Passport staff

Abigail Althouse, Maureen Bricker, Lyndsey Butler, Caroline Cohen, Kenna Donaldson, Hiruni Herat, Greg O’ Connor, Thomas Rodrigues, Alyssa Tollerton, Josie Valeri, Stephen Vandrak, Ashley Walker, Elexa White

Advisor: Mr. Levere
Thanksgiving Dinner

By Alyssa Tollerton
Thanksgiving dinner wasn't so bad,
I can't understand why the guests were so mad,

I was in my room hearing all the commotion,

I was eating candy,

everything was going dandy.

The bread was only burnt to a crisp,

The potatoes were cold,

The turkey wasn't quite done.

I can't understand why they thought it was bad.

You may have noticed a new teacher in the sixth grade hallway. Her name is Mrs. Julia Pessia! She is a fabulous teacher and teaches reading and language arts. I went down to her room to ask her some questions about herself and her job. The first thing I noticed when I walked into her classroom is all of the colors. Her walls were decorated with her students’ artwork. Then we sat down and I asked her some questions. 

Me: Why did you want to start teaching?

 Mrs. Pessia: well, I liked kids, and I was tutoring a first grader at the time, and realized that I really liked teaching.

 Me: Okay, Why did you want to teach 6^th graders? 

Mrs. Pessia: 6^th graders are fun and a bit quirky at the same! 

Me: Where did you get your teaching degree? 

Mrs. Pessia: I got my degree from Clarion University. 

Me: Awesome, Where have you taught before ECMS? 

Mrs. Pessia: I have taught at a school in North Carolina, and at Haine School so I am familiar with the district! 

Me: Also, What are you working on now with your students? 

Mrs. Pessia: My kids are working hard to publish their written work! 

So, that’s the scoop on Mrs. Pessia, and her class. Be sure to stop by and say hi to her in room 87!!!!
OLYMPIC FEVER

By Stephen Vandrak

As many of you know, the 30^th annual summer Olympics was held in early August 2012, in London, England. This was the 116^th year of the modern day Olympics. After the devastating defeat by China in Beijing four years ago, the Americans needed a comeback. In July 2012, the Americans packed their bags for London, seeking gold. They all attended the outstanding opening ceremony, which included many wonderful concerts and performances. After that they were ready to start the games.

All 530 athletes set out to win gold in a total of 25 sports. The most popular sports for the USA were gymnastics, swimming, and track and field. The USA usually has the most competition in those three sports. This year we worked hard and sent our best to compete.

In the sport of gymnastics, the United States girls’ team had a total of six medals. There were 3 gold, 1 silver and 2 bronze. This team, known as the Fab Five, contributed to the USA total medal count. You might remember Gabby Douglas from this team, who won the overall gold medal for women’s gymnastics.

Another popular sport for the USA was swimming. The Americans have always done well in this particular sport. This year the US went home with 16 gold, 9 silver and 6 bronze medals. The USA sent a great number of athletes to compete in this sport, but important figures that stood out were Ryan Lochte, Michael Phelps, and Missy Franklin. These athletes helped the USA to beat China.

The third and final popular sport was track and field. Many countries compete in this game but very few win. Despite the minor screw-ups, the USA finished strong and won the overall gold in this event. The USA put forth many athletes to compete in this game, and they got good results.

Overall, the United States won the medal count. The United States of America had 46 gold, 29 silver and 29 bronze medals. The order of the winning countries was USA, first; China, second; and Great Britain, third. The USA citizens were very proud of their athletes’ success and hope that they will do as well in four years.
Futbol Fun Facts

By Josie Valeri

There he goes; he passed 1…2…3…4…5 people. He shoots and… GOOOOOAL! That was truly amazing! Have you ever been on a soccer field and heard something like that? Or better yet, have you ever been on a soccer field? Played the sport? If you haven’t this is a great opportunity to learn about the origins of soccer, basic elements, and some interesting fun facts about the sport.

The game is known as 'soccer' only in North America, while the rest of the world recognizes it as 'futbol'. In reality, the name soccer is a corruption of "assoc" which is derived in turn from "association". Undoubtedly, the sport is most prevalent in Europe and South America; however, its origins can be traced to China, more than 2000 years ago. In 14th century England, the game was banned for being too violent, but ironically, the first ever soccer match was played in Derby, England. There are 13 major soccer league teams today, and more than 7 million children play soccer in the United States of America itself.
A typical futbol ground is around 130 yards long and over 50 yards wide. A single soccer player runs about 7 miles during an entire game. The soccer ball is measured to be around 28 inches in its circumference and more than 80% of the world's supply is made in Pakistan. The game is played with 11 players from each team on the field at once; however, the number can vary depending on the league. For example, leagues like AYSO will reduce the number of players on the field. Children participating at 6 year olds will play only 5 players per team at a time on a greatly reduced field of play. It is impractical to expect 6 year olds to play on a regular size soccer field when they are just starting to learn the basics; the size is just far too big. As children progress through the age levels, the field size will increase along with the number of players. By high school, the maximum number of people playing on the field is a total of 11 people.

The World Cup has become the world’s biggest soccer tournament and is held in a different country every 4 years. Billions of people watch the televised games as their national teams battle it out for soccer supremacy. The first ever soccer World Cup, held in the year 1930, was won by the host country, Uruguay. The number of spectators was only 300. In contrast, the 1950 World Cup game between Uruguay and Brazil recorded the highest number of field spectators at 199,854. From 1962 to 1996, the World Cup was won alternatively by the Europeans and South Americans. In 1996, the United States Major League Soccer made its debut; shortly after the wildly successful 1994 World Cup was hosted by the United States. The first women's World Cup was held in the year 1999, which the US had won. Mia Hamm represented the US this year and has gone on to become the most successful US soccer player with two Olympic gold medals.

The following are my picks for the most interesting facts related this most entertaining game:

• 
  Rotherham United goalkeeper Arthur Wharton, born in Ghana, was the first black professional player, in 1889.
  
• 
  In 1908, soccer was made an Olympic event.
  

• 
  The first live coverage of a soccer match shown on television, was in the year 1937. It was a practice match of Arsenal and was played at Highbury stadium.
  
• 
  Just days before the World Cup of 1966 the trophy was stolen and then later retrieved by a dog!
  
• 
  The University of North Carolina has won an incredible 16 national championships in women's soccer since the first US college tournament in 1982 as facts about soccer continue.
  
• 
  In 1998, April Heinrichs became the first woman to be inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame.
  
• 
  Norman Whiteside was the youngest player ever to play the game of soccer. He broke Pele's record by playing at the age of 17 years and 47 days.
  
• 
  Michael Laudrup was a part of the Barcelona team (my favorite team) when they won against Real Madrid 5 - 0. He was also a part of the Real Madrid team when they won 5 - 0 against Barcelona as well.
  

• 
  Real Madrid holds the record for winning the European Cup 5 consecutive times.
  
• 
  United States has more official soccer players than any other nation in the world - almost 18 million. Of these, 78 percent are under the age of 18. In the 1990s, soccer was recognized as the fastest-growing college and high school sport in the US which I find as one of cool soccer facts.
  

The popularity of this sport is increasing day by day, and I intend to keep an eye out for some more exciting facts about this particular sport. As you can see this fun pastime can actually have a huge background story behind it. This can be a very interesting sport to check out and have fun playing it. Now that you learned some new facts about soccer, would you be interested in giving it a try?

Kenna and I sat down with Dr. Fowler the new school principal to ask her a few questions about her job. Since she is a new principal, we had some spotlight questions for her.

Kenna: What subject are you a doctor in?

Dr. Fowler: Education leadership & curriculum.

Hiruni: Do you have any plans for ECMS?

Dr. Fowler: I want to focus on helping the teachers helping the students be the best they can be.

