolutionary War hero Winfield Scott—and new—including future Civil War Generals Robert E. Lee and Ulysses S. Grant. The treaty would win America most of the southwest, from the Rio Grande to California. On February 11th, 2011, former Egyptian dictator Hosni Mubarak stepped down from his position as President of Egypt. Mubarak had held the position of President since 1981, when his predecessor, Anwar Sadat, was assassinated. Mubarak continued to rule Egypt until the Arab Spring in 2011. Following 18 days of protests in Tahrir Square, Cairo, Mubarak stepped down to a military coalition. Those juniors who took Mrs. Hayden’s AP Human Geography class two years ago will remember the day the news arrived that he resigned. Mubarak’s peaceful removal from power was in stark contrast to the removals of Bashar Al-Assad and Muammar Gaddafi in Syria and Libya. Mubarak is still alive, on life support after he suffered a stroke. On February 14th, 1929, Al Capone and his gang members, impersonating police officers, captured seven members of his rival gang, the North Side Irish. The Capone Gang members then opened fire on their captured rivals with machine guns, killing all seven. This “Saint Valentine’s Day Massacre” was in retaliation for the North Side Irish gang’s attempts to hijack the bootleg-ging empire that Capone had built in Chicago. On February 15th, 1898, the USS Maine was sunk in the harbor of Havana, Cuba. The USS Maine was sent to Havana in order to evacuate American citizens from the increasing violence of the Cuban Revolution against their Spanish overlords. According to Spanish newspapers, the explosion was caused by a faulty boiler on the Maine. According to American newspapers, how-ever, the explosion was caused by a Spanish torpedo. This incident would ultimately spark the Spanish-American War, which put America on the plane of the major world powers

Any person born on February 29th is practically immortal. As ev-eryone else ages normally, they age four times slower than the average human. Those babies born last year on the 29th may not be a year old yet, but they have so much time to grow old. One “human year” is practically no time at all for these super humans. The science behind the age powers these infants receive is simple. Each year is not 365 days long, but is actually closer to 365.242 days. While that may not seem like very much, it adds almost six extra hours to each year. According to CBC News, a leap year helps to make sure a shift in weather does not happen to our calendars because of these extra hours. Without leap years, our calendar would eventually fall out of sync with the seasonal weather conditions. In 100 years, our calendar would be nearly 24 days off, and before we knew it, we’d be seeing winter-like conditions in July, and there would be warm, sunny Decembers—and I know how much we enjoy our white Christmases. This natural orbit the earth has with a few extra hours per year makes a not-so-natural phenomenon happen. The thousands of super humans born are lucky people. They may have the same number of birthdays we have, but quadruple the amount of time to experience the world. We all should envy them for the extra time they get to have on this beautiful planet.

An ode to leap year babies

by Alex Boyd

Cristiano Ronaldo Jesus Espinoza (10)

The Hobbit Eli Noneman (10)

Kate Walsh Katie Paxton (12)

Senior year proves to bemost stressful year of all What is the most stressful part of high school? Deciding on a college! High school seniors spend the majority of their senior year deciding what school they want to attend in the fall, and as if that decision isn’t hard enough, there are about one million different scholarships to take into account. Between juggling applications to schools, narrowing down your choices, and praying that you qualify for some grant money, seniors also have to balance their current school work with their social life. Needless to say, senior year can be kind of hectic. When considering different universities, some things to contemplate include the size of the school (do you want big or small) and your financial situation (this is where your scholarships come into play). Location is also an important thing to think about. Do you want to be far from home or near? Do you like the city? Also, if you happen to be an overachiever and have already selected a major, you need to make sure the schools you are considering offer the right courses for your major. Once you have committed and the big decision has been made, you feel as if the weight of the world has been lifted from your scrawny senior shoulders.Wait—you aren’t done yet! The next step is to apply for housing. And yes, that means yet another application. After you have submitted this application, it is time to find your brand new roomie. Luckily for you, most universities offer many resources to help you connect with prospective roommates. The colleges themselves ask you things like: do you like to go to bed early or late, and do you like to keep things neat and or-derly? These are to help you find a roommate who is most suited to your lifestyle. Nobody wants to live with someone that they will hate. The rest is up to fate; pray you don’t get a psycho! All in all, senior year is a wonderful experience that you should enjoy to the fullest, but it can be a little chaotic, especially with the stress of picking out a college. Remember that this decision is just a one-time thing, so be sure to relax. Take a deep breath—it will all be okay!

by Audrey Withrow and Emily Whitson

Jordyn Wieber Millie Wyant (10)

The Target Dog Jordan Kendall (11)

Sources: biography.com; imaxmelbourne.com; zimbio.com; howmuchdotheyweigh.com; dnainfo.com. Photos by Will Smith

