“We had some young guys really step up for us,” senior wrestler Ben Randolph said. “With all of the skin diseases going around it’s good to know that we have guys there who can back us up when we need them.” The Lancers have been plagued with different skin diseases over the last couple weeks and competed at districts without nine of their varsity wrestlers.

“The good news is we are finally starting to get healthy,” Randolph said. “Hopefully be the time we get to state we can be at full strength.

District Champion Wrestling Team and their Weight Classes
Barrett Cooper-106
Chipper Jorns-120
Seth Ortiz-126
Grant Hollingsworth-132
Marshall Green-138
Xander Todd-145
Zach Rome-152
Tommy Dettwanger-160
Blaine Hill-170
Tyler Nelson-182
Nick Mason-195
Will Kaiser-220
Dominique Atkinson-285.

The Lancers competed and scored points for their team throughout many different duels. Senior Blaine Hill and Sophomore Grant Hollingsworth both went undefeated however no individual champions were named.

Sherman will have to undergo scans every 60 days for the rest of his life to confirm that the cancer has not returned to his system.

“It’s been a tough battle,” Sherman said.  ”But at the end of the day I am just happy to be back with my players.”  At the end of the season Sherman told the team in a post season meeting that his return to the head coaching position relied solely on his cancer treatment.  Simply put if he beat cancer he would be back as the head coach and if the cancer came back he would have to take a season off to be with his family.

Preview of the East vs. Rockhurst Basketball Game

The Lancer Basketball Team will be taking on cross state rival the Rockhurst Hawklets for the 37th time this Friday.  You can view this game right here on www.smeharbinger.net.  The JV game will begin at 5:30 p.m. and the Varsity at 7 p.m.

Previewing the game with Rockhurst Coach Mark Nusbaum

How is your approach to this game different from others?
We try to keep it as normal as possible on the practice floor, but we also know that the school treats this week different. We talk about the atmosphere, the noise, the energy is different from most Friday nights.

Is this game one that you look forward to coaching?
I always look forward to this game because of my friendship with Coach Hair, the competitive spirit of both schools and the added dimension of the Coaches vs Cancer fundraising.

Does the home team have a sizable advantage each year?
I don’t know if it is sizable, but playing on the road in that atmosphere is tough. What a great Friday night feel!

Describe your team this year?
The strength of our team this season is balance. We have several players who can score in double figures on any given night. This kind of forces teams to pick their poison, so to speak. This year we’ve got more depth at each position. Also more balance.

From your time scouting East, what are your thoughts on them?
They have the same characteristics as all Coach Hair’s team does. They play tough, physical, smart basketball. They can play different speeds at either end of the floor.

What is going to be the key to the game?
Matching their intensity and blocking out the crowd.

Previewing the game with East Coach Shawn Hair

Do you feel like the home team in this series has a sizable advantage?
I’d play every game at East if I could. I think playing at home definitely helps you. It’s one of those games where both crowds are just so jacked up that it’s gonna be a sellout at 4 o’clock. But you know, it’s not like you’re going to Allen Field house and every fan in there is cheering for KU. It’s pretty evenly split up.

What is the strength of the team this year?
We’ve got really good balance. Vance obviously is our best scorer and Zach has really picked up his scoring as well, so I think that’s been really crucial because teams are really starting to guard Vance hard. And you know, we are starting to get contributions from Andy Hiett, Chase Hanna, Billy Sutherland and Henry Simpson, so those are bigs. All of those guys are crucial to our balance.

What is the difference between this years’ team and last?
We can defend. Holding Shawnee Mission West to 26 points, that’s a big deal. So hopefully we can build on that going into McPherson and come back ready to go ready to play Rockhurst.

What are your thoughts on Rockhurst?
They’re good. They’ve got good size. They’ve got three guys inside that are really good. Kyle Wolf, who is a junior, is about 6’5 and is a really good player. Probably their leading scorer. And then Brian Fosselman who is about 6’3-6’4 and kind of a three man. And then Pat Jones is a really good guard so they’re just a solid team all the way around.

What is going to be your approach to stopping their “big three?”
More than anything, you’ve got to keep them off of the boards, got to get back in transition. Can’t give up offensive transition buckets to Rockhurst, got to make it a half court game and you can’t give them second chance opportunities. If you give them second chance opportunities, they’re going to finish.

What’s going to be the key to winning this game?
The key for us is going to be settling down immediately; everyone is going to be jacked up, amped up. Settle down; get in the flow of the game as quickly as possible. Understand that every possession has got to be one; the offensive possession has got to be won. If we do that, we should be in good shape.

Link to live broadcast recording and game wrap up from the game:

http://smeharbinger.net/sports/live-broadcast-boys-jv-and-varsity-vs-rockhurst

“We need our play makers to make plays in big games,”  Stein said.  “Even though they did that for the most part we were just not able to convert.”

The Lady Lancers have a full week of practice before their next game.  Tuesday, Jan. 24 the Lady Lancers will take on the SM Northwest Cougars at home for the first time this season at home.

“The coaches pushed me to start wrestling,” senior Tyler Nelson said, “But once I got started I just could not quit.”

The Lancers were favored over the Pioneers last night, as their returning state-placers had an advantage over a less experienced Leavenworth team. The seniors got some help from junior Gavin Jorns who quickly pinned his opponent scoring the team six points. Senior Ben Randolph struggled in his match against a less experienced Leavenworth opponent, but was still able to come out with a victory.

Senior Ben Randolph along with Blaine Hill are the two Lancer wrestlers planning on receiving a wrestling scholarship next year. Benedictine and Cornell College are currently Randolph’s top choices, while Hill remains undecided.

“Wrestling was my favorite sport through high school, I think lessons I learned from it will stay with me for the rest of my life,” Randolph said.

With two returning Sunflower League Champions and four returning state-placers the Lancers have high expectations for the rest of the season. League will take place on Feb. 11 and state is two weeks later starting Feb. 24.

“I wish more people came to the meets,” Anthonis said. “Not a lot of people know about bowling because it’s not really advertised throughout the school.”

Since Anthonis wishes the team would get more recognition throughout the school to spread the word about bowling, she, along with the coaches, was surprised to see the number of new prospective bowlers at the upcoming tryouts. The team hopes to replace the seniors that left a mark on the team last year. Bowling is different from other winter sports like basketball and swimming. It’s a sport that is mainly only heard about through the morning announcements.

That’s how Anthonis found out about the bowling team her freshman year. She was sitting in World Geography and an announcement came on about bowling tryouts. The whole class was laughing and thought of it as a joke. Anthonis, who had been in a bowling league over the summer, thought that it might be something fun to try; she has been on the East bowling team ever since.

The team’s seriousness towards the sport varies from player to player. They treat their meets just like a more “formal” practice. At meets, they are required to wear their uniforms, take off jewelry and they are not allowed to eat. At practices, they don’t follow many of these rules, but their coaches don’t mind as long as they are practicing and trying their hardest.

“The coaches are pretty laid back,” returning varsity bowler Brandon Shatto said. “They just want us to play well.”

One of these coaches is varsity coach and math teacher Patricia Kennedy. She has been a coach for five years and plans to continue coaching this year and in years to come.

The team and coaches are hoping to play well this year after losing eight seniors who were some of the team’s best players. Last year the team took one of their former players, Ali Dees, to State but she did not end up placing. Out of the 28 players on the team, three of the top seniors from last year such as Brennan Burns, Johnny Sheahan and Pete Peterson will also have to be replaced. This year’s seniors are realizing that they are going to need to step up their game and take leadership over the team.

“Next to Ali Dees, I was one of the best on the team,” Anthonis said. “Now with her gone, I’ll have a chance to do better and help out the team.”

The returning players plan on focusing and putting their best into the upcoming season. Tryouts begin tomorrow at College Lanes bowling alley and will be going until Dec. 2; the returning players are expecting to do their best.

Kennedy is happy to see that this year a lot of new people are trying out, despite the time commitment. The team is forced to take long drives out to the meets and has two-hour practices five days a week.

Anthonis hopes that the team does well this season and starts to gain public support and more fans. But for now, the team relies on each other for encouragement.

“We get along really well with each other,” Anthonis said. “It’s like we are a little family of bowlers.”

AnnaMarie Oakley | Harbinger Online

Due to a recent Kansas state law change, Holbrook is allowed to keep up his rigorous routine. This year, athletes that take part in swim and dive are able to train with their club teams while also being on the high school team. Holbrook is one of five swimmers on the East boys’ swim and dive team that has taken advantage of the new law change.

“It gives me a chance to experience a more intense practice with my club team followed by an afternoon practice with my high school team,” Holbrook said.

In past years in Kansas, swimmers were not allowed to be a part of both club and high school teams. They could however, use the pool time with their club team, but could not receive additional instruction from their club coaches. Swimmers could also apply to an Olympic Development Program (ODP) exemption and swim United States Swimming (USS ) approved meets. This gave the swimmers a chance to compete in specific high level meets.

“I don’t think it will change the team concept here at East, we are talking about low numbers of kids that will continue to practice in the mornings with the club team,” Head swim and dive coach Wiley Wright said.

Missouri’s movement is what ultimately spurred Kansas swimmers to take action.

In Missouri, the issue regarding a swimmer participating in both club and high school teams was addressed in 2004. Frustrated parents tried to pass a bill through the state legislature to make the change. Eventually the Missouri State High School Activities Association (MSHSAA) reached a compromise with the parents before the bill was officially passed.

“This is not a new [Kansas High School Activities Association (KSHSAA)] rule, it is however a new Kansas law,” KSHSAA Assistant Executive Director, David Cherry said. “The state legislature placed the new rule change into a bill.”

Swim and dive is different from other sports in Kansas. It is the only sport in the state that allows an athlete to do both club and high school. In other sports, an athlete is not allowed to compete in events outside of high school during the season, let alone practice with an outside team.

Senior Andrew Hornung has been currently practicing strictly with his club team. He will start practicing with the team Dec. 1. Hornung is doing some more intense training before he starts high school with his club team, so that he can get ready for a few non-high school swim events.

“I practice with club for the first couple of weeks of the season because the training is more intense and then I go only to high school because of the team atmosphere,” Hornung said.

The new law change also brings about new requirements. Swimmers are only allowed to train with their club team until after they have completed the requirements for their high school team and the requirements are up to coach’s discretion.

While the new change will help those that compete on a high level to push themselves, it could be a disadvantage to those that are not on that same level.

Hornung believes that the new change is helpful, but may have some drawbacks.

“The team bonding will be weak,” Hornung said. “When you have guys that are not at practice all of the time, it makes it difficult to grow as a team.”

Although the “team” aspect will be weaker, the individual results have proven to be better  according to when Missouri had this same rule change.

The change also gives a swimmer the option to opt out of specific meets and swim specifically state after they qualify for it.

“I think that the rule allows me to get ready for college swimming,” Holbrook said. “It allows me to practice twice as hard.”

In the spring, girls’ swim and dive will face the same change. Junior Meg Stanley, a year-round club swimmer is somewhat skeptical on the new change.

“It detracts from the team experience and team training,” Stanley said.

Because there is no separation between club and high school there is no transition time. Only time will tell whether this new rule will contribute in a positive way.

“I personally agree with the change, since it will benefit both the swimmer, and the team, and it will allow the swimmer to keep up with his/her training at the club level, since they swim multiple events at the level,” Wright said.

G Andy Hiett
G Alex Schoegler
F Billy Sutherland
G Chase Hanna
G Chris Heady
F Chris Tuttle
G/F Christian Blessen
G Connor Knabe
G Connor McGannon
G Connor Rellihan
G Cory Perkins
F David Stewart
F Devin Burton
G Henry Simpson
G Jackson Sublette
F Lucas Jones
F Nick Marak
G/F Sam Stewart
G Vance Wentz
F Zach Schneider

The teams will have their first practice together tomorrow morning at 8 a.m., followed by team pictures. Stay tuned for an update on the team depth charts and lineups.

On Monday, the boys varsity and junior varsity basketball teams started their tryouts for the 2011-2012 season. In years past, the teams have been decided on Wednesday, but this year the players are not likely to find out who will make the teams until Friday night. This extension stems from two reasons. First, players who played football didn’t finish their season until last Friday, so head coach Shawn Hair decided to give them a rest, allowing their tryouts to start on Wednesday.

“It was a relief because I was tired from football, but at the same time you’re just thinking about getting back out there,” junior Vance Wentz said.

Tryouts were also extended due to complications in Hair’s family. He didn’t attend Wednesday’s tryout, and he may miss another night of tryouts. Despite this unusual week, the team remains positive and hopes to have one of their strongest seasons in recent memory.

2) Girls Basketball-Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2012
Throughout this year’s seniors careers, they have never been able to beat one team: Olathe South.The Falcons have attributed to several heartbreaking losses throughout the last three years against the Lady Lancers, including last season’s 59-43 loss near the end of the season. Senior Caroline Nick is one of four seniors on this year’s team and she can’t wait to get another crack at South. “They are the one team we have never been able to beat and I know we all would really like to take them down,” Nick said. “We have a really strong team and it would be a really big win for us to get some momentum at the end of the season.” Look for this game to be a really physical and go down to the final seconds. “This team has a lot of potential and could really surprise some teams this season,” Nick said.

3) Swimming-Feb. 16th-18th, 2012
The Lancer Swim team is coming off of a very disappointing end to last season. As the team headed into the state tournament, they felt they had a very good shot at winning state for the 6th time in 7 years. However, rival Blue Valley North was able to take the title away from them. This season, the Lancers have high hopes as always, and with a very good group of seniors coming back, the state meet is what they are looking forward to. “We really feel good about our chances this year,” senior swimmer Jack Sayler said. “Obviously the whole season is important but what really matters is what you do at state so that is what we are looking forward to this year.” The Lancers will not want to lose to BV North for the second year in a row, so it should be a hard fought battle during the four times the two teams meet this season.

4) Wrestling-Friday Dec. 16, 2011
Last season the Lancers had two Sunflower League champions: senior Blake Hill and junior Gavin Jones They also had five state placers including Jones, senior Ben Randolph and the three Hill brothers, graduated senior David and seniors Blake and Blaine. Aside from David, all of these placers are back for the 2011-2012 season. This group of returning placers should help the team do very well this season. “We have such a well rounded team and if they put in the effort they should be successful this season,” head coach Chip Ufford said. “We just need to build off success we have had in the last couple of years.” The team has many other seniors coming back hoping to help make an impact on the team, including senior Tyler Nelson. “We have the talent to win districts and league this year,” Nelson said. “We were runner up last year and just need to continue to work hard throughout the season to get ready.” On Dec. 16 the team will face district rival SM South for the first time of the season. The SM South match is always very heated so it should be one not to be missed.

5) Bowling- Feb. 15, 2012
With only four seniors coming back this winter, the bowling team will be looking to underclassmen to step up for them throughout the season. As always, the biggest time of the year comes at the end of the season with state and regionals, but another big meet will be on Feb. 15 at the Shawnee Mission Varsity Meet. “[It is] one of the only varsity meets of the year so it’s very important,” head coach Patty Kennedy said. “We are always very excited for the season and should have a good year.” Since this will be the only time that all the Shawnee Mission varsity teams will face off together, it should be a heated battle for the District Championship.

“It is a fun experience being able to spend time with girls you usually don’t hang out with,” Degoler said.

The junior girls put together a team and have already developed a camaraderie says Degoler. Football players Connor Rellihan, Billy Sutherland , Vance Wentz and Nick Pirotte are coaching the junior girls. According to Rellihan, it is supposed to be a fun experience for girls to see what the game is like. The football players teach them the basics of football, like tackling and throwing. According to Rellihan, this results in the girls running around in circles and passing the ball to whoever is standing next to them.

“It’s tough teaching girls how to play football,” Rellihan said. “I don’t think I have ever been asked so many questions at once.”

The coaches organize practices twice a week for at least an hour to prepare for the game, which will take place after the football season is over. The girls work on running drills, tackling and scrimmaging during practice. Some of the girls don’t understand football so the practices aren’t very serious and usually becomes unorganized. It sometimes results in Sutherland telling junior teammate Brennan Williams to run through people’s legs.

“I am really enjoying powder puff so far because it is fun to see who is athletic and who is not,” Spradling said. “I was surprised to see how good some of them are and if I hadn’t joined the team I wouldn’t have known that.”

The coaches humor the players, according to Spradling. They like to joke around, but they also try to make the practice somewhat serious.

“The funniest things they have said about the team are ‘this looks gayer than a two dollar bill’ and we are ‘definitely going to die,’” Spradling said.

The juniors will face the seniors in a game coming up. The junior team is nervous that they won’t have a chance of winning because the senior team is strong and the referees are senior boys.

“I am nervous of getting injured,” Degoler said. “I think the senior team will be really good, I’ve talked to some of the girls on the team and they said they have some really strong players.”

According to Degoler, this has been a good bonding experience for the girls in her grade. The team is made up of a variety of different players and it gives them a chance to talk to people they usually wouldn’t. The girls have created more friendships because of powderpuff, according to Spradling.

“I have become closer with girls that I would have never talked to if I hadn’t played powder puff,” Spradling said.

Seniors
The senior powder puff team is ready to win this year after a disappointing loss last year, according to senior coach Elliot Faerber. The girls have been practicing twice a week, usually on Sundays and Tuesdays, working on a variety of things from throwing and catching to tackling with a mat. The team work on specific drills for certain plays and they end practice with a scrimmage against the coaches.

“Some coaches try and teach us some of their plays, but we usually don’t do them because we don’t think it will work in the game,” senior Lilli Stalder said. “We just throw it to someone that is open and run it.”

The senior coaches this year are Adam Lowe, Logan Rose, Elliot Faerber, Dylan Brett, Jeff Cole and Sam Heneger. According to Rose, it is interesting and fun teaching the girls how to play football and it is a nice break from the three hour practices he has to go to after school.

“We’ve got some really fast and athletic girls on our team,” Rose said. “I’m excited to see them avenge last year’s heartbreaking loss against last year’s seniors.”

A good amount of the girls played on the team last year, but this year they are taking it more seriously according to senior Taylor Wolf. Since many of them are returning players there is a lot of experience and returning talent, Rose says.

“I think they will have a better idea of what to expect and want to win since we came up just short of beating the seniors last year,” Rose said.

According to Stalder, the team is doing better this year and she is confident that they will do well.

Wolf, the quarterback on the team, gets a bulk of the coaches’ attention. Cole goes through various drills with Wolf trying to refine her throwing motion. One of which is where the coaches make Wolf slow down her throwing motion and break it down mechanically, focusing on hand placement and following through.

According to Stalder, the main goal for the team is to just get out there and win. The girls have been practicing and want to make it worthwhile, especially after losing last year. The only thing that would keep them from losing, according to Stalder, would be the lack of equipment protecting them.

“I want to play well after all of the work we have put into the practices,” Stalder said. “The only thing holding me back is the possible injuries.”

Overall, this has been a good bonding experience for the senior girls, according to Stalder. Even though they know everyone on the team, they don’t usually get to see them on a regular basis.

“I would say this is definitely a good bonding experience because there are a lot of seniors I get to talk with that I usually wouldn’t be able to at school,” Stalder said.

West is a sophomore who spent the first three years of his high school career at Shawnee Mission South before transferring to East his senior year. At 6-foot-6, he started at center for the Lancers. Before his freshman year, he attended KU basketball camp where he tried to reconstruct his shot and become a more efficient shooter. Current East senior Adam Simmons also attended the camp, and his father Dennis took to watching West’s play. West worked with Simmons and his father on his shot for the rest of summer, and continued after school started. During this time, he also kept a strict workout routine. At least four days a week, West would wake up at 5 a.m. to begin his workout.

When tryouts came around in late October of his freshman year, West was in great shape and felt ready to give it his all. Unfortunately, West was not what the coaches were looking for. A few days passed after the tryout, and he still had not gotten a call back, it began to set in that he had not made the team.

“It was the first time I experienced what depression was like, but surprisingly, it only lasted a few days,” West said. “I was sitting in my room, and I thought to myself, ‘You didn’t make it, but that’s okay. This train has to keep it moving.’”

After a week, West started up with his workouts again, not going quite as hard, but still enough to challenge himself. At the end of November he received an email for an opportunity to practice with the KU women’s team, and he did this for the remainder of their season. But West was not satisfied with the progress he had made as a player. He knew if he was going to stand out the next year he had to improve his ball-handling skills. Over the summer, West balanced an internship and improving whatever skills he felt needed work just about every day. When school began in August he went back to his routine of waking up at 5 a.m. to work out, going to class at 8 a.m., and going back in the gym by 1 p.m.

When October rolled around, West got the idea to try out for the track team as well as the basketball team. He began track tryouts on Oct. 12 and they continued to Oct. 25; the day of basketball tryouts. The day of the 25th was just like any other day, West awoke at 5 a.m. and went to the gym for a 45 minute ball-handling workout, then to class at 8 a.m. After class, he gave everything he had at the final day of track tryouts, and returned to the gym afterwards for another ball-handling workout. By 7 p.m., he was at Allen Fieldhouse and ready, years of hard work were riding on this.

“By the end of the night, my body [was] cramping in places I didn’t know possible,” West said.

Around noon on Oct. 26, West received a phone call from one of the basketball team managers to meet with the coaches. All of the off-season training had finally paid off; he was officially a member of the KU Men’s basketball team. By the end of the night he was practicing. He never even found out if he had made the track team.

West describes his first day of practice as “a huge reality check.”

“I will never forget how sore my entire body was and how painful it was to have Thomas Robinson land on my foot the first day of practicing with them,” West said.

According to West, this is his greatest basketball accomplishment, and he would love the opportunity to finish his career at KU. He believes what set him apart was doing what he had to do, without caring what other people thought. Song lyrics from Aaliyah stuck with West throughout his journey:

“And if at first you don’t succeed, then dust yourself off and try again. You can dust it off and try again, try again.”

Hayley Hansford- Pittsburg State University (VOLLEYBALL)
Connor Shrock- Kansas State University (GOLF)
Henry Simpson- Kansas State University (GOLF)
Mimi Fotopolous- University of Tennessee (TENNIS)
Molly Cooper- Colorado State University (TENNIS)
Marston Fries- University of Connecticut (SWIMMING)
Caroline Nick- Emporia State University (BASKETBALL)
Keara Slimp- Missouri Science and Tech (SOFTBALL)
Shannon McGinley- University of Virginia (SOFTBALL)

The athletic director (AD) position has given Brown a chance to connect with athletes. He can coach while making a difference in every coach and athlete’s life. Being the athletic director gave him that chance.

“I enjoy getting to know the athletes through the [AD] job,” Brown said. “I can make sure that everyone has a positive attitude, whether they are winning or losing.”

Brown’s wide knowledge of sports and the value behind being involved in them is rooted in his own experience.

