CHS students sometimes have similar decisions to make, albeit on a much smaller scale. Recently, tennis had a match rescheduled for the second day of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, and a varsity football game was also scheduled on the same day. Although only a small number of students were affected, students should not be forced to make a decision between their teammates and their religion.

 According to athletic director Dave Kelley, MCPS makes every attempt to prevent scheduling of sports events during religious holidays. It is possible to avoid these types of conflicts because the average sports season is approximately three months long. There are many available days to play in a season, so it shouldn’t be difficult to schedule sporting events on days that are not religious holidays.

 This act of respect also benefits the team as a whole because players are closer when they play and practice together regularly. It can be stressful for students to have to choose between their beliefs and their team because they may face pressure and criticism from their families if they do participate in a sporting event on a holiday.

 Some may feel that there are too many religions and customs to try and accommodate everyone’s beliefs. They argue that it is impractical to arrange sports scheduling around all religious holidays, but providing reasonable accommodations and respect for individual students without regard to ethnicity, religion and other beliefs is a CHS and MCPS policy. Every student athlete has the right to choose not to participate in a game or practice without fear of being penalized if it violates their beliefs.

Everyone gathered around a grill last year with the smell of burgers and dogs wafting in the air, excited for the girls lacrosse playoff game. Even though just one small grill was cooking, everyone could smell the school spirit.

The Superfan Kickoff Cookout party is a new event held before CHS home football games in an attempt to capture the spirit from last year. Unfortunately, the student body was unable to have a cookout for the first home football game against Kennedy because the event was not yet approved.

“Because of the number of parties involved in setting up a party this large, we needed to take the time before planning to start the event,” SGA sponsor Scott Selman said.

Last year, a cookout party occurred on Gainsborough Road in the middle of traffic before the girls lacrosse playoff game. This year, the school plans to move it to the tennis courts where it will be safer and more controlled.

According to Selman, the SGA did not want to step on the toes of the Booster Club because at the cookout students would have access to free food, which might take business away from the concession stand. However, he put together a team of parent, administration and staff support to keep the event safe.

“It is fun and gets people to come out and represent Churchill,” Selman said. “I will stand by and supports anything that promotes that.”

This event is open to all students before every home game. CHS students who buy the Superfan T-shirt will have access to free food, drinks and music at the party.

“I thought it was really fun,” senior Alex Dourian said. “There was corn hole and I threw a football around, and there was a lot of burgers and hot dogs.”

Despite a slow start to the season, the golf team is working hard toward a successful year. Led by co-captains seniors Phillip Ahn and Brandon Fisher, the Bulldogs are looking to improve their overall game for their last four matches.

The season began late this summer with tryouts and a trip to Williamsburg to work on teamwork before the first match Aug. 22. The Bulldogs played a well-fought match against Damascus, Quince Orchard, and B-CC, finishing second with an overall score of 204.

“So many people were playing with nerves,” junior Ryan Chirumbole said. “Also, we were without one of our captains and best players, Phillip Ahn.”

The Bulldogs plan to use their past matches as learning experiences to get better results in future matches.

“[The matches] haven’t turned out as well as we expected,” Ahn said. “If we want to win, team members are going to have to practice harder and stay focused.”

The new players have proven to be a great addition, bringing depth to the team. Freshmen Louis Dubick and Josh Brinkman have shown great potential in their game and play with confidence.

“All of the freshman have considerable competitive experience and have demonstrated maturity beyond their years,” coach Mike Fisher said. “They will make strong leaders for the next group of WCHS golfers.”

The team continues to push itself to do better in every aspect of the game, but makes sure that everyone still finds joy when they play.

“When we are having an off day, all of us are still able to enjoy the round and not bring others down,” junior Kathleen Gaultney said. “On the course, everyone still laughs and jokes.”

The Bulldogs have also been working on teamwork, making sure that the connection that was established last year continues this season as well. Since they couldn’t practice in the rain, the Bulldogs went bowling to work on teamwork.

“Bowling is something we do every year and it really bonds everyone together,” Gaultney said.

From the alley to the course, the golf team stays strong with a focused mentality, despite its unexceptional first two matches of the season. The team last met Sept. 22 against Whitman, B-CC and Rockville at Needwood Golf Course.

The football team started off the season in the right direction as the team blew out B-CC 47-7 at home Sept. 16.

The win improved the team’s record to 3-0, to put them in first place in the Montgomery 4A South Division. The Bulldogs look to make the playoffs this year as they have not made the playoffs since 2004. The last two seasons CHS has lost to Whitman in the final game of the season where a playoff bid was on the line.

“A major reason for our early success is we grew up,” head coach Joe Allen said. “Our team last year was young and now we’re a year older.”

In the second game of the season CHS defeated rival Whitman 21-7, Sept. 10, but it was not easy. The Bulldogs struggled to move the ball in the first half against Whitman, and found themselves in a 7-0 hole at the break.

“We need to accustom ourselves to start at a high tempo as soon as the first quarter starts,” senior Collins Kenlak said. “When we do that, we will become a team near impossible to beat.”

The second half belonged to the Bulldogs as senior Lansana Keita got the momentum going with a 43-yard touchdown pass to junior Dominique Williams. Later in the half senior captain Bret Sickels intercepted a pass that lead to a Bulldog rushing touchdown by sophomore Malik Harris. The Bulldogs iced the game with a touchdown on a fumble recovery by junior Joe Nolan.

“In the second half we changed our offensive approach,” Allen said. “We started to throw the ball more and we were successful.”

The offense woke up in the second half, but the defense has been the backbone for this team. The defense has only given up seven points in two games. In the game Sickels lead the defense with 13 tackles, the interception, a sack and a forced fumble. Senior captain Jacob Suissa also had a big game with 11 tackles.

“Our goal is simple,” Kenlak said. “We expect to be at M&T Bank Staduim for a state title in
December.”

The football team also defeated Kennedy in 40-0 blow-out in its season opener at home Sept. 2.

“Our strength is definitely our size in our line and our experience,” Keita said. “A lot of guys have been playing football since they were 4 or have been on varsity for three years.”

Despite the dominant win, the Bulldogs started the game slowly. In the first three offensive drives, the team fumbled and lost the ball, threw an interception and missed a field goal.

“After those drives we regrouped and talked about what Kennedy was doing defensively against us,” Keita said. “We stopped running the plays that did not work well and we started using the ones that did.”

The team went on to score a touchdown on its next three drives. In the game Keita completed 11 of 15 passes for 197 yards with two touchdowns. Senior captain Curtis Kamara also sparked the offense, rushing for 129 yards and two touchdowns. Williams contributed greatly with four receptions for 88 yards and a touchdown, and senior Quan Gill had two receptions with a touchdown.

“Lansana controls the offense well,” Suissa said. “Defensively our strengths are the way we work and trust each other.”

Suissa plays linebacker and had five tackles in the game. Senior captain Bret Sickels lead the team with seven tackles, senior captain Matt Miller had four tackles, and junior Darrion Locke had four tackles and the team’s only sack.

The Bulldogs dropped their first three games in succession to Sherwood, Magruder and Rockville, scoring only one run over the three-game span.

CHS entered the game against Rockville March 29 on a two-game losing streak and looked to spark its season. Unfortunately for the Bulldogs, a slew of errors plagued the team as it ended up falling to the Rams 8-0.

“We’re a talented team,” junior pitcher Matt Kogan said. “We just haven’t put all aspects of our game together.”

Kogan started the game against Magruder March 26 in the home opener. After a rocky start where he allowed six runs in the first two innings, Kogan rebounded and only allowed one run in the following four.

“I started following exactly what the coaches told me,” Kogan said. “Once I started doing that, I began pitching much better.”

The game against Sherwood March 21 could be considered a grudge match as the Warriors eliminated the Bulldogs in last year’s state tournament in the regional semi-finals.

Junior Kelby Spring went toe-to-toe with Sherwood senior Will Bouey in a complete-game effort. Spring only allowed one run through five innings as the game was tied 1-1 before a defensive lapse in the sixth gave Sherwood a 2-1 edge.

“We know we can compete with anyone,” junior Nick O’Brien said. “We have a lot of intensity, but we struggle using it to our advantage.”

The team has taken note of its offensive struggles to this point in the season. According to O’Brien, the team has dedicated itself particularly to improving its hitting and has taken the initiative to practice on its own.

“We haven’t performed to our best, but we know we are a lot better than this,” O’Brien said. “We have optimism about the future.”

The streak has not been without its bright spots. Junior Danny Weiss has found success at the plate, bumping his average up to .444 on the season. Spring’s pitching has also improved over last year as he has found a more stable place in the rotation.

Still, the young team that features only three seniors continues on with hopes that it can reach the ultimate goal and win the state championship.

“We lost a lot of leadership,” O’Brien said. “We are looking for leaders to step up. It takes time, but it will happen.”

CHS plays at Paint Branch April 12 at 3:30.

Many teams experienced much success in their seasons and tournaments last year, and triumph in upcoming seasons is anticipated. The tennis team went undefeated last fall, and other teams, such as Cheerleading, placed spectacularly well in their tournaments.

“The biggest accomplishment of our 2009-2010 cheerleading season was that we did really well in our competition,” sophomore Leslie Blalock said. “We came in second and after working super hard for months, it was a relief to know that it paid off.”

The most important part of all sports team is leadership, and at CHS, the seniors are role models and leaders for their teammates. Both on and off the field, senior athletes support their peers and help them progress. This year though, last years’ seniors are gone, leaving a big gap in the teams they were on.

“[The seniors] were the glue that held the team together,” sophomore field hockey player Jennifer Shim said.

Athletes are looking forward to the upcoming season, hopeful that new players will add to the talent that already exists on every CHS team. They are also excited to meet the players coming from middle school.

“This year we are starting workouts prior to summer training, so we’ll have a big advantage going into the season,” sophomore soccer player Crispin Muessle said. “We [also] have a good class coming up.”

Most CHS athletes would agree that one of the best parts of being on a team is meeting new people and spending time with teammates. For many people, playing a sport is not just about winning; it’s also about making friends and having fun.

“I like [being on the team] because golf is considered such an individual sport and having a team to share it with makes it even more fun,” senior Sonia Gaur said.

With a 7-3 record, last season was the football team’s best season since 2004, and it held the record for the longest winning streak since 1994.

Both the leadership of Allen, dedicated players and a new, tougher practice regime helped propel the football team to early success on the field.

“We began the season strong because of our off season conditioning,” Allen said. “We felt that we had a number of weapons that we could utilize during the season.”

Although the first seven games of last season resulted in CHS victories, including a 42-7 win over Richard Montgomery, the team was unable to make the playoffs due to three unexpected losses during the final games of the season.

CHS lost 17-0 to Sherwood, 20-13 to BCC and a close 28-24 to Whitman in the last three games.
However, despite the setbacks at the end of the season, the members of the CHS football team remained optimistic when considering the possibilities of this oncoming season.

“We had a great year,” former captain and ‘10 alumnus Alex Kantor said.  “I wish we made the playoffs and hopefully next year’s team can accomplish that goal.”
Other graduating seniors that will be missed from the team this year include Ryan Quinn, Matt Risk, Brett Switzer and Brandon Swepson.
So what is expected of the current football team? Hopes are once again high for this year’s team to make playoffs, especially considering last season’s encouraging record.
Junior varsity’s record of 8-1 also promises that talented sophomores, such as Lansana Keita, will make a great addition to this year’s varsity team.
According to Allen, the focus will also be put on the team’s strong offensive line and defense.
Despite the changes in both management and valuable players over the past year, one thing remains certain: CHS varsity football has everything it takes to make it to the playoffs this year, so stay tuned.

If the Blue Devils’ opponent, the Butler Bulldogs, had made that final shot, they would have had new t-shirts and hats that labeled their school as the 2010 National Champion.  No, these commemorative articles of clothing are not made by lightning-speed laser printing technology; instead, both teams’ apparel were made prior to game time.

The NCAA as well as the NBA and NFL all use this technique for merchandise before big games.

According to Vandana Balachandar, who is the NBA’s senior manager of apparel and accessory licensing, Adidas provides 720 hats and tees for their league’s finals, depending on the series’ standing, all of which are kept private until the final buzzer.  The clothes are then distributed to a variety of people including players, team staff and front office executives.

“Prior to the end of the game, we store the merchandise in large duffel bags in a secure, locked room behind the scenes,” Balachandar said.

But while the winning team celebrates in their clothing, what happens to the 720 hats and tees made for the losing team of the NBA Finals?

Although the losing teams’ articles of clothing are printed, they are never sold to the public; instead, they are donated.

“We donate the losing [team’s] merchandise through NBA Cares,” Balachandar said.  “Generally, we send the merchandise internationally during our Basketball Without Borders programs.”

The NCAA has a similar process.

“We partner with World Vision on the donation of the items so it typically depends on their area of designation,” said David Clendenin, the NCAA’s assistant director of corporate licensing.  “For example, we are in the process of donating some of this year’s items and we were told that their destination would more than likely be Central or Latin America.”

Similarly, the NBA works with their international organization through which they donate the apparel.

According to Balachandar, giving back to the global community is a significant part of the NBA’s outreach program, and this is a way to ensure that they will have made the most of the unused clothing.

“By donating the losing [team’s] merchandise, we know that the merchandise will be [given] to those who are less fortunate than us,” Balachandar said.

However, according to Balachandar, it is impossible for anyone to obtain or purchase these items, which are known as “hot market products,” in stores or online because the leagues do not want false merchandise in the marketplace.

According to Chris Inouye, the retail division manager of Aramark Sports and Entertainment for Reliant Stadium in Houston, in the NFL, the stadium’s merchandiser will typically purchase about 1,200 of each hat and 2,400 of each shirt so that fans can buy them at the end of the end of the game.

“Retailers throughout the nation also have the opportunity to buy the championship shirt for one or both teams in advance as well,” Inouye said.  “While this is not very common, it does happen in the markets for the teams who are participating. [For instance,] if the Ravens are in the Super Bowl, Dick’s and Modell’s would likely buy a small quantity so if they won they could begin selling them in their stores immediately.”

Inouye does acknowledge, however, that retailers put themselves at a risk as they do this. The NFL’s merchandiser, Reebok, gives financial incentives to stores in order to ensure that the losing team product is not sold to the public.  According to Inouye, this also makes it easier for the purchaser to buy the product for both teams because they know they will not lose as much money.

“It is risky to pre-purchase hats and shirts before the outcome of the game is decided, but it also gives you a competitive advantage over stores who did not pre-purchase,” Inouye said.

Next time the end of a championship game comes around and the players slip on their new gear, though the result may not have been favorable, the losing team’s misfortune at least has some benefits: quality apparel that will go to those in need.