The Norton Girls Track Team went 5-1 through their regular season meets, trophies home at State relays and the TVL championship meet and plan to take it home at All States June 3rd. They're always encouraging each other and trying to help everyone to feel confident. There is a copious amount of great athletes on this team and it would not be the same with out all of them putting fourth 100% effort.

    The biggest foe for the Girl's Team is Hopkinton. During the indoor season, Hopkinton beat them for regular season meet, but for TVL'S Norton claimed that meet theirs. For Spring, Norton beat Hopkinton during the regular season, and tied to them at TVL's. Norton did take home the trophy from TVL's due to a bit of confusion with the scores. After being given the incorrect amount of points, Norton knew something was wrong. It was implicit they were going to win because of all the other accomplishments they've made this year.
    The Norton relay teams of the 4x100 and 4x400 were both incredible this year. Both teams traveled to TVL's, Relays, States, and All-States. Handing off a baton is the most important part of a relay team. Getting the baton to your teammate is almost like going straight through a green light, or completely getting stopped by a red light. The hand-off can either be perfect and keep the race going or it can have one mistake and ruin the team's chance.

    Brooke-lynn Williams is a key athlete during track. She is a sophomore and has been crowed many titles and won almost every race she's ran in. "After I step over the finish line, I just want to hug my mom and eat blueberries." She runs the 100 meter dash at a personal best of 12.1, the 200 meter dash at a best of 24.63 in triple jump she jumps 35.1 inches. She took home the metal for athlete of the meet at TVL's along with the 100 and 200 first place metal. At state relays she got first place in both runs she ran, including the 4x100 with a team of junior Cece Browne, senior Amy Pereira, and freshman Ashlyn Hines at a time of 51.and the 4x200 race of Cece, Brooke, Amy and sophomore Bella Berardi at a time of  1.15. During all regular season meets she has won the 100 meter and 200 meter dash every time. Brooke went to nationals and placed 16th over all in the 60 meter run with a time of 7.79s.
    A big part of the Girl's Track team is the seniors who gained points for us every meet. Kassidy Campbell runs the 100 meter and 400 meter hurtles at personal records of  15.7 and 65.63. She went to State relays for the shuttle hurtle dash, and her team placed 2nd. She also has won first in the 100 meter dash and the 400 meter dash at all regular season meets. Amy Pereria runs the 100 meter dash at 12.7 and throws shot put at 35'7". Ashley Pelletier throws javelin with a personal record of 111'9. All three of these girls made a vast impact on the Norton Track team, and they will be missed very much.
    The Norton Track team had a successful season in 2015 and hope to continue that next year. They just need to adhere to the confidence they have and they can't be beat. Coach Nastri was voted coach of the year and she reserved it. For her first year being head coach her team was amazing. The team has nothing to be disappointed about. "Everyone of you should have pride in yourself and not one head should be held down." said Coach Taylor persuading his team, they are irreplaceable.
   
    

       Throughout the informative article "It was lightning and thunder" by Will Grimsley written 50 years ago on May 25, 1965, Grimsley wrote the article to bring back the memory of the heavyweight title match between Muhammad Ali and Sonny Liston. The match was held in Lewiston, Maine and was intended for people interested in the Ali knock-down controversy. In Grimsley's article, it is stated that Liston was projected to win by many fans and the fight was in his favor. Turns out, Muhammad Ali knocked Liston to the floor in under 2 minutes! This came to a huge surprise and disappointment to most. Many people believe the fight was fixed because of how positive they were Liston would come out on top.  The author uses great statistics and quotes from Liston's side, but not much from Ali's. I think he was bias towards Liston and he, as well as many fans thought and hoped Sonny Liston became the new heavyweight champion. The author uses interesting facts that real the reader in and quotes that explain how the fight played out. He uses boxing jargon and words that would attract fans from all over. That was interesting to me and it really engaged me to continue reading.



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        In Al Schoch's article "Pedroia power not enough for Sox", it covers the Red Sox's game against the Minnesota Twins on Wednesday, May 27th. The sox lost 6-4 causing an upset in Boston and disappointment throughout the crowd. Many quotes are used from players and coaches on both sides. "This isn't football, you can't go out there and hit somebody, you got to calm down, you got to think the game and have a good at-bat." This is a quote from Pedroia, as he is being a great leader towards his team and trying to get everyone to focus. His attempts to do this fall short and not even his incredible at-bat performances can cut it for the Sox. The article reveals how the stats from the last game give information about the next. It also explains what goes on in the Trainer's room and how both teams reacted to the game. As you can imagine the Red Sox were hurt but the Twins couldn't be happier. After reading the article you have a much better understanding of how the Twins and Red Sox game played out.
       

BP #8

    Throughout the film, "The Short Game" by Josh Greenbaum, children 8 years and younger are interviewed and followed as they talk about their passion, which is golf. These children are elite golfers from all over the world who came together to play in the world championship game. These young golfers have basically dedicated their childhood to golf. One boy was named Allan Kournikova, he was 7 years old and the number one golfer for his age group in the world. He then ended up winning the whole tournament. By practicing for what you want as Allan did the outcome will be in your favor. All of these children have put more than their hearts into golf and their main focus is golf.

      In my opinion, I think that the children in this film are being treated correctly because they love doing what they do. Although the film shows the frustration and aggravation the children and parents have throughout, they still all fell in love with the game. The movie really impressed me and made me realize that no matter what age you are, you can have determination to do anything you want. In the film there was a girl named Sky Sudberry, she was 7 years old and from Texas. She was a very small girl, so it was very hard for her to have the strength to hit the golf balls far, but she overcame that and made it down to the final two in the world championship. I don't think the children are too young and immature to be so devoted to a sport. All of these children are going to take this far with them and are amazing at what they do.

     In the film, Greenbaum shows how parents can be very supportive of whatever their kids decide to do at whatever age. He first shows how the kids get excited to play and talking about the game gets them worked up. He interviews the children at their homes and all they can do is smile about the thought of golf! This showed me how the children are all very into the game and have a passion for it. While interviewing the children, the parents get involved. The parents are being more than supportive towards their kids. During the tournament, the kid's parents show their frustration and how much they support watching their children do what they love. Greenbaum shows families from all over the world and from all different ethnicitys come together and play a game of golf. He seems to have an audience that would understand what the children and parents are going through and someone interested in young golfers.
  

BP #7

    In Trevor Martin's inspiring "Schooled: The Price of College Sports" (2013), he persuades that college athletes are only looked at for what they do on the court/field and not what they do in the classroom. Colleges are more focused on the athletes performance during their games than the health of their players. The author first explains this by going into Kent's life. It is shown that TCU told Kent they were going to cut his scholarship because of his injury. He then goes further into detail about how unfair TCU is treating Kent and he was told he was off the team if he did not get himself together. His purpose is to show the viewers that some colleges are taking advantage of their student athletes and how unfair treatment can have a bad outcome. He seems to have an audience that are fans of the NCAA or people that work closely with athletes. Trevor Martin's "Schooled: The Price of College Sports" opened my eyes to view the way the NCAA uses college athletes to make profit and not to have them enjoy their college experience as they should.
     I believe that, Trevor Martin is correct in his film. College athletes should not just be showed off for what they can do on the field. They should be respected in the ways they need. In order for student athletes to be successful they need a good education and adults who believe in them. The athletes need to be paid a fair amount of money and not cheated out of what they deserve. If a student gets injured while playing a sport for their college, that college should be responsible in taking care of him/her until their parents are there and have control. The NCAA is treating college athletes unfairly and taking advantage of young adult's minds. By and large, I believe that student athletes deserve the correct curriculum and the correct amount of profit in order for the NCAA to not be so frowned upon.

BP #6

The general argument made by the author in "JJ Nelson: Adidas never offered deal" is that while running in the NFL combine JJ Nelson was offered $100,000 by Adidas if he represented them. "When Nelson went to the player suite where he had the choice to run in the latest models from Nike, Under Armor, and Adidas, he said he chose Adidas not only because the shoes were comfortable but because he was aware of the $100,00 prize." In this quote, the author is explaining how Nelson knew about the deal with Adidas. He is making is clear that Nelson was fully aware of every condition in the agreement with Adidas. The author is defending JJ Nelson and explaining how Nelson deserves the money and he is right.
    Personally, I believe that JJ Nelson was wrong and he does not deserve the money. "I wasn't completely focused on it at the time, I was obviously focused on getting a good time in first." This is a quote from JJ Nelson that he said the ESPN. He is trying to defend himself by stating that he was not fully focused on signing anything, but Adidas lucidly stated that in order to win the cash prize you must one be wearing the Adidas brand shoes, and two sign a contract to endorse the brand. Nelson did not succeed in doing so, therefore he was not eligible to win the money from Adidas. The other runners had no issue with signing the waiver and running the race wearing the Adidas brand shoes so I don't see how Nelson could have any excuse as to why he did not sign anything. By and large, JJ Nelson did not sign the waiver he was supposed to therefore he does not deserve the money prize.

BP #5

The losing streak is over for the Boston Bruins. They have put the beginning of the month behind them and went on to win against the Arizona Coyotes at the TD Garden in Boston on Saturday February 28. The game on Saturday, had an amazing score of 4-1, with our favorite Boston team the Bruins victorious!


The Bruins fan favorite players were on fire Saturday night! The first goal was scored by Luic in the first period to start the night off 1-0. Marchand Chara and Bergeron also helped the Bruins with their victory by each scoring a goal.

  Coach Claude Julien said."I think it's important that if we want to be in one of those playoff spots that we are ready on a nightly basis and score as many points as we can." Coyotes coach Dave Tippett said, "Well, bad break. Smitty bobbled that first one and got us behind early." As you can tell, both coaches were aggressive to get their team to win and with luck and talent the Bruins pulled through for Claude Julien to put a smile on his face!

Marchand received a swift pass from Reilly Smith across the ice to rack in a shot making the score 2-0. Bergeron kept the goals coming, as he took a shot that ricocheted off of Keith Yandle's left skate and bounce into the net. Chara skated up the rink and took a slap shot that banged right in over Smith's shoulder making the score of the game 4-0! If the Bruins keep up with this teamwork and determination, I think the future is looking good for them!



                                                                             

BP #4

        Throughout the movie, "Hoop Dreams" the lives of William Gates and Arthur Agee are followed. Both of these boys were African American and had a passion for basketball. They both were given scholarships to St. Joseph's for their skills on the court. After trying out for the team, the results were in. William was on Varsity and Arthur was starting on the Freshman team. Since Arthur was not on Varsity he was only given a partial scholarship. Arthur's mother could not keep up with paying for him to attend St. Joseph's because it was so expensive and there was no help from Arthur's father. His father became a drug addict and never spoke to the family. Arthur was then kicked out of St. Joseph's and forced to go to a public school, named Marshall. As a junior Arthur leads Marshall to the city championship game and into the final championship that they won! Arthur went on to college and continued to play ball. As for, William he was the star on Varsity and he impressed all his fans. The only ones not impressed with William was his teachers. His grades dropped and he never got a full education like the other students did. On top of having poor grades, William faced other issues in High School. William now had a son that was his responsibility and a huge inconvenience for him. Also, during one of his games he experienced a tragic knee injury that never correctly healed, because neither him or his coaches gave it time to recover. With his baby, his knee, and his basketball career there was no time for school, so William's grades were still very low. The struggles William and Arthur had to face as a teenager in High School scare me for my High School experience, but both boys ended up in college with scholarships to do what they do best, and that is play basketball!
           The theme of this movie was, to never give up on your dreams even when the skies are rough. Both William and Arthur had dreamed about making it to the NBA and being part of the basketball world. Although neither one made it all the way to the professional league they still both got to enjoy the high school and college experience which I think is pretty awesome! William faced issues left and right throughout high school. First, his family did not have a lot of money to begin with. Second he had a baby while still in school which made focusing on anything impossible. Third, he had knee injuries that never went away and bothered him throughout college. And last, the grades William got were never good enough and he was never a smart student. Arthur, had low money income to his family and the could barely afford food on his table. He only started off on a freshman team, which lowered his confidence and the teams he was competing against weren't challenging him. And last for Arthur, his father was a drug addict. He was never around or never home and never there to support Arthur during his games. My dad is my number one supporter when it comes to me and sports and if he wasn't able to ever come to my games or talk to me about my game I don't think I would be the athlete I am today. So I can't imagine how hard that was for Arthur to not have a father to bond with. Clearly both William and Arthur have faced unbelievably difficult challenges through high school, but the one thing the boys never did was give up. All the bumps in their paths only made them stronger and helped them to get to where they are. Neither boy ever gave up on their dream and I'm very glad I got to learn about these boys.