That’s the slogan for this year’s boys lacrosse team who begin district playoffs today against Conrad Weiser High School Tuesday. The Comets are the 7 seed in the district playoffs after not fairing very well in leagues.
After qualifying for the league playoffs, the Comets were handed a tough defeat by Manheim Township. The Comets went up 2-0 to start the game on goals scored by Spencer Barnett and Brady Charles. The visiting Blue Streaks quickly stole Penn Manor’s momentum and scored nine unanswered goals.
The Comets getting ready to play Manheim Township. Photo by Bryan Buckius
After the Streaks went up 8-2, Comets starting goalie Brian Sloss was taken out and replaced by freshmen Damon Cummins. Cummins had three big saves before the half and senior defender Jaq Presbery scored an inspirational coast to coast goal to give the Comets hope going into the half.
After the break things continued to go Township’s way and the Streaks ended up winning 16-5.
Although the loss to Manheim Township wasn’t an easy loss to swallow, the Comets are ready to go for tonight’s game.
“We have home field advantage and although the weather isn’t looking good we should still pull out the win,” said junior defender Alex Cummins.
If the Comets win tonight their next game will be against, guess who, Manheim Township.
“Maybe the third times a charm,” said Cummins in regard to the game against Township.
Junior defensemen Alex Cummins. Photo by Bryan Buckius
With their season on the line, the Comets play tonight at 5 p.m. at Comet Field.
The human brain has many different emotions, and when you throw music into the mix, the brain gets enveloped with them.
According to “This is your brain on music,” written by Daniel J. Levitin, studies show listening to music stimulates the brain, the emotional connection we have to the songs on the radio or the CD’s you listen to all correspond to a memory, a loved one, your mood, your religion, your up-bringing and much more.
Humans feel a different connection when just listening to a song through speakers as apposed to being at a concert or recital. The person playing the music has the ability to make you feel a deep connection or no connection at all. They do this by playing with “feeling,” according to the new research.
When a person playing Moonlight Sonata by Beethoven (a minor song) plays the song with no accents or crescendos or staccatos, how is a person supposed to get involved with a boring song?
But when you play as if the person or memory, etc. is around you, the feeling comes alive, not just in the person playing the song, but the listeners as well.
An article titled “To Tug the Heartstrings, Music First Must Tickle the Neurons,” from the New York TImes states that researchers did an experiment where music (the same song) was played note for note “mechanically” and then freely, holding out notes for longer periods of times and playing notes louder. They were voted on which had more emotion and the freely played one won.
“Seeing an artist actually play, you can see what they put forth in their music, I really connect with them when I hear their emotion,” said sophomore Haley Smith.
A photo of a piano that sits in Penn Manor high school , photo credit Abby Talbot.
Then there’s the difference in how you feel about the music when you have major and minor keys. Major keys are more positive sounding, something like Twinkle Twinkle Little Star or Up on the Roof Top.
Minor keys sound more negative as in gloomy or sad. A song held in a minor key would be like the theme song to Michael Myers or Moonlight Sonata.
Usually when a song is being played in a major key your mood is happy or joyful compared to a song in minor where your mood will most likely be sad.
Dr. Anjali Bhatara, now a postdoctoral researcher at the Université Paris Descartes, said in an interview with the New York Times, “I think it means that the pianist is very experienced in using these expressive cues.” She believed the more expressive you are the better you connect with your audience.
Melissa Telesco, one of Penn Manor’s music teachers said, “Music is like a fight, before you confront someone in a fight you think about what your going to say, and then when you get in front of them your true emotions and feelings come out.”
Music does resemble a fight, when you preform it you play with your heart.
Music can legitimately change waves and hormones within the brain. Experiments done measuring the cerebral blood flow and PET scans prove this. A recent experiment showed a person’s emotions when abusing drugs, eating food and having sex. Their brain waves indicated a very high level of pleasure. Then when they were to listen to music, they had the same amount of feelings containing pleasure as to when using drugs and eating food.
Music reaches people on all different levels and how we listen and play music determines the mind set we will have after the song is done. The way music can be altered into so much of a deeper universe is incredible and our brains are challenged by it.
