ECHOESthe Scottsbluff High School | October 2010 | Volume 94| Issue 2

Scottsbluff High School

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Wall Info Photos Notes

[ ]Three years after the brutal murder

of her father, senior Dani Vesper tells her story | pg. 2

New Advanced Placement award profitable for students, teachers | pg. 6

“The mosque near Ground Zero”: the great debate | pgs. 10 & 11

With over500 million members on

Facebook alone,the time has come to ask:

How your online behavior may affect your future | pg. 12

Will employers/colleges‘like’ your profile?

Why you shouldn’t post private information online | pg. 13

Privacy settings:do you know yours?

2 | FEATURE

story byASHLEIGH SMITH | feature writer

“He was always there for everything I did, even

little school plays in el-ementary school.

-Dani Vesper, 12

REMEMBERED MOMENT

Jason Vesper holds his daughter Dani, now a senior at SHS, at home in an old family photo. Although there are currently no suspects Scottsbluff Chief-of-Police Alex Moreno says the investiga-tion continues. Courtesy photo

gone, but he won’t be

FORGOTTEN

The 2008 homicide of Jason Vesper left his daughter Dani with just memories. He may be...

”

“Go Bearcats, Go!” “Let’s go, Bearcats!”

The gymnasium resonated with the pandemonium of the crowd sup-porting their Bearcat volleyball team. The Lady Cats were dominating their arch nemesis, Gering High School, and nothing could make their fans happier.

Senior cheerleader Dani Vesper pranced onto the volleyball court with a smile plastered upon her face, ready to further excite the crowd.

Dani gazed out into the stands, scanning the crowd for her family and friends. Everything seemed complete: the Bearcats were winning, the stu-dents were ecstatic, and parents were proud.

There was just one thing missing: her dad.

***Jason Vesper was born on April

3, 1967 in Scottsbluff. He graduated from Loveland High School in Love-land, CO with a 4.0 GPA and four years of golf under his belt.

He was granted

a full scholarship to Louisiana State University for both golf and academ-ics. He was then offered the Head Pro position at Oro Valley Country Club and Resort in Tucson, AZ.

After studying and golfing, Jason came back to Scottsbluff where he married and started his family: two children, Joshua and Danielle.

He worked for Z & M Lumber in 1989 where he was appointed man-ager once the business was sold to UBC (United Building Center).

UBC closed later, but Jason still stuck with the business as it became Z & M Lumber once again.

Everyone that worked with Jason remembers him as a top notch salesman, hard worker, and a respected business man.

Jason had a great enthusiasm for sports, but his true passion and talent was golf.

Golfing was one of the many things that Dani and her dad did

together. She said her dad was always part of most of her favorite childhood memories.

“He was always there for every-thing I did, even little school plays in elementary school; and I loved the vacations we went on as a family, like to Disney World,” Dani said.

Dani had a special relationship with her father throughout her child-hood.

“We were very close,” Dani said. “I was definitely a daddy’s girl.”

***No one could have guessed that

such a happy childhood could take such a sharp turn for the worse.

It was Jan. 1, 2008, day one of the New Year. Everyone usually plans what changes they will make for their future and it never crosses one’s mind those plans could be altered by a third party with a dark motive.

This night seemed like any normal evening.

Jason left to get a soda at the West-ern Travel Terminal (WTT) around 12:30 a.m.

After leaving WTT, Jason’s vehicle was spotted on a surveillance video from Community Christian Elementa-ry School in an area between Avenue E and Avenue F.

The video shows Jason driving up Avenue E with another vehicle, either a Cadillac or Buick, following shortly behind. The following vehicle flashed its headlights, indicating Jason to stop.

Both vehicles come to a stop between West 14th Street and Avenue F, where a tree and a house block the camera’s view. Forty-nine seconds later, Jason’s vehicle drives into view. He traveled west toward his home, while the other vehicle headed north, away from the scene.

It is believed that in that forty-nine second time frame, Jason Vesper was stabbed.

Earlier back at home, the family began to worry about how much time Jason was taking to get his soda.

Right before the incident Mrs. Ves-per called to check on her husband. He was still at WTT.

Moments later the family noticed an unusual light coming from the neighbor’s yard.

As they walked outside, the awful sounds and glaring lights of Jason’s running pickup were screeching in the

“ ”If I could tell him one thing now, it would be that I love him.

-Dani Vesper, 12

FEATURE | 3

TODAY’S investigation

The case of Jason Vesper is still unsolved, but the Scottsbluff Police Department are still working hard to solve that.

While the police have no idea who committed the crime, they’ve done the best they can to make this homicide public in the community to get more information.

“We sent a plea to the commu-nity for anyone who had any kind of video for any activity between WTT and Jason’s home,” Chief-of-Police Alex Moreno said.

They were able to produce two separate videos that showed two cars: Jason’s and the culprit’s.

“We con-tinue to look for vehicles that fit that profile in terms of the type of vehicle it is,” Moreno said. “We submitted those videos to agencies that specialize in video enhancement.”

They also went to their drug task force, predicting someone under the influence was responsible.

“Every inter-view with people charged with drug distribution has

been asked about this case,” Moreno said.

Jason’s playing card was distribut-ed in the prisons of Nebraska. Playing cards contain the pictures of unsolved homicides.

“This was just another way to gen-erate more talk,” Moreno said.

Besides not knowing who is re-

sponsible, the most frustrating thing to the police department is being questioned about the police depart-ment’s efficiency and abilities to investigate a case of this magnitude.

“We often get judged that we don’t do the job we’re supposed to do because we’re a small town. I disagree totally,” Moreno said. “I think we got one of the more veteran investigative service units in this entire part of the state, if not the entire state.”

Unfortunately, there are people in this community who would commit this crime.

“There are some pretty ruthless, non-caring people who live for today and not tomorrow and who care less what you have to say and what I have to say,” Moreno said.

Every effort has been put into this case.

“We’re doing everything we can. There’s only so much evi-dence and information we can act upon. It’s important that the family knows that we’re going to keep working on this to the best of our abilities.”

story byMEGHAN PRITCHARD | feature editor

“It’s important that the family knows

that we’re going to keep working on

this to the best of our abilities.”- Chief-of-Police Alex Moreno

What’s happening on the Vesper case today?

night, stuck in the snow. “Oh, my God. What is going on?”

Dani said. She was in shock. “He was losing consciousness, but

he was still there. You could tell he was starting to fade out. I just kept telling him that I loved him.”

The police were called to the scene. Jason died just an hour later at Re-gional West Medical Center.

The funeral was held a week later at the Dugan Kramer Funeral Chapel. So many people attended the ceremony that more chairs had to be brought in.

Tears streamed down Dani’s face. She didn’t know how to feel or act.

“At first I just couldn’t believe it. I was in such shock that nothing seemed real,” Dani said.

Although Dani cannot vouch for her family’s feelings exactly, she says they were just as freaked out as she was.

For the first year following her father’s death, Dani claims the con-fusion she felt shown through her poor choices. As time went on things became clearer and she could better sort her thoughts.

But the reasoning behind Jason’s murder is still unknown.

The police are still attempting to solve the case, but no leads on suspects have been made. Dani doesn’t exactly feel that investigators have done all that they can to find the culprit.

