Team O'Neill Can Dodge A Wrench

After a grueling two-month-long tournament between 11 teams and the whole school, Team O’Neill came out on top beating Team Koz with an overwhelming score of four out of four games. Koz went into the final with the odds in their favor being undefeated throughout the entire tournament, but in the end they simply couldn't get it done. Team O’Neill entered the final with no females on their team and tons of nerves seeing as how they had come so close the year before, but they had their sights on victory and nothing could stop their ruthless onslaught from reaching their goal, not to mention they had in their arsenal Sam Simon's incredible playing.

"Sam's acrobatic catch sunk Koz's battleship. It amazes me that this is the fourth year we've done this and people are always able to get so amped up over dodgeball. This was one of the best and most intense tournaments we've ever had," said Mr. Heldman, the head coordinator of the tournament.

I sat down and talked to some of team Koz to see what exactly went wrong and what was going through their heads.

"We got careless, there was too much pressure on our main players including myself. Team O’Neill was too good, but we got this next year," stated Alejandro Segura, a junior and young man that some people (including Ms. O’Neill herself) believe to be the best dodgeball player in the whole school.

"It was a lot of fun and I would definitely do it again, although there are a few regulations I would change. Team Koz is going all the way next year," confidently declared Pete Miller, also a junior on team Koz and a valuable asset to their team.

I even had a word with the man himself.

"Team O’Neill brought their A-game on Tuesday and we only brought our B-game. We got schooled; we just couldn't handle the pressure. We will see them in next year's finals," said Mr. Koz

Nonetheless all teams had a great time; this tournament is always tons of fun. In the end even if your team loses it just makes everyone want to win even more next year and gives each team even more of a drive. This tournament is always unpredictable. Absolutely any team can win it. We'll just have to wait and see what next year has in store for us.

"There's always next year," declared three-year student Julia Puente, one of Team Koz's star players.

By: Eli Martinez

Going Bald Doesn't Always Suck

Everyone at Vanguard needs a haircut. Everyone.

St. Baldrick's is the brainchild of three Irish-American executives who, in 2000, turned their company's St. Patrick's day party into a head-shaving fundraiser for children with cancer. They ended up raising well over six times more than their goal with a total of $104,000 and started a tradition the FVEC adopted three years ago.

Today, St. Baldrick's raises more money towards the research of childhood cancer and funds more grants than any other non-profit organization. Today they have raised more than $117million towards their cause.

For the past three years, Vanguard and Forest View have participated in hosting St. Baldrick's events, raising money and collecting hair for locks of love. Last year, I even donated 9 inches of my own hair. My grandfather suffers from stomach cancer so I felt obligated to. It was a bit nerve-wracking at first but I manned up and went for it because I realized it would grow back almost instantly. And, to be honest, it felt really good knowing that I contributed to a fantastic cause.

I spoke with a fellow student who had a similar experience last year. Jessica Ogelsby who's a senior here at Vanguard, has many close family members that suffer from cancer. She shaved off and gave away almost 20 inches of her own hair at our St. Baldrick's event last year.

"Baldrick's is a wonderful organization that supports a good cause. It's so awesome seeing all these people coming together to help fight kids' cancer. I had many mixed emotions at first about donating my hair. I was really nervous at first about my appearance, but afterwards I felt so honored knowing that my hair was going to someone that needed it way more than I did. Afterall, I can always grow it back. Everyone should try donating at least once," said Ogelsby.

I also spoke to Olivia Gabcova who will be a speaker at this year's event. This cause is close to her heart. Her nine-year-old brother was diagnosed with a cancerous brain tumor.

"I feel very privileged to be a part of Baldrick's because they help fund research and grants that make it possible to aid kids such as my brother in the fight against cancer. It gives these children a sense of hope they wouldn't have otherwise," stated Gabcova.

So far over twenty students have signed up to fundraise. Each student must raise a minimum of fifteen dollars and students who decide shave or cut their hair will receive a free lunch. With the ever-approaching date of March 15th closing in, students should sign up with Mr. Markos as soon as they can.

You can sign up here - http://www.stbaldricks.org/events/mypage/4482/2012

By: Eli Martinez