Pond Hockey Tournament raises $50,035 for Jablonski February 1, 2012 at 7:58 pm
Students and teachers swap outfits for Catholic Schools Week February 1, 2012 at 7:58 am
Catholic Schools Week kicks off with pjs and honors February 1, 2012 at 7:58 am
One Act play takes second place at sub-sections February 1, 2012 at 7:57 am
Youth In Goverment members lobby for government changes February 1, 2012 at 7:56 am
February 3, 2012
Nicole Sarquis, Staff Writer
History teachers tend to ramble off unrelatable facts about flappers, bootlegging, and the ease of life in the “Roaring 20s” during a typical U.S. History class, leaving their students with no real understanding of the subject. At the same time, English teachers’ enthusiasm over F. Scott Fitzgerald’s “The Great Gatsby” can only be understood if students reading the literary classic have a solid knowledge base of the time period the novel is set in. In an attempts to bridge the gap between literature and history studies, two teachers––Ms. Megan Kern and Ms. Anne Marie Dominguez––have paired up to teach their newly developed class, American Studies, to juniors, combining the... Continue Reading
February 3, 2012
Matt Muenzberg, Sports Editor
“Don’t miss.” That was the thought that ran through the head of senior forward Sanjay Lumpkin when he got the ball under the basket unguarded with three seconds left in the game. Lumpkin made the layup, giving the top ranked boys’ basketball team a 67-65 win over number two Spring Lake Park. “We were just trying to get a screen and roll on the top. The ball went into the corner and I just cut back door and no one was guarding me,” said Lumpkin. The Red Knights struggled to contain Spring Lake Park’s Sean Scott, who had a career night with 36 points, 13 rebounds, and six blocks in a packed, pro-Panther gymnasium. Head coach Mr. John Moore admitted that guarding Scott isn’t an exact... Continue Reading
Junior Shannon Galvin rehearses for the upcoming Les Miserables performance wither her fellow cast members. (Giulia Imholte)
January 27, 2012
Emily Kline, Staff Writer
Blue Water Theatre Company, one of the Twin Cities’ top performing arts groups for youth, is taking on “Les Misérables,” one of musical theatre’s most famous works, for their winter production. Juniors Rachel Hogen and Shannon Galvin, along with sophomore Rachel Wallace, joined the cast in late November and are currently in rehearsals for the... Continue Reading
February 1, 2012
Nick Hillson, Staff Writer
The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) is a bill running through Congress in an attempt to curb the illegal uploading and downloading of copyrighted information and programs. Unfortunately, due to extremely vague wording and unclear definitions, the censorship proposed could extend to websites such as Facebook, various e-mails, and any other free forum. Not only is SOPA ineffective for all but the technologically impaired, but it violates our rights and benefits only a small handful of elites. SOPA works by requiring websites and Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to search through sent information and to censor any infringing material. Not only does this ignore the privacy guaranteed in the Constitution... Continue Reading
The Mock Trial team had a succesful season at several competitions due to immense practice and help from professional lawyers. (Photo courtesy of Jim Vogl)
February 3, 2012
Mallory Hoch, Staff Writer
Beginning in October, the Mock Trial team has practiced every night from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. in room 121 in preparation for upcoming competitions. Coming to a close on January 31st, the season ended on a strong note, making it to subsections before loosing their last competition. The season commenced with general practices to help initiate new members.... Continue Reading
| Sport | Date | Opponent | Result | W/L | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boys Basketball | Fri, Feb 03 | Spring Lake Park | 67-65 | Read Story | W |
| Girls Basketball | Tue, Jan 31 | Minneapolis Southwest | 70-38 | W | |
| Girls Hockey | Sat, Jan 28 | Hill-Murray | 1-3 | Read Story | L |
| Boys Basketball | Sat, Jan 28 | North Branch | 82-21 | Read Story | W |
| Girls Basketball | Sat, Jan 28 | North Branch | 66-40 | Read Story | W |
| Dance Team | Sat, Jan 28 | Catholic Jamboree | J: 2nd/K: 3rd | ||
| Girls Hockey | Fri, Jan 27 | St. Francis/North Branch | 10-0 | Read Story | W |
| Boys Hockey | Fri, Jan 27 | Moorhead | 2-6 | Read Story | L |
| Wrestling | Fri, Jan 27 | Robbinsdale Cooper | 47-27 | W | |
| Wrestling | Fri, Jan 27 | Mahtomedi | 33-34 | L | |
| Boys Hockey | Thu, Jan 26 | Irondale | 6-1 | Read Story | W |
| Girls Basketball | Thu, Jan 26 | Chisago Lakes | 58 -45 | Read Story | W |
| Sport | Date | Time | Opponent | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Girls Hockey | Sat, Feb 04 | 3:00 | Totino-Grace | Parade Ice Gardens |
| Boys Hockey | Sat, Feb 04 | 7:30 | Spring Lake Park | Blaine |
| Wrestling | Sat, Feb 04 | 9:00 | TBA | Pine Island |
| Girls Basketball | Mon, Feb 06 | 6:00 | DeLaSalle | DeLaSalle |
| Boys Hockey | Wed, Feb 08 | 7:30 | Shattuck-St. Mary's | Shattuck-St. Mary's |
| Girls Basketball | Fri, Feb 10 | 7:15 | St. Louis Park | St. Louis Park |
| Wrestling | Fri, Feb 10 | 6:00 | Chisago Lakes | Home |
| Boys Hockey | Sat, Feb 11 | 2:30 | Totino-Grace | St. Louis Park |
| Dance Team | Sat, Feb 11 | 1:00 | Sections | Austin |
| Boys Hockey | Tue, Feb 14 | 7:00 | Chisago Lakes | Chisago Lakes |
| Girls Basketball | Tue, Feb 14 | 7:15 | Columbia Heights | Home |
| Girls Basketball | Thu, Feb 16 | 7:15 | Waconia | Home |
Thi Hoang, a BSM student from Vietnam, was restricted to playing one season of competetive tennis.