“I don’t know what else they could do, but if other murders can be solved then this one can too. There has to be something,” Dani said.

The police have questioned many people, including Dani. When a murder occurs, the first suspects are usually the family, so the police asked her questions to eliminate family members as suspects.

“They kept asking if I knew any-body who did it, as if I didn’t under-stand, but I knew what they were getting at,” Dani said.

While the police were quick to pry, others kept quiet. Not many people asked her about it at first.

Dani avoided the public in the be-ginning. The murder happened dur-

ing Christmas break, and she waited a couple weeks to go back to school after the incident.

“I didn’t want to be in public at all,” Dani said.

When she first returned to school, classmates and teachers didn’t know how to act.

“I think they realized that I didn’t want to be treated any differently because I didn’t change who I was,”

Dani said.

***Today Dani has a more positive

outlook on life. Although she is still haunted by the reality of the crime, she has somewhat accepted the situa-tion and grown from it.

“I realized that things happen for a reason, and it kind of helped me grow and develop,” Dani said.

It’s still hard for Dani to discuss the subject about what happened to her father, but now she is brave enough to talk about it with a few people, mostly her family.

Small reminders constantly haunt Dani every day.

“It’s just the little things you take

for granted, like when you want to call your parents,” Dani said. “I always think ‘Oh, I want to call my dad,’ but I can’t.”

Dani’s relationship with her mom has also changed since her dad was removed from the picture.

“There’s a lot of pressure on our re-lationship since things have changed so much. Plus, my dad was the only

person that worked for my family so my mom is trying to go back to school.” Dani said. “She has way bigger expectations for me than she had for my brother, who doesn’t live with us anymore. I’m basically stuck with ten times more responsibility. The stress puts a lot of pressure on the way we treat each other.”

Even though things are stressful with her mother, she tries to look at the happier things when it comes to her father.

Every year the family holds a golf tournament for Jason, the Jason Ves-per Memorial Golf classic.

As each year passes, the reality won’t fully set in. Dani will always miss her dad, and the shock of losing her father will always remain.

“I miss that he was always there for me, no matter what, and if I could tell him one thing now, it would be that I love him,” she said.

After experiencing what most kids could simply not imagine or endure, Dani has maintained an admirable composure and grown into a person with wisdom and an un-teachable perspective on life.

“I would really love to go back and have it not happen, but I know that it won’t, and it’s made me into a stron-ger person. It’s made me see things differently and changes my outlook on life,” Dani said. “A lot of people change for the worse when things like this happens, but it’s made me change for the better.”

4| NEWS

State reading results show room for improvement

Linda* stared at the computer screen in the library during the state reading assessment last spring.

After a while, all the stories merged into one.

She was tired of reading and certainly not concerned about the test results.

Soon, her only goal was to get through the multiple choice tests as quickly as possible.

Although students in the district last year may have scored more than proficient overall, it is easy to see why there is still room to improve and grow, according to the Nebraska Department of Education.

On Aug. 25, the Department of Education released results of its first statewide-standardized reading test.

Nearly a third of the state’s students failed to meet reading standards, and only about 20 percent exceeded standards.

Last spring’s standardized testing covered only reading, but next spring in addition to reading, there will be a math test. The following year will be standardized testing in reading, math, and science.

Juniors scored a 101 in an average

scale score ranging from 0 to 200, with 85 being the standard score to strive to meet. Grades three through eight were also tested, their scores were also over the standard, but not by a big margin.

The standardized testing results are not comparable to previous assess-ments since in the past, districts built their own assessments.

Last year was the first time a stan-dardized test was used to assess all districts in the state.

Prior to last year’s tests, districts administered their own tests.

This allowed the district to mea-sure how students were doing in alignment with the curriculum, then if students weren’t proficient, the dis-trict could re-teach and re-assess.

Those scores looked better because with the new testing students are taught all year long and then given a one-shot assessment in the spring.

Sandy Porter, director of Curricu-lum and Technology for the school district, saw some positives in the results for the Scottsbluff district.

“Now we know where we stand in comparison to other districts, we know what we need to do and will plan accordingly. It seems the longer students were in the district, the better they did,” Porter said.

Porter went on to say that getting students to read outside of school is a

problem leading to lower scores. Many students aren’t reading as

much due to a variety of societal fac-tors; entertainment systems have also created competition with books since their invention.

Things like the Wii, the X-Box, the Playstation, and the Internet are being chosen over reading a book when it comes to using leisure time.

In addition, Porter said many stu-dents aren’t involved in face-to-face conversation in this cell phone and internet-dominated culture. Texting, email, and facebook have become the means of communication, which could be affecting teens’ vocabulary.

“Out-of-school reading habits of students have shown that even 15 minutes a day of independent reading can expose students to more than a million words of text in a year.” (An-derson, Wilson, and Fielding, 1988)

Other factors affecting low stu-dents scores include: poverty, if there is a significant adult in a student’s life, and whether English was their first language.

So what ramifications will the Scottsbluff district face if scores aren’t raised?

Test scores, as well as graduation rate, dropout rate, and participation rate all factored into an Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) decision.

A district either meets or doesn’t

meet the standard. The state then takes the bottom 15 schools on the AYP and puts them on the Persistently Low Achieving Schools (PLAS) list.

Those schools will receive more money from the state to improve on the things they need to. The PLAS list is basically used to target schools that are in need of improvement.

Porter said the time frame for the Scottsbluff district to raise test scores is the sooner the better.

“We need to take a look at the individual students, the individual groups, the demographics and give students the proper interventions so that they are successful,” Porter said.

A useful tool principals and teach-ers are using on the high school level to encourage students to do well on the test, is competition.

When students know their scores are going to be compared to Chadron, Mitchell, or Gering, they are going to want to do better because students are proud of their schools Porter said.

Conveying the importance of reading outside of school is the most helpful key to improving scores.

“I think to encourage students to read more outside of school, teachers should talk about the reading they do because they are more experienced and can help open up students to different reading materials,” Peter Johnson, SHS English Department Chairperson, said.

story bySCOUT WILSON | news editor

story byRYAN MEISTER | news writer

VANDALISMCLEAN UP

Terry Brown with Gary’s Cleaning and Restoration Services uses a power washer to blast graffiti early Friday morning from the east side of the Splash Arena. Photo by Terry Pitkin

Students arriving at school last Fri-day were greeted with graffiti painted on the walls of the Splash Arena, the school’s west entrance and the east side of the school’s auditorium.

Phrases like “G-town, Gering, Dawgs, and Bulldogz” stained the walls on the day of the Scottsbluff/Gering football game.

Several groups worked for almost ten hours to remove as much graffiti as possible. Remnants can still be seen on some walls.

Principal Rick Porter said e-mails were sent to all teachers informing them of the situation, and he encour-aged students via the intercom after the morning announcements not to retaliate.

School Resource Officer Steve Lopez reviewed surveillance video Friday morning to assess the situation and to identify the culprits.

Although Lopez said they do have a lead on the suspects, he cannot release any further details at this time. He approximates the time of the van-dalism to be at midnight.

“The next plan of action is to fol-low up on the names that have been brought up and otherwise be open to student tips,” Lopez said.

