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We hope you enjoy our April Issue #45!

By: Brian Avery

Welcome to the last Soccer article of the 2022-2023 school year! For this article, we are combining the Women’s and Men’s soccer articles into one! Without further ado, let’s get right into it.

First, let’s check in on the Men’s Soccer Team. Both teams traveled to Uvalde where the JV tied 1-1, and the Varsity lost 1-3. After that, both teams went to Floresville, with the JV losing 0-1, and the Varsity tied 1-1. Both teams played Somerset, and the JV won 3-2, with the Varsity the varsity winning 2-1. Now, the varsity boys were in the play-offs, and the boys played La Vernia in the first round. It was a long tough fight, and with the regular time of the game ending 0-0. They went into overtime, an extra 20 minutes, and they were still tied after that, so they went to penalty kick shootouts. Unfortunately, the Eagles lost 3-5 in shootouts, and the boy’s season was over.

Picking up where we left off , the varsity team played Uvalde at home, unfortunately losing 1-2. Dusting themselves off, they traveled to Floresville, tying the home team 0-0. They came home to play Somerset, and lost again 0-2. After all these losses, the girls picked themselves up and beat Poteet 5-0 at home. The girls were now in the playoffs, going against Gonzales in the first round. After a long game, the girls were barely beaten 0-1, ending their season. 

To conclude both seasons, I reached both head coaches, and a varsity player from each team. For the Women’s team, I spoke with Coach Joseph, but unfortunately was unable to get in contact with one of the players. When asked about the lady’s season, Coach Joseph said “Overall, I am happy with the season. Coaching a young team with over 50% first-year varsity players as a first-year head coach proved to be a challenge, but I felt as though we handled the challenge well and began building something special this season.” He also praised the leadership of Grace Keylich and Paige David, “Those seniors truly upheld both the program’s core values and their coach’s standard on and off the field.” Coach Joseph did express his disappointment that the ladies didn’t get as far as he hoped, but held his head high, stating that he feels good about the future. “That loss will continue to serve as a reminder that we have work to do this off-season and next pre-season. Humility fuels hunger!” Looking forward, he spoke of his excitement for next season, as the majority of the team will be at PHS still next year, and he expects another level of understanding and drive next year, “I am retaining nearly my entire squad who now has an excellent understanding of what I expect from them in their play and conduct.” 

As for the Men’s Team, they had similar things to say. Coach Breiten expressed satisfaction with the season’s results, praising the team’s chemistry on and off the field, but had a hunger for more. Stefan had similar sentiments, stating “I didn’t have any regrets, it was a process going through the season with all the younger guys, and I think that we didn’t finish too bad.” Coach Breiten was impressed with Keeton Diaz, a Freshman, and his rapid improvement throughout the season, “I didn’t know he had that type of ability as a Freshman.” Coach Breiten and Stefan were very happy with the last game of the season and stated that even though they lost, it was an amazing game. Stefan mentioned that he wished that more pressure was placed on the players to focus up and take things seriously, such as drills during practice, which Coach Brieten agreed with, “Some of the little things added up and caught us in the long run.” Stefan believes that if the upcoming team gets into the right mindset and follows the new process and training that Coach Brieten has set out for them, they will do well. Coach Brieten felt optimistic about the team for next year but admitted that the remaining players have a lot of work to do, “It’s going to be interesting, we’re going to see who steps up.” He wishes the Class of 2023 success in their future endeavors!

By: Jaelyn Morales

Kayla Salazar at the State Meet with her coaches.

On Feb 15th, the Pleasanton Girls Powerlifting team took 4th place at the Texas Strength Systems. Kayla Salazar finished 1st place in her respective weight class and qualified for regionals! Laura Deleon and Yasmeen Diop finished 3rd and Abigail Hotchkins, Alyssa Castellar, Anna Castillo, Kylie Breier, Karina Perez, and Makenna Pelle also had excellent lifts.

On March 2nd, the team took 2nd place at their regional meet in Edinburg, Texas. Kayla Salazar finished 2nd place in her respective weight class. Abigail Hotchkins and Makenna Pelle finished 8th in their respective weight classes. 

