Daily Prayer For a Teacher

I want to teach my students how to live on earth
To face its struggles and its strife and improve their worth.

Not just the lesson in a book or how the rivers flow
But how to choose the proper path wherever they may go.

To understand eternal truth and learn the right from wrong
And gather all the beauty of a flower and a song.

For if I help the world to grow in wisdom and in grace
Then I shall feel that I have won and I have filled my place.

And so I ask your guidance, God, that I may do my part
For character and confidence and happiness of heart.

CHRISTMAS 2013

CELTICS CROSS COUNTRY TEAM EDGES STOCKTON FOR DISTRICT TITLE

Scoring 53 points, the Archbishop O'Hara boys cross country team won the Class 2 District 7 Title on November 2nd. Stockton was second at 54 points and Lamar was third with 58 points. Eight squads were represented.

None of the Celtic runners were among the top five, but running as a team, they took the 7th, 8th, 9th and 10th places.

Danny Meyers, J.D. Meyers, Matthew Gordon, and C. J. Naudet were among the top ten across the finish line.

The team could't have accomplished the First Place finish without the important fifth runner. By coming in 20th, Corbett McKinney persevered in that role.

The O'Hara girls led by Jennifer Gustin in 9th place and Anna Gutteridge in 13th place took third place as a team, just one point shy of second place. Stockton won with a score of 20 while O'Hara had 56 and Holden had 55.

O'Hara Volleyball Team Almost Reached Final Four

It was so close, but the Archbishop O'Hara High School volleyball team was barely beaten by Saint Pius X on November 2nd in contests determining the State Sectionals.

O'Hara won 25-21 in the first game but dropped the second 25-27, and just missed out in the deciding game 23-25!

The Celtics had an easier time with Savannah prior to the game with Saint Pius, winning 25-22 and 25-17.

Saint Pius meanwhile had survived Grain Valley in three games 25-17, 21-25, and 25-23.

Some Football Stats Following O'Hara's Game With Pembroke Hill

After winning at Pembroke Hill and anticipating the November 6th game with Oak Grove, the Celtics added numbers to their season and career records.
Since 1988, O'Hara and Oak Grove met eleven times with O'Hara winning seven times.
In the game against the Raiders, O'Hara had 336 total yards to Pembroke Hill's 216 yards. 172 of the Celtics' yards were on 13 completed passes in 22 attempts by Michael Briggs. The Raiders had no passing yards in their three attempts.
Zach Drake caught six of O'Hara's passes for 96 yards. For the season, he has 35 receptions placing him tied for third with Aaron Stubblefield and Matt Morrison. His career total is 41 which places him in 8th place. Drake is also now in 7th place for extra point kicks in a season (31) and 7th place in career extra points (41).
Maverick Griffin had three quarterback sacks in the game and Robert Martin had one.

Seven Celtics Cited for Volleyball Honors

Archbishop O'Hara High School has seven volleyball players singled out for Conference and State honors.

McKenzie Roberts, Katie Tyler, and Amanda Hull were named to the All West Central Conference Team and the All District First Team.

Mariel Saunders was also selected for the All Conference team and the Second Team All District.

All four are nominees for the All Regional Team along with Allison Dalton.

Grace Pepple made the All District First Team and Allison Dalton reached the All District Second Team.

Peyton Podschwit was an Honorable Mention for the All District squad.

OVERTIME DISTRICT WIN GOES TO O'HARA 27-21

On October 31, the Archbishop O'Hara High School football team won their first game in District play 27-21 in overtime with the Pembroke Hill Raiders.

After building up a 21 point lead from three first half touchdowns, the Raiders were kept scoreless the rest of the game.

An interception by Billy Humphrey set up the Raiders' first scoring, a 10 yard run by Charlie Mueller. Following an O'Hara punt, the Raiders scored again on Sean Reardon's 5 yard run and the Raider team led 14-0 going into the second quarter. The game's score went to 21-0 following a Celtic fumble leading up to a 9 yard TD by Charlie Mueller.

With less than two minutes left in the second quarter, Micheal Briggs connected with Zach Drake for a 39 yard touchdown The halftime score was 21-7.

The Raiders drove down to the Celtics' 20 yard line when Gerard Harker interceptd a pass and returned the ball 56 yards to set up O'Hara'second touchdown, a one yard plunge by Michael Briggs.