Source: thehistoryplace.org

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For four years we call it our home. Each morning that we walk through the front doors here at PTHS, we are making history. We come to study and grow as students, to prac-tice, to make life long friends, and to make a future for ourselves. We come to grow as indi-viduals and prepare for our next steps in life. Academically, we’re on the top. Our percent of students entering college averages 62.3%, compared to our state average of 52.9%. Ask us if we work hard? Yes. Ask if we have fun? Of course, we do. Ask if we love our school? We wouldn’t want to be enrolled anywhere else. Every year we continue to grow, proving not only to the state, but state-wide and far-ther, that we are the best. They ask us what’s our motivation. What’s our answer? Tradi-tion. It’s crazy to consider all of the history we have behind us. Our high school received its name from Augusta Tilghman, the wife of General Lloyd Tilghman, an officer in the Confederate Army. The founding of the school in itself gives us a strong foundation and “a name to remember.” In 1919, as a memorial to their parents, the sons of General Tilghman erected a statue of their father in Paducah and gave the city $20,000 to buy a site for a high school in memory of their mother. As a result, Augusta Tilghman was opened on September 19th, 1921. That was only the beginning. As Paducah began to grow, the need for a new school arose. Under Mr. Mark Scully, Superintendent of Schools, and with the help of Mr. Walter Jetton, a new school was on the way at 2400 Washington Street. Thanks to Dr. Ralph W. Osborne, Superintendent of Schools, the cornerstone was laid for the pres-ent Paducah Tilghman High School in 1955. Later, the Memorial Stadium was added onto the campus of Paducah Tilghman, which to-day still contributes to the lives of those as-sociated with Tilghman. In 1960, Mr. George Crounse donated half the cost of a quar-ter mile track. In 1965, the combiniation of Paducah Tilghman High School and Lincoln High School produced the first complete in-tegration of city schools in Paducah. A little later, in 1996, a new wing of classrooms lo-cated above the cafeteria was completed. Also during the year of 1966, the Tilghman Area Trade School was opened. Principal Walter C. Jetton’s name is legendary for the perfection he expected of both teachers and students. Through this man, Tilghman’s reputation for achievement, scholarship, success, and dedi-cation was developed. Is that not something to be proud of or what? Over the years, Tilghman has built its repu-tation upon hard work, dedication, teamwork, diversity, and success. We are based on a tra-dition of excellence, from sports to academ-ics. Our fans are unbelievable and support us to the top every year! State titles, star athletes, and future pro players make up our teams. Every one of our coaches could get an entire arena motivated easily; that’s how our players get their steam and confidence. Together, as a team, they give meaning to the name “PT.” On an ordinary day walking to lunch, we are surrounded by pictures which honor some of the most valued alumni that have become leaders of our state and country. By admiring their resumes, we can find encouragement and motivation to build our own characters through high school. That’s why we’re here anyway: to find out who we are and to get ready for the real world that we will soon be living in on our own. There’s no doubt that Paducah Tilghman High School is the perfect example of the “Tradition of Excellence.” Walking down the hallways, you can see that within Tilghman is a diverse group of kids who come from dif-ferent ethnicities and who have extremely dif-ferent backgrounds and cultures, but who be-friend one another and come together to make our school diverse. It doesn’t matter where you come from or who you are; everyone is a piece of our puzzle. Paducah Tilghman High School will always be considered a home to the Tornado, and we will forever bleed blue and white. One day, being a Tilghman alumni will be an honor, so why not leave a mark here? Pride and a tradition; it’s a Tilghman thing. Always be proud to be a Tornado.Source: Paducah City Schools homepage

Paducah Tilghman’s National Honor Society took a trip on Saturday, February 9th to the Project Hope Humane Society in Metropolis, Illinois, to do some volunteer work. The first group of students arrived at 8 in the morning and went right to work. NHS members helped clean out over 20 litter boxes and swept and mopped the floors of the main areas as well as those of the cat and dog rooms. The animals’ food and water bowls were then washed and put out again.

After all of the chores were done, the students were then allowed to play with the animals outside and keep them entertained. The next shift of NHS members made sure to keep the facilities clean and tidy and check to see that the animals’ bowls were full with food and clean water before they could play with the dogs and cats. Volunteers were also told the background stories for

some of the animals who reside in the shelter. Uno, a loving Beagle from the shelter, is missing an eye, and he is one of the lucky ones. Some of the animals have been abused, some were abandoned, and others were taken from meth labs or puppy farms. Three dogs at the shelter are gunshot victims. However, not all of the animals have been victims of cruelty; some are simply strays who need a home. The Project Hope Humane Society is a no kill shelter and can be very costly to maintain. Every donation helps, no matter how small. NHS is encouraging students to make donations or adopt one of the many sweet animals in desperate need of a loving home. Volunteers are always welcome at the shelter. To contact Project Hope, visit their website at www.projecthopeanimalshelter.com or call (618) 524-8939.

Proud to be a Tornado

It’s that time of year when everyone starts to get lonely. Valentine’s Day has rolled around, and while the couples have flaunted their love and happiness, those not so lucky are left by themselves with their laptops. While all your friends in relationships are cuddled up with their sweetie, you feel like you are alone with no one to hold. What you need is a new friend to pick you up, someone who will be loyal, a great snuggle buddy, and who will also listen to what you say. What you need is a dog. Dogs are great companions who will surely brighten up the spirits of even the saddest person. However, how are you to know what kind of dog is best for you? Take this simple quiz to find out!

1) Are you allergic to dogs or other furry animals? a) Yes b) No2) Do you even want a dog? a) Yes b) No3) What size do you want your dog to be? a) Tiny--I want it to fit in my handbag. b) Somewhat small—I want it to be small enough to pick up, but not so small that I worry I’ll squash it. c) Medium--Not too big or too small. You know, Goldilocks-size. d) Large--I want a playful dog that can match my running speed. e) BIG--I want people to mistake my dog for a horse.4) Are you the type who always wants the newest, freshest thing, or are you forever in pursuit of a good bargain? a) Newest and best. It might cost a bit more, but I want the finest. b) Bargain. The budget’s tight, but I can always find something that fits the bill.5) When getting ice cream, do you go for a single flavor or a swirl of two flavors? a) Just a single flavor. I like to keep it simple and know exactly what I have. b) Swirl. I like to mix it up for a funky fresh variety!

