LADY CELTICS ARE DISTRICT CHAMPS

In the District 13 Class 4 Basketball Tournament Championship game, the Archbishop O'Hara High School Lady Celtics topped the Hickman Mills Cougars 52-41 on February 26. _____ Alex Smith and Hailey Houser combined for 29 points, more than half of the O'Hara output. _____ Following a lukewarm start wherein the Celtics fell behind by eight points at 13-5, the host team came to life holding the Cougars scoreless until the halfway mark of the game. The halftime score was O'Hara 17 Hickman Mills 13. _____ The game continued into the third quarter with O'Hara hanging on by a slim margin until Alex Smith popped in a three-pointer for a five point lead after which Hailey Houser scored a basket and free throw for a 30-22 advantage to begin the final quarter. _____ O'Hara's 22 points in the fourth quarter were on just four baskets and a lot of free throws. _____ O'Hara's next level of play is at Lee's Summit gym on Wednesday. _____ They will play Pleasant Hill.

Thirteen To Represent O'Hara at Knowledge Bowl

The Archbishop O'Hara High School Academic Knowledge Bowl has been preparing for the March 13th West Central Conference competition. _____ This year's team will be the youngest to compete for O'Hara in the eleven years Brother Richard has been the moderator. ______ The one senior returning from last year is Mike Berney. _____ The juniors on the squad are Andy Meyer, Josh Bonello, and Kayla Henderson. ______ Sophomores that will be included this year are Jeff Best, Kierra Jackson, and Jake Fortin. ______ The remaining participants are freshmen: Tony Darling, Alex Countee, Maddie Champion, James Campo, James Bradish, and Claire Bandaras. _____ Last year's varsity from O'Hara came in second place while the JV team and freshmen team won by default when the other five schools did not field teams. _____ In the West Central Conference sequence, the event is scheduled for Smith-Cotton in Sedalia this year and Warrensburg the following year. ____ Since joining the West Central Conference, Smith-Cotton has only hosted one Conference meet and that was in 2004. _____ Last year Saint Pius X was the host and won the varsity Championship while the year before O'Hara hosted the day and also was the Champion. _____ O'Hara's freshman teams have been Champs from 2002 to the present. ______ The JV teams from O'Hara have won the past three years in succession. _____ Although there are six schools in the West Central Conference, the last time more than four of them fielded teams was the year 2002. _____ Center High who joined the Conference two years ago has yet to compete in the WCC Bowl.

O'HARA ALUMNA SHIRE SHINES

Sarah Shire, an alumna from Archbishop O'Hara High School, was selected as Big 12 Gymnast of the Week for a record-tying eleventh time. _____ The Big 12 Conference named the All-American athlete the Gymnast of the Week for the fourth time this year. _____ This ties her with Emily Parsons of Nebraska for the most Big 12 Gymnast of the Week Honors. _____ The Missouri Univesity athlete posted a new career high score competing with Oklahoma recently with a score of 39.625 winning her fifth all-around title of the season. _____ Winning the vault title with a season high 9.925, she also tied for the bars with an identical score. _____ Her beam score of 9.9000 and floor 9.875 helped her to her 15th all-around title in her career. _____ Shire is ranked 9th nationally in the all-around and tied for 6th on beam

Celtics Win District BB Game 34-27

Although it wasn't particularly pretty for three quarters, the O'Hara Lady Celtics defeated the Pembroke Hill Raiders 34-27 on February 24 in the semifinal game in Class 4 District 13. _____ Both defenses kept the game uncomfortably close until the Celtics broke out for a ten point lead at 31-21 before ending the game with the seven point victory. _____ Alex Smith and Adish Faunteroy provided each team with first quarter three-pointers but the score became only a 7-7 tie. _____ Lee Winter got a Raider trey in the second quarter, but their only other basket was by Brittany Connor for a total of five, while Alex Smith made six points along with Hailey Houser's deuce to make the halftime a low score of 15-12! _____ Lee Winter and Ashley Clark each hit three- point shots in the third quarter, but even then only a single point separated the two teams who were stingy in giving up points. _____ The fourth quarter started with O'Hara ahead 22-21. Then Hailey Houser contributed six and Alex Smith came through with three, thus providing the ten point lead with just over two minutes left to the contest. _____ The Raiders sent a number of Celtics to the free throw line and were rewarded with nine misses. _____ It wasn't enough though because the O'Hara defense held the Raiders to a total of three baskets for six points for the entire quarter. _____ Only five O'Hara players scored in the game. Alex Smith had 12, Hailey Houser had 11, Tori Hurtt had 4, Ashley Clark had 3, and Cameron Randle was held to 2. _____ O'Hara's win vaulted the team to the Championship game with Hickman Mills, the winner over Notre Dame de Sion 66-62. _____ The Championship game is scheduled for 7 pm on Friday, February 26 in the O'Hara gym.