In the fourth quarter, O'Hara effectively moved the ball with both running plays and passing. A 18 yard run by Gerard Harker tied the game at 21-21.

With six seconds left in regulation time, Zach Drake lined up for a very long field goal attempt but it was not successful.

The Raiders had first possession in the overtime period but failed to make much yardage on three running plays and one incomplete pass play.

The Celtics made two first downs along with a 2 yard keeper by quarterback Michael Briggs for the margin of victory. Until he scored, O'Hara hadn't led during any time in the game.

O'Hara Volleyball Win District Championship

The Archbishop O'Hara High School volleyball team, after falling behind by one game 21-25, came back to beat Pembroke Hill 25-17 and 25-13. to reign as District Champs.

They qualified for the Championship game in Class 3 District 13 by winning 25-11 and 25-9 over Cristo Rey.

Pembroke Hill won 25-20 and 25-20 defeating Center to meet the Celtics for the first place plaque.

O'Hara Wins Football Game With Warrensburg

O’Hara 47 Warrensburg 28
The O’Hara High School football team completed their regular season with a 47-28 victory over their West Central Conference opponent from Warrensburg on October 25.

The two teams went through a scoreless first quarter before the Celtics piled up 26 points by halftime.

The Tigers controlled the ball the entire first quarter, beginning on their 13 yard line and advancing to the O’Hara 5 yard line where they finally gave up the ball on downs. On the drive, the team twice was successful on fourth down plays.

When the Celtics went on offense, they marched from their 5 yard line in eleven plays to open the scoring. The big play in the drive was a 37 yard run by Michael Rowe, but the touchdown was a 24 yard run by Gerard Harker.

O’Hara got their second TD following a punt, scoring on a 33 yard pass play from Michael Briggs to Austin Evans.

The Tigers moved the ball toward the O’Hara goal fairly well until Gerard Harker intercepted and returned the ball 75 yards for O’Hara’s third score. Zack Drake’s extra point attempt was blocked, but the Celtics were up 20-0.

The Tigers finally got on the scoreboard with 23 seconds left to the half, scoring on a pass play from Ben McClung to Lane Batusic.

Even with the limited time left to the half, O’Hara scored once more. Two passes to Zach Drake resulted in O’Hara going up 26-7, the second play covering 56 yards!

Warrensburg scored first in the third quarter. Set up by an interception by Ryan Houk, the Tigers got a 3 yard TD run by quarterback Ben McClung. J.D. Culp added the extra point.

O’Hara answered with a touchdown on an 11 yard pass from Michael Briggs to Michael Rowe. Michael Briggs added two points on a two-point conversion.

At the start of the fourth quarter, Gerard Harker scored from two yards out for the Celtics.

The last three touchdowns were by Zach Nowlin on a 17 yard run for the Tigers, an 8 yard run by Larry Bosworth for the Celtics, and a 24 yard run by Zach Nowlin for the visitors. Zack Drake, as usual, accounted for O'Hara's extra point while Aaron Saundes caught a pass for Warrensburg's two-point conversion, but the Tigers were unsuccessul in their other extra point attempt.

Prior to the game, sixteen seniors from O'Hara were singled out for playing in the school's final home game of the season.

Four Celtic rushers had great averages per carry: Gerard Harker 8.7, Michael Rowe 8.2, Michael Briggs 5.2, and Larry Bosworth 5.0.

Briggs passed for 143 yards and holds the #3 place in career yards passing at O'Hara. Drake caught his 35th career pass for 9th place (just two completions behind head coach Jim DeMarea).

O'HARA HONORS FIVE AT SENIOR NIGHT IN VOLLEYBALL

Along with a West Central Conference victory with Smith-Cotton, the Archbishop O'Hara High School volleyball team honored five at Senior Night on October 23.

The winning scores were 25-16 and 25-18.

The five seniors given special recognition were McKenzie Roberts, Mariel Saunders, Amanda Hull, Allison Dalton, and Arielle Alaiwat.

Overtime Football Loss by O'Hara to St Pius 20-21

This game was the HY-VEE game of the week!

Unable to convert on a two-point attempt, the Archbishop O’Hara High School Celtics football team lost in overtime to the Saint Pius X Warriors 20-21.

The Warriors built up a 14-0 halftime score on touchdowns by Kyle Deters on a 11 yard pass play from Marshall Mason and a 4 yard run by Gabe Akalugwu, both in the second quarter.

