the sentry, november 2015

SENTRYJ A C K S O N P R E P A R A T O R Y S C H O O L

NON-PROFITU.S. POSTAGE

PaidJackson, MSPermit #93

VOL . X LV I , I SSUE 3 NOVEMBER 2015

THE

ALSO INSIDE: Cross Country

Runners Win

Pacers Reunite

the Sound of Music

2 The Sentry

What is your favorite fair food?

“A big ol’ turkey leg” - Taylor Wallace

“Fried Oreos” - Reese Friday

“Fried monkey tail” - Maddox Henry

“Water from the log ride” - Vann Crawford

“Good ol’ stick o’ corn”- Luke Lofton

“Taffy”-AnnAdair Backledge

What spooks you?

“Mayonnaise” - Ally Walker

“The Flu” - Ashley O’Mara

“Grasshoppers; they are terrible” - TJ Barnet

“John Nix” - William Purvis

“Fair food” - Martha Rayner

The Dark”- Maggie Waller

Haynes Horsley- Big AlPaul Andress-The Shucker Russell Robberts- The PoetsPatrick Phillips- Toledo RocketsHays Dubberly- The Fighting Okra Matthew Clay- The Colorado States RamSam Mosley- Gerber Life Baby Tanner McCraney- Syracuse OrangeJohn Keeler- Fighting Camels Brittany Wilkinsom- Fighting ArtichokeLee Meena- Aunt Jemima Chatham Kennedy- The Two Sonic Guys

Healy Vise- Green Wave Brendon McLeod- Mike the TigerElliot Weill- Mr. Clean RJ Green- Yell LeadersEllis Abdo- Big Red Michael Wilson- Etrade BabyHolman Buchanan- Landsharks Blair Stockett- The Stanford TreeAnn Clardy Byrd- Pillsbury Dough Boy Mr. Hughes- The PatriotGracie McCraney- A Pacer Flamingo

Favorite Mascot

November 2015 3

The Sentry Table of Contents

News & Features...........................................................................................4-9Entertainment...........................................................................................10-11Homecoming 2015.........................................................................................12The Sound of Music..........................................................................................13Sports........................................................................................................14-20Fun & Games.................................................................................................21Opinion.....................................................................................................22-23Candid & Random.........................................................................................24

Sentry Staff

The Sentry is a student publication printed and released six times a year. As student writers, we try to reflect the thoughts of our most important readers-- the students of Jackson Prep. Because of this, we attempt to approach many issues, some more controversial than others. Nevertheless, the Sentry staff serves the school--her students, her faculty, her family, and her community. The staff hopes to inform, to educate, to entertain, and to question for the betterment of Prep and the lives of people in the Jackson community. The newspaper is produced by the Sentry staff, consisting of students both in and out of the senior high journalism class. Questions or comments? Our mailing address is P.O. Box 4940, Jackson, MS 39296. We would love to hear your opinions.

EDITORIAL POLICY The Sentry accepts outside editorial pieces under the following guidelines: Op-Ed pieces are not simply rants. Pieces should be about things that can be changed or alleviated, or pieces may suggest a solution to a problem. Pieces should not simply jab at things of which the writer does not approve. Humorous opinion pieces are subject to the judgement of the editorial staff. All opinion pieces are the views of the author, and the author only, with the exception of staff editorials, which are unsigned and reflect the consensus view of the students in the Sentry class. Staff editorials are the only columns in the paper that express the unified view of the Sentry Staff. This staff editorial process is comprised of two main steps. First, the staff talks amongst themselves about a topic and organizes a position on the issue on which all class members can agree. The editorial is then written and run past the staff members for approval. Letters to the Editor are a great way to make your voice heard. To submit a letter, simply write to [email protected] To submit a Guest Editorial, simply type your opinion, double-spaced with a minimum of 250 words, and submit it to [email protected].

follow us on twitter: @jpsentrye-mail us: [email protected]

visit us on facebook:facebook.com/jacksonprepsentry

Affiliated withMISSISSIPPI SCHOLASTIC

PRESS ASSOCIATIONwww.mississippischolasticpress.com

see our Instagram: jacksonprepsentryonline at jpsentry.net

Editors-in-ChiefPaul Andress • Haynes Horsley

Copy EditorMatthew Clay

Assistant Copy EditorsBrendon McLeod • Lee Meena

Sports EditorsBrendon McLeod • RJ Green

Assistant Sports EditorsEllis Abdo • Russell Roberts

Video EditorTanner McCraney

Graphics EditorBlair Stockett

Photography EditorBrittany Wilkinson

Managing EditorChatham Kennedy

Business ManagerHealy Vise

Assistant Business ManagerPatrick Phillips

Photography EditorBrittany Wilkinson

Assistant Photography EditorsAnn Clardy Byrd • Gracie McCraney

Entertainment EditorMichael Wilson

Assistant Entertainment EditorsAnn Clardy Byrd • Ellis Abdo

Opinion EditorsSam Mosley • Elliot Weill

Website EditorJohn Keeler

Assistant Website EditorGracie McCraney

Social Media EditorsLee Meena • Holman Buchanan

Fun & Games EditorHays Dubberly

Assistant Fun & Games EditorPatrick Phillips

AdvisorMr. Lain Hughes

ContributorsJacob Aron • Hawthorne Cleveland • Preston Dubberly • Jackson Phillips • Madeline Puckett

Forrest Smith • Anna Stack • Dylan Torrence • Madeline Van Pelt • Will Russell Ward • Nevin Wells • Jack Young

4 The Sentry

(left to right) Dallas Jordan, Meriwether Marchetti, and Genevieve Hurst Dallas Jordan with students from Holmes Community College. Photos courtesy of Dallas Jordan.

BY PRESTON DUBBERLY AND CHATHAM KENNEDY

The Jackson Prep family is thrilled that Dallas Jordan, a current 9th grader at Prep, has returned to school after battling cancer. Dallas was diagnosed with Ewing’s Sarcoma in October of 2014. Dallas has learned many lessons throughout this past year, and she has displayed courage and determination as she has undergone cancer treat-ment. Dallas could not attend school last year due to the lack of having a strong immune sys-tem, due to the effects of her treatment. She could not really go anywhere, considering that germs are everywhere. When she started feeling better after treatments, she received help from Ms. Sophie Randolph and Ms. Allyn Ray so she would be prepared for ninth grade. When Dallas was asked how it has been returning to school, she said, “It is hard sometimes and very tiring, but overall it has been okay. It is good to see all of my friends again.” Some of the best things people did to help Dallas were the gift cards she received and the money raised for her fam-ily, which helped with gas and essentials. Cancer has changed Dal-las’ life in a significant way.

Dallas said that is extremely hard “not being able to walk, going to appointments with doctors, doing physical therapy three times a week, experienc-ing lots of pain throughout the day….not being able to go places where I can be exposed to sick-ness, missing school because I am too exhausted, never being able to run again, and never being able to play basketball again.” During Dallas’ hardship, the nurses she encountered helped her so much. They al-ways tried to do whatever they could to make her smile when she did not feel well. When Dal-las was sick, the nurses brought her little gifts and made sure she had everything she needed. According to Dallas, “they were always doing things to help me and they put up with me in the mornings.” Dallas’ parents were al-ways there for her when she was sick or in a bad mood. Dallas said, “Even when I felt horrible, my parents were try-ing their best to help me and another big thing that helped were all the prayers.” Dallas’ father, Mr. Kurt Jordan, who works as the Direc-tor of Physical Plant at Jackson Prep, said that after watching his daughter battle cancer and endure chemotherapy, his com-passion for kids enduring can-

cer greatly increased. When asked what helped him most during this difficult time, Mr. Jordan replied, “The most important thing was de-pending on Jesus to get me and my family through this no mat-ter the outcome. In my heart, I believe He surrounded me with the support, prayers, and gen-erosity of others like Jackson Prep, the church, neighbors, and family members.” He said he is very grateful to finally have his daughter home. Dallas has some good ad-vice for kids going through can-cer. If a kid is going through cancer, Dallas said for them to remember that they are not alone, addling that “knowing that someone else has gone the same things and has survived is very comforting.” Through her journey, Dal-las has taught the Prep commu-nity to have courage even in the most difficult situations.