TRAVIS SELECTED FOR METRO CLASSIC

Travis Peter from Archbishop O'Hara High School has been selected to represent Missouri in the 18th annual METRO CLASSIC dual wrestling meet featuring seniors from Missouri and Kansas high schools. ______ He will be in the 125 lb weight class. _____ The event is on March 10th at 6:30 pm at the KC Kansas Community College at 7250 State Avenue. _____ The presale tickets are $8 and at the door $10 with proceeds going to wrestling scholarships at Fort Hays State University & Central Missouri State University. _____ Tickets can be obtained at Raytown-Lee's Summit Community Credit Union, Nill Brothers Sporting Goods, Jay Greco's Farmer's Insurance, Varsity Sports, Blue Chip Wrestling, or Nutz Legends. _____ Tickets can also be obtained from George Peter, Travis Peter, and Chadd Peter. _____Travis set the O'Hara school record this year for most wins in a season and most career wins over four years. _____ He won second place in State competition in his sophomore and senior years. In his senior year he only dropped two matches.

Celtics Lose District BB Game 53-61

Twice the O'Hara Celtic boys basketball team had defeated the Center Yellowjackets in the West Central Conference games wherein O'Hara won the Conference undefeated, but in the semifinal District 13 Class 4 game on February 23rd, Center emerged on top 61-53. _____ During the regular season O'Hara had won games of 73-66 and 60-58 in their contests. _____ Just three days earlier, the Missouri State High School regular-season basketball rankings compiled by the Missouri Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association listed the O'Hara team #4 with their 21-4 record. ___ The only teams ranked above the Celtics were undefeated Saint Francis Borgia 25-0, Kearney 22-3, and Sikeston 18-3. Harrisonville was the only other area team in the top ten and they were #6 with their 20-5 record. _____ In the District game however, a 17-4 second quarter by the Yellowjackets made the big difference. _____ Twelve of Center's second quarter points were by Mark Braden who played for O'Hara over the past three years and is finishing his senior year at Center. _____ O'Hara took a six point lead at the end of the first quarter with D. J. Jackson hitting a trey before the buzzer. _____ But after the half, the two talented squads matched point for point, and after falling behind by as much as sixteen when the score read 38-22, the Celtics were only able to get within five when the score read 57-52. _____ Mark Braden led all scorers with 25 points and was assisted in the win by Anthony Rule with 11, Oren Lee with 10, and Marcus wright with 10. _____ For O'Hara, the top scorers were Josh Rupprecht & Dominique Fields with 12 apiece and JeVon Lyle & D. J. Jackson with 9 each. _____ In the first round, Center got past Hickman Mills 70-68 in overtime to reach the semifinal game. _____ In a way, it is a shame that three excellent basketball teams were all placed in the same bracket when only one of those teams go on the represent the District in the rest of the playoffs for the State Crown. _____ O'Hara is graduating seven seniors who began the season, but will have juniors Josh Rupprecht, JeVon Lyle, D. J. Jackson, Andre Jordan, and Cullen Rowland, along with sophomore Daniel Hurtt as a nulceus of the 2010-2011 team.

