Panthers Dominant in First Postseason Contest

Panthers Dominant in First Postseason Contest

The fifth seeded Woodlawn soccer team moved onto the third round of the LHSAA Divison II soccer playoffs Thursday night. The Panthers dominated the second half of their match versus the twelfth ranked Beau Chene Gators, pushing seven goals past the keeper in the last forty minutes, for an 8-1 victory.

The Panthers soccer team poses after their 8-1 victory over Beau Chene on February 9, 2017.

“We hadn’t played in a little while. Having the bye is a good thing, and a bad thing. We were able to come out in the second half and actually play our game, which resulted in quite a few goals,” said Head Coach Andrew Barnes. “All in all, I’m very happy with the kids. I’m glad that we could represent Woodlawn and get the W.”

The Panthers first threat of the night came in the fourth minute. Junior midfielder Igor Castillo-Veliz put a shot off the post from 25 yards out. This would prove to be the first of many close calls in the first half for Woodlawn.

Sophomore forward Brennan Arceneaux was next to get into the action, with a shot in the fifth minute that was saved by junior Gator keeper LaTrell Beauchamp. Just three minutes later, Castillo-Veliz put his second shot on goal from the box. Beauchamp was able to make another save, but this time for a corner.

Sophomore defender J-myri George was able to get a shot off after the corner from junior midfielder Jacob Barnes, but the ball was deflected by a Gator defender and the Panthers forced another corner. This corner found the feet of senior forward Eduin Delcid, but his shot from the box was just wide of the goal.

The next ten minutes saw Arceneaux just miss from twenty yards out, Beauchamp make an acrobatic save on an eighteen yard Delcid shot, Castillo-Veliz miss a shot attempt just wide, and Beauchamp make two additional saves on Delcid shots from the edge of the box.

The offensive barrage did not stop there, but the Gator keeper was up to the task, as he saved three more shots, one by Castillo-Veliz and two by Delcid.

Beau Chene was finally able to threaten in the 26th minute, as a Gator forward was able to get past the Panther defense. As the Woodlawn faithful called for an offsides, sophomore keeper Jakarie Davis made his first save of the night to keep the score knotted at zero.

Eduin Delcid looks to score versus Beau Chene.

In the 28th minute, Delcid appeared to open the scoring when he slid a ball past the slide Gator keeper. However, the offsides call negated the goal. Not to be deterred, the Panthers were on the board less than a minute later when Castillo-Veliz found Delcid streaking past the Beau Chene defense. The Woodlawn forward found the back of the net for the 48th time this season, making the score 1-0. This score would carry into halftime.

When the Panthers came out in the second half, there was one notable change in the formation. Delcid, who had been playing midfield, had moved to the top of the offense as a forward.

“At halftime, Coach Barnes said that we needed to keep it up and the goals will come. He said that we were working hard,” said Delcid of his coach’s halftime message. “He moved me from midfield to forward because we felt that I could take advantage of the matchups with their defenders.”

This strategy paid off quickly for Woodlawn. Less than two minutes into the half, Barnes sent a through ball into the box. Delcid gave chase, but reached the ball with no apparent angle for a shot at the goal. An attempt at finding a teammate in front of the goal instead resulted in his second goal of the night, and a 2-0 lead.

“I didn’t have an angle, so I just kicked it toward the middle, trying to center it for a teammate. When I hit it, I just got lucky and the ball went in,” explained Delcid.

It did not take Delcid long to end any thoughts that the Gators may have had of keeping the game close. In the 46th minute, he was able to collect a ball from junior Erick Ixcotoyac in the box. From about ten yards out, the senior forward found the back of the net for the hat trick.

Jacob Barnes wins a ball over a Beau Chene player.

With the score now 3-0, the Panthers continued to apply pressure which resulted in goals. Castillo-Veliz took a pass from senior Alan Orellana-Gomez and finished the goal from ten yards out in the 48th minute, and Barnes scored his first goal on a penalty kick in the 50th minute, giving Woodlawn a 5-0 lead.

Over the next ten minutes, both keepers were tested, but neither team were able to score. That changed in the 63rd minute when Arceneaux was able to give the Panthers the 6-0 lead from ten yards out. The offensive fireworks were not yet done, as Barnes scored his second goal of the night on an amazing corner.

“I noticed that the back post was open on all of our corners. When we finally got a corner on the right side, I just went for it and the ball went right where I was hoping,” said the younger Barnes when asked about his goal.

J-myni George dribbles past a defender.

The scoring ended in the 76th minute, as junior J-myni George was able to score his first game of the season, giving the Panthers the final margin of victory.

Delcid was asked about the impact of moving the speedy defender to the top of the offense.

“J-myni did a great job tonight hustling down the field. Anytime we kicked a ball long, he stretched the defense and opened up the field, allowing me free space in the middle. I was really excited that he scored the goal to end the game.”

The Panthers dominated the ball throughout the game, finishing with thirty shots compared to only ten for the Gators. The Gators one goal came in the 73rd minute, denying Davis

Honor Roll Breakfast Held to Recognize Outstanding Students

Honor Roll Breakfast Held to Recognize Outstanding Students

Woodlawn High School held it’s annual Honor Roll Breakfast on the morning of Thursday, February 3, 2017. Over 150 students were recognized by administration for their outstanding academic achievements during the first semester. In order to be invited to the breakfast, students had to have only A’s and/or B’s on their first semester report card.

Junior Marissa Segura is recognized for earning A’s and B’s during the 2016 Fall Semester.

Brandy Williams, Assistant Principal at Woodlawn, was in charge of the program. She was happy with the outcome of the breakfast.

“We were extremely pleased with the number of students recognized this year,” said Williams. “The students here today represent the best that Woodlawn has to offer, and we were proud to be able to recognize them and give back to them for working so hard during the first semester.”

Food for the breakfast was provided by Woodlawn’s Pro Start students, who are taught by Chef Steven Oubre. Pro Start students were also present at the breakfast to serve the honor roll students. The breakfast included eggs, bacon, grits, and biscuits that were all prepared in Chef Oubre’s classroom.

Junior Tamiia Williams was one of the students recognized at the breakfast for earning A’s and B’s during the fall semester.

Senior Vu Truong is served by Karin Perry at the Honor Roll breakfast on February 2, 2017.

“I felt important for being invited to the breakfast. I appreciated that our hard work was being recognized and not being overlooked. It gives us something to look forward to,” said Tamiia when asked about how she felt when being told she was invited to the breakfast.

When asked about how her mother felt about the breakfast, Tamiia’s face lit up with a smile. “It made my mom extremely happy to see me recognized in front of my peers and it made her feel really proud as a parent.”

 

An Explosive Experiment with Mrs. Bateast’s Class

An Explosive Experiment with Mrs. Bateast’s Class

Destiny Brooks, ’18

Students experiment with with different chemical reactions in Gifted Chemistry I.

Mrs. Bateast’s 5A Gifted Chemistry I class recently performed an experiment about different types of chemical reactions.

The first thing they did was gather all of their materials they are going to use: weight boats, goggles, an electric scale, micro burner, test tube holder, ring clamps, sugar, candles, and a spatula.

Before they started on their experiment, they were told to make a hypothesis about the expected outcome of the chemical reaction. After the students created their hypothesis, they began the experiment.

The first step was to pour the liquid on a spatula.

The second step was to pour the liquid into the test tube and lock it. They were told to turn on the micro burner and bring the liquid in the tube to a boil. When the liquid began to boil, the students turned the micro burner off and added sugar inside the tube.

As soon as the sugar was added, the concoction burst into flames, causing the students to jump back!

When they were done with this part of the experiment, the students recorded their results and determined whether or not their hypothesis was correct. The class was very engaged throughout the class period and said they had lots of fun with the experiment.

Woodlawn Theater Presents Twist to Classic “A Christmas Carol”

Woodlawn Theater Presents Twist to Classic “A Christmas Carol”

by Madisyn McAlister

On December 1st and 2nd, Woodlawn High School’s drama department performed their annual Christmas play. This year the collection of various Woodlawn students performed “A Dickens’ Christmas Carol – A Traveling Travesty in Two Tumultuous Acts”, which is a farce of “A Christmas Carol”.

img_3856This interesting play was chosen by Ms. Morton because, “It’s hard to find Christmas plays, so you’re stuck with doing the same play or finding something new.”
This is certainly not the same classic Christmas play many are used to. For this play, anyone could audition. For the auditions, those trying out were given a sheet of paper to put down their information as well as stating what character they would like to be, based off of a short description of each character. Then, Ms. Morton would select three or so students who were auditioning, and give them a script. The students would then have to cold read a scene and based off that, the roles would be assigned. Though anyone in the school could be involved with the play, Theater III and IV students are required to participate for a grade.

Even though there were difficulties preparing for the play, such as some actors needing to drop out of the play, the actors have been very positive.

“Stressful, but so far has been an amazing experience,” commented one of the actors when asked about the process. When asked about how they feel about the play, the actors replied with squeals of excitement. Those involved with the play have been supporting it by discussing it with anyone they can and posting about it on social media.

“Students are surprised about how much they enjoy it,” says Ms. Morton when referring to plays. “I think it’s hopefully something students will learn to support, like they do sports”.

 

Robotics Team Goes to Intralox

Robotics Team Goes to Intralox

by Madisyn McAlister, Staff Reporter

Woodlawn High School’s robotics team, Panthrobotics, traveled to Intralox in New Orleans on November 17th to help recruit more mentors for FIRST Robotics.

A small group consisting of Panthrobotics members took a field trip to Intralox located in New Orleans. Intralox is a manufacturer that “offers comprehensive conveyance solutions including conveyor belting, conveyor equipment, and services to help you optimize your plant.” Intralox has been a continuous supporter of FIRST Robotics. Intralox asked Panthrobotics to assist with a presentation for inspiring those who work at Intralox to become a FIRST Robotics mentor.
The small group included: Mr. Eiland (Coach), Mr. Jason Lejeune (Assistant Coach, volunteer mentor), Christian Lejeune (Build Captain), Madisyn McAlsiter (Outreach Coordinator), and Kohl Cleveland (Rookie). This group represented Woodlawn High School and the organization FIRST Robotics at the mentor recruitment presentation. Mr. Eiland, acting as his position of FIRST Senior Mentor of Louisiana, was one of the few speakers for the event and was in charge of describing FIRST Robotics and all of its little details to those attending the presentation. The students assisted with the presentation by demonstrating the team’s robot and talking one on one with those attending the event about FIRST, mentors, and Panthrobotics.
“It should be a really interesting experience.” said Christian Lejeune before attending the actual event, and it seems that his assumptions were correct.

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