The Mustang Express » Root with ME

Briefs- Issue 1

Staff Writers — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:46:50 +0000

Athletic Council Beat

Ponderosa’s team captains met up for the first Athletic Council meeting on September 16 to discuss leadership, their school environment, and changes in student interaction this year. On September 4, captains hosted the first football game held at the new Burt.com stadium in Parker. Captains are working on making a better environment for their school. Ponderosa High School is one of twenty-five schools in Colorado involved in the CHSAA Team Captains Network. Team captains: the next meeting is October 28 at 8a.m. in the Main Office conference room.

Books ‘n Bagels;

The book of September was City of Ember by DuPrau. The club discussed the book on September ninth during advisement, and watched the movie September sixteenth.
For October the group is reading The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by J. Boyne. They are meeting October seventh to discuss it.
The group meets the first Wednesday of every month during advisement. Any student may participate. There is no cost, and the library provides the books.

Ping-Pong Club

The ping-pong club is run by Mr. Olsen, and meets every Friday after school. They are hoping to compete in a tournament held between Regis and Cherry Creek but details on this are not certain yet. If you like to play ping-pong once, twice, or every Friday you are welcome to come.

Cheerleading beat sheet

The Varsity Cheer team cheered at the very first football game on September 4th and the first soccer game on September 8th at the burt.com stadium. The team has several upcoming competitions; October 24th, November 7th, November 14th, November 21st, and November 28th. Their major competitions are league on November 11th and State on December 5th.

Choir Brief

The first Choir concert of the year, which is known as their fall concert, is coming up on October 8th at 7pm. It was will be held in the school’s theatre. Ponderosa has started a Show Choir and in order for them to raise money, they are holding a bake sale every Wednesday during Advisement, so make sure you come to school hungry! Also, Show Choir will perform during the regular concerts. Finally, fourteen Choir students are going to Allstate auditions on October 10th in Colorado Springs.

Theater Brief

Sponsor Mary Williams: a meeting was held September 8, 2009, while upcoming events include a convention in December and another in NovemberProxy-Connection: keep-alive
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The theatre club is open to anyone at anytime included are movie club and improv club which are also available to anyone.

Speech and Debate

Sponsor: Adam Gentry: The speech and debate club has no definite dates or meetings. However by September 16, 2009 more information will become available. Debate topics like politics government and other subjects are to be chosen as topics to get more people into the club.

German Club

Sponsor Cindy Parsons: German club is for people interested in the culture of German speaking countries, although one does not have to be in a German language class to join the club. Currently in the process of electing officers there is a group meeting in room 121 on September 23, 2009.

Extreme World Concern

The Extreme World Concern club meets the second and fourth Wednesday of every month at 8:15. They are planning on doing a assortment of great activities like being active in Habitat for Humanity, volunteering with Urban Peak, Praying Hands Ranch, and the Parker Food Drive. They focus on social justice on a local and international level.

French Club

On September 15, French Club met with Cheryl Nicola for a Boules competition and picnic. French Club will be meeting again October 13 for the Annual Waiters Race. Cheryl Nicola requests that current member bring their dues. New members are always welcome!

French Honor Society

FHS will be holding their first cultural activity November 15 for our trip to the opera. T-shirt money will be do soon.

Harry Potter Club

Harry Potter Club met 2 times this month, and will be meeting 2 times every month for the rest of the 09-10 school year. Join Harry Potter Club for a lot of fun, and good times. Next meeting will be Tuesday, October 6^th,after school, in Ms. Heaton’s room.

Library

Movie Monday is on Oct. 5. Listen to the announcements for the movie title. Students are able to bring their lunch into the library to watch the movie. Library is still selling coffees, hot chocolate, and teas everyday for $1.50. Come in on Wednesdays to buy iced teas and coffees with choice of flavor syrup and whip cream for $2.00. All profits purchase books for Bagels ‘n Book Club and all student requested books.

Pay it forward

The Pay it forward Club meets every other Wednesday at 8:00. Anyone is free to join at any time throughout the year. They are traveling to the Ronald McDonald House on October 7^th to help feed families in need. They are organizing a fundraiser to help ponderosa high school families that are in desperate need of help.

Poms

JV placed 3^rd at the Spiritfest Competition on September 12^th. Upcoming competitions: JV: November 12^th. Varsity: November 11^th, November 21^st

Science Club

Meetings are once a month on Wednesdays, and include biology and chemistry themed activities, as well as homework help time.

German Honor Society

The first meeting is on September 23^rd, and members will be nominating and electing officers. Expect two service projects this year.

Spanish Club

The Spanish Club had their first meeting at the end of August where they elected officers. Their next meeting is September 24^th, where they will be celebrating Mexican Independence Day. The club is run by Mrs. Stroman and Mrs. Crowe.

