2 Wolf Pack Press Editor-in-Chief, Jency James

Senior Section May 24, 2011

James Geyer is the ultimate Wood-creek High School student-athlete. He is every teacher’s dream student, every coache’s dream athlete and every club’s dream member.

Geyer involved himself on campus in a variety of ways, proving himself one of the top ten most infl uential seniors.

E v e r y o n e knows James Geyer as the s t a r a t h l e t e and leader on the basketball court. As the Varsity Basket-ball team’s cap-tain this year, Geyer led his team to back-t o - b a c k S F L Championships a n d N o r C a l Championship game appear-ances.

“ B e i n g a three year cap-tain of a basketball team that went 105-16 [through four years] was the big-gest achievement I had at Woodcreek,” he said.

However, he doesn’t take it for granted.

“Winning the Section Champion-ship at Arco Arena my junior year was, without a doubt, my best memory. I’ll

He wears skinny jeans, thick glass-es and always keeps literature handy. But Kyle Jaeger wants to shed his hipster label.

His laidback personality allows him to respond nonchalantly to accusations of being a hipster.

“I’ll just go to Bloom, get some cof-fee, blog about the injustice and browse the Urban Outfi tters catalog,” he said.

When he isn’t combating hipster ac-cusations, Jaeger spends time orga-nizing charitable projects as Vice President of the National Honor So-ciety and Secretary of the Amnesty In-ternational Club.

But Jaeger ’s efforts in leading Santa’s Helpers is his biggest legacy.

“It was by no means an individ-ual effort; but as the NHS offi cer in charge, I played a pretty important part in its organization and manage-ment,” Jaeger said. “The event was cer-tainly something to be remembered.”

Jaeger also defined himself as Many who know Allison Poehling

say she has a strong presence and smiles like you are the one person she wanted to see.

Poehling has been involved in stu-dent government for all of high school. She was Sophomore Class Secretary and Athletics Commissioner her junior year.

“It was my responsibility to plan the bonfi re in the fi rst term and Powderpuf f in the spring a n d m a i n -tain athletes of the month and promote spirit for ath-letics which I did with the Black Mob,” Poehling said. This year she became ASB President and oversaw all aspects of the school.

O u t s i d e student government Poehling par-ticipated in the dance program for four years and even choreographed a dance. She was accepted into the National Honor Society sophomore year and helped organize events with her artistic and graphic talent.

an accomplished writer, winning the Scholastic Excellence Award for Honors English 11 and excelling in his AP Lit-erature and AP Language classes.

Jaeger’s infl uence goes beyond his academic achievements and leadership. His antics have etched him fi rmly in his peers’ minds. He exploded over Facebook with his tongue-in-cheek blogs, winning over many readers. Wednesday morn-ings livened up with his tangents of hip-

pies, communists and the California super-storm while in search of an NHS project. But most notable was his pursuit of Court-ney Claycomb, which he compared to a male preying mantis seek-ing a potential mate.

“I never knew if she was into me, or if she was ready to rip my head off,” he said. “All I could do was be my quirky self, love her uncondition-ally and hope for the best.”

Jaeger will major in English at Humboldt State University and plans to be a writer. (by Jency James, Editor-in-Chief)

Runner, president, volunteer: the ultimate triple threat.

Lauren Sederberg’s influence, from her work with the National Honor Society to her roles in several Student Government-run events, can’t be de-nied.

“I really hope I’ve been a good role model and outstanding student,” she said.

Between her four years of running varsity track, her newfound dedication to the cheer team and her work with ASB as the Se-nior Class Presi-dent, Sederberg’s work ethic and dedication set the bar high for other students.

She gives the following advice for other stu-dents, “Set your goals early and keep working towards them. High school is one of your last chances to experiment in a comfortable, safe environment; so branch out and try new things while you still can.”

The spirit Sederberg shows for her school is unrivaled by most of her peers.

“I love the people, the teachers. I love everything about Woodcreek. I am going to miss everything about here,” she said. “Most of all I’ll miss Mama Bair.”

There is no doubt that she loves Woodcreek, but….everything?

“Well, not everything. I won’t miss having to throw my Star-bucks away before I come onto campus,” Sederberg said with a laugh.

Sederberg will at-tend CSU San Jose State University and go into medical school after she receives her Pre-Med degree.

“I want to be a pedia-trician. I love kids and I want to work to make sure children stay safe and healthy,” she said.

Between Sederberg’s tireless dedication and solid work ethic, her fu-ture looks as bright as

her disposition. Woodcreek is sure to miss her just as much as she will miss Woodcreek. (by Nick Nguyen, Online Editor)

Poehling always positively affects the ones around her. She keeps busy outside of school, holding a part-time job at Jamba Juice and playing recre-ational soccer.

Poehling enjoyed high school. “I don’t have an ounce of senioritis, I love this place,” she said.

But she looks forward to the future. Poehling will attend CSU Fullerton to

become a graphic designer. She hopes to work in the en-tertainment side of graphic designing.

P o e h l i n g i s widely known and loved by students, teachers and faculty alike. Her wit and caring personality helps her connect with everyone.

A s h e r h i g h school journey comes to a close and her college future be-gins, Poehling looks back at high school with fondness.

“Defi nitely what I will take away are the friendships I’ve made and the work I put in to get to where I am,” she said. “What I’ve learned most is that united together, we can accomplish so much.” (by Megan Barnett, OTQ Edi-tor )

remember it forever,” he said. “So much hard work was put into that season.”

However, Geyer is more than the basketball star. He excels in the class-room, which earned him the title of an AP Scholar and Valedictorian.

But he doesn’t stop there. Outside the classroom and away from the court,

Geyer is a member of the National Honor Society and the Co-President of Amnesty International. He is also the Treasurer of Spanish Club and a Spanish tutor.

Geyer will attend the University of Cali-fornia, Berkeley. He will be greatly missed at Woodcreek for his achievements and leg-acy and for his posi-tive, hard-working and selfl ess attitude.

Through all these accomplishments , Geyer stays modest.

He says what he has enjoyed most about Woodcreek is “getting to know all of my classmates. I can’t wait to see them do big things; I’m proud of them,” he said.

Geyer is Woodcreek’s dream stu-dent and has left a large mark on cam-pus through all of his efforts. (by Jake Haakenson, Back Page Editor)

Wolf Pack Press 3Editor-in-Chief, Jency James

May 24, 2011Volume 16, Issue 4

Meet the 2011 Valedictorians and SalutatoriansJency James and Megan AdamsEditor-in-Chief, Staff Reporter

Past Woodcreek classes have pro-duced impressive alumni. The Class of 2011 had such close competition for the positions of Valedictorian and Saluta-torian that several qualifi ed students were chosen.James Geyer, Valedictorian

While every senior on campus may not know each other, the name James Geyer defi nitely rings a bell in every senior’s mind.

Upon mention of his name, the fi rst thing that would pop into these peers’ minds would be “helpful, friendly and fun,” Geyer said, when asked how his peers might describe him.

In addition to his academics, athletics and involvement in school events, Geyer exceeds the limits of what’s expected. Geyer received a total of six awards that include Valedicto-rian, U.S. Marine Corps Excellence Award, AP Scholar, Varsity Basketball Scholar Athlete, Athlete of the Week, the Scholar Athlete Award and the Den of Honor.

Being looked up to is not a foreign idea to Geyer, for one of his greatest achievements is playing on the basket-ball team.

“Being a three year captain of a basketball team that went 105-16 was the biggest achievement I had at Wood-creek,” Geyer said.

Not only was Geyer the captain of the basketball team for three years, but one of his greatest memories comes from the court.

“Winning the Section Champion-ship at Arco Arena my junior year was without a doubt my best memory. I’ll remember it forever. So much hard work was put into that season,” he said.

After graduation, Geyer plans to start his future with a bang.

“I’ll be attending UC Berkeley and hopefully studying business or taking the pre-law track,” he said.Melissa Williams, Valedictorian

Melissa Williams personifi es “ex-emplary”. Not only was she named Co-Valedictorian after excelling in her multitude of AP and Honors classes, which earned her a 4.34, GPA, but she juggled good grades with her dedica-tion to many extra-curricular activities, most notably the band program.

Williams participated in various branches of band for all four years of high school where she held leadership positions, including Section Leader of the fl utes, Student Director and Mallet Captain.

Williams’ experiences with the band program remain some of her most memorable.

When asked what she enjoyed about

attending Woodcreek she said, “All the music competitions with the Woodcreek band.”

Williams’ additional extra-curricu-lar activities included participating in Academic Decathlon for two years (one of which she was Vice President), being a member of the California Scholarship Federation for four years and partici-pating in the National Honor Society for three years.

Williams also earned plenty of ac-colades for her efforts in making the campus a better place. She earned the Excellence in Performing Arts Award for band, the Air Force Award for math and science at the Academic Merit Awards and the USA Camp Excellence in Con-ducting 2010 award.

In the fall Williams will attend UC Berkeley, where she will study astro-physics.

Williams left behind some advice for underclassmen.

“Don’t let people tell you you’re not good enough to achieve the things you desire,” she said. Angelo Ciaraglia, Salutatorian

While Angelo Ciaraglia defi ned him-self as a talented athlete, this brawny senior also has brains, as proven by his winning the honor of Salutatorian with a 4.30 GPA.

Ciaraglia devoted himself to athlet-ics at Woodcreek. He ran cross country and wrestled all four years of high school, making the varstiy team begin-ning his sophomore year for both sports. He was named captain of both teams during his senior year.

Ciaraglia also played baseball his freshman and sophomore years and then ran track his junior and senior years.

Ciaraglia’s commitment to Wood-creek athletics earned him several ac-colades. He received the Army Scholar Award at the Academic Merit Awards, the Coach’s Awards for Wrestling and Cross Country, Athlete of the Year and the 3 Sport Athlete Award for all four years of high school.

It’s fi tting that Ciaraglia considers his athletic achievements his biggest legacy.

“My biggest legacy is making it to two state champs in cross country and state champs in wrestling,” Ciaraglia said.

When he wasn’t busy excelling in sports, Ciaraglia participated in outreach programs. As a three year member of the National Honor Society, he helped organize community service projects such as a Harvest Festival and the Santa’s Helpers Holiday Drive.

Ciaraglia also participated in the Gifts from the Heart program at his church during his freshman and sopho-more years.

“I helped organize and deliver gifts

to kids in Child Protective Services,” he said.

Even with all of these commitments, Ciaraglia still found time to excel in his multitude of AP and honors classes.

In the fall, he will attend CSU Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo to major in bio-medical engineering.

“I plan to go to medical school and become a doctor,” he said.Joy Marie Gerould, Salutatorian

High school has been one big jug-gling act for Joy Marie Gerould.

Her several AP and honors classes earned her the title of Salutatorian with her 4.31 GPA.

In addition to her rigorous course load, Gerould participated in several activities. She was Founder and Co-President of the Model United Nations Club, Treasurer of Earth Club, a Do-cent in Nature Center and a member of Musical Theater, Chamber Choir, the National Honor Society and Site Council. But these only refl ect her on campus activities.

Outside of school, Gerould partici-pated in just as many activities such as the Roseville Sustainability Committee, the Roseville Teen Library Council and the Creekwater Planning Committee. In addition she founded Reverie, a volunteer group that sang for nursing home residents.

Gerould’s involvement in all of her extra-curricular activities provided some of her most memorable moments in high school.

“Helping out backstage with Beauty and the Beast and West Side Story are my absolute favorite memories from Woodcreek,” she said.

Much of Gerould’s activities cen-tered on her commitment to environ-mentalism, a sentiment that got Gerald voted “Biggest Humanitarian” by her class. She also received the AP Life Sci-ence Award for her work in AP Environ-mental Science with Nate Giorgi. She earned several other academic awards, including the French 2, French 4 and Honors Pre-Calculus awards and was designated an AP Scholar.

Gerould will attend Oregon State University to pursue a career as an ecological engineer.

With all of her experience in AP classes and activities, Gerould offered the following advice for underclass-men.

“Make sure that if you are taking AP classes that you take the time to have fun and enjoy your time here. High school isn’t just about schoolwork,” she said.

Cont’d on pg. 4

EXCEL: Valedictorians James Geyer (far left) and Melissa Williams (far right) pose with the Salutatorians (bottom row L to R) Michael Bigelyaizen, Angelo Ciaraglia and Rosie Bearden, (middle row L to R) Joy Marie Gerould and Megan Howes, (top) Kevin Serrano.

PHOTO BY JESSICA ROBERTS

NewsMay 24, 2011

4 Wolf Pack Press

Cont’d from pg. 3

Megan Howes SalutatorianMegan Howes is known on campus

for more than her 4.31 GPA which earned her the title of Salutatorian.

She has participated in several ac-tivities including four years on the Girls Golf team, three years in the National Honor Society and the Make-a-Wish Club (where she was Co-President her senior year) and one year in KEY Club.

But Howes’ philanthropy extends far beyond campus and into the com-munity. She has been a leader within her church and traveled to Mexico and Los Angeles for mission trips in addition to serving as a leader in summer day camps for kids. Howes has also worked for the City of Roseville as a Recreation Specialist, where she coordinated activi-ties and games for kids.

Howes found that her involvement in school activities made her transition into high school much easier.

“By getting involved in sports, clubs and our school, you begin to try new things, discover your passions and make so many amazing friends,” she said.

When Howes wasn’t busy helping organize charitable projects, she de-voted herself to her 11 AP and Honors classes. This commitment paid off, win-ning her several accolades including the Academic Award for Spanish 3 and AP Language. But Howes never expected her high grades to earn her the honor of being Salutatorian.

“Being a Salutatorian was never something I planned on doing, it just

happened,” she said.Howes will attend UC Davis to

major in Biomedical Engineering and hopes to become fluent in Spanish.

“High school is an adjustment in the beginning, but you’re given the op-portunity to truly create yourself and determine your hopes and dream for the future. It’s an awesome experience,” she said.Kevin Serrano, Salutatorian

Shy, quirky, dedicated and random are adjectives that reveal the inner workings of Kevin Serrano.

Serrano’s numerous contributions to the Wolf Pack have touched the lives of many on campus. With his kind heart and earnest desire to help others in need, Serrano excels in connecting with his fellow students.

Though shy at times, Serrano shines through his quiet front and makes a dif-ference through his involvement in the National Honor Society, ASB student government, J.A.M.M club and Speech and Debate Club.