Emily Roberts
June 4, 2009
Filed under Sports
Sophomore Thi Hoang was shocked and disappointed when she found out she was no longer eligible to compete after already playing tennis her freshman year: “This year I went to Round-Up to sign up for tennis, and the athletic department said I could practice, but not compete,” said Hoang, “if I would have known this, I wouldn’t have played my freshman year.”
Whether or not the foreign exchange student is a part of an approved foreign exchange program (has a sponsoring agency) is the deciding factor on how long each student is eligible to participate/play. If the student is a part of an approved program, he/she is allowed to compete, on any level, for one year.
After one year, students from an approved program can only practice with the team, but not compete. “The problem with this rule is that because I play tennis, there are a lot of matches and not that many practices,” said Hoang. BSM Athletic Director Mr. Jerry Pettinger acknowledged the Minnesota State High School League ruling, and in support of this, he said, “I would love to see these kids able to play varsity for one year but all other levels beyond one year.”
As many are not familiar with this rule, surprisingly, Minnesota is not the only state: “most states have some sort of rule in regard to this,” said MSHSL Associate Director Kevin Merkle.
In some cases, foreign exchange students can be a few years older than the other kids in their same grade level. This is considered to be another advantage they would have over the average American student.
As there is a limitation on how many years foreign exchange students are eligible to compete in sports, they still receive the same honors that their American counterparts may earn. “[Foreign exchange students] can hold school, conference, or state records.
They can also receive All-Conference or All-State honors,” said Mr. Pettinger.
Part of the reason this rule was enacted over 25 years ago was because of a controversial situation that developed in the past. Although Mr. Merkle would not elaborate on the details of this specific situation, many matters were brought up.
“There is a lot of concern when foreign exchange students take playing time or roster spots from kids who have lived in the community and/or attended that school for a long time,” said Mr. Merkle.
There is a legitimate reason behind the rule. It has to be enforced; otherwise, it would be questionable whether or not these athletes are coming just to be recruited. Recruiting by individuals or organizations is not aloud.
Mr. Merkle stated that with no rule, the best student athletes from around the world could show up on a Minnesota high school team, giving that school an advantage other schools do not have.
There is a difference between International Students and Foreign Exchange students; therefore, both have separate rules regarding their eligibility. “[International Students] are not eligible at all at the varsity level,” said Mr. Merkle, “They get one year at the B-Squad, or JV level.”
Special situations do exist. Junior Hugh Lee was a foreign exchange student last year.
If it were not for him becoming an American immigrant this year, his eligibility would be challenged. Because he is an immigrant, he no longer has a set precedent stating a specific amount of time for how long he is able to participate in the athletic program at Benilde-St. Margaret’s.
Lee is fortunate for this because he enjoys participating on various teams and is constantly improving. He is on both the soccer and tennis team, and is looking forward to the upcoming tennis season.
“Last year, I wanted to play because I thought it would be really fun. I was not that good; then last summer, I went home to Korea and practiced tennis, and now I’m a lot better,” Lee said.
Sports allow students to connect with each other outside a classroom setting. “I’ve found how different it is to come here and have a real coach and teammates,” Lee said.
Due to this limitation, some foreign exchange students may feel as though they are missing out on the social part of school in America. As for Hoang, she is going to continue to try new sports at BSM, even though it won’t be the same watching from the sidelines.
June 29th, 2009 at 12:56 pm
Not only sports but the same rule is applied to Speech and Debate. Foreign exchange students are not allowed to participate at state level. =(
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