Student Council

Upcoming dates: Homecoming dance October 3^rd 8:00-11 pm, Homecoming Bonfire/BBQ September 30 5:00-9 pm, Homecoming assembly October 2^nd during school, Spirit week September 28- October 2

Guidelines: Spirit week attire should apply to the school’s dress code. Students who dress inappropriately will be sent home to change.

Peace Jam

The Peace Jam club will be kicking off its year with several upcoming events. They will be participating in the Crop Walk and youth congress on October third as well as the first Peace Jam conference on October 24^th. If you want to know more about this club or the upcoming events the club meets every Monday in room 103 after school or you can check out there website at www.peacejam.org .

Boys Soccer

The boys soccer program is off to a great start so far with Varsities record at 3-0 after an impressive overtime win against top ten ranked Rangeview. Along with varsity the Jv team has a record of 1-1-1 and has started to build chemistry with the new freshmen talent this year. Big games coming up are against Regis on the 24^th at Burt.com stadium, the 26^th at Smoky Hill and the 29^th against Chaparel at Burt.com stadium.

Ponderosa Girls VolleyBall

rileylauer — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 16:19:46 +0000

The Ponderosa Girls Varsity Volleyball team seems poised to make a run for state this year. The ladies have built up quite a reputation over the summer as well, with the varsity squad attending three camps for team play, two at Cherry Creek, one that they took first in and one at Greeley which contained 72 teams from over ten states in which the varsity squad took first in as well. Already 2-0, the team is showing signs of being unstoppable. After a crushing win against the second in state Grandview Wolves, winning in three games, scored 25-23, 25-16, and 25-21. (Players such as Kendall Howard, 12, according to Coach Rob Graham were the “defensive studs, which kept the Grandview hitters from being effective”.)
A main reason the varsity squad looks very strong this year is they have a large amount of returning starters. According to Coach Graham, the ladies seem to have a “harder work ethic, more discipline, and a serious drive to push forward not only to benefit themselves as players, but as a team.”
The team itself has some high expectations. The ladies plan to stay ranked in the top ten in state, win the Continental league, and hopefully make a run at state.
Some of the key games coming up in the ladies schedule include Regis Jesuit who are currently ranked sixth in the state at Regis on 10/15/09, and Chaparral at Chaparral who are currently first in state, which is the last game of the Mustangs regular season schedule on 10/21/09.

Redeeming Rockies

rileypfeiffer — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 16:18:39 +0000

The Colorado Rockies were not off to a very get start with going 19-28, so they decided to fire manager Clint Hurdle and replace him with Jim Tracy. Jim Tracy is a very successful coach having an all time winning percent above .500 and taking the Dodgers to the play offs. He had a great impacted with the Rockies that he set an all time high record for the most ball games won in June with winning 21 games out of 28, which is one winner better than the 2007 Rocktober run.
The Rockies have some accomplishments to boast about throughout the entire club. They have five starting pitcher that have all consistently worked late in the game, which gives the relievers a break. Starting pitcher Jason Marquis has come away with sixteen victories already this season and is a contender for most wins in the National League.
The Rockies defense also has some players with good stats. Troy Tulowitzki and Todd Helton are both competing to win a Golden Glove. Between the two, Tulowitzki and Helton, only nine errors have been made all year long. Tulowitzki plays starting short stop but this year has seen his season plagued with short stints on the DL. Helton is the starting first baseman.
Another aspect of the Rockies that is exciting fans is the teams batting. As a team, they have hit over 170 home runs, and are tied for first in triples between all the teams in their league. Within the past couple weeks the team has closed in on first place, now only a handful of games behind the Dodgers while they continue to take over the wild card race by being ahead of San Francisco. With the team’s improvements in all areas of the field there is a good likelihood that Rocktober will be in full swing yet again this year.
The one of the exciting things for the Rockies this year is that they are in the mist of the wild card race, and are currently leading the wild card by three games over the Giants. If the Rockies can hold on to their lead over the Giants they will once again be in the playoffs. The Rockies are also in a great position because they have the chance to take over the NL West division lead with beating the LA dodgers. The dodgers are the last team the Rockies play and have a real chance at going far in the playoffs.