From what could be seen on video, there were two white males wearing black sweatshirts with hoods up and jeans. The vandals didn’t try to avoid cameras or keep their faces from be-ing exposed.

The consequences the vandals face in terms of law enforcement is destruction of property, but the school will decide if charges will be pressed after suspects are identified. Some penalties could include fines, manda-tory community service, probation, and expulsion.

Lopez estimated the graffiti re-moval cost at $600-700.

on eve of Scottsbluff/Gering game School

Cat CalendarOctober Events15th- End of SHS 1st Quarter15th- FB VAR. vs. SIdney- 7pm15th-BTN State @ Lincoln- TBA15th-SB State-TBA16th- PSAT/NMSQT Testing16th-VB VAR @ Ogallala vs. McCook-Noon16th- 28th Annual Old West Weekend Parade-10:30 am Field Competition-1pm18th- 9-12 NO SCHOOL, Teacher In Service19th VB 9th/JV/VAR vs Alliance- 5/6/7pm22nd- FB VAR vs. Alliance-7 pm23rd- ACT Testing26th- SHS Fall Vocal Concert- 7pm30th- VB VAR GNAC @ Scottsbluff- 10am31st- Halloween

November Events4th- VB Districts @ Gering-TBA6th- SAT Testing6th- Old West Show Choir Competition7th Daylight Savings Time Ends11th Veterans Day11th SHS & BMS Bands Veterans Day Parade- 11 am11th- VB State @ GI/Hastings-TBA

The CAT CALENDAR is brought to you by the

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”“

Aaberg on every one of the teacher awards. We wanted to acknowledge that.”

“I was deeply touched and utterly speechless because, in over 20 years of teaching, no one has ever done that for me. It’s nothing I would ever expect,” Menghini said.

Called the ‘RIP’ (Really Impressive Performance) award, it is entirely up to the discretion of the Shedds - if they notice something unusually remark-able about a teacher’s performance for

a school year, they will rec-ognize it with the RIP award. If not, the award will re-main dormant and “we’ll just rename it ‘Rest in Peace’ for that year.”

Further-more, the Shedds hope to guarantee that all students have the opportunity to take AP exams, which cost $87 each.

“In conjunction with the coun-selor’s office, we will work to ensure that all students wishing to take an exam are financially capable of taking the exam,” they said.

The counselor’s office also handled the mechanics of the new awards. Counselor and AP coordinator Julie Newman obtained consent from each student who received a passing score(s) to have said score(s) released to the Shedds for the purpose of calculating the prize money of each student.

“Anytime that I can help students get cash for what they’ve done is a fun part of my job, so I enjoyed doing it,” Newman said.

The new AP award program may not be the solution to the nationwide economy, but it does grant the wish of many high school students: getting paid to make the grade.

6 | NEWS

Ask eight in ten Americans what they think of the

economy, and, according to the CBS Evening News, they will sum it up in one word: bad.

This news is particularly grim for high school students, most of whom have no time to work their way to the big bucks because of the 7.5 hours a day, five days a week they spend at school.

Wouldn’t it be nice to con-solidate these two activities, learning and making money, into one ef-ficient and prosperous endeavor? Is it possible to get paid to learn?

It is now.Drs. Michael and Gina Shedd of

Scottsbluff recently established a new award that compensates students and teachers for exceptional performances in the Advanced Placement (AP) program.

“We believe that the AP program is an amazing educational opportunity for the kids of Scottsbluff, and we want to encourage participation and success,” the Shedds said.

The surest way to encourage suc-cess? Cash bribes, of course!

“We’ve been using bribery to en-courage our children since their potty training days,” the Shedds, who cur-rently have two kids in the Scottsbluff public school system, said. “Back then it was cheaper - just some M&M’s. Now it’s money.”

The AP M&M’s, so to speak, are allotted according to exam scores for individual students, and, for teach-ers, the scores received by students in his/her AP class. There are prizes

for students who achieve a passing score (3, 4, or 5) on any AP exam, and for the recently graduated senior with the highest cumulative score over his/her four years of high school. AP teachers compete for three awards: Highest Mean Score for a Class, High-est Number of Passers, and Greatest Improvement.

The inaugural awards were presented at the AP parent’s meeting on Sep. 22. Fifteen current students received envelopes with cash inside,

and 2010 graduate Chris Johnson won $1000 as the first recipient of the senior award.

“I was really surprised,” Johnson, who is currently attending the United States Naval Academy, said. “Taking the AP classes was definitely worth it because it prepared me for college courses, but getting paid was a nice benefit.”

Math teacher Shelby Aaberg swept the teacher competition, winning all three awards, a total of $3000.

“I was pleasantly surprised,” Aaberg said. “It’s nice to see a family putting money toward education.”

However, Aaberg wasn’t the only teacher to see the benefits of the pro-gram. The Shedds surprised English teacher Todd Menghini with his own $1000 award.

“When we were calculating the re-sults for the teacher awards, we were struck by the impressive performance of Mr. Menghini in his inaugural AP English Language class,” the Shedds said. “He came in second to Mr.

GET PAIDto make the gradeNew Advanced Placement award offers

monetary compensation for high achievementstory byKARIN SHEDD | editor-in-chief

We’ve been using bribery to encourage our children since their potty-training days. Back then it was cheaper - just

some M & M’s. Now it’s money. -Michael and Gina Shedd

theBREAK

down

TEACHERSAll teachers of AP classes compete

for four different $1000 awards:

1. Highest Mean Score for a subject - Average score of all test takers

in a single class taught by a single teacher (all students in class who

didn’t take test are included in calculation).

2. Highest number of passing scores as percentage of how many

kids took the class - Total number of passing scores divided by number

of students enrolled in class.

3. Most improved - Difference between number of passing scores

from current year and previous year in same subject.

4. Really Impressive Performance or Rest in Peace award - Up to

discretion of the Shedds. If they notice something impressive, they

will reward it.

STUDENTSStudents who take an AP exam

and receive a passing grade will be rewarded by the following scale:

5-$1004-$503-$20

Senior Award: the senior who, after graduation, has the highest

cumulative AP exam score will receive $1000. Seniors MUST TAKE and pass at least one AP exam at the end of their senior year to be

considered for this award.

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CENTER SECTION | 98 | CENTER SECTION

With close to 24 million kids in the USA growing up without their fathers, somone needs to ask...

WHERE’S YOURDaddy?

PICTUREPERFECT

American radio and television comedy series, Father Knows Best.

?

* Names have been changed.

Young men who grow up in houses without fathers are twice as likely to end up in jail as those who come from traditional two parent families regardless of race, income, parent edu-cation and urban residence.

Approximately 84% of custodial parents are moth-ers, while a smaller percentage of 16 of custodial parents are fathers.

Compared to liv-ing with both parents, living in a single-par-ent home doubles the risk that a child will suffer physcial, emo-tional, or educational neglect.

Being raised by a single mother raises the risk of teen preg-nancy, marrying with less than a high school degree,and forming a marriage where both partners have less than a high school degree.

Students living in absent father homes are twice as likely to drop out of school or repeat a grade. Parent in-volvement in school is significanly lowered in single-parent homes.