The Celtics cut that score in half in the third quarter with a 15 yard run by Larry Bosworth.

The Celtics had two long TD pass plays called back on holding penalties, but finally in the fourth quarter, scored the tying touchdown on a 16 yard run by Gerard Harker.

Daniel Hoambrcker missed on a field goal attempt with 9 seconds to go which could have won for Saint Pius during regulation time.

Nicholas Kelliher scored the Warriors’ overtime touchdown on a 2 yard run and Michael Briggs scored O’Hara’s TD on a 4 yard run.

O’Hara’s biggest gainer during the game was a 38 yard pass play from Michael Briggs to Zach Drake.

O'Hara had 301 total yards to Saint Pius' 252. Michael Briggs completed 13 passes for 137 yards.

Two Celtics Selected to All Conference Team in Tennis

Coach James Allen announced that two tennis players were named to the girls All West Central Conference Tennis Team. The two from Archbishop O'Hara High School are Eriana Blankenship and Ciru Franklin.

O'Hara Volleyball Team is Seeded #1 in District.

Archbishop O'Hara High School is seeded Number One in their District in volleyball.

The rest of the seeding are Pembroke Hill (2), Center (3), Cristo Rey (4), Southwest (5), and Hogan Prep (6).

Competition begins on October 28 and the District Championship on October 30.

Davis and Hyde Make All District Team in Softball

Infielders Emily Davis and Abby Hyde were selected from Archbishop O'Hara High School to the Second Team All District in softball.

O'Hara 10 Center 35

On October 11 the Center Yellowjackets and the O’Hara Celtics met to see which undefeated team in the West Central Conference would remain in first place.

The Celtics came up with one touchdown and a field goal while the Yellowjackets scored five touchdowns to win by a score of 35-10.

Scoring in every quarter, Center had TD’s by Gage King on a 5 yard run, Tony Caldwell on a 2 yarder, an 11 yard run by Tony Caldwell, a 4 yard run by Aaron Johnson, and long 57 yard breakaway by Rtez Dowdy.

The Celtics got a 30 yard field goal just before the half by Zack Drake and a fourth quarter 12 yard scoring run by Larry Bosworth.

In the first quarter, the Yellowjackets controlled the ball throughout while building up their first 13 points. Brandon Jones snuffed out an O'Hara drive with an interception to end the quarter.

Another drive in the second period was halted by an interception by Cameron Blanks. O'Hara'a field goal however was set up in a drive wherein Michael Rowe caught an 11 yard pass followed by a 29 yard pass play from Michael Briggs to Gerard Harker.

The only seven points scored in the third quarter was the long 57 yard run.

Both teams got fourth quarter touchdowns. Center scored in a nine play drive in spite of two holding penalties along the way. O'Hara got their only TD following a long 49 yard pass play involving Michael Briggs and Brett Kies.

With two more games to be played by each of the WCC teams, undefeated Center is in first place. Tied for second place are O'Hara, Smith-Cotton, and Saint Pius X who all have 2-1 records. Warrensburg and Clinton have yet to win a game.

O'Hara'a five leading scorers so far are Zach Drake 50, Brock Hughes 44, Gerard Harker 30, Michael Briggs 28, and Austn Evans 24. Michael Rowe and Larry Boswell have two touchdowns apiece.

Michael Briggs completed ten passes to seven different receivers for 171 yards. This placed him in 7th place for O'Hara passers for a single season. His career total is now 2,029 yards putting him in third place behind T.J. White and Jake Fortin.

Zach Drake is tied for 14th place in catches for a single season with his 21st catch in this game. His 42 total extra point conversions has him in tenth place for career kicks.

O'Hara Alumnus Excels

When the Missouri Western Griffins, ranked sixth in NAIA, won their football game with Central Oklahoma 63-30, Raphael Spencer, former O'Hara running back, gained 221 yards.

OHara 43 Sedalia Smith-Cotton 36

CELTICS OUTLAST SMITH-COTTON IN SEDALIA 43-36

On October 4th, the Celtics from Archbishop O’Hara High School won a see-saw football game with Smith-Cotton 43-36.

Gerard Harker had three touchdowns to lead the Celtic attack. Michael Briggs threw for three touchdowns and a total of 233 yards while completing twelve passes on nineteen attempts.

