Last weekend, October 17, was the first game of junior high basketball. We only had three days of practice. Since it was the first week of basketball, most of our team was out of shape and not ready to run up and down the court. Coach Maggie blew her whistle aggressively. “Get on the baseline!” she yelled like an angry coach from a Disney movie. I ran over to the base line thinking I was gonna run like a track star, but I ran like a beat dog and Coach Madison watched me like she was holding the stick. 

After I ran like a beat dog, Coach Madison yelled, “I need half of you on one side and half on the other. We're gonna shoot free throws!”  I ran over to the free through line scared we would run if we missed. I already felt like I just ran a marathon then went down a water slide. 

Karmen Utterback shot the first free throw lining up with the basket while trying to breathe. After running our laps we were super tired. 

On Saturday we had our first game against Modoc. Number 14 and I were the jumpers to grab the ball. Number 14 on Modoc jumped up and hit the ball like an angry bull. The ball came down and smacked Maddie Harris right on the hand, but the ball got stolen by Modoc. The Modoc team was aggressive and tall; Number 14 was tall like the Eiffel Tower. Each of them would go up and down the court scoring lay ups. It was half time. “Get in the circle! Hussle!” said my coach like there was a ticking time bomb about to go off. “We need to get aggressive and block Number 14,” says Coach. All worked up, we stepped back on the court. I felt like we were stepping onto the boxing ring to fight Mike Tyson. The Modoc team was tough, but we gave it our all. We lost, but we will come back harder.  

We didn't drag our heads. Our next game was against Burney. We knew they would be tough, so we had to be fierce like a tiger. The ref threw the ball up, and Karmen grabbed it like it was the last cooking in the bakery. She passed it to Alyssa Valdez who scored a lay up. Once Burney brought the ball down the court, Number 32 was pushing up on me like we were boxing. The games were tiring, and guarding Number 32 was exhausting because she kept running like a chicken with its head cut off. Nevertheless, we won 30-10, and it was a good way to start the season.

-Amy Miller

New Girl here! Coming to a new school isn’t just about classes; sometimes it’s about learning new sports routines.  On the first day of Volleyball practice, I had to get up at 5 AM. Once I got up, I was tired, and I was cranky. I was scared I had to run a lot, or that my team would be scary, but I soon learned that they are welcoming and willing to help me when I need it. 

After my first week of practice, I finally somewhat learned the movements. There are a lot of different movements, but for me it meant trying to follow Jordan Hutchison’s jersey as she clears a spot for me in front of the net. First she rushed to the net, and all I could do was follow her number, and then I tasted the Hutchison on her jersey because I was too slow to move back. She screamed as we both ran into each other, and all I could see were the bright lights and Jordan looking down at me, which is funny because normally I look down at her! I’m twice as tall, but she was sure on her feet and sent me to the floorboards.

A couple of weeks had me not feeling afraid of these once strangers. I even made friends with some of them. Madelynn Walker told me that the bigger lockers have more hangers, and that has been helpful because I can hang my jackets and leave the shoes on the bottom… my stuff will stay fresh and organized! 

The time flew by, and soon it was my last practice for junior high volleyball. At our final practice, my coaches Sierra Vanover and Maggie Torres  tried to make it the most fun last day, which is hard because most practices are a good time. Starting the practice with a fun game where I and my teammates have  to jump, then when Alisson and I met in the middle we played rock paper scissors. I won, so I kept jumping to the next person on my team. After I slayed at the warmup game, we had our normal practice. The super long practice that usually felt like we were there for ages? Suddenly it felt as if we were only there for ten minutes. Then it was over. We got into a happy girl circle and told each other good things about each other. My teammate Addie Harris told me that I got better than I was on the first day of practice, and they were glad I came to this school. When it was all over, my coach Sierra and Maggie gave us maple donuts with blue and yellow sprinkles, and they were super good! That was the last time I would slay as a junior high volleyball player, but I get to slay at the free throws in junior high basketball! 

For his senior project, Isaiah Cordova decided that he wanted to do a fundraiser. Isaiah's mom came to him with the  idea of making food for the Fall River Bicycle Century. Isaiah, his family, and friends all helped him with cooking the meal. The meal was finally done. A man from Australia came to the event, and many people from the Bay Area also came up to the beautiful Fall River to escape their empty lives of traffic and malls and biking without getting flattened like a pancake by distracted drivers scrolling on TikTok. Most of the riders were in their older years, but everyone wanted the pork tacos, beans, and rice. Once  everyone was done with their food, Isaiah Cordova and his family collected $3,000, and they are still receiving donations. Isaiah has decided to donate the money to the American Cancer Society. “I wanted to donate the money to a Cancer program because people in my family have suffered with cancer.”  He also said that he had lost an uncle to cancer and another to lung cancer, so he decided that he wanted to help those who have families with cancer. I thought this was a great idea to give money to charities.  Isaiah wanted to help out with the community, and he wants to do another dinner in November for another bike ride. 

-Amy Miller