Lift-A-Thon: Results

Breaking Records

By: Jordan Pasalaqua
Last Friday on March 24, 2017 we had our 2017 Lift- a-thon at our Madison High School. All the boys who attended the lift-a-thon this year did really well. This year we had five boys break records and get a spot on the lift-a-thon board. 
        The boys were Max Starke, Colin Byers, Caleb Fiorello, Dominic Conforte and Ken Cline. 
        For Bench Power, Colin Byers benched 315 lbs and made it ninth place on the board. 
        For Bench Speed, Caleb Fiorello benched 300 lbs and made seventh place on the board, also Ken Cline benched 295 and is now in eighth place on the board. 
        In Squat Speed both Max Starke and Dominic Conforte squatted 405 and made eighth and ninth place on the board. Also Ken Cline squatted 395, and is now in tenth place board. 
        For Clean Power Colin Byers cleaned 305 and is now in third place on the board. Also for Clean Speed, Max Starke cleaned 285 and is now in fifth place on the board. 
        Colin Byers lifted more than 1,000 pounds that day and was the only boy who did. 
        The team who came in first place overall consisted of Ken Cline, Aidan Thompson, Alex Dragas, Alex Parmertor, Noah Sample, and Shane Huber. 
        The team who came in second was Cody Obradovic, Seth Schrock, Mike Colaneri, Zach Reynolds, Ben Harrison, and Marcell Welch. 
        The team that came in third place was Max Starke, Chris Kosek, Owen Myers, Dom Zirkle, and Al Ortiz.

Student Snapshot: Colin Byers

Get Your Lift On

By: Jordan Pasalaqua
At this year's Lift-A-Thon Colin Byers was the only participant who lifted over a thousand pounds adding the events up for Bench Press, Squat, and Clean. Colin was listed twice on the Lift-A-Thon board. He was on there for Bench Power, benching 315 pounds and is now in ninth place on the board. He was also listed for Clean Power for cleaning 305 pounds and is now in third place on the board. 
        One of Colin’s favorite quotes is, “ Hard work pays off.” He also says this year's Lift-A-Thon was the best out of all the other years. 
        Colin does football and track for Madison High School. He is going to be a two year varsity starter for football and will also earn a varsity letter in track.  Colin is known to show good leadership in both football and track. He is very hardworking in school and in his sports. 
        His high school goals are to make it a the hall of fame in the school. He also wants to attempt to break the shot put and discus records. 
        Colin’s High School highlight is for being the only person to lift over a thousand pounds for the Lift-A-Thon. Colin wants to get into a good college when he gets out of high school and continue to play football at the next level. He wants to go to college to go for business, to become personal trainer, and an advanced mechanic. 
        His favorite classes are advanced weight training, math, and science. Colin doesn't have a favorite movie or show, but he likes to watch college and professional football. He likes to watch the Dallas Cowboys and he also says his favorite player is Ezekiel Elliott. Colin was very happy to make it on the board twice for the Lift-A-thon and he also is happy to be the only one to lift more than a thousand pounds.

Cabaret Preview

A Night of Stars

By: Abby Piert
Cabaret will be held in the Madison High School cafeteria at 7:30 pm on March 24th, and 25th. Cabaret is the biggest festival and fundraiser the show choir at MHS takes part in. The theme of this years Cabaret is a night in Paris. Students and parents decorate and completely transform the school's cafeteria into a new setting and stage for the audience and performers. They will be performing dances together as the show choir, solos performed by students, duets, and small groups.
 They will be fundraising to gather donations for the choirs, and there will be desserts and finger foods provided at intermission for everyone who has attended. Everyone and anyone is welcome to attend to watch and to cheer on their favorite show choir boys and girls. Tickets for students and for seniors are $8, and tickets for adults are $10. There will also be plenty of table seating available for the friends and family of the performers for $15. The acts they will be performing have many different moods, ranging from serious to humorous. 
Throughout the night all of the seniors are brought to the spotlight and shown a little bit of recognition for their time and dedication over the years with the show choir family they love. You can also purchase stars during intermission or after the show for your favorite Eclectica performer and personalize it for them. Make your evening a little more exciting and join them on these special nights!