Through his work as Multicultural Commissioner, he has worked hard to recognize the backgrounds of all stu-dents on campus and been responsible for organizing several events, including this year’s Fiestaval.

Through it all, Serrano learned that to succeed in the world one cannot be afraid to show the world who they really are. Many students respect him for his transparency and openness.

Serrano earned a 4.31 GPA while taking several AP and Honors classes and was rewarded with the honor of Salutatorian.

Serrano says he will never forget the time the majority of the school sang Happy Birthday to him when he turned 18. He holds the memory close to his heart.

Serrano plans to earn a degree in Cognitive Science engineering and become one of the “social bots” at UC Berkeley.

He leaves students with a little advice about following their dreams.

“If you have a chance to do it and it’s not going to explicitly hurt anyone and yourself, do it. Life is lost on passed opportunities and risks,” he said. Michael Bigelyaizen, Salutatorian

Inspired by Beethoven, the sound of music carried Michael Bigelyaizen through high school.

He began playing piano his fresh-man year and soon discovered a passion for the keys.

“I was a finalist in the ASTA Califor-nia State Solo Competition and in the Mondavi Young Artists Competition,” Bigelyaizen said.

He also helped beginning musicians at the Sacramento Youth Symphony Chamber of Music Workshop learn how to create peaceful harmonies.

During his sophomore year, Big-elyaizen played on the tennis team for a season.

Bigelyaizen’s commitment to a rigorous course load earned him a 4.40 GPA and a spot as one of the Saluta-torians. His favorite classes included Integrated Biology and Piano Lab.

Bigelyaizen will attend UC Berke-ley in the fall, where he plans to pursue a career in medicine.

“I’m interested in the medical field and helping people,” he said.

Rosie Bearden, SalutatorianThere are an abundant number of

ways to describe successful women who command attention, but “Gingerlicious” is what this quick-witted diva named herself.

Bearden has a great sense of humor, which she spent four years expressing through her involvement in academics and athletics.

Juggling a total of ten advanced classes with numerous extra-curricular activities, Bearden powered through by staying positive and upbeat and was rewarded with a 4.32 GPA.

She played on the varsity soccer team all four years and won two athletic awards - the Scholar Athlete of the Year award and the Second Team All League Girls Soccer award.

Bearden also participated in vari-ous community service clubs, including the National Honor Society, California Scholastic Federation and Make-a-Wish Club.

Bearden also leaves a legacy of en-vironmentalism with her work in the Nature Center.

“My legacy is teaching the kids that visit nature about the animals and plants and conservation,” she said.

One of Bearden’s favorite memories is visiting Point Reyes with her AP En-vironmental Science class.

Bearden will attend the University of Southern California after graduation, where she plans to pursue a major in their arts and sciences college.

Top of the class excels beyond just good grades

Editor-in-Chief, Jency James

So this is it. After the stress of AP exams, the hilarity and fun of senior ball and our alternative senior picnic, it’s finally time for me to write my last column of high school.

It should come as no surprise that I’m an academic person. I’ve written plenty a column about the stress of school, my struggles with math and my general over-achieverness. But as I’m at the end of high school and the beginning of real life, I’d like to impart some philosophical musings to my read-ers. By that I mean I’m going to now reference Eric from the show Boy Meets World. Eric’s passage into adulthood and college was riddled with fear and anxiety (as I’m starting to feel) and he summed it up in the analogy of doing laundry. “I know to separate my whites in one load and my blacks in another. But what about my black shirt with white stripes?”

I, too, fear those unexpected compli-cations that will arise in my transition into adulthood, whether they be in the form of employment troubles or, as Eric suggests, a black and white shirt (seri-ously, would you just handwash it?)

I shouldn’t be nervous. I’m going to a college two hours away, I love the school and I know people going there. But I’m scared and I think it’s because high school failed me. I’ve come to be-lieve that because I did well in my AP classes and held leadership positions and found I could handle stress, I’ll succeed in whatever I want. High school always rewarded me for what I did well, but it never taught me how to handle my losses or failures. So here I am, leaving my safety net and tentatively stepping into the real world where I’ll be competing for a job in the shrinking field of journalism but the hopefully growing field of environmentalism, while surviv-ing on Ramen because I’m paying for college with a piece of my soul.

Don’t get me wrong, part of me is ecstatic about going away to Saint Mary’s College. I can’t wait to write for the Collegian, to join a protest, to attempt to play hackey sack with the hippies in Berkeley and to chain myself to a tree. I’m excited to get out of subur-ban Roseville, explore what life really has to offer and discover more about myself and the world around me. So in the tradition of not being depressing, I want to send out some thank you’s.

I never could have handled all the stress of academia without the support of my teachers. Passing my AP exams, getting A’s in my classes, none of that would have happened without them. I

especially love the time they took out of their lives to help in simple but mean-ingful things like writing a generous recommendation letter or just offering some life advice. They know who they are and they’re awesome.

My friends have kept me sane throughout high school and I have great memories I can look back on thanks to them. I hate that I couldn’t always make the best of their company because of all my commitments in life; but being the great friends they are, they never held a grudge. Our hangouts may be far and few between due to college, but there’s no doubt we’ll see each other again.

Lastly I’d like to thank you, my dear readers. Spear-heading some-thing as time and effort in-tens ive , but s e e m i n g l y unrewarding, as the school newspaper isn’t easy. The news-paper will nev-er perform to an audience or have a rally in its honor and thus, we never garnered the appre-ciation that I (in my completely biased

opinion) felt we deserved. But thank you to those who picked up the paper and didn’t just look at the pictures but actu-ally took the time to read what we had to say. Even more so, thank you to those that took the time to compliment us on what we did. It meant a lot to know we were doing something worthwhile and that our efforts weren’t going to waste. We needed the ego-stroking.

It seems stress and I were fated to be together, since I’m going to attempt to graduate in three years while work-ing and participating in a few extra-cur-riculars. Plus I’m going into an industry

where people run towards disaster in-s t e a d o f e s c a p i n g it. But I’ve been able to handle it for the past four years, what’s an-other rest of my life? But no mat-ter what, I know that everything wi l l work

out. Because if there’s one constant in my life, it’s that there will always be a method to my madness.

JENCYK I N A T T U K A R A

JAMES

NewsMay 24, 2011

Wolf Pack Press 5Editor-in-Chief, Jency James

Taylor KrauseStaff Reporter

Johnna Franks, Tarryn Gordon, Devin Murphy and Travis Pointer. In just a few days, these seniors will be graduating, leaving only their legacies behind. But they will also be leaving something (or someone) else behind - their younger siblings.

Many students have seen the fresh-man versions of these four seniors around campus. For McKenna Franks, Tanner Gordon, Dayna Murphy and Hannah Pointer, summer may mean swimming, tanning and no school; but it also means good-bye.

The bond between siblings is hard to match.

“Our relationship is super tight and close,” McKenna said about her relationship with Johnna. “I go to her for everything. She’s helped me through all my problems and we always talk. Sometimes we fight, but it’s little stuff. I love her.”

Tanner and Tarryn Gordon char-acterize their relationship in just a few words.

“We have a love/hate relationship. But in a good way,” Tarryn said.

Hannah pointed out the respon-sibilities she’ll have with her older

Senior graduates leave frosh siblings behindbrother gone.

“When you’re the middle kid in the house, a lot can change when you sud-denly become the oldest,” she said. “I get T.J.’s car when I get my license. But that also means I will have to drive Tanner, my little brother, around like T.J. used to have to drive me. And since I don’t have a license yet, I don’t know how I’m going to get a ride places.”

Dayna Murphy’s biggest concern about Devin no longer being at Woodcreek is not hav-ing him guide her through the confusion of high school.

“I have no idea where things are here, like classrooms and stuff. This year I got to ask him, but next year I’m going to have to figure it out by myself,” she said.

Dayna will also miss the fun times she has had with older brother Devin.

“And we’re not going to get to sing Taylor Swift together like we used to when we drove around,” she said.

The duos might seem light-hearted when it comes to saying good-bye, but that’s because they know it’s just a short-term situation.

“It’s not goodbye forever, so that’s why I’m not too sad,” McKenna Franks said. “I’m really going to miss her though. She’s a great big sister and it’ll be really weird to have her so far away.”

Tanner Gordon said, “I’m going to have to find rides to things now and I’ll have no one to get slurpies with.”

Tarryn responded saying, “But while I’m off making my own decisions and having to do everything myself, he is going to be so spoiled.” Tanner laughed while Taryn gave him a little side hug and laughed too.

The four se-niors graduate in just a few days, while the fresh-men just barely finish their first of four years at Woodcreek. But just because these seniors are start-ing a new chapter of their life doesn’t mean they’re leav-ing everything from the old chap-ters behind.

All four of the seniors assured their younger sib-lings that they would be home from time-to-time and that when they are, they

promised to relive the good old days. So although this end of the summer means good-bye, it won’t be for long.

BONDED: L to R, The Franks, Mur-phys and Gor-dons will keep their relation-ships strong.

“Woodcreek High School is a learning community that expects ALL students to learn at high levels and is committed to improving student achievement through high-quality instruction.”

(WHS Mission Statement)

Megan AdamsStaff Reporter

On March 20-23 six members of the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) Committee visited campus. They evaluated our school to see what changes have been imple-mented since the last report six years ago. Their findings revealed that our school has continued to improve and to grow in ways that promote student learning and support our mission state-ment (see above).

On their last day committee mem-bers reported their findings in a faculty meeting.

“I’m dazzled by the level of profes-sionalism I experienced and the com-mitment to students’ learning and suc-cess,” said retired teacher Rod Hass.

“The students and staff we talked to were very positive about the school,” said Committee Chair, Rob Stockberger who serves as Director of Secondary Education for the San Ramon Unified School District.

“I’ve never been on a high school campus where they wear as much school gear as this one. Students wear their pride,” he said.

“I think the WASC visit could not have gone any better,” said Jon Smith, WASC Coordinator. “We spent the last two years preparing and worked as a faculty very hard in making sure that we have the entire criterion that the state required answered, studied and analyzed. I was really proud of our school.”

Over the course of 18 months, administrators, staff, parents and students contributed to compiling the report for the WASC committee. The re-port recorded every detail of campus life from curriculum to in-structional strate-gies to school ac-tivities/sports t o s c h o o l culture to p a r e n t and com-m u n i t y involve-ment.

D u r -i n g t h e visit Smith and other administra-tors welcomed and escorted the committee around campus. The WASC team quietly slipped into classrooms to observe teaching styles, curriculum and student/teacher inter-actions. They then met with faculty, parent and student groups to learn

more about each area covered in the report.

Each committee member was re-sponsible for overseeing a different portion of the report.

Tracy Goschke, a Foothill High School teacher, interacted with the Special Education department.

“I was able to see how your Chal-lenge program is used, where students can do tutoring over there with other students as well as those students can come onto campus onto the compre-hensive site and integrate into your

classes,” said Goschke, who hopes to suggest a similar model at her

high school.In addition to visiting

core academic classes, the committee was treated to a tour of the Nature Center and a Den of Honor lunch at the Timber Rock Café.

“I liked the rec-ognition the students were getting and that there’s a functioning

café on campus is pretty special. That was a real

treat,” said Stockberger.Manteca High School

Principal Doug McCreath, who enjoyed second helpings of des-

sert, was also impressed. “It’s evident on this campus that everyone, including support staff, cares about all students,” he said.

Principal Jess Borjon was pleased

WASC visit proves successful and educationalwith the final report from the WASC committee. “Actually, the recommenda-tions were in alignment with what we suspected. No surprises – and that is a good thing,” he said.

Committee members recognized the faculty for their focused efforts on curriculum development, particularly the formation of PLT’s or Partnership Learning Teams and the increased number of students taking AP classes and exams.

The final WASC report reads, “Nearly all of the PLT’s have clearly identified intended learning outcomes and have developed assessments that measure them. Internal assessments are better aligned to external assess-ments (district common assessments, AP SAT, CST); therefore, we anticipate access to formative data that can truly inform instruction.”

The WASC Committee recommend-ed that the school pursue more parent and community involvement in campus life as well as a more structured, focused intervention program with an emphasis on using more data analysis to guide instruction.

Administrators have already begun to tackle these ares with a new Fall intervention schedule and increased opportunities for parent involvement on campus.

Commenting on the WASC Report Borjon said, “It’ll help us get better as a school and in doing that we will help more students learn at higher levels - that’s what it’s all about.”

May 24, 2011

6 Wolf Pack Press Editor-in-Chief, Jency James

News

WPP Staff Report

Dressed in a royal blue satin gown, junior Heather Paiz emerged from her limo to fi nd a handsome young man ready to escort her down a yellow brick road. That same road soon led to an “Evening of Dreams” beyond her wild-est imagination.

In something straight out of a fairytale, a trumpet blew and Glinda, the Good Witch of Oz, appeared to crown Paiz Prom Queen.

“I couldn’t believe my ears when they said my name. I screamed,” said Paiz. “Last year’s Prom Queen and King crowned me. It felt good.”

On May 14 Paiz joined many of her friends throughout the Sacramento area at the second annual red-carpet prom for teens and young adults with special needs.

Held at Capital Christian Center, the church-sponsored event titled “Evening of Dreams” brought together many volunteers, including several teens who escorted attendees as their dates for the evening into a Wizard of Oz-themed venue.

“When I got out of the limo, I was holding back tears. Alex was waiting for me,” said Paiz.

Her date, Alex Bennet, mesmerized Paiz with his charm. “He spun my chair around to dance. He was very thought-ful,” said Paiz.

Paiz’s mother Megan said, “It was really the biggest thrill of her life to have the interest of a very handsome gentleman to talk to and treat her like he would his other friends.”

Dresses for the event were brought in by Marissa’s Closet and donated from students at El Dorado High School. Paiz and her friends met at the church to get ready ahead of time. There volunteers helped them with their clothes and makeup. Paiz’s dress featured jewels.

“Getting ready was exciting, but nothing could compare to being in the Prom hall with so many friends and excitement in the air,” said Megan.

All attendees then took a short limo ride to the venue, where they emerged onto the yellow brick road and were met by volunteers dressed in Wizard of Oz costumes. Inside decorations trans-formed the space into a miniature Oz.

Paiz said, “We were served a special dinner and we danced to Somewhere Over the Rainbow.”