RIGHT TOP: Dallas and friends upon her return to school. RIGHT TOP: Dallas and her parents

Dallas Jordan Returns After Cancer Battle

November 2015 5

BY HOLMAN BUCHANAN Since the beginning of the school year, physics teacher Ms. Marsha Hobbs and Prep senior Matthew Clay have been work-ing diligently to design and pro-duce a prosthetic hand, and not just a toy one. The hand was given to Braden McCay, a 6-year-old Madison resident, who is miss-ing all of his fingers and the majority of his wrist. Rick Psonak, a local pros-thetist, approached the school with the idea and presented the opportunity to Prep. He knew Braden through his church and wanted to help him get a hand that was more affordable than a traditional prosthetic limb. 3-D printers have an un-limited variety of purposes, and in recent years there has been exploration in making pros-thetic limbs. In most cases, the printed limbs will function just as well

as a traditional prosthetic limb. Countries all over the world have helped create and advance designs, so there is already a wealth of knowledge about the process online. Printed limbs have proved to function well and be econom-ical. A traditional prosthetic hand would cost more than 10 times what the materials cost for the printed limb. The process is fairly straightforward: Find the gen-

eral design online, make adjust-ments for the specific applica-tion, print the pieces, cut/polish the pieces, and then assemble.

Hobbs handled the de-sign and printing aspect of the build. Obviously, there is no “one size fits all” hand design, so she started with the most fit-ting blueprint she could find. The structure was scaled and adjusted where necessary to match Braden’s unique hand. She spent upwards of 20 hours working on it, along with count-less hours of planning. During the printing pro-cess, supporting plastic is add-ed onto to the original design to prevent distortion. This means that there is extra plastic that doesn’t belong on the print; the only solution is to cut it out, polish it, and make sure everything fits. The cutting/polishing was handled by Matthew Clay. Clay had experience making retain-ers at an orthodontist over the summer; this gave him the nec-

essary skills to work and shape the plastic. When Hobbs approached him, he accepted right away. The process was tedious and sometimes frustrating; Clay says he broke more fingers than he actually made correct-ly. It took him approximately 20-25 hours of work as well. Clay and Hobbs worked together to assemble the hand. The hand was given to Braden on Wednesday, September 30, in the Fab Lab of Prep’s senior high building. According to Clay, “We have some minor details to ad-just, and a little fitting left to be done but, on the whole, it turned out awesome. We are so happy with it.” Judging from the smiles in the Fab Lab, everyone else felt the same way, especially Braden.

Prep Uses 3D Printing to Lend a HandA traditional

prosthetic hand would cost more

than 10 times what the

materials cost for the printed limb.

For related video, visit us at jpsentry.net/33770

6 The Sentry

BY MADELINE PUCKETT

How would you like to go to school early in the morn-ing and learn about God while eating donuts? Then Breakout is for you. Breakout is a Bible study for 7th-9th graders made of groups divided by age and gender that get together ev-ery Thursday morning at 7:30. There are about 15-25 students that participate in each group. There have been small groups at Prep for many years, but 6 years ago Ms. Pow-ers asked Ms. Waits to be the faculty member in charge of organizing the Bible study. This is where Breakout began, along with a once-a-month, big breakfast for the entire junior high called Unleash. “My goal for Breakout is that you, as

students, learn to grow your own relationships with Christ,” says Ms. Waits. She also hopes that students get to know each other and “take off the mask.” Ms. Waits knows everyone goes through tough times, and that students need to be the light in a person’s life if they are hav-ing a rough time. She hopes to cross the lines of different friend groups and learn to sup-port and encourage each other. This is the first year for student leaders who will be asked to co-lead meetings a few times a year, as well as reaching out to other students in the grade about participating in Break-out. Each group can plan ser-vice projects and get togethers outside of Thursday morning meetings. Be sure to come this

BY HAWTHORNE CLEVELAND

Basketball is one of the few sports that just about any-one can play. Jackson Prep has allowed all the seventh graders to participate on teams that are divided into two groups, one team for boys and one for girls. The coaches all want to make you better and let you have lots of fun. Between games of knock-out, h-o-r-s-e, and just scrimmaging with the team, basketball is a sport everyone will enjoy. If you choose not to play, the teachers have set up a study hall during sixth period while the team practices. Bas-ketball in the seventh grade is so much fun, so everyone should least give it a try. See you on the court in sixth period seventh graders, this is some-thing you do not want to miss.

BY ANNA STACK

This year, Jackson Prep’s community partner is our local children’s hospital, Blair Batson. The student council organized a drive for supplies to be placed in the waiting rooms and other areas around the hospital. Members of the student coun-cil placed signs around the Junior High building and vis-ited each of the homerooms to encourage students to bring different supplies such as coloring books, colorful band-aids, and new magazines. Students brought these items to the Junior High foyer until October 23. The supplies will be taken to Blair Batson and placed within the hospital for use by children and their families who are awaiting treatment. Throughout the year, our school will spon-sor and support Blair Batson with many projects similar to this.

Ms. Welch and Ms. Waits having fun while getting their classrooms ready to show everyone all about what we learn in math at Prep.

Junior High Newsby our JH Correspondents

BY MADELINE VAN PELT

On Friday, October 23, 2015 at the same time of the tailgates, many prospective students came to the Jackson Prep campus to observe what goes on at Prep.The teachers get ready to meet and greet the students, showing them around the classrooms and showing them what they are going to learn.

Tours and Tailgating

Junior High Students Help Kids

7th Grade Basketball

Breakout Bible Study Starts Mornings Off Right

If you’re in junior high

and would like to write, draw,

or take photos for

The Sentry, contact

Mr. Hughes ([email protected])

November 2015 7

BY PAUL ANDRESS

On October 13, 2015, prizewinning reporter Jerry Mitchell addressed the student body as part of the annual vis-iting writers series. The visit-ing writers series has brought in a number of distinguished writers in Mississippi and in the United States. Writers that have visited in the past for this series include Marshall Ram-sey and Rick Bragg. Marshall Ramsey is a cartoonist for The Clarion-Ledger, and Rick Bragg is a famous author who wrote All Over but the Shoutin’. Jerry Mitchell is an in-vestigative journalist for The Clarion-Ledger. He played an instrumental role in reopening the case against Byron De La Beckwith for the 1963 killing of Medgar Evers in Jackson. By-

ron De La Beckwith was finally found guilty thirty years after shooting Medgar Evers, largely due to Jerry Mitchell’s bringing the case back. Mitchell is famous for solving or reactivating “cold cases” from the past, espe-cially involving the Ku Klux Klan. Mitchell was a recipi-ent of the MacArthur “genius grant” award, which gave him $500,000 dollars.In his talk, Mitchell explained some of his more famous sto-ries and gave students some insight into the people and cir-cumstances behind the crimes, as well as behind his investiga-tions. After addressing the student body, Mitchell met over lunch with a smaller group of students. There, he shared

more of his experiences and of-fered tips on reporting and on confronting the fears that keep people from taking risks. Mitchell had a few words of encouragement for Prep students. He told the stu-dents to “be willing to live fear-lessly and live beyond fear.” He also quoted Martin Luther King, Jr. who said, “If there is not something you are willing to die for, you are not willing to live.” He also made a reference to Deuteronomy 23:5 about how curses can be used as blessings. He ended the luncheon by tell-ing the students that his favor-ite part about uncovering the cases is getting to know the families who were affected by the crimes. He enjoys seeing these families get justice.

BY PAUL ANDRESS

Every year Jackson Prep brings in speakers to par-ticipate in the Global Leader-ship Institute Inspirational Forum series. These forums are designed to inspire students to lead better lives. This year the GLI brought in Jacob Eckeberger to teach the students the im-portance of being safe on so-cial media. Eckeberger is from Bloomington, Illinois where he gets to work with teenagers at Youth Specialities. Eckeberger also has a passion for teaching teenagers about the importance of being smart and safe on so-cial media. Eckeberger started his work at Prep weeks before he came to give the forum. At the beginning of the school year, ev-ery student took a survey about how they used social media. This survey asked questions such as: “How much time do you spend

on social media?”. Eckeberger used this information to put to-gether statistics to present at the day of the forum. On October 22, Eck-eberger came to Prep and ad-dressed the student body. He wanted the students to under-stand how serious social me-dia is, but to understand that “you are more important than what your cell phone says about you”. He showed all of the statistics of how students use their phones and how often. He told students to make sure not to post pictures on social media that you will regret later on. He also wanted students to under-stand the importance of being safe on social media. The ways to stay safe are to not post your location, set your account to pri-vate, and to not communicate with strangers.

Visiting Writers Series Brings in Jerry Mitchell

Jacob Eckeberger Teaches Social Media Safety

Jerry Mitchell talking to students at a luncheon after the forum. Photo by Paul Andress.

If you’ve got a cartoon or illustration you’d

like to see on the pages of THE SENTRY, contact graphics

editor Blair Stockett.

