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WESTWOOD HIGH SCHOOLBlythewood, South Carolina

April 2014Vol. II, No. 3

The March service project found students outside, washing school busses for the district’s transportation department, a group of people who are often overlooked. Work- Based Learning Coordinator Schiria Wilson, who organized the bus wash, said, “My response to them is that they are a group of people that we depend on every day and this was just a small way for Westwood to say ‘Thank You’.”

Make ‘em shine!

Photo by Jasmine John

Redhawks dance night away at Moonlight Masquerade The Nae Nae came on over the speakers and immediately, the entire dance floor was packed as seniors, juniors and their dates partied the night away at the Moonlight Masquerade 2014 Prom. Senior Alicia Gripper said, “It was a night to remember. It was fun.” Girls spent months scouring boutiques from Charlotte to Atlanta searching for the perfect dress while others found their dream dresses on-line. “There was a rainbow of dresses, and everybody came dressed nice,” said Gripper. Bekah Williams, junior, said, “I’d never done anything like that before but it was really fun to see everyone dressed up and out of school. I liked all of it.” “Prom was fun. The food was delicious -- I loved the chocolate fon-due,” said senior Francisco Martinez. Senior Wesley Randolph said, “Everybody said that I’d regret it if I didn’t go. While I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t have regretted it if I didn’t go, I had a good time.” The dance floor was packed; people danced all night long with the

“Cupid Shuffle” and “Drunken Love” getting everyone, including some chaperones, moving. “Next year, I hope that they choose a theme that everyone likes,” said Williams. “That’s one thing we struggled with this year -- we wanted to make everyone happy. I hope we did!” “The music could have been better. Some of the songs the DJ played weren’t even on our list,” said Alandria Haynes, junior. “I hope there’s more dancing space next year. It was a little small.” All in all, the response to the Junior Class’s hard work on the prom was positive. “It had to be one of my favorite experiences in high school. I went last year and really saw the progress in the planning and every-thing,” senior Whitney Johnson said. “It was a magical night.”Dressed to the nines in a rainbow of styles and colors, students pack the dance floor as a favorite song comes on. Seniors Devon Harkness and Wendy Lara take a turn around the floor. Present-ing: Prom King Theo Kennedy and Prom Queen Nadia Egipciao. Jairad Hydrick and Kelsey Briggs won the titles of prom prince and prom princess, respectively. Senior Quelle Canaday, WHS graduate Solomon Walden and junior Terrence Anderson strut their stuff in slick white tuxes and colorful accessories. Photo Credit: Lifetouch

On May 16, Westwood High School and Blythe-wood High School join forces to host a Relay For Life event at the BHS track. The event lasts from 6pm-midnight. Groups across the coun-try join the American Can-cer Society every year to raise money for cancer pa-

tients. Each team or group walks around a track to fight for the cause. Usually there are things such as food, and toys sold on the side to contribute to help cancer patients. To register a team or as a team member go to www.relayforlife.org/richland2schoolssc.org. If you have questions, or would like to purchase any Relay For Life items or would like to donate see Relay Coordinator Mandy Ashley in room 240.

Walking for a cause: Relay For Life

MURRYSVILLE, Pa. -- He always seemed to be “the shy kid in the corner,” a classmate said. Hours after a startling and savage attack on April 9 that left 21 students and a security guard wounded, that was the picture that began to emerge of 16-year-old Alex Hribal, a sophomore at Franklin Regional Senior High School. Armed with two 8-inch knives, he is accused of stabbing and slashing his way through a crowded hallway in an assault that was labeled “bizarre” by both a prosecutor and his own lawyer. Hribal was arraigned on charges of attempted homicide, aggravated assault and weapon possession. Many students said they did not know him. Others, like sophomore Anissa Park, who knew Hribal from elementary school but hadn’t talked with him for some time, invariably used the words “shy” and “quiet” to describe him. Another student who knew Hribal, though he spoke on condition of anonymity, said he was stunned by the attack. “I know him pretty well,” the boy said, adding that Hribal’s interests included hockey and video games. “I’ve never seen any anger from him, ever.” Hribal’s lawyer, Patrick Thomassey said the teen was not a loner nor was he aware of any instances of bullying that would have provoked the attack. “He’s scared,” Thomassey said. “He’s a young kid. He’s 16, looking like he’s 12. This is all still new to him.” Thomassey said Alex is a B-plus student from a stable home, de-scribing his family as “like Ozzie and Harriet.” District Attorney John Peck said that Hribal made some statements after school officials tackled him that indicated he wanted to die.

Teen suspect in Pa. school stabbings said to be shy, quietBy Robert ZulloPittsburgh Post-Gazette (MCT)

To send a letter to the editor: RedhawkTimesWHS@gmail.comTo advertise: mbrebner@richland2.org or 803.691.4049 x36072

Editorial Policy Th e purpose of the Redhawk Times is to inform the students, faculty and community of Westwood High School of events and issues which aff ect them. Th e paper also serves as a communication link between the students of WHS and the community at large. Editorials refl ect the opinions of the staff and/or individual journalists and do not necessarily represent the views of the faculty or administration. Th e Redhawk Times welcomes submissions, which may be edited for grammar, inappropriate language and length. Please email submissions to mbrebner@richland2.org. Subscriptions are also available. For more infor-mation, please contact Ms. Brebner or a member of the staff .

STAFF: Aqsa Amir, Audrey Boyd, Baili Byrd, Emily Correa, Varsha Devarapalli, Monique Holland, Taylor Holloway, Katie McCarthy, Mequel McDaniels, Michaela Pinapfel, Tempest Polite, Anisah Reed, Ashli White, Rebekah Williams

PHOTOGRAPHERS: Savanna Badman, Evan Cowles, Destini Evans, Jasmine John, Whitney Johnson, Elizabeth Lara, Wendy Lara, Cozette Reschke, Jalen Tart, Kelvin Williams

FACULTY ADVISOR: Mary Brebner

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Bullying is a growing national concern. As it generally takes place at school (according to government statistics), school districts across the country have instituted policies to try and keep it in check. However, many times, a school makes all of these policies against bullying but nothing serious ever seems to happen to those who do the bullying. While bullying may not a school’s largest concern, the policies should still be enforced as much as other policies. Those students who are bullied are usually too afraid to speak out against whoever it is bullying them out of fear that their torment will only wors-en. Such fear is also present in the ones who witness their peers being ruthlessly bullied. Nobody wants to be the one who tells on the bully or the “snitch” be-cause of this fear.

Many teachers and school offi cials turn a blind eye to such torment, passing it off as nothing more than horseplay. It is understandable that one could mistake certain forms of bullying as “just goofi ng around”, because some people horseplay with their friends like that. But it does not excuse teachers from not checking into it, just to make sure that students are indeed not being bullied. Bullying policies need to be reinforced and not ignored in such ways as they are.

Facts About Bullyingwww.stopbullying.gov

Every 30 minutes, a teenager attempts suicide due to bullying. 70.6% of young people say they have seen bullying in their schools. 16% of high school students (grades 9–12) were electronically bullied in the past year. However, 55.2% of LGBT students experi- enced cyberbullying (LGBT-lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) Victims of cyberbullying show more signs of depression than other bullying victims. Approximately 30% of young people admit to bullying others in surveys. Only about 20 to 30% of students who are bullied notify adults about the bullying. There is no Federal anti-bullying law. Although 49 states have anti-bullying legislation, bullying is not illegal. When bullying is also harassment, it does break Federal law.

By Alex GriggsJournalism I

Schools need to enforce bullying policies

1. Intriguing - This show will keep you on your toes trying to guess who did what, what happened to who and, most importantly, who is sleeping with whom? So many questions! 2. Adventurous - Veronica Mars is about a girl who’s father is a private investigator after getting kicked off the police force. That in itself explains the excitement you’ll get from watching the show as you wonder if Veronica is going to get caught staking out for one of her clients. 3. Kristen Bell - With blonde hair, a sarcastic attitude and a social outcast status, Kristen Bell is the perfect person to play Veronica. When you hear the words, tough, sneaky, sarcastic and bad-to-the-bone Kristen Bell is the fi rst person that comes to mind. She was born to play the part. 4. The Underlying Story - On top of following all the investiga-tions Veronica is solving, the viewer is left with another case to solve! What was her best friend’s secret? Who really killed her? What is up with that new sheriff of theirs? 5. The 90210 Aspect - Everyone loves 90210, a drama about a bunch of rich california teens, and Veronica Mars is just like that--tied in with some action. Veronica is a middle-income girl that goes to a school of nothing but kids who grew up rich or famous or both. They have the parties, romance and character types a teen can’t help but fall in love with. 6. Jason Dohring - This girl can’t help but love herself some good eye candy and Jason Dohring provides just that. Not to mention the other attrac-tive guys and gals that make the cast of this amazing drama. 7. Perfect for Date Night - When you want to watch something romantic and your honey wants to watch something dramatic, snuggle down, settle in and turn on Veronica Mars. Her messed-up love life (as well as some of the other teens’ love lives on the show) should be enough to satisfy your hunger. The fi ghting and crime solving should be enough to satisfy your man’s taste for action. It’s the perfect compromise. 8. Girl Power - This show has tons of it! Veronica proves she doesn’t need help getting her culprit. She can spy, fi ght and defend herself perfectly fi ne without anyone else. Whether she has to sneak, steal, or run, she can do it herself and do it with style. 9. New Movie - Fans fi nanced Kickstarter campaign to get their favorite marshmallow back on the screen. The movie opened March 14 and earned a cool $2 million during its opening weekend, even better than expected, con-sidering it only ran in 265 theaters in the US. The movie is also available as video on demand. 10. And a Book - The Thousand Dollar Tan Line by Rob Thomas and Jennifer Graham takes place a couple of months after the plot of the Veronica Mars movie ends.

By Audrey BoydJournalism I

Watch Th is: Veronica Mars: Th e TV Show

Exchange: A year when you allocate your heart into so many dif-ferent places. How do you know what confi dence is if you never stood in front of so many people to represent yourself who you even don’t know yet? Exchange year is full of adventures, patriotic spirit, respon-sibilities, and love. This year, these ten months abroad, living in a different country with a host family, teaches you how to be the master of your own self. Managing money and time, blending with another family and learning about a new culture while immersing yourself in the language and the people are the benefi ts of an exchange year. Clearing up misconcep-tions about where you are from might be the hardest thing though it’s not impossible. Being a youth ambassador of your country, as you are when you participate in an exchange year, you have to make your country and people who worked hard for you proud. It is one year during which exchange students get to share their culture with new group of peo-ple. You have to be open-minded but not to forget your originality. It sounds hard but it really isn’t. Your day is made when you clear misconceptions about your coun-try and when you hear someone say, “I didn’t know your country was that beautiful and now I would love to go there.” During this life-changing experience, you live with a host family who cares for you and treats you like their own child. “My exchange year is that of unparalleled limits. Bearing in mind how I, a kid from the hot southern vicinity of my country, am called forth by the program to adapt to upstate NY, where it’s colder than a normal southerner can fathom,” said Shafi q Hamza, exchange stu-dent from Pakistan. Hamza is attending his junior year at Hornell High School in Hornell, New York during his exchange year. The best things about an exchange year? You get acquainted with a lot of new things, learn different values and respect diversity. It’s a wonderful way to broaden your horizons and see a part of the world.

By Aqsa AmirJournalism I

Foreign Exchange: A life-changing experience for participants

Photo Courtesy of MCT News Service

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Coroner: a government official who confirms and certifies the death of an individ-ual within a jurisdiction. A coroner may also conduct or order an investigation into the manner or cause of death, and investigate or confirm the identity of an unknown person who has been found dead within the coroner’s jurisdiction. Responsibilities may include overseeing the investigation and certification of deaths related to mass disasters that oc-cur within the coroner’s jurisdiction.

Is it correct to say that all forensic personnel are in a grave situation? Not for Ann Neeley, a local deputy coroner in Columbia who knows a lot about crime investigation. During a job shadowing opportunity this year, she provided some insight into the real-life case situations she has dealt with over her 12 years in the business. After high school, Neeley went to Midlands Tech and earned a degree in criminal jus-tice. She became a deputy coroner after shadowing at the sheriff’s office for three months. She’s been in love with her job ever since. “When you get into this work its not about the money, because its not a money maker. It’s a job to help people,” said Neeley. But how does she deal with all the dead people she sees each and every day? Instead of thinking about all the deaths that she has to deal with, she instead thinks of it as their suffering being over. Her favorite part about her job is the adrenalin she gets. “I love being around all the lights and everything in a crime scene,” said Neeley. She also enjoys working with the families, helping through a difficult time in their lives. Un-like many officers who keep the contact to the office, Neeley gives them all her contact information so they can keep in touch. “A lot of people don’t understand that when you tell someone that a family member had died, their whole world stops,” said Neeley. When working at the coroner’s or within this particular field, you need inner strength (as well as a strong stomach), as well as a desire to help other people and to speak for the dead. Quick thinking and problem-solving skills are necessities to succeed in the Coro-ner’s Office.

By Taylor HollowayJournalism I

Job Shadowing: Columbia’s Deputy Coroner

Feb. 28 — En-glish teacher Vic-ki Finkley-Brown received WLTX’s Golden Apple Award. Golden Ap-ple Award winners

are recognized for going above and beyond the call of duty in the classroom. She was nominated by her husband, and it was seconded by her students.

March 1-2 — WHS’s Student Government was named the AAA Student Council of the Year at the SC Association of Student Council’s convention. In addition, senators entered School Spirit, School Service and Recognition projects in competition against all of the AAA and AAAA schools in the state, winning first place for all three projects. Junior Ekklesia Hawkins was elected Chair of the SC District 4 Student Councils, which means Westwood will host the District 4 Rally this October. Student Government has also been awarded a 2014 Na-tional Gold Council of Excellence Award by the National Association of Student Councils.

March 8 — A team of fire students competed at the Southeastern Fire Explore Competition. The first-time team placed 12th out of 36 teams, competing in gear don and team fire hose relay. The team mem-

bers were: Matt Winters, Zack Burgess, Jeremy Johnson and Chandler Oates. The firefighting class also received a $7,500 grant from the SC State Firefighters Association to purchase new equipment.

March 22 — The West-wood chapter of Future Business Leaders of Amer-ica earned multiple awards at the 2014 SC FBLA State Leadership Conference in Charleston including first place to Jacob Schneider and Alani Thompson for Management Information Sys-tems, a Gold Seal Award of Merit and second place for Lo-cal Chapter Annual Business Report prepared by Rachel Harris.

March 24 — Twenty-six SOAR students competed at the Nation-al History Day in South Carolina Midlands Region competition. The three History Day winners, Patricia Ploehn, Ashli White and Chinenye Agim go on to repre-sent WHS at the state competition April 26.

March 25 — Twenty-one new members were inducted into the Ralph C. Schmidt Chapter of the National Honor Society: Aqsa Amir, Kelsey Briggs, Victoria Brown, Kyla Burwick, Baili Byrd, Alyssa Castelluccio, Varsha Devara-palli, Jasmyne English, Jenelle Francis, Shavona Gadson, Deja Harmon, Rachel Harris, Kholida Khaldarova, Britta-ny Mixon, Jeffrey Okeke, Patricia Ploehn, Ashley Sample, Affrika San-ford, So-phia Sudak, B r i a n n a Temple and R e b e k a h Williams.

RedhawkRecognition

The Westwood Orchestras traveled to Summerville to compete/perform in the state concert festival event March 21. There, they earned three Superiors, the highest level of excellence, for their performances. On the way to the event, a student asked orchestra director Chris Miller, “Mr. Miller, is this sort of like the NBA finals for orchestra?” Miller responded, “I think that is an apt analogy for how important this event is to us. Even though concert festival is held every year in March, it truly is the most important event of the year for us, and the culmination of everything we work towards.” Understandably proud of his orchestras’ performances, Miller added, “This is an im-portant achievement for several reasons. Firstly, none of our students receive private lessons at Westwood. This is not the case at other high schools in our district. Secondly, one of these groups did not exist last year; we only had two orchestras. Lastly, this is an improvement from our performance at last year’s event.” Miller said, “I like teaching high school students because they have more skill and can play more complex pieces.” There are three levels of Orchestra: Strings, Concert and Chamber. Strings are for beginners and Chamber is for the more skilled string players. So far this year, the Orchestra has had several major events including the fall concert, where the concert orchestra played Contrasts in E Minor, Helium and ended 221B Baker Street; a mini concert during Wishes of Westwood, where they played Rock You Merry Gentlemen and The Polar Express along with the band; a pre-concert festival they played Serenade for String Orchestra; and the state concert festival concert. “Even though we do play good music, I feel like it’d be a lot better if we got a chance to play a popular song that everyone knows so no one would think all we do is play classi-cal music,” junior Erin Skrivan said. Skrivan started playing the vio-lin four years ago and has loved it ever since. Skrivan also hopes, as the school year pro-gresses, all the levels of orchestra can play a song together at their Final Concert.

By Emily Correa

Orchestras earn superiors at state concert fes-tival, improving on last year’s performance

Photo by Destiny Evans

South Carolinian Stephen Colbert picked to take over Late Night spot after David Letterman retires in 2015.Photo Credit: Lawrence K. Ho/Los Angeles Times/MCT

FIFA World Cup host city Rio De Janeiro, Brazil

World CupJune 12-July 13, 2014

It’s been a busy year so far...

South African Paralympic athlete Oscar Pistorius reacts emotionally to gruesome testimony about the death of his girlfrined, Reeva Steenkamp, whom he is accused of murdering, on the fourth day of his trial in Pretoria, South Africa, March 6, 2014. Photo Credit: Imago/Zuma Press/MCT

South Africa

The Beibs has had a rough couple of years, legally. He faces DUI charges in Miami, assault charges in Toronto for allegedly hitting his limo driver, felony vandalism charges in California for alleged-ly egging his neighbor’s house and causing $20k worth of damages, and allegations of verbal abuse and interferring with a flight crew, which the FAA is investigating. He’s was booed while perform-ing in Canada, his home country, and more than 100,000 Americans have signed a petition to get the performer deported. Photo Credit: Colin McConnell/The Toronto Star/Zuma Press/MCT

Ukraine is in turmoil after its bloodiest week in decades. Days of deadly clashes between anti-govern-ment protesters and police have culminated in parliament voting to oust President Viktor Yanukovych. For three plus months, anti-government protesters were involved in a stand-off with the authorities that oscillated between calm and violence. On 18 February, the violence escalated dramatically, with policemen being shot, and riot police moving in to clear the peaceful protest camp on Independence Square. The stakes for Ukraine and its 45 million people are enormous, with the country’s fate now part of a wider strategic battle between the West and Russia. The protests broke out after President Yanukovych’s government rejected a far-reaching accord with the European Union in November 2013 in favor of stronger ties with Russia. At the beginning of April, protesters waving Russian flags seized government buildings by force, bar-ricaded themselves inside, declared their intention to break away from Ukraine and appealed to Russia to send in troops to protect them. Ukraine’s acting President, Oleksandr Turchinov, made clear that Ukraine would not sit by as it did with Crimea and watch another Russian land grab.Credit: BBC News & Time.com

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Opposition civil defense fi rst re-sponders at the scene of twin barrel bombings that killed dozens in Aleppo, Syria, on April 4, 2014. Photo Credit: Raja Abdulrahim/Los Angeles Times/MCT

Syria

News Spanning the globe

It’s been a busy year so far...

South Africa

Ukraine is in turmoil after its bloodiest week in decades. Days of deadly clashes between anti-govern-ment protesters and police have culminated in parliament voting to oust President Viktor Yanukovych. For three plus months, anti-government protesters were involved in a stand-off with the authorities that oscillated between calm and violence. On 18 February, the violence escalated dramatically, with policemen being shot, and riot police moving in to clear the peaceful protest camp on Independence Square. The stakes for Ukraine and its 45 million people are enormous, with the country’s fate now part of a wider strategic battle between the West and Russia. The protests broke out after President Yanukovych’s government rejected a far-reaching accord with the European Union in November 2013 in favor of stronger ties with Russia. At the beginning of April, protesters waving Russian fl ags seized government buildings by force, bar-ricaded themselves inside, declared their intention to break away from Ukraine and appealed to Russia to send in troops to protect them. Ukraine’s acting President, Oleksandr Turchinov, made clear that Ukraine would not sit by as it did with Crimea and watch another Russian land grab.Credit: BBC News & Time.com

Anti-Euromaidan protesters build a barricade outside the Donetsk Region Admin-istration building in Donetsk, eastern Ukraine, Tuesday, April 8, 2014. Photo Credit: Mikhail Pochuyev/ITAR-TASS/Zuma Press/MCT

Ukraine

Russia

Sophomore A n d r e w Plante, State Champion in the 190lb w e i g h t class, fi nished fi rst in his division at the 2014 State Strength Com-petition. Senior Christian Brown placed second in his weight class.

The boys soccer team beat one team in the pre-season with a 7-1 win over Chester High School and has won one so far during the

season. Forward Dae-vawn McCaskill, se-nior, said, “This year we have a lot of new players on our team that are very aggres-sive. Our defense is a lot stronger and we plan on hanging with every team that we play this year.” “We played hard during both of our games vs. Camden Military and Chester High, but our hard-est played game was probably against Camden Military. Our players were playing very well and very aggressive,” McCaskill said.

Freshman Emma Howe, “I like the team aspect of it, and hav-ing a tight group of people you can trust and play with is nice, and they also help encourage her to do well in school.” During the fi rst game, Howe said that everybody did well and they won by a score of 1-0. Howe hopes to improve on her shooting and communicat-ing with her teammates. Sophomore Kaylah Wilson said, “[Soccer] is fun and it keeps me busy. In our fi rst game, I did real-ly good and played my heart out.” Girls Var-sity has won two games so far this sea-son.

The baseball teams have been training hard this season. While they’re not doing as well as they’d hoped, they’re focused on building a strong team that will continue to evolve and improve through the seasons. Freshman player Anthony Boozer said, “We only had one weakness which was hitting, and we only had one strength which was fi elding.” Branden May, freshman, said, “I think the coaches are really good and they give it their all, I also think the team is very energetic and they also give it their all.” Collin Miller said the team gets amped up with “Good music and talking with each other.” “To me I feel like we are a big family, we may not always get along but we are always there for each other,” said May. The team is enthusias-tic about playing and have a deep love of the game. Ka-reem Wilson, sophomore, said, “I like everything about baseball, but the thing I like most is fi elding because it feels amazing to be in the fi eld making plays.” He wants to improve on throw-ing the ball and becoming an even better hitter. Senior Deandre White said, “I like the competitive-ness and the skills to play baseball.” He wants to im-prove on working better with his teammates. Unfortunately, many spring sports don’t get the turn-out that sports like foot-ball and basketball do, despite nicer weather. Having fellow students attend the games really helps boost morale and scores. Boozer said, “Come out and support the redhawk baseball team.”

Winter SportsWRAP UP The Boys Basketball JV team

went undefeated this season with a record of 16-0. Sophomore Frederick White said one of the reasons the team went undefeat-ed was because of smart passes. White averaged nine points per game, just one point less than the leading scorer sophomore Tyree Lee. Sopomore guard Jordan Wat-son was named to the All-Re-gion team and ranked amongst the top fi ve regional players for the season. Boys Varsity ended the season with a 16-9 record, just missing the cut-off for playoffs, a great improvement from last year’s 7-14 overall.

Varsity player and senior Napoleon Goodson Takes a trick shot, aiming to sink one. Photo Credit: Lifetouch

Boys Basketball

By Alicia Gripper and Mequel McDanielsJournalism I

No. 4 Varsity player Travis White, junior, slides into base.Photo by Evan Cowles

Baseball teams see strength in fi elding

Zech Burgess and Mequel McDanielsJournalism I

Wrestling

Girls Basketball

By Mequel McDanielsJournalism I

Sophomore Evan Car-rigan took the State Championship with a record of 58-1. North-South All Star and senior Kelvin Wil-liams qualifi ed the State Championship in his weight class.The wrestling Red-hawks fi nised third in the region.

Varsity girls basketball won six games in their second season. While disappointing, it was an improve-ment on their fi rst year in the region.

Freshman Darieus McCaskill goes for the point against his opponent in his match. Photo Credit: Lifetouch

Varsity girls basketball players go hard against River Bluff’s Gators. Photo Credit: Lifetouch

Boys, girls soccer work to play aggressively, develop as teams

Senior Daevawn McCaskill races a Chapin player for the ball before it rolls out of bounds. Photo by Wendy Lara

Freshman Emma Howe darts for-ward, powering up for a kick as her teammates close in for the assist. Photo by Julia Mandel

Track & fi eld brings home wins March 15, boys track team won the fi rst Armed Forces Redhawk Relays. Hosted at Westwood, this relay will be an annual event.

Senior Joshua Tribble glides over the hurdle with the greatest of ease. Photo by Aqsa Amir

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ARLINGTON, Texas _ Kentucky’s youth finally got served. Connecticut’s old guard changed the story. The Huskies’ dynamic, veteran backcourt was too much for the Wildcats’ precocious teens, grinding out a wire-to-wire 60-54 victory in Monday night’s NCAA championship game. And in doing so, UConn is a champion for the fourth time in school history. With the win, Connecticut remained a perfect 4 for 4 in title games. UConn seniors Shabazz Napier and Niels Giffey ended their careers as they began them--atop the college basketball world. The Huskies raised the hardware for the second time in four years. It was a remarkable turnaround for the Huskies, who a year ago were banned from postseason play because of poor academics. They entered this tournament as an overlooked No. 7 seed. Six wins later, no one’s overlooking them anymore. “I said in the beginning, 18 months ago, when we started this thing, ‘The last is going to be the first,’ “ said UConn coach Kevin Ollie. “We was last, and now we’re first. But we always did it to-gether.” Napier, the All-American who promised his mother he’d get his degree before leaving for the NBA, saw his loyalty rewarded. On Monday, he was the second coming of Kemba Walker, pouring in a game-high 22 points on 8-of-16 shooting. He was the obvious choice for Most Valuable Player. Guard Ryan Boatright toughed out an ankle in-jury to pitch in 14. And forward Niels Giffey added 10. “I’ve got a lot of heart,” Boatright said. “We gave up too much this year to give up on ankle sprain. This moment was too big.” It was arguably too big for Kentucky, which became the first team since the 1992 Michigan Wolverines to start five freshmen. And like the Fab Five, they fell just short of the title. Dooming Kentucky (29-11): its struggles at the line. The Wildcats made just 13 of 24 free-throws on the night. Connecticut (32-8) took care of business down the stretch by doing the little things.

South Carolina’s Amber Henter competes in Equitation Over Fences during the 2014 SEC Equestrian championships against Georgia at One Wood Farm in Blythewood on March 29. Top-ranked South Carolina beat No. 2 Georgia on Saturday in a tiebreaker to win. The equestri-an team is USC’s first team to win back-to-back SEC Championships. “I couldn’t be any prouder of our girls today for the way they competed,” South Carolina head coach Boo Major said at a press conference.Photo Credit: C Michael Bergen/The State/MCT

USC women win SEC Equestrian Championship

Missouri Tigers defensive lineman Michael Sam be-came the most prominent, and apparently the first, active male athlete on the major U.S. sports scene to publicly disclose that he’s gay. Photo Credit: Shane Keyser/Kansas City Star/MCT

By Adam H. BeasleyThe Miami Herald (MCT)

UConn shuts down Kentucky for NCAA titleLady Redhawks defeat Lower Richland 24-23

By Rebekah WilliamsJournalism I

Boys Tennis earns first win

Wrestling

On March 25, the softball team beat Lower Richland 24-23. Photo courtesy of Rhonda Goines

The new boys tennis team earned its first victory, beating Ridge View on March 24. Photo courtesy of Ramona Gonzalez

My Faire W

estwood

Friday, April 251-5 pm

Contact Dr. Anne S. Richardson at (803) 691-4049, ext. 36703 or via email at arichard@richland2.org for more information.

Westwood High School hosts its second annual Rennaisance Faire, My Faire Westwood, on April 25. Students will attend the Faire after lunch, and the Faire will be open to the community from 3:45-5pm. From 10am-noon, Center for Knowl-edge students will be entertained with performances and activities while learning about the Rennaissance time period. Entrance to the Faire is free. Tickets for activities and games can be purchased at the main counter in the courtyard for $1 per ticket. Most activities and games will require 1-2 tickets. Food, drinks, and craft items will also be sold separately as cash sales. Students will receive four tickets for the activities. After that, if they want to do more, they will need to purchase tickets for $1 each. All tick-et purchases help fund this and future RenFaires. Activities at the Renaissance Faire include horse rides, face painting, a bouncy house, teachers in the stocks, sticking wall, jousting game, fortune telling, bagpipes and harpists, and a giant rocking horse. There will aso be an obstacle course, archery, horse rides, catapults and a scriptorium. The Westwood Fine Arts department will present performances of Renaissance music and parodies of Shakespeare plays. Renaissance Raptors will have falcons on display from 1-5pm.

My Faire Westwood

Small Performance TentPerformances every 15 minutes

ChorusHarpist

Belly DancersQuintetQuartet

Large Performance TentFull Orchestra 1:30 & 3:35Dance 3&2 2:00 & 4:00Drama 1 2:15 & 4:45French Play 2:30English Class Play 3:00

Jousting Giant Rocking Horse Rennaissance Raptors

Sticky Wall & Bouncy Castle Knights and Dames Fair Drama Performances