The Pleasanton Boys Powerlifting team took 2nd place at the Texas Strength Systems on Feb 16th and Diego Valdez and Sebastian Aguilar placed 1st in their respective weight class. Roman Hernandez and Zeke Gonzlaes finished 2nd, Kaydin Olle finished 3rd, Andrew Murillo finished 4th, Paul Bernal and Keagan Holes finished 5th, and Damon Morales finished 6th. Valdemar Herrera also had excellent lifts. The boys then placed 2nd at the Regional Meet in Kingsville, Texas. Diego Valdez placed 2nd in his respective weight class and qualified for the State Meet in Abilene, Texas on March 24th. Sebastian Aguilar placed 3rd in his respective weight class, Roman Hernandez, Andrew Murillo, and Zeke Gonzlaes also represented Pleasanton at the Regional Meet and had excellent lifts.

Kayla Salazar proudly qualified for the State Meet on March 17th held in Frisco, Texas and capped off her season with a 7th place finish at state! Diego Valdez also qualified for the State Meet on March 24th held in Abilene, Texas and finished his season placing 5th in his respective weight class. Both Kayla and Diego ended their historic season on a great note and made everyone at PHS very proud. Congratulations to the powerlifting team on their incredible season. They all competed very well and had many accomplishments throughout the season! Pride! Pride!

By: Ariana Johnson 

Mark Thornton making his swing at the Devine Tournament

On February 13th, the Pleasanton Varsity Boys Green and White teams played at the Devine Tournament. Pleasanton Green scores are: Brandy Steven 80, Mark Thornton 85, Grant Moos 86, and Levi Turner 93. The Pleasanton White scores are: Aiden Contreras 103, Holden Hagen 105, Pablo Lara 105, Max Rangel 109, and Nathen Din 118. 

April 19th, the boy’s golf team competed in a two-day tournament on our home course at Pleasanton Country Club. The Green Team shot a team total of 699 and finished 1st. They also had Brady Stevens finish 2nd and Mark Thornton finish 3rd individually. Brandy Steven scored 80-87 total 167, Mark Thornton 85-84 total 169, Levi Turner  93–91 total 184, and Grant Moos 86–86  total 179. There were also two medalists, Pablo Lara 105–103 total 208, and Holden Hagen 108–111 total 219.

February 22nd, the Pleasanton Golf Team went to Devine and they finished 3rd with a team total of 359. The boy’s scores for the Devine meet are as follows: Brady Stevens 85, Mark Thornton 87, Levi Turner 85, Grant Moos 102, and Pablo Lara 104. They also had one medalist, Aiden Contreras 103. 

March 2nd, the golf team went to Jourdanton golf tournament and finished second with a score of 348. The team’s individual scores are: Brandy Stevens 86, Mark Thornton 83, Levi Turner 91, Grant Moos 88, and Nathen Din 114. Mark Thornton finished 4th overall and Holden Hagen was a medalist with a score of 118. 

The boy’s Gold team competed in a golf tournament on March 10 & 11th in Uvalde which was their District meet and came away as the tournament Champions. They shot a two day total of Day 1: 336,  Day 2: 326, with a score total of 662: 1st place. The boys individual scores are as follows: Jake Casias 75, Mark Thornton 75, Luke Thornton 81, Levi Turner 84, and Brandy Stevens 88. Jake Casias got first place and Mark Thornton got second place with medalist Grant Moos with a score of 91. They are going to Regionals in Colony Creek in Victoria April 19th and 20th. Make sure to wish our Eagle Golfers good luck! 

Keep up to date on PHS Golf scores by following the “PHS Tee it Up” Facebook page, and read our next issue!