1) If you answered “a,” a dog would not be a good idea for you. A cute furry friend is not worth having an allergic reac-tion. However, there are some breeds that are considered to be acceptable for allergy sufferers, like the Maltese, Poodle, and Portuguese water dog (the Obama family has one named Bo!). If you are still leery, try a scaly pet like a fish or an iguana. If you answered “b,” read on.2) If “a” was your choice, then a dog is really not a good idea for you. If you are just not a dog person, there are many other pets that can give you the same joy as a dog. A cat is a perfect companion, but prepare for it to climb all over you while you’re working and for it to look at you with condescension. A fish can be a great pet, but it will not be able to run around and play with you like a canine. If you answered “b,” read on.3) If you answered “a,” there are many toy-size breeds to suit your fancy. You could try a classic like the Chihuahua or a less-known breed such as the Dandie Dinmont Terrier. If you chose “b,” a West Highland White Terrier (commonly called a Westie) or a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel would fit your needs quite nicely. If “c” was your selection, a mid-size breed such as the traditional Beagle or the New Guinea Singing Dog would make the perfect companion. If you picked “d,” a big dog such as a Collie or a Panda Shepherd will be the best bet for you. Finally, if you answered “e,” the majesty of a Bloodhound or a Landseer would be perfect for you.4) If you picked “a,” you would have the best luck finding the dog of your dreams from a professional dog breeder. Their prices will be high, but the quality and care of their dogs is worth the price. Before buying, however, go online and re-search the breeder to make sure that he or she has a good reputation and does not mistreat their animals. Some puppy mills are known to keep dogs in horrid conditions and produce puppies almost like a factory. If you answered “b,” turn to your local animal shelters to find your perfect pet. They have a good variety of dogs in need of loving homes, and their adoption fees are relatively low. Try the McCracken County Animal Shelter close to the mall or Project Hope, a no-kill shelter across the river in Metropolis.5) If you chose “a,” a pureblood dog is the best for you. These dogs are 100% pure, meaning they are just one breed (think Draco Malfoy from Harry Potter, but without the hate). If “b” was your choice, a mixed-breed dog would be perfect for you. These dogs are a mix of two or more breeds, such as a Labradoodle, a mix between a Labrador and a poodle. I hope this quiz has helped to identify the perfect pet for you. If you do decide to adopt a new animal, make sure to provide the proper food, water, and other necessities for your pet. Go out and fall in love with a furry friend today!

Find the perfect furry friend!by Lilly Burba

For those of you who have been living under a rock your whole life and don’t know what St. Patrick’s Day is, here is all you need to know. We celebrate St. Patrick’s Day on March 17th every year, the anniversary of St. Patrick’s death. It is also called the Feast of St. Patrick, Patrick’s Day, or Patty’s Day. It is generally characterized by church services, wearing green, parades, etc. Also, all those three-leaved clovers that everyone loves actually represent the Holy Trinity. You may ask, what’s with all the green? Well, I’ll tell you! Originally, blue was the color associated with the day be-cause, quite honestly, it’s just what he preferred. Over the years, shamrocks were worn in honor of Saint Patrick. Eventu-ally, in addition to the shamrocks, people wore/decorated with green ribbon or anything they could find, but the real reason for the change was Ireland. Everything about Ireland is green. Wear green or be pinched—you’ve been warned! Now, let me tell you about THE Saint Patrick, national patron saint of Ireland. He is credited for bringing Christianity to Ireland; the Irish have celebrated this holiday for over 1,000 years. Saint Patrick described himself as a "most humble-minded man, pouring forth a continuous paean of thanks to his Maker for having chosen him as the instrument whereby multitudes who had worshipped idols and unclean things had become the people of God." Source: www.history.com/topics/st-patricks-day

A brief history of March 17th: St. Patrick’s Day

National Honor Society lends a helping paw

Photos by Savanna Whlean

by Makayla Holt

by Emily Whitson

by Audrey Withrow

Source: http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/

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Safe Haven transitions from book to film

Books to read before you graduateby Megan Cantwell, Avery Harriman, and Catherine Miller

Zero Dark Thirty hits homeby Cason Walden

Zero Dark Thirty, directed by Kathryn Big-elow and written by Mark Boal (known for their 2008 hit, The Hurt Locker) follows a team of elite intelligence operatives over a decade as they take part in what is called “the greatest manhunt ever” with one goal in mind: to cap-ture and take out the leader of al-Qaeda, Osama bin Laden. I was a bit skeptical before seeing this mov-ie because of its Call of Duty-esque scenario. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find that much of the movie wasn’t surrounding the Navy S.E.A.L team that actually took out bin Laden, but was more focused on the CIA operatives who were in charge of finding him. This allowed the movie to be more thrilling and suspenseful, with a seemingly perfect combination of dra-matic flair and documentary realism. The movie starts out with a controversial torture scene at a CIA “black site.” Dan (Jason Clarke) is in charge of getting information from a suspected terrorist, often telling him “When you lie, I hurt you.” Even though these torture scenes have been highly criticized for being pro-torture, they are absolutely necessary to the story and obviously not advocating acts of torture. You are quickly introduced to the unlike-

ly hero of Zero Dark Thirty, Maya (Jessica Chastain). As she sits outside the interrogation room, Dan tells her it is okay to watch from the monitor. She decides to go inside and watch instead, despite the obvious discomfort she is feeling. She appears very squeamish at first but quickly becomes numb to the brutality. Beatings, humiliation, and water-boarding prove not to be enough to break the terrorist. Maya eventually figures that brain will beat brawn in this type of situation and resorts to tricking him into reveal-ing information. This guides them to a chain of leads and suspects that help Maya track down the seemingly invisible bin Laden. While it may not look like Maya is capable of dealing with what is necessary in the beginning, through hard work and persistence, Maya proves she is the most dedicated of the team and the most capable person to find bin Laden. With a combination of stellar acting, a thrill-ing plot, and exquisite writing, it is no wonder that Zero Dark Thirty is getting such rave re-views. Having been nominated for 5 Academy Awards and 4 Golden Globes, Zero Dark Thirty is already being referred to as one of the best movies of 2013. I would strongly recommend this film to all moviegoers.

