december 2005
the stentorian | ncssm
Tennis courts almost ready
after four month delay
Rv Victor Ltf.u
A lmost four months after
expected, the highly
anticipated new ten
nis courts behind the PEC are
almost open for play. The two
courts, located where the old
sand volleyball area was, are
equipped with full hghting and
fencing, allowing for play at
almost any time.
The tennis court project has
run into many setbacks, ranging
from funding to problems to
breakdowns
in manage
ment. The
project was
initially
slated to
be com
plete before
the school
year began.
Originally,
the tennis
courts were
proposed to
Ken Steen,
Sr. Vice
President
for Devel
opment, and
Dr. Boar-
man by an
alum who
wishes to re
main anony
mous.
Along
with dona
tions from the class of 1984 and
a personal donation of $50,000
from the alum, $100,000 was
put up towards the construction
of the courts, which is half of
the total cost of the project. The
initial cost of the project was too
high, so
the school
had to re-
bid the
project,
which put
the con
struction
timeline
back.
Ed Mc
Bride, Sr.
Vice Pres
ident for
Finance
and Op-
re-textured.
Phase II was implemented by
Americourt, a termis company
that has done work on courts
for Duke as well. Americourt
is taking care of the court sur
facing, lighting, fencing, and
general finishing. The success
of the project is largely due to
the Project Manager, Duane K.
Stewart, a local project manager
who has done other work for
the school.
After a long wait however.
having to leave campus and deal
with all those rales.”
Mainly though, these courts
are going to be for the student
body as a whole. The presence
of something new to do on cam
pus is hopefully going to benefit
any student who wants to pick
up a racket hit a bright yellow
ball. As McBride noted, these
courts are for NCSSM, aixl ev
eryone in the school commumty
can and should take advantage
of these new opportunities.
New Tennis Courts Nearly Ready for Play
the tennis courts should be a
source of pride for the school.
“We’re building these ten
nis courts as a quality project
and we want them to last,” said
McBride, “ When we finally get
it done, it’s going to be a qual
ity prod
uct and
re
oing
be
pleased
with it.”
When
the ten-
n i s
courts
finally
open,
student
r e -
sponse
is ex
pected
Wrestling team
undermanned, gaining
individual success
RY Kp.VTN ChR.N
A thletic success at NC
SSM can usually be
found in individual-
based sports. This year’s wres-
thng team should prove to be
no exception. Returning seniors
from last year’s team consist of
Christian Estes, Ben Hu, Victor
Lieu, and Patrick Proctor. Un
der the leadership of captains
Patrick Proctor and Christian
Estes, this year’s wrestling team
is truly something special.
The talent was showcased on
Wednesday, November 30 when
NCSSM took on Cary Academy
and St. David’s. Almost all of
the matches were won by NC
SSM. Unfortunately, the team
did not have enough wrestlers
and could not grab a win.
However, a defeat can only push
the wrestling team to work even
harder. Eaeh wrestler works his
way though a relentless barrage
of push-ups, jumping jacks,
wall bounces, take-downs, pin
ning combinations, and wres
tling scrimmages. One drill is
especially demanding. “King of
the Ring” involves successive
matches in the middle of the
mat, where the witmer stays in
the ring and wrestles the next
contender.
As the season progresses,
don’t be surprised to find the
NCSSM wrestling making news
in the sports section of the Her
ald Sua Conference champions
and state tournament wins are
definite possibilities which the
team will be striving towards.
Christian Estes on his way to pinning his Greensboro Day
opponent In the December 6 home meet.
WeYe building
these tennis
courts as a quality
project and we
want them to
last,"
- Ed McBride
w e
to
erations,
oversaw the
implementation of these tennis
courts. Phase I, which included
setting the infrastructure of
the court area, was done by
Callis Construction located
on Broad St. Halfway through
Phase I, Jesse Callis, the project
manager of Phase I, resigned.
There was a lot of shoddy work
done on the courts due to this
turmoil, which added to the
setbacks. This is evident in the
new stone wall next to the PEC,
which had to be re-leveled and
to be very enthusiastic.
“I’ll be able to practice more,
especially since the courts
are lighted,” said Sam Abu-
Moussa, a returning member
of last year’s tennis team. “We
need six courts for practice
though.”
Junior Michael Mian, who
plans on trying out for the
men’s team in the spring, was
very excited when he heard that
the tennis courts were being
constructed. “It’s going to be a
lot easier to play tennis without
Athlete Spotlight: Steven Schlaefer
Eat, breathe, and sleep soccer. These are the words that come to mind when you enter the room
of Steven Schlaefer. A junior who plays center mid-field on the NCSSM soccer team, Steven has
contributed enormously to this year’s season. A TISAC All-Conference player, he helped lead
the Unicorns to a 5-7-1 record, four more wins than last season. Prior to coming to NCSSM,
Steven played on his old high school’s varsity team, classic teams throughout the eastern part
of the state, and the North Carolina Olympic Development Program team. He now plays for
Capitol Area Soccer League (CASL). Key strengths to his game include tactical understanding
and a good touch on the ball. One of his favorite moves includes curving the ball into the goal
when 25 ft away from the left goal post.
HOME SCHOOL: West Carteret High School
PERSONAL: 6’0”, 155 lb, son of Richard and Catherine
Schlaefer, brother of Peter Schlaefer
(class of ’02)
IN THE CD PLAYER: “Some Devil” by Dave Mat
thews Batxl
FAVORITE BOOK: Harry Potter
EMOTIONAL MOMENT: Playing against my older
brother at home because I would get so
mad when he was pushing me hard to
get better.
Also scoring for the Olympic Develop
ment Team on a diving header when I was
in jeopardy of being cut from the team.
ATHLETICS LESSON: Underestimating an oppo
nent.
ATHLETICS ADVICE: If you lose it, chase the guy back to his own locker room.
ADD TO MOUNT RUSHMORE: Lance Armstrong
FOR 30 MIN I’D LIKE OT BE: Freddy Adu
GUEST LIST: Dave Matthews Band, Bob Marley, and the most beautiful woman alive
LIKES: Chinese food, PFM hash browns and cake, women, good friends
DISLIKES: Physics-C, racism, anybody who stands in the way of the USA World Cup
Champions in ‘06
GREATEST AMBITION: To play soccer professionally.
COLLEGE PLANS: Division 1 school such as UNC or Stanford
COLLEGE MAJOR: Engineering