8 The Sentry

BY PATRICK PHILLIPS

Nosyatina Turcal, better known to students as “Nos,” was born on December 24, 1998 in Bethlehem, Israel. Nosyatina lived in Israel for 7 years with her mom, dad, and sister. Nosyatina’s mother scheduled an escape from the country because of segregation laws. Israeli segregation laws prevented Nosyatina’s fam-ily from leaving Israel because they are considered Palestin-ian. Nosyatina and her family managed to escape Israel with the help of her non-Palestinian

step dad. In 2007, they moved to the Philippines to start a bet-ter life. While in the Philippines, Nosyatina learned 2 new lan-guages, one of which she was forced to learn in less than 3 months. “Me and my family did not feel welcomed in the Phil-ippines” she said during an in-terview. Nosyatina’s dad had to leave the country in 2008 be-cause he needed better medical attention due to his motorcycle accident. Nosyatina, her mom, and sister stayed in the Philip-pines for 4 more years. Finally,

they managed to move to Mis-sissippi to be reunited with their dad on November 7, 2012. When Nos arrived in Mis-sissippi, she attended New Summit for two years to get caught up on her studies. “When I drove by Prep, I told my dad ‘Prep is my dream school that is where I want to go,’” she says. Nosyatina’s current fa-vorite subject is Physics. Nos hopes to attend Mississippi State where she will study sci-ence, and pursue a career as a cardiovascular surgeon.

Student Profile: Nosyatina Turcal

BY HAYS DUBBERLY Mr. David Hogue teaches all levels of Latin courses that are offered at Jackson Prep. He is in his eleventh year at Prep and also sponsors the Ju-nior Classical League (JCL). Hogue is considered by his students as very laid back and is seen as a mellow teacher. Hogue is from the small, rural town of Tensas Parish, Louisiana, which is full of cot-ton fields and woods. He has

fond memories of driving past the Mississippi River on his family’s land to build camp-fires on the sandbars. Tensas

Academy was a small private school that Hogue attended, and his graduating class only had fourteen students. As a high school track athlete, Hogue remembers coming to the state track at Jackson Prep and was impressed with the size of the school and the qual-ity of track and weight room. His mother is originally from Jackson and his father is from Tensas Parish. He was one of eleven children and was the second youngest in the fam-ily. His household life could be very chaotic at times. Reading

was a way for Hogue to have down time by himself. Speak-ing on his family life, Hogue said that, “ Since I was al-most the youngest, my house started looking more and more normal as the older siblings left to go to college. Eventu-ally, I had my own room.” Hogue met his wife while working weekends at Twin Lakes Conference Center and has been married for nine years. The Hogue family is a member of Redeemer Church, PCA.

They have three boys, David (6), Judah (4), and John Micah (1). They have a nine-year-old lab named Cora. Hogue graduated from Louisiana State University with degrees in Latin and Greek and did his postgraduate work at the University of Florida in Lat-in. Latin is his favorite subject, but he also loves Western civi-lization. He loves to spend his free time reading and watching Netflix shows that are based on

science fiction and British mys-teries. He also enjoys swimming for exercise and entertainment.

Hogue looks up to C.S. Lewis because Lewis made him want to get into academia. His favorite book is The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, which was written by C.S. Lewis. He likes to listen to Pan-dora and listens to the bands Mumford and Sons, Eisley, Lumineers, and Regina Spek-ter. Some of Hogue’s favorite movies include Princess Bride, the Mission, Chariots of Fire, Gosford Park, the Godfather I, II, and III, Fantastic Mr. Fox, and The Empire Strikes Back. Star Trek (TNG), Firefly, Sherlock, Foyle’s War, Battle-

star Galactica, and Longmire are some of Hogue’s favorite TV shows. His list of favorite actors include Ian McKellen, Patrick Stewart, Paul Giamat-ti, and Benedict Cumberbatch. Crawfish is the favorite food

of Hogue and he is also fond of crawfish pasta. His favorite va-cation is going to the beach and sitting on a patio at night while he listens to the waves of the ocean. However, skiing in Colo-rado would be a close second.

Questions and Answers

Where do you see yourself in twenty years?

“Who really knows? Hopefully travelling to Europe, spend-ing a lot more time with my wife now that the kids are off in college, and drinking a lot more coffee with friends.”

What is your hidden talent?

“Telling stories.”

What is your greatest accom-plishment?

“I would like to say that my greatest accomplishment is

relational. If I can be a good husband, father, and friend, I think that will be my most significant accomplishment.”

Where do you see America in 75 years?

“I think the US will still be the superpower of the world. It will be a lot more diverse and probably more socialist when it comes to healthcare, work ben-efits, and poverty alleviation.

Christianity will be less mar-ried to the Republican party and more focused on its mission to society. And hopefully, we will have a lot more trains. Fly-ing cars wouldn’t be bad either.”

Do you believe in space aliens, if so where are they living?

“As much as I like science fic-tion, I’m not too optimistic that there are other races out there, but who knows? People used to think that no one lived on the bottom half of the globe.”

Teacher Profile: David Hogue

Mr. David Hogue looking laid back as always. Photo by Hays Dubberly

Photo courtesy of Nosyatina Turcal

November 2015 9

BY ELLIOT WEILL, LEE MEENA, AND SAM MOSLEY

Recently, the school has decided that they will do away with the current filter system

known as iBoss. The reason is because Prep has upgraded its 100 megabyte bandwidth to a

500 megabyte bandwidth. This

has caused iBoss to become ob-solete with the current band-width. The head of technology for Prep, Ms. Laura Bishop, has been pushing for this increased megabyte width and new filter

system to replace iBoss. The

new filter will be put in place-later this year. (For security reasons the Sentry staff is not allowed to release the name of

the new firewall that will filter

the Prep WiFi). This new system will al-low more students to be on at

the same time without having

to worry about the internet ran-domly crashing.

Among students, the most

unfavorable aspect of iBoss

is probably the content filter.

Many students feel that the main purpose of the filter is to

limit the number of distractions

on the internet. While this may

be true for a few websites, the actual reason concerns with bandwidth. Before upgrading, the 100 megabyte bandwidth

capacity was not enough to ac-commodate for everyone con-sidering the amount of devices

in the school. This means that

streaming services like Netflix

and Spotify immediately ate up

most of the bandwidth, leaving

little for the classrooms.

However, after the 500

megabyte upgrade, the school’s

WiFi will be able to handle these services, if the school chooses to

do so. Since the school will be able to handle these streaming

services, it is now a possibility

that they will be allowed. But why allow “distractive” ser-vices on the new filter? Well,

since students sometimes have

free time to kill during study

hall, they may want to listen

to Spotify on their devices in-stead of sneaking music from

their phones when the teacher isn’t looking. Ms. Bishop would

gladly discuss these options to any student. The new system will not

only increase internet speeds, but open doors to many new

ways to access the internet, Later on, Ms. Bishop hopes to introduce different ways to change internet access by dif-ferent grade levels. This would

allow for the higher grades to have more access and trust

than the lower grades. Another innovative idea

would be to have an incentive-

based way to give extra internet

accessibility, so that students might could earn enhanced ac-ces. Turning away from iBoss

is the first step toward more in-novative ways to allow access to

the internet. All over the school

the students responded with positive opinions of what the

new system might bring to the

school. Senior Vann Crawford said “I am really excited be-

cause now my education will

not be hindered”. Juniors Ann

Clardy Byrd and William Pur-vis seemed really excited by

saying “I guess it’s cool” and

“It’s gonna be sweet”.

Even the teachers glad to

see improvements on the hori-zon. Said drama teacher Mr.

Kenneth McDade, “I am won-derfully excited”. Enhanced

internet access might allow

teachers new possibilities on how to teach their classes in in-novative ways.

The school has not even

installed this new network yet and it seems the campus is

already buzzing with excite-ment about the new network

enhancements and all the pos-sibilities it will behold.

Prep Replacing iBoss

Frustrated Prep student is denied access to common website. Photo by Elliot Weill.

Prep students recognize this infamous web pop-up as it blocks them from websites.