While pretty much everyone has drawn up a Bucket List, we prefer to take a more optimistic view at the slightly nearer future – by thinking about the books we want to read. Here are some books that everyone just needs to read before the point of no return (more com-monly known as graduation). One obvious pick for this list is the Harry Potter series. J.K. Rowling expertly blends adventure, friend-ship, fantasy, romance, and, of course, magic, creating an entire franchise that has put a spell on our genera-tion. While we were never forced to live in a cupboard under our stairs or fight the most evil wizard of the age, these novels remain relatable as they capture Harry as he ages and undergoes some of the same struggles that all teenagers must face. The ultimate dystopian novel before dystopian was cool would be 1984 by George Orwell. His world of mind control and authoritarian governments still en-snares imaginations and the timeless fear of the future. Some other well-known, well-loved dystopian novels are Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World and Ray Brad-bury’s Fahrenheit 451. Speaking of dystopias, The Hunger Games and its two action-packed sequels sparked the love of read-ing in young adults that was lost with the end of Harry Potter. Full of twisting plots and cliffhangers, Suzanne Collins’s trilogy centers on a group of teenagers fight-ing to the death in a government-mandated contest. If you live under a rock and haven’t read the trilogy yet, it would definitely be worth your time. One of the most promising authors in the young adult field, John Green, has already captured the hearts of millions across the world. Green masterfully crafts

novels with likable characters, witty dialogue, and un-contrived circumstances, creating young adult books that are humorous, heart-breaking, and above all, real. His most recent novel, The Fault in Our Stars, has been on the New York Times Best Sellers List for over a year, and his other books include Paper Towns, An Abun-dance of Katherines, and the Printz Award-winning Looking for Alaska. A list of primarily coming-of-age books would not be complete without The Catcher in the Rye, a novel whose protagonist, Holden Caulfield, is a universal symbol of teen angst. Published in 1952, J.D. Salin-ger’s classic remains relevant for today’s teenagers by focusing on timeless adolescent issues like alienation from society and teenage rebellion. Modern coming-of-age novels, like The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky, heavily draw on the themes and style of The Catcher in the Rye. Exactly 200 years ago, Jane Austen published one of the most iconic love stories of all time, Pride and Prejudice, which is about, of course, pride and preju-dice. It still resonates with readers today due to its time-less themes, relatable characters, and the dashing Mr. Darcy. Another heart-warming favorite is The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. Set in Nazi Germany, this novel shows the impact of World War II on young, recently-orphaned Liesel as she interacts with her foster family and neighborhood under the constant threat of death. It is impossible to read this beautifully-written book in its entirety without shedding a tear. Some other books that you definitely shouldn’t go to college without reading are The Adventures of Huckle-

berry Finn, All Quiet on the Western Front, The Great Gatsby, To Kill a Mockingbird, and A Tale of Two Cit-ies, all of which are timeless stories that continue to resonate with audiences today. We’d list more, but if we made a list of all of the books that every high school student should read, it would be the length of an entire book itself.

Photos provided by http://en.wikipedia.org

by Katie Paxton

Every teenage girl has come to know Nicholas Sparks, a New York Times bestselling author of love stories. In the midst of Valentine’s Day, Relativity Me-dia has released a film based on Sparks’s novel Safe Haven. Most movie adaptations lack details from the book that are hard to portray in film. However, screen-writers of the film Safe Haven have managed to change the plot almost completely, manipulating the story into yet another cliché chick flick. In the novel, Katie Fieldman, the protagonist, shows up in the small southern town of Southport, North Car-olina. She has a mysterious past, and locals don’t know much about her. She befriends a neighbor named Jo, whom Katie eventually opens up to about her former life. Katie Fieldman is actually Erin Tierney, a wom-an who has escaped her abusive husband, Kevin. She found Southport to be a “safe haven,” hence the name of the novel. Katie meets a local convenience store owner and widower named Alex Wheatley, eventually forming a relationship with him. She starts to finally let her guard down until Kevin hunts her down, putting her and Alex’s family in danger. The movie has changed many details in this plot that warped the entire story altogether. It begins with

a hasty escape made by Katie with Kevin right on her tail. This is completely opposite of how it takes place in the novel, where Katie meticulously plans her escape over a long period of time. She saves money little by little and buys a cell phone that forwards Kevin’s ob-sessive calls from work when he calls the home phone. She escapes right after he leaves on a business trip, and he doesn’t discover that she’s gone until he returns. In the movie, Katie stabs Kevin before escaping. Noth-ing remotely close to that happens in the novel. Kevin posts a warrant for Katie’s arrest for first degree mur-der, which, again, doesn’t even happen in the novel at all. These are few of many instances of extreme devia-tion from the novel’s plot. Not only is the plot drastically changed, but the por-trayal of the characters is incredibly different as well. The 6-year-old son of Alex, named Josh, is extremely moody in the film. He never smiles and always yells at his dad. In the novel, he is sweet, innocent, and shows affection towards his father. The directors of the movie completely changed his character around in order to add some angst. Alex is angry towards Katie when he finds out about her past and tells her to leave, but in the book he completely understands and doesn’t show