In the first quarter, Maverick Griffin halted a drive by the Tigers with an interception deep in O’Hara territory and gave the Celtics the ball on the 27 yard line. The Celtics marched down to the end zone in ten plays. Gerard Harker ran the ball in from six yards away. It was the only scoring in the first period.

Smith-Cotton evened the score with a 2 yard run by Dakota Brown at the beginning of the second quarter.

Following three O’Hara incompletions and a punt, the Tigers went ahead on a 58 yard run from scrimmage by Chance McMullin.

This was answered by the Celtics with a passing TD from Michael Briggs to Gerard Harker covering 11 yards, and Michael Briggs scored a two-point conversion for a 15-14 O’Hara lead.

A long time consuming drive by the Tigers resulted in a 9 yard touchdown by Chance McMullen and with 22 seconds remaining to the half, it appeared that the home team would have a 22-15 advantage.

However Austin Evans made great use of the limited time with an impressive 52 yard kickoff return followed by a 34 yard pass reception from Michael Briggs to tie up the game at the half 22-22.

O’Hara had first possession in the third quarter, and plugged away for a touchdown to retake the lead. Gerard Harker scored from the one yard line.

Back again came the Tigers, scoring on a 5 yard run by Chance Mcmullin to tie the contest at 29-29.

Before the third quarter ended, Micheal Rowe broke loose for a 47 yard run followed by a 14 yard touchdown by Larry Bosworth.

A 57 yard touchdown run by Jacob Weeks tied the game once more at 36-36 in the fourth quarter.

The final touchdown of the game was a 25 yard pass to Austin Evans.

The Tigers made one more effort to get back in the game but was intercepted by Michael Rowe on the one yard line.

Celtic Soccer Team Wins Conference Game 5-1

On October 1st, the Archbishop O'Hara High School soccer team won their West Central Conference game with the Center Yellowjackets by a score of 5-1.

Goals were scored by Noah Latendresse, Nick Barrera, Ivan Saenz, Samuel Allen, and Michael Drake for the Celtics.

Center's lone goal was by Jay Stephenson.

O'Hara 27 Clinton 7

On September 27, the Archbishop O'Hara High School football team won their first West Central Conference game with the Clinton Cardinals 27-7.

Toward the end of the first quarter,Michael Briggs scored on a quarterback sneak and Zach Drake's kick gave the Celtics a 7-0 lead. Two completed passes for 25 yards apiece to Austin Evans and Brock Hughes brought the ball to the goal line.

The Cardinals tied the game in the second quarter on a 6 yard run by Tanner Perry and an extra point by Brian McCoy.

The Celtics drove down to the 4 yard line before the half where Zach Drake kicked the first of his two field goals of the game. Passes for 24 yards and for 20 yards to Austin Evans along with an 18 yard run by Gerard Harker set up the field goal.

The only scoring in the third quarter was a 13 yard pass from Michael Briggs to Zach Drake which came after a 20 yard completion to Jordan Supplee.

O'Hara scored twice more in the final quarter, first on a field goal, and later on another quarterback sneak by Michael Briggs. For the drive that placed the ball close enough for the field goal, a pass for 15 yards to Austin Evans and a pass for 12 yards to Zach Drake were the big plays. The last TD for the Celtics materialized following a Cardinal fumble deep in O'Hara territory.

Leading tacklers on defense were Larry Bosworth, Maverick Griffin, Robert Martin, and Stephen Conway. Martin and Conwqay each had three quarterback sacks. Austin Evans, Jacob Cheney, and Chris Beauchamp recovered fumbles and Michael Rowe had an interception along with a 48 yard return.

As the Celtics increased their record to 3-2,six players led the way in scoring: Brock Hughes 44 on seven touchdowns and a two-point conversion, Zach Drake on three touchdowns, two field goals, and 17 extra points, Michael Briggs 26 on four touchdowns and a two-point conversion, and 12 points each for Gerard Harker, Austin Evans,and Michael Rowe on two touchdownws apiece.

Volleyball Team Win First Two Conference Games

Hosting Center and Clinton on consecutive days, the Archbishop O'Hara High School volleyball team won West Central Conference games on September23 & 24.

Center scored 6 and 5 points and Clinton scored 20 and 12 points.

O'Hara 7 Hogan 41

Hogan Defeats O’Hara 41-6 With Huge Third Quarter

The Hogan Rams scored 23 points in the third quarter of their Saturday afternoon football game with the O’Hara Celtics and won 41-6 on September 21st.