New system planned for early 2016

10 The Sentry

BY MICHAEL WILSON The Martian, a science fic-tion novel by Andy Weir, recent-ly met a book to film adaptation. The premise is that there is a crew of 6 astronauts on the Ares III Mars mission, and they land for what is sup-posed to be 30 sols (1 sol is 24 hours and 40 minutes and is the term for a Martian “day”). After landing, it doesn’t take long for things to melt down. When a harsh sandstorm blows through their camp a member of the crew, Mark Wat-ney, is impaled by an antenna blown from a receiver dish. As the weather conditions worsen the crew is forced to scrap the mission and leave their crew-mate whom they think has died. Due to a fair amount of luck he (Mark) survives. This novel is about Mark’s survival and how he must stay on Mars. Occasionally the reader is transferred to the opera-tors and heads of NASA and see things from their perspec-tive. This book, which while

being a science fiction novel, is based in a relatively close time, making it seem as though this incident could happen any day now. Well that is if we were putting men on mars. Personally I find the book hilarious. For instance a few quotes that can give a feel for the book would be: “Me: “This is obviously a clog. How about I take it apart and check the internal tubing?” NASA: (af-ter five hours of deliberation) “No. You’ll **** it up and die.” So I took it apart.” (This is in reference to a broken water reclaimer, which as the name suggests to reclaims water from the air), and another, “Yes, of course duct tape works in a near-vacuum. Duct tape works anywhere. Duct tape is magic and should be worshiped.” - Andy Weir, The Martian. These quotes should give a look at the kind of book this is. I personally rate it 9.5 out of 10, for all it is, which in-

cludes being a short, fun read.

For all of those people that blow off the book and say things like “Why would I read the book when I can just watch it?” Forbes Magazine’s website features an article giving three main reasons. Reason one: the science “It’s science made en-tertaining, and it’s a lot of fun. You get the “lite” version in the film...”. Reason two: humor, “The Martian is a very funny movie. Humor is its secret weapon...But the book is even funnier.”. And last but not least number three: the problems were more and better, Probably my biggest gripe with the mov-ie was how much of the latter half of the book’s obstacles were simply cut altogether.”. In con-clusion just go pick up the book and read it, you will enjoy it.

Andy Weir’s The Martian book cover

The Martian: from the Page to the Screen

BY HAYS DUBBERLY The Maritian was a book that was adapted into a screen-play and released in theaters on October 2, 2015. It was di-rected by Ridley Scott. Matt Damon plays Mark Watney in this science fiction movie. Dur-ing a manned mission to Mars, Astronaut Mark Watney is pre-sumed dead after a fierce storm and was left behind by his crew. However, Watney survives and finds himself stranded alone on this hostile planet. Despite the harsh circumstances, Watney always seems to make light of the situation and never panics. Watney must now survive on Mars with a small amount of food that would have only allowed him to survive around 150 days. He must figure out how to grow food on Mars, a planet which is hardly ca-pable of growing any food. Watney learns how to grow potatoes with human fecal. After a while, NASA figures out equipment and electronic devices are being moved from one place to another over many sols. They soon learn that Mark

Watney is alive but do not want to release this information to the media and his crew members. When it was released to the media that Watney was alive, NASA received serious back-lash and began working tire-lessly on a project to save him. Things seem to be going fine on Mars until Watney’s base camp blows up and de-stroys all of his food. He uses duct tape to repair his base, but he loses all of his food and must ration it out. He is no lon-ger able to make food anymore since the cold atmosphere de-stroyed all of the crops. This makes the rescue become much more stressful since he cannot live on his own much longer. After one rescue mission fails because the rocket explod-ed, NASA decides to tell the crew members that Mark Watney is alive. They decide as a group to return to Mars and save Wat-ney. Watney is launched into space and must meet the crew at perfect speed and timing, or he will die. It looks as the mission will be a bust until he pops a hole in his glove to pro-

pel toward the crew members’ space shuttle By sheer luck, the crew is able to save Mark Wat-ney and return back to earth. This science fiction movie received praise from NASA be-cause the scientific facts from the movie were extremely accu-rate. All of the science informa-tion that the movie talked about was extremely interesting. The only problem for me was that it took me some time to figure out that a “sol” was the span of a day on Mars. I must have easily missed that information at the beginning of the movie. The Martian received excel-lent reviews from Rotten Toma-toes with a 93% rating. There was humor throughout the en-tire movie, and there was never a dull moment. Matt Damon does a tremendous job and lives up to the expectations. Lawson Marchetti, Co-founder Jackson Prep Film Club, said the movie was “a superb tale of survival filmed with technological pre-cision and scientific accuracy.”

Book Review Movie Review

Matt Damon did an excellent in playing Mark Watney.

November 2015 11

BY CHATHAM KENNEDY

For 156 years, Mississippi-ans have lined up outside of the state fairgrounds in anticipa-tion for carnival games, rides, and entertainment. The annual Mississippi State Fair began on October 7th and lasted un-til October 18th. Over 700,000 people walked down the mid-way, inhaling the sweet aroma of fried everything.Traditions never cease at the

State Fair. The famous Biscuit Booth was back at the fair-grounds for its twenty-second consecutive year. Fair-goers swarmed the green stand that tirelessly produced free, fluffy

biscuits brimming with Black-burn Syrup. The pig races were back on the dirt track for anoth-er year. Different species of pot-belly pigs raced past the audi-ence in search for the promised cookie. Once again, the State

Fair Talent Competition lit up the Mississippi Trade Mart with a variety of young, talent-ed individuals. Jackson Prep was well represented in this competition. Beth Ann Young, a tenth grader, made it to the finals of the Senior Division.

In the Intermediate Division, seventh grader Tori Johnston shared the title of grand cham-pion in addition to receiving second runner-up. This year, the State Fair had a great entertainment lineup. Artists such as Kraig Parker, Corey Smith, and Joe Nichols wowed audiences. On October 14th, over two hundred people attended the Shawn Mendes concert. Many Prep students went to this concert including tenth grader Anne Clark Harvey who reflects on

her experience stating, “The atmosphere may have been stinky and stuffy, but Shawn was most definitely the life of

the party.” Rides that debuted this year in the midway were the

Speed, a turbulent thrill-ride, Thunder Mountain, and Gou-da. Eleventh grader Jordan Davis states, “My favorite ride was the Speed because it made you feel like you were falling face first towards the ground. I

love to people watch and one of the best places to do it is at the

fair.” While the 2015 State Fair has come to a close, Mississippi-ans continue to look forward to this tradition that will be back when the first cool wind blows

next October.

A Fair To Remember

Tori Johnston and Beth Ann Young at the Talent Competition.Photo courtesy of Beth Ann Young

The Mississippi State FairPhoto by Matthew Clay

BY ANN CLARDY BYRD

This year at the fair many popular artists played. One of them included Shawn Mendes, a 17 year old boy who grew up in Ontario, Can-ada. His career began through Vine, occasionally posting vid-eos of himself singing; and one day his fame took off. He has been touring with Taylor Swift, singing his new album Hand-written. Handwritten is filled

with many of his most popular songs, including Stitches and Something Big. When it was first an-nounced that he was coming to the Mississippi State Fair, many teenage girls all over the state were very ecstatic. There was a huge crowd expected to

come hear him perform. Every day it was an-nounced over the radio station, Y101, that he was coming, so even if you weren’t a Shawn Mendes fan, you knew he was going to be there. Several people got the chance to meet him by winning a contest that Y101 sponsored. Many anticipated his arrival, and went to the fair sev-eral hours early in order to get a spot close to the stage. The stage was set up under a large tent with many colorful lights and huge speakers. Tickets to the concert were included with admission to the fair. Many Jackson Prep students attended this concert. Shawn came on stage around

7:30 where the tent was already packed. There were many fans cheering him on and singing along. He played his most popular songs and incorporated other artist’s songs within his own. At the end of the show he came back on and did an encore singing Life of the Party. Shawn’s fame will continue to grow as he begins to play in larger areas, so this may have been a one time thing for Jackson but it was a huge success!

Shawn Mendes Brings “Something Big” to the Fair

Shawn Mendes jamming out on stage.Photo By: Ann Clardy Byrd.

BY HOLMAN BUCHANAN

The Sound of Music was performed at the school Saturday, October 22, and on Monday, October 24th. Auditions were held in May and the roles were chosen. Practices started at a workshop for the cast during the summer. The principal roles have been practicing three to four nights a week since the end of the summer, while the other members of the musical have been practicing a few nights a week since the beginning of October. Ms. Dianne Holbert says that this was one of the most musically talented casts she has worked with. She also notes the stage managers, Claire Porter and Re-becca Sistrunk, have been her right hand people and a huge help to the production.The sets for the musical were all designed and built by parents, who worked on Tuesday nights since June. All of the costumes were rented from a company in Florida that uses real Broadway costumes. Ms. Holbert says she decided to do The Sound of Music because it is the 50th anniversary of the film this year. Lawson Marchetti, who played Max Detweiler, says

that all the principal roles “nailed it.” He also said how happy the cast was to perform in front of a sold out theater Monday night. The Sound of Music has been raved on by many and was by far one of the best productions Prep has ever put on.

BY GRACIE MCCRANEY AND BRITTANY WILKINSON Homecoming was a huge success this year. It took place on Friday, October 9. The theme of this year’s dance, voted on by student council, was Old Hollywood. At the beginning of the week, student council members decorated the halls of the Senior High to get students in the spirit of Homecoming. There were festivities that lasted all week including ice cream, popcorn, and sweet tea served, along with karaoke and a movie on Patriot Avenue. On Thursday, students were allowed to dress as their favorite Hollywood character. Students were also allowed to wear their homecoming t-shirts with jeans on Friday. The pep rally on Friday introduced the home-coming maids escorted by friends. The sophomore maids were Macey Abraham and Maddy Mazzaferro. The junior maids were Ann Clardy Byrd, Anne Rivers Mounger, and Anna Kate Williams. The senior maids were Mallory Abraham, Haley Litchliter, Amber Mabry, and Martha Rayner. The maids were elected by their peers. When

the seniors on the court were announced, they threw candy, toys, and even pickles into the crowd to get students excited.

That night, our football team dominated against Parklane. During halftime, the members of the court were escorted down the field by their fathers and grand-fathers. They were accompanied on the field by the Pacers and the band. When it was time to announce Homecoming Queen, everyone was surprised, yet excited, to

hear that for the first time in Prep’s history there was an exact tie in the votes. Mallory Abraham and Amber Mabry were both crowned by last year’s queen, Millie

Waller. Millie was accompanied by Patriot Man, Lawson Marchetti, and the crown bearers, Abby Duncan and Taylor Caton. The new queens smiled for pictures in their

crowns, then led the court off the field.

After the game it was finally time for the dance. Patriot Avenue was beautifully decorated with lights, tables of food, and a band. This year’s band was the

Patrick Harkins Band. They played lots of good dancing songs and even allowed junior, Lawson Marchetti, to share the stage with them for one song. At the dance, stu-dents enjoyed taking pictures, spending time with friends, singing along and dancing. Student Body President in charge of Homecoming, Brooke Womack, said, “I think homecoming went really well this year. We had a lot of people come to the dance and got great feedback about the band!”

Double the Queens, Double the Fun

Members of the court pose for a pre pep rally selfie.

Photo courtesy of Elizabeth Nenon.

Amber Mabry and Mallory Abraham are the 2015 Homecoming Queens.

Photo courtesy of Mallory Abraham.

Junior maids: Anne Rivers Mounger, Anna Kate Williams and Ann Clardy ByrdPhoto courtesy of Taylor Byrd

Photos courtesy of Elizabeth Nenon

Prep Comes Alive with The Sound of Music

The Sentry14

Boys’ Soccer 2015-2016 Preview

The 2014-2015 Soccer Team hoist-ing the State Championship

Trophy. Photo Courtesy of Heather McCraney.

The 2014-2015 soccer team posing for a final team picture after winning the State Chamionship.

Photo Courtesy of Heather McCraney.

BY HEALY VISE The Lady Patriots’ season came to a successful finish as the girls won their third straight MAIS State Championship. The girls won state for classification AAAA division 1. The champi-onship marked Coach Duncan’s eleventh Championship at Prep with his girls’ teams. The Lady Pats soccer pro-gram has been a highly success-ful program. In the span of eigh-

teen years since the Lady Pats first championship in 1997, the Lady Pats have won fourteen championships. During that span the soccer team has had a six peat (1997-2002), a four peat (2005-2008), and presently a three peat (2013-now). The team not only won the championship but had more wins than any other team in the MAIS. The team finished 19-5. Seniors Clayton Noblin

and Olivia Brown led the team in goals and assists. Clayton Noblin had 33 goals and 23 as-sists, while Olivia Brown had 17 goals and 12 assists. Another senior leader McKenzie Robinson had a fan-tastic season as the team’s goalkeeper. She had 65 saves, 12 shutouts and only allowed 15 goals all season. McKenzie won the #MSPreps player of the week for her game saving performance in the soccer play-offs and championship. She had 8 saves in the playoff game against MRA and 9 saves in the championship game against JA. As the girls prepared for the playoffs after a close loss to JA in a shootout on the sixth penalty kick, they knew they were just one play away in the game from a victory. The Lady Pats had kept the motto all sea-son long of “whatever it takes”. They knew that they had the ability to defeat both MRA and

JA in the postseason. In the first round of the playoffs the girls played MRA at Prep for the girls last ever home game. The team beat MRA 2-1 but the game was not as close as the score shows since MRA scored their one goal late the game. Two days later the girls played JA at raider field for the finals. The patriots got off to a great start as Maddie Harris and Clayton Noblin each scored a goal. Their two goals led the patriots to a 2-1 victory over JA and clinched a three peat. During the team’s banquet celebrating the girls’ successful season, multiple awards were given out to some of the team’s leaders based on the voting of their teammates. Beth Graeber received MVP; Clayton Noblin received Best Offensive Player; Addison Hughes recieved Best Defensive Player; Shelby Wil-son received Most Improved; McKenzie Robinson received

the Patriot Award. With five seniors graduat-ing who all made the MAIS All Star Team, the Patriots’ look for the younger players to step up and fill their roles as they will be looking to four peat.

Girls’ Soccer Dominates, Scoring the #3Peat

Coach Duncan and his team celebrate their third straight championship.Photo Courtesy of Clayton Noblin

Seniors Olivia Brown and Maddie Harris pose with their medals.

Photo Courtesy of Olivia Brown

BY JOHN KEELER

Now that the Varsity girls’ soccer team ended their season with a State Championship, the boys’ team is looking to do the same. The boys’ team finished last season winning their 5th championship in a row and are eyeing their 6th this com-ing season. This feat has never been accomplished before and Patriots are looking to be the first. They will start their sea-son in early November when they will face some stiff com-petition from outside the MAIS classification. They will be playing some of the top teams in the state including Ocean Springs, Southaven, Terry, Oak Grove, Oxford, and Clinton, but the toughest team may be Madison Central who won the 6-A State

Championship last season. The Patriots say they will be ready. Seniors TK Griffis, Griffin Draughn, Peyton Har-

rison, JC Pride, and Taylor Wallace are looking to lead the team through these challeng-es including winning another State Championship. Luckily, these seniors have had plenty of experience playing in big games which will help them against a tough pub-lic school slate. A major loss for the team this year is senior, Jacob Mc-Neely. McNeely moved to Colo-rado this summer to work on improving his soccer skills. The team is gaining some speed, however, with the addi-tion of senior, Davis Clayton, who is new to the school and team this year. Also, juniors Tate Fowler, Brent Hall, and Jacob Crawley will be asked to step up and fill McNeely’s shoes. They played huge roles for the Patriots as sophomores last season and

will be asked to step up this year to help be leaders of this years team. Make sure you go out and support the Boys’ Soccer team

this winter and help them win their sixth championship in as many seasons.

November 2015 15

BY ELLIS ABDO

The Jackson Prep football team is continuing their domi-nance as the playoffs approach. They improved their record to 6-0 after a 47-28 victory over Lamar. Freshman running back Jerrion Ealy had a mon-ster game rushing 10 times for 222 yards and 2 touchdowns. He also returned a punt 42 yards for a touchdown. On October 2nd, Prep went to “the brickyard” to face Jack-son Academy. The Patriots got off to a great start when they recovered a fumble on the JA 8 yard line on the first play from scrimmage. One play later, ju-nior running back, Jacob Craw-ley scored an 8 yard touchdown to give Prep a 7-0 lead. Jerrion Ealy, Chance Lovertich, and Dylan Torrence added rushing touchdowns to give Prep a 28-0 lead. Ealy gave Prep some early momentum in the second half when he returned the kickoff 65 yards for a touchdown. Se-niors Biggs Henry and William Garrard combined for 50 yards rushing and 3 touchdowns. JA scored a late touchdown to avoid the shutout, but the Pa-triots left with a 53-7 victory.

On October 9th, the team played Parklane in the home-coming game. Prep got off to a fast start, building a 38 point lead before halftime. Sophomore Quarterback Chance Lovertich had a great game, rushing for 2 touchdowns and throwing another to Davis Clayton. Ja-cob Crawley led the Patriots on the ground rushing 10 times for 65 yards and two touchdowns. Tate Fowler and Graham Ek-lund anchored the defense each intercepting a pass. In the end Prep came out with a 51-14 vic-tory. On October 16th, Prep traveled to Hattiesburg for a big matchup with the PCS Bob-cats. Chance Lovertich had a strong performance, throwing 3 touchdowns in the game. Gra-ham Eklund had another great game, catching 2 touchdowns and returning a punt 56 yards for a touchdown. WAPT named Graham the Blitz 16 Player of the Week for his performance. Jerrion Ealy and Jacob Crawley added touchdowns to seal a 38-10 win for the Patriots. By win-ning, Prep clinched the South AAA division and the number one seed for the playoffs.