Daddy Facts: Taking a look at the statistics surrounding absent fathers

Laura Bell* sat anxiously in her grand-mother’s living room, head racing with a thousand thoughts.

“What is he going to be like?”“ What should I say to him?”“ Am I going to cry? No, don’t cry!” Suddenly the front door opened. In walked

a man wearing a farmer’s shirt and blue jeans with boots.

Laura couldn’t believe what she was see-ing. She had waited her whole life to meet her father, and it was finally happening.

As the two met in the middle of the room Laura desperately fought back the tears build-ing up in her eyes.

This strange man, her father, slowly wrapped his arms around her and held her tight. A sudden feeling of security spread through Laura’s body, and all she wanted was to keep that feeling inside forever.

Every year, stories like these have become more and more familiar: couple has kids, father bails out, mother raises children.

It’s undeniable that both boys and girls need some sort of male role model in their life. The question is how a father’s absence affects each gender differently.

“For me, I feel like I’ve missed out on hav-ing a male role model. As a guy I’ve mainly missed having someone to talk to,” Jason Smith* said.

Smith’s parents separated when he was eight years old.

“When my parents divorced, I sort of knew what was going on, but I didn’t totally com-prehend what was happening. My parents tried not to fight in front of my siblings and me, so it wasn’t a messy divorce,” Smith said.

While Smith’s father doesn’t play a huge role in his son’s life, he still makes an effort.

“I talk to my dad on the phone every once and a while. I usually have to ask him where he’s at because he moves around a lot. He also comes around for the major holidays,” Smith said.

Bell’s life with an absent father is dramati-cally different.

“I actually just met my father for the first time this past summer. I had to take the initia-tive and find him, which hurt a lot. I just don’t understand why he never came to me,” Bell said.

One of the major problems that tends to

arise when a father is absent in a child’s life is that child’s behavior around men.

“I feel so weird when I’m around older men. I usually know how to act when I’m in a school or business setting, but if I’m at a friend’s house and their dad walks in I feel so awkward. It’s hard to explain, it’s just a weird feeling,” Bell said.

Another common issue that arises is rebel-

lion. Studies show that kids who have grown up in single-parent homes are more likely to participate in sexual activities and drug and alcohol abuse.

“I was pretty young when I first started having sex, but I never really got into drug abuse or anything like that,” Bell said.

For Smith, drugs and alcohol became a problem.

“I did get into drugs and alcohol when I

was younger. I never really related it with my father’s absence, but now that I think about it, I suppose it could be. Maybe if I had a father to look up to I wouldn’t have gotten into that stuff,” Smith said.

While Bell and Smith have been divided on a few issues, one thing is certain. The respect they feel for their mothers is unquestionable.

“My mother and I don’t have an amaz-ingly close-knit relationship, but she’s always worked hard to make sure my siblings and I have had the things we need. That definitely makes me respect her more,” Smith said.

Bell harbors the same feelings toward her mother.

“When my mom and I get along it’s amaz-ing, but when we fight it’s terrible. Even though we fight I still have respect for her. A lot of the times I just bite my tongue because I think about all the things she’s sacrificed for me,” Bell said.

Whether or not a father’s absence alters the lives of boys and girls differently is a little up in the air, but it is apparent that it affects a child’s life somehow.

“When I met my father for the first time we didn’t really talk about anything important. I think that if I saw him now I would ask him why he never wanted to be a part of my life. I wish he thought of me as his daughter and not just some child support check in the mail. It hurts a lot,” Bell said.

“I wish my father thought of me as his daughter and not just some child support

check in the mail. -Laura Bell

story byEThan hUghEs | center section writer

story bygabRIEllE CaRlIn |center section editor

As our world turns we have seen nu-merous changes throughout the history of mankind, but one inescapable fact has always remained and is now on the rise, fatherless homes.

Statistics show there are dramatic risks involved when a child grows up in a father-less home.

According to a study conducted by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Ser-vices, National Center for Health Statistics, fa-therless children are at a dramatically greater risk of drug and alcohol abuse, mental illness, suicide, poor educational performance, teen pregnancy and criminality when compared to their peers who live in two parent house-holds.

The research also showed that young men growing up in homes without fathers are twice as likely to end up in jail as those who come from traditional two parent families regardless of race, income, parent education or urban residence.

Scottsbluff High School senior counselor Julia Newman has dealt with many adoles-

cents throughout her career, many without fathers.

“Being a school counselor, I have worked with many kids who lack a father figure in their lives. I have seen kids fall into the statistics and I have seen kids rise above their circum-stances. I think the more support kids have from positive and healthy adults, the more those kids are set up for success,” Newman said.

Newman praises the kids who do well despite circumstances beyond their control.

“I have seen a lot of kids just do the right thing, even though they lack parental supervi-sion. Some kids are really adaptable, some kids find other outlets, and some kids don’t miss it. The kids who I worry about are the kids who feel the longing, unrest and feeling of abandonment,” Newman said.

What is commonly portrayed as a seem-ingly difficult adjustment for many has

become a wonderful relationship for senior Sidnie Stabnow.

Around the age of 11, Stabnow was intro-duced to her step father, Craig.

“We’re really close. He’s really understand-ing. I can have a conversation with him and

he won’t put in his input until I’m finished talking, but what really brought us closer together was his kids (Taylor, 10, and Tre, 11). At first I was stand-offish, I felt like he was taking my mom away from me. It was hard at first, but Taylor was my best friend from the beginning. I feel like she’s my actual sister that I’ve known since birth. I think she is why I’ve grown close to Craig,” Stabnow said.

Although we see kids who grow and adapt, with all the statistics and facts, why are there still so many single parent families out there?

“I think the high percentage of absent fa-thers is due to our society. Our society doesn’t hold people accountable. We’re seeing a gen-eration of fathers without good role models and a lack of understanding,” Newman said.

“Before Craig, my mom and I were lost. I feel like a father is like a security blanket. I personally feel that I have a protector at my house. I think a positive male role model is very important in the life of an adolescent,” Stabnow said.

The million dollar question is what we as a society needs to do in order to get fathers to step up to the plate.

“In order for our society to see a rise in positive male role models, we need to rally around men. We can pass all the laws we want, but until we begin to model the behavior we want, we won’t see a change. We should expect fathers to be in their child’s lives and we need to give more support emo-tionally and in the court,” Newman said.

Maybe in the future fatherless homes won’t be an issue, but until we see this problem alleviated, we must understand that everyone needs support and love to make the most out of themselves despite their circum-stances.

“The kids I worry about are the kids who feel the longing, unrest and feeling of abandonment.”

-Julia Newman, Counselor

Life Without DadWhy aren’t men stepping up to the plate and fullfilling their roles as fathers?

1 2 3 4 5

10 | OPINION

New York City. Wednesday, March 4th, 1789.Americans have been a free people for twelve years

and eight months. Congress has met to begin writing the first ten amendments to our Constitution.

The First Amendment: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

In other words, freedom of religion, speech, press and right to assembly. It’s the reason you can pray in school, the reason you can identify yourself with a certain party, the reason you can peacefully meet or protest.

And it’s the reason I am writing this column.Recently, all forms of media have been dominated by

one topic: the “Mosque at Ground Zero.”

From websites to politicians to news stations, everyone is putting in their two cents. So here’s mine:

We’ve got it all wrong.

Firstly, we were mistaken by using the term ‘mosque.’The proposed building is a not merely a mosque, but a

public community center including a food court, swim-ming pool, and basketball court. There will be a place to pray inside of it, but no one is constructing an elaborate, 100 story temple in honor of Allah. Is St. Mary’s Hospital a church because there is a chapel in it?

Secondly, this building is not “at Ground Zero.”I went on Google maps to research for this column

and found that the proposed construction site is two blocks away from Ground Zero, in the shadow (literally) of numerous office buildings. It is tucked away between an Amish Market and an apartment complex.

In fact, the ‘mosque’ blends in so well with the sur-rounding structures that one could very well mistake the whole block for the same building.

The only way they could have picked a more incon-spicuous spot in the entire city would be to find a ran-dom back alley in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn. I don’t think a ray of sun has even hit the roof of this building. At Ground Zero? Not Quite.

But the thing that Americans have mistaken the most is our view of Islam. We are uneducated in Islam, which makes it part of the terrifying ‘unknown.’ In short, we are ignorant.

Emma Goldman once said, “The most violent element in our society is ignorance.” I have to agree.

Ignorance is the reason Europeans enslaved blacks. They viewed black as the color of the devil, so the darker the skin the more evil the person (ignorance). Also, Europeans knew little about the African way of life, so they viewed them as dirty savages (in a time when most

ethanhughes Europeans rarely bathed. Once again, ignorance).Our similarly ignorant view of Islam comes from

the extreme crimes that a miniscule portion of Muslims committed. If the only exposure you had to a certain subject was negative, then, naturally, your view of it will be negative. If a child grows up hearing bees are danger-ous and is constantly told to avoid them, that person will develop a fear of bees.

If the same kid grows up around bee farmers and is constantly exposed to the science of and good that comes from bees, that person will not develop an ir-rational fear.

Point is: we only see Islam in one context that is not true for the vast majority. Islamic terrorists are people who pervert their religion the same way the Christians did during the Crusades, the same way the Spanish

Christians did during their “Gold, Glory, and God” expeditions in South America and the same way Reverend Terry Jones did during his recent Quran-burning stunt.

April 19, 1995, in Oklahoma City. Army veteran Timothy McVeigh detonated a truck bomb with 5,000 pounds of ammonium nitrate and nitromethan outside an office building and day care center, killing 168 people and injuring 450. Of these victims, 19 were small chil-dren and babies in the day care.

McVeigh expressed no remorse, referring to the deaths of the children as “collateral damage.”

McVeigh identified himself as a Christian. I’m sure the community of Oklahoma City would have no prob-lem building a church near the site of the bombings.

Why is an act of evil committed by one of our own citizens more tolerable than an act of evil committed by strangers?

I constantly hear the term “building this mosque at Ground Zero is a slap in the face of America,” I identify myself as a Christian - one of my favorite Bible verses is Proverbs 31:8-9: “Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy.”

I know not every Muslim is poor and needy, but the verse can still be applied here: we need to speak up for the rights of the religiously oppressed American Muslims.

If radical Christians like Reverend Terry Jones and Timothy McVeigh are guaranteed these rights, but aver-age, peaceful Islamic citizens are not, we not only spit in the faces of our founding fathers, but we shred and torch the Constitution; we desecrate everything this country stands for. If “building the mosque at Ground Zero is a slap in the face of America,” then denying human rights based on religion must be a slap in the face of God.

Why is an act of evil committed by one of our own more tolerable than

one committed by strangers?

To build...The phrase “Mosque at Ground Zero” is a misnomer

that encourages ignorance and prejudice in America

this mosque didn’t cause their religion to be continu-ally identified with ground zero.

The point is that there is such a thing as right and wrong, appropriate and inappropriate. People should start worrying less about being politically correct and more about what impact their position will have.

It’s not unusual for something to be completely legal but also completely improper. For instance, I have the legal right to burn a copy of the Koran, but I would never do so because it’s offensive to Muslims.

I disagree with the Christian Pastor in Florida who was planning to burn a pile of Korans to make a statement.

On East Overland in Scottsbluff, David Marez owns a tattoo business that is located a block away from Roosevelt Elementary School. Marez has paint-ed a disturbing and grotesque mural of devil-like creatures on his alleyway wall to make a statement against graffiti in the city. The elementary kids have to walk by the wall everyday on their way to school.

He may have the right to paint this on his wall, but I think most people of Scottsbluff would agree this is unsuitable.

On Dec. 7, 1941, the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. My great, great uncle was onboard the U.S.S. Arizona when it was attacked and was one of the few survivors. Franklin D. Roosevelt described that day as one that will “live in infamy.” I’m sure that my great, great uncle, President Roosevelt, and most all Americans would find it completely inappropriate if someone wanted to build a Japanese-style Buddhist temple on the shores of Pearl Harbor near the U.S.S. Arizona memorial.

Each of these three examples clearly shows that something that is legal is not necessarily appropriate, and the mosque issue falls in the same category.

In fact, most Americans agree with me. In a CBS poll conducted in late August 2010, 72% of Ameri-cans said the mosque should be built in a different location.

I believe allowing the mosque to be built right near ground zero is offensive and disrespectful to the victims of 9/11, their families, and America itself.

It is certainly not unreasonable to ask Imam to build it elsewhere. In fact, he has been offered property for free at another location by the city of New York, but he refuses to budge, which makes me feel like Imam is trying to make a statement with his choice of location.

With everything that America has been through in the war against terror, are we really going to let them win again right where it all began?

OPINION | 11

Think back to September 11, 2001. Can you recall how your parents may have acted

to the news? I remember sitting on a chair at age eight, plunk-

ing notes on the piano for fun. My mom sternly asked me to stop as she watched two planes plunge into the twin towers on the television. The devasta-tion and horror on her face shocked me into silence.

My elementary school paid respect to the victims by having moments of silence. People mourned over their losses, memorials were built. Everything pos-sible was done to repair the damages of the city and the hearts of the wounded families.

“Thousands of lives were suddenly ended by evil, despicable acts of terror. The pictures of airplanes flying into buildings, fires burning, huge structures collapsing, have filled us with disbelief, terrible sad-ness and a quiet, unyielding anger,” then-President George W. Bush said.

America was stabbed right in the heart. And now, nine years later, we again face an issue that has the entire country into an uproar.

I want to make it absolutely clear from the very start that Imam Raul has the legal right to build a mosque wherever he likes unless there are zoning laws against it.

With that said, I believe it’s inappropriate to build right near Ground Zero in New York City. It gives the appearance of slapping America in the face, of giving radical Muslim terrorists another reason to rejoice.

This is particularly offensive to most Americans because Imam Raul has made some startling anti-American remarks in the past. For instance, he once said, “America has more blood on its hands than AlQuida,” and “America is an accessory to 9/11.”

To me it sounds like this man only wants to make fools of us and we should feel ashamed if we just stand by and let him do it.

I know there are many peace loving Muslims that have never meant our country harm and in no way am I taking this position with intent to condemn the Muslim religion. I have no problem with the mosque being built, but it should be in a different location so that it is in no way identified with Ground Zero.