The first half saw one touchdown in each quarter by the Rams. A 16 yard TD run by Chriselle Lang and a 28 yard score by Edward Collins. The O’Hara defense stopped both two-point conversion attempts.

The first touchdown of the third quarter was a pass play from Isaih Baylis to Kareem Sanders for 39 yards, and Chriselle Lang ran for a two-point conversion.

After Brock Hughes ran for a 27 yard gain, the Celtics fumbled, and Hogan was on its way to a second TD in the quarter, a 9 yard run by Ke’Waun Riley, and quarterback Isaih Baylis tagged on two more extra points on a run.

Before the quarter ended, Ke’Waun Riley ran for a 5 yarder and also kicked the extra point.

With the score at 35-0, the game continued with a running clock.

In the fourth quarter, Horace McCallester intercepted a Michael Briggs’ pass and returned to ball to the end zone for the Rams’ 41st point. The attempt to run for the extra points failed.

Later from nearly 80 yards away, Gerard Harker outraced three Ram defenders for O’Hara’s lone touchdown for the day, and Zach Drake kicked the extra point putting a halt to the running clock.

How O'Hara Cross Country Runners Finished in the Holden Invitational

The cross country runners from Archbishop O'Hara High School ran well enough to take third place in the girls varsity and fourth place in the boys division.

Jennifer Gustin placed 11th and Anna Gutteridge was 13th.

Danny Meyers finished 4th, JD Meyers was 8th, and Stephen Gordon crossed the finish line at 15th.

Leah Eckert and McKenzie Torgerson were 4th and 5th in the girls JV.

Celtic Football Stats

After three games, O'Hara outpointed their opponents 113 to 63.

Of O'Hara's total points, Brock Hughes has 44, Zach Drake has 25, and Michael Briggs has 14.
Gerard Harker, Austin Evans, and Michael Rowe have each scored two touchdowns.

The leading tacklers in the game with Knob Noster were Brock Hughes,Maverick Griffin, Larry Bosworth, and Robert Martin.
Fumble recoveries were made by Gerard Harker (2), Maverick Griffin, Austin Evans, and Brian Downs.
Austin Evans had O'Hara's only interception and it is his third in three games.

O'Hara gained 422 yards to Knob Noster's 259. Michael Briggs was nine for twelve in passing.
Only six O'Hara quarterbacks have more career total yards passing than Michael Briggs.

Celtics Beat Panthers in Football

On September 13th, the Archbishop O’Hara High School football team got by the Knob Noster Panthers by a score of 42-14. It was the third game in a row for the Celtics in which they scored 35 points or more.

The Panthers received the opening kickoff and had to punt after three plays. Taking over on their own 39 yard line, O’Hara advanced all the way to the Panther 4 yard line where they relinquished the ball on a fumble recovered by Logan Lawber for the visitors.

The most impressive play in the Celtic drive was a 17 yard run by Michael Rowe.

Seven plays later, the Panthers punted from their 20 yard line to give the Celtics the ball on the O’Hara 43 yard line. Four advances of around fifteen yards each led to the first seven points of the game: a pass from Michael Briggs to Zach Drake, a 15 yard penalty, and runs by Austin Evans and Gerard Harker the latter of which scored the TD. Zach Drake kicked the extra point and would continue with five more before the game was over.

The Panthers tried to even the score with their possession and took the ball from their own 21 yard line to the O’Hara 39 yard line where they lost the ball on downs.

Quickly, the O’Hara offense took over. A Briggs to Drake pass picked up the first 18 yards,. Michael Briggs ran for 15 more, and then he passed to Austin Evans for a 35 yard touchdown.

Finally the Panthers had something to cheer about as Darryl Davis ran down the right sideline for a 72 yard touchdown. Kyle Thomas added the extra point.

O’Hara began their next scoring drive from their 35 yard line. Aided by two lengthy penalties, they scored on a Briggs to Drake 8 yard pass play.

After three unproductive plays, Kyle Thomas punted giving the O’Hara team the ball on the 40 yard line. Zach Drake caught a 9 yard pass and Austin Evans ran for a dozen yards before Michael Briggs completed a pass to Evans for a touchdown covering 30 yards.

At the time it appeared that the halftime score would stay at 28-8, but the Celtics executed an on-side kick to regain possession with just over a minute of playing time until the half.

