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Red & White Meet

McClatchy’s track and field team kicked off the first meet of the season with their annual red and white meet. The meet itself wasn’t a typical meet where other teams from other schools came to compete; it was just a meet amongst the team. The meet was done so the players could get a feel for what an actual meet entails. The runners showed up bright and early at eight o’clock last Saturday to help set up the meet and some of the equipment needed for their events.

The team consisted of 113 people, differing from field events, sprinting, and distance. Coach Watkins, also a chemistry teacher, coaches the distance kids and the throwers. Coach Dale coaches the pole vaulters. Coach Johnson, also a math teacher, coaches the hurdlers and high/long jump. Coach Mo’ coaches the sprinters, and was a college student-athlete, who ran track at Sac City College.

Before the meet started, I had the opportunity to talk with Coach Mo’:

“So if I heard correctly this is your first official year being a full-time coach?” 

“Yeah, it’s my first time coaching through the school district.”

“That’s so exciting! Going into this first meet, technically more of a warmup meet, what do you look forward to your runners doing today?”

“I look forward to seeing all the preparation that we’ve worked on in the past few months. We just ran the timed four hundred last week, which was super successful! Today most of the sprinters will now be running the 100 and 200 meter, which we have been preparing for. It’s a great way to start our season!”

“Yes, it is! What do you look forward to achieving as a coach this season?”

“I look forward to achieving more PRs, more banners of course, and just aspiring all of you to keep being active and staying out here.”

Coach Mo’ has such a positive outlook, and so do the rest of the coaches. Many of the runners had amazing races, setting new personal records (PR). Hugh Heyer ran PR’d in the 800m race, coming in first place with a grand time of two minutes and six seconds, basically running a minute and three seconds on each lap. 

Many of the girl varsity runners PR’d in the 1600m. Madeline Zimmerman, only a sophomore, ran a 13-second 100m, and she had never run track before. We can expect to see a lot out of all the newcomers on the team, along with the returning veterans, like the super-fast sprinter Jada Lawson and crazy fast distance runners Owen Anderson, Sam Rounds, and more.

As the season progresses, we as the audience, parents, or supporters, should anticipate the greatness the track and field team will accomplish. Whether that be getting a new banner to hang up or just having a good time, the Lions will set out to do their absolute best and on those days where they might not, it will be okay because they will have so much support from their teammates and the community around them. You go Lions!

Pictures from the event photographed by Francisco Escobar:

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News Sports

McClatchy Lions vs. Jesuit Marauders Boys Varsity Soccer Final

On Saturday night, the McClatchy boys varsity team played in the CIF Sac Joaquin finals against Jesuit. They had a great season, and everyone was excited for this final game.

The first few minutes of the first half were a close battle between both teams; all the boys wanted this win and did everything they could to get it. With 23 minutes left in the first half, Jesuit scored, making it 1-0.

Starting the second half, both teams seemed tired, but they did not give up. McClatchy students, family, and staff did not stop showing support and still had hope they could win this game.

The intensity of the game picked up, with both Jesuit and McClatchy attempting shots but missing. Time kept getting shorter, and McClatchy was losing their chance to make a comeback.

With only two minutes left, Jesuit scored again, making the score 2-0 and McClatchy losing their chance at winning the title.

Although they did not win, McClatchy had a great season, ending at #1 in the league with 11 wins and only 1 loss. It wasn’t the ending everyone was hoping for, but McClatchy fans showed love and were extremely proud of how far they made it this season.

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News

Volunteer Opportunities in Sacramento

Sacramento is in no short supply of volunteer opportunities and people in need. Volunteering is a very generous way to give back to your community.

Going out and helping around your community can be a very good way to use up some spare time and help those in need. Opportunities to volunteer with The Front Street Animal Shelter and the Sacramento Food Bank & Family Services are just a few clicks away.

The Front Street Animal Shelter and the Sacramento SPCA need volunteers to help with the care of these animals. The volunteer work consists of walking the cats and dogs, socializing with the animals, cleaning them, and just spending time with the animals making sure they feel cared for and loved during their search for a home. To sign up, one would just have to go to either of the shelters’ websites and navigate to the volunteering section.