There are differences in every relationship but some couples, famous or ordinary, each have to decide if the differences between them and their significant other is worth working on the relationship.
Every couple has differences, some are just worse than others.
For example, after being together for 25 years Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver have split. They were one of America’s most unlikely couples. Schwarzenegger, a movie star and Austrian body builder who took the real life role of Republican governor of California, and Shriver a journalist and member of Kennedy’s Democratic dynasty.
Toward the end of Schwarzenegger’s second term as governor he announced that he would be returning to the movie business, but Shriver didn’t give any indication of what she would be doing next. Adjusting to their new life is suspected to have something to do with their separation.
Some speculated that their differences finally got the best of them.
Schwarzenegger then admitted that he fathered a child 10 years ago with a member of his household staff. New life? Apparently not, just an old one in hiding.
The joint statement said that the two were living apart but working on the future of their relationship and that they will continue to parent their four children together: Katherine Eunice Shriver Schwarzenegger, 21, Christina Maria Aurelia, 20, Patrick Arnold Schwarzenegger, 17 and Christopher Sargent Shriver Schwarzenegger, 13.
Penn Manor couples know all too well of differences in their relationships – whether it be emotionally, physically or mentally. In Schwarzenegger’s case, it was politics and let’s just say a big difference between he and his wife’s views of the wedding vows.
Rivera and Lindeman. Photo Credit: Kendal Phillips
In Penn Manor senior Marcos Rivera’s case…
“Maturity,” senior Rivera said about his relationship with fellow senior Jessie Lindeman. “She is more mature than I am.”
So when a sticky situation arises, will Marcos step up and change his ways?
“I (would have) to step up and show her that I can be a man that she can rely on,” he said.
It’s kind of a learning, growing experience,” Lindeman said. “It could be possible (that it can affect them in the future, but) it’s fun. It’s not a bad thing.”
“Definitely as you grow older, you need to become more serious and be ready for the next step,” Rivera said.
Eric Clark, another senior, has a difference with his significant other that isn’t quite in the same ballpark as Rivera’s.
Sitting in the library, attempting to focus while playing chess with a classmate and being badgered by a student journalist, his girlfriend, Meryl Arnold, is currently in class at Penn College. A solid hour-and-a-half away is his difference. Not to discount that high school and college are two completely different worlds.
“It sucks,” said 18-year old Clark. “These last nine months have been the harshest section of our relationship.”
But thanks to Skype dates and, as he said, “keeping it touch as much as possible,” their differences in location aren’t as hard.
“You gotta man up and work though it,” Clark said.
Some couples have problems that are more because of their personality differences.
Kuster and Walker. Photo Credit: Alex Geli
“Stubbornness,” Clark Habecker said is difference was between him and his girlfriend, Emily Nickel.
Since Nickel is apparently a bit more stubborn than Habecker is at times, “it’s a bit of a bother,” he said.
“I just try and diffuse the situation; tell her she’s right and just drop it,” said Habecker.
Even though it’s a difference, it really isn’t a big deal now, nor in the long run, according to Habecker.
“It’s not that big of a problem,” he added.
Speaking of “not that big of a problem,” another minor difference around Penn Manor is level of niceness.
“She’s nice and I’m kind of a [not nice]” Alex Kirk, a junior, said. He doesn’t have anything to worry about in the future since, well, this couple isn’t quite on the same boat.
“He’s not!” his girlfriend, Sarah Bennis insisted.
“I’m a pushover and he’s not,” said Paige Kuster, girlfriend of senior Dillon Walker.
For some couples this could be problematic but according to Kuster, it’s good that they’re different. “You can help each other,” she said.
To the right of her, Walker was left contemplating.
“Weird logic but okay…” Walker said, then adding, “It’s good to complement each other.”
Penn Manor couples don’t seem to be let their differences get to them but after 25 years,the famous couple Schwarzenegger and Shriver did.
The day has come for 18 year olds to finally vote for pubic office, district attorney, city borough and townships.
But will they?
“I’m not, I don’t vote, never had a hand in politics,” said Penn Manor senior Tyler Beckley, 18 years of age but not registered to vote.