FORENSICS/DEBATE AT CLINTON 2/20/10

From Archbishop O'Hara High School: JOHANNA KELLY: 3rd place Original Oratory, 5th place Radio Speaking, 5th place Storytelling. _____ SARA DOWNS: 5th place Poetry Interpretation. _____ ROCKY CHAEL: 6th place Prose Interpreation. ______ Others who earned recognition with excellent ballots, superior ballots, good ballots, excellent comments, and commendations were JOE, BURDETT, ALEX KEFFER-SWANEY, RACHEL GUDDE, PAIGE BUSH, DERRI ANNA WHITE, KAYLA HENDERSON, BRIA ANDERSON-GARDNER, and TREY HAMPTON.

District 13 Basketball Hosted by Archbishop O'Hara High School

The site of the 2009-2010 Class 4 District 13 Tournament between February 22nd and February 27 is Archbishop O'Hara High School. _____ Both the boys and girls from O'Hara were seeded #1. Both teams won the West Central Championships. The boys' squad only lost 4 games and the girls team lost just 5 times in their respective seasons. _____ BOYS BRACKET: After Center and Hickman Mills play at 4:00 on February 22, the winner faces the Celtics in a 5:30 game on the 23rd. Meanwhile Ruskin and Pembroke Hill play at 7:30 on the 23rd. The District Championship game is scheduled for February 27 at 2:00 PM. _____ GIRLS BRACKET: Two games are on tap for February 22, a 6:00 contest between Center and Pembroke Hill and an 8:00 game with Ruskin and Notre Dame de Sion. On February 24, the winner of the first of these meet O'Hara at 5:30 and the winner of the second pairing play Hickman Mills at 7:30. The District Championship game is to be played on February 26 at 7:00 PM.

CENTER UNABLE TO KEEP O'HARA FROM BEING UNDEFEATED IN WCC

After the Center Yellowjackets took an early lead at 14-11, the O'Hara Celtics scored ten points in succession by D. J. Jackson, Josh Rupprecht, JeVon Lyle, Dominique Fields, and Keenan Wilkins-Hemphill, and led all the way to a 60-58 West Central Conference victory. _____ With one remaining game with Smith-Cotton, the Celtics remain undefeated in the Conference and have already won the Conference Championship. _____ Mark Braden, who played his first three high school years at O'Hara, was the Yellowjackets' top scorer with 23 points. _____ For the Celtics, the top scoring came from Josh Rupprecht with 14, JeVon Lyle with 12, Dominique Fields with 11, and D. J. Jackson with 9. _____ O'Hara led at the half 28-20 but Center whittled that down to four points to end the third quarter at 44-40. _____ O'Hara did not let the game go to a tie nor did they relinquish the lead although Center kept close. _____ The last eight O'Hara points were free throws by D. J. Jackson, Andre Jordan, and Ronnie Miller. _____ In the JV game preceding the varsity game, Center won 56-53. The O'Hara JV squad was ahead 53-50 with 25 seconds remaining in the game, but the Yellowjackets scored the final six points of the close game.

Travis Peter is Runner-Up at State Wrestling

It took Travis Peter three minutes to pin Chris Renteria from Monnet in the 125 weight class of the first round in Class 2 State wrestling tournament to give Archbishop O'Hara High School their first four team points and a tie for 36th place among the competing teams. _____ O'Hara's other entry in the State competiton went 1:44 before dropping his match on a pin to Max Piazza from Westminster Christian, Louis Golden competing in the 215 weight. ______ Travis Peter, in the quarterfinals on Friday, pinned Jake Vitale from Mexico in 42 seconds. ______ As a result, O'Hara as a team move up to a tie for 24th place with a team total of 22 points among the 47 schools fielding wrestlers in the State competition. _____ In the semifinals, Travis took a close decision 3-1 against Evan Young from Odessa. _____ Then on Saturday, February 20th, Travis Peter lost to Kirkville's Justin Vanhoose 9-3 for the State Title. _____ For the season, Van Hoose, the State defending champ, went to 53-0. _____ Travis Peter now holds two O'Hara school records in wrestling: he has the season record of 52-2 and career record of 153-25.