By: Libby Sanchez

This month has been crazy busy for the Pleasanton High School ROTC group. They ended March with one of their biggest events, the Military Ball. They hosted it at Strawberry Pines in Poteet on March 25th, and had a magnificent turnout. Cadets did a phenomenal job planning this event and following through with a very successful night, full of laughs and a good time. They went as far as reaching out to a guest speaker, Colonel Phil Palmore, and inviting him to this event. His speech is something for these young cadets to hold on to for years to come. Students dressed to impress for the Ball, and many went home as winners of the Royal Court. Daylan Aguero and Taliah Garcia won Lord and Lady. Rion Ochoa and Leah Torres won Dutch and Dutchess. Wally Ramirez and Alyssa Castelar won Prince and Princess. The role of King and Queen was given to Valdemar Herrera and Natalia Jones. A huge accomplishment given to these cadets who deserve it!

The first weekend of April was a competitive one for the Eagle Battalion.. They took their all to the Central Catholic High School Military Skills meet against 16 JROTC programs from across the region. Krista Gutierrez took charge of the unarmed drill team and led them to finishing 2nd overall. They also finished 2nd and 3rd places in two sub categories of the competition. As for the male and female physical fitness teams, they both finished 1st place! Of the male team: Captain Valdemar Herrera, Roman Martinez, Rion Ochoa, and Jayden Herrera. Of the female team: Captain Alyssa Castelar, Yasmeen Diop, Abigail Hotchkin, and Lillian Krause. Both teams competed their hearts out and it definitely showed in the end! Honorable mention to the Academic Bowl team that finished 4th out of 18 teams. Alana Moczygemba, Hailey Yoho, Mason Outland, and Lane Ciomperlik did a phenomenal job representing our school!

The Pleasanton High School JROTC is honored to announce that one of our very own cadets, Krista Gutierrez, was selected to receive the Military Officers Association Scholarship! She worked extremely hard to gain this award of $1,000 to help with future endeavors. They look forward to seeing what amazing things Krista will accomplish!

Pleasanton High School’s JROTC program continues to stay on the move, participating and helping everywhere they can. On April 11th, the Eagle Battalion Color Guard presented the colors at the Special Olympics in Poteet. They continue to show their neverending honor in all that they do. 

One last congratulations to the most recent Eagle Battalion Cadets and NCO of the month. Cadet CPL Justine Resendez and CPL Madison Nunley were selected for Cadets of the month based on their hard work. Cadet Staff Sergeant Jealousey Oliva was announced NCO of the month of April. A huge congratulations to all and, keep up the good work JROTC!

 By: Noah Ramos & Carol Sexton

For this month’s Staff spotlight Mrs. Rife was chosen out of our lovely staff and boy does she have quite the story to tell. For those who don’t know Mrs. Rife, she is a paraprofessional who helps out students by guiding them to a path that makes them happy as well as being a great listener to students’ concerns. Mrs. Rife didn’t always plan to work in education, in fact she wanted to go into the military but was dissuaded by concerns from her mother and decided not to go. When she started attending UTSA she wasn’t sure what she wanted to be and was undeclared until her junior year where life suddenly changed her plans. Mrs. Rife got married to a member of the military and off she went around the world with her husband for his job. 

Mrs. Rife has lived in many countries and a good amount of states as well such as Japan, Australia, England, Washington to name a few. When Mrs. Rife was in England, she remembers it being very beautiful and green where the weather went from feeling like summer for 2 weeks before suddenly turning cold the next day. The people she met during her time there were very friendly and loved to imitate our accent as well. Mrs. Rife was living in England when 9/11 happened and heard the announcement of what was happening through a radio and threw the military base she was at in a frenzy. While all this was happening Mrs. Rife volunteered to help make sure that parents could get their kids and making sure the kids were calm until everything had become safe once again. After the ordeal the next day Mrs. Rife was hired because of the actions she had shown during the situation with her ability to perform under pressure as well as having the best interest for the children. Her neighbors were very supportive during this dark time and brought over casseroles while checking up on her family to see if there was anything else they could do to help.

   When she was in Okinawa, Japan which is a set of islands that are very hot her time there was pleasant and the people appreciated when they were spoken to in Japanese and were a friendly bunch. Her kids had to take a culture class where they learned about their host country and a funny story was when she was on a train in Tokyo they were having trouble with directions when a kind couple helped them get to their destination. They lived in cement/steel reinforced buildings since typhoons would occur and their power was often lost so instead of snow days they would have typhoon days in Okinawa. When this happened her daughter would go to her  friend’s house and the brother would have the friend’s brother come to their house to have fun since when the typhoon would happen they had to stay in the house for 3-4 days. 

When moving around this much Mrs. Rife was worried that her children would be sad having to leave friends behind and have to frequently have to adapt to new environments so quickly. However, when she asked her children when they grew up they were actually quite happy since now not only do they have friends all around the world they talk to but they got to experience many things while moving everywhere. Now her son is studying contract law while her daughter has become an office manager which has made Mrs. Rife very proud. Mrs. Rife herself has become paraprofessional of the year and has met some of her old students. Many had changed since the last time she had seen them and her advice for current students now is to do what makes you happy. So, when you see her in the halls or in class make sure to thank her for all she does for our school here at PHS!

By: Jayden Palacios

Robert Gonzalez swings and heads to first base!

For this month’s athlete spotlight, we decided to choose no other than Robert Gonzalez. Robert is a stud on the diamond. Rob leads the team in the following categories: Batting Average, On Base Percentage, Stolen Bases(Second in D1 4A) , Runs, Hits (Leads D1 4A), RBI’s, Doubles, and Triples. While doing all of the following, Rob maintains a 4.0 GPA in all AP, and honors classes. When asked the question “What motivates you”, Robert had this to say:” “What keeps me motivated is that my parents pay lots of money for me to get the best training and the best food. I wouldn’t be as successful as I am today without them.”

This season, Robert has contributed to the Eagles 19-5-2 record, with 9 of those games being won in district leading to their undefeated district standing. When asked, Roberts core values as a baseball player are to “…be a leader on and off the field, always give 110%.” Outside of school sports, Rob likes to hunt, fish, and  better himself overall. Robert is an outstanding player who sees baseball as a reward itself. It’ll certainly be nice to see how Robert thrives through the upcoming playoff bracket. Next time you see Robert, make sure to congratulate him for being recognized as this month’s Athlete Spotlight at the Quill! 

One Week –

Pure energy fuses the soul

Flying high screaming through the skies

Landing belly up in a pool of uncertain hope

Red hot plans wavering in one moment of doubt

Through a rollercoaster of poised confusion

One mercurial dreamy day

Lost the next in dark unknowledge

Beaming lights of fragile desire

The universe reflects its awesome power

I am miniscule, I have no chance

I dance the dance and smash remnants of the past

In a celebration of nothing stays the same

All of this in seven fine days

By: Jan Ejsymontt – Croatia

There are many things that make us feel small, but we have many people that can help us feel better when we are stressed, having a bad day, or just feeling burnt out due to school. It doesn’t help that most students miss school due to sports or UIL, and have to make up double the work when they come back. 

Sincerely, 

The Passionate Poet

By: Savannah Valdez

         Are you “eggcited” for Easter this year? Well I have the perfect easter treat for you to make for you and your family. This carrot cake roll will be such a big hit, they’ll be begging for more.

Here are some ingredients you will need:

• All purpose flour
•  Sugar 
• Baking powder and salt
• Ground cinnamon
• 3 large eggs (preferably room temp)
• Vanilla extract
• ½ cup of Vegetable oil
• Powdered sugar
• 1 cup of finely grated carrots
• Cream cheese
•  Butter

Let’s get into making this sweet treat:

1. To start prepping you will need to get a 10×15-inch jelly roll pan (or cookie sheet), you will then spray all aspects of the pan with non-stick cooking spray.
2. In a medium mixing bowl you will need to combine the dry ingredients(flour, salt, cinnamon etc.)and whisk them together.
3. Next in a separate bowl you will need to whisk up the eggs as well as the sugar and vanilla for 1 minute, then mix in the half cup of vegetable oil.
4. Add all the ingredients together and mix them well, after mixing is done you can then add your cup of finely grated carrots and continue to mix, but make sure not to overmix the batter!
5. Now to bake our delicious treat! Pour the cake batter in and spread it all around your pan. You will then bake at 350F for 10-12 minutes.
6. As soon as your treat is out of the oven, turn it onto a clean surface that has been lightly dusted with powdered sugar(this prevents the cake from sticking to the table). Then you will begin rolling your cake tightly and setting it to cool!
7. While your cake is cooling let’s get to making the frosting! To make the cream cheese frosting you will start by beating the cream cheese and butter together, then add the vanilla and powdered sugar and start mixing until the frosting is soft.
8. Once the cake is completely cooled, you will begin gently unrolling the roll and make sure it has no holes or cracking. You will then add in the cream cheese frosting and begin sprinkling the carrot slices. Once that is finished you will then begin rolling the cake back up and refrigerate it for 30 minutes. Once all cooled you can present this amazing treat to your family and friends!

There you have it, all it takes is 8 simple steps to make this carrot cake roll everyone will love! Hope you enjoy it!

Advice column

By : Aaliyah Herrera

For this month’s Advice Column we have very different but interesting questions that we have got this month. Everyone will be anonymous when answering these questions. Let’s get right into it!

Here to start us off we have, “what is the best thing to do when starting your summer? – anonymous” Some ideas would be planning a week long vacation whether it be in another city / state or country! Doing this will make you feel like summer has begun. Taking a trip to the beach or lake is also a great way to start off your summer!

Next, “what is the best thing to get your mom for mothers day? – anonymous” Always get your mom flowers and her favorite snack as a starter for a gift. Your big gift for her could either depend on if your mother has always been wanting something or jewelry is always the way to go! If none of these satisfy you, take her on a trip or plan a day to go out to your local city!

Furthermore, “what do you get for a grandparent for their birthday? – anonymous” This could depend on whether it is your grandma or grandpa’s birthday. For example if the gift was for your grandma you could get her a piece of jewelry, something she may have been wanting or take a day to do something she may like. On the other hand if the gift was for your grandpa you could get him something related to fishing, hunting, or a new watch or jewelry is always preferred!

On the other hand, “what is the best vacation spot for spring? – anonymous” Some places you may find interesting are going to the Grand Canyon national park, New Orleans, Amsterdam, or even San diego. These places would be such a get away and fun experience during spring, also it’s a good way to start off your end of the year to the beginning of your summer!

Something a little different, “how do you cope with a long distance relationship? – anonymous” when coping it can be different for everybody depending on the person you are. Some things you can take into consideration are thinking positive, being loyal, doing something you both may enjoy, and trusting each other. Doing this will help you cope and strengthen your relationship with your partner. These are just opinions but if you have a different way of coping definitely do it!

Last but not least, “how do I become less controlling over things in my life? – anonymous” this also could depend on the type of person you may be but here are some options you might take into consideration, try to adapt healthier habits, improve your communication skills, or even reprogram your mind. Doing these things may help you become less controlling and more aware and even less stressed. 

These were such great questions. If you would like your questions to be answered for next month’s issue for the advice column, go into your class on google classroom and fill out the POLL form and write down your questions at the end!

Movie Review: The Menu 

By: Kendall Zuniga 

“We never burn anything by design unless to make it delicious.” A perfect quote to sum up the lavish movie, “The Menu’,’ starring Anya Taylor-Joy, Ralph Fiennes, and Nicholas Hoult. Directed by Mark Mylod, “The Menu” sets our story in motion when we meet a young couple, Margot and Tyler (Anya Taylor-Joy and Nicholas Hoult), who are in the midst of a one-of-a-kind dining experience. The Chef(Ralph Fiennes) curates each course with detail, so much that each dish/course is for one to easily die for, until they actually do. When worlds start to unravel and pasts begin to surface, what seemed like would never happen to them would be proven wrong in this twisted horror-comedy.

I’d give this movie 9.5 out of 10 cheeseburgers.