Although there are an estimated 300,000 registered voters in Lancaster County, it won’t be clear until the polls close, just how many of them will actually vote during this lackluster mid-term election where only some county, city, borough and township positions are up for grabs, along with some state and local judges.
The polls open Tuesday morning at 7 a.m and will be closing at 8 p.m.
Some 18 year olds may be excited to vote and some may not be interested.
“Not really, I just don’t care about it,” said senior Cody Welch about the election.
On the other hand, some local students are very excited about voting.
Brandon Patterson, a 19-year-old student at York Technical Institute said, “(It’s a) new experience, new people to look forward to in different positions like state and county judgeships.”
For lots of statistics about youth voters in America go to this website:
A student from Penn Manor High school, Mackenzie Caterbone said, “I think that 18 is too young, you should have a better understanding about everything.”
Caterbone, who is not 18, said her father is running for a local public office.
“He wants to go in for (get elected to) a borough position, she said.”
Caterbone said she knows someone who is going to vote.
Hempfield has won two of the last games against Penn Manor, both by one goal.
“Third times a charm,” said lock-up defender Dani Warfel.
It was a different story on Saturday, the Penn Manor girls won 3-2 in penalty kicks (overtime) to claim the LL- League title from the Black Knights, winning for the first time since 2004.
Up next for the Comets are the District 3 playoffs. Penn Manor, the No. 4 seed in AAA, awaits the winner of a play-in game between West York and Carlisle, according to Jeffrey Reinhart on the Lancaster-Lebanon League News website.
The game was scoreless at the half. It remained that way after the end of regulation. Still no score after the first 20-minute overtime session. The second 20-minute overtime period was scoreless also.
The Comets celebrate their victory with the LL League Championship trophy at hand. (Photo Credit http://llleaguesports.com)
“Both offenses had the opportunities to score but just couldn’t connect (speaking of regulation),” said Comet’s goalie Veronica Willig.
The Comets and the Knights went to penalty kicks (PKs) , and on Penn Manor’s fifth and final try, senior midfielder Katie Breneman found the back of the net against goalie Lauren Trower, which gave Penn Manor a 3-2 edge and sealed their victory.
Among the others to score, in order, for Penn Manor during PKs was Logan Kramer, Dani Warfel and then Katie Breneman.
Penn Manor’s four titles are now the second-most in league history; Hempfield, which was denied back-to-back championships, has the most with seven, according to Reinhart.
Veronica Willig saved the second and third PK kick while the fifth went wide. It was a good outing by both of the goalies, according to their coaches.
“This one feels different – it really does,” said Penn Manor coach Bill Zapata, whose team won via shutout for the 16th time in 21 games this spring.
“It feels different because it’s been a while and because nobody really picked us. (At the start of the season) everyone was picking Hempfield and maybe Conestoga Valley and we were sort of under the radar,” according to the L-L News.
With a look of confidence, Dani Warfel said, “We just find a way to win the important games.”
Best friends, lovers and even family can be lost if you’re willing to kill.
It’s not just enough that Pennsylvania citizens lived through local murders, but now they can relive what horror happened just a few years ago by reading books about these sensational crimes.
For example, 16-year-old, Alec Kreider, killed his best friend’s family.
Micheal W. Cuneo wrote a spine-chilling book about this crime, “A Need To Kill: Confessions of a Teen Killer.”
There are two sections to the book. The first section is titled “The Killings,” and is about what happened narrated in an omniscient narrative point of view. Each chapter holds a story within its own.
Lancaster resident Jan Roseboro was found dead in her pool, killed by her husband, Michael Roseboro.
Alec Kreider being arrested. Photo courtesy of
M. William Phelps wrote the book on the Roseboro murder. Within this book titled “Love Her To Death” there are five different stories all linking together. (Book One: The Undertaker and The Po-Po, Book Two: The Mistress and Mortician, Book Three: Morbid Curiosity, Book Four: Where I’m Calling From, Book Five: Angie and The Rockstar) Just like the the book “A Need To Kill” it is written in a way where you get everyone’s side of the story; each chapter is written from a different view point.
“I didn’t seem like it was too long ago that this happened and it was very close, I’m surprised I didn’t hear about it,” said Penn Manor sophomore Casey Hurlburt.
A Manheim Township family was murdered in May of 2007 while sleeping soundly. With no force, Kreider entered the house of Kevin Haines, his best friend. Stabbing Kevin, his mother and father, Kreider experienced the feeling of being a cold blooded killer, according to the book about the experience. Luckily, the Haines’s daughter, Maggie, got away with no physical harm. She ran across the street to get help after being startled by screams and the smell of blood coming from her parent’s room. She saw her mother covered in blood, crying for help while her father was lying in their bed motionless.
The police were puzzled with the crime scene. They first suspected Maggie since no other person was obvious and there were no leads to follow. Kreider eventually confessed the homicide to his father in early June. His father, Tim Kreider, reported him to the police two days after the confession. Kreider was charged with three counts of first degree murder, on June 17, 2008.
The first chapter of “A Need to Kill,” is about the mind confusion that Haines went through that deadly night the family was killed. The second chapter is about Manheim Township officer, Steve Newman, who went through what he arrived to at the scene of the crime and his experience talking to Haines.
Michael Roseboro's mug shot. Photo courtesy of
The second section is called “The Killer,” and is all about Kreider’s perspective on everything that went down the night of the killing to the day he was convicted.
“It’s unbelievable, it makes a good reference to go back on,” said Hurlburt. “In ten years from now if I see this book I’d be like -Oh my god, I remember this!- and totally read it again.”
In the summer of 2008 in Reinholds PA, Jan Roseboro was found dead in the bottom of her pool. Her husband, Micheal Roseboro, seemed emotionless to the loss of his wife so police thought he was in shock. Police guessed is was an accident that Jan drowned, but Roseboro’s autopsy showed she was beaten and strangled.
Not only did Micheal Roseboro inherit his family business, being a funeral director, it turns out he was having an affair. His mistress, Angela Funk, was also pregnant with his child.
There wasn’t an official motive stated by police why Roseboro did what he did. Many people think he wanted his wife out of the picture so he could have a new lover and keep all his money without divorcing, a easy way out. Roseboro was convicted for the death of Jan, sentenced for life, with no possibility of parole.
“I’m only on the ninth chapter, but the description was amazing, it makes me feel like I can see all the people and the pool,” Hurlburt said.
Sophia Forte and Jaime Reel reading, Photo by Crystal Bugner
These two books can be found on Amazon.com or at a local book store. Love Her to Death can be purchased for about $7 and A Need to Kill for $8 on Amazon. These mind blowing, descriptive books will make you seem like you’re watching a movie. It will seem like you’re actually reliving what had happened all right in front of you.
“If I actually owned the book, I’d write my name in it and pass it along to anyone who would want to read it,” said Hurlburt. “I want to spread the word about this book
The Comet’s boys volleyball team controlled their own destiny Thursday night with a dominating performance over Ephrata. The team won three games to zero.
Penn Manor, 9-3 in the league, is good enough to be ranked second in the league.
The Comets are playing Garden Spot Monday at Manheim Central at 7:30 p.m. for the first round of leagues.
Heading into league playoffs with lots of momentum by winning six of the last seven matches. Penn Manor looks in good shape to face their next victim, Garden Spot.
During the game against Ephrata, setter Cheyenne Weber controlled the court and spread the ball to all Comet hitters so the opposing team’s block were fooled.
On the other side of the set, the other Weber twin, Dylan, finished balls with one of the highest kill rates in the league.
With the Weber brothers and a strong supporting cast, the Comets are going to be a tough out for anyone in the league including the first seed Hempfield.
Gas prices have reached a peak of $3.87 to $4.04 a gallon. Pocket money for students is dwindling because of this economic catastrophe.
At $4 an average per gallon, many kids are paying $48 to fill their tanks according to AAA.
For students at Penn Manor High School, who work for minimum wage, their paychecks are not cutting it with these gas prices. A majority of their pay checks are going toward filling their gas tanks.