In addition to dinner and dancing, attendees were served dessert and given an opportunity to pose for prom pictures.

The highlight of the evening, though, remained Glinda who appeared throughout the evening to make attend-ees’ dreams come true.

When attendees registered for the event, they were asked to share

a dream that they want-ed to come true during the evening. One attendee wished to be escorted by a fi reman while Paiz wished to be crowned Prom Queen.

“Heather was crowned with a tiara and donned with a silver necklace and bracelet. She was speech-l e s s , ” s a i d Megan. “Be-ing crowned made her feel very special a n d r e c o g -nized.”

Paiz looks forward to re-turning next year to crown the 2012 Prom Queen. In the meantime, she will conduct herself with royal dignity.

Megan said, “Prom is what most

teens consider a right of passage and teens who have a disability feel the same. Heather cannot travel the world, but on this night, she was on top of the world.”

Student crowned Queen at prom event

PHOTO COURTESY OF MEGAN PAIZ

ROYAL AFFAIR: Junior Heather Paiz celebrates, as she is crowned Prom Queen at the “Evening of Dreams” Prom on May 14.

Lauren AndersonStaff Reporter

Approximately 500 students will walk the stage at graduation this year. Each of them will go their separate ways and most will follow the basic plan of going to college. But senior Alexandra Garman will pursue something a little different.

Garman will travel to Australia this summer, as part of the Youth With A Mission (YWAM) trip program.

“I feel called to do this before college and before settling down in life,” she said.

Garman will be in training for three months. After that she’ll participate in local out-reaches, where she will work with backpackers and host barbeques for them every Friday with free food and en-tertainment.

After her initial train-ing, Garman will be sent somewhere else for further training. Although Garman is not sure where she will be going for her second training, she said, “Asia is a possibil-ity.”

As a missionary, she will possibly be working with children in orphanages or small villages, putting on church servic-es or doing manual labor to build homes and other structures. Garman said she

has had friends do mission work before in places like Africa and Russia. They put on vacation Bible schools and wrote sermons for children.

With such a life-altering event, much preparation is required. One important aspect of the preparation is fi nances.

“The trip costs as much as one year of college at a university,” Gar-men said.

Garman has been putting money into a separate account and sent out support letters to

friends and family to seek help with the expenses.

She is also preparing by getting the appropriate sup-

plies for her traveling and backpacking and getting

shots and vaccines since she will be traveling to a third world country after Australia.

As far as preparing emotionally to say good-

bye to friends and family, Garman said, “I’m going to miss

my mom, boyfriend and friends.” Garman plans on taking trips

throughout the summer to spend time with family and friends before she leaves for six months.

“I’m looking forward to seeing how God will work in my life and change me and coming back with a new perspec-tive,” Garman said.

Graduate goes internationalA future missionary of the Great Down Under

Opinions Editor, Brooke Benson

BROOKELYNNEBENSON

May 24, 2011Volume 16, Issue 4

Wolf Pack Press 7

...appearing again next year!

As I sit here contemplating what will be my last column, I can’t help but reflect on how far I’ve come. Just kid-ding, this isn’t going to be one of those eloquently written nostalgic columns; just one final farewell to friends, en-emies, and strangers alike. Let’s keep it simple.

High school was meant to be just something to get done. I walked in those gates ready to move on with my life, and somewhat ignorant to the idea that no, I most definitely did not know it all. I had some growing up to do. Let’s face it, we all still do. We’re getting there.

High school turned out to be more than just something to get done with. It became more than just another four years of my life. I never expected to do all the things I did, much less come out swinging. I spent four years in the

theatre (as though I haven’t written enough for you all to know that al-ready). I spent two years on the paper, spouting my aggravating opinions for you all to read and rant about via the Internet. There’s not much to be said for an Opinions writer who can’t stir a little blood, so I suppose I should prob-ably feel good that I at least prompted a reaction from readers.

To my friends...are there any words? Need I explain, in depth, my gratitude for your love, time, and (let’s face it) patience? There can be no doubt about my gratitude to all of you for that. I daresay we didn’t make these four years the most dull four years of our lives. I would go on to provide four year’s worth of anecdotal evidence, but the plethora of inside jokes and miscreant behavior might not constitute as appropriate column material. I also know that along with the adventures came the almost-as-thrilling-but-not-as-fun drama that comes in all high school packages.

To those younger generations, I wish I could say that your high school years will be full of nothing but fun. I wish I could sit here and tell you that no, all the movies were wrong: you won’t endure some trying times within the next four years. I certainly thought so. Upon beginning high school, it was my firm belief that no I most defi-nitely would not go to dances, have a boyfriend, or much less do that whole ‘love’ thing that everyone warns us about. The truth is, and I know adults reading this will rub it in my face, they were right. High-schoolers are not even remotely prepared for that concept.

Whether it exists or not is no longer the question. It’s how we handle it. Here’s a hint: we don’t handle it well. In case no one let you in on the little secret, high school kids are a little immature, our hearts are a little fragile, and we have a tendency to think with the wrong parts of our bodies.

I’d love to say heartbreak is avoid-able. I’d like to tell everyone you can avoid it all with a sincerely pessimis-tic attitude, but behind each cynic is someone who’s been hurt before. It’s going to happen, and the best thing you can do is not let it ruin you. I’m sure it won’t be the last or the worst kind of heartbreak.

To my theatre family: you guys are on a completely different level than just friends. I love you all, you frustrate me (every one of you), and I appreciate all the support you’ve given me. To those outside of the realm of theatre, I im-plore you to understand for a moment how much time I’ve spent with these people: the seniors in particular, who I’ve inevitably known the longest. When you spend hours under blazing hot stage lights in full snow gear together, memorizing lines and being critiqued on your every movement, you start to grow on each other. You really don’t have a choice when you’re forced onto a plane bound for Southern California to spend three days with these people. You especially don’t have a choice when you spend a solid ten minutes in severe turbulance thinking ‘Well, I guess this is a good day to die’. After that, there dwells a connection there. Near death experiences tend to bring people to-

gether better than anything.To my family, there’s nothing I

can do but thank you for the support you’ve given me over these past years and one big apology for having to deal with the parent/child war that ensues before I’m old enough to appreciate all that you do for me. Also, an apology for middle school wouldn’t be out of place, would it?

To those who read my pieces...wasn’t this fun? Twilight fans, in par-ticular, deserve a round of applause for not being provoked to the point of physi-cal violence by my continual harping on your fandom. I hope at least I sparked something, whether it be an epiphany, a desire to do something more, or the need to hit me for my admittedly inflamatory opinions.

High school, in reality, is a place of discovery. It’s the place to lose control and make mistakes, then realize how to fix them. Nothing from this point on will be the same. The adventures will be more outlandish, the meals cheaper (hello, Ramen and Taco Bell), the tests harder, and the teachers less forgiving.

I’ve discovered that our perspective completely changed, as well. We enter high school with preconceived notions of our future and our experience. It’s not as painful as everyone makes it out to be, nor as chock full of Disney Channel cliches. On one hand I wish I could say that high school wasn’t a big deal. I got in, got it done and got out; but the world was right. High school changed me. Farewell, lovelies. We’ll meet again in the future, I’m sure.

Mister Social MediaGuest Writer

Maybe I should have thought about one thing before starting this experiment: I was going to report on how students were losing sight of real interaction because of social networks and maybe creating a persona for students to interact with was wrong because they were losing sight of real reaction because of social networks and basically it was one big circle of too high expectations that left no real

chance for experiencing or hearing any-one’s comments on social networking—Deep Breath…

I just, in closing this year far short of a bang, want to thank those who took time to help me in my research via guidance or by actually conversing with me.

It’s been an experience and hope-fully I’ve set up something that will live on forever at Woodcreek High.

I’m sure half my audience has stopped reading, so I’ll take this time

to say, “Hello, my name is Orrey Sev-eret.”

Yes, I’ve lied to numerous people; but keeping my identity secret deemed itself necessary. It’s hard to open up to people who already have precon-ceived notions and that’s exactly what I was trying to eliminate. Most of you guessed it was me anyways, but in most cases I was clever enough to make you think otherwise. Sure I sound like I’m patting myself on the back; but after these rough few months of starting

Mister Social Media finally reveals himselfthis project, it, too, has deemed itself necessary. Congratulations if you knew it was me all along; but I swear as years progress, Mister Social Media’s identity will become harder and harder to figure out. Trust me.

And don’t worry, there will be a new Mister Social Media next year once I’ve left and said my goodbyes. But, of course, you won’t know their true name until next summer.

For now, this is Orrey Severet say-ing, “Happy posting.”

8 Wolf Pack Press Opinions Editor, Brooke Benson

The word “love” comes up a lot…I love your shoes, I love In-N-Out, I love my mom. The other day we saw this girl walking around wearing a T-shirt that said “I love my boyfriend” and we thought, how could we use “love” to describe so many things without there being some kind of misunderstanding of the word.

In the Greek language four differ-ent words for “love” exist. Each word uses love in a different way and explains it more in depth and completely. The first, “Eros” a romantic love, describes what most people talk about when they say they have fallen for someone. This expresses passion and sensuality. “Philia”, the second, means friendship, it’s where the name for “Philadelphia” comes from or, the “city of brotherly love”. With this type, we care for family, friends, and pets. The third, “Storge”, in

Greek means affection that exists natu-rally, much like how a parent loves their child. This is shown whenever one dem-onstrates a natural compassionate in-stinct. Lastly “Agape”, the highest and purest kind, is true and s a c r i f i c i a l love where o n e h o l d s the other in h igher re -gard tha n themselves. Agape stands f o r d i v i n e love or the love of God.

“ E r o s ” is a compli-cated kind of love. High school boyfriend and girlfriend relation-ships often only last for a few months or less and are often focused on reputation or appearances instead of personality and character, so eventually the rela-tionship ends. However, don’t think that just because it’s a high school re-lationship it won’t last. With that kind

of mindset, of course, it never will. And as we, the Class of 2011, head off to college or other future plans it’s time to look beyond the superficial. If you set

out looking for someone who you respect, not for their social status but for who they are, and someone who you enjoy being with, not because they look hot but because they make you laugh and understand you, then the relationship holds a better chance of growing.

Never underesti-mate the decision to wait until you’re older for a better chance at a lasting relationship, because no boyfriend or girlfriend at all really is better than a bad one.

You know, a flaw exists in the ways of those Disney movies we all watched since we wore diapers. And it’s this: Disney movies portray love as the cli-max of life. Love is not the climax of life! That implies that love comes as a one time event and it doesn’t. We need to integrate love within our entire life.

Love isn’t just meeting “Prince Charm-ing” and living “happily ever after.” We need to love everyone. It’s “philia” for your family and friends, and “storge” for the person sitting next to you in Pre-Cal and your neighbor across the street. If one lives any part of their life without the presence of love, then are they really living at all? What are you living for if not for love?

In a perfect world there would be only one type of love. The type where you care for everyone so much you would give your life for them. Where you lift each other up and hold each other higher than you do yourself. It would be a love that is patient and kind. It would be a love that would not envy or boast or be prideful; a love that is not rude, not self-seeking, not easily angered, that keeps no record of wrongs. It would be a love that rejoices with the truth, always protects, always trusts, always hopes, and always perseveres….an un-conditional unfailing love. In a perfect world we would all take the “agape” that is poured out on us from above, and pour it out on each other. That is really what love is.

So when you say “I love _____,” think about what it really means. Rela-tionships bring the most joy to life.

MEGANBARNETT

DANIBUTTERFIELD

and

“You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer

yourself in any direction you choose. You’re on your own. And you know what you know. You are the one who’ll decide where to go.”

Dr. Seuss said it best. Approaching the end of the year,

we treat school with animosity and we have vicious “senioritis.” Though it seems excitement is ever-present, this truly needs to be a time of reflection and gratitude to the ones who have pushed our sails to end up where we are, no matter where that may be. We have what we’ve learned. We have ourselves. All we need is the ambition to strive for a destination both necessary and desirable.

I’ve taken a more subdued look at the feeling instilled within the Class of 2011.

I believe that this is the best way to calmly look back and see what you’ve

done: look ahead and say “How do I get there?” Seems that amongst excitement and schedules filled to the brim, we reach (or at least I have reached) a point of complacency. I feel like I’m in a John Hughes film watching cliques merge or last goodbyes; not as a cast member but as an audience of emotions.

Again, I’m subdued to the point where reaching out, I’d find nothing.

I’m not saying I’m not happy be-cause I have found immense joy in these last months. The anticipation grows stronger with each day. The laundry list of “lasts” seems to lengthen with each day. I grow closer to those I love in order to make sure we stay in touch when the end of high school comes.

Lemme see if I can make this clearer so you fully understand the in-ner workings of me, though who truly knows anyone?

A man approaches his car. Littered with stickers and gleaming under spot-lights. His car sits next to a hundred others, but he only sees his own. With his helmet under his arm, he lowers himself into the vehicle. Sweat drips down his temple despite the cool breeze on his neck; it’s the anticipation that’s got his attention—and the massive crowd, of course. He sees the flag raised slowly up. Everyone’s eyes are fixed upon the flowing material, but, again, he only thinks of his own. His fingers clench tightly around the steering wheel. He’s telling himself, “This is go-ing to be tough. This is going to be worth it.” He sees the smallest muscle clench in the flag bearer’s arm before the flag bearer drops the flag. Anticipation is killing him. He’s scared, but ready.

I’m just waiting for the arm to drop.

ORREYSEVERET

Ten years from now, when we’re all rich, famous, beautiful people who are

happily married in stable households, how will we look back on our class? How will the Class of 2011, the good ol’ 07/11’s, be remembered? How do we WANT to be remembered?

We might be remembered as the class that got cheated out of a proper Senior Picnic; last time I checked, In-ception and Chick-fil-a do not a picnic make. We could be remembered as the class that won’t get a good Senior Sen-doff; why is it our fault that the Seniors of ‘09 convinced the impressionable and stupid Freshmen of 12 to bomb us with water balloons of various viscous fluid? Maybe we could be super lucky, and be remembered as the last class that was forced to take the SAT Subject Tests, to qualify for ANY UC school; on top of record low acceptance rates for our class, why not hammer us more and

make us pay an extra $120 for tests that now mean absolutely nothing? How about the fact that the ELC, which allows the top 4% of a class automatic acceptance at a school, is TRIPLING to automatic acceptance of the top 12% NEXT YEAR?! It seems like our class has been designated by some higher power to simply be the one class that gets cheated, so to speak.