By: Jauslyn Ramirez

Geologists discovered 92 fossilized nests filled with 256 Titanosaur eggs, one of the biggest dinosaur hatcheries ever found. Six species of these, long necked herbivores laid eggs there, and more diversity than expected. The animals nested close together, like many modern day birds do. Scientist have been growing closer and closer to the discovery of how dinosaurs inhabited and everyday life. The nests also indicate that the Titanosaur may have had a similar physiology to modern birds, where they  laid their eggs. The close nesting of these dinosaurs is similar to modern day birds like great egrets, cormorants and brown pelicans. They are compatible to birds almost exactly. This great discovery is remarkable!!

True Crime Vol. XXXIII: Hisashi Ouchi

By: Kendall Zuniga 

How much do you know about Radiation? If you don’t know much about it, here’s a quick breakdown of radiation. Radiation is energy that comes from a source and travels through space at the speed of light, this energy has an electric field and a magnetic field associated with it, and has wave-like properties also known as “electromagnetic waves”. When Exposed to too much radiation at once, radiation sickness will occur. This can cause skin burns, loss of appetite, Fatigue, fever, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. 

Hisashi Ouchi is a victim of a terrible mishap in a Nuclear power plant in Tokyo, Japan, But Ouchi is known as the man to live 83 days of hell because of the amount of radiation he encountered while working that day at the plant. The total amount of radiation a human can encounter is about 4-5 sieverts and even then that amount is considered lethal. This mishap took place when Ouchi was helping a colleague pour liters of uranium into a big metal vat at the Tokaimura Nuclear Power Plant in 1999.

 None of the men working alongside Ouchi had received any training prior to carrying out the delicate task that reportedly had 16 kg of uranium, this included Ouchi who had taken this particular job out of fear of upsetting his boss. 

When funneling the Uranium into the tank, Ouchi was taken aback by the bright flash of a blue light at the bottom of the tank. He didn’t know that the tank had reached a critical point and began releasing dangerous amounts of neutron radiation and gamma rays into the room’s atmosphere. After being exposed to the radiation, Ouchi was taken to the hospital even though he didn’t seem to be in any pain. When arriving at the hospital, doctors had found that Hasahi Ouchi had almost no white blood cells left in his body, doctors studied Ouchi to see and understand just how much radiation had attacked his body. Doctors discovered that Ouchi had absorbed about 17 sieverts of radiation into his body, the highest level of radiation for any living being to absorb Whereas the emergency responders of Chernobyl only encountered and died from 0.25 sieverts of radiation. 

Within a day, Ouchi’s condition had become worse. His abdomen had begun swelling and he now required oxygen for his breathing. As days went by Ouchis’ condition only continued to get worse, when nurses would remove medical tape from his body, Hisashi’s skin had begun coming off with it. He could no longer breathe, eat, or move on his own, two months after the incident Hisashi’s heart had stopped, though doctors were soon able to revive him, Hisashi’s heart continued to stop two times after that same day, both times spanning about 40-45 minutes. On Hisashi Ouchi’s 83rd day in the hospital, his heart would stop one last time and he was pronounced dead on December 21st, 1999 at 11:21pm, he was 35 years old. Throughout his entire painful journey, Hisashi’s wife and family were by his side doing their best to support him. They’d sit in the waiting room every day for all 83 days, folding paper swans as a representation of their prayers of hope. They folded an estimated 10,000 paper cranes. 

After Hisashi’s death, an investigation was launched by the Japanese government to try and find an answer as to why inexperienced employee’s were working on such a dangerous task. Inadequate regulatory oversight, lack of an appropriate safety culture, and inadequate worker training and qualification were found to be the main causes of this accident occuring. Because of the company’s lack of responsibility, not only did Ouchi and his two fellow coworkers lose their lives but it was found that an additional 21 lives were lost due to the exact mishap occurring between 1953 and 1997. Six officials from the company that operated the plant were charged with professional negligence and violating nuclear safety laws. As of 2003, a court gave them suspended prison terms, and the company and at least one of the officials also were assessed fines.