SURGING CELTS ARE TENTH IN RANKINGS

Although recognized in a higher ranking in State competition for their school size, the Archbishop O'Hara High School boys basketball team re-entered the Kansas City Star's large schools ranking taking over 10th place as of Tuesday, February 16. _____ The Celtics are the only undefeated team in the West Central Conference and with the recent game with Clinton, reached a 21-4 season. None of the other nine ranked squads had more than 21 wins when the rankings were announced. Raymore-Peculiar, ranked 2nd, and Kearney, ranked 6th had won 21. _____ The only team undefeated in the rankings with a 17-0 record is Bishop Miege. O'Hara lost to Miege in the Hy-Vee Shootout by only two points, and would have taken the victory had the three-point effort from the corner by JeVon Lyle gone in at the final buzzer. _____ None of the other eight ranked teams beat O'Hara this season.

O'Hara Courtwarming Royalty

On February 18th, the candidates for the O'Hara Courtwarming Dance were announced. The Queen and King were announced at the dance on February 20th : Nicole Krawczyk and Emanuel Moore. ______ The other Queen candidates were Mary Sutherlin, Rachel Pembrook, and Brianca Greene. _____ The other candidates for King were T. J. White, Mike Berney, and Nick Cobb. _____ For the underclassmen representations, the Princesses and Princes were freshmen Nicole Sperman & Josh Austin, sophomores Alex Fennesy & Justin Chang, and juniors Johanna Kelly & Luis Martinez. _____ The dance served as a fundraiser for the mission school at Dire Dawa, Ethiopia.

O'HARA 79 CLINTON 46

The Clinton Cardinals had their hands full with junior Josh Rupprecht who scored 20 and sophomore Daniel Hurtt who was not far behind with 18 as the O'Hara Celtics won on February 17th by a score of 79-46. _____ Only through the first quarter did the score have a semblance of closeness when just before the end of the period, the Celtics led by only two points at 18-16. _____ O'Hara then went on a ten point run and continued to build up a large margin leading to an eventual running clock. ______ The biggest burst was a 25-4 second quarter. ______ Eleven O'Hara players contributed to the Celtic total after Cullen Rowland capped the scoring with a final basket.

Two O'Hara Wrestlers Qualify at District

TRAVIS PETER WINS 125 WEIGHT AND LOUIS GOLDEN IS THIRD AT 215 _____In Class 2, District #4, O'Hara's Travis Peter defeated Daron McCant from Excelsior Springs to win the 125 weight championship on February 13th. _____ Peter's record soared to 47-1 and McCant went to 34-14. _____ Also qualifying for further State competition from O'Hara was Louis Golden who bested Ruskin's Donzell Young for third place. Golden's won-loss record went to 19-11 and Young's to 32-22. _____ Teamwise, the O'Hara wrestlers were 10th among 13 schools with 42 points.

CELTICS REMAIN UNDEFEATED IN WCC WITH A FIVE POINT WIN OVER WARRENSBURG

Earlier in the season, the O'Hara Celtics poured in 98 points against the Warrenburg Tigers, but in the game on February 12th, they were held to only 38. But it was enough to claim the victory inasmuch as the home team could only manage 33! _____ In the low scoring game, the Tigers owned a six point lead before the half at 21-15, but by the time the fourth quarter was to unfold, the Celtics were up 34-33. _____ Coach Todd Magwire then had his team "hold the ball" for a lengthy period of time, tempting the defense to "come on out". _____ They didn't until the game was cranking down to the final minute of playing time. _____ With 46 seconds remaining, D. J. Jackson had a 1-1 opportunity at the free throw line and cashed in on both shots. _____ With eight seconds on the clock, he did it again for the final score. ______ While O'Hara has yet to be topped in the West Central Conference, the Warrensburg Tigers went to 5-3 in the Conference and 14-8 overall. Tyler Schmidt was the only Tiger to go over ten points; he had 11. _____ The Celtics were up by two points 9-7 after the first quarter, but the Tigers pulled ahead at halftime by outscoring the Celtics 14-6 during the second quarter. _____ O'Hara's 23-12 second half made the difference.

Celtics Ranked Fourth in State Basketball

In Class 4 Missouri State Rankings as of February 12th, the Archbishop O'Hara High School boys team with a 17-4 record are ranked 4th. _____ The three teams ahead of them are Borgia (20-0), Sikeston (16-1), and Kearney (18-2). _____ In order, the next six teams are Soldan, Notre Dame in Cape Girardeau, Harrisonville, MICDS, Saint Joseph Lafayette, and Helias. _____ Soldan and Notre Dame have four losses and the rest have five or more losses.