Here’s how I think we need to be remembered, The Class of 2011: “The Start of Change”. We are the class that was too good to “prove our dominance” with a Senior Prank. We are the class that started the trend of the raised API; before our class, our school was ranked below almost every other school in our district. Now we not only passed the national average of the 800 API, but we’ve never been closer to surpassing

Granite Bay and Rocklin. We as a class have some of the most promising ath-letes, artists, writers, and humorists our generation has to offer; and the teachers won’t ever admit it, but on the whole, our class easily ranks among the top favorites of the staff.

Despite how much we haven’t got-ten to do, despite how much we have gotten screwed over and how much was ruined for us, who other than us select few “rage-ists” gets our metaphori-cal “underwear in a wad” over these details? That’s what makes our class different, what makes our class special, and what defines our class; the fact that even though we have every reason to act out and be deviant little punks, we don’t. It’s a cheesy way to sign off the column, but I mean it Class of 2011: stay classy guys.

NICKNGUYEN

May 24, 2011Senior Columns

May 24, 2011

Wolf Pack Press 9Opinions Editor, Brooke Benson

Senior Columns

MEGANHOEHENRIEDER

JAKEHAAKENSON

It is a high school, a primary in-stitution that prepares us all for our academic future.

It is four years of every student’s life that lives in the area.

It is a campus, where students force themselves to come every morning at 7:45.

It is a cafeteria, the intimidated underclassmen attempting to discover their social clique.

It is Senior Square, the comfort of upperclassmen with who they are and the friends they have placed around them.

It is an office, the organization that is needed to make it function.

It is the teachers, who carry out the educational portion of it, but also work

beyond to impact the students forever.It is G.P.A., that crazy statistic that

everyone tries to raise.It is pride, the

knowledge that it is one of the most aca-demically successful schools in the area.

It is competi-tion, the drive to prove that it is the best.

It is athletics, the expression of dominance over other schools in the area.

It is winning, the pride and class of a competitor.

It is losing, the sportsmanship and respect of a Timberwolf.

It is student-athletes, the partici-pants who fight to bring pride, success, and recognition to it.

It is the coaches, the respect and determination that coaches express.

It is the Black Mob, enough said.It is Arco, the

unity of the stu-dent body illumi-nated through a basketball play-off run.

It is char-acter, the hard work that is ex-pected both in-side and outside of the classroom.

It is friends, everyone’s best

memory and greatest sadness in leav-ing.

It is relationships, relationships that have grown over time and deep-ened over earned trust.

It is strength, the power of a rela-tionship that has persevered through

Throughout high school, there are those people who truly shape you. They make you become better simply by being around you. In my four years of high school, those people I hold so dear to my heart consist of my friends and family.

My parents have always been great supporters. Whatever goal I set, no matter how high, they have always helped me reach it. They have proof-read countless reports, made brownies for numerous banquets and attended almost every NHS event, dance show or cross country meet. High school can be a stressful time. One of the mo-ments when my mom rescued me from this overwhelming pressure was in my sophomore year of honors chem. In that

majority of my high school experience. I don’t know what I would do without her. She’s amazing and beautiful, with the bubbliest personality. She’s kept me sane through all my tough times, and is always the best shoulder to cry on.

We have this thing, this sense for each other. I don’t really know how to explain it. But when I am unhappy, sick, or stressed, she knows. And when she is, I know. I don’t know how, but it just happens. We won’t even be next to each other and, we know. She will show up at my house with a tub of ice cream or cake to cheer me up without me asking her. I love her so much. We’ve had our rough times like any other relationship, but I am happy to know she will always be there for me. I’m proud to call her my best friend.

My other best friend would be my little sister, Erien. Yeah, she’s a pain in the butt a lot of the time; but if I really think about it, she holds all my secrets. She knows every little thing about me and always looks after me. She always bugs me and pops her head into my room. But that’s only because she wants to hang out with me. I will miss her so much.

Being in high school made me learn so many things. As a new freshman coming into a big school with different

a time I will always treasure. Kirsten has been like a sister to me.

All the crazy Carl’s Jr. runs and late night talks make our friendship like no other. Throughout high school, Alex was always there for me. She has such a genuine heart; she would talk on the phone with me for hours, even if she was in a whole other state.

Jake is the best boyfriend I could ask for. He has supported me immense-ly and made this past year the best year of my life. He will always hold a special place in my heart.

High school is tough. It requires a support system filled with the best kind of people to make it through. I am so thankful for my team of friends and family who have been so dedicated to helping me these past four years. I will miss them all so dearly in college, but I will never forget all the wonderful times we have shared together.

class, we had to memorize numerous chemical formulas. She sat on the couch with me for hours, reviewing with me, quizzing me and even creating funny pneumonic devices such as “Nannies always cook liver” (the formula for salt). Because my mom was willing to drop everything and assist me, I was able to conquer more than I ever thought I would.

My sister Emily and I have shared such great memo-ries throughout high school. From Original Pete’s dates to

sleepovers in my room, I will never for-get all the wonder-ful times we have shared together. Emi ly was a l -ways there for me whenever I needed to talk or didn’t want to go to the mall alone. Her friendship was a crucial part of my life these past four years that I will always cherish.

M y f r i e n d s Kirsten, Alex and Jake made high school amazing for me. All the fun trips we went on and times we

shared together made these four years

it.It is confidence, in knowing who you

are and where you’ve been.It is power, the foundation that

bounds us into our futures.It is passion, the discovered intense

love for sports, clubs, or academics.It is an experience, one that I re-

spect and appreciate.It is goodbye, one that I resist to

have.It is ups, ones that I have thor-

oughly enjoyed.It is downs, ones that have person-

ally improved me to be the man I am leaving it as.

It is memories, the laughs, cries, triumphs, failures, and relationships that I could never forget.

It is Woodcreek.And I thank it for giving me the

unforgettable experiences, memories, and relationships that will stay with me for a lifetime.

Since the world didn’t end on Sat-urday, I guess I can actually say that I’m graduating high school! It’s an understatement saying it went by fast, because it went by phenomenally quick. Like a blink of an eye, maybe faster. I remember being younger, never think-ing this day would come by so quickly. I probably thought I would stay a toddler

forever. At this point I wish I was.Growing up is a scary experience.

And I’m only eighteen; I still have more to overcome. My four years at this school have been amazing. I’m not one of those teenagers who state that they hate high school, because I loved it. It just all depends on the friends you surround yourself with. Picking good friends is highly important. Because I hate Jordan Holly Mitchell with a burn-ing passion, she is a terrible friend. And ugly too. TOTALLY JUST KIDDING. Jordan has been my best friend for the

people was scary. It was the next step to growing up. I always asked myself questions like how should I act? Should I dress nice? What will people think of me?

Being a senior, I have come to real-ize those weren’t very important things I needed to worry about. All I needed to worry about was making myself happy. In reality no one really cares; maybe some people do. But that won’t affect my future. I choose my future. It’s crazy to think this is my last time writing in the school newspaper, or cre-ating it. But don’t worry; in the future you’ll see me on the news as a reporter. I’ll be screaming into the camera as I’m swaying, holding on for dear life, in the middle of a hurricane.

But now it’s time to grow up. Time to be on my own. I am starting a whole new chapter. I won’t be with my mom-my and daddy anymore. They will be there to support me, but not as simple as it is now. My sister Erien won’t be there when I can’t sleep at night. My best friend won’t be there to run to when I am sad. I’ll be in a whole new life. Liv-ing with people I don’t know, sleeping in a room that isn’t mine. I can’t even sleep with my closet door open. How in the world am I going to survive? Let’s see how it turns out. Wish me luck.

JUSTIENMATSUEDA

10 Wolf Pack Press Opinions Editor, Brooke Benson

Brooke BensonOpinion’s Editor

The concept of adulthood reaches us when we realize for the fi rst time that in a matter of weeks, we will march across a stage straight towards freedom from the monotony and frus-trations of public school. From here on out, we as seniors will regard ourselves as adults. Young adults, but adults nonetheless, perfectly capable of caring for ourselves and making intelligent decisions in regards to our own per-sonal and professional lives.

And who’s to say that we aren’t mature enough to make such deci-sions without the careful guidance or advice of more ‘experienced’ adults? We’ve been through a little bit of it all, right?

We’ve dealt with catty girls in the hallways, so who’s to say that we aren’t prepared for the onslaughter of offi ce politics that await us and demand our utmost amount of maturity?

We’ve dealt with ‘boy troubles’, so parents please don’t insist on warning us over and over (and over and over) of the hearache that awaits us beyond these blue iron gates. We know what we’re doing. There’s nothing worse than being broken up with via text and cheated on the same way.

We’ve all had money shortages, which were disasterous enough to ruin a proposed evening out at the movies with friends (those darned parents who refuse to shell out for more than a few times a week). The ATM only dis-tributes in twenties; but when I don’t have twenty dollars in the account, I have allowance coming...right?

We’ve all procrastinated or missed a few assignments...missed a few classes...we know exactly how to catch up. The teachers will always just be there to hand you the work you missed and wish you all the best. They care about each of their hundred and some-thing students as individuals intent on their future success, of course.

We’ve never done anything il-legal, but we know well enough not to by now. Drive with your seatbelts always, look both ways before cross-ing the streets, no candy (or drinks, for that matter) from strangers. If anything, 12 years of public schooling has taught us common sense. We’re pros at it by now.

Parents, administration, teach-ers, aged and scary-looking Walmart cashiers we see on a daily basis, adults in general: you’ve taught us well. We can take it from here without your help. We know exactly what we’re do-ing. I think.

Evan CarboneBusiness Editor

Art comes in many forms, from vi-sual to performance to auditory, but one of the many art forms that is so often neglected is the social arts. In particular there has been a noticeable decline in the social art of chivalry; but this is as much the fault of women as it is men, for there has also been a distinct lack of gratefulness for quite some time.

Cliché as it may sound, chivalry has been slowly “dying”, but it is far from dead. As a whole, men have gener-ally stopped making the small gestures that constitute chivalry: opening and holding doors, ladies fi rst, spontane-ous compliments, and small gifts of affection; these have all become sites rarely seen. There’s no denying it: men do hold fault, most of us have neglected to continue the practices of chivalry; but the cause certainly wasn’t helped by the women.

Believe it or not, there were (and for that matter still are) a fair number of chivalrous men left; but the notice-able absence of graciousness, or even acknowledgement, by women has acted as a strong deterrent. Rare is the man who will open a door for a woman, but even rarer is the woman who will recog-nize the gesture; chivalry is now taken for granted. In a sense this expectation and ungratefulness is the reason for chivalry’s decline. If there is no longer a benefi t to chivalry, even one as small as a ‘thank you’, then why would men continue to practice it?

Even this is skirting the real issue though. The real reason for the decline in chivalry lies in the fact that men and women are both shallow. Men, as a whole, are fairly predictable in what they want: sex. Women are also shal-low, but in a less obvious way; women focus on and are attracted to men who will boost their social status. Men are no longer chivalrous because the men who were chivalrous were never the ones chosen by the women; the women were always choosing the more popular or rich or respected men, leaving the chivalrous men with nothing. Women stopped noticing or responding to chiv-alry because it wasn’t coming from the men they wanted. As men began to realize that chivalry was doing nothing to help them attain their ‘goal’, they began to abandon it. “There is no point in doing something that gets me noth-ing” became the attitude of the day. And so we are left with the current state of things: a lack of chivalry on one side, a lack of gratefulness on the other, and social arts being generally lost in a sea of shallow emotions.

The social arts: chivalry, grateful-ness, politeness (a topic for another time), tact, and discretion are all inte-gral parts of our society. While other arts are predominantly for entertain-ment or self-expressive purposes, the social arts are a functional part of ev-eryday life; they defi ne how we interact with others and are our fi rst impression on others. Without these arts, there’s just a society of spiraling apathy.

Matt GeorgeSports Editor

Going into senior year, it is pretty balanced between knowing and not knowing what to expect. Past seniors are constantly warning of the little amount of time you actually have between the start of graduation and senior year and some focus on the fact that it is the best year because you can take it easy. I am not sure where I stand in both of these beliefs, but I know one thing for sure. It is going to be one hell of a year.

For one thing, the student-loved and teacher-dreaded “senioritis” doesn’t seem like it means that much to me now; but from seeing how atti-tudes of past seniors have changed, I am sure it will come and get me some-how. Even though I am excited to get going and start my life, I can’t help but feel sad that there is only one year left. It is safe to say that Woodcreek has become my third home (besides my actual home and the formerly-known Arco Arena now called Power Balance Pavilion) and I will miss almost every-thing about it from favorite teachers to the greatest friendships a teenager could ask for.

It always seems like time is bit-ing you in the butt and stressing you out. I’d like to relax and enjoy my last year in the high school life, but I know

that simply won’t happen. Why? Two words: college applications. Something I cannot afford to procrastinate on (darn it!) and have to worry about all year. I mean it’s my future, so it is obviously important. Stresses of a job and common schoolwork are almost nothing compared to the stress of fi nding the perfect college and that is a given.

Lucky for me, I took care of all the core classes my freshman and sophomore year, which means no math and science for me! Yay! But while my schedule consists more of electives than anything else, it gives me no excuse not to perform my best in my fi nal year of English as well as Government and Economics class. So while I am excited that my senior year will be somewhat easy, I know that there still will be work to be done. High school isn’t completely over until the bell rings that fi nal day.

But that day I do dread. I have so many memories and fun moments on this campus, not to mention all the friends I have made. It will be an emotional day to say the least, but I don’t want that to be the one thing I remember when I look back on my last year. Therefore I, like every other senior in the class of 2012, should live my senior year to the fullest and when I look back on it, I should be able to say, “It was the best year of my life.”

Megan AdamsStaff Member

Since the beginning of time, people have loved to voice their opinion and make a difference. Sunday, May 8 at 9:30 people from all across the area came together at Cesar Chavez Park in Sacramento for the iMatter March.