For senior Jackie Schmalhofer, who works at Denny’s on a $2.83 per hour salary, not including tips, she spends about one third of her pay check on gas.
“I get paid twice a month, including tips my pay checks are around $300,” she said. “It took me $47 on Saturday to fill my tank, which I don’t usually do. I usually just fill it half way about twice a week.”
“I work at Willow Valley making minimum wage,” said senior Olivia Rineer. “I drive a Jeep Wrangler, which is a complete gas hog. Just last week I spent fifty dollars on gas, not even filling my tank. Prices are getting ridiculous.”
Many Penn Manor student drivers can’t afford to fill their gas tanks. It is simply too costly.
Senior Alexis Russel explained that she only puts $20 worth of gas in her car about twice a week, which only gets her half a tank.
“It isn’t really an issue for me, my car is pretty good on gas, and I don’t do as much driving around as others,” said Russel. “But to fill my tank it would take about $40, that’s still up there compared to prior gas prices.”
“I am employed at Arby’s working for $7.45 an hour,” said junior Maddi Eckenrode. “I drive a Ford Taurus. The last time I put gas in my car I spent $59 to fill my tank.”
Eckenrode makes anywhere from $250 to $350 bi-weekly and gets gas once or twice a week. On this pay and with how much gas costs her, she spends roughly two-fifths of her pay check on gas.
“I’d say that a lot of my pay checks go towards gas money for my car, especially with how much I drive,” added Eckenrode.
Apparently “Grandma” and “Grandpa” aren’t hip enough names for baby boomer grandparents who do not like the traditional labels because they make them feel older, according to published news reports.
Nanny and Pappy are the most commonly used names for grandparents. But the range of “cute” grandparent names runs the game from the traditional to the way out there – including Jayma and Poppy.
Students and the staff at Penn Manor use a variety of names to identify their grandparents.
The names the students give their grandparents range from nanny and pappy to one I never heard before “G ma,” said sophomore Arron Lugo.
Their grandparents may like when they are called another name because it shows the love and care the students have for them and how they love being there for them.
Students that don’t have a different name other then “grandma” and “grandpa” still have the same love and respect for their family just may not have the need to call them another name.
No not in college, but in high school, students taking AP classes often see their strenuous coursework come to an end after they take their AP test in mid-May.
So then what?
Some classes do a variety of things such as take field trips, watch movies and even take food challenges (eating food that is considered difficult to eat).
AP student is concentrating on his phone. Photo by David Mohimani
“Absolutely nothing,” said senior Katie Maisel of the amount of work she is doing now that her AP classes are complete.
“Food challenges are awesome,” said one Penn Manor student who asked to remain anonymous to protect his teacher. “Some don’t even seem that hard but you’d be surprised. I went in thinking two sprites and two bananas in half an hour, that’s a piece of cake. Boy was I wrong,” said the student.
“We’ve literally watched three movies. Like we finished the third one today,” said junior Sara Bennis. “I think it’s a lot of fun. We’re also doing like, fun projects, like making YouTube videos.”
Some AP students aren’t as lucky.
“No videos whatsoever. No Shutter Island,” said AP teacher Erick Dutchess.
Dutchess’s AP students will not be slacking during the final weeks of the school year. “We’re doing pig dissections as well as a water quality analysis lab,” said Dutchess. He also said that he has not closed his gradebook, so students have to continue to work hard in his class.
Dutchess is rewarding his students a little, however, by taking them to Lancaster County Solid Waste Management Authority.
AP calculus students are not getting any type of break, even after completing their AP test.
“We are learning integration by parts. The blocks are so long, I don’t like it,” said senior Morgan Fletcher.
“It’s really annoying because senioritis has set in and I don’t want to do this stuff. Like even in [another AP class] all we’re doing is watching movies and it’s still annoying,”said Fletcher.
Some may argue that there are more productive ways for students to be spending their final days, but after a long, strenuous year of preparation for the AP test, some feel that taking it easy the last couple of weeks is just rewards.
“It’s a reward for the hard work we put in all year. It’s only right that we should get to have some fun at the end of the year,”said senior Mark Curtin.