SENIOR DAY FOR LADY CELTICS RESULT IN 64-35 VICTORY

Except for twelve points scored by junior Victoria Hurtt, the five O'Hara Lady Celtics honored at Senior Night on February 12th scored all of the home team's points in a 64-35 win over the Pembroke Hill Raiders. _____ Hailey Houser led the way with 16 followed by Cameron Randle with 15, Alex Smith with 13, Breanna Ransburg with 5, and Ashley Clark with a three-pointer. _____ O'Hara was off running at the start of the game with a 26-4 run and completed the first half with a twenty point lead at 32-12. ______ After the score reached 34-20 in the third quarter, the Celtics scored 18 consecutive points to stretch the score to 50-20 when Ereka Hunt finally connected on a three-point shot for the Raiders. _____ The game was finished with a running clock.

O'HARA GIRLS GUARANTEED AT LEAST A SHARE IN WCC CHAMPIONSHIP

As of February 9th, the Lady Celtics are assured of at least a share of the West Central Conference Championship. _____ With Saint Pius losing to Smith-Cotton for their second Conference loss of the season, the Celtics with just two games left on their schedule with Saint Pius and Warrensburg could complete their WCC competition undefeated. They are presently 8-0. _____ Smith-Cotton, like Saint Pius, also already has two losses in the Conference.

Lady Celtics 57 Notre Dame de Sion 51

On February 9th, the Archbishop O'Hara High School girls basketball team added another big win with a 57-51 victory at Notre Dame de Sion. _____ A cautious first quarter wherein the Celtics trailed by one point 9-8 was followed by an intense quarter to boost O'Hara to a six point halftime lead 26-20. _____ The score was shaved to two points entering the final quarter 38-36, but the Lady Celtics kept their opponents at bay with free throws. O'Hara benefitted from 17 free throws only missing on six. _____ The foursome of Tori Hurtt, Ashley Clark, Alex Smith, and Cameron Randle combined for all but ten of the Celtics' points.

CELTICS OVER RAMS BY EIGHT

After the Hogan Rams took an early lead 4-2 over the O'Hara Celtics on February 8, they trailed the entire rest of the boys' basketball game played at O'Hara. Final score was 75-67. _____ The Celtics scored 16 unanswered points within the first quarter and jumped ahead by as much as 12 points, but the Rams kept coming back and at three different times in the contest came within one point of the home team. _____ For O'Hara, Josh Rupprecht pumped in 23 points on eleven baskets and a free throw while D. J. Jackson added 14 points on just two baskets and a flock of free throws. _____ Dominique Fields and Ronnie Miller scored in each of the four quarters and both ended up with 11 points.

Travis Peter Continues to Win in Wrestling

At the LEE SUMMIT WEST WRESTLING TOURNAMENT on February 6th, Travis Peter from Archbishop O'Hara High School went undefeated in winning in the 125 lb division. _____ District is on February 12th at Excelsior Springs.

VERNON WINS TROPHY AT SPEECH TOURNAMENT

A second place trophy was won by Beth Vernon in Storytelling at the Park Hill High School Speech Tournament on February 6th. ______ For coming in fifth in Poetry Interpretation, Sara Downs won a medal. _____ Sara Downs also teamed up with Rocky Chael in earning a Superior Ballot in Improvisional Duet Acting. _____ Another member of the Archbishop O'Hara High School Speech/Forensic's Team, Trey Hampton, received a Superior Ballot in Poetry Interpretation.

Two More WCC Wins for Celtics

Both O'Hara varsity basketball teams won their West Central Conference games at Clinton on February 5th, the girls by 64-17 and the boys by 71-38. _____ In their first quarters alone, the girls went up 25-5 and the boys were 19-6 and the two squads coasted through the rest of the way. _____ Top girls scorers in double figures were Ashley Clark 17, Cameron Randle 15, and Tori Hurtt 14 while for the boys they were JeVon Lyle, Daniel Hurtt, D. J. Jackson, and Andre Jordan who had ten points or more each. _____ Both teams lead in the Conference undefeated.