The iMatter March was a march to the Capitol steps to let the government know that our generation matters. The idea behind the protest is to protest all of the fossil fuel emissions from the gas we put in our cars, from coal to power the power plants to heating and cooling systems that we use in our homes. All of these resources originate from fossil fuels that give off emissions that destroy our planet’s environment. All over the world, from China to Australia to the United States, we depend on fossil fuels, which are causing negative effects on the planet What we need is to think globally. Yes, granted Americans have and probably always will be the “Living Large/ I have to have the next greatest thing” country. To a point this is not necessarily a bad thing. The bad side to this is when we push and push for more and more and the resources that contribute to the

making of these new and better toys destroy the environment (not to men-tion the economy) and (we don’t think about it) but our future as well.

People do not realize that when we add extra emissions and gas into the air around us, it harms more than we think. If we keep up the use of the fossil fuels, animals like polar bears

and penguins and seals will start to go extinct. By the time that we have kids, we will start to see these colos-

sal changes. Selfish people with billions of dollars don’t want to spend the money on a good cause like saving animals. The death rate is already climbing due to the melting of the polar ice caps. In our minds, teenagers’ minds spe-cifi cally, having kids and starting a family seems like it’s ages away when actually it isn’t. What are we leaving behind for them?

If we start to think about the levels of emissions we are add-ing to the atmosphere

then, it will be too late. We need to stand up together and show these big corporations that we are done with the burning of the fossil fuels. Let this issue reach the level of public awareness.

Senior year comes with mixed emotions

This “adulthood” concept is confusingOpinionsMay 24, 2011

Senior SectionMay 24, 2011

Wolf Pack Press 11Justien Matsueda and Casandra Canthal, Special Section Co-Editors

UNIVERSITY OF CAUC BERKELEYMichael Bigelyaizen, James Geyer, Melissa Williams, Kevin Serrano, Leah Smith

UC DAVISBrandon Fields, Megan Howes, Joshuah Kerby, Jong Hoon Lim, Tiffany Sala, Alison Stewart

UC LOS ANGELESNicolas Bouey, Janice Mallery, Jason Stewart

UC MERCEDLori Pay

UC SANTA BARBARATaylor Giffin-Price, Ajaymeet Virk

UC SANTA CRUZMelissa Becker, Randy Kinzler, Jarid Kroes, Brandon Rad, Nick Sala,Andrew Sullivan

UC SAN DIEGODeven Hill

CA PRIVATE SCHOOLSAZUSA PACIFIC UNIVERSITYKirsten Hearl, Morgan Ortiz

CAL LUTHERAN Taylor Bunker

FRESNO PACIFICAngelina Artishuk

GROSSMONTBreanna Nelson

NEW YORK FILM ACADEMYZack Myers

PACIFIC UNIONCOLLEGESarah Peterson

PEPPERDINEJimmy Winne

SAINT MARY’S COLLEGEJency James :) , Stephanie Romo

UNIVERSITY OFTHE PACIFICKiran Grewal, Kenneth Martinez, Nick Niebank, Brittney Tubbs

UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIARosemary Bearden, Dominic Shepard

UTICA COLLEGEAshley Strausser

WESTMONT COLLEGEChristian Hatchett

WILLIAM JESSUPUNIVERSITYBrittany Attwood, Psalm Fuentebella,Alyssa Herrmann, Chelsey Katt

OUT OF STATEUNIVERSITY OF ALABAMAKathryn Lewis

UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONAJake Haakenson

ARIZONA STATEUNIVERSITYChristina Bentley, Ryan Blehm

BERKLEE COLLEGE OF MUSICOrrey Severet

BLINN COMMUNITY COLLEGE, TEXASJordyn DeCarlo

BOISE STATE UNIVERSITYJordan Zucca

BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY – IDAHOMark Campbell, Johnna Franks

BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY - PROVOBrandon Cain, Benjamin Miller, Nick Parker, Lindsay Pickett, Michael Rose

UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO, BOULDEREric Silberstein

IDAHO STATE UNIVERSITYDonovan Miller

JOHNSON AND WALES, COLORADOValerie Powell

MONTANA STATE UNIVERSITY, BOZEMANConner Setzer, Tanner Marshall

UNIVERSITY OF NEVADA, RENOEmily Becker, Megan Cook, ChristopherGonsalves, Nicole Gonzalez, Tarryn Gordon, Lauren Henry, Alexander Rob-arge, Sarah Tapp, Dana Vasko

NEW MEXICO STATEUNIVERSITY Marques Whitfield

OREGON STATE UNIVERSITYJoy Marie Gerould

SOUTHERN OREGON UNIVERSITYEvan Carbone, Casey Liebler, Stephanie O’Hair

UNIVERSITY OF OREGONMadison Jones,Sean Marigold,Taylor Stacy, Haley Thompson

SALT LAKE COMMUNITYCOLLEGEMichael Cullivan

SAINT JOHN’SUNIVERSITY, NEW YORKMariela Ramirez-Aguirre

TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITYMatt Whisler

UTAH STATE UNIVERSITYColin Boughner

MILITARYU.S. ARMYAnthony Chapman, John Dickerson,Joey Halligan, Kristopher WulFekuhler

U.S. MARINESChandler Craythorn

U.S. NAVYJack Canada, Allison Daack, Ryan Dresner, Jeffrey Hann

U.S. MILITARYJoshua Banagas, Bryan Gray

MARION MILITARY INSTITUTEAshley Mrozinski

VOCATIONALACADEMY OF ARTRichard Fischer Gage

AMERICAN MUSICAL AND DRAMATICACADEMYRyan Ruiz

ART INSTITUTE OF SACRAMENTONaomi Estrada, Kayla FloresJustin Rhetta, Micah Stephens

CITRUS HEIGHTS COSMETOLOGY SCHOOLMolli Barnhart

FEDERICO’S BEAUTYINSTITUTESophia Palacios

HELICOPTER PILOTTRAININGMichael Hogan

HOSS LEE COSMETOLOGY SCHOOLMeghan Neep, Shelby Smith

LOS ANGELES FILM SCHOOLDillon Bouchard

MTI PAUL MITCHELLBEAUTY SCHOOLPayton Duby

UNIVERSAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE (UTI)Alex Kuzmenko

FULL-TIME EMPLOYMENTDavid DeBold, Jacob Fritz, MickelHaley, Ryan LaFlamme, Daniel Lew-is, Riley Torres, Cody Warren, Sean Williams

OTHERHope Duxbury- Real Estate SchoolAlexandra Garman- YWAM, Australia

Continued on page 14...

12 Wolf Pack Press OTQ Editors, Megan Barnett and Dani Butterfield

Senior Superlatives May 24, 2011

Jake BogdanKimi Schenkl

Demare Williams

Allison Poehling

Emily Becker

Phillip Niebolt

Sean Macintosh Hai

lee

McA

nally

Sam Anderson

Lauren Leonard

Johnna Franks Brandon Fields

Kailee DeGerald

Zack

Mye

rs

Jennie MacWilliams Jaos

n S

tew

art

Chelsea Hall

Richie Gage

Senior Superlatives

Wolf Pack Press 13OTQ Editors, Megan Barnett and Dani Butterfield

May 24, 2011 May 24, 2011

Joleen ChancoDevin Murphy

Allison P

oehling Bob

by C

hatfi

eld

Kevin SerranoJoy Marie Gerould

Kevin Gonsalves Jacl

yn T

rent

Brenna Kelly

Jenner Lubinsky

Junior Dominguez

Heather Sayles

Joey Halligan

Lauren Leonard

Sam Anderson

Dana Vasko

Senior Section May 24, 2011

Justien Matsueda and Casandra Canthal, Special Section Co-Editors

...Continued from page 11

COMMUNITY COLLEGES IN CA

AMERICAN RIVERCOLLEGEJessica Bransen, Wade Brill, Christ-opher Elliot, Hannah Hardy, Tavit Kassardjian, Zackary Langford, Jasmine Lopez, Gina Martinez,Taleah McClure, Christine Murray, Gentry Pearson, Derrick Ramm, Bobby Reeves, Caleb Roberston, RileySchlaht, Brandon White Bear

BUTTE COLLEGEEmily Helms

CUESTA COLLEGECharles Serna

FOLSOM LAKE COLLEGEJohan Nevlida

MESA COMMUNITY COLLEGEDevin Dunn

SACRAMENTO CITY COLLEGEJordan Bostic, Angelita Hoskinson Aaron Parish, Kirsten Sprague

SANTA BARBARACITY COLLEGEKaillie DeGerald , Samantha Tegelman,Christina Voors

SIERRA COLLEGESam Anderson,Jacob Arroyo, JasonAsercion,Vince Avila, Karn Bains, R-vneel Bains, Spencer Barber, Xioxa-handi Bautista, Adam Beal, Aaron Beal,Brooke Benson, Samantha Benson, Michael Blair, Jacob Bogdan, Michael Boyd, Matthew Boysel,Robert Briggi,Keith Brooks, Olivia Buller, Sarah Busch, David Bussone, Corey Butzer, Connor Byrd, Brian Cabana, Carly Cabana, Morgan Caldwell, Timothy Campbell, Sara Carmody, Elisa Casillas, Oriana Castro, Alyssa Caudillo, Alex Chavarria, Kevin Chow, Meghan Clark, Monica Clark, Fred Cook, Celina Covert-Lovato,Brooke Cox, Tyler Crandall, Matthew Crandall, Hailey Crosta, Karen Cruz, Krystal Daniels, Daniel Davis, Adrian

14 Wolf Pack Press

Jay DeGuzman, Michelle Denna, JuniorDominguez, Kaitlyn Doner, Hannah Dumas, John Michael Duran, KathrynDurr, Mariah Edwards, Norris Eldridge, Macey Espinoza, Justin Fernandez,Kristen Ferrara, Amanda Franklin, Brandon Franklin, Shelby Fratus,Rook Freeman, Chelsea Geddes, Carol Geis,Tyler George, Zoe Gibson, Anna Golubyatnikov, Kevin Gonsalves, Sierra Gribble, KeirstenGwilt, Michael Hamilton, Marissa Hannemen, Kaylah Hansen, Christopher Harp, Jillian Harrison,Kenneth Herrera, Hannah Hillmann, Sabrina Howe, Danielle Hubik, KatelynHubik, Brianna Incardone, Veronica Je-ffery, Megan Johnson, Lauren Jordan,Amirah Kamal,Gurpreet Kaur, BrennaKelley, Derrick Kimball, Kelsey Kofoid,John Kort, Ryan Kovach, Matt Krone-nberg, Ashley Lae,Steven Lehutsky, Ari-elle Leighton, Lauren Leonard, Jonat-hon Locke, Nicholas Lokey, Jenner Lu-bisky, Jacob Lutz, Sean Maclntosh, Nick Main, Jessica Martin, Mariah RoseMartinez, Lyssa Mazzola, Hailee McAn-ally, Joslynne McCay, Mark McClung,Nicole Mclnnes, Jesse McKee, Leslie McManus, Daniel Mehaffey, Wade Mehaffey, Dhairya Mehda, Allison Mendez, Steven Meyer, Taylor Mich-aud, Jordan Mitchell, Mikala Molash,Kaylee Mooney, Ivan Morales, ZoeMoran, Michaela Morrison, Quinn Morse,Stephen Muhoa-Riolo, Michael Nelson,Jami Neutrelle, Nick Nguyen, Ioana Niculai, Phil Niebolt, Anthony Nist, Justin Nourth, Josh Nunes, Tyler Nuti, Leah Olin, Dennis Olsen, Jake Orlando, Steven Orlando, Arturo Partida, Karli Pearson, Brooke Peiler, Sean Percival,Johnathon Peska, Zachary Peters, Hubert Pham, Lauren Phillips, Matthew Plouff, Ashley Pochy, TravisPointer, Emily Potter, Kourtney Powell,Johnatan Prado, Lindsey Prather, KyleRayl, James Realiza, Ryan Reyes, Michael Rios, Kyle Ritchie, Diauni Ro-binson, Jorge Robles, Omarr Rodriguez, Madeline Rogers, Dante Rucker, Peter Sailor, Payton Sanassa-rian, Kelly Santibanez,Daniel Sarmento, Jarett Sawc-huk, Austin Severet, Cody Shamblin, Corey Sheefel, Brittany Shelley, Mark Smith, Monica Smith, Tyler Sondhi,Tyler Stein, Eric Stephens, MollyStephens, Megan Stewart, AshleyStrong, Caitlin Stuber, Kramer Sutey,Trevor Sutton,Trace Terrell,

CourtneyTevault, Simratpal Thiara, Cody Thompson, Trace Thompson, Alexander Timmons, Jamie Toledo, Zachery Torres, Jaclyn Trent, Victoria Valdez, Anna Valerga, Melanie Voigt, Quinn Walker, Cole Wallace, Stevie Walsh, Christopher Watkins, Ryan Weston, Demare Williams, Zack Wilson, Marie Yelavich, Holly Young, Kathryn Zamets, Ryan Zoller, Dylan Zuverink

CA STATE UNIVERSITYCSU CAL POLY, SAN LUIS OBISPOShelby Attwood, Megan Barnett, Evan Bech-thold, Angelo Ciaraglia, Ashley DeVriend,Stanton Dotson, Jaclyn Hawkins, Joshua Kyser, Jessica Marer, Destiny Poms, Riley Santos, Karl Schmidt, Laurel Thomson,Amanda Vertido

CSU CHICOSpencer Bouvé, Jessica Carr, Blake Cervan-tes, Caitlin Doyle, Janelle Estes, Megan Hoehenrieder, Jeffrey Krumdieck, Jennifer MacWilliam

CSU FULLERTONAllison Poehling

CSU HUMBOLTRobert Chatfield, Kyle Jaeger, Sarah Mann

CSU CAL MARITIMENathan Ternes

CSU MONTEREY BAYJessica Franklin, Loreal Matson,Yerlany Mendez, Kelly Mulligan

CSU SACRAMENTO STATEErika Adair, Mallory Bechler, Melissa Burgoon, Dani Butterfield, Guillermo Contreras, Jessica Decoque, Kimberly Gollmyer, Jeanine Krueger, Jenny Lopez,Justien Matsueda :) , Matthew McCallum, Devin Murphy, Jordan Peak, Thalia Torres, Alla Vyshnevska

CSU SAN DIEGOCourtney Force, Breanna Goldsby, Hannah Grossman, Jake Jabbora, Kimberly LokeyJay Standen, Heather Zoucha

CSU SAN FRANCISCOMelissa Ceron Escobar, Esgell Kim, KaitlynMay, Jessica Roberts

CSU SAN JOSEJessica Davis, Shauni Huebner, Bryce Lewis, Kimberly Schenkl, Lauren Sederberg

CSU SONOMABenjamin Bruggy, Dustin DeMatteo

Co-Editor-in-Chief, Kaitlyn May Wolf Pack Press 15

Volume 16, Issue 4 May 24, 2011

Kaitlyn May, Brooklynne Benson, Nick Nguyen, and Evan CarboneSenior Editors

““Following the trend of adapting popular children’s novels into feature length fi lms, MPP has the potential to be a heartwarming tale or a massive cinematic trainwreck.”- NN

“Such a grab at money by Pixar, it isn’t even funny; they’re just disgracing poor Paul Newman’s legacy now. Stop it. Stop the nonsense, Pixar. It’s going to be a fl op: a big one.” - BB

“With the loss of Megan Fox – half the box offi ce returns for the sequel fi lm – T3 is left with some eye-candy short of a testosterone-fi lled all-action fl ick. Chances are it’s a fl op.” - KM

“With an all-star cast and general loyalty to the plot of the novels, HP6: Part 2 is guaranteed to have sold-out showings. If you intend to see this fi lm opening night, Fandango A.S.A.P.” - KM

“Chris Evans gains a few pounds of muscle to fi t into the star-and-stripe-spangled suit of Captain America in this World War II origin story of the iconic Marvel hero.”- EC

“Daniel Craig steps out of his secret agent suit to fi ght aliens in this old west meets modern sci-fi fl ick that’s sure to entertain in spite of its not-so-highbrow appearance.”- EC

Brooklynne BensonOpinions Editor

The end of the year for seniors comes with the bittersweet compro-mise of freedom for nostalgia. For performing arts kids in particluar, the concept of leaving the theatre and stage they grew up in and on can be particularly challenging. The senior dance show Full Spectrum certainly left a legacy.

