the >losdDaae
ncssm I the stentorian
Shining on the
Muddy Fields
DEREK PAYLOR
O nce again, the
NCSSM community
embraces the world
and brings into our little home
awesome international tradi
tions. People have played it
for years here, but the forma
tion of the Rugby Club has
gathered the attention of afi
cionados of this sport into a
cluster of people with hearts
full of dreams of becoming a
rugged rain-soaked superstar.
So exactly, what is
Rugby? Rugby, played in over
one hundred twenty countries,
relates to people in Britain,
where many associate this
sport with a bunch of randy
guys and gals shuffling around
with what appears to be a
fluffy football. The rules of
the game appear to be a cross
between those of football and
soccer. Players in possession
of the ball carry, kick, toss,
pass, and hurl this oblong
sphere into the goal of the
opposing side. The game gets
a reputation for being passive
because of its lack of formal
tackling; however, one has to
only view one game to realize
that many players have limped
away with blood and grass
stains coating their aching
bodies.
Because rugby is a dan
gerous game, one must won
der why the organizer of this
club wanted to bring this fear
some sport to NCSSM.
"Because I play rugby and
it’s fun," Larry Whysall states
simply, a little dismayed by
the stupidity of the question.
But this isn’t the only reason
Larry, a senior here at
NCSSM, wanted to organize a
group in uniting a club devot
ed to his beloved sport. Larry
o
stentorian
the north Carolina school of science & mathematics
1219 broad street, durham, nc 27705
http ://www. ncssm. edu/stentorian
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Kevin Han
laments, as do many others,
the lack of sports involving
heavy physical contact on the
field, such as football. "A lot
of people here may have
played football at their old
school, so there is a good
amount of potential here at
NCSSM because we don’t
have any tackle sports."
Rugby as a high school
sport doesn’t have a strong
foothold here in North
Carolina. Our school is one of
the few high schools in the
state that offers students a
chance to participate in this
challenging endeavor. "There
are five teams already in
Charlotte, with one that is
nationally ranked. After a few
years, the same could happen
for NCSSM if there is enough
support [from the student body
and faculty]," relates Whysall.
At the moment, the Rugby
Club is going over the basics
for all participants, mostly
playing touch rugby and some
passing drills. In many
instances the community is
willing to support NCSSM,
and the Rugby Club is under
the tutelage of an informal
volunteer coach from the
Raleigh Rugby Club, a group
that our own team would con
sider if the membership were
to increase. If we could find a
way to Raleigh, Whysall fig
ures, we could practice with a
lot of other high school teams
here in our state. NCSSM has
found a new mistress, and
Rugby is her name.
For more information on
the Rugby Club, one can con
tact Larry Whysall at whysal-
ll@ncssm.edu, or the sponsor.
Dr. David Frauenfelder. Help
make this club a success!
L ance Harden, a junior at
NCSSM, is an enthusi
astic and talented ath
lete. Hoping to help the uni
corns out this year with 3
sports, he trains very hard
•everyday to pursue this goal.
:So fat, he has helped the cross
■country team tremendously.
iJust the other day, he finished
•3rd in the conference only get-
Sting beat by .04 seconds and
jhe finished 1st on the team.
j"That was one of my best fin
ishes this year and I improved
:my time by 49 seconds from
;the last time I ran that course,"
isaid Harden describing his
jisiise. Harden’s fastest time this
lyear was at the Graham
jlnvitational, where he finished
jwith a burning 17 minutes and
|2 seconds. He also played
isoccer for his old school but
chose to do cross country at
NCSSM. In the winter, he
hopes to join the basketball
team and in
the spring,
he will run
for the
track team.
H i s
favorite
sport to
watch is
college
football
and his
favorite
sport to
play is soc
cer. Next
year, he
hopes to
lead the cross country team to
the state champs. "I see great
hope in this achievement
because Cardinal Gibbons, the
best in our conference, will
move up to public 3A and this
will help out our team because
I know we will have some
good returning juniors." After
cross country and basketball.
Harden says that he will start
Dane Emmerling
training for the 2-mile so that
he can beat the school record,
which stands from 1997 at 9
minutes and 51 seconds.
When he is not playing sports,
he enjoys playing chess, lis
tening to music, and reading
about politics, religion, and
philosophy. Lance lives by his
motto of "the will to prepare is
much more important than the
will to win."
PFM: New and Improved?
Angela Antony
D issent over the PFM
has become almost
habitual for most
NCSSM students, and food
has been enough of a concern
over the years for the adminis
tration to finally take the issue
under their wing. At the end of
the 2002-2003 school year,
when NCSSM’s contract with
Chartwells ended, the admin
istration began a sincere
attempt to improve the quality
of NCSSM cafeteria food. And
have they succeeded? We went
to the polls to find out.
Srs: Has the PFM improved this year
When current seniors were asked if
the quality of PFM food had
improved from the year before, 51%
of those surveyed answered that it
had. 30% said it had not, and 19%
replied "undecided."
Has the quasty in the PF M decreased?
Juniors and seniors were both asked if
they think the quality of PFM food has
waned since the beginning of the year. Of
the juniors, 87% indicated that it had and
13% indicated that it had not decreased
significantly. Of the senior class, 85%
replied that it had, and 15% replied that it
had not significantly.
Jrs: Have you adjusted to PFM yet?
Juniors were also asked if they had
adjusted to PFM food from home cook
ing yet. 10% replied "Yes, and I love it!"
69% replied "Yes, but it was tough."
And 21% replied "No, my parents still
bring me food."
GeWng Brough fMrtion hr PFM?
Students were also asked if they thought that
they are getting enough nutrition from PFM
food. Of the juniors, 28% replied yes, 63%
replied no, and 9% said that they wouldn’t eat
nutritious food anyway. Of our seniors, 17%
said yes, 60% replied no, and a full 23% indi
cated that they wouldn’t eat nutritious food
regardless of whether it was offered.