Brock Hughes ran for an 18 yard gain, Michael Briggs completed a 15 yard pass to Jordan Supplee, and followed with a 15 yard touchdown pass to Michael Rowe.

At halftime the O’Hara Letterman’s Hall of Fame inducted former Principal Stu Bintner, softball standout pitcher Morgan McGinnis ’00, and the 1985 boys soccer team.

With score at 35-7, the Celtics began the third quarter with a time consuming drive. Gerard Harker took the kickoff back all the way to the 40 yard line for good field position. When the team got down to the 15 yard line, Dominic Brown intercepted for the Panthers.

Perhaps unwisely, the Panthers gambled on a fourth down deep in their own territory, and yielded the ball. O’Hara employed short runs to push across their final touchdown, a 4 yard carry by Brock Hughes.

Since the scoring spread was 35 points, the game went into a running clock situation.

The Celtic defense held the Panthers to short gains and topped it off with an interception by Austin Evans who made a lengthy return.

Four plays later, the Celtics gave up the ball on downs.

Logan Lawber, Darryl Davis, and Michael Williams alternated carries in the Panthers’ final drive for a touchdown. Williams scored on a 6 yard run.

Both teams brought on their remaining players to finish off the game.

O'HARA 42 KNOB NOSTER 14

Celtics score 28 points in the Second Quarter enroute to a 42-14 win

After a routine first quarter in which O’Hara pulled ahead with a 14 yard touchdown run by Gerard Harker, the Celtics scored four second quarter TD’s to beat the Knob Noster Panthers 42-14 on September 13th.

The Celtics went ahead by a score of 14-0 in the second period on a 35 yard pass play from Michael Briggs to Austin Evans.

Then the visitors scored their first half touchdown on a 72 yard run down the right sideline by Darryl Davis with Kyle Thomas adding the extra point.

Midway in the quarter, Michael Briggs passed to Zach Drake for an 8 yard touchdown.

With just over a minute remaining in the first half, O’Hara added to their lead with a 30 yard pass play from Michael Briggs to Austin Evans.

But the Celtics got the ball right back with a successful on-side kick. In the short time remaining, Brock Hughes ran for 18 yards, Michael Briggs passed to Jordan Supplee for 15 yards, and then passed to Michael Rowe for another 15 yards and the TD.

Well into the third quarter, Brock Hughes scored from four yards out and the two teams played with a running clock until the Panthers finally reached the end zone on a 6 yard touchdown by Michael Williams.

Zach Drake kicked all of O’Hara’s extra points. In the Celtics' first three games of the season they scored at least 35 points in every game.

O'Hara Volleyball Team Gets Early Ranking

The Missouri High School Volleyball Class 3 Coaches Poll gave the Archbishop O'Hara High School volleyball team a State Ranking of 10th in early September.

How O'Hara's Cross Country Runners Did in the Saint Mary's Invitational

In the girls Varsity race, Jennifer Gustin finished 7th, Erica Scassellati was 19th, and Melody Kimbrough was 24th. All three medaled.

Running in their First Year girls competition, the following were in the top ten: Anna Gutteridge (1), Sarah Kimbrell 3), and Mckenzie Torgerson (9). Leah Eckert, Pricila Avila, and Cariann Dureka also finished with scores earning medals.

Taking 3rd in the boys Varsity race was Danny Meyers. J D Meyers, Jordan Wilcoxson, Stephen Gordon and Corbett McKinney received medals also.

In the boys First Year race, Luke Scott was 6th while Heydon Decker, Jonathan Torgerson, and Austin Muelbach had scores low enough to medal.

Two got medals in the boys J V race: Jack Berney (12) and Matthew Gordon (16).