Radical Islamic terrorists killed over 3,000 Ameri-cans that day. It was the largest terrorist attack with the most casualties on American soil, ever. It has had a lasting effect on the American people, especially those living in New York.

The last thing New Yorkers need is a constant re-minder of how radical Muslims executed this attack. I would think peace-loving Muslims would prefer

Are we really going to let them win again right where it all began?

meghanpritchard

...or not to build?The “Mosque at Ground Zero” is a slap in the faces of

the victims of September 11th and America at large

12 | ENTERTAINMENT

tostayintouchwithfriendsandcolleagues.callsandemailsareathing-

ofthepastwiththenewglobalCONNECTION

THEmostpopularsocial

networkisgettingtonsofBITTERreviewsandlawsuitsbutits500mil.+us+usersmaintainits SWEET

story byRUSSELL MORGAN | entertainment editor

Log on. Check friend requests. Add him. Ignore her. Tag a photo. Join a group. Send him a message. Comment on her status. Change your display picture. Change your status. Log off.

Facebook has become the most popular social network on the planet, and it’s only 6 years old. Mark Zuck-erberg, along with 3 other classmates, founded the network in his Harvard dorm room. A network that has now made Zuckerberg’s net worth nearly $7 billion.

Over 500 mil-lion people have a Facebook account, and over 50% of those people log on at least once a day. The average use of Facebook is 7 billion minutes per month. Basi-cally, if Facebook were a country, it’d be the 5th larg-est country in the world according to population. To top it off, Facebook just got a movie made about it titled, “The Social Network”. The film portrays the founding of Fa-cebook by Zuck-erberg and his colleagues.

Facebook has led the way in the age of “life, online.”

The average user of Facebook

will, more often than not, go through an entire day on the social network without any major issues. However, as the rest of the world begins to catch up with the trend, this global connec-tion may begin to face challenges that Zuckerberg, the CEO and President of Facebook, may not be ready to face.

There was a graduate student at Illinois who was applying for a job with a major company and after re-viewing his resume, it seemed he had the job made. The company extended its research beyond his resume and looked at his Facebook page. In the

young man’s interests, such things summarized as “smoking blunts, obsessive sex, and shooting people” were included. Obviously he ended up not being what they were look-ing for. This story can be found in the New York Times.

The latter was a perfect example of how living one’s life online can have its backlashes.

Social networks have become so popular, particularly Facebook, that not only employers but colleges as well are beginning to look at pros-pects’ pages.

The majority of seniors at Scotts-bluff High School are both: a). Plan-ning to go to college and b). Active on Facebook.

Most students may not run into an issue when it comes to their future, but some were surprised to hear that their online activity may be closely monitored.

“I didn’t know that they were starting to look at Facebook,” said senior Amanda Mentzel. “But I don’t think I have anything on my page that I would need to worry about.”

Others are not so concerned, such as Senior Earl Simmons*.

“I have things on my page that probably wouldn’t im-press employers or colleges,” Simmons said. “But it really doesn’t bother me. I’m not too worried about it.”

On a smaller scale, there are teachers who have Facebook and if they are added as one’s “friend”, then that teacher can see all of their students’ online activity.

The first conclusion most make when it comes to details of one’s profile is that pictures are the most likely to get some-one into trouble. However, there are multiple concepts that can be taken into account besides pictures such as cur-rent status, interests, etc.

Consider it a warning that online activity may be monitored, thus putting future plans at serious risk.

The next issue Facebook has run into, and possibly the larg-est issue, is privacy. Facebook was designed to be “open”, but has it gone too far?

First, it is essential to under-stand that being “friends” on Facebook does not necessarily

continued on page 13

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FACEBOOKf a c t sThe average Facebook user has 130 friends and sends eight friend requests per month.

The average Facebook users spend more than 55 minutes a day on the site.

Syria, China, Vietnam, and Iran have banned Facebook

Approximately 70% of Facebook users are outside the United States

Facebook’s fastest growing segment in the United States is women 55 years and older

More than 2.5 billion pictures are uploaded to Facebook each month.

information taken from http://facts.randomhistory.com/interesting-facebook-facts.html

u

ENTERTAINMENT| 13

MulligansAt the Monument Shadows Golf Course

Great food & atmosphereOpen to the public all year round

2550 Club House Drive Gering, NE 69341 308-635-6868

Cast for Insanity of Mary Girard announced

The parts for this year’s one-act production, The Insanity of Mary Girard, were announced by director Kara Rada on Thursday, Sept. 30.

“The reason I chose this play was because it is such a challenging one and I feel that we have a huge experienced talent pool with this year’s junior and senior classes,” Rada said. “This play also allows enough flexibility for us to create ad-ditional roles to get as many kids involved as possible.”

The cast will compete in the Class A-4 District one-act competition on Dec. 4 at North Platte.

Only the district champion earns a trip to the state one-act contest on Thurs-day, Dec. 9, on the campus on the University of Nebraska-Kearney.

Also competing in the A-4 district will be Grand Island Senior High School, Grand Island Northwest, Hastings, Kearney, Lexington, Norfolk, and North Platte.

The lead role of Mary Girard will be played by senior Sara Frederick with senior Sam Harvey playing Mr. Girard.

Other major speaking parts include: senior Nick Roussel-Warder; senior Tyler Webber-Mr. Phillips; junior Ashleigh Smith-Polly Kenton; senior Victoria Bravo-Mrs. Hatcher; and junior Karenna Booth-Mrs. Lum.

The Speaking Furies include: Mahalah Booth (10), Layton Croft (12), Maddy Parsley (12), Meghan Pritchard (12), Jessica Schluter (12), Paige Steinle (12), and Taylor Ziegler (12).

Hanging Furies include: Allie Brisco (12), Ali Chain (11), and Chelsea Wickard (11).

The Wall Furies include: Margaret Baker (12) Cierra Herrmann (11), Claire Hughes (10), Nanessa Reyes (11), Taylor Russell (9) Taylor Strong (11), and Marissa Yonts (9).

Seventy-five students auditioned for parts in the production according to Rada who said she had a difficult time cutting down the cast to 52.

“It’s going to be a creepy production,” Rada said.

continued from page 12.mean being “friends”.

A user is unable to control infor-mation about them if a “friend” puts the information on Facebook. For example, if an inappropriate picture is posted of User 1 by User 2, User 1 only has the power to tag or un-tag people in the picture, but they cannot delete it. The same is true if User 2 includes User 1 in a status, or in any other information space. It’s impor-tant to know who true “friends” are, especially online.

The second issue with privacy is the rapidly updated concept of joining groups.

User 1 may keep as much informa-tion on his or her profile private as he or she wants, but joining a group knocks down that privacy barrier.

By joining a group, User 1’s infor-mation is public to everyone else that is a member of that group. Therefore, joining a large community page such as: “Big Red Football” or “Let’s Set a Guiness World Record for Most Members” opens information to that many people.

The third issue is the accessibility to Facebook from literally anywhere.

Logging on to a major website, one may find a Facebook sidebar that, if the user had to log in to the original

site, may log them in to Facebook automatically. Basically, the user is using Facebook without even going to Facebook.