The beginning dancer’s simplistic but eloquent performances served an effective precursor to the snappy, energetic numbers that came through in the second act. The overarching theme was gracefully portrayed: the connection between color and emo-tion. The song choices were in keep-ing with the theme and explored the connotations of and emotional attach-ments to each color in the spectrum. The eclectic range of dance style alone made the show fully worth the ticket price.

The sounds and lights flowed seamlessly; the lighting contributed effectively to the overall tone, which shifted constantly between melan-choly solos and duets to fast-paced group numbers. The back and forth nature of the song selection - while catering to tastes of all sorts - some-what hindered the pacing of the show as a whole.

However, the style was so var-ried in taste that it complimented each genre students practiced with the music that we as students listen to - the most notable contrast being Oriana Castro’s thrilling White Swan Solo from the ballet Swan Lake to the group number Black and Yellow.

And so the senior dancers will depart this year “not with a fi zzle but with a bang”.

Full Spectrum: Senior Dancers Dazzle

Kaitlyn MayEditor-in-Chief; Featainment Editor

While my dedication to the Pirates series may bias my opinion slightly, I must say that I entered the theatre on loyalty alone, not at all expecting a hit. To my surprise – and delight – the fourth fi lm proved to be as equally fun and compelling as its predecessors.

Stranger Tides succeeded by re-turning to the feel of the original fi lm and exploring the depths of pirate lore once again. Although not without some faults, the fourth movie can be viewed as a satisfying sequel to Black Pearl, even with its occasional in-jokes.

Plot-wise, the fi lm ran smoothly, showing a believable (and historically accurate) change in time: pirates con-tinue to be hunted by the navies of the world and hanged, leading to the rise

of privateers. Tensions continue to fl are between the English and Spanish, re-sulting in the arms race to the discovery of Ponce de Leon’s silver chalices and the Fountain of Youth. Led by a fan favourite pirate, English privateers set forth to seize victory, competing with not just the Spaniards but also the infa-mous pirate captain, Blackbeard. Never lacking in the fantastical, the fi lm in-cludes mermaids whose eerily beautiful visages are actually true to lore.

Actors Johnny Depp, Geoffrey Rush, and Kevin McNally reprised their roles as Captain Jack Sparrow, Captain Hector Barbossa, and Joshamee Gibbs, respectively, meeting with newcom-ers Penélope Cruz as the clever pirate Angelica and Ian McShane as the apathetic and cruel Blackbeard. The fi ve interacted wonderfully, effectively playing off of one another with witty

repertoire and showing a deepening of bonds between their characters. Mc-Shane’s portrayal was amusing and in a sense likable; whether this was affective for his role or not is debatable, but he was fun to watch on screen nonetheless. Cruz brought a sexy latina edge to her character, having a large amount of on-screen fi ghts, making her very likable and a fantastic match to Captain Jack. Depp was as physically comedic as al-ways, showing off a lot of the escapism and footwork that Sparrow exhibited in the original fi lm. It was also delightful to see his interactions with the bit roles of Keith Richards, Dame Judy Dench, and Richard Griffi ths.

With subtle elements of the previ-ous fi lms blended into the scenes, the film felt rather satisfying as a con-tinuation in the series. However, a few threads needed tying up, leading to the

question of future fi lms in the franchise; audiences are left wondering how the mermaid subplot truly ended, what Angelica’s fate will be.

It must be noted that while the soundtrack was not as iconic as the previous fi lms, it was also not entirely disappointing. Playing off of the ‘re-turn to lore’ feeling of the fi lm, Hans Zimmer produced many reprises of the fi rst soundtrack by Klaus Badelt, giv-ing a nostalgic twist to many scenes. Stranger Tides is also the first film of the franchise to be directed by Rob Marshall – the other three being di-rected by Gore Verbinski. The plot of the movie was in fact adapted from the 1987 novel of the same name, written by Tim Powers, who helped to create the script. The work of all of these men enabled Stranger Tides to be a successful fi lm any pirate enthusiast could enjoy.

Pirates 4: On Stranger Tides an unexpected shipload of fun

16 Wolf Pack Press Co-Editor-in-Chief, Kaitlyn May

May 24, 2011Featainment

Attending: Sierra CollegeClass: Professional TheatreNominated By: Tom Fearon

Leslie McManus is an actress and Thespian member of Troupe 6055. Her fi rst play was Attack of the Pom-Pom Zombies in eighth grade. Most recently, Leslie did props for The Re-luctant Dragon and played the Small-est Blind Girl in Miracle Worker. She quotes her greatest achievement as being, “When I conquered my fear of heights putting up the stars for Al-most, Maine. I spent 12 hours on a 50-foot-ladder.” Leslie will attend Sierra College this fall, but she is looking to transfer to a school in Oregon after completing her general education. She looks to continue theatre within college and major in either Hydrology or Geology.

Attending: UC DavisClass: AP Studio ArtNominated By: Dave Branstetter

Alison Stewart is an AP Art stu-dent who has taken seven art classes here at Woodcreek, including ceram-ics and web design courses. Her work has been featured in multiple school exhibitions over the years, includ-ing pieces from her final portfolio which centered around the theme of ‘Breakfast’. She sites that her source of artistic inspiration is the painter Jackson Pollock. “I like his crazy art,” Alison said. “He’s hyper-abstract.” She will go on to attend UC Davis this fall, entering her freshman year as a Biology major. Alison aspires to be a doctor, drawing only recreationally. Her proudest moment has been the completion of her AP Art portfolio.

Attending: Sierra CollegeClass: Professional TheatreNominated By: Tom Fearon

Brian Cabana is an actor and Thespian member of Troupe 6055 who began acting his freshman year. His most recent role was as the character Chad in Almost, Maine in the scene “They Fell”. His favourite moment was “looking out at the glowing faces of the people in the audience during Almost, Maine.” Brian refl ects, “The raw emotion and enjoyment touched me.” Within his Thespian Troupe, Brian won the People’s Choice award for his work in The Complete Works of William Shakespeare Abridged and the Best Actor award for his role in Almost, Maine. Brian will attend Sierra College, pursuing acting as a Theatre major.

Attending: San Francisco Academy of ArtClass: AP Studio ArtNominated By: Dave Branstetter

Richie Gage is an artist currently enrolled in AP Studio Art. He has been drawing for as long as he can remember and has had his work dis-played in many campus exhibitions. Recently Richie completed his AP portfolio - centered around the theme “Characters” - and submitted it to the art committee. He says that he is inspired by “the infi nite complexity of life” and the “subtle simplicity of the universe”. He states that he feels the most personal achievement every time he gets paid for his work. Richie plans to attend the Academy of Art University in San Francisco before “getting a boss job drawing stuff”.

Attending: University of Southern CaliforniaClass: Musical TheatreNominated By: Adrienne Mars

Dominic Shepard is an actor and singer who has been involved in the performing arts since his freshman year. His fi rst role was in Woodcreek’s 2001 production of The Crucible when he was eight years old. Currently enrolled in musical theatre, Dominic takes his inspiration from his own life and the world around him. Recently he starred as the character Riff in this years’ West Side Story. His most memorable moment came at the end of this year. “My biggest achievement has been getting accepted to Univer-sity of Southern California’s School of Theatre,” he said. Dominic will attend this school as a Theatre major.

Attending: Azusa Pacifi c UniversityClass: Choir; Musical TheatreNominated By: Adrienne Mars

Morgan Ortiz is an actress and singer who has been enrolled in Choir and Musical Theatre all four of her years here at Woodcreek. Having performed since the age of six, her most recent role was as ‘Anybodys’ in the production of West Side Story. “My favourite moment was when the cast of Grease found out that we had sold out and were turning people away opening night,” states Morgan. “Everyone started screaming and there was amazing energy and lots of hugs.” Morgan will attend Azusa Pacifi c University as a Liberal Stud-ies major and Spanish minor. She also will participate in Azusa’s Bel Canto Choir.

Wolf Pack Press 17Co-Editor-in-Chief, Kaitlyn May

May 24, 2011 Featainment

Attending: University of the Pacifi cClass: Jazz and Symphonic BandNominated By: Orrey Severet

Nick Niebank is a musician who has been actively involved in band since his sixth grade year. A trum-peter and fl ugel horn player, he has been in both Jazz and Symphonic Band and has received four jazz so-los this year. Outside of school, he is also currently involved in “TNT,” the Sacramento Traditional Jazz Society’s sponsored youth band. “Playing at the Sacramento Jazz Jubilee is one of my favourite annual events to perform at,” he recalls. Nick will attend the University of the Pacifi c with a double major in Applied Mathematics and Jazz Studies. He plans to participate in many music ensembles throughout his college career.

Attending: UC BerkeleyClass: Jazz and Symphonic BandNominated By: Jarid Kroes

Melissa Williams is a musician who has been heavily involved in Woodcreek’s performing arts program. She hasplayed music for as long as she can remember, having fi rst learned to play the piano in elementary school. She was a fl utist in both Symphonic and Marching Band. She also played the vibraphone – a xylophone-like instrument – in both Drumline and Jazz Band. Melissa also served as conductor for Pep Band. Her favou-rite memory was, “in 2009, when the Symphonic Band performed in the state-of-the-art Mondavi Center in Davis”. Melissa will attend University of California Berkeley with a major in Astrophysics.

Attending: Sierra CollegeClass: Music-’n-MotionNominated By: Lydia Viduya

Jake Fritz is a skilled dancer, who began his career here at Wood-creek. Jake found his passion when he enrolled in Beginning Dance his freshman year; he now dances for Music-’n-Motion. One of his largest achievements came in October 2010, when he participated in the show The Doorway. Held at the Benvenuti Performing Arts Centre in Natomas, The Doorway was a separate event that Woodcreek students had the chance to audition for. Jake performed alongside professional dance company CORE Dance Collective. He will at-tend Sierra College with the intent to transfer and will major in either Dance or Criminal Justice.

Attending: Sierra College; UC IrvineClass: Music-’n-MotionNominated By: Lydia Viduya

Oriana Castro is a dancer who began her craft at age seven. She began at Dance Gallery 2 and the Sacramento Academy of Dance, tak-ing ballet, contemporary and pointe. She quit last year to become captain of Music-’n-Motion. Recently she placed Gold at a Co-dance Competition and directed the 2011 Senior Dance Show. Her favourite accomplishment includes, “when Shely Nichols, the director of dance in Disneyland, told me to work there and use her as a reference.” Oriana will attend Sierra College for two years before transfer-ring to University of California Irvine with a double major in Dance and Business Management.

Attending: Blinn Community CollegeClass: Advanced GuitarNominated By: John Harmon

Jordyn DeCarlo is a guitarist who began her artistic career in her sophomore year. Currently enrolled in Advanced Guitar, Jordyn is also an intern for fi rst period Intermediate Guitar class. Currently working on composing her own songs and getting her name out in the public, she lists her favourite moment as performing Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody with her Advanced Guitar group at this year’s Wolfstock concert. “Mr. Harmon is my inspiration,” states Jordyn. “He inspired me to want to become a music teacher.” She will attend Blinn Com-munity College in Texas this fall. She intends to transfer to Texas A&M as a major in Music Education.

Attending: UC DavisClass: Advanced GuitarNominated By: John Harmon

Joshua Kerby is a guitarist who started his artistic career his fresh-man year. Enrolled in Advanced Guitar, Josh names his inspiration as Mark Tremonti, the guitarist from Creed and Alter Bridge. Josh states that his greatest accomplishment was “recording a guitar track that I made for a Warner Bros. song that my dad was given to remix. It was the fi rst time I ever created something to be recorded for an actual song.” Josh will attend University of California Davis as a Business Economics major. He plans to take another three years of law school afterwards and become a business attorney with a minor in classical guitar.

The students within these pages are some of the many

great artists that our school has had the honor of having. These

students have been named by their teachers and peers as some of the best within their representative programs, the

faces of Woodcreek’s Visual and Performing Arts departments. They have all worked hard in their crafts during both their

school hours and personal hours, achieving in excellence, eff ort, and attitude. Be sure to congratulate these deserving special superlative winners!