O'HARA 35 LINCOLN PREP 7

Enroute to a 35-7 win with Lincoln Prep on September 6th, the Archbishop O’Hara Celtics were the visiting team on their own football field.
Lincoln received the initial kickoff from Zach Drake and advanced the ball from their own 29 yard line with five running plays to the 44 yard line, but on their first pass attempt, had the ball intercepted by Austin Evans.
Starting from their own 35 yard line, the Celtics mounted the game’s first scoring drive using eleven plays. The two big gainers were a 16 yard run by Gerard Harker and a 12 yarder by Brock Hughes. Quarterback Michael Briggs ran the final 3 yards on a keeper.
Following a punt by Lincoln, the Celtics began another TD drive from midfield. Aided along the way by a face mask penalty, Gerard Harker and Brock Hughes alternated carries until Hughes plunged for the last yard.
On the next series, Lincoln fumbled to give O’Hara good field position on the 31 yard line. Michael Rowe ran for 15 yards and Austin Evans tagged on 7 more. Brock Hughes scored from the 5 yard line. The extra point attempt was blocked.
Lincoln sustained a scoring drive consuming 13 plays to get on the score board. A 22 yard pass from Seth Fisher to Duane Oayton and a 16 yard run by Colandus Rucker brought the ball close enough for Seth Fisher to score on a 4 yard run. The extra point kick by Saleh Ali was their team’s last point of the contest.
The halftime score was 20-7.
The Celtics opened the second half with a scoring drive. Two pass plays, a 13 yarder caught by Gerard Harker and an 18 yarder by Brock Hughes was followed by a 10 yard run by Gerard Harker to bring the ball to the one yard line. Brock Hughes scored from there and Michael Briggs scored the extra points on a two-point conversion.
Austin Evans halted the ensuing Lincoln drive with his second interception of the game.
On O’Hara’s next possession starting on their own 22 yard line, team advanced all the way to Lincoln’s 18 yard line where a fumble stopped the progress. A screen pass from Michael Biggs to Brock Hughes covered most of the yardage on this drive.
As the third quarter drew to a close, Lincoln kicked a short punt to set up the last touchdown of the game.
Michael Rowe first ran for a 16 yard gain and then followed with a 38 yard scoring run.

OHara 35 Lincoln Prep 7 in Celtic's Second Football Game

With Brock Hughes and Michael Briggs scoring two touchdowns apiece, the Archbishop O’Hara High School Celtics won their game with Lincoln Prep 35-7 on September 6th.

Michael Rowe added a touchdown, Michael Briggs scored on a two-point conversion, Zack Drake kicked three extra points, and Austin Evans intercepted two passes in a game played on the O’Hara field wherein Lincoln was the home team

Rowe’s first interception at midfield set up the first Celtic TD.

Michael Briggs scored on a 3 yard keeper. For O’Hara’s second score in the first quarter, Brock Hughes went in from one yard out.

A fumble by the Blue Tigers on the 38 yard line set up O’Hara’s third six-pointer in the second quarter, a 5 yard run by Brock Hughes, but the ensuing extra point attempt was blocked.

Taking up thirteen plays, Lincoln Prep got their points before halftime Seth Fisher ran the ball in from the 4 yard line and Saleh Ali tagged on the extra point.

The only third quarter scoring was by Michael Briggs who plunged in on a quarterback sneak and also ran in the two-point conversion.

The last touchdown of the game came in the fourth quarter when Michael Rowe scampered for a 38 yard TD.


O'Hara had 398 total yards in the game, holding Linoln Prep to 145 yards.

Celtics Open Soccer Season With a 3-0 Shutout

Samuel Allen was credited with a shutout win for the Archbishop O'Hara High School soccer team in their first game of the 2013 season. Goals were scored by Noah Barrera, Noah Latendresse, and Nick Diaz in the game with Summit Christian.

O'HARA VOLLEYBALL WIN TO START SEASON

At the METRO SPORTS VOLLEYBALL SLAM, the Archbishop O'Hara High School Celtics team won their contest with Gardner Edgerton 25-20 and 25-14. The event was played on Saturday August 31st.

O'Hara 36 Richmond 42 to Open the Celtic's Football Season

Brock Hughes scored four touchdowns along with a two-point conversion, but it wasn’t enough as the Archbishop O’Hara High School football team lost to the Richmond Spartans 42-36 on August 30.

O’Hara’s remaining points were on a touchdown pass from Michael Briggs to Zack Drake and Drake’s four extra points. Drake also attempted a long field goal which went left of the goal posts.

At the start of the game, both teams punted on their first possessions. Then the Celtics got their first touchdown on an eighty yard pass play from Michael Briggs to Zack Drake.

The Spartans answered with a three yard run by Tommy Wedgeworth and an extra point by Shane Battagler.

Still in the first quarter, Brock Hughes broke loose for a 57 yard TD run.

Richmond pulled ahead for the first time in the second quarter with a three yard TD run by Brock Strokes and a two point conversion on a pass from Quinton Maxwell to Nathan Lundholm.