Lift-A-Thon Preview

Annual Lift-A-Thon

By: Jordan Pasalaqua

This year's Lift-A-Thon will be this Friday at Madison High School in the weight room. It will start at 5:00 to 7:00. The fundraising will be going towards getting weight room equipment and apparel for the school.
The teams participating in this year's lift-a-thon are:
Team 1- Colin Byers, Zach Dowd, Nick Wardrop, Derek Zirkle, and Clay Smith
Team 2 is Ken Cline, Aiden Thompson, Alex Dragas, Alex Parmertor, Noah Sample, and Shane Huber
Team 3 is Caleb Fiorello, Pat Baldree, Adam Grierson, Steven Ludwick, and Seth Fedel
Team 4 is Mark Primer Alex Blackie, Matt Myers, Marshall Vaughn, Manny Dominguez, and Nathan Novak
Team 5 is Max Starke, Chris Kosek, Owen Myers, Dominic Zirkle, and Al Ortiz
Team 6 is Dominic Conforte, Jonas Pinta, Will Weema, Thomas Welch, William Garbacz, and Brayden Johnston
Team 7 is Cameron Luster, Cam Caito, Jacob Fisher, Jacob Land, Zach Simcic, and Cole Tanner
Team 8 is Cody Obradivic, Seth Schrock, Michael Colaneri, Zach Reynolds, Ben Harrison, and Marcel Welch
Team 9 is Jacob Glass, Eddie Jones, Alex Rowe, Michael Woody, Hunter Nadzan, and Eddie Rodriguez.
People who are injured and can not compete are Tyler Watson, Hunter Walker Shane Magda, Anthony Geething, Cade Wakim, Noah Corbett, and Trevin Florian.
Last year 4 boys broke records and got their name but on the boards for squat power, squat speed, clean power, and clean speed. For Squat Power Cerne squatted 495, Mark Primer squatted 425,  J. Thomas squatted 405 and for Squat Speed Norris squated 385.
For Clean Power Mark Primer cleaned 315 and for Clean Speed Caswell cleaned 295. The boys who are still in the number one spot on the board are Howard who benched 365 in 2011 and for Bench Speed T. Law who benched 335 in 2009. Squat Power was Szabodas who squatted 500 in 2005 and for Squat Speed was Nick Law who squatted 435 in 2015. Clean Power was P. Kuntz who cleaned 325 in 2011 and for Clean Speed was Vince Primer who cleaned 305 in 2015.    

Gabby Blackford: Forever a Champion

One (is [Not] the Loneliest Number)

Gabby Blackford gives a thank you speech at the MHS
reception where she was recognized by Superintendent
Angela Smith and Principal Bill Fisher.

Numbers matter.  On the floor of Hilliard Bradley High School, the first number to matter to Madison gymnast, Gabby Blackford, was 9.7.  It was the score to beat and the final obstacle standing in the way of her first-ever state championship.  Last year, in a similar position, Blackford claimed 6th place with a score of 9.35 on her vault performance.  Undoubtedly, it was a memorable night, but not good enough to realize the goals she had set since starting her gymnastics career fourteen years ago.

The next number to matter was 9.6: her first attempt on the vault.  It was a score that matched her personal best and cleared her 2016 state score by a large margin.  Although short of the leading number, her strong first attempt played a large role in what would come next.

"I knew I'd already gotten a good score," Blackford reflected.  "That really let me go all out on my second attempt."

The number to follow her last vault would forever be written into Madison history.  After a minute, or an eternity depending on who is asked, of held breath and cautious hope, 9.725 flashed on the scoreboard and unleashed a roar of celebration from every Lake County resident in attendance.  The last number to matter on March 4th, 2017 was the number 1.  Blackford has always been Madison's sole gymnast and now stood alone atop a mountain of competition that fell short of her personal best.

Blackford's ascent to the top was no accident.  Ever since she was three years old, she trained at the Lake Erie Gymnastics school (LEGS) located in Mentor, OH.  The school offers a broad range of classes to continue an athlete's development through every age group.  Blackford readily acknowledges this could not have been a reality without her coaches; "Jas, Maria and Joe."

"I could not be where I am as a gymnast without their experience, wisdom, good attitudes, and overall love for gymnastics," Blackford said.

Gabby Blackford claims 1st place at
the OHSAA State Tournament

Her coach, and founder of LEGS, Joe Corrigan was quick to put the success solely on Gabby's shoulders.  Her work ethic and commitment to the sport is second to none.

"She is her hardest coach," Coach Corrigan stated. "She will holler at herself.  She will get mad with herself.  And the madder Gabby gets, the better she vaults."

Her support certainly does not end with her coaches.  Gabby's parents, Lisa and Keith, Uncle Scott and sister, Halle, have also played a crucial role in giving her the support she needs to continue down the path to her dreams.  They can always be spotted among the gymnastics faithfuls and are acknowledged to be her "biggest fans."  Outside of family, Blackford is also thankful for other area gymnasts who she counts as her own teammates.

"I feel like part of a big team of some of my closest friends," she stated appreciatively.

Blackford does not sit alone in the history books of Madison's state champions.  The last to accomplish the feat was Rickee Wirtzberger who claimed the 1999 vault title with a 9.425 final score.  Though the two have never met, they share an exclusively elite status in the halls of Madison High School earned seventeen years apart.

"I am so excited for her!" Wirtzberger said. "[I] know the hard work and dedication it takes to be successful in gymnastics!  I am glad someone could join the State Champ status at Madison!"

The Madison community wasted no time in proclaiming its adoration of the newest state champion.  Social media immediately exploded with excitement and congratulations as news broke of her incredible score.  A video of Gabby's title winning attempt, tweeted from her personal account, currently carries over sixty retweets and 263 likes.  Aside from the phenomenal vault performance, the video also captures the completely uninhibited exclamations of the gathered crowd.

https://twitter.com/GabbyBlackfordd/status/838151688242479106

When asked what surprised her most about the support from back home, Blackford stated "I didn't cry when I found out I won.  When I looked at my phone on the ride home and saw all the support [on social media], I cried."

Principal Bill Fisher presents State Champion Gabby Blackford
with a personalized shirt to commemorate her achievement

Principal Bill Fisher, one of Gabby's biggest supporters at MHS, was overcome with excitement when he heard of the news.

"As amazing as her accomplishment is to be a State Champion in the vault," Principal Fisher acknowledged, "she's even more of a champion as a quality person!"

A post-championship meal at BJ's Brewhouse in Mentor is the closest thing Blackford had to a break.  Two days later, she was pitching at softball practice; the third sport she plays throughout the school year.  The taste of gold is sweet and a taste she wants to experience again.  Blackford was asked how this championship will affect her expectations for the softball season.

Drawing a quick fist bump from teammate Jordan Pasalqua, Gabby, smiling, confidently responded, "Well, now I want to be a State Champion twice in one year."

Women's Choir: Onto States

The Night of Voices

By: Abby Piert

The OMEA was held  on March 4th 2017 at Shore Middle school. Madison schools sent in six choirs total, three from the middle school and three form the high school all ranging with talents. Each choir was to perform in front of three judges and show them everything they have, and that is just what they did.

During the performance the judges give the choirs all a rating from a five to a one, five being the worst score you can get, and one being the top score you can get. Madison's high school’s Women's choir and Show choir both were ranked with a score of one being the highest score, the other choirs Madison brought were given scores between a two and a three.

The choirs are required to do a site reading, which means reading a sheet of music without ever seeing it before. They have four minutes to read and prepare to sing it in front of the judges.  They have one minute to sing it as a group and rehearse it. Once the time is up, they have to give it their all. The women's choir won with the highest score of the night. The large group contest winners advance to states.

The women’s choir ended with the highest rating over everyone and will be advancing to states to take on the best of the best choirs. Over the past three years the Women’s choir has gone and qualified to states and they are keeping up the streak. The Women's choir has members ranging from seniors who have spent all four years in the choir and some freshman which makes this their first year of this terrific experience. MHS ended the day with one choir on its way to states which will be held at Medina High school on Saturday April 29th 2017. 

BBK: Corbin Anthony earns his comma

Mr. 1,000

By: Samantha Parmertor

Friday, February 24 Corbin Anthony hit his milestone in his basketball career. He hit 1,001 points  against the Perry pirates. Corbin didn’t know about his upcoming accomplishment until the night before.  The thought of reaching 1,000 points put a little pressure on him. 

"After I shot the 3 and scored 1,000 points I was filled with joy, I looked over at the spirit section and the stands at all the people cheering, I was not expecting all of that.” Corbin did not think it would be that “lit.” He is now one of only 5 people to have scored 1,000 points from Madison.

Corbin injured both wrists at the Brush game but still managed to keep playing. “Coach Moran told me I had to play in the Perry game, but he wouldn’t tell me why. I was shocked because I was going to save myself for the Chardon game.” The first half Corbin, scored 5 points, and he didn’t think he was going to be able to do it but then it hit him and turned his game around. 

When asking about how his season went not mentioning the team, Corbin very humbly said how his break-out season wouldn’t have happened without his team and his coaches right there with him. “The team has came a long way. We were rusty in the beginning, we knew that we’d be pretty good but never imagined that we would be this good. We still have much more to come.”

They played Chardon on Wednesday in the OHSAA Sectional Semi-finals, Corbin explained “It just felt like another game, we had two great practices before and we were all pretty confident that we were going to win".

This Saturday the team is taking on Cleveland Heights. It’s going to be a test for them. They are extremely athletic and bigger than our team. Last year they played them in the playoffs and lost by around 10 points. Corbin believes that if they play as a team and play how they know how to play they have a great chance on winning and moving on further into the playoffs.

MHS Talent Show

Talented Show

By: Alyssa Caruthers
    The Madison High School talent show is held every year at the high school. Students that participate in the the talent show get a chance to showcase their individuality. Students audition at the school to get into the show, and auditions can vary from singing, dancing, to a comical act. Only a select few who audition are picked out of many to perform on stage. Each and every performance is special and unique in its own way and is a way for students to express themselves on stage and show everyone their talents.
    "Getting chosen to perform in the talent show means that you are already winning." said one of the talented performers, Gage Remy. 
     Gage's performance included him showing off his mad guitar skills. He has been playing the guitar since he was eight years old and took this opportunity to show the audience what he could do with his guitar. Gage said "Being in the talent show is such a fun experience, and it is so fun getting to perform in front of the audience."
     Other performances at the show included singing, dancing, and playing several instruments, including some very great piano players. One of Madison's teachers, Ms.Farina, said "I went to the school talent show to support and cheer on one of my students, Rocky, who was a little nervous, but still gave an amazing performance! I was really impressed with the show, all the performers were really good, especially the piano players. Overall it was a great night!" 
     Many spectators, watching the show had nothing but great things to say about all the performers and the overall show! Including one of Madison's own students, Shaylin Virag, who said "I thought the talent show was very good, all the students did very well and it was such a nice show."
      One of the students who performed in the talent show was Thea Sapic. Thea sang "Torn" by EdnaSwap and she did a great job. Thea said, "I decided to audition for the talent show because I'm always looking for new opportunities to perform because performing gives me such a rush like nothing else does. I'm really happy I did perform because the show was amazing and there were so many extremely talented people there." 
       Another performer who really stood out was Kezie Kovatch, who was the last performance.  Kenzie sang "Read All About It" by Emeli Sande. Kenzie did an amazing job and blew the audience away.
      The talent show was very successful and all the performers did a very well job.  All the students had a great time showing off their amazing skills and everyone is looking to see what talents we get to see next year!

Comp Cheer: State Competition

Top Five is the Place to be!

By: Ally Fleischer
Our Madison Blue Streak Competition Cheerleaders will be traveling all the way to Columbus this Saturday, March 4th, to be competing in the biggest and most important competition of the year; States. The teams compete at Regionals in order to qualify for States only select few in each division make the cut. In States our Cheerleaders are in the non-mount, non-tumble division. Our division this year is the most teams our cheerleaders have ever gone against which is a total of eighteen including our team.
The MHS cheerleaders work very hard all year up until this competition to make sure they are giving their all. 
        “I think we have been working really hard this season, I believe if we can keep up our energy since that is our main issue, that we will definitely make it in the top five,” says one of the captains, Grace Carpenter. 
        “I think our team is going to do very well this year, considering we placed fourth last season, efforts come from all ends of the team which makes it so much easier and fun,” said senior cheerleader Jamie Bowers. 
Practice for the cheerleaders starts all the way in the middle of August, when they pay a choreographer to make up their routine on the spot. They stay after school twice a week to go over it, perfect every little thing, and critique the formations, or motions the judges say they don’t like on the score sheets. Being a cheerleader isn’t as easy as everyone may thinks, they work very hard to get where they are at right now. Getting placed as the Grand Champions in the first competition they competed in this season is something these girls are should be very proud of.
Even if these girls don’t place first this weekend they will still be proud of themselves because they made it that far and that is all that matters. First place is something they are definitely wishing and working for, but any place in the top five is good enough for them, its an honor for these girls and their coach to be attending this competition because it shows that they are truly a great team and have accomplished so much. Wish these girls luck for a very exciting weekend!

GSOC Undefeated Indoor Champs

Off-season is In

MHS girls' soccer shows off their newly earned Champions
shirts along with Coach Josh Caruthers.

Last night, the girls' soccer team capped off an undefeated indoor season with a 4-1 win over Berkshire to claim the championship at SPIRE institute.  2017 regular season Golden Boot winner, Alyssa Caruthers, started the scoring in the first five minutes to give the Blue Streaks the lead after latching on to a well played pass from goalkeeper Sydnie Luyando.  Caruthers would go on to find the back of the net twice more to complete her hat-trick and put the game out of reach.

Berkshire fought until the end and capitalized on some defensive confusion to find a goal of their own.  The goal came as a surprise as Luyando had been steadfast between the posts with many point-blank saves.  Any momentum that was to be gained from the breakthrough quickly dissipated, however, when Jordan Pasalaqua ran onto a Caruthers through ball and slotted home the last goal of the game.

In their twelve game run to the title, the Blue Streaks allowed only five goals and recorded eight shut outs.  The rock solid defense was bolstered by the senior leadership of Ireland Bittner, Paige Fellows and Chrissy Kurilec.  Every defender to take the field made it their personal goal to ensure the regular goalkeeper, Pasalaqua, had very little to do.

Offensively, the team did not disappoint.  Caruthers (16-10) led the team in scoring on their way to a 59 goal final tally.  Maddie Shires (9-6) and Hava Gasi (9-2) were the next largest contributors on the offensive end of the field.  Shires' clean give-and-go passes and superb outside shooting got her name on the score sheet, whereas Gasi made regular habit of finding the ball in dangerous places and finishing off the shot just as the opposing keeper believed the ball would fall safely into their hands.

The future is, seemingly, just as bright.  Rising freshmen Autumn Warren, Emily Moran and Haylee Winfield were brought on to round out the numbers of a team otherwise made up of only current high school players.  Together, the trio accounted for seven goals and eight assists during their first journey into high school soccer.  Moran (0-3) and Winfield (6-4) were regulars at the attacking end of the field as they found ways to mesh with the already established play styles of the returning high school veterans.  Warren, however, spent her time on the defensive end undeniably contributing to the team's stellar defensive record.  In the face of area high school varsity competition, she refused to be intimidated or back down and let signature physical play repel all oncoming attacks.

The first round of indoor in 2017 was exciting to watch and will have fans eager to see the next session begin.  Meanwhile, their coach will be, not so patiently, counting down the days until August 1st.