Kenna: What did you do before coming to Evans City?

Dr. Fowler: I was a principal at Sloan Elementary, I also was a university professor at RMU. I was a 6^th grade teacher too. I did some professional development in math and science at AIU3, but I missed working with children so I got the job at ECMS.

Kenna: What made you want to work with children?

Dr. Fowler: I started in chemistry and worked in PPC industries. I didn’t like it and I thought about what I liked to do. I liked to baby-sit and work with children so I went into schooling.

Hiruni: What do you like about ECMS?

Dr. Fowler: I like everyone in the school community. They are kind, hardworking and want to do what’s right for children. The students come ready to learn and do what’s right. They all want to learn as much as they can.

Hiruni: What did you want to be when you were little?

Dr. Fowler: I think I wanted to be a hairdresser or a doctor, but I didn’t like the fact of working with cadavers.

Hiruni & Kenna: Thank you for answering our questions!!!

Now you know more about our new principal. Maybe you’ll want to be a principal one day.

The October spooks have past, now it’s time to talk turkey! Thanksgiving is right around the corner and people have big plans. The main tradition of thanksgiving is cooking a turkey and of course eating it. Some people travel and see their relatives and give thanks. People also have big parties with big turkeys, and big thanks. I sat down with my neighbor, Bella Kunsak, to talk turkey

“So Bella, what do you plan on doing for Thanksgiving?”

“Uh having a dinner with my family, stuff like that.” Bella replies.

“Cool, what is your favorite part of Thanksgiving?”

“TURKEY!” She exclaims.

“Of course, if you could go anywhere for Thanksgiving Where would you go.” I ask.

“California . . . no, no never mind, I would go to Turkey, yah.”

“Um okay, if you could spend Thanksgiving anyone who would you spend it with,” I question.

“You, Uh One direction and a giraffe named Bob.” Bella says.

“Um thanks,” I say as she leaves.

The European pilgrims came to America in 1621. The pilgrims gave thanks for every meal. After a harsh winter of harvest they celebrate a good crop with a feast which they invited the Wampanoag Indians. Thanksgiving spread through America.

All in all have a great Thanksgiving, and start thinking about your Christmas wish list.

3,2,1 Action!

By Ashley Walker and Stephen Vandrak

On Wednesday October 17, 2012 Stephen and Ashley examined the morning announcers. You might think this is an easy job, but behind the scenes is hectic! Have you ever had to scan something really quick and then read it in front of a lot of people? The announcers have to do this every day, but first they have to quickly unpack their material and then head upstairs.

The morning announcements are stationed in the upstairs computer lab. The main administrator is Miss Micco. As the announcers roll in they quickly get to work. They look over the announcements that they have to do that morning, and then it’s show time.

As you know there are four people announcing. The whole broadcast from beginning to end is separated into four parts. Each day the announcers, Elexa White, Haley Davinsizer, Brianna Spagnolo, and Jake Dressler switch between these four parts. These parts are…….Part 1: Day, date, pledge of allegiance, and what’s for lunch. Part 2: Special announcements. Part 3: Word of the week. Part 4: Math word of the day and conclusion.

When asked to order these parts from easiest to hardest, the order was part 3, part 2, part 4, and then part 1. We asked them a few more questions. One was, do you like being onscreen or off screen more? They all answered “Onscreen!”

Including Elexa who said, “Onscreen, but off screen is better when I’m having a bad hair day.”

One more interesting question we asked was, “Do you ever watch yourself on the TV?” They answered, “Yeah we look up and see ourselves sometimes, and it’s pretty cool!”

So as you know there are four parts to morning announcements, and we asked what their favorite part was.
Haley said, “ Part 2.”
Jake said, “Part 4.”
Elexa said, “Part 2 because you get to read different special announcements.”

Brianna said, “Part 3 because it’s easy, but it can be hard when you have a word you don’t know how to pronounce.”