Brock Hughes put O’Hara back in the lead with an eight yard run and then increased the lead with a three yard TD making the score 28-15 at the time.

With just over a minute of playing time in the first half, quarterback Tommy Wedgeworth scored on 23 yard keeper.
Before the halftime festivities and with only 23 seconds on the clock, Brock Hughes ran for a 50 yard touchdown and the Celtics led 36-22.

The Celtics failed to score in the second half while the Spartans picked away at the tiring O’Hara defense.

The only touchdown in the third quarter was a 7 yard run by Brock Strokes.

In the final quarter, the Spartans got touchdowns on a 10 yard run by Brock Strokes to tie the game at 36-36, and an 11 yard run by Quinton Maxwell to break the tie with less than two minutes left in the contest.

Celtics Do Well in 2013 Football Jamboree

O’HARA IS UNBEATEN AT FOOTBALL JAMBOREE

On August 23rd the Archbishop O’Hara High School Celtic football team played in the Jamboree held on the Ruskin football field.
In the three-way competition, O’Hara won their game with Pleasant Hill 24-18, tied with University Academy 6-6, and shutout Ruskin 6-0,

Against Pleasant Hill, on offense the Celtics scored a touchdown on their 5th play on a 6 yard run by quarterback Mike Briggs. Brock Hughes gave the Celtics their second score on a 1 yard run. Mike Briggs passed to Gerard Harker for their next six points on a forty yarder. On the final play of the 12 allotted to each team, Zach Drake caught a touchdown pass from Mike Briggs.
On defense, the Celtics gave up a 22 yard TD pass on the 4th play, another one on a 12 yard run on the 6th play, and finally a 30 yard passing play on the Roosters’ 12th play. However Larry Bosworth halted one of the drives with an interception.

With University Academy, Michael Rowe scored for O’Hara on their 5th play from scrimmage on an 18 yard run, and the Celtics nearly scored again when they were stopped on the one yard line as time ran out. University Academy got their six pointer on their 4th play. Later Gabe Kimbrough caused a fumble and Maverick Griffin recovered for O’Hara to stop a drive on the 26 yard line.

In the Ruskin game, the only touchdown came on the very first play. Mike Briggs passed to Zach Drake who went the distance. Penalties brought back two touchdown attempts by the Celtics, one was on a beautiful diving catch in the end zone by Zach Drake, and the other an 11 yard run by Brock Hughes.
Ruskin did not find its way into the end zone. The O’Hara team registered sacks by Jayden Hudson and by Maverick Griffin. Ife Siffre also caused a fumble in the Ruskin backfield.

CYDNEE REESE MAKES TRACK ALL METRO TEAM

With a discus toss 13 feet longer than her closest Missouri Class 3 competitor, Cydnee Reese from Archbishop O'Hara High School was named to the KC Star's ALL-METRO TRACK FIRST TEAM.  Her State performance was 151 feet 10 inches!  This is her second State title in the past two seasons.

Diamond Jubilarian Teaching at O'Hara

    In  1953, Brother Richard Geimer entered the novitiate of the De La Salle Christian Brothers receiving the name Brother Kenelm Richard.  On July 20, 2013 he was honored as a Diamond Jubilarian in a ceremony held at Lewis University in Illinois commemorating a period of sixty years.

   He teaches at Archbishop O'Hara High School in Kansas City and has just completed his 28th year there.

   Over the years he has taught in schools in Illinois, Texas, Tennessee, and Ohio.  He obtained BA and MEd degrees at Saint Mary's College in Minnesota and a PhD at Saint Louis University in Missouri.
  At O'Hara he has served as principal, registrar, and teacher.  Presently he is a member of the mathematics department and oversees the school's student lockers.

Five Celtics Make All-State Soccer Team

    Although the announcement came relativley late after the completion of their 19-4 soccer season, the Archbishop O'Hara High School soccer team landed five athletes on the Class 1 All State Teams.
   In the process of winning Third Place in State, much of the scoring was acomplished by forwards Sydney White and Bridget Wages, both seniors selected to the First Team, and sophomore midfielder Hayley White who was named to the Second Team.  The only game in which the Celtics were shutout was the 3-0 State Semifinal game.
   The Celtics were outstanding on defense as well as the team shutout their opponents ten times.  Lucia Crosetti who made the All State First Team and Lindsay Beachