By: Courtney Henson

On March 10, the Eagle Track teams traveled to Somerset High School to partake in the 11th annual Sonny Relays. At this meet, the boys varsity team placed 2nd overall with 133 points. The highest scorers for the team include Este’van Jackson with 25 points, Jayden Palacios with 24 points, Juan Lopez with 23 points, and Sean Ramos with 19 points. The girls varsity team placed 3rd overall with 100 points. Key runners for the girls this meet included Alexandria Balderas, Lillian Krause, Raegan Hollis, Ciarah Garcia, and Jillian Barcomb. The boys JV team places 6th overall with 69 points. The girls JV team placed 3rd overall with 103 points. 

At this meet, Sophomore pole vaulter Preston Pilgrim was able to break the pole vault school record. This record, previously held by Zach Wood at 14’9 set in 2004, was broken completely when Pilgrim jumped 14’10. Soon after this, Preston jumped another impressive height of 15’4. This impressive 15’4 height became both Preston’s new personal record and the new school record. This jump allowed the Sophomore to qualify for the Texas relays, the 2nd largest track meet in America. Preston has been pole vaulting since the young age of 9 and has had an intense passion for the sport since. The adrenaline and competition that pole vaulting so excitedly brings is what Preston says is his favorite part. His mom, Krystal Pilgrim, says that, “While balancing the extreme dedication to his sport, Preston has been able to maintain an all A average,” which continues to make her immensely proud. Preston hopes to make it to state for each year of high school as well as hopes to return to Nationals at AAU Junior Olympics during the summer season. As only a sophomore, Pleasanton High School is excited to see where pole vault takes Pilgrim. 

Shortly after spring break, the track teams began to get back into the groove of things. At the Ro-Hawk Relays at Randolph High School, the boys varsity team placed 4th overall with 80 points. The girls varsity placed 3rd overall with a score of 75.5, Ciarah Garcia scoring 19 of those, and the girls JV placed 5th overall with 44 points.  

On Wednesday, March 30, the track teams traveled to Devine High School to compete in the Devine Relays. The boys varsity team placed 1st with 108 points. The placers of the meet include Juan Lopez, Jayden Palacios, Sean Ramos, the 4x100m relay team, 4×200m relay team, 4×400m relay team, Evan Guardiola, and Preston Pilgrim. The girls varsity team places 4th with 51 points. The members of the team who placed include Kassidy Vickers, the 4x100m relay team, the 4x200m relay team, the 4x400m relay team, Mikayla Theis, Jillian Barcomb, Megan Mayse, Ciarah Garcia, and Victoria Urbanczyk. The boys JV team placed 1st with 105 points. The placers of the team include Joe Turley, Paul Bernal, Mason Little, 4×100m relay team, 4x200m relay team, 4×400m relay team, Joe Turley, Jordan Mendoza, Steven Minniear, Nathan Din, Stephen West, Adrian Ortiz, and Demetrius Jimenez. The girls JV team placed 2nd with 86 points. Placers of this meet include the 4x100m relay team, 4x200m relay team, Svetlana, Jauslyn Ramirez, Harmony Young, Kaylie Rodriguez, Teairra Garz, Kennedy Miller, Desire Gonzales, and Genavieve Alvarado. 

As the track season continues forward, we wish the Eagle track teams the best of luck. Congrats on a season well done so far. Pride! Pride!

By: Noah Ramos 

This month our Girls Varsity softball team battled against Somerset on April 19th and took victory with a final score of 7-4 after a hard fought game. Throughout the game our team kept their defense up for a solid match to prevent our opponents from scoring. We have a couple of players who were outstanding such as Maggie Maddox who pitched 3 strikeouts along with 1 walk throughout the game. A freshman by the name of Elizabeth Salinas helped her team get their hitters to 4-4 while Maddie Estrada and Aubry Cantu both got the chance and went 2-4 to the plate. 

Many other girls on the team advanced runners using a well timed sacrifice fly where the game finally tied in the 7th inning. However, Jaelyn Morales hit a home run that allowed the eagles to score a 3 man play leaving the score at 7-4. After this the Eagles went on the defensive making a 4-6-3 double play going from Salinas to Estrada and finally to Morales. 

By: Farah Standley

On March 8th, the Pleasanton Baseball Team took on the Lytle Pirates and took the win 10-0, the boys gained some confidence and went into a tournament with high hopes. The Eagles came home with a clean up! The boys fought hard to win all 4 games against the Natalia Mustangs (6-0), the Bandera Bulldogs (8-4), the Pearsall Mavericks (9-1), and the Carrizo Springs Wildcats(10-3). The next couple weeks the Eagles kept it going with wins against the Uvalde Coyotes(11-5), the LA Vernia Bears(11-1), and the Geronimo Navarro Bears(14-6). The boys faced a hard game losing to Cornerstone Christian(3-12), on March 26, but got back to it, with two wins against the Cuero Gobblers(6-1), and the San Antonio Alamo Heights Mules(5-4). The last game before District was a tough one. The Eagles took one last loss against San Antonio Home School(1-12).

Going into District was exciting for the team, the boys began to prepare. It’s game time. The boys started District off on their own turf with the guest being the Somerset Bulldogs on a cool Friday night on April 8th. The National Anthem played, the sound of the crowd radiated, and the boys were ready. Once our group of athletes took the field it was too late for the other team to turn around. We took the win gracefully with a score of 7-2, and that Monday, April 11th, we were on the way to Hondo to take on the Owls for the second District game. It was a sure nail biter, and the boys played hard. The Owls were really good, but not good enough. The boys scored 4 runs in the 5th inning to win the game! The final score was 9-6, and the boys went home excited. Then, right before Easter break on Thursday, April 14, the boys took on the Devine Warhorses in Devine for the 3rd District game! It was a struggle, but the boys got their head on straight and pulled through with a 2-1 win. The boys came back from the break with another game. The boys loaded the bus to go to Somerset to face the Bulldogs once again. The boys took the field with Jayce Krauskopf on the mound. The boys got loud as the score went up and up. Cheers rose from the stands, and the Eagles finished the game with a 12-1 win after 6 innings. 

By: Brian Avery

One of the reasons PHS runs so smoothly is because we have so many people working behind the scenes to make sure it runs smoothly. One of them includes Mrs. Downs, our academic dean, who assists teachers in making sure their instruction is smooth.

Mrs. Downs went to CT High School, just north of Austin. She was very active within her school, as she was a cheerleader,  and in academic clubs such as Spanish and Science. After high school, she went to Angella State University, where she got a degree in Elementary Education.  She later got her masters in Curriculum and Instruction, which brought her to PISD.

Mrs. Downs started working at the Middle School campus, back when it was known as the PIC. She worked as an Instructional Coach-which is the same as an academic dean-and assisted teachers with their instructional process and lessons. She moved up to the Central Office, where she continued the same job for five years, before she joined us at PHS. She has been working on our campus for 10 years, and 20 years overall at PISD.

Mrs. Downs stated that her favorite part of working at PHS was being around so many people, and seeing how everything is changing everyday, adding that she was remorseful that she couldn’t see the change happening faster and being able to see the end result quicker.

Our campus would not be the same without Mrs. Downs working behind the scenes to make sure we have the best education possible. Thank you Mrs. Downs!

By: Kendall Zuniga

Every 68 seconds a person becomes a victim of sexual assault or rape in the U.S. On average 463,634 victims are ages 12 and older, 1 in every 6 women and 1 in every 33 men are victims. These numbers are continuing to go up at rapid speeds each year and victims are becoming much younger as time passes.

The effects of being sexually assaulted can really damage a persons mindset and body. Many victims of assault develop things like PTSD, depression and anxiety. When these things are triggered many effects can cause the victim to be sent into a spiral. 

 Feeling like you are losing control of your life or your mind, re-experiencing assault over and over again through flashbacks, problems concentrating and staying focused on the task at hand, guilty feelings, and developing a negative self-image; feeling “dirty” inside or out are just a few examples of how sexual assault can deeply effect a victim.

When those who go through a traumatic experience like this, they tend to not speak up about the occurrence/s with the fear of not being believed or feeling like no one will understand what they went through. When you don’t speak up about an assault, you’re at risk of having these effects occur as well as putting other potential victims in harm’s way. 

What do I do if I or someone I know has been sexually assaulted? Don’t be afraid to speak up if this has happened to you, speak to a trusted parent, guardian, or friend about the occurrence. Multiple helplines can be found all over the internet and local health offices, listed below are a few of the many help lines. 

You are not alone and you do not have to go through this alone.

RAINN.org 

RAINN helpline: 800-656-HOPE(4673)

www.nsvrc.org/states-territories/texas

NSVRC helpline: 844-303-SAFE(7233)

https://avp.org/

AVP helpline: 212-714-1141

By: Aaliyah Herrera 

Need some advice on how to be more environmentally conscious? I have some advice for you! 

• How can I be more environmentally conscious?

Think twice about the things you do to the environment before you cause harm not only to yourself but to others such as animal life and the plant life. Be more aware of what you throw out the window of your car and the trash you leave behind outside when you go out. 

• What are certain things you can do to help your environment?

You can go out with family and friends and go out on the side of the road and pick up trash and other items that were left there. You could also encourage people not to throw trash out in your community environment. Some other specific things you could do to help is sign up for a help your community group and go help your environment little by little. 

• Is joining a help the environment group good for your community and environment?

Yes I positively believe that it is good to join a help the environment group for your community. It is always good to be helpful for your community for the sake of your environment that we humans live in. 

• Why should we be more environmentally conscious?

You should be more environmentally conscious because you would be doing a big favor for the health and well being of the world around us, you would be a positive role model for your community to get involved in helping to save the environment from toxic waste,trash,oil spills, etc. it is good to want to be a positive role model for your community than not at all. 

By: Courtney Henson

On August 5, 1907, Robert George Irwin was born in Pasadena, California. Robert George Irwin was born on August 5, 1907, in Pasadena, California. His father was Rev. Benjamin Hardin Irwin, who was a prominent figure in the Fire-Baptized Holiness Church, and his mother was Mary Jee Jordan, who acted as a traditional mother figure in the family. Benjamin abandoned the family before Robert was three years old, which left the family in extreme struggle. Robert himself grew up to be a prominent artist and sculptor who often saw big success with his lifelike sculptures. 

For his whole life, Robert illustrated strange and at times violent behavior. He threatened to hurt himself with a razor which resulted in Robert being committed to a state mental hospital, where he stayed for a year. Upon being released, Robert moved to a New York City house owned by Mary Gedeon where he fell in love with her daughter, Ethel. After this love was not returned, Robert was committed to another state hospital where he remained until the summer of 1936. During this time, Ethel got married prompting Robert to make a number of sculptures of Ethel with a snake around her neck.

Shortly after his release from the hospital, Roberts enrolled in the Theological School of St. Lawrence University but he was expelled on March 18 for instability. This is the event many people feel led to Robert committing his crime. He shortly returned to New York City and rented a house just a few blocks from the Gedeon house. On March 27, 1937, after suicidal consideration, Robert decided instead to walk to the Gedeon home in hopes of stumbling upon Ethel. 

As relatives arrived at the Gedeon house on March 28, (Easter Sunday) for dinner, they discovered the bodies of Mary Gedeon who had been stabbed and strangled, Veronica Gedeon who had been strangled, and Frank Byrnes, a waiter, who had been stabbed.

Police initially suspected Mary’s ex-husband but after the discovery of a soap sculpture was discovered at the scene, Robert was declared the prime suspect. In June of 1937, Robert agreed to tell his story to the Chicago Herald-Examiner before promptly turning himself into New York Police. In his confession to the newspaper, Robert said he had intended to kill Ethel but after discovering she was not at the home, he instead turned on Mary, and later Veronica, before killing Frank to avoid witnesses. Very famous defense attorney, Samuel Leibowitz, quickly came to represent Robert in court when he was held for three counts of first-degree murder. 

As the trial began, lots of back and forth between the defense and the prosecution ultimately resulted in Robert being tried as if he was sane at the time of the crime. Robert pleaded guilty to three counts of second-degree murder to avoid the death penalty.  Judge James Wallace sentenced Robert to 139-years-to-life in prison. After being sent to Sing Sing prison for a psychological evaluation, Robert was finally ruled insane. On December 10, 1938, he arrived at Dannemora State Hospital. 

In 1975, Robert died of cancer in the Matteawan State Hospital for the Criminally Insane in Fishkill, New York. His burial site is unknown. Mary and Veronica both rest in Saint Mary’s Cemetery in Westchester County, New York. Frank Byrnes rests in Saint John Cemetery in Queens County, New York.

By: Kristina Mertz

Marvel’s latest film added to the MCU consists of Morbius, starring Jared Leto, Michael Keaton, Matt Smith, and Adria Arjona. The film was directed by Daniel Espinosa and received a rating of 16% according to Rotten Tomatoes and a 5.2 on IMDB. Although the film wasn’t met with a wide range of praise, this film was a big deal for Marvel fans.

For some background knowledge the film Morbius wasn’t allowed to be even written for the big screen, because Marvel believed it was too dark for their target audience. However, it was approved in the last coming years, and therefore was adapted for film purposes. 

The movie’s backstory involving the science behind how Morbius was made added to the story a whole bunch, however by the end of the movie the story line was lacking. Although, the relationships between all of the characters, whether it was brotherly, friendship, enemies, even to lovers was great, the way the main character resolved all of the issues was absent.

This movie was missing a mark personally, the strory line was wonderful and kept me hooked, however the ending and resolution was lacking a bit. I would give it a score of 6, however I don’t think I would watch this film again.

By: Ricky Fabrow

The ingredients you’ll need for these treats are:

• Chocolate 
• Food coloring 
• Chocolate mini eggs
• Sprinkles
• Half sheet baking pan
• Mixing bowls
• Cooking Pot or Microwave

Now that you have the ingredients you’ll have to follow these easy steps to make your sweet treat

1. Prepare. Line the large baking pan with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat then set aside. Gather half of your chocolate mini eggs, crush them then set aside.
2. Melt the chocolate either on the stove or microwave. (For a microwave, leave it in for thirty seconds on high to fully melt the chocolate.
3. Repeat step above but for the Melt White Chocolate.
4. Dye the white chocolate by dividing it into 2-3 separate small mixing bowls. Add pastel colored food coloring to each bowl and mix until combined. 
5. Spread chocolate out into a melted semi-sweet thin layer forming an approximate 9×12-inch rectangle, about ⅓ inch thick. Use a toothpick to swirl the sweet and white chocolate together.
6. Add toppings. Arrange the chocolate eggs (½ of them will be whole while the other ½ will be crushed) Press them lightly onto the chocolate.
7. Set the pan into the refrigerator to allow the chocolate to stay for 45 minutes.

After that you´ll be able to enjoy your sweet chocolate Easter bark treat to hop hop hop with enjoyment.