Prep faced off against Mag Heights on October 23rd. Jacob Crawley continued his great season rushing 8 times for 158 yards and 4 touchdowns. Wil-liam Garrard added 102 rush-ing yards and a touchdown. The defense was dominant holding the Chiefs to 7 points. At the end the Patriots came out with a 39-7 victory. Prep finished the regular season with a 48-0 victory over East Rankin. With the regular season complete the Patriots will have a bye week and will begin preparing for the semifi-nal game next week. The Patri-ot’s defense finished the regular season giving up an impressive 10.3 points per game. Senior linebacker Vann Crawford led the defense with 90 tackles, and 3.5 sacks. Graham Eklund led the secondary with 5 inter-

ceptions. The offense showed its big play ability, averaging 37 points per game. Jacob Crawley finished with a team high 1109 yards rushing and 16 touch-downs. Jerrion Ealy finished with 716 yards rushing and 9 touchdowns. Chance Lovertich led the team in passing with 617 yards and 7 touchdowns.

The Patriots are looking for-ward to the playoffs and a chance at a 4th straight cham-pionship. Junior lineman Noah Sasser said, “We have had a great season and are ready for the big games coming up.”

Football Continues Dominance

Seniors take a picture with Coach Black after completing an undefeated regular season.Photo courtesy of Sherry Mosley.

Freshman running back Jerrion Ealy takes it to the house

against JA.

Graham Eklund making a tackle in the PCS game.

16 The Sentry

BY LEE MEENA

The Prep Varsity Vol-leyball team placed third in the MAIS tournament held on Thursday, October 8. The tour-nament was held at Belhaven University where Prep defeat-ed Hartfield in the quarterfi-nals. Their season concluded in the semifinals where they were

knocked off by Presbyterian Christian School, who went on to play Jackson Academy in the championship. The team had some key victories including Madison Ridgeland Academy and Hill-crest. A memorable point in the season occurred after a heart-breaking loss to Jackson Acad-emy. Kelsey Harmon felt the team came together, explain-

ing, “After a hard JA loss, it was tough to bounce back. But we used that as motivation to beat Pearl.” The team did just that by gaining 3 wins and no losses against the pirates. The rising seniors for next year’s team are looking forward to what the coming season has in store for them. Junior Sar-ah Riley Jicka remarked, “We have a lot of returning players and we’ll be able to improve the team a lot.“ This year’s seniors in-cluded Olivia Baker, Courtney Burrow, Kelsey Harmon, Nao-mi Nhim, and Kristina Zoubou-kos.

BY MATTHEW CLAY The 2015 Jackson Prep varsity softball team finished

their season in early Octo-ber. They played a staggering number of games: 43. Of those games, 36 were won. That’s an incredible 86% success rate. They participated in over half a dozen tournaments, along with regular season games. The team is coached by Cory Caton and Paul Fryant. Their leadership has been out-standing, both for varsity and junior high team. Mary Anna Brad, a senior on this year’s team, reflects “They [Caton

and Fryant] are two of my fa-vorite coaches that I have ever played for. They invest so much of their time and energy into making us better, both on and off the field.”

This year’s team has three seniors: Cameron Lee Trussell, Mary Anna Brand, and Tori Jones. Mary Anna Brand played

left/right field this year, and

feels like the many years play-ing has helped her grow con-siderably as an athlete and a person. She has made relation-ships with her teammates and coaches that will last a lifetime and is also excited to see what the future holds for Prep soft-ball. Tori Jones played third base this year. When asked for her thoughts about the end of the season, Tori Jones ex-plained, “It hasn’t really hit me yet because I still have to play in the summer and next year - but I won’t be playing with my sister [Dakota Jones] anymore.”

Tori will be playing Division 1

softball at FIU (Florida Inter-national University) next year. She is “excited but nervous” be-cause the school is so far away, and she will not know anyone at first.

Cameron Lee Trussell played second base this year. Looking back, Cameron Lee

remarked, “It was by far my favorite season. We got along really well and played well too. The relationships we made this year were great.” Cameron Lee already misses playing softball; she played 13 years. Although seniors are usu-ally credited for all leading the team, this year some of the younger girls took initiative as well. Drea Morgan, for in-stance, did an outstanding job pitching especially during the post season games. Olivia Sass-er, a current 7th grader, start-ed this year. “She started as a 7th grader and really played at a level higher than any of us anticipate,” noted Mary Anna Brand in reference to Olivia. Despite their great re-cord of 36-7, there were plenty of challenges throughout the season. The most memorable occurred during the state tour-nament from late September to early October. The opponents were all tough, but perhaps

the hardest were Hillcrest and Parklane. Both of these schools are always big rival games for the softball team. The first loss

came from Hillcrest, followed by Parklane. The girls fought hard in both games, but could not pull through in the end. Regardless of the outcome, they all seem positive and proud of what the team accomplished this season.

Softball Ends Season with Strong Showing

Photos courtesy of Tori Jones

Volleyball Spikes To Third Place

Photo courtesy of Sarah Riley Jicka

November 2015 17

BY ELLIOT WEILL The first regular seasonboys’ basketball game kicksoffathomeonNovember10thagainstCentralHinds.Thebas-ketball team has 5 preseasongames.Thebasketball team iscoming off of a good year lastseasonandhopestoimprove. There are few changesto this year’s basketball team.Theteamhaslostthreeseniorsfrom last year. This year wehave five seniors andmany oftheseplayerswillneedtostepupandreplacelastyear’sroles.This year’s team has seniors:Jake Ray, Healy Vise, GrantRobinson,GrahamEklund,andMitchRedding.

The team is led by headcoach Chris Moore and assis-tant coach Andrew Mitchell.This is Coach Moore’s secondseason as Prep’s head coach.Senior basketball player JakeRay says “Coach Moore is agood coach.He really gives usalotofguidanceandshowsusinsightintothegame.” ThisyearPrepwilltakeontheOxfordChargersinbasket-ball. The Chargers are a verygoodbasketballteamandPrepneeds everyone’s support. ThegameisinOxfordonNovember11thsomarkthecalendarsandgetreadytocheeronthepatri-ots. The basketball team has

manybiggames thisyearandwillneedthefanstoshowandsupport them. Senior basket-ball player Grant Robinsonsaysthat“Thefansareimpor-tant to the game. They reallyhelp more than people think,especially the student section-Theyarethegluethatholdstheteamtogether.” The big home games areagainst Madison-RidgelandAcademy, Jackson Academy,andSt.Aloysius.ThebigAwaygamesareagainstOxfordhigh,Southaven High, Madison-RidgelandAcademy,andJack-sonAcademy.ToseetherestofthebasketballschedulejustgototheJacksonPrepwebsite.

BY ELLIOT WEILL

Thegirls’basketballsea-son is upon us and officiallystarts onNovember 10th.Onecould say the season reallystartedweeksagobecausetheyhave already started practiceseverydayafterschool.Thegirlshavebeenworkinghardforthisupcomingseason. Thegirls’teamislookingenergetic, and this will createsome exciting games for thisyear.Besuretocometomanyof thesegames.Theyneed thefans support this year playingacoupleoftoughopponentsin-cluding Jackson Academy andMadison-Ridgeland Academy.Sincethegirls’basketballteamusually plays before the boy’s

team, this allows the fans towatchbothgamesconvenientlyinoneafternoon. The team hopes to im-prove from last year whichcouldbetoughwiththelossoffour seniors from last season.This year there four seniorson the team:KristinaZoubou-kos, Haley Litchliter, BethGraeber, and Clayton Noblin.Theseseniorswillneedtostepuptoreplacetherolesthatlastyear’sseniorshadontheteam.Thesuccessof the team isnotonlyinthegirlsbutalsointhecoaches. The girls’ basketballteam is led byhead coachMi-chaelMcAnally and the assis-tantcoachJuanitaWard.

Boys’ Basketball: Ready to Tip Off

Girls’ Basketball: Shooting for Glory

Left:HaleyLitchlitershootsamidcourtjumper.Right:BethGraeberandKristinaZouboukasdenyaccesstotherim.

Jake Ray pressing the offense and going for the steal.