18 Wolf Pack Press Co-Editor-in-Chief, Kaitlyn May

May 24, 2011Featainment

KAITLYNJ A Y N E

MAYWhen I fi rst sat down to write this

column, I promised myself that there would be no melodrama, no emotional statements. I was aiming for a general-ized goodbye. Truth of the matter is, it isn’t possible to compress four years of growth and change into a simple fare-well. Looking back I’ve realized just how far I’ve come and how much I have to be thankful for. Leaving and moving on is always an emotional thing: in love, in moving, in growing apart or in growing old. I told myself I wouldn’t feel clichéd and emotional, but I can’t seem to help that either. So here’s homage to the last four years with some thanks along the way:

For the fi rst time – probably ever – I can genuinely say that I am happy with who I’m becoming and with who I am. In retrospect, I realize that I’ve become more confi dent as an individual. I’m no longer ‘two people,’ and can be proud to just be myself, regardless of how oth-ers feel about it. I had the bravery to publish my personal statement essay in last issue’s paper, and I don’t care who doubles back and reads it. Now you all know who ‘anonymous’ was. What people think of me and how they may or may not judge me is their own preroga-tive, not mine, and it’s not something that I’m going to allow burden me.

I’ve had the great fortune of mak-ing lots of friends during my time here at Woodcreek. I made some scheduling choices others wouldn’t, placing my-self in classes where I didn’t have any friends who I knew. When I was younger, this enabled me to mingle with juniors and seniors, allowed me to assess how they acted and what they talked about, and to model from the truly amazing ones. As a senior myself, I can’t regret taking classes that introduced me to those younger than myself. Dealing with the percentage of still immature underclassmen was worth the couple of friends that I was able to make, ones that I can talk to about college and help guide through their high school careers as my best friend did for me.

I have so many people to thank from the bottom of my heart. I’m not the sort of person who people expect to have hard times: I’ve always had the luxury of good company and the drive to succeed when I put my mind to things, and I don’t say this to sound conceited. While personable, I don’t speak my true mind very often, and there are honestly so many people that I appreciate who may never know how much they have truly helped me. Sometimes the sim-plest words can go a long way.

To my parents: I do not thank you enough. You have guided me when I put too much pressure on myself and have never judged me or my occasional failures. I aspire to be like the both of you and appreciate all of your support these past few years. I hope I can make

you proud as a college student.To my friends: You’re probably all

crazy for hanging around someone as self-critical and manic as me, but I love you all to death. You’ve brightened even my worst days and have truly helped me when I needed you. I’ll be cer-tain to stay in contact with you all and look forward to see-ing what col-lege life brings to each of us.

To my girl: You’ll never see this paper, but I couldn’t have made it here without you. Four solid years of love, support, and growth has changed me for the better, and I can’t be more proud of the way these experiences have shaped us. You never fail to cheer me up or encourage me. Thank you for always being there: Ich Liebe dich, mein Liebling.

To Mr. Cerney: You may never read this, but I want to put it out there that you’ve infl uenced my life. I admire your frankness and genuineness, as it made your class truly unique and enjoyable. I

look forward to working towards one of my two majors: European Studies.

To Ms. Boisa and Mrs. Eisenhower: I appreciate the relationships that we have formed; they have encouraged me

and motivated me more than I can say. You are people who I greatly admire and trust, and I thank you for the time you’ve both spent read-ing my original works. Thanks to you both, I go on to college pursuing a second major: Com-parative Literature.

To Mrs. Ramirez: I value the relationship that we formed and want to thank you for sitting down and talk-ing with me about any-thing: the future, my personal frustrations, my scheduling woes. You always took the time to truly listen and helped me with even

the most trivial of things, and for that I thank you.

Without all of these people, I could not be where I am now, and I could not be the person who I am. I intend to take everything that I have learned from you all and go on to my own future. I wish everyone a wonderful summer; let us all graduate with confi dence and embrace the paths we choose to take. Congratu-lations Class of 2011: we did it!

May 24, 2011Volume 16, Issue 4

Wolf Pack Press 19Sports Editor, Matt George

MatthewC l a r k

GeorgeTo some, football season is like a

gift from the gods. Fans gather at their friends’ or family’s homes all over the world to enjoy a specifi c game or just spend a whole day on the couch watch-ing football, drinking beer and eating fantastic barbecue. While baseball is the, “nation’s pasttime,” football is the “nation’s playtime,” where people all join together to enjoy a physical and entertaining game of hard-hitting, back-and-forth, good ol’ American foot-ball. But now a lockout has emerged, threatening the future of the NFL entirely and quite possibly, putting an end to the 2011-2012 season before it even starts.

First off, what is the NFL lockout? “Lockout” in sports is basically a term meaning no trades are allowed to be made, no contract signing or dropping

is allowed and, most importantly, no games are allowed to be played until the issue is solved. Most commonly, this issue deals with the players com-plaining about low salaries which, in itself, is completely ridiculous. The NFL is also dealing with legal issues involved in player safety and the com-mon occurence in brain-related inju-ries and diseases in retired NFL play-ers. Also the NFL is struggling with the possibility of overseas play and possibly an NFL team being either moved or created in Europe, which is a whole other issue in itself that has no easy solution.

Getting payed millions of dollars to play a sport seems like the life that someone would dream of and the money would be plenty. Well not for these athletes. Players are beginning

to demand more and more money to play. Why? Because they can. Especially huge names like Payton Manning and Donald Driver. Players feel that they deserve more money and know that if they demand it, somehow they will get

it. Team owners are so worried about a star leaving their team that they panic and, in most cases, give them whatever they want so they will stay on the team. If the owner refuses or tries to offer them less, a player feels confi dent of leaving that team because

he knows that some other owner is go-ing to kiss up to him and give him all the money he wants to come and play for their team. So it is easy to understand why players are demanding more and more. It is because millionaire owners spend all the money they have on play-ers in order to boost their team because

they clearly don’t know how to spend their money any way else. Players have owners and the NFL in the palm of their hands money-wise, but recently it was discovered that most pay for it when they get older.

Head injuries have increased in occurence over the years, therefore in-creasing the public health worry about the sport. A study in the year 2000 revealed that 1090 former NFL play-ers suffered from concussions and that number continues to grow. Over 35% reported to have suffered three or more concussions in their entire career as an NFL player. The NFL suffers from many different lawsuits by players as well as countless ridicule from doctors for their lack of aknowledgement of these brain-related injuries.

It’s important that these issues be dealt with properly. But if the lockout continues through the year, it is very possible there won’t be an NFL season at all. If that’s the case, I, as well as many others will not only be disap-pointed, we will cause even more grief for the NFL.

other three times this sea-son and Woodcreek won two of those three meet-ings.

But as playoffs can often prove, the regular season scores and games between the two teams refl ected nothing towards the playoff games and Ro-seville took care of the Tim-berwolves 5-1 in game 1.

Both games were clear struggles at the plate for Woodcreek, and this time their pitching couldn’t car-ry them to the victory.

Now Woodcreek will have a chance at revenge today, May 24, against Roseville to tie the series and continue towards the championship they hunger for.

In order to continue down the tough playoff road, the Timberwolves will need to start hitting the ball well again and hit .343 like their regular season average.

RBIs will also have to increase and the defense will have to minimize all mistakes and help out the pitching staff as much as they can. A pitcher can’t do it all by himself. He needs a trustworthy de-fense behind him to bail him out of any stressful jams, as well as some big bats to give him a security cushion when he steps up to the mound.

Matt GeorgeSports Editor

The Woodcreek baseball team made it to the playoffs, but by the skin of their teeth. The question is can they pull themselves together and win themselves and the school a champion-ship. With the way they played at the beginning of the season that is quite possible; but if they stay in their cur-rent end-of-the-season slump, then they are going to have a tough time getting that title.

The playoffs seemed like a sure thing from the beginning of the season when the team got off to such a hot start; but towards the end of the season, the team ran into a slump and ended up having to scratch and claw their way to a playoff spot.

By defeating Del Oro on May 11, 13-10 in a late comeback, the team just barely captured their spot in the playoffs.

Their fi rst game would be against Casa Roble in a one game, win-or-go-home showdown. The matchup was a complete pitchers’ duel from the start. Only two runs were scored in the entire game, luckily both by Woodcreek. Both Woodcreek and Casa’s total runs-per-game average for the season is slightly above eight, which just proves the fact that both teams struggled in the bat-ter’s box.

But Woodcreek would prevail and move on to the next round. The very next day they took the fi eld against the rival orange and black, the Roseville Tigers. The two teams only faced each

every player will have to put their heart and soul out there and prove that they deserve to continue and play for the title. It is always easier to perform well when there is a solid fan base behind a team, so get out and support the Tim-berwolves who are fighting to bring another banner to our gym wall and pride to the school as a whole.

Basically the key is consistency and the team knows it. If they can be consistent and score runs as well as defend well, they have as good a chance as anyone to reach the title.

It’s a stressful time for any athlete, being in the playoffs; but it is here where the men are separated from the boys. On the fi eld is where each and

Baseball sneaks into a playoff spot

PHOTO BY JESSICA ROBERTS

CLUTCH: John Peska steps up to the plate at a clutch moment in the Del Oro game.

20 Wolf Pack Press Sports Editor, Matt George

May 24, 2011Sports

Girls softball captures their much deserved playoff spotBreana ZamudioStaff Reporter

This season our own WHS girls varsity softball team made it to playoffs. Throughout this season the girls made immense progress as a team, which guided them to the position they are in this playoff season.

“The girls will be going in as the 2nd or 3rd seed,” Asst. Coach Gary Stringfellow stated. The girls fi nished the regular season with a 17-5-1 overall record and 8-2-0 in league. Stringfel-low said, “All the teams are good in the playoffs and we aren’t head and shoul-ders above everyone else. There is no number one team this year, everyone is about equal.”

When asked about going to the playoffs junior Courtney Johnson said,

“It’s pretty cool. I think we can do pretty good. I know we have the tal-ent and skill to pull it off.” Johnson plays outfielder, shortstop and fi rst base, batting with a .246 average.

The Lady Tim-berwolves are ranked 57th in the state of California and 260th in the nation. They stand in 2nd place in the SFL, right behind Del Oro.

Regarding play-offs, junior Kacey Ad-ams gave some insight. “We need to improve to bond defensively as a team and I believe we are going to win,” she said. Adams plays outfi elder

and has scored two runs this season. The most memorable part of the past

season for Adams was beating Roseville.

The leaders this sea-son for the team’s bat-ting average are fresh-man Jenna Curtan with an average of .452 and senior Hayley Gately with an average of .348. The only freshman on the girls varsity softball team is Jenna Curtan and she just happens to hold the highest batting average on the team. Curtan plays pitcher and fi rst base.

The girls’ latest win was on Friday May 13 against the Wood Wildcats. Although it was a non-con-

ference game, it was still a confi dence booster for the team with the 2-1 win.

The team’s latest conference win was against Del Oro on May 10 with a victory score of 3-2. The conference win will help the team to advance in the playoffs.

There are four pitchers on the team who are contributing their skills to the team’s placement in playoffs this season. Sophomores Amanda Modder, Alexis Wilkerson and Amanda Horb-asch are all pitchers for the team, along with freshman Curtan.

On Friday, the Lady T-Wolves de-feated Rio Linda 2-1 in a hard fought pitchers’ duel. The ability for Woodcreek to put up 2 runs in the fi rst three in-nings as well as hold the Rio Linda bat-ters to only 5 hits and one run is what decided the game. They also played Roseville High on Saturday.

Junior Varsity swim wins coveted section titleNick NguyenOnline Editor

The Woodcreek High School swim team’s recent Sections meet ended in the only way possible for our outstand-ing team: winning. The swim team pulled solid efforts on every front and their hard work paid off. Sixty-three teams in total participated in the Sec-tions tournament and our girls team fought their way to the lead, winning by 6.5 points.

Among the 33 varsity swimmers, Claire Hammond, freshman, and Ally-son Fellows, sophomore, both managed to win titles at the meet. “It’s hard to pick one great moment for our team,” said Brooke Peiler, senior of the varsity

PHOTO COURTESY OF LYKOS STAFF

Swim team dives to clean victory at sectionals competition.

girls swim team. “But the simple fact that we were able to bring six girls to Sections is really exciting, a n d a great way for us to end our season.” H a m -mond won an indi-v i d u a l section ti-tle in the 100-back-s t r o k e , and Fel-lows won a section t i t l e i n the 500-freestyle.

These titles only helped cement

the varsity girls position as 2nd in overall SFL league standings. “Having

our girls fi n-ish 2nd over-all is a huge accomplish-ment, and our boys team did great too ,” Peiler said. “I think the best thing about our team is the fact that we didn’t just swim well, we came closer as a team.”

The var-s i t y b o y s team man-aged to fin-

ish 4th in standings with the JV boys fi nishing in 3rd and the JV girls ending

4th in league standings. “No matter where we fi nish, our

number one focus is working as hard as we can and doing as well as we can,” said Riley Santos, senior of the varsity boys swim team. “This year was good, but next year can be even better. Our team is continuing to grow, and it’s always great to get fresh talent. That can really give us some depth and an ad-vantage over other teams in our league.” Despite moving on from the Woodcreek High School teams, both Peiler and Santos remain not only optimistic, but supportive and hopeful for the team over the next few years.

Swim ends their season on a high note with two new title winners and solid fi nal standings in the SFL league for all four of their teams. With an even brighter future ahead for our swimmers and some fresh new talent to fi ll the ranks of our departing veterans, next year looks promising.

Swim’s hard work and skill makes a splash

Despite hot start, girls soccer falls short of playoffsBreana ZamudioStaff Reporter

The WHS girls varsity soccer team got off to a spectacular start this spring, winning eleven straight games to start the season. The fi rst game they lost was the twelfth game against Granite Bay with a 1-0 score. Although the girls did not make it to playoffs, they believe that this was one of their best seasons. Junior defender Mika Samoy stated, “We gave it our all, but the teams in the SFL are really competitive and we just came up short.”

A majority of the players agreed that their most memorable game was the recent home game against Del Oro, not only because they knocked Del Oro out of the playoffs, but because it was the seniors’ last game. In league the girls fi nished with a record of 2-5-3, placing 5th out of six teams in the SFL

PHOTO COURTESY OF MARK BOWMAN

Girls varsity soccer stands 11-5-4 for the season.

on top of Nevada Union. Junior midfi elder Lauren Hayano

s t a t e d , ‘It’s been an amaz-ing season, probab ly t h e b e s t yet. I have gotten so close with all of the girls and I’m going t o m i s s all of our seniors . ” H e a r i n g from some of the play-ers, it is clear that the team has really bonded this season, as shown through their overall record of 11-5-4.