So as you can see Morning Announcement is a very interesting thing to watch and do. This can be challenging though, because mostly everything is set up by the announcers. It also can be seen by anyone in the Seneca Valley School District. So what the morning announcers do can sometimes be difficult, but they have fun doing it.

Greg’s Comic Corner

By Greg O’ Connor

After 3 weeks of votes coming in the most popular comic voted by you is (drumroll please, you can pound anything solid for it) Garfield. Garfield was created by Jim Davis in June 1978. The characters are Garfield who is the main character. He is a large fat orange cat who loves lasagna but hates Monday, spiders, and raisins. Odie is a dog that is yellow with brown ears so he is like Neapolitan ice cream without the red strawberries. These animals don’t just roam alone. They have an owner and his name is Jonathan Quincy Arbuckle. His nickname is Jon. Dr. Liz Wilson is Garfield’s veterinarian and she is also Jon’s crush. Jon tried to ask Dr. Wilson to a date but never succeeded until recently when she admitted she had feelings for Jon and in every comic they have been portrayed as a couple Jon proposed to her and they got engaged. Arlene is a pink cat who is Garfield’s girlfriend who has been trying to lead him to make better choices. Arlene questions their relationship but still loves Garfield. Pooky is a teddy bear that Garfield found in a drawer and Garfield sometimes ‘communicates’ with Pooky. Nermal is as Jon calls him the world’s cutest kitten. He usually makes unannounced visits to Garfield’s house. It is also said that Nermal belongs to Jon’s parents. Lyman was Jon’s roommate and he owned Odie until he gave him to Jon.

T/F) Arlene is a red cat.

T/F) Jim Davis created Garfield in 1978.

T/F) Odie is brown with yellow ears.

T/F) Pooky is a stuffed monkey.

T/F) Nermal always tells Jon before he comes to Garfield’s house.

1. 
   correct: You like raisins and Mondays, don’t you?
   

4-5 correct: You love lasagna but hate raisins!

Do you like sports? Baseball? Football? Hockey? Well, I do, and I am talking about sports in these articles. Read all about the upcoming events.

Baseball: Derek Jeter’s Fractured Ankle

In the baseball playoffs, shortstop Derek Jeter fractured his left ankle while playing in the playoffs for the New York Yankees. On a hard hit ground ball, he tried to make a diving catch to throw out Jhonny (yes, he really spells it that way) Peralta of the Detroit Tigers. Jeter fell and fractured his ankle on the play. He had to be taken off the field on a stretcher. He missed the rest of the season. If I were a New York Yankees fan, I would have been devastated because having a team lose its captain to injury is hard to replace. I thought they would not make it to the World Series without him, and they did not. As a baseball fan, I felt sorry for his pain.

World Series News: The Giants Pull Out the Broom

Recently, baseball played its World Series, with the Detroit Tigers facing off against the San Francisco Giants. Game one heroics by Pablo Sandoval (San Francisco) hitting three home runs off of Cy Young award winning pitcher Justin Verlander (Detroit) set the pace for the best of 7 series. The Giants swept the Series in just 4 games, making them World Champions for the second time in three years.

Steelers News: Polamalu Still Hurt, But Team Only One Game Out

Troy Polamalu continues to miss games because of a calf injury, but he might be able to come back when the Steelers play the Baltimore Ravens on November 18. Even with their best defensive player hurt, the Steelers have moved to only one game behind the Ravens in the standings. They played their most impressive game on the road, beating Eli Manning and the defending Super Bowl champion New York Giants with a great 4^th quarter comeback.

Penguins News: No News

The players and the owners still have not agreed on a contract, so the hockey season still has not begun. Let’s hope they get things settled so we can see some hockey.

May 9,2011

Ok so I really have something big to tell you because this one day affected my whole life. Oh and my name is Claire, Claire Johnson and I’m 10 years old. On a warm spring day about three years ago, I was picking out my outfit for school the next day at school. It was sunny outside but it was dark in my room, because I live in the basement. But anyways, while I was searching through the back of my closet (because I had absolutely nothing to wear) I came upon a hinge on the wall.