18 The Sentry

BY BLAIR STOCKETT

The 6th annual Jackson Prep vs. Jackson Academy Ryder cup was held October 13th at the Country Club of Jackson. Ten players from each team participated in this year's tournament. All of the players practiced hard for this and the team felt really prepared going in. Coach Bradford said “Our depth this year is really good all the way from top to bottom.” The morning matches were in four ball match play format, which is when you and your partner take the lowest score on each hole and compare it to your opponents lowest score by declaring yourself one down, all square, or one up. Each

match was worth one point and ties are half of a point. After the morning matches were played, the scores were reported back to the club house. Prep led 3 to 2 after the morning matches and were determined to stay on top. The Prep team has nev-er lost a Ryder Cup and they wanted it to stay that way. Ju-nior Charlie Miller said, “After losing to them last spring at state, we felt it was important that we would get it back with a win here.” The afternoon matches were individual match play which is when you compare your score to your opponent’s score after every hole by declaring

one down, all square, or one up. As the scores starting coming in, the points started adding up in Preps favor. Prep ended up winning 8 of the ten matches in the afternoon, which led them to a 11 to 4 victory over Jackson Academy. Sophomore Parker Daily said “It was great to beat JA again in the Ryder Cup.” Out of the 6 years the Ryder Cup has been played, Prep still remains undefeated.

Prep Golf Continues Streak in Ryder Cup

Jackson Prep golf team poses after winning sixth straight Ryder Cup. Photo courtesy of Coach Bradford.

BY TANNER MCCRANEY The cross country season started at the beginning of the school year. The cross country team is led by head coach Mal-colm Saxon and assistant coach Meredith Johnston. These coaches have led both the girls and boys team to many top five finishes. Some memorable finishes include first place for the boys in the Jackson Prep Invitational, a second place finish for the girls in the Columbia Academy Invi-tational, a second place for the boys in the MRA Invitational, and the PCS Invitational. Not everyone can go out and run long distances at im-pressive times. This requires many hours of practice and dedication. The Cross Country team practices every day dur-ing the week.

The practice begins with stretching to prevent injury. Af-terward, the team does differ-ent forms of distance running such as campus laps or bleach-ers to build up endurance and stamina. The team makes sure to stretch after the practice as well. Ninth grader Jack Mullen said, “The running is hard and tiring, but being on the team and going to meets makes it all worth it.” The MAIS Overall Class Meet ended the season and the team competed very well against the top cross country teams in Mississippi. The boys finished in sec-ond place and the girls came in third. Griffin Draughn came in first place in the whole meet.

Cross Country Team Finishes Strong Strong

Photo courtesy of Easton Sheffield.

November 2015 19

Preseason1. Ohio St.2. TCU3. Alabama4. Baylor5. Michigan St.6. Auburn 7. Oregon8. USC9. Georgia10. Florida St.11. Notre Dame12. Clemson13. UCLA14. LSU15. Arizona St.16. Georgia Teach17. Ole Miss18. Arkansas19. Oklahoma20. Wisconsin 21. Stanford22. Arizona23. Boise St.24. Missouri25. Tennesse

Week 10 1. Ohio St.2. Baylor3. Clemson4. LSU5. TCU6. Michigan St.7. Alabama8. Notre Dame9. Stanford10. Iowa11. Florida12. Oklahoma St. 13. Utah14. Oklahoma15. Florida St.16. Memphis17. Michigan18. Houston 19. Ole Miss20. Toledo21. North Carolina22. UCLA23. Temple24. Mississippi St.25. Texas A&M

NCAA Football So far this year, college football has been full of surprises, upsets, and breakout perfor-mances. Michigan St. beat Michigan with possibly the greatest ending to a game ever, while teams like TCU, Baylor, and Ohio St. have been cruising through their easy schedules. LSU and Lounard Fournette have had the most success thus far in the SEC, with their biggest test yet, and possibly the deciding game of the SEC against Alabama this week. While Ole Miss may control their own destiny in the SEC, after embarrassing losses to Florida and Memphis, things don’t look promising for title hopes. Stanford has regained their composure after a first

game loss and now look like one of the best teams in the country. The AP top 25 is clustered with smaller colleges such as Toledo, Temple, Memphis, and Houston. After seeing the first

ten weeks, the final weeks of the season sure do look like they will be full of excitement.

Season Review

1. Ohio State- There is no way that the college football committee will leave off Ohio State if they go undefeated the rest of the season, and with their schedule that is very likely even though they have looked terrible at times this season. 2. TCU/Baylor- Whichever team wins this highly anticipated match up will easily make it into the playoff considering they both have very easy schedules. 3. Clemson- Clemson is clearly the ACC’s best team and possibly the best in the country right now. With Florida State being their biggest opponent the rest of the season, I think Clemson will be undefeated heading in to the college football playoff4. Alabama/LSU- I doubt that the committee would leave off an SEC team and these are the best two in the conference. Whichever beats the other, I think will win the SEC championship

and be in the college football playoff.

Playoff Prediction

Heisman RaceLeonard Fournette- Fournette has dominated the most physical conference in the country in every game he has played. As of right now the Heisman trophy is his to lose. If he performs against Alabama and possibly in the SEC championship, it would be hard not to give it to him.

Christain McCaffrey- McCaffrey is probably the most dominant player in the Pac 12. He is doing it all for Stanford right now, and is the main reason that they have looked so much bet-ter in recent weeks.

Corey Coleman- Corey Coleman already has 18 touchdown receptions.... in seven games. He has done very well in Baylor’s high powered offense, and even with a backup QB, is showing no signs of slowing down.

Trevone Boykin- Trevon Boykin is probably the most exciting player in college football. He

always finds a way to make a play and put up big yards. Boykin is the staple of TCU’s offense,

which is the reason that they have won so many games this season.

BY HAYNES HORSLEY

20 The Sentry

Season PreviewThe NBA Season is upon us, and there is a lot of excitement surround-ing the season. The defending champions, the Golden State Warriors return almost their whole team from a season ago. Reigning League MVP Stephen Curry has backed up his superstar status so far with an impressive start to the year. The Warriors are at the top of preseason predictions because of the talent they return. They return almost all of their players from a year ago. The Cleveland Cavaliers ended the season with a loss to the Warriors in the finals. This spoiled the return to his hometown of Cleveland, Ohio for NBA Superstar Lebron James. James is very hungry to win a ring for Cleveland, and the Cavaliers are going to be the favorite in the Eastern Conference yet again. The Cavs return almost all of their production, while also adding Mo Wil-liams, Richard Jefferson, and Anderson Varejao.

Key Offseason Moves The San Antonio Spurs made the biggest signing of the offseason when they picked up star big man LaMarcus Aldridge from the Blaz-ers. They also signed veteran forward David West from the Pacers.The Los Angeles Clippers were able to hold off the Dallas Mavericks pursuit of star center DeAndre Jordan and keep the big man in Los Angeles. The Clippers were able to also go out and get veteran Paul Pierce and Lance Stephenson to bolster the roster for a championship run. Although, the Mavericks were able to land Portland Trail Blazers guard Wesley Matthews. The Milwaukee Bucks shocked a lot of people when they were able to land center Greg Monroe over franchises such as the Los Angeles Lakers, New York Knicks, and the Detroit Pistons.

Rookies to Look Out ForJahlil Okafor- Okafor comes into the league as the most NBA ready big man because of his offensive skill set. He will be relied on heav-ily for production as the 76ers have one of the worst offenses in the league. D’Angelo Russell- The Lakers need a guard who can control the of-fense, so expect the number two overall pick to have a big impact.Karl Anthony Towns- The number one overall pick in the draft will have a chance to be a star in Minnesota. Emmanuel Mudiay- Mudiay comes in the NBA after spending one season playing pro basketball in China. His elite athleticism and ball skills will make him a force from day one.

Western Conference Playoff Predictions:1. Golden State Warriors 2. San Antonio Spurs3. Oklahoma City Thunder4. Houston Rockets5. Los Angeles Clippers6. Memphis Grizzlies7. New Orleans Pelicans8. Phoenix Suns

Eastern ConferencePlayoff Predictions:1. Cleveland Cavaliers2. Chicago Bulls3. Atlanta Hawks4. Miami Heat5. Washington Wizards6. Milwaukee Bucks7. Toronto Raptors8. Indiana Pacers

MVP Predictions:1. Stephen Curry2. James Harden3. Lebron James4. Anthony Davis5. Russell Westbrook

NBA Season Tips Off BY: RJ GREEN

November 2015 21

FInd the FIB!The game is Find the Fib. It’s extremely simple; each person has given three facts about themselves, but one of the facts is a lie. Find the fib!

Rosie Ferguson1. “I can eat ANY food with chopsticks.”2. “I have hugged Morgan Freeman.”3. “I am a janitor at an office building on the

weekends.”

Andrew Lott1. “I can solve a Rubiks Cube in less than two minutes.”2. “I’ve played every Pokémon game ever!!”

