Spoken Word Team Wins Regional Contest
Stevenson’s spoken word team won the Patricia Smith Regional Slam Poetry bout Friday night at Collins Academy in Chicago. The competition is part of the slam poetry contest Louder than a Bomb, the largest youth poetry festival in the world. Stevenson’s team, led by senior Anna Wang, also includes juniors Laya Reddy, Katie Lee, Maddie Mitchell, Tanisha Gunashakar, Amber Atkinson and Shayaan Shaik, and sophomore Tia Vasudeva. Louder Than A Bomb, sponsored by Young Chicago Authors, brings together more than 500 youth poets from schools and community groups throughout the Chicago area, for five weeks of Olympic-style poetry bouts, workshops, and special events.
Archers On Target in Chicago Tournament
The varsity archery team captured first place at the Phoenix Academy tournament Saturday in Chicago. The junior varsity finished fourth. The varsity Patriots tallied a team score of 3,138 with 117 bullseyes, while the JV had a score of 2,801 and 52 bullseyes. Senior Sylvia Zhang finished second among all female archers, posting a score of 278 with 15 bullseyes. Junior Hayden Gantt placed third among all males with a score of 276 and 14 bullseyes. Other top 10 finishers in the female division included sophomore Elisabeth Clavel, who was fourth (274, 14 bullseyes), senior Caitlin Goldberg (fifth, 272, 13) and senior Erin Fitzgerald (seventh, 270, 10). On the boys’ side, junior Chris Chong was eighth (267, 8). Sophomore novice archer Rinnell Borges added a 246 score and seven bullseyes.
Orchestra Chamber Concert Tonight
The Orchestra Chamber Concert takes place tonight in the Recital Hall portion of the Performing Arts Center. Performances will take place in two sets; the first starts at 6 o’clock, followed by the second at 7:30. Admission is free. For those unable to attend, the concert will be streamed live through the Fine Arts Division’s Vimeo page.
Dating and Teenage Development
Stevenson‘s Substance Abuse Prevention Coordinator, Dr. Cristina Cortesi, will share regular reflections during the school year in the Daily Digest. For more information on Dr. Cortesi and the substance abuse prevention program, visit her web page.
A study in the Journal of School Health sought to determine if dating was considered normal and essential for a teen’s individual development and well-being. It found that adolescents who were not in romantic relationships during middle and high school had better social and leadership skills, and were less likely to be sad, hopeless or depressed than peers who dated. Students who decide not to date are simply following a different and healthy developmental trajectory than their dating peers. As Valentine’s Day approaches, encourage your student to focus less on finding a significant other and more on celebrating the amazing relationships they have with friends and family.
Girls Gymnastics Team Qualifies for Sectional
The SHS girls gymnastics team has earned an at-large bid to Thursday’s Illinois High School Association sectional tournament at Mundelein High School. The Patriots posted a regional score of 142.20 at last week’s Libertyville Regional, securing one of the two at-large sectional berths, along with Lake Forest. Five Patriots also will compete in the individual sectional competition, earning bids by finishing at the top five at regional or via at-large qualification. They are (top-five regional finish in italics):
- Senior Emily Weinstein: All-around, balance beam, floor exercise, uneven parallel bars, vault
- Junior Ainslee Cutler: All-around, balance beam
- Sophomore Ally Gitler: All-around, floor exercise, uneven parallel bars
- Freshman Emma Fang: All-around, balance beam, uneven parallel bars
- Freshman Ashley Schabes: All-around, balance beam, floor exercise, uneven parallel bars, vault
Vote for RJ Holmes in National Dunk Contest
Senior RJ Holmes is one of 16 basketball players in the country competing for a spot in the American Family Insurance High School Slam Dunk Championship, a fan-driven, online bracket-style contest that will be held over the next four weeks. First-round voting starts at noon today at www.highschoolslam.com, and runs through Tuesday, Feb. 18. Fans are allowed one vote per device, per day. Athletes earning the most votes in their head-to-head first-round matchups advance to the second round, which starts next week. The slam dunk championship will be held Tuesday, April 7 in Atlanta, the day after the NCAA Division I men’s basketball title game.
Cheerleading Video and Correction
Monday’s Digest entry on the cheerleaders’ second-place finish at the IHSA state finals, the highest in program history, erred in saying that the school received a trophy for its fifth-place finish in 2017. Trophies are not given for fifth place. Here is a video of this year’s state performance.
Quick Hits
Tonight’s varsity and sophomore boys basketball games against Lake Zurich will be streamed live from the Sports Center on Stevenson’s NFHS Network page (subscription required). The sophomore game starts at 5:30, followed by the varsity at 7 o’clock. … The boys baseball team is holding a fundraiser from 3-11 p.m. Wednesday at Woodfire Tavern, 4868 Illinois Route 83 (corner of Route 83 and Gilmer Road) in Long Grove. Mention “Stevenson Baseball” and 20% of the sale will be donated to the team.
Stevenson Daily Digest 