LADY CELTICS ARE 7-0 IN WCC

On February 3rd, with the O'Hara Lady Celtics winning 63-23 over Center, they remained undefeated in the West Central Conference. They have games remaining with Saint Pius, Warrensburg, and Clinton. _____ Alex Smith, Cameron Randle, Tori Hurtt, and Hailey Houser each scored ten or more points in the game with Center. The Yellowjackets had their best quarter with 15 points in the third period but the Celtics already had a 35-6 halftime advantage. _____ In second place is Saint Pius X with a 3-1 record with six games remaining on their schedule.

Tyler Houser Signs Letter of Intent

On February3, Tyler Houser signed a letter of intent to Benedictine College. He was a tackle on the Archbishop O'Hara High School football team. His team was third in State in 2009.

SPECIAL RECOGNITION TO STATE CHAMPS IN VOLLEYBALL

The Win For KC Women's Sports Awards luncheon on February 5th, during the Metro Sports Celebration of Champions March, will honor the Archbishop O'Hara High School volleyball team for winning the State Championship this schoolyear. _____ The eleven players involved are Mercy Favrow, Madison Clark, Molly Flores, Adriane Barry, Emily Tyler, Janell Jordan, Michala Boehm, Victoria Hurtt, Lindsay Hanaway, Jordyn Wyatt, and Katie Huber. _____ With an attendance of 1400, the National Girls and Women in Sports are honoring local athletes for their outstanding accomplishments and contributions to sports and fitness.

Celtics 58 Stars 39

On the first day of February, the Lady Celtics won a 58-39 game with the Stars from Saint Teresa's Academy on the O'Hara home court. _____ Building up an immediate 14-4 score for a ten point edge, O'Hara maintained the margin by the end of the first quarter 22-12. _____ Except for three 3-pointers in the second quarter, the Celtics held their opponents to six points. However only Hailey Houser and Breanna Ransburg scored any points for the home team and O'Hara's lead was narrowed to four points at halftime 31-27. _____ The Stars scored the first two tallies of the third quarter to make it a two-point game. _____ Then the Celtics went on a 21-1 run throughout the third quarter and well into the fourth quarter to bring the score to 52-30! _____ Along the way, Victoria Hurtt surprised the crowd with a sky hook to close out the third quarter. _____ Six Celtics pumped in the winners' points: Alex Smith with 14, Hailey Houser with 12, Cameron Randle with 9, Ashley Clark & Victoria Hurtt with 8 apiece, and Breanna Ransburg with 7. _____ The Stars scored only one basket and one free throw during the entire third quarter.

CELTICS DEBATE & FORENSICS AT SPEECH TOURNEY

With 14 schools competing, the Archbishop O'Hara High School Debate and Forensics Team competed in the Hickman Mills High School Speech Tournament on the last days of January. _____ Kayla Henderson teamed up with Johanna Kelly and won three out of four debate rounds at the expense of Rockhurst, Liberty, and Lee's Summit West. _____In Original Oratory Johanna Kelly earned two Superior Ballots. _____ Sara Downs took an Excellent Ballot and a Superior Ballot in Prose/Poetry Interpretation. _____ Paige Bush was the recipient of an Excellent Ballot in Poetry Interpretation. _____ In her first tournament experience, Beth Vernon got an Excellent Ballot in Storytelling. _____ Finally in Prose Interpretation, Bria Anderson-Gardner earned a Superior Ballot.

Celtics Football Schedule for Next Year

On August 27, the Celtics are on the road playing Grandview. _____ The next four games are West Central Conference games. _____ On September 3 and September 10, O'Hara hosts Clinton and Warrensburg; they follow this with away games on September 17 at Smith-Cotton and September 24 at Saint Pius X. _____ On October 1, the Celtics play University Academy (this may be the O'Hara Homecoming game). _____ On October 8, O'Hara play their last WCC game at Center. _____ The three District games are October 15 at Pembroke Hill, October 22 hosting Westport, and on Thursday, October 28 they finish the regular season with a home game against Central. _____ Post season games start up in November.