Perry’s PlayBook

Alexis Perry — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 16:17:12 +0000

The Varsity Mustangs were the first to set foot on the brand new turf of Burt.Com Stadium on Sept. 4. As I watched the team warm up to go head to head against the Rampart Rams, I could already tell this season was their season. The discipline of the players was astonishing and their determination was apparent. When Robert Williams, 12 and Tyler Sandt, 11 busted through the white sign and the chanting of the players began, their new found swagger assured the Ponderosa fans that this was the beginning of an unforgettable season.
Most Ponderosa fans that would read this column were either at the season opener or played in it, and if you didn’t attend the game well…your loss because the game was one of a kind. Just four plays into the game, Austin Maynard, 10 intercepted the ball and a few short plays later Riley Lange, 12, pushed his way through the Rams defenseman and put the first 6 points on the new scoreboard. Later in the game while Rams quarterback David Melander, 12, attempted to pass the ball to a receiver, Shaye Stephon, 11, came out of no where and intercepted the ball and ran in for a touchdown. He was Player of the Game and Defensive Player of the Week. This is definitely not the same team is last year, I’ll tell ya that much! I don’t remember ever seeing the players want to win as badly as they did that night. With a final score of 20-14, the Mustangs proved to themselves and to everyone else that determination and drive is the key to success. “Winning the first game of the season is a big motivator for our team. Our defense stepped up when we needed it and our offense was strong throughout the game,” said Stephon.
“One accomplishment for our team was winning the first game because we were missing four starters and we had second string type guys step up and win the game,” said Sandt.
Sorry to say, the Varsity Mustangs lost the next game against the Chatfield Chargers on Sept. 11, 10-17 at Jeff Co. Stadium. In the first half, it seemed to me like the Mustangs had it totally in the bag. Mike Segura, 12, with a total of 163 rushing yards and an average of 10.67 yards per carry, had the guys commentating next to me in the press box coming up with nicknames for him left and right. “The Herd” a.k.a. Segura had a remarkable game. When the Chargers came back out after half time, they had a whole new approach. I don’t think Ponderosa was expecting such a turn around and it definitely caught me by surprise when the clock hit :00 in the fourProxy-Connection: keep-alive
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quarter and the scoreboard read 10-17. I could tell that the guys were disappointed.
“We have a really great team this year but we need to work on finishing the game,” said Segura With Segura, 12, Chase Vorwaller, 11, and Austin Gabel, 11, able to contribute to a win against Chatfield that week, the loss was unpredicted.
“The first game was a big win for us but after losing the second game by a touchdown, it just shows us we have things to work on. We’re really close to being great, we just need to get over that hump,” said Riley Lange, 12.
Tomorrows 7 p.m. away game versus Highlands Ranch should be a nail biter so try to get out there and support the new and improved Ponderosa Varsity football team.

New Year, New Captains

Staff Writers — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 16:16:09 +0000

Colin Skowronski 12- “I’m very excited for the opportunity we have this season. We’re going to state! Let’s brake some kids like a boss.”
Kelly Flynn 12- “I’m really excited for the season because we have a talented team. We should do really well this year.”
Colter Flenthrope 12- “I think we will do real good this season because we have more desire to win then previous years. Goin to state son!”
Zach Vinton 12- “We’ve got a solid team this year and I think we’ll take them all to state.”
Michael Warburton 12-
Becky Stewart 12-“We’re excited to be ranked number one, but we need to keep our heads and stay focused on our goal of going to state.”
Josh Lamb 12-“I’m excited to see how our guys do in state. I’m hoping for the best and I know we’ll do great.”

Keep The Faith

Michael Streight — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 16:15:07 +0000

Will the Broncos ever actually be good again?
Every year Broncos fans hope it will be their year. They want a season that they can be proud of, a season where the Broncos play good and make a legit playoff run.
With the past several unsuccessful seasons the Broncos decided to make some crucial changes to the team. The question is: will these changes help the Broncos in obtaining a successful season?
The Broncos are making a fresh start this season with a new head coach, Josh McDaniels, and a new quarterback, Kyle Orton. The problem with these changes is that both McDaniels and Orton are fairly inexperienced. Josh McDaniels was the offensive coordinator and quarterback coach for the New England Patriots prior to coming to the Broncos. While he had a successful career with the Patriots, McDaniels doesn’t have any head coach experience. Kyle Orton came from the Chicago Bears where he was drafted in 2005. For the Bears, Orton never had a set starting position for a whole season until last year. Neither Orton nor McDaniels have had much experience running a team and that could prevent any success for the Broncos this season.
The chances of the Broncos having a very successful season this year seem slim especially after winning only one of four preseason games. I have a feeling this season may be a little rocky and the Broncos may not make have a “successful” season or a great playoff run, but it will help them improve and hopefully in a year or two we will have that season we’ve been waiting for. McDaniels and Orton need to use this season to increase their leadership skills and learn what it takes to lead the Broncos.
I’ve been a Bronco fan my whole life and I would love to see them have a fantastic season even though it seems as though the chances are slim. All of us Bronco fans have to remain patient and believe they will once again become a top team within the NFL. Keep the faith.