If the user is logged on to Face-book on a different site, what are the

chances the user will remember to go to Facebook and log off?

Facebook is achieving its goal of having a society that’s “constantly connected”.

Facebook recently was under a lawsuit for risking privacy with their advertising methods.

Companies that advertised on

Facebook were able to monitor us-ers’ activities and interests online and suggest products to them, all through Facebook. The advertising method has since been simplified, but problems still remain. Just a week

ago, Facebook instilled a new concept that allows users to add their friends to groups without their friends’ permission. Yet another stretch for privacy, the CEO, himself, fell victim to his own creation. Zuckerberg was involuntarily placed in a group called, NAMBLA (North American Man/Boy Love Association). Zuckerberg

unsubscribed himself from the group which restricted the “friend” that added him from adding him to any other group; an option that most users aren’t aware of.

The internet has depleted the con-cept of privacy and with the takeover of social networks, the problem is growing.

There are ways to stay relatively safe on Facebook, but it’s surprisingly more difficult than it should be.

The question must be asked, “How safe am I on Facebook?”

The issues may not seem evident but they are out there. Each deci-sion made on the social network has a larger impact than first indicated. It is important to protect important information on the internet, and soon the only solution to protecting that information on Facebook will be to not put the information down at all.

If, however, a user is very involved with Facebook then let this article represent some cautionary advice: what is put on Facebook can possibly be seen by everyone. A professional attitude must be taken when it comes to future plans, such as employment or college, as well as keeping private information from becoming public, and a Facebook profile should reflect that.

THE MAN BEHIND THE CURTAIN

Founder, CEO, and President Mark Zuckerberg founded Facebook in his Harvard Dorm Room in 2004. 6 years later, Zuckerberg is the second youngest billionaire in the world with a net worth nearly $7 billion dollars. Photo Courtesy of Google.

14 | SPORTS

Double

Senior Erik Krzyzanowski coasted his red Jeep Wrangler into a parking spot at the Scottsbluff Country Club. He yanked on the parking brake, hopped out, and hauled his heavy bag of golf clubs out of the back seat.

He strolled onto the short stubs of grass that comprised the green of the golf course and patiently waited for his sister, sophomore Kaitlyn Krzyz-anowski.

“Come on Kaitlyn, let’s play a round,” Erik said as he pulled his first

club, a driver, out

of his bag.Kaitlyn tossed Erik a Titleist pro V

1x golf ball and the game was on.This is a typical practice for the

accomplished brother/sister golfing duo. Both Krzyzanowskis have had much success in their golfing careers.

Erik helped the boy’s golf team win the state championship last year and, individually, has placed in the top three for three years running at the state tournament.

Kaitlyn was also on last year’s girl’s state champion golfing team and, along with her teammates, is looking to nab another state champi-onship this fall.

The two often practice together during the winter and summer.

“Golfing with my sister is pretty fun, she’s a good player. We always play against each other in practice so it’s competitive,” Erik said.

“I enjoy practicing with Erik. We joke around, but we also get a lot done, too,” Kaitlyn said.

Although the air is competitive, they still help each other out.

“He helps me out more than I do because he knows more than me,” Kaityn said.

Golfing is definitely a family tradition. Their dad passed his love of golf onto his three kids.

Erik plans on golfing Division 1 in college and signing with Gon-zaga University in Washington state later this year.

“I consider Erik a mentor for both life and golf. He’s basically like a hero to me,” Kaitlyn said.

Sibling Love

1. They wake up in the same house.

2. Eat their frosted flakes breakfast right next to each other.

3. Ride to school in the same car.

4. Go to morning swimming prac-tice together.

5. Have awkward meetings in the hallway.

6. Attend another swimming prac-tice after school with one another.

7. Ride back home together. 8. Share the computer for home-

work. 9. And finally, return to their

respective bedrooms only to wake up and do it all over again.

In short: these two do everything together. But it’s this tight bond that

makes senior Taylor Counter and junior Triniti Counter great sisters and great teammates.

“Sometimes it’s kind of irritating because I live with her and swim with her and I’m with her all the time, but for the most part, we get along,” Taylor said.

“It’s really fun most of the time,” Triniti said. “Sometimes we get on each other’s nerves but we try to bal-ance it out and encourage each other. She’s a really good teammate.”

Working together is essential for these two, especially since they both swim on the same relays for the var-sity swimming team.

“I like the relay because we’re both powerful influences on the team and I think it’s good that we’re racing with

each other,” Taylor said. “She’s more competitive than I am. We’re kind of opposite when it comes to how we view the races. She gets more focused while I get more nervous.”

Not only does their tight bond help their chemistry, it also gives them a drive to work harder and push them-selves.

“I definitely get compared to Tay-lor a lot and it bothers me sometimes, but it puts pressure on me and I like pressure so in the end, it pushes me to get better,” Triniti said.”

Though these two seem like the dream team, they say that they’re just like any other family.

“We’re just like any other siblings; we fight, we laugh, we have sibling love,” Taylor said.

Trouble

Tee for Two

story byKELSEY EMPFIELD | sports editor

story byMADDIE HOLSCHER|sports writer

Junior Triniti Counter (left) jokes around with sister senior Taylor (right) at the Splash Arena. The sister duo swam on the same relay team that broke the school record last winter. Photo by Alexis Cook

JUST HITTING

A ROUND

Senior Erik Krzyzanowski (left) stands by his sister sophomore Kaitlyn (right). They normally practice together in the winter. The two have helped both the boys and girls golf teams capture the state titles last year. Photo by Taylor Counter

Sibling rivalry? That’s so last year. These four pairs of siblings bring

‘dynamic duo’ a whole new meaning by working together

Counter sisters share same routine during school year

Krzyzanowski duo way above par

Double

MAKING ASPLASH

SPORTS | 15

All In the Family

Sisterly Love

Senior Michael Klein grew more and more anxious as kick off time grew nearer.

He glanced upon the Hastings sea of orange in the stands. He looked to the opposite side of the stadium and saw the familiar red that defined his life during fall of the last three years.

His eyes glanced over every fan’s face until he came upon those most familiar to him.

His grandpa, mom, and dad were all decked out in bearcat red from

head to toe. Michael smiled to himself as he thought of his supportive family and his nerves were eased.

He glanced to his direct left and saw another familiar face, his brother sophomore Matthew T. Klein, on the field next to him.

Both Kleins have played football together growing up in the backyard. Now, being on the same team, they have good chemistry and they ‘just click.’

“It’s fun being able to have that brother connection during sporting events,” Matthew said.

On the field, they’re just like any other teammates, but off the field is a different story.

“We’re pretty close. We hang out on the weekends and talk about games and the next team we’re going to play,” Michael said.

Matthew enjoys having someone to look up to during sports.

“I look up to Michael as a fig-ure to follow after because he’s very dedicated,” Matthew said.

Michael and Matthew have been successful in sports par-tially because they’re family has a strong sports background.

“My grandpa played football for the University of Wyoming and was asked to play for the Dallas Cowboys and the Char-gers, but he declined their offers. My dad played high school foot-ball, basketball, and track. My mom played softball, volleyball and swimming,” Michael said.

“Both of our parents are re-ally supportive of our sports,” Matthew said.