Have you ever heard of something at Evans City called PURPOSE? Do you wonder what it is? Well, we have the answers to your questions, right here! This is Alyssa Tollerton and Abby Althouse reporting on PURPOSE. PURPOSE is an opportunity for students to gain enrichment in certain academic areas. PURPOSE consists of pull-out classes, meaning that these students are taken out of class. PURPOSE students are challenged with “outside of the box” problems. Or in simpler terms, it is specific, individualized enrichment. The pull-outs are: Math, Science, Writing, Microworlds, and Thinking Skills. The PURPOSE teachers are Mrs. Thieubaud and Mr. Levere. Mrs. Thieubaud teaches 1^st through 4^th grade Purpose and Mr. Levere teaches grades 5 and 6.

We interviewed some 5^th graders (the ones who might be writing the Passport next year) in PURPOSE to see what they thought.

From Mr. Rubaker’s class we took, (drum roll please) Adam and Norah!

Abby: What are you doing in math?

Adam: Adding and subtracting integers.

Norah: What Adam said.

Alyssa: What about science?

Norah: The mystery of Fruitvale’s contaminated water.

Adam: Fruitvale’s water problem.

After we said goodbye to Adam and Norah, we went over to room 64 to borrow some of Mrs. Zinkham’s kids. Their names were: Devin, Liz, and Charlee. Being the serious interviewers we are, we started asking questions. We collected the same answers as above, but we learned Liz was in writing! Liz told us that in WRITING they are WRITING persuasive letters to the principal. Next, to the whole group we asked what is their favorite thing about PURPOSE.

Devin: Mr. Levere

Adam: NO HOMEWORK!

Norah: It’s laid back

Charlee: No grades

Liz: Mr. Levere

We also asked what their favorite strand was.

Norah: Thinking Skills/Math

Adam: Thinking Skills/Microworlds

Liz: Thinking Skills

Devin: ALL OF THEM!

Charlee: Thinking Skills

To close up this article, we asked our 5^th graders to create a new PURPOSE strand. Here are our results:Norah: Election Simulations

Adam: Scratch (computer programing)

Liz: Reading

Devin: Geography

Charlee: Gym

As you can see, PURPOSE is a fun, stimulating, and challenging program that forces students to “think outside the box”.

This is Abby Althouse and Alyssa Tollerton, Passport writers extraordinaire signing off!

The Dark Knight Rises Review by New Critic

Thomas Rodrigues

So, many of us have seen the latest Batman film from Christopher Nolan. Haven’t? Well, I’m here to tell you about this movie. I think this movie deserves………..A full 5 stars! 100%. I really liked this movie. It was action packed, although it could be somewhat violent, the violence came from Batman, played by Christian Bale, beating up the “bad guys”. Another thing I liked was the actual story. If you have seen the other films, you can probably guess batman is back for more action in Gotham. It introduces Catwoman, played by Anna Hathaway, who starts out a villain then becomes one of Batman’s allies. Also new is Bane, played by Tom Hardy, who serves as the main villain in the movie. There are moments of action, suspense, confusion, and even some romance between Batman and Catwoman.

There is even Robin in the movie, but he is not Batman’s sidekick yet. He is a cop everyone calls Blake. He is a big help to Batman throughout the movie. You only learn his first name is Robin at the end of the movie, so you think he is just a cop in the movie, which you learn is wrong. Robin is played by Joseph Gordon- Levitt.

I think this is a good movie for people who like action and for those who like Batman. For me it’s both, and that may be the case for you too. It is a great movie, and I think you should watch it.

Have you ever heard the term “zodiac sign”? A zodiac sign is a symbol with a description of your personality depending on when you were born. Let’s find out your zodiac sign!

March 21 – April 19 = Aries

April 20 – May 20 = Taurus

May 21 – June 21 = Gemini

June 22- July 22 = Cancer

July 23 – Aug. 22 = Leo

Aug.23 – Sept. 22 = Virgo

Sept. 23 – Oct. 23 = Libra

Oct. 24 – Nov. 21 = Scorpio

Nov. 22 – Dec. 21 = Sagittarius

Dec. 22 – Jan. 19 = Capricorn

Jan. 20 – Feb. 18 = Aquarius

Feb. 19 – Mar. 20 = Pisces

Aries

(Symbol: Ram)

Taurus

Those born in this time span are patient, tough, and loyal. They can also be greedy, jealous, and stubborn. None can control them. They are consistent and very straight-forward. Queen Elizabeth II is a Taurus.

Gemini

(Symbol: Twins)

Gemini are known to be the sign of twins because they have dual personalities. They are adaptable, have a lively character, and are good with communication. However, they can be cunning, curious, and have a rude nature. They are very witty, brilliant, and can’t stick with the same thing for a very long time. They love attention and are high-maintenance. They will make sure they get what they want. Famous Gemini’s are Marilyn Monroe, George Bush, and J.F.K.

Cancer

Cancer is the only zodiac sign that is not straightforward. They are believed to be imaginative, and emotional, but not overemotional. They can be protective, yet shy. They love nature, drama, and art. They are very convincing and tricky. Princess Diana was a Cancer.

Leo

(Symbol: Lion)

Virgo

Those who are Virgos tend to be perfectionists, poised, honest, and don’t care for attention. They brush off compliments and adapt to change quickly. They are healthy/hygienic. Most females will grow up to do something in the fashion field. Michael Jackson was a Virgo.

Libra

(Symbol: Balance)

Scorpio

Scorpios are persistent friendly, and social. However, they can be obsessive, secretive, and terrible procrastinators. They should be able to get a good job for their natural talent and intelligence; something in investigation or solving mysteries. They expect praise for their well-doing. A famous Scorpio would be Martin Luther King.

Capricorn

(Symbol: Goat)

Capricorns are well disciplined, practical, patient, careful and trustworthy. They make good managers and would be great teachers or scientists. Elvis Presley and Isaac Newton were both Capricorns.

Aquarius

Those born under the Aquarius sign are independent, friendly and curious. They are sensible and have a bit of humor. They are good at photography and electronics; can become quite angry and have outbursts of emotions. Other famous Aquarians would be Oprah Winfrey and Abraham Lincoln.

Pisces

(Symbol: Fishes)

Hi, we are Elexa White and Josie Valeri and we interviewed the 6th grade Purpose team, Cuppadamelli. We took 4-5 kids from each class at a time and asked them some questions. The first class was Mr. Cupp’s. We interviewed Haley Davinsizer, Tiffany Eaton, Ryan Mattas, and Josh Pelloni.

Our first question was, “All of you are in Pre-Algebra, so you had to take the cyber course over the summer; how was that?”

Josh: “Cyber was annoying; but I really like Pre-Al.”

Haley: “I like pre-al, but cyber wasn’t the best.”

Tiffany: “I think the cyber was worth it.”

Ryan: “I didn’t like the cyber, but it paid off now that I’m in Pre-Al.”

“Now, what are your honest opinions of the teachers?” Josie asked.

Overall here are the results:

Mr. Adams- Funny!

Mr. Cupp- Laid back, cool.

Mrs. Carvelli- Really nice, fun.

“I’ve been hearing some complaints about recess lately. What are your thoughts on that?” Elexa asked.

We got Finnegan O’Shea, Nick Johnson, Krista Winners, Sonia Fernandez, and Amanda Pristas to interview.

We started with, “What do you think of the teachers?”

Overall…

“Alright thanks guys,” We moved on to Mr. Adam’s students.

We interviewed Seth Ketler, Sabrina Dunlap, Megan Davis, Stephen Vandrak, and Zac Zajacs.

“What do you think about your teachers?” Elexa asked.

They thought:

Mr. Adams- funny, entertaining

Mr. Cupp- Awesome! (Sabrina said, “He’s a, ‘go with the flow’ kind of person.”)

Mrs Carvelli- Fun! Theatric, and Sabrina added, loud! (in a good way)

“Now some of you also see Mr. Levere; what do you think of him?” Elexa asked.

“What do you think about the recess situation?” Josie asked.

Well, thanks to everyone on Cuppadamelli who helped with these interviews! It sounds like Cuppadamelli is a great team!

My name is Lyndsey Butler and I am here to announce that a new, radical, and cool person has joined the Evans City Middle School sixth grade teaching team..... Mrs. Chiapusio! Mrs. Chiapusio received her undergraduate degree from Slippery Rock University and her Masters degree from Gannon. When in her high school and college years, this amazing young lady worked in a day care for children and was a waitress. She was inspired to become a teacher because she had an aunt who had disabilities and she wanted to help. From there she came in 2002 to a wonderful school known none other than Evans City Middle School! For ten years, Mrs. Chiapusio worked as a sixth grade learning support teacher. This past year she transferred to a sixth grade classroom. She expressed that the staff was very helpful and welcoming during that switch. Her favorite thing about Evans City is the school and staff. When not at school, Mrs. Chiapusio enjoys cooking, hanging out with friends and family, or crocheting. We are so lucky to have Mrs. Chiapusio teaching in our community.

High school football is one of the many sports Americans love. Two teams will try to get the ball into the end zone to score a touchdown, or 6 points, and then earn an extra point, kicking the ball through the field goal post. The team with the most points by the end of a four quarter game wins. Our Seneca Valley Raiders are a strong team in high school football, and getting better each year.

In 2004 the Seneca Valley Raiders had a complete losing season, 9 games were played, and 9 games were lost. 8 years later in 2012 the Seneca Valley Raiders have a new coach (Don Holl), and a new team. The Raiders finished the regular season with 8 wins and 1 loss.

The season started out with a game against the Butler Tornados. In the first quarter Seneca scored 14 points with two touchdowns, while Butler only scored 6 points. In the second quarter the Raiders and the Tornados got 3 points each in field goals. There wasn't much action in the third quarter; but in the fourth Seneca scored another touchdown, winning the game 24-9. It wasn't uncommon for Seneca to beat Butler, but it was a good way to start off the season.

The next game was against the Pine-Richland Rams. The Raiders scored at least 1 touchdown in every quarter. The rams only managed to score about half as many points as the Raiders did. In the end the Raiders won 50-26.

The third game was their first and last loss. They played the North Allegheny Tigers. They only scored three points, thanks to a field-goal in the first quarter. North Allegheny smothered them by the end of the game, 45-3. The loss wasn't a surprise though, being that they haven’t beat North Allegheny for a long time.

The rest of the season was a success because they have won every game after North Allegheny. Their largest winning game was against the Connellsville Falcons, whom they beat by 50 points.

By the end of the winning season, with an 8-1 win/loss record; Seneca made it into the playoffs. Their first playoff game was held on Friday November 2nd, at their home field, against Hempfield Area. Seneca Valley scored 43 points in the first half; then they scored one last touchdown in the third quarter. Unfortunately Hempfield tried to come back, scoring twenty points in the second half; but Seneca won the game 50-20.   The Raiders then went on to the playoff game against Mt. Lebanon, which they won. If the Raiders make it all the way to the championship game they would play at Heinz Field on Friday November 23rd.

This season was successful due to the hard work of all of the players on the team. Seneca Valley has many great players like Forrest Barnes, a senior running back who scored a total of 104 points, had 14 receptions, and rushed the ball 1179 yards in the regular season.  Another important player is Jordan Brown; a senior Quarterback who has had 84 completed passes, and 58 rushes.

The Raiders are a great team who had an awesome season, thanks to the players and coaches that gave it their all. We hope to see our team make it to Heinz Field in a few weeks on November 23rd, and bring home the championship trophy!