Brown went to college at the University of Missouri where he played three sports—basketball, baseball and football. After college, he started coaching at his former high school, Excelsior Springs in Missouri.

“I was a 24-year-old head football coach, coaching 18-year-olds,” Brown said. “Even though I was young, they still chose me for the job.”

Brown went on to coach for William Jewell College and numerous other high schools in Kansas and in Missouri before coming to East. This is Brown’s second year as the assistant football coach at East. The AD position opened up in late May this year, and head football coach Chip Sherman notified Brown about the position, encouraging him to apply for the job. After an interview process and evaluation, Brown was selected for the job at the end of June, taking former AD Jeremy Higgins’ place.

Brown previously held the position of athletic director at Shawnee Mission North, where he learned how to balance the responsibilities of an AD and coach.

“Being an athletic director and coach wouldn’t be easy,” Higgins said. “Between attending the practices and other sporting events, it would be hard.”

Brown knew that it was possible to do both jobs because of his past experiences. While being the AD takes time, he makes sure that he dedicates equal time to his players. He attends every football practice and game, while also attending other sporting events at East.

“If I wouldn’t have been [the AD and coach] before, I’m not sure if I would have known what I was getting into,” Brown said.

Brown is the only AD in the district that is also a coach. The district has made an exception this year—as far as next year, he doesn’t know if he will be able to do both jobs.

“It would be really hard to choose between the two positions if I had to choose,” Brown said.

Brown feels that he has a responsibility to hold the position of the athletic director.

“I think that I have a lot of experience and I can use that to make the program better,” Brown said.

Brown has additional responsibilities of the AD. His main responsibility is to make sure that coaches follow the Sunflower League and the Kansas High School Activity Association rules. One of his goals this year is to attend at least one game of every sport. For the fall season, Brown has attended each sport.

“[The AD position] is the perfect job, I feel like I have died and gone to heaven,” Brown said.

Before finalizing the deal with Shawnee Mission Sports Care, Wollenhaupt spent four years at the University of Nebraska at Omaha playing on their tennis and baseball teams. He’s always loved sports, specifically tennis and baseball, and decided he wanted to pursue sports in college.

During his college years, Wollenhaupt was unsure of which career path to follow, though he knew he was leaning towards physical education and teaching. His summer job working for the Omaha Royals baseball team allowed him to have the chance to speak to their trainers, who suggested that he consider being a trainer himself. By the end of his senior year of college, Wollenhaupt was a student trainer preparing for his certification test to make everything official.

After getting his college degree, Wollenhaupt worked for the Cleveland Indians baseball team for five years, followed by working as an online health teacher and full-time trainer at Kansas City Kansas Community College. According to Wollenhaupt, all have been good experiences, but high school ends up being the easier group to train.

“You get so much help at the high school level,” Wollenhaupt said. “At the college level, it’s pretty much you are it because the parents aren’t around and the coaches are so busy recruiting. In high school you’ve got parents and coaches and teachers and everyone all helping.”

Even though there’s a slight difference in difficulty between the three levels of athletics, there are several common denominators Wollenhaupt has found in each of them.

“Most of [the injuries I see] are muscular [or] skeletal,” Wollenhaupt said. “Most of it is strains, sprains, tendinitis, contusions. Ninety percent of it is those four injuries. We’ve had a few fractures this year, but for the most part it’s those.”

Besides the common four category injuries, Wollenhaupt has experienced injuries that turned into medical emergencies out on the field. He has dealt with a range of situations from athletes feeling disoriented and light-headed because of a diabetic emergency, to holding players’ necks still after a bad fall until an ambulance comes.

“The biggest thing about the trainer is you stay calm,” Wollenhaupt said. “You just have to say, ‘you call 911, I’ll take care of this.’ You just tell the athlete, ‘it’s going to be okay. It’s going to be fine. We’ll call an ambulance. I’m going to hold onto your knee, I’m going to hold onto your head, I’m going to hold onto you right here.’”

Though dealing with emergency situations may not be the most fun part of a trainer’s responsibilities according to Wollenhaupt, the absolute worst part is no matter what sport, having to tell an athlete that they are hurt and will have to be on the bench for a number of weeks. But even though a trainer’s job is full of bumps, there are still things that make his job all worth it, Wollenhaupt says.

“My favorite part about being a trainer is watching athletes who have been hurt, watching them recover,” Wollenhaupt said. “Watching them go through the process of [recovering], and working with them emotionally and physically through the adversity of an injury to where they recover from the injury and then have success.”

The injury he remembers most clearly happened while he was the trainer for the Indians; a catcher for the team had rotator tendinitis in his shoulder, and was beginning to think his career was over. Through the struggles, he ended up having the patience to work with Wollenhaupt and rehabilitate his shoulder through therapy. After several months, he returned to the baseball field. His first game back, he pegged a guy out at second base– a great comeback, according to Wollenhaupt.

“He turned to the dugout and looked straight at me,” Wollenhaupt said. “That look was enough. And he made the big leagues. That really sticks in my mind as one of those things that makes it all worth it.”

Stories like the catcher’s are the reason Wollenhaupt does what he does. The best part of it all is, according to Wollenhaupt, watching them learn from the injury and learn from the adversity of it, and being able to watch them come back and succeed.

“It’s great to win, you see the wins and losses,” Wollenhaupt said. “But as the athletic trainer, it’s not about the wins and losses. It’s about the health of the athlete.”

In some cases, athletes do not even play the sport they love the most – rather, they sacrifice their passion to play a sport that they are likely to excel in.

Junior Will Cray has attempted three different sports at East and has started over this season with a brand new sport, soccer. Cray hadn’t kicked around a soccer ball in years before he talked with his friends last spring about making a switch into the sport, but decided he was going to try out for goalie regardless.

“I stopped playing basketball and started thinking about soccer because I thought that I was not going to get enough playing time in [basketball] order for the work to be worth it,” Cray said.

Cray went to kick-arounds during the summer but also received hands-on coaching from his coach Brude Williams, going to him for help with and advice about his position. Williams, the keeper coach at East, did a few private lessons with Cray preseason to show him exactly how to be a goalie.

“[The training sessions] helped me with getting the technique down, so that I could use it on the field,” Cray said. “[His drills] made me get used to the way a keeper moves, and the different saves I would make.”

According to head football coach Chip Sherman, sports teams at East have become more and more competitive with each mounting school year. He has noticed how prestigious sports are becoming at East. This forces athletes to wonder whether they are even good enough to try out for the sports they are passionate about.

“East has had a wonderful tradition of sports – tennis, swimming, golf–that are all really strong,” Sherman said. “Now, we are trying to get all of the other sports to [be strong] as well. We are getting better and better all the time.”

This strive for excellence has led athletes in a variety of sports to resort to personal training and specialized programs to get an advantage in the sports they participate in.

“Every situation is different, some kids may really benefit from a personal trainer,” Sherman said. “There are many kids that can thrive from that. Personal training’s biggest benefit is that it gets really slowed down, and you get individual attention to learn and get specialized.”

According to Sherman, the amount of personal training has decreased with certain sports. Sports like tennis, golf and swimming require a lot of personal training, giving the players an advantage–but with football, basketball and baseball there is more help within school.

“There are not as many [athletes going to trainers] as when I first came here,” Sherman said. “Now the kids feels like they get a lot of their programming done here at school. Parents don’t feel like they have to pay any extra money to go to a specialized place to get training like that.”

Junior Will Humphrey loved soccer, but was frustrated that he was not getting much playing time. His foot skills from soccer led him to his new position in football: the kicker.

“I’ve been getting help from the kicking coach for football,” Humphrey said. “Dane, the kicking coach, comes to practice once a week to give [the other kicker, senior Sean Luenz] and I tips on how to become better and more consistent at kicking. He has helped me become more consistent and taught me certain drills that have made me better.”

This summer he was working and preparing for the upcoming football season, rather than training for soccer like he had before. Other students’ behavior reflects Humphrey’s: many more are looking at outside resources for the extra drive to put them ahead.

Junior basketball player Zach Schneider has participated in camps and skill-building programs in which he has seen great improvement in his playing skills. His training programs consist of skill work, conditioning and strength training that he believed helped increase his athletic ability.

“I believe it helped increase my athleticism and especially my skill set in my sport,” Schneider says. “I went to them because I love playing basketball and love it enough to work at it to be the best I can be. I think it definitely put me ahead.”

Senior Conner Schrock shows how playing the sport you love makes it easier to practice due to how much you enjoy it and how outside practice can help. He has had lessons and is constantly learning how to change and improve his golf game. All of the workouts and extra time practicing his skills have added up to his success.

“Just this year I’ve started working out more and I was surprised how much it helped my golf,” Schrock said. “To succeed in golf, I have to work hard and be disciplined about my practice schedule, sometimes that means sacrificing being with my friends but in the end it pays off.“

Schrock and Schneider represent situations where their skill applies to the sport they are passionate about. But this isn’t always the case. Junior Jackson Stephens was a much better baseball player than any other sport, yet he chose to quit the spring sport and prepare to play soccer in the fall, because that is the sport he most enjoyed. For senior baseball player Kurt Jensen, extra practice is nothing new to him–he has been receiving hitting lessons since he was in middle school. The lesson helped his hitting due to the repetition.

“I have more bat control,” Jenson said. “I went to get a lesson just because my dad wanted me to, but then I started to enjoy it once I got better at it.”

Regardless of the motives behind joining a team, being involved in sports can help a student learn values and rules of conduct. Students are shown how to practice self-discipline and how to work with others to accomplish a specific goal. For some, being involved in a sport is one of the most important aspects of their high school experience.

“I always tell somebody that if you like being part of a team, and you like doing it then id. “It doesn’t matter. What does matter is that you like it and you are helping out with the sport and yourself and the main thing is that you are enjoying it.”

The Lady Lancers started off this week winning their matches against Shawnee Mission Northwest on Monday. Northwest finished second in the Sunflower League this year, so this was an important win for the team.
“Northwest has has a very strong team this year. We’re just a notch better,” Coach Chipman said. 
 Tuesday was the Sunflower League meet held at East’s home courts at Harmon Park. Although the Lady Lancers didn’t sweep the meet as they have in years past, they were still able to come out on top. Freshman Elizabeth Barnickel came up big, filling in for senior Mimi Fotopoulos, who suffered an injury to her thumb in a practice session over the weekend. The team finished out their week on Wednesday beating Sion 8-1, and are off until Tuesday, when they play Shawnee Mission North.

Girls Golf

East placed third in their tournament at Overland Park Golf Club. The format of the tournament was different than previous tournaments this season. The varsity was made up of three teams (two played best ball, two played a scramble and two played alternate shot). Blue Valley North and Saint Thomas Aquinas beat out the Lancers.
The team will continue their Sunflower League tournaments (second leg) on Monday at Lawrence Country Club. The team is then scheduled to compete in the third leg on Wednesday at St. Andrew’s Golf Club.

Boys Soccer

Boys Soccer have continued their undefeated season and now stand at 9-0. Last Thursday, the Lancers took on red-hot Lawrence High on the road, and beat them 1-0 in a physical game. Junior Austin Wilcox had the only goal of the match. In their next match, the Lancers pounded on the Leavenworth Pioneers, conquering them 10-0. Last, the boys took on Olathe North on Thursday night.

Olathe North got a quick goal on the Lancers in the first half, but were able to fight back and tie it up with a goal from junior Tyler Rathbun. The game was taken into a golden goal style of overtime. Junior Jack Sernett had a header deflected by the goalkeeper and sophomore Noah Eidemiller was there to put it away, giving the Lancers a 2-1 win and keeping the undefeated season alive. The Lancer’s schedule will only get harder towards the end of the season, and it should be interesting to see how the young team will perform.

Girls Volleyball

This week the Lancers took down Shawnee Mission South 25-12 and 25-17, and had a close game against Olathe South, 25-20, 17-25, 25-23. In the end of the third game, the girls came back with a huge six-point run and defeated the Falcons. This week’s win leaves the Lady Lancers at a 11-1 record, and solidifies the girls’ conference title. Next week is a home game and the team’s last conference game against Lawrence High.

“I thought he may have had a chance on me,” Strauss told Lawrence-Journal World last night. “I just run scared.”

The Lions started off the second quarter with the ball, and scored quickly on a 1-yard run from running back Tyrone Jenkins. Through the air, the Lancer offense was having no success, but they did show signs of life on the ground until senior fullback Jeff Cole was taken out with an ankle injury. Lawrence found the end zone again before halftime as Strauss completed a 54-yard pass to junior wide receiver Erick Mayo, making the score 24-0.

In the third quarter, it was a battle of the defenses. Lawrence made it clear that they were going to try and run the ball as they only attempted 5 passes in the second half. The Lancer defense was successful in stopping this attack and didn’t allow the Lions to extend their lead. Unfortunately, the Lancer offense was unable to produce any points of their own, and the score remained 24-0.

The fourth quarter began with another touchdown from Strauss, as he carried the ball 72 yards giving him 192 yards total for the game. Still failing to generate any points, the Lancer offense turned the ball over on downs twice in the quarter and the Lions were able to run out the clock finishing with a score of 31-0. What really hurt the Lancers was a lack of offense, they finished with 167 yards to the Lions’ 479.

“We didn’t come into the game with some fire, and it obviously showed,” said senior wide receiver Logan Rose. “We have to have a good week of practice and get back on the winning track.”

To see a photo gallery from this game Click Here.

Ten minutes later, a loose draft ensues and the teams split into two teams: Shirts and Skins. Five guys casually strip off their tank tops and jerseys, tossing them to the side.

“Ultimate!”

The game has begun. The Frisbee spins through the air, arcing low for a tank-top-clad, high-sock-sporting player to dive down to snag. Cheers and groans of frustration are sprinkled amongst calls for the disc.

Porter Park has become the home of SME’s ultimate Frisbee club and team with regular meetings at least three times a week. The sport has recently gained popularity amongst East students; this year both a club and a team have taken root.

The club, headed by juniors Scott Slapper and David Katz, is all-inclusive and less structured than the team.

“Scott and I play a lot of disc and we decided since we don’t play sports it’d be fun to do something to keep active,” Katz said. “We thought maybe there’d be some other kids at East who’d want to do that, so we started the club.”

Katz and Slapper contacted the school over the summer about the club and learned that they just needed to talk to book-keeping to get a form to fill out and get the club going. There was an ultimate Frisbee club formed several years ago, so they didn’t need to talk to the district. All Katz and Slapper had to do was fill out the form and they could become the official leaders of the Ultimate Frisbee Club.

The club meets once a week on Tuesdays and any ultimate player is welcome to join their casual games of Frisbee. A more exclusive ultimate group is SME Ultimate, a club team founded by senior Ryan McNeil.

This is McNeil’s second go around with an Ultimate team.

“I tried to start a team [sophomore year] but being an underclassmen, no one really paid attention to me,” McNeil said. “All the seniors were like ‘Yeah let’s do it!’ but then nothing happened.”

Flash forward two years to McNeil, a now seasoned ultimate player playing a pickup game of ultimate Frisbee with some friends. Once again, the topic of a school ultimate Frisbee team comes up but this time McNeil decided to pursue it.

Whereas sophomore year McNeil approached the team like a rookie, first contacting the players, this time he went straight to Sam Brown, the East athletic director, and talked to the Prairie Village parks to make sure they could use their fields for practice.

East’s ultimate team is similar to East’s Lacrosse and Rugby teams: the school does not officially endorse the team but they use the school’s name and are affiliated with it. After everything was approved, McNeil scheduled tryouts and created a Shawnee Mission East Ultimate Facebook group to reach fellow players.

McNeil and several other team leaders, including Slapper, Katz, and senior Josh Cook, ran casual tryouts where they split the group into two teams and played several games.

“We looked for ability and effort,” Cook said. “A lot of guys are good but we wanted guys who would be running up and down the field.”

McNeil and the others took the role of coaches and decided who to cut and who to keep. They decided to keep around 15 players.

The leaders of the team have taken responsibility for some of the aspects, such as making cuts, that normally a coach would be in control of.  Slapper thinks that the guys on the team are mature enough and able to make decisions such as subbing without a coach.

“We all are on the same page as far as who’s better and who’s not so we’re fine with that,” Slapper said. “I don’t think we really need a coach because we know when we’re tired.”

Along with not having a coach, the sport ultimate Frisbee itself does not necessitate referees. Slapper likes this feature of the game because it relies on the sportsmanship and honesty of the players.

“You’re supposed to be honest… if there was an awesome catch in the back and you crossed the back-line, you’re supposed to make your own call and you’re supposed to be fair about it,” Slapper said.

This factor of the game exemplifies their maturity. At practice, when a player fouls, they back off and apologize of their own accord. Debates over end-zone boundaries are solved graciously. The guys play hard during the game but acknowledge when they are in the wrong. They’ve mastered the art of slipping between joking camaraderie and intense competition.

Along with the friendship it brings, the boys’ favorite thing about the game is its simplicity.

“While some of the other sports take a lot of things like how to shoot a basketball or how to kick a soccer ball,” Katz said. “In Frisbee all you have to do is keep your wrist flat and that’s what’s fun.”

***

Senior Brady Forbes demonstrates the Hammer Throw.

Senior Kyle Braddock demonstrates the Backhand Throw.

Senior Ryan McNeil demonstrates the Forehand Throw.

But one thing in his life had not changed. The ground beneath his cleats is still a soccer field, and as the team breaks it down, everything clears out of his head. This is where he wants to be: playing soccer.

***

Wilcox was born in Kansas City. When he was only two, his family moved to Colorado, then two years later moved again to Hollice, Maine. There, things settled down. And there began his passion for soccer. Wilcox began playing when he was six, just in recreational leagues, but found his talent when he was only eight, playing four years up for a 12 years old and under premiere team. Two years later he switched to a club team called Odyssey, until he had an unexpected turn in direction before his freshman year.

Wilcox’s parents decided it was better to go separate ways. For Wilcox, this meant new friends, a new house and a new school. He moved with his mom to Scarborough, a town just 15 minutes out of Portland where his dad was living.

Throughout the whole situation, Wilcox tried to stay positive.

“My parents’ divorce was hard. We had always been a very close family,” Wilcox. “I could see later on that it was the right thing for them to do because they weren’t meant for each other–but, to be honest, I don’t think they worked hard enough to make it work.”

Although he had doubts, Wilcox accepted his situation and moved in a new direction.

“I wanted to see my family happy, so I knew it was the right move for them and their lives,” Wilcox said.

Starting his high school career with a completely new set of people was difficult, not to mention he was in the middle of a divorce that was out of his control. It was hard to adjust, but during this hard time Austin found his outlet to be soccer.

“Soccer was the one thing that kept me sane, it was the one consistent thing that was in my life at the time and I could count on being there for me,” Wilcox said.

At this point, soccer was becoming a major part of his life. Coming into freshman year, Wilcox played for a Super Y League team. The Super Y League is a step above premiere, and develops players for the Academy level. Their coaches looked for 18 players to play against other teams around the country–and Wilcox made the cut. After the camp Wilcox, was also invited to play for Seacoast United, a top Academy team. He was at his peak, but he wouldn’t let up.

The high school season began, and Wilcox along with two other freshman made the varsity squad. That year, Wilcox didn’t get much playing time; the team was loaded with talented seniors who ended up taking the Class A State Title in Maine. However, Wilcox, a sophomore now, was in the starting lineup and was given more playing time. These two years were critical for Wilcox, not just to build as a player, but to make good grades in school through this hard time.

“In order for me to play soccer, I have to be doing well in school, and I love to play soccer so that drives me to do well in school,” Wilcox said.

Wilcox finished out his sophomore year with Scarborough High ending their state title hunt in the quarterfinals. Wilcox was young, and had two more years to make his name at Scarborough High. He was hopeful and anticipating a great high school career.

***

Wilcox walks out the door for school like any other day. But today, when he shuts the door behind him, he sees the packed up boxes inside, and knows his life will change once again.

Wilcox’s mom was moving to California. She had a job opportunity there and a boyfriend she had frequently traveled to see. Austin knew it was the best for her, but like any other kid would, he wanted her to stay.

“I just supported her through it, but I did realize how much I wouldn’t like not having my mom,” Wilcox said. “I told her I’d be sad if she moved, but I never really told her not to. I don’t really regret not doing it.”

Although Wilcox was positive, the question still lingered over him: Why?

“I just didn’t understand why she was leaving,” Wilcox said. “I knew she was going to make more money there, and I think she thought I’d eventually come out and live with her. But, it was hard for me to justify moving in with my mom in California, and leaving my dad when he was there with me [at the time].”

With less than a month’s notice, Wilcox was standing in the parking lot of an Outback Steak house with his mom, giving her a final goodbye. He would see her on occasional vacations, and Wilcox knew it would be hard–but this wasn’t the end.

With the high school season was over, Wilcox was back on the field with Seacoast Academy, and improving every day. He was without his mom now, and with surmounting hardships, soccer was his defense.

***

Wilcox is closing out his sophomore year at Scarborough High. The first week of summer, Wilcox is on a plane to a showcase with his Academy team. He knows he won’t be seeing his friends again, but they do not.

Wilcox knew very well that he would be moving to Kansas City the next week. His grandma didn’t have family and was getting old, so Wilcox and his dad decided it was best to move back with her. His friends were completely clueless. Wilcox had been keeping it a secret.

Since he knew he would be living in Kansas City, he wanted to have Sporting Coaches check him out, and this showcase was where it had to happen. It’s painful for Wilcox to keep his secret from his friends, but he knew telling them could jeopardize his chance at Sporting.

Ever since Wilcox was six, it was his dream to become a professional soccer player. It was his passion, and this was his chance. If his Academy coach knew he was moving, that would all be lost. He would not be played in this tournament.

“I felt like a liar and an awful friend, because I wasn’t able to tell them,” Wilcox said.

On the car ride to Kansas after the showcase, Wilcox began to formulate a message to his friends.

“It was not an easy message to type,” Wilcox said. “I knew that many of them would think it was not for real, but they eventually got what I was saying. Once school started for Scarborough back in Maine, I got a lot of messages from kids wondering where I was.”

Just a week after his old high school was released for summer, Wilcox was living in a completely new city, but soccer was still there. Wilcox was already at Swope Park trying out with Sporting. The sun was beating down on him, never letting up. There was a 40-degree temperature difference between Kansas City and Maine. Nevertheless, soccer was once again the consistency, always there to fall on.

***

Wilcox has found a spot into the young boys’ team, and has found his teammates very supportive.

“I think I have fit in well, Coach Kelly has done a great job of finding a place where I fit into the team and we seem to have great chemistry. My teammates are extremely cohesive no matter who is on the field, and that’s very important.”

It’s been a journey, but Wilcox –playing in his first game at East– is on the short grass field at BVDAC, and he hears that whistle blow.

“Any anticipations about a game can be made, but at kick off its nothing but the players and 90 minutes of soccer,” Wilcox said.

Soccer is just that for him. It’s the consistency in his fast-paced, unpredictable life. Wilcox is now settling in to East. He misses his mom, his friends, and his home, but things are looking up.

“I just try and take my situation and make it into one that will help my future,” Wilcox said. “My situation makes me a little frustrated sometimes but that can also help fuel the fire for soccer.”

He’s a cancer patient today.He sits in a reclining chair at Kansas City Cancer Center. Silently. He tries to make his mind blank as he struggles not to think about the drugs and chemicals being pumped into his body. He’s nauseous. His nose bleeds.

His wife Angela visits him for two of the seven grueling hours of chemotherapy. He tries to take a nap. He works on football plays to show in practice the next day. But mostly, he sits. He waits.

As he peers down the aisle of 30 chairs in room 402, and sees patient after patient, he finds most of them to be mad at the world for cursing them with such a deadly disease. They are waiting to die. But Sherman is waiting to live.

***

Usually when Sherman gets out of the pool from a swim, or finishes lifting for the day, he has no troubles breathing. Usually nothing is physically wrong with him. Usually stopped last winter.

“I just got to the point that I was just exhausted all the time and I couldn’t figure out what’s going on,” Sherman said. “I thought maybe I was just getting old. And then I started having some problems breathing and I just couldn’t get a full breath.”

His doctor couldn’t figure out what the problem was initially, after an x-ray and CT-scan, but after they did blood work, they found it: Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. A type of cancer that takes a tumor form in the lymphatic system, where abnormal cells divide and grow without order or control and old cells don’t die normally. The best way to treat the cancer is through chemotherapy, an excruciatingly painful process in which a combination of drugs are injected into the blood stream to kill cells, and stop them from dividing.

But the chemo didn’t intimidate Sherman. He was ready to take the cancer head on.

“If I say I’m going to try and do something I’m gonna do it,” Sherman said. “I just went about it with the attitude that I was going to make every day count, and do something good every day.”

When good friend and Principal Dr. Karl Krawitz, who first met Sherman in the ‘80s, first heard the news, he was shaken up.

“Emotionally, it was real tough,” Krawitz said. “I kept thinking, ‘Oh God. Why this man? Of all the people.’ I think he, probably more than any other person, has been the major reason why we’ve seen such a phenomenal change in this building.”

Sherman began his chemo on June 10. It was the first day he had missed a football related activity that summer. While the football team was lifting and doing everything to get better, so was Sherman. But in a different way. Eight miles away, hooked up to a machine, chemicals pumping into his into his body.

Sherman endured the chemotherapy and still showed up to most all summer activities, even participating with the team in the “team bonding” exercise on Thursdays, the hardest workout of the week. Every player grabbed a 25 pound weight to do various lifts with. Sherman grabbed a 45 pound weight.

“He’s always told them, ‘I won’t ask you to do anything I can’t do,” Athletic Director and assistant coach Sam Brown said. “And that’s the way he still is. Even with this cancer.” Brown even recalls a particular practice when Sherman’s dedication took full force.

“We were doing a particularly hard running drill and a player came up to me and was like ‘coach, my knee’s hurt.’ And I just kinda pointed over at Coach Sherman who was running hard with the team and said, ‘what do you think he’s feelin’?’ And the kid said, ‘I think my knee’s are okay, coach.’”

Sherman has good days, where the pain is less, but he does have the inevitable bad days, when the ache all over his body is worse, and the headaches are more frequent.
Aug. 24 was a bad day.

***

It’s 7:12 a.m. on Aug. 25 when Sherman begins his last workout: chest
It’s the day after Sherman received news his chemo treatments weren’t working fully. That the dead cells around the tumor, once as big as a watermelon but now baseball sized, weren’t dying off naturally. The cancer wasn’t getting worse, but it wasn’t getting better. But here he is, working out like usual, like nothing happened.

Sweat drips from his bald scalp down onto his grey SME football shirt. His high white Nike socks and black Under Armour shoes cover up places on his legs and feet where hair used to be, but no longer exist. Half fingernails remain on the tips of the fingers from the dead cells as he reps his body weight. His eyes are clinched tight as he fights through the last few reps.

He’s been in the weight room since 5:30. Punching lymphoma in the teeth.

“Working out in the morning helps me start my day off right,” Sherman said. “It helps me go about my day with a clean mind and I get all of my stress or anxiety out in a positive way.”

Even through five chemo treatments, he still lifts for two hours every morning. When he finished his workout the morning of the 24th, Sherman made his way down the hall to the locker room. In that time, eight different players visit him before school starts, all asking the same question, “How are you feeling?” and all getting the same response: A smile and, “I’m doin’ fine. It’s a fight.”

On the night of the 24th, junior wide receiver David Sosna posted on twitter that the team had received unsettling news at practice, and to pray for Sherman. Within the next two hours, over 118 tweets from former and current students read the phrase: Prayers for Sherman.

The inspiration that Sherman gives others is widespread, affecting even coworkers like by Head Basketball Coach Shawn Hair.

“He’s attacked it like I hope I would attack it,” Hair said. “He’s an overwhelming inspiration for all of us to live your life the right way.”

But the group who has been inspired most are his players.

“Whenever I’m tired in practice and I look up and see him, its just a new burst of energy,” senior left tackle Dylan Brett said. “I always try and look for him because he always cheers me up when he’s there. Because I know if he were out there he would try his hardest.”

But the positive attitude is just second nature to Sherman. It’s the way he’s always been.

“On the days that are real bad, I always think how lucky I am to be married to who I’m married to, I have four healthy children, and I have healthy grandchildren, I’ve got two grandchildren on the way, so you know, I think about all those good things,” Sherman said. “You can look at things and feel sorry for yourself, feel how bad you feel and lay around all day, and do nothing good, or, you can go forward and try to make something good happen and have a positive attitude and remember good things.”

Krawitz compares Sherman’s internal drive to a motor.

“I mean, even though it’s broke, you’re just never gonna turn it off,” Krawitz said, “it’s that kind of will that if any one’s going to beat this disease, it’s gonna be him.”

Hair has noticed more of the same.

“He just doesn’t complain, it’s not who he is. He’s not carrying around a ‘poor pitiful me, I’ve got cancer’ cross,” Hair said. “Cancer can take everything but it can’t take your heart. That guy’s got a tremendous heart. He’s gonna keep on fighting.”

***

“You want a zero?” Senior center Sam Heneger asks Brett.

“Yeah, zero’s fine. Just don’t mess it up again”

Heneger adjusts the electric clippers, and begins buzzing Brett’s head.

Hilary Duff’s “Come Clean” fills the air on a sunny Friday afternoon before the football team’s Blue and Black scrimmage. Brett squints as light shines in his eyes as his light brown hair is flicked off the clippers on to the ground, fluttering onto the concrete near the corner under the drain, next to the brick wall in Heneger’s driveway.

“Gosh, the ears are the trickiest part,” Heneger says to himself, pulling back Brett’s ear.

The linemen sing along to Unwritten by Natasha Bedingfield, discuss The Hill’s, a show the team watches together on occasion, and experiment with what Brett would look like with a Mohawk. Finally, he’s finished. Fully buzzed. Practically bald.

Heneger has been shaving heads of the football team for two months now, a tribute to their coach, who in turn, has no hair due to chemo treatments.

“If he has no hair then we want no hair,” Heneger said. “We all did it to kinda make it not so awkward for him. I mean, I think he would probably feel a little self-conscious, like the theme for this year is “All In,” and we’re all in this together so we went all in.”

The players have noticed Sherman’s dedication to them: being with them every day, even when he’s noticeably tired, and realize they should give it their all like he does.

“Running 40 yard sprints is nothing compared to what he’s going through,” Heneger said.

After practices when Sherman isn’t there, or they are updated with news that the cancer isn’t progressing, the team prays together. Heneger leads it.

“I just kinda took it upon myself to like get things going and I don’t know, we all need to be praying for him,” Heneger said. “I don’t know where the whole team is religiously but its the only thing we can do to help. We can’t cure his cancer for him but praying will for sure help.”

The team plans on reciting psalm 18:32-42 before taking the field every game. A psalm dedicated to following your leader into battle, and fighting blindly for your team. All for Sherman.

“He’s going to beat the cancer,” Heneger said. “No doubt in my mind.”

The support from his players has not been overlooked by Sherman. The love is felt both ways. That’s why he changed his chemo a day earlier so could coach the first football game. It’s why he stays the night at school breaking down film, crashing on the couch, the day after games. For his team.

“My players are my strength,” Sherman said, “They get me through most days.”

Sherman’s Lymphoma won’t ever deteriorate fully, since the tumor can’t be surgically removed because it’s weaved into his lymph-nodes and the cells won’t fully die off, but that doesn’t mean he won’t keep fighting.

“You can’t let this thing feel like its beatin’ you. You have to go forward and feel like you’re in charge, and if you’re in charge, you’re gonna dictate how it’s gonna act,” Sherman said.

But in his mind, the cancer isn’t entirely a bad thing.

“Y’know, there’s a reason why things happen and maybe I was given this as a challenge, and it may end up being a blessing. Who knows, maybe it will teach me to appreciate life more, who knows what it will do,” Sherman said. “But if you take something negative and learn something from it, then it becomes something positive.”

Schrock and Simpson both recently signed on to play golf at Kansas State. Not only will they be facing much more intense competition in college, but they will be facing the competition side by side as best friends.

Looking back on the past year, Schrock has won regionals and the invitational at SME. Henry has won some smaller tournaments around the area and is working towards getting over the hump to pull off a big win.

“We really had no idea that we would end up going to college together,” said Simpson, “it’s just really cool that it worked out that way.”

Both golfers feel that attending K-State will be nothing but a beneficial experience. In addition to the constant competition and the pressure they will be able to put on one another to continue to grow as golfers, they will be coached by Tim Norris, who holds records for the lowest round in a competitive environment and has played in a professional tour.

“We’ve always been really competitive,” said Schrock. “But we’re best friends, so it’s never gotten in the way of our friendship.”

Schrock and Simpson first met in middle school while playing on the same basketball team. Their friendship really took off after spending hours together on the course during their freshmen year of golf.

“Practices during season take place every day after school,” explained Schrock. “We definitely spend a lot of time together so that could be why we are such good friends.”

The golfers’ friendship sustains an inner competition that keeps them focused. Knowing that in the end golf is a team sport, Schrock and Simpson still compete with the goal of outplaying each other. Their ambitious nature fuels their friendship.

“Obviously we are pretty competitive,” said Simpson. “I think it has bettered us as friends but also as golfers. If one of us beats the other we always go up to the range until we feel like well, maybe I can beat him now.”

Before getting offered a partial scholarship, Simpson had his doubts about playing college golf.

“I kind of debated playing in college over the last two or three months,” Simpson said. “I thought it would be cool, but obviously you have to be realistic with yourself and kind of say do you really think you have a chance of making it or not.”

Simpson’s desire to play in college fluctuated with how well he was playing. In the end, the good days far outnumbered the bad, and when the offer was presented to him, he quickly decided to sign with the Wildcats. In contrast, Schrock knew he wanted to play golf in college from the time he started.

“I really had a passion for it early on, and I knew that’s what I wanted to do,” he said.

Even when Schrock was in the middle of a really tough round, as easy as it is to give up, his love of the game helped him to get in the right mindset and keep going.

“I definitely want to try to make a career out of it,” said Schrock. “I’m going to work really hard in college and hopefully just see where it takes me. If I can’t play professionally I’d like to work within golf, be a teacher or something like that.”

Schrock and Simpson’s signing didn’t come as a surprise to East golf coach, Ermanno Ritschl.

“Over the past [three] years they have improved their game and mindset tremendously,” Ritschl said. “They both work very hard. That’s the main reason they’ve been so successful; it’s a combination of hard work and talent.”

This year the cheer-leading program is doing things differently than before. Polzin wants to show the school that cheer-leading isn’t just about shaking their pom poms and yelling “Lancers, show us how you shake that thing!”

When Polzin stepped in, he had a head full of new ideas, like making the cheerleaders have practice every day for two hours after school and teaching them complicated stunts and tumbling routines. Since they had never had a coach like this before, the reactions to the changes varied between excited and nervous.

“I’m just really excited and very optimistic about it, I feel like we are all moving in the right direction,” varsity captain Maggie Thomas said.

Over the summer, the cheer squads had practice almost every day for three weeks, where they would improve their skills and hope to get better before they went to NCA cheer camp.

NCA cheer camp is a four-day camp in the beginning of August, where the cheerleaders put togetherperformances and compete against other schools in the Shawnee Mission School District.

When East swept a whole category of awards they knew that all of the hours of practices had paid off.

“It was definitely one of my best camp experiences,” Thomas said. “Other schools might have rolled their eyes that East won because of the way we have been known but we really worked hard and everyone put in a lot of effort.”

Even the parents in the stands at cheer camp noticed the difference in East’s technique when the squads got a roar of applause after they hit all of their stunts and motions perfectly.

“I can’t remember the last time an SME cheer squad had every level win the category – it’s never happened.” Principal, Karl Krawitz said, “They were crisp, they were sharp, and that included all the way down to the Freshman too. I was impressed.”

The success at cheer camp helped  give the cheerleaders a new perspective on all of the changes for the upcoming season. Not only has Polzin taught them new skills but he has told the squads that they are worth something.

“He’s changed our attitudes to knowing this is a sport, and if we work hard we will get the goals we want.”  Thomas said.

At the pep assembly on Thursday, August 25th the cheerleaders showed off all of  the new improvements they’ve made to the squad during their routine.

“You can’t help but act positive when you see the cheerleaders flipping and twisting and doing all kinds of fun stuff,” Polzin said.

Even people who weren’t on the team last year have noticed how much better the squads have gotten.

“They have amazing stunts and they always look sharp, but most of all they look really happy and energized.” Freshman cheerleader Mackenzie Sweat said.

The way Polzin coaches has made the cheerleaders consider the idea that this can actually be a sport and not just a “pep program”.

If the squad members don’t know all of the cheers perfectly, they will be benched for their first game. If they are off task, messing around, or if they drop a girl during stunting they are forced to condition, which is where they do suicide runs, V-up sit ups, push ups and other drills.

“One day we had to do leap frog jumps; I couldn’t go upstairs or sit in a chair for two days because I was so sore.” Thomas said. “It definitely opened our eyes though because we’ve never had to do anything like that before.”

The one thing that helps the cheerleaders get through the conditioning without complaining is knowing that they will be getting better, and if they are better, then the crowds at the games will actually want to watch them and cheer along with them.

“I’m just really excited and very optimistic.” Thomas said,” I feel like we are all moving in the right direction and I feel like everyone has a positive attitude. I think the whole program as a whole is going to grow and become cooler at east rather than just the girls who didn’t make a different team so they did cheer-leading.”

Not only have the East cheer teams improved skill wise, but their commitment to the team has improved as well.

“The cheerleaders used to get made fun of,” Varsity cheerleader Caroline Savage said. “I think it’s time for change and time for a new reputation.”

All in all, we took 2nd as a team and had a great year. Thank you all for working with these boys all through the season. They did an excellent job of representing SME.

• Senior Ross Guignon placed 2nd in singles
• Junior Jackson O’Gormon-Bean placed 4th in singles
• Senior Sam Amrein and sophomore Jake Glazer placed 4th in doubles