Makayla said.“Sometimes it’s hard but we’re

becoming better friends and our chemistry on the court is good com-pared to other girls, and we’ve been getting along pretty well,” Morgan said.

When Morgan is in the back row as setter, Makayla plays outside hitter.

“Morgan’s my setter so I’m harder on her than some of the other girls and I put a lot on her,” Makayla said.

“It’s good for me to play with her because she pushes me and makes me try harder,” Morgan said. “We know what each other can do and expect more out of each other than we do our other teammates.”

“We fight sometimes but we’ve gotten pretty tight,” Makayla said. “We’ve gotten a lot closer now that she’s in high school. It’s a sisterly love.”

story byKELSEY EMPFIELD | sports editor

story byMADDIE HOLSCHER | sports writer

Sets

Up!

Senior Makayla Westphal spikes a ball while her sister, sophomore setter Morgan Westphal, watches in the background. The sisters enjoy the time on the court with each other. Courtesy Photo

Standing Side

By Side

Senior Michael Klein (left) stands next to his brother sophomore Matthew T. Klein (right). To avoid confu-sion on the field, Michael’s jersey is M. Klein while Matthew’s jersey simply says Klein. The two brothers have been playing football together since they were kids in their backyard. Photo by Terrence Lake

Athletes at a Glance...

Senior Michael Klein

Senior Makayla Westphal

Senior Taylor Counter

Senior Erik Krzyzanowski

Have you ever done laundry?

Ya. (once)

Yes.

Yes.

No. (Trinity does it)

Nickname

Mak Attack

Mike

Krzyz-dog

T-Count

Last Movie You Saw

The Other Guys

Legends of the Guardian

I can’t remember

Zombieland

What Would You Tell Brett Favre

Retire. And you’re sexy

I would have double bagged it.

Stop playing football

Who are you?

Klein brothers keep the football

tradition alive

Westphals create court chemistry

than playing with just a teammate in that it’s more of a sisterly bond,”

The pass goes to Westphal. Westphal sets it to the outside. And Westphal kills it down the line for another Bearcat point.

Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold the phone. What just happened there?

That’s right. There’s not just one, but two Westphals, senior Makayla Westphal and sophomore Morgan Westphal on the starting lineup for our lady Bearcat volleyball team.

Any spectator in the stands can see that this duo creates a power-house up front and a defensive sensa-tion in the back row as well. But one might wonder, what goes on behind the scenes between these two sisters?

“It’s a lot of fun (playing with my sister). It’s definitely different

There was an electric atmosphere last Friday night as twin-city rivals Scottsbluff and Gering clashed in a key B-8 district game in front of a sell-out crowd at Gering’s Memorial Stadium.

When the evening was done, se-nior Sam Harvey had provided most of the sparks on offense as he rushed for a season-high 120 yards to lead the Cats to an impressive 24-6 win over the Bulldogs.

Harvey received great support from senior teammate Michael Klein as the two gashed the Gering defense for 210 yards and three touchdowns.

“A lot of things were just click-ing for us on Friday. The line opened holes for all the backs, and gave us room to run, and the receivers did a great job blocking the outside. A lot of different things worked for us in the playbook, and that really helped to set up the run,” Harvey said.

Harvey’s performance was even more impressive considering the team was without one of its most experienced linemen, senior captain Brannon Pierce, who was ineligible because of a disciplinary offense.

Head coach Joe Benson was pleased with the way his team per-formed in Pierce’s absence.

“We challenged the whole team to pick up for him and play better and, sure enough, they came through,” Benson said.

“The line guys work extremely hard and don’t get enough credit. They are always looking to play at a high level and without Pierce, they just knew they would have to step up and play that much harder,” Harvey said.

While the offense was churning out rushing yards, it was the Cat’s defense that stymied Gering all night.

The defensive effort was a stark contrast to last year’s performance when the Cats gave up 30 points in a 30-22 loss to the Bulldogs.

“I felt that the kids tackled and executed really well,” Benson 16 | SPORTS

Cats ‘rush’ past Gering, 24-6

BREAKING LOOSE

Senior Sam Harvey breaks looks from a Gering defender in the Beracats’ 24-6 win last Friday. The Cats are back in action tomorrow night against Sidney at 7 p.m. at Bearcat Stadium. For the second year in a row Scottsbluff will host Sidney for the Homecoming game. Photo by Mark Rein

SPORTSupdat e

•Senior Nate Goodwin was the sole member of the tennis team to qualify for the state meet after finish-ing second in No. 1 singles at the B-District 4 meet in Kearney on Friday, Oct. 8.

Goodwin earned a first round bye in the tourna-ment and then defeated Keagan Hill of Alliance in the semifinals.

In the final, Goodwin was defeated by McCook’s Connor Larson, 6-0, 6-2. Larson is the Class B de-fending state champion at No. 1 singles and currently has a 35-0 record.

Goodwin qualifies

•The softball team ended another record-setting sea-son with a 27-10 final tally.

Unfortunately, the record number of wins was not good enough to earn the team its first trip to the state tournament as they fell short in the B-6 district tournament in Scottsbluff last week .

The Cats recorded wins over Alliance and Chadron, before falling to McCook and Gering to finish fourth.

The week prior to dis-tricts the team earned its highest finish ever at GNAC by taking second place behind Columbus.

Earlier in that tourna-ment the Cats defeated Lexington and North Platte.

Softball ends record-setting season

story byMICHAEL MILLER | sports writer

Harvey, Klein combine for 210

total yards while the defense shut down the Bulldog attack

said of the Cats’ defensive effort.Benson said the Gering game is

always important to the Cats.“I think it mattered to the kids

(preparing for Gering). They had extra pep in their step and it helped us to play fast,” Benson said.

Gering’s first drive of the game ended in a punt that pinned the Bearcats back deep in their own terri-tory at the three yard line.

However, the Cats were able to put together a 97-yard drive for the game’s first points when Harvey scored on a two-yard touchdown run that capped the drive.

Scottsbluff went in to halftime with a 10-0 lead after a 29-yard field goal by senior Tyler Patrick which were the final points of the half.

The second half began auspi-ciously for the Cats as they took the opening drive down the field scoring on a 9-yard touchdown run by senior

Michael Klein. Gering took the ensuing kickoff

and strung together several positive plays until they were halted by the Bearcats defense on a fourth down play.

Scottsbluff wasted no time on their next possession, ending with a 10-yard touchdown connection from Klein to senior Kasey Kampbell on a trick play, which increased the Bearcats lead to a comfortable 24-0.

Gering scored its only points of the game in the fourth quarter off of a Lacey interception that was later converted into a touchdown. The two-point conversion failed making the final score 24-6.

The win was the second in a row for Scottsbluff which now owns a 4-3 record.

The Cats still have two B-8 district games left against winless Sidney and 3-4 Alliance.

Scottsbluff will face Sidney Friday night in a Homecoming matchup. The Red Raiders have been outscored in their last two games 112-0.

Despite winning the last two games, Coach Benson sees plenty of room for improvement.

“We need to continue coming together and taking steps forward to get better in all phases of the game. If you stay complacent, you really have no chance toward the end of the year. You have to keep getting better,” Benson said.