When asked what the most memo-rable moments of this past season

were Samoy s t a t e d , “When Rosie B e a r d e n threw a ball straight at Coach Matt’s face or when Erien Mat-sueda fel l straight on h e r b u t t during prac-tice.”

Practic-es consisted of fun times for the team and really

gave the seniors some memories to re-member their fi nal season of high school soccer.

There are four seniors leaving this season: Johnna Franks, Emily Becker, Rosie Bearden and Jordan Zucca. Franks and Becker returned this season as their second and last year as team captains. Samoy stated, “The Del Oro game was really sad because we all walked off the fi eld knowing that it was the seniors’ last game.”

There was a greater amount of freshmen on the varsity team this year than in past years. The new freshmen were Alyssa Rushing, Erien Matsueda, Madeline McArthur and Mei-li Mad-amba.

Finishing the season without mak-ing playoffs wasn’t a great downside of the season, however. The girls claimed that they made major progress with team bonding and became even closer than they had expected. The fact that they achieved such bonding will make them even stronger going into the sea-son next year.

May 24, 2011

Wolf Pack Press 21Sports Editor, Matt George

Sports

First year varsity players get all-star honors

Nick FranzeStaff Reporter

The announcement of Eastern Con-ference fi rst string All-Stars and honor-able mentions rang with Woodcreek names. Senior Zack Wilson and junior Josh Barnhart got fi rst team honors. Juniors David Edgar, Sam Plecker and Clay Crowley got honorable mentions.

Junior goalie Clay Crowley says he got an honorable mention because, “I put the team on my back.” This de-

termination and confi dence is a good trait to have as a lacrosse goalie, and it shows in his play. Clay also tore tendons in one of his hands halfway through the season and played through it for the rest of the season.

One of the First Team All-Stars, senior Zack Wilson praises his effort off the fi eld for his success. “I put in a lot of effort and practice in the off-season. I had to play D-pole (Long stick) all last season and then switched to short stick this season, so I had a lot of ground to make up.” Zack is graduating this year, fi rst attending Sierra College, “but I would like to go to Humboldt, Chico or

Sonoma State.” The best part of the season from Zack’s perspective was, “The parties after and the experience of hanging out with my teammates, and of course scoring hat tricks.” The very best part of his experience was, “Becoming bro’s with my teammates, and having a hella chill experience.”

Another Honorable Mention, Junior Sam Plecker was one of the core Attack-men/Middies and a valuable player to the Woodcreek offense. When asked about how he felt about this mention, he

mocked Clay by saying, “I put the team on my back”, adding, “seriously though, I am very honored by this mention and am grateful for my recognition.” He plans to excel even more next year by, “hitting the gym more and working on speed and individual skill sets for my offense.”

Sam, Clay and Zack were the ter-rifi c trio for the varsity team. All three brought their own unique skill set to the table. Clay’s wicked reaction time, Sam’s uber-quick shot release and Zack’s prowess on the offensive and defensive side of the fi eld made them

PHOTO COURTESY OF DAVID LIEBLER

Zack Wilson, senior, is warmed up and ready to play on the all-star team.

invaluable players. All-in-all Woodcreek lacrosse has

grown to a level where recognition is thoroughly deserved, and given now. This first set of All-Stars out of a Woodcreek background is just breaking the mold for the future of Woodcreek lacrosse and the introduction of a fl our-ishing sport to Northern Californian athletic culture. Even though only a handful of players were selected as All-Star material, the whole team contrib-uted to this memorable and remarkable fi rst season as a varsity team. It will be fun to see how they perform in 2012.

May 24, 2011 Sports

22 Wolf Pack Press Sports Editor, Matt George

leave lasting legacies behind

Blake Cervantes

Over his years as a Woodcreek athlete, Blake Cervantes has per-formed well in both football and track. He played both running back and safety for the football team and wears the number 2 on his back. He has played football for ten years and his performance refl ects that. As a running back Blake averaged eight points a game and was ranked #7 runningback in the league He loves track and fi eld and therefore is also a part of that team.

Football & Track

“My best memory as an athlete is freshman year football against Pon-derosa when we came back and won a tight game in the fourth quarter.”

Brandon WhiteBearFootball

Brandon WhiteBear rocked the football fi eld every year he played, especially his senior year. He played tight end and excelled on offense, averaging 15 receptions a game with a little more than 21 yards per catch. Brandon’s longest reception was a full football fi eld kickoff return for a touchdown. He is ranked 12th tight end in the league and 57th in the sec-tion. Brandon wears the number 84 on his jersey and has played football since he was nine years-old.

“Just playing all four years for Woodcreek is the best memory for me.”

Hannah HardyTrack & Field

To say Hannah Hardy is multi-talented in her sport is an understate-ment. She is involved in three very different events in track. The only consistency in those events is that she is running and jumping. Those events include the long jump, triple jump, and all different kinds of team relays. Hannah is the captain for the team’s 200-meter relay and has been running and jumping for seven years. She is well-loved by the other members of the track team and they all appreciate her talent, leadership, and ability to keep the team chemis-try strong.

“My best memory is making it to the state competition multiple times.”

Johnna FranksVolleyball & Soccer

Johnna Franks dominated both out on the turf and in the gym. She played volleyball for her fi rst three years but didn’t play her senior year. Instead she turned to her top sport, soccer, which she played for her en-tire high school career. As captain of the soccer team, Johnna’s teammates looked up to her as a leader but also a fun-loving friend. She has been the athlete of the week for Woodcreek a few times and has made 1st team all-league in both soccer and volleyball.

“I know all about learning to get along with people I may not neces-sarily like, so that will be helpful in college. I have too many good memo-ries to mention. They all contributed to an amazing experience at WHS.”

Devin Murphy Football & Basketball

Call him the“King of the Court” because that defi nes Devin Murphy. Although he did play football for two years, he is knows for is his ball skills on the court. Devin played pointguard for all four years and has been a cap-tain for three. Both of his years on var-sity, the team made it to Arco Arena/ Power Balance Pavillion. Coincidence? I think not. Devin’s teammates respect him and consider him to be a hard-working and encouraging guy.

“Beating Archbishop Mitty at their school. We’re losing the whole game and then come back to win in the playoffs.”

Angelo Ciaraglia XC, Wrestling, Track, Baseball

Think this guy isn’t athletic? Think again. In four years of high-school Angelo Ciaraglia has played four different sports and performed well in all of them. He says he will miss competing against all of the different schools in the district and especially miss his teammates and other friends. Angelo was a captain for both wrestling and cross country and his teammates consider him to be a supportive and hard-working athlete. He is very proud that he played at least three sports each year.

“My best memory was making state championships for cross coun-try and state championships for wrestling.”

Leah SmithSwim & Water Polo

Leah Smith might as well live underwater, seeing as how she spends almost as much time underwater as on dry land. Her nickname is simply “The Beast” and for obvious reasons. Her teammates describe her as an extremely hard worker and dedicated in everything she does. Leah is such a talented and strong swimmer that she intimidates her opponents, both male and female. She has made both fi rst and second team all-league for waterpolo.

“During my junior year of water polo, my team beat Granite Bay in the last second. It was our fi rst win against them in the year. In our game against Rocklin my senior year, we went into overtime and I scored the game-winning goal.”

Stephanie RomoTrack & Cross Country

An all star on and off the fi eld, Stephanie Romo is one talented stu-dent and athlete. For all four years she has run as a member of the cross country team and the track team. Her senior year she was a captain for the cross country team. She is also grateful for the skills in the class-room that Woodcreek teachers and classes have given her off the track. Her teammates would describe her as a very loud and energetic leader - the team cheerleader.

“I will miss all the amazing teammates that I got to grow very close to. I will especially miss Mrs. McKillop, who was an extraordinary coach throughout my high school running career.”

May 24, 2011

Wolf Pack Press 23Editor-in-Chief, Jency James

Senior Section

From the swim team to Advanced Guitar to the National Honor Society, Chris Watkins spent his time spreading the infectious energy he encompasses.

Being involved in multiple pro-grams gave him the opportunity to enjoy his fa-vorite year as a Timberwolf . From sports to performing arts to charity, Wat-kins extended his personable self to Woodcreek in a variety of ways and kept school spirit alive.

Watkins was also involved in the community. He played an im-portant role in his church’s youth group and traveled to Mexico over the past three years on mission trips.

While succeeding in his AP and

As the superstar of the Girls Basket-ball team, Joleen Chanco competitively led her teammates. Chanco played three years of Varsity Basketball and was captain for two years. She won individual all-tournament and MVP awards.

While she proved a star on the court, Chanco’s favorite memory was playing varsity basketball with her teammates her sophomore year.

“I was playing with some of the best people,” she said. “I looked up to every single one of them and we are pretty much family up to this day.”

Chanco is also a determined dancer. She illuminates strength and confi dence in dance and shows perseverance in her

During his time here, Eric Silber-stein has infl uenced several areas of campus life.

He filled his time with activi-ties such as four years of water polo, three years of swim and two years as a member of the Na-tional Honor Soci-ety and the Break-dance Club.

S i l b e r s t e i n m a d e h i m s e l f known on campus with his outgoing and personable n a t u r e , s h o w n most recently as a member of the Senior Survivor team, Eight Guys in Suits.

Silberstein hugely impacted the campus as a victim of drunk driving in Every 15 Minutes his junior year. His

Most people know the loud, hyper, outgoing girl who prances around like a gazelle. That girl is Jaclyn Hawk-ins.

For the past four years, she has been involved in many activi-ties. Hawkins has been on the dance team since fresh-man year and was named captain this year.

“Dance has been a big part of my life,” she said.

H a w k i n s also participated in athletics. She played soccer for two years and was captain of the JV soccer team her sopho-more year. She also ran track junior and senior year.

Hawkins was also in the National Honor Society for three years, helping organize events such as a run/walk and People for Paws.

When she wasn’t busy with her extra-curricular activities, Hawkins

served as a source of hilarity and fun. During one of the ral-lies Jenner Lubinsky tried to do a push up with Hawkins on his back.

“ H e a l m o s t couldn’t do it. I felt really fat,” Hawkins said while retelling her favorite mem-ory.

Hawkins looks forward to the free-dom of attending Cal Poly, SLO to major in architecture.

H e r p a r t i n g words for underclassmen?

“Try to cherish your time with your friends and family, because I can’t emphasize enough how fast the time fl ies,” she said. “Stop and smell the roses and don’t worry what others think.” (by Justien Matsueda, Special Section Editor)

honors classes, he does what he can to remain happy. Surrounding him-self with people who immediately feel cheered up by his presence earned him the Senior Superlative title “Best

Smile.” Watkins stated that

earning this, “brought a smile to his face.”

Watkins plans on attending UC Davis to study medicine and become a doctor.

There are those who come through Woodcreek and leave a path of astonish-ing success that is re-flected through their GPA. However, there are few who acquire great grades, happi-ness, friends and a spot

in multiple programs. Watkins is one of them. We all expect great things from this high achiever. (by Orrey Severet, Staff Reporter)

Jake Haakenson stands out as an integral part of Woodcreek.

Since freshman year, Haakenson played volleyball and basketball . This year, he was the captain of the varsity volleyball team and an asset in helping the bas-ketball team make State fi nals.

He has been in-volved in the Na-tional Honor Soci-ety for three years, where he served as an offi cer junior year and became President senior year. As an offi cer, he was in charge of the run/walk fundraiser, which raised over $3000 for Roseville Homestart. Haakenson considers his work with NHS to be his biggest legacy.

He is also involved in other extra-curricular activities, like his work in KEY Club and leadership in his church’s

youth group. This past spring break, he helped build houses in Mexico.

Despite his con-tributions here, he is excited to attend the University of Arizona to major in math, though he is unsure of his plans after-wards. Despite his excitement, Haaken-son said he will miss the friends, staff and relationships he has built.

“The thing I most enjoyed about at-tending Woodcreek was the friends I made through sports, school and extra-cur-

riculars,” Haakenson said.He advises students to work hard,

get involved and enjoy their time here.

“Thank you to everyone in the senior class for a great four years,” Haakenson said. (by Evan Carbone, Finance Manager)

continuation with the dance program.Chanco also excels in the classroom

and received multiple Academic Merit Awards.

H e r g r e a t e s t achievement came from the experience that harmed her most. Dur-ing junior year, Chanco suffered a serious knee injury that would have taken her out of sports and dance senior year.But Chanco proved it possible to thrive in every situation.

“I came back strong and hard and better than I have ever played in my senior year,” she said. “I feel like I was able to show that no

matter what happens, you can make it all the way through if you just work hard at it.” (by Jake Haakenson, Back Page Editor)

emotional sharing and acting moved the audience and brought some to tears.

Silberstein is also an accomplished speaker of Spanish and even spent

a summer abroad in Spain.

High school wasn’t without fun times for Sil-berstein. He shared his most memorable experi-ence with friend Jose Lo-pez when a bat fl ew into the locker room while the two were showering. The two reacted by frantically running around naked, not realizing they had an audience in the cross country team.

Silberstein wants to help the less fortunate and will attend the Uni-

versity of Colorado-Boulder to major in linguistics, to join the military or to be an interpreter in the Peace Corps. (by Orrey Severet, Staff Reporter)

Those who know Brittany At-twood know the fi rst thing people say when they hear her name brought up in conversation is “Brittany? I love Brittany!” With her involvement in teams, clubs and academics as well as her sweet and optimistic person-ality, it is no won-der she is so well loved.

B e t w e e n French Club, Key Club, Amnesty In-ternational and NHS, Attwood def-initely made her mark on campus. She also played a large role on the newspaper staff, serving as the fi rst ever online editor and launching the fi rst site of its kind in the district. In addition she served as Co-Editor-in-

Chief for one semester.Attwood found her niche, though,

when she joined the Speech and Debate Team, which she will greatly miss.

Attwood plans to attend William Jes-sup University in the fall, where she will major in English.

“Success is about loving, living and embracing the op-portunities and peo-ple around you,” she said.

Attwood also said, “Thank you to Mrs. Elko, Mrs. Eisenhower, Mrs. Mars, Ms. Schla-m a n a n d M r s . Burns for reminding me that education is more than just

fi nding knowledge, it’s about fi nding yourself.”(by Dani Butterfield, OTQ Editor)

Wolf Pack Press 24Back Page Editors, Megan Hoehenrieder and Jake Haakenson

May 24, 2011 Senior Superlatives