3. “I rushed for over 200 rushing yards in a 6th grade FPDS football game.”

Benjamin Wilkinson1. “I know the administrative password.”2. “I had my birthday in Yellowstone National Park.”3. “I was ninja champion in my Drama I class.”

Marley Parkman1. “I have 2 pet peacocks.”2. “I have been to Europe.”3. “I was born in Taiwan.”

Prep Trivia facts

1. What is Coach Walker’s middle name? a. John b. William c. O’Keith d. Brant 2. How many flag poles are on the Prep Campus?

a. 3 b. 1 c. 4 d. 2 3. When was Fortenberry Threatre Built? a. 2013 b. 2015 c. 2012 d. 2014

There will be three trivia facts about Prep. You will have four choices. Choose wisely!

BY HAYS DUBBERLY AND PATRICK PHILLIPS

Answers to Find the Fib and Prep Trivia Facts are on page 22

Gnomes Wanted: Well, members of the Jackson Prep community, it is time to start the search again. Jackson Prep is a big campus and now it’s time for you to keep your eyes opened wide. Hidden on campus are two garden Gnomes named Brodie and Gnaomie. You may be asking yourself, what do I get if I find one of these Gnomes? You get a shoutout in the

next Sentry issue and a prize. The rules to this game are simple. Find the Gnome and bring it to Hays Dubberly or the student publications room. Last issue, only one Gnome was found, so there is one still hidden in its orignal spot.

Shoutout to Ashley O’Mara for finding

Gnaomie in the Sentry box outside of the Publications Room!

22 The Sentry

Jackson Prep has been known for its academic excel-lence for decades. However, there seems to be a belief among many teachers that assigning busywork is what makes their class “challeng-ing, rigorous, and worthwhile.” Busywork does not determine how hard a class is, but it shows how forty-five minutes of homework can be used ineffi-ciently. By definition, busywork is “work assigned for the sake of looking or keeping busy,” according to Dictionary.com. Students at Jackson Prep have to work on hours of mean-

ingless homework that does not provide any educational purpos-es. Some teachers feel the need to assign homework just to be able to say that they give home-work. With a smaller amount of homework, students would be able to prepare for tests better. With less time consum-ing homework, students would be able to study harder and score higher on tests for school. Students would also be able to prepare for the ACT, SAT, and PSAT and could score higher on those tests. Higher scores on these tests could be the de-ciding factor for whether or

not a student would be accept-ed into their desired college. Busywork can lead to stu-dents not having the chance to study the appropriate amount of time and not being able to do the best of their ability on a test. It also can lead to sleep deprivation and cause stu-dents to do poorly on assign-ments. There have been many times in my Jackson Prep ca-reer where I have worked on a project or assignment until midnight and felt completely exhausted the following day. Many students at Jack-son Prep participate in numer-ous extracurricular activities throughout the school year. Teachers could make the coun-ter argument that school must take precedence over any other activity. Sure, I would definitely agree with that statement, but there is not any reason to as-sign an absurd amount of work to do overnight. When teach-ers assign busywork, it is just

an added burden to students. In my opinion, busywork is useless and a complete waste of time. I feel as if many other Jackson Prep students would agree with my argument. Stu-dents are tired when they are overworked and need to un-wind after a long day. A Jack-son Prep student spends seven

hours of their day at school and works hard in the classroom throughout the day. It is very frustrating to know that this type of work will not help you in college or in a job in the future. Nothing beneficial comes from assigning students busywork.

Busywork Takes a Toll on Students

Opinion: Hays Dubberly

AnswersRosie Ferguson: 2Andrew Lott: 3Benjamin Wilkinson: 1Marley Parkman: 31. C2. D 3. A

The National Football League, in recent years, has been completely unreason-able about a number of things. The NFL is seen by many as a money making powerhouse, who only cares about how much their annual income may be. This multi-billion dollar indus-try is without a doubt the king of professional sports in Amer-ica, and has been by wide mar-gin for more than 30 years. The League’s stance on player safety is very hypocriti-cal. Each year, the NFL adopts new rules designed specifi-

cally to improve player safety. However, teams having to play games in 5 days turnaround contradicts the idea of player safety entirely. Playing two NFL football games in 5 days is basically the equivalent of be-ing in two severe car crashes in 5 days. During the month of Oc-tober players from every team are allowed to wear pink on gameday’s to support breast cancer awareness. The NFL also sells pink gear in stores and online. You may assume that this money the NFL makes from these sales goes toward

the fight against this horrible disease. According to data obtained by ESPN’s Darren Rovell, only 8.01% of money consumers spend on NFL pink gear goes toward cancer research. Leave it to the NFL to actually make money off a

“philanthropic” cause. The NFL is quick to hand out fines and suspensions for al-cohol and drug abuse, but their biggest sponsor is Budweiser. Pro bowl cornerback Richard Sherman pointed this fact out to the media last year In addition to this, the NFL believes they have the power to regulate which head-phones players can wear. Be-cause they have an exclusive sponsorship agreement with Bose, any players who wear Beats headphones during war-mups or post-game conferences

are typically fined. The NFL has paid league commissioner Roger Goodell $105 million from 2008-2012, but still fights for every penny in providing healthcare for their players to maintain a good quality of life. The NFL has now made Roger Goodell’s salary unavailable to the pub-lic to avoid “distractions,” but I believe it is because they do not want to be transparent with the public. At the end of the day, the NFL may be the most cor-rupt entity in the nation. Lets face it, as long as we continue to pour money into all things NFL-related, the league will get away with anything they want.

Sports Opinion: Brendon McLeod

NFL, Get it TogetherThis is what busywork does to Prep students. Photo by Hays Dubberly

November 2015 23

Sports Opinion: Sam Mosley

After watching the wild card game between the second best team in baseball, the Pitts-burgh Pirates and the third best team, the Chicago Cubs, it became quite clear that the playoff system needs to be dras-tically changed to make it more fair and watchable. First off, both the Pirates and the Cubs did not

belong in the wild card game. This was absolutely ridiculous that the second and third best teams in baseball had only one game to advance in the playoff rounds, while inferior teams such as the New York Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers got a full series because they won their weak divisions. The MLB has the option to fix this dreadful playoff system.

One way is to go back to the old system with just one Wild Card team, but this would still leave out the Cubs, who were the third best team in baseball. Another way is to com-pletely do away with divisions which would take the top five teams for the playoffs. This would be just reverting back to what the MLB had for so many years before 1994. This would also destroy many great rival-ries such as the Cardinals and Cubs, Pirates and Reds, and of course the Red Sox and Yan-kees. By far, the best way for MLB to fix the playoffs is by adopting the NBA playoff sys-tem. This would keep the divi-

sions, but make it so they do not matter. Instead, the three best teams would get first round byes while the next two teams would have to play in the wild

card game. This would make the MLB’s playoffs more fair and would insure fans the best match ups in the playoffs.

March Madness is a term that has stuck with basketball fans for a while. The NCAA basketball tournament is al-ways full of shocking upsets and close games. It has always taken place in March, and it has fit really well in late March and early April. The timing of the end of the season is not the problem though. The beginning of the basketball season is of-ten not even paid attention to because of football season being at its’ peak. NCAA Basketball would really benefit from moving back the season by about a month. It will help the TV ratings a lot as well as the interest in the

sport. Instead of competing with football season for half of the year, they will have more of their own space on the sports calendar. Issues with this would be no longer being able to say March Madness in reference to the NCAA Basketball tour-nament. If the season were moved back by about a month, it would put the tournament in April and May. This would be a change people would not be ex-cited about, but the downsides do not outweigh the positives. NCAA basketball is often not even paid attention to until late December or early January. There are always great match-

ups and great tournaments early in the year that should be a lot bigger of a deal. Those will become a bigger deal if the season is moved back. Confer-ence play will be moved back to around February, and it will get an increased amount of at-tention. Today’s sports world revolves around money and TV. Moving the season back increases attention therefore it will increase TV ratings and game attendance. The schools and conferences will make a lot more money because of this. Another issue would be the time player would have to prepare for the draft. Pushing the season back gives less time for players to train between the end of the season and the NBA Draft. This issue can be solved by pushing the NBA Draft back by about two weeks. That would give plenty of time for prospects to prepare for the draft. There is a lot of time between the end of the season and the draft, and

not all of it is needed. It would be better if a few weeks were cut off the pre draft time.

NCAA Should Move Basketball Season Back

MLB Should Review the Current Playoff System

Sports Opinion: RJ Green

Andrew McCutchen celebrating a walk off home run.

Former Duke Star Jahlil Okafor slamming home

a dunk.

Candid and

Random

the sentry, november 2015

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