any aggression. Also, despite its attempts, the film fails to accurately depict Katie’s paranoia. She saves half of her money in a coffee jar underneath her house throughout the novel in case she has to make another run for it. She barely talks to anyone and never lets her guard down. In the movie, she opens up to Alex way more quickly than in the novel. They only showed a fraction of her paranoia. The movie also portrays her and Alex’s relationship as overly flirtatious and sen-sual. Their first kiss in the movie is an extremely dra-matic and lustful. In the book, their first kiss is small and sweet. They sleep together after the first date in the movie, but in the book it specifically states that they never slept together. The filmmakers turned a sweet and genuine relationship into something phony. The film completely strips the novel of all substance. Any legitimacy it had is twisted into something cheap and false. If you enjoyed the movie, then you’ll enjoy the novel so much more. The book goes into the story with so much more detail and isn’t a typical, cheesy teen romance novel. The movie, unfortunately, was turned into just that in an attempt to collect money from teenage girls. I highly recommend the book Safe Haven. The movie? Not so much.

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This stunning studio album is a collaboration between singer/song-writer St. Vincent (Annie Clark) and front man/mastermind behind “The Talking Heads,” David Byrne. Released on September 10, 2012 in the UK and a day later in the United States, this album made waves in the indie/alternative music scene. The spark that gave the world this com-pletely unique album fused from David and Annie’s first meeting at an HIV/AIDS Awareness concert in New York. Their work together started strictly with live performances, but when a concert organizer suggested that they do an album together, they agreed that the opportunity was just too good to pass up. Both write and sing their own lyrics in this album, except for “The For-est Awakes,” which Byrne wrote, but Clark sings. The album was com-pleted via e-mail, the only way the artists could communicate regularly. It was Annie’s idea to add the chorus of brass instruments to the album, and she composed all the angelic sounds herself—but what else would you expect from this musical maverick? “Funk grooves” all throughout the album discouraged Bryne from adding his usual personal lyrics to the album, so he instead added to Annie’s “art, music, and nature” theme. The album was well received, getting 77 out of 100 on Metacritic Online. BBC Music’s Jude Clark commented on the album, calling it “a perfect cerebral pop pairing” that “improves and deepens on each listen due to the songwriting and the singers’ voices.” Really, the only negative thing to be said about this album is the lack of Clark’s beautifully haunt-ing, emotion-filled guitar-playing that seems not to stand out as much as on her previous albums. Still, with that being said, Love this Giant is an all-around unique album, which all real music fans would love to have in their collection. Behold, and Love this Giant. Source: http://wikipedia.org

by Amanda Hooker

Sudoku is a game of pure logic. Sudoku is a 9x9 grid in which you must get the numbers 1-9 in each row and each column with no repeats. You must also get the numbers 1-9 in each individual 3x3 grid. For example, in the Sudoku game above, there are only 3 missing numbers in the first column (2, 3, and 6), and the bottom 3x3 grid contains a 2. With this knowledge, we know that the 2 must be placed in the 1st column in the second 3x3 grid down.

Sudoku, brought to you by The Bellby Emily Whitson and Margaret Hines

Love This Giant released to eager St. Vincent fans

Just before 2012 ended, the Xbox Live marketplace reported that a new video game by Swedish design com-pany Mojang surpassed the 5 million copy mark. This game wasn’t one of the blockbuster games that hit the mar-kets last year, like Halo 4, Call of Duty: Black Ops II, and Far Cry 3. Instead, this position went to one of the most un-expectedly successful games of the last few years: Minecraft. Minecraft is a “creation game” that is hard to describe in reference to other video games, but the closest compari-son can be considered the popular Lego toys. In Minecraft, the player is placed in a randomly generated world in which everything is made of blocks: dirt, stone, sand, leaves, and more. The play-ers are able to break the various blocks and use them to build any structures they choose, such as houses, castles, and cities. Minecraft was created in 2009 when Swedish game developer Markus Pers-son decided that the world needed a true creation game. Thus, he created Mine-craft, which he put up for download on the Internet. In 2010, the game drew at-tention, and in 2011 the official game of Minecraft was released to the world. In late 2012, the Xbox 360 version of Minecraft was released. Four months later, over 5 million copies of the Xbox 360 version of Minecraft have been sold. The PC/Apple version has topped 9 million copies so far. The reason for Minecraft’s success is most likely its deceptive simplicity. Accord-ing to Minecraft’s official website, “Minecraft is a game about breaking and placing blocks. At first, people built structures to protect against nocturnal monsters, but as the game grew, players worked together to create wonderful, imaginative things.” This simple game concept has led to some incredible creations. There have been full-scale replicas of the Louvre, Big Ben, the Forbidden City, and even Minas Tirith.

Online, groups of players have banded together to create virtual cities to live in, warring castles, and even entire worlds. Minecraft includes two primary game modes: survival and creative. Survival mode is designed to be a challenge to the player, who must man-age his food supply and the construction of shel-ter while defending himself against a variety of monsters, including giant spiders, zombies, and “creepers,” exploding creatures that can destroy a player’s buildings. Creative mode is more of a free-for-all experience in which the player has an infinite amount of all types of blocks, invincibility, and the ability to fly. Most of the major Minecraft landmarks are built in Creative mode. Part of Minecraft’s appeal is the freedom to do anything in the game. There are literally end-less possibilities in Minecraft. One online group, Achievement Hunter, has filmed an immensely popular series known as Let’s Play: Minecraft. This series showcases all the possibilities of things to do in Minecraft, whether it’s recreating clas-sic arcade games like Dig Dug, having a Hunger Games event with friends, or building a “wipeout” course to go through. They have also shown a number of popular constructions, including por-traits and their famous “Achievement City.” The key to Minecraft’s success, however, is the unique style of the game. As Eddy Rivas of Gam-ershushi.com states, “It’s refreshing to find a game where the first and only command isn’t to kill.”

While players have the option to kill one another, hunt animals, or fight off monsters, these are far from the only possibilities. Perhaps the greatest testament of Minecraft’s success on Xbox Live is the chang-ing nature of popular video games. In contrast to the blockbuster games of last year, Minecraft focuses on construction and creativity instead of gunning through ever-growing hordes of enemies. Despite the massive budgets of these games, they all fol-low similar patterns. Minecraft, however, breaks the mold, allowing players to create new worlds. If Minecraft’s success is a herald, we can see that it is foreshadowing a new kind of gaming: creative.

Photo courtesy of www.minecraft.com

Minecraft heralds changes in video industry

On Sunday, February 10th, the 55th annual Grammy Awards were presented to America’s top vocalists. Millions of viewers all over the world tuned in to watch their favorite singer get nominated for exciting awards such as record of the year, album of the year, song of the year, best new artist, and many more. The 2013 Grammy Awards brought in another successful year for the many returning artists and new artists. Performances were phenomenal by Justin Timberlake, Rihanna, Carrie Underwood, Frank Ocean, and Mumford and Sons. The nominations for record of the year were “Lonely Boy” by The Black Keys; “Stronger” by Kelly Clarkson; “We Are Young” by Fun.; “Somebody That I Used To Know” by Gotye; “Thinkin Bout You” by Frank Ocean; and “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together” by Taylor Swift. The winner of record of the year was Kelly Clarkson. The nominations for album of the year were “El Camino” by The Black Keys; “Some Nights” by Fun.; “Babel” by Mumford and Sons; “Channel Orange” by Frank Ocean; and “Blunderbuss” by Jack White. The winner was Mumford and Sons. The nominations for the song of the year are “The A Team” by Ed Sheeran; “Adorn” by Miguel; “Call Me Maybe” Carly Rae Jepsen; “Stronger” by Kelly

Clarkson; and “We are Young” by Fun.. The winner was “We Are Young” by Fun.. The best new artist nominees were Alabama Shakes, Hunter Hayes, The Lu-mineers, Fun., and Frank Ocean. The winner was Fun.. Overall, the 2013 Grammy Awards brought in beautiful dresses, extreme excitement, and incredible perfor-mances by celebrities that we have all come to know and love. Source: http://www.grammy.com/nominees

by susannah Wilson and Margaret Hines

Grammy Awards revealed

Source: http://www.puzzles.ca/sudoku_puzzles/sudoku_easy_121.html

by Will Hancock

See page 11 for answers!

Source: http://www.minecraft.com.

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Bluegrasspreps.com recently released their 10th an-nual All-State Football Team, and among the 36 play-ers who were selected was PT’s Darrius Spivey-Nunn. Spivey-Nunn was one of three defensive backs named to this prestigious group. He joins other Regional play-ers Jonathan Jackson, Zach Katzman, and Eli Wilson.“It was really a surprise. I appreciate the rec-ognition, and it should be a big step head-ing into next year,” said Spivey-Nunn.He also joins former PT football players Josh For-rest (2010) and JD Harmon (2011), recently selected for All-State. Both have since moved on to play at the collegiate level for the University of Kentucky. Spivey-Nunn said, “It’s an honor to be mentioned with those two players, and this gives me something to look forward to heading into my senior year.” Currently just a junior, Spivey-Nunn will have one more season to prove himself once again as one of the state’s best defenders. His talented play on the field has gained the interest of major colleg-es such as the University of Louisville and Western Kentucky University, but other schools may enter the picture next season. The Bell would like to con-gratulate Darrius Spivey-Nunn on this accomplish-ment, which will surely be one of many accolades he receives before his high school career is over.

Spivey-Nunn makes All-State

Paducah Tilghman senior, Tyler Lynn, signed a football scholarship with Campbellsville University at PTHS on February 6th. Tyler Lynn has been awarded numerous recognitions for his hard work and dedication as a PTHS lineman, playing the center position. He is a lettered Var-sity player, and this scholarship comes as no surprise. “Tyler got the scholarship solely due to his work-manship,” said Offensive Coordinator Coach Smith. “He is knowledgeable about the game and is one of the hardest working players I have ever coached. He will have an outstanding career.” Campbellsville University, located in Campbells-ville, Kentucky, is a member of the Mid-South Con-ference, and has affiliations with the NAIA and NCCAA Division 1. The football team is led by Head Coach, Perry Thomas. Lynn comments that the school has a small-town feel to it, and that he is extremely excited to be playing football there.“I am mainly looking forward to continu-ing with the game on a collegiate level,” Lynn stated. “I really like the University.” \ Paducah Tilghman senior Kendall Calhoun signed a letter-of-intent to play football for Kentucky State University on February 6th at Paducah Tilghman High School. Calhoun is an offensive and defensive linemen for the Tornado team that was 12-4 in 2012. He had pre-season All-State selection, was on the first All West Kentucky Conference team, and was on the first All Region team in 2012. He was ranked

the 127th offensive tackle nationwide by Scout.com. “People see Kendall’s size, but Kendall always has a strong work ethic,” said Offensive Coordinator Johnathan Smith. “He is always willing to ask questions and never

wanting to make the same mistake twice. As coaches, we appreciate that kind of attitude.” Kentucky State University, located in Frank-fort, Kentucky, is a member of the Southern In-tercollegiate Athletic Conference in NCAA Di-vision II. The team was 2-8 overall in 2012. “I’m looking forward to attending a historically black college, and being close to home,” said Calhoun. “KSU

has a strong offensive line with a lot of seniors graduat-ing. I’m expecting to make an impact my freshman year.” Paducah Tilghman senior James Hill signed a let-ter of intent to play football at Lindsey-Wilson Col-lege on February 6th at PTHS. Hill was a major con-tributor on the Tilghman Tornado football team, who finished the 2012 season 8-4. James Hill finished the season with a total of 254 rushing yards, 5 rushing touchdowns, scoring 36 points and 38 tackles. Hill was named Defensive player of the week his sophomore year and has been a Varsity Team Captain through out his junior and senior seasons. Along with his football accomplishments, Hill was named 2012 PTHS Foot-ball Homecoming King and 2012-2013 Mr. Tilghman. “James’s leadership is second to none; he is sim-ply a natural leader. He has what it takes to be-come a coach one day. It’s hard to fail with the family support he has and his charisma. James is a vocal and physical leader; we will miss him next year,” said PTHS head coach Randy Wyatt. Lindsey-Wilson College, located in Columbia, Kentucky, is a member of NAIA. The Blue Raider finished their 2012 football season 3-8, but in their three seasons of existence, the team has accumu-lated an all-time record of 12-9.“I saw it as a great opportunity to not only play college ball, but also to get an education. I look forward to the experience and the camaraderie with this new group of guys,” remarked James Hill regarding his college choice.

PT football players head to “next level”

by Jordan Kendall

Photo by Savanna Whelan

by Jordan Kendall

Girls’ Basketball goes undefeated in Feb.

Boys earn District runner-up

After only losing two games in the month of January, the Paducah Tilghman Girl’s Basketball Team came back even stronger, going undefeated in the month of February. In seven games over the month, Tilghman would dominate their opponents with their closest game being an 11-point victory over St. Mary. These wins would push their record 23-6 on the season, and they’d also guarantee themselves a spot in the Region 1 Tournament after defeating Reidland in the first round of the District 2 Tournament. The Tornado started off the month playing the St. Mary Vikings, and would handle the cross-town opponent fairly easily in a double-digit victory as they defeated the team 61-50. Chelsey Shumpert would continue her strong play during her senior season, pouring in 24 points in the victory on 9-22 shooting from the field, including 3-8 from three-point range. Their next game would be a matchup with Massac County, Illinois, who also were defeated by the Tornado. The final score of the game would be 68-45, and Tilghman would win yet again in double-digit fashion. Heath High School, a District 2 opponent, would be the next victim of the Tornado’s wrath, losing by 47 points in a 77-30 Tilghman victory. Following their third win of the month and sixth win in a row, the team traveled to Lone Oak High School for their last District game of the year. Tilghman pulled out a 67-55 win over the Purple Flash, but not without losing a key defensive player in senior Chelsey West, who will be out the rest of the season with an injury. The team then played in a rematch with Calloway County, a team they previously beat for their first win of the season. After a big scoring outburst against the Lakers, Shumpert moved her season average to 22.9 points per game. Com-munity Christian Academy would be the final regular season victim for the Tornado, as they were defeated 80-30. With a nine-game winning streak and the number one seed in the District 2 tournament, Tilghman car-ried all the momentum needed to win their first game of the tournament. Reidland High School, the fourth-seeded team in the tournament, would fall victim to the Tornado as they dropped the game 69-25. Tilgh-man will now play Lone Oak High School for the District 2 Championship. The Bell wishes the team luck in their District Tournament, as well the Region 1 Tournament which will be held February 25th-29th.

After two January losses to Brooks (IL) and Graves County, the PT Boys’ Basketball Team looked to turn things around. In the matchup with the Vikings, Tilghman fell short once again, this time losing 59-44. The Tornado would then play Heath High School in a high-stakes District game. Heath trailed for the majority of the game, but came back heading into the fourth quarter. In overtime, Tilghman would prevail on an and-one buzzer beater by senior guard Donald Overstreet, whose game winning free throw earned Tilghman a 58-57 victory. The Tornado met LOHS for their final District game of the regular season. The Purple Flash dominated the game and cruised to a 76-64 victory. PT would then play Calloway County for the third time this season, and would fall 64-54 in the last home game of the season. One last regular season win came with the defeat of Ballard Memorial, with strong play from freshman guard Sayveon McEwen leading the Tornado to a 79-70 victory. Tilghman looked to carry the momentum from their victory against the Bombers into the District 2 Tourna-ment, where they would play Heath in the first round. Neither team was able to get an edge, but Tilghman took a one-point lead into the half, up 25-24. Heath narrowed Tilghman’s seven-point fourth quarter lead and tied the game up with only 1:13 to play. Junior forward Mikey Davis hit the game-winning lay-up on a drive to the basket with 1.4 seconds left in the game. After a Lone Oak defeat of Reidland, the District 2 Championship Game was set up for a third game between the Tornado and the Purple Flash. Tilghman got out to a hot start, going up 8-0 on 3-3 shooting from the field, but Lone Oak would battle back and go up 26-24 at the half. The game would end up going down to the wire, but a three-point basket by Lone Oak guard Kam Chumbler with 16.8 seconds to go would push the Purple Flash to victory. They went on to win the game 55-54, and Tilghman settled for second place in the District 2 Tournament. The Bell would like to congratulate the team on being the District 2 runner-up, and wish them luck as they look forward to Regionals!

by Jordan Kendall

by Jordan Kendall

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(270) 554-0085 156 Bleich rd, Paducah, KY 42003

City Rockers Brick Oven

Pizza

The Bell would also like to commend the PTHS Wrestling Team for their strong showing at the Re-gional Competition. Advancing to the State competi-tion are Dominic Hephner, Chandler Martin, Frank Rosario, and Zak Thompson. Ben Redfield also advanced to State as an alternate. Congratulations!

Congratulations to Taylor Thompson (10) for being named to the All-Region 1st team for Swim-ming this past Saturday and Sunday. He placed 4th in the 50 Freestyle in 22.79 seconds, and 5th in the 100 Freestyle in 49.88 seconds, his personal best. Taylor has qualified to compete at the State Championship for KHSAA. He will swim at the State Championship on Feb. 22nd and 23rd at U of L’s Ralph Wright Natatorium. Way to go Taylor!

You pick the winner!Enter the Bell’s March Madness bracket contest

PT’s Karlee Humphrey was named the Paducah Sun Player of the Week for 2/3-2/9. Over the week, Humphrey averaged 18 points per game as the team beat Heath and Lone Oak in District 2 play. Her play this season and recently has led the Girls’ Basketball Team to a 6-0 record against District opponents. In the games against Heath and Lone Oak, she shot 14 of 22 from the field and recorded six rebounds. The Bell would like to congratulate Humphrey on this accom-plishment and wish her and the Girls’ Basketball Team luck as they prepare for the District 2 Tournament.

The PT Tennis Team is looking forward to a successful season this year with many return-ing players and new players for both the Boys’ and Girls’ teams. Congratulations to the new-est players: Trevor Bunte, Alex Goreing, Ilka Knoke, Selenia Ortiz, and Madison Wurth. The team is headed by Coach Jeff Leeper, who says it is one of the most promising seasons PT has had in a while. There are many strong upper-classmen and underclassmen with a lot of ex-perience and playing time. Although Coach Ja-clyn will be missed this year from her assistant coaching position, Leeper knows that this will still be a victorious season. The schedule this year is packed with many challenging tourna-ments and big matches. Senior Brock Sigler is excited about the team, stating, “This is going to be an awesome season with many strong players. I know that we can work hard, and a lot of seniors should be Regional contenders this year.” Support is needed from Tilghman students, and everyone should come out to the tennis complex and cheer the team on at their first match March 7th against Murray!

The Tilghman Bell staff is hosting a 2013 NCAA March Madness bracket contest! The brackets are not due to be released until Sunday, March 17. You can find a printable version of this bracket on the Internet at www.ncaa.com or in the sports section of The Paducah Sun edition of Sunday, March 17. The winner will receive a $20 gift card to Cold Stone Creamery! Here are the rules of the contest:1. The deadline for submitting a bracket for the contest is Tuesday, March 19 before the start of the first game to Mrs. Hancock or a member of The Bell staff.2. Contestants must pick the winner of the 63 games of the 2013 March Madness tournament, including the final four teams and the eventual champion.3. Each contestant can submit only one bracket. The submitted bracket is final and changes cannot be made. Be sure to include your name!4. The winner of the contest will be determined by a points system as follows- 1st Round = 1 pt; 2nd Round = 2 pts; 3rd Round = 4 pts; 4th Round = 8 pts; 5th Round = 12 pts; 6th Round = 16 pts. The winner will be announced over the intercom on the Monday after Spring Break, April 8. Good luck to all contestants!

by Jacob Blankenship

Upcoming Spring Sports PreviewTennis

PT Sports Briefs

Track Baseball/Softball

After falling short of last year’s goals, the Baseball Team is expecting a run at the Regional title this season. Players have high hopes for this season, along with new coach, Chris Johnson. “It is too early to see who will stand out this year,” said Coach Johnson. “However, I expect to compete each and ev-ery game all year long.” Coach expects to have young talent fill the holes that we will miss with losing a few senior lead-ers last year. The team began working out Friday, February 15th, with intentions of getting in shape for the upcoming season. With young talent and a few new senior leaders, the team will shoot for a 20-win season. The first game will be on a Satur-day, March 2nd, starting the season off at the famous home field, Brooks Stadium. The Softball Team also is looking to have a strong season. The returning starters are Kalli Chapman, Karlee Humphrey, Lyndsey Kendall, Mallory Myers, and Shaelynn Tyler. The team is also excited to add transfers Stephanie Sexton and Kayla Slagle, both of whom are pitchers. Sophomore Karlee Humphrey is very enthusiastic about this year’s squad. “I’m really looking forward to this year. We have some new play-ers that are really going to strengthen our team,” she says. The team’s first scrimmage will be March 1st, and their first official game is March 15th in Pope County, Illinois.

29. That’s the magic number for Coach Wyatt and the PT Boys’ Track Team this year. 29 is the number of State Track Titles the team will have if they can defend last year’s State championship. The team will have to overcome a few obsta-cles before they are able to join the long line of PT champions. Coach Wyatt says he looking to field event participants, such as Jailon Chism in discus and Cason Walden in pole vault, to pick up the slack after losing last year’s strong sprinters. Tilghman is known for their sprinting and relay teams, but this year’s team has a large number of distance runners ready to break that stereotype and establish Tilghman as not only a sprinting power house, but also as a distance one. This year’s team has already shown the ability to fill the vacant spots and possibly do better. The boys’ team has been training hard and is quickly de-veloping the hearts, and legs, of champions. While there is still a bit of necessary development, the tal-ent of the team is evident. 29 is getting close and is quickly becoming more realistic with every prac-tice. When asked what he expects from the team this year, Coach Wyatt responded with, “A state championship. Anything less is unacceptable.”

by Margaret Hines by Cason Walden by Matthew Moore