The Sacramento Public Library is looking for teen volunteers for their Virtual Homework Zone program. In this program, kindergarten through eighth-grade students can drop by and get help from the volunteers with their homework. They want people with at least a 3.0 GPA and full access to a computer with Zoom.

At the River City Food Bank, their goal is to give food to people who are unable to meet the basic living expenses. From February 27th through June 27th, you can volunteer to prepare and hand out food to the people in need. Even if you cannot make the time to volunteer, food banks across Sacramento are always taking food donations in the form of canned goods.

You don’t always have to volunteer your time, for there are always people in need of other things. Donating food to food banks, hair to Locks of Love, or even donating to charities, there is always a way to help.

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News

New Campus Renovations

For the next few months, McClatchy is focusing on new renovations to improve campus life. This includes new bathrooms, upgrades to the field, and a cafeteria renovation.

Cafeteria renovations should be done after Spring Break. These renovations include a whole new flooring, new food service equipment, and re-tiling of the kitchen area. Changes like these are projected to improve the efficiency of the cafeteria, so more students are able to get lunch quickly. These upgrades will change the way the cafeteria works until it’s complete. The cafeteria will be closed intermittently until Spring Break, and two food trucks serving lunch as normal will be parked near the trash cans to the left of the outside cafeteria line, and one near the McClatchy mural on the blacktop. There will also be a larger food serving area in the ROTC Quad.

We’re also planning to see several upgrades to our sports fields. Two new bathrooms will be installed near the softball and soccer fields for easier access to athletes. Tennis courts and the swimming pool will also be upgraded. Tennis courts will begin construction in March, bringing in new scoreboards and flooring for a better playing experience. Games taking place in the allotted construction time will be relocated to different fields or away games. In addition to this, the swimming pool will begin construction in the summer to make for a more playable pool for our water polo team. It will be made to be deeper for adequate water depth, optimal for water polo, and will be fitted with a completely new deck as well.

Another project taking place this summer is the placement of an all-new HVAC system. McClatchy is notorious for the air conditioning randomly breaking when it is most needed. This completely new HVAC system is meant to prevent it from happening again. After these renovations are completed, we can expect a cool school in the summer and a warmer one in the winter. With Sacramento’s summer days reaching the 90s-110s, this cooling is badly needed. Plus, the air conditioner and heater will be on consistently, so we don’t have to worry about sudden heating and air conditioning malfunctions.

Credit recovery that would otherwise be held at McClatchy will now be held at the Health Professions High School following the amount of construction happening during the summer, but will otherwise be held as normal.

Overall, we can expect plenty of much-needed upgrades to our school founded in 1937. These changes will improve campus life as a whole, but until these changes are completed, we can expect a very different day-to-day schedule to avoid the construction. Sports games will be relocated and played as normal, and the cafeteria will be temporarily closed but also replaced with more lunch facilities. Quality of life on McClatchy’s campus will most likely dramatically improve with these changes.

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News Sports

McClatchy Lions vs. Whitney High Semi-Finals Boys Varsity Soccer

McClatchy’s varsity boys soccer team has made it to the semi-finals of the CIF Sac Joaquin sections. They have worked so hard to get where they are, and they had a challenging opponent to beat to advance to the finals.

McClatchy started strong from the beginning to when the whistle blew, and their opponent, Whitney High, had the kick-off. McClatchy knew that they had to win this game to make history.

Whitney High had a corner kick. McClatchy made a mistake with their communication, which led to a goal against them, but that did not stop them. It only made them play harder. But soon after McClatchy had a corner against them on their side, they went in strongly, crashing the box with a header to the back of the net, which Kevin Miller made. All the boys gathered around cheering each other on while the crowd went wild.

The score was 1-1, making a very intense game. A little bit before halftime was about to end, McClatchy had another corner kick beautifully crossed into the box with a header straight to the back of the net by Ethan Roach. The boys all cheered Roach on, pushing him around, giving each other high-fives, and heading back to their side of the half.

Half-time began, McClatchy gathered around talking strategy for the next half so they were well-prepared and fixed their communication from earlier in the game. The whistle blew to alert the boys that the half would begin and the crowd started to cheer on both sides as the boys started to get ready to head onto the field. McClatchy had the kickoff this time, and as the whistle blew they kept position and good control over the ball, getting the other team tired.

Later into the half, Kevin Aguilar had a magnificent goal; he struck the ball low and with a lot of speed on the ball straight to the right side of the net and the crowd went crazy. McClatchy had secured their spot in the finals! The whistle blew, and McClatchy fans cheered. The team all congratulated one another and shook hands with Whitney, who also had an amazing season.

McClatchy is on their way to the finals after a great game. Now, we wait for the final match on Saturday, February 24th.

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News Sports

McClatchy Lions vs. Davis Blue Devils Boys Varsity Soccer

The McClatchy Lions played against the Davis Blue Devils on Tuesday, February 13th. McClatchy had a huge crowd cheering them on as they stepped onto the pitch; the audience included family, friends, coaches, and even college scouts!

The starting lineup was as follows: #8 Alexis Ramos, Goalkeeper; #22 Vicente Robles, Right Center Back; #15 Reid Paskey, Left Center Back; #11 Joseph Gray, Right Outside Back; #21 Kevin Miller, Left Outside Back; #6 Adali Parra, Defensive Midfield; #13 Ethan Roach, Left Winger; #10 Darwin Mendiola, Right Winger; #18 Kevin Aguilar, Center Midfield; #17 Nathaniel Ochoa, Center Field; and #9 Frank Thao, Center Forward.

McClatchy started with the ball in the first half, and the game started off strong. In no more than 20 minutes, McClatchy scored a beautiful goal by Kevin Aguilar with a chip that had speed on it, and all the boys got up and yelled and ran to the side of the field, cheering on their teammate Kevin. The crowd went crazy and chanted; McClatchy was up 1-0.

Both teams were getting fouled from left to right, and McClatchy got fouled in the box, which caused a penalty kick for them.

A memorable moment came when Nathaniel Ochoa stepped up to the box ready to take the kick. Everyone went silent, and then the whistle blew. Bottom left, straight to the back of the post; therewent one heck of a penalty for Nathaniel Ochoa.

 McClatchy’s goalkeeper, Alexis Ramos, came off the field limping when he had hurt his knee during one of the plays but chose to stay in and battle it through for the team for the rest of the half. 

McClatchy was sitting at 2-0 right in time when the 1st half was done.There was a switch goalkeepers, and Israel played in goal as the 2nd half began. The crowd cheered so loud that the other side of the field could hear them. McClatchy unfortunately got caught off guard and made a mistake, and the Davis Blue Devils scored a goal, making the score 2-1.

But McClatchy did not let that get to their heads and instead used it as a tool to make sure they won this match with everything they’ve got! McClatchy got the ball from the defense up to Emilio Godnick, and he got past the last line of Davis and had a one-on-one moment with the goalkeeper and shot a magnificent mid-air ball to the right of the goalkeeper. Everyone was so hyped and jumped around, and the boys all gathered together to celebrate the amazing goal.

The whistle was blown for the game to be over in 10 minutes after Emilio’s goal, and everyone celebrated getting ready to shake hands with the opposing team. McClatchy gave it their all out on that field. It was a great game for the Lions!

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News Photo Series Sports

McClatchy vs. River City: Senior Night!

The McClatchy Lions played against the River City Raiders on February 9th. It was senior night, with cheer, step, dance, and basketball players bringing their friends and families to the main gym to celebrate their last home game of the season.

Before the game, senior members from the Cheer, Dance, Step, and basketball teams walked out with their friends and family, greeted by cheers from the crowd. 

Starting for the McClatchy Lions were #0 Eddie Pimpton, #1 Eugene Castillo, #12 Isaiah Hooks, #15 Vinny Seyford, and #3 Kendall Andrews.

Though it was a hard-fought game, with McClatchy being up 1 point at the end of the second quarter, the River City Raiders were able to pull ahead in the 3rd quarter, scoring 33 points, causing them to be up 63-40. In the 4th, the Lions put up 28 points. One notable player on the Lions was #3 Senior Kendall Andrews, who scored 30 points.

A disappointing loss for the McClatchy Lions, but with such a large turnout of friends and family showing their support, it was hard to walk away disappointed. With this being the seniors’ final home game of the season, players can look forward to refining their skills for next year.

Photos from the game photographed by Gabriela Lopez:

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News Sports

McClatchy vs. River City Boys’ Varsity Soccer

The McClatchy boys’ soccer varsity team had a match against River City to take home the Metro League title earlier this Tuesday. It also was McClatchy’s senior night, with 14 amazing seniors leaving the field this year with a great future ahead. 

The game started with McClatchy having the ball for kickoff. They started strong and maintained control over the ball. The boys had a big section of supporters on the other side of the field, cheering them on as they kept possession among the other team. River City came in hot with their tackles while getting frustrated with the McClatchy boys’ talent.

McClatchy had to play their match not only against River City but also against the referee; it was a hard game to work through while the referee made unfair calls against McClatchy, allowing their opponent to gain ball control a few times. But the boys did not let that stop them from playing their game.

The first half ended with a score of 0-0, with the crowd cheering them on. They all headed over to their coaches to have a brief discussion with their team about what they could be doing better and what they had done so far 40 minutes into the half. The whistle blew to alert both teams that they would begin the match soon. The second half started with River City kicking off, but they didn’t keep the ball for long as McClatchy gained control over the game, taking them into River City’s half of the field and having shots on goal back to back.

A mistake happened with McClatchy’s defenders, which led to a goal for River City. It was unfortunate, but McClatchy took that into their own hands, knowing that they needed to score as soon as possible. McClatchy had a corner kick on River City’s side, giving them a better chance to score. McClatchy did not happen to score on the first corner kick, but then River City got a touch on the ball, leading us into another corner kick. They played the ball short to Emilio Godnick, who dribbled past 2 defenders and sent a beautiful ball to the center of the box, giving Nathaniel Ochoa a chance to score. He did it with a volley straight to the back of the net, too fast to get a reaction out of the goalkeeper. The boys all gathered around, cheering each other on while heading back to their side of the field.

It was such a nail-biting moment, knowing that both teams were tied 1-1 with River City and McClatchy desperately wanting to win the game for our seniors! Minutes went by and BAM, McClatchy was in their box once again, and everyone was in a scramble trying to get the ball in the goal while it was being kicked around and blocked. But then there goes Angel Mendoza-Ramirez, another senior, with the goal that hit the post and crossed the line. Everyone waited with such intensity to see if the referee would count it, and he did! The crowd erupted while Angel and his teammates gathered to run to their coach and cheer. The score was now 2-1, and McClatchy was up by one goal with 5 minutes remaining.

The whistle blew, and the boys started yelling and cheering, just as the parents did the same. They got together and formed a line to say good game to River City as they headed home, number 1 Metro League Champions, and with 2 seniors leaving the field having accomplished what they needed to do it was a great game for the boys’ varsity soccer team. Now, they head off to the playoffs.

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News Opinion

Students Come Together for Campus Clean-up

On the Saturday morning of February 3rd, dozens of students went back to school to clean up classrooms, hallways, and school facilities. Together, they swept, scrubbed, and scraped C. K. McClatchy from the entrance to the field, leaving our campus the cleanest it had been in weeks. It’s important to keep our schools clean all the time, but especially after a deep clean, because we hardly have an excuse to litter our school again.

This is the second pickup I’ve been to, one last school year around the same time. Last time the groups were very disorganized, with many people bunched into one section of the school at the same time. We also didn’t have access to certain janitorial services or classrooms, since it was just before finals week, and apparently, some teachers were nervous about students cheating on tests while cleaning their classrooms. Last year was overall a bust; little work got done, and we were unproductive due to supply shortages, but this year the teams were much more prepared to take on the school.

The cleaning lasted from 10:00 til Noon, and there were eight groups total, each assigned to their specific section of the school. I was in the science and ROTC quads, and we had step-by-step instructions to sweep, scrub, and mop classrooms and the quads. We were very productive, with only some supply issues between other groups; I remember there being a lack of mops specifically. Other groups were just as productive, some even finishing a little early and joining other groups to help with unfinished work.

There were some issues with the chemicals used in cleaning, as we were supposed to dilute many of the chemicals used while scrubbing floors and desks, yet some groups didn’t realize and still used the concentrated cleaners straight. After they were cleaned, some parts of the school smelled awful, indicating there were way too many cleaning supplies used in the area. I’m sure it’s not all that harmful, but at the time it was exceedingly hard to breathe while standing in the same hallway for so long.

As far as I’m sure, this event was organized by senior Cara Taylor, who arranged groups and helped other leaders with instruction the day before. She is the reason this pickup was able to move so smoothly, as she regularly moved from group to group, helping other groups with the tasks at hand. It is thanks to her as well as all the teachers and students who attended that the cleanup was so thoroughly effective!

If you noticed that McClatchy seemed a little shinier this week, try to continue to keep our school clean by being mindful of litter and other waste. The cleanup was a great group effort, and hopefully, it will inspire new motivations to keep McClatchy in a better state than it was the day before.

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News Sports

How the NFL Transformed the Pro Bowl

The Pro Bowl was once known as an entertaining game to watch, with 44 of the best NFC players going against 44 of the best AFC players. But the Pro Bowl changed from a full-contact game to a flag football game. Why is that?

By the start of 2013, the NFL started to get worried about the injuries occurring during the Pro Bowl. Around this time, players began to make less effort to tackle each other, some people say that it almost seemed as if they were “pillow fighting.”

After the 2021 Pro Bowl was canceled due to COVID-19, the NFL started dropping little hints that there was going to be a big change in the Pro Bowl. After many seasons and players complaining about the injuries happening during the Pro Bowl and how they didn’t like how it was played, the NFL finally decided to make a change to the Pro Bowl.

Towards the end of the 2022 NFL season, they announced that they were going to take all of their players and injuries into consideration, and there was going to be a big change in the Pro Bowl.

At the start of the 2023 season, the NFL announced their changes to the Pro Bowl. The first major change was that the Pro Bowl would no longer be a full-contact event between some of the best players but a flag football game. Although this may be less entertaining to watch for some people, the NFL also announced that there will be more “Pro Bowl Games.”

Although this is a big change for the NFL, the award of being picked to be in the Pro Bowl is still one of the more honorable things a player can have during the season. Being selected to be in the Pro Bowl can show how good a player is, especially if they were picked more than once to be there.

Players are selected in multiple different ways; one way a player can be selected is by the voting system from the fans. Another way a player can be selected is by the head coach individually selecting a player to be a part of the Pro Bowl. One last way a player can make the Pro Bowl is by multiple other players voting for them.

Although a player is voted to be a part of the Pro Bowl, they still have to wait to be selected to play in it. The coach of the NFC, Eli Manning, and the coach of the AFC, Peyton Manning, will pick 44 players each. Eli must pick 44 from the NFC teams, and Peyton must pick 44 from the AFC teams.

If a player is planning to participate in the Pro Bowl, but their team goes to the Super Bowl, then they are forced to forfeit their spot in the Pro Bowl since they cannot risk the chance of injuries before the biggest game of the year. For example, if Brock Purdy, the quarterback for the 49ers, which is the NFC side of the NFL, is selected to play in the Pro Bowl and goes to the Super Bowl, they are forced to forfeit their spot in the Pro Bowl, and a new quarterback is selected to participate.

In all, these are the reasons why the NFL changed the Pro Bowl from a full-contact game amongst the best players in the game into a flag football game, and how players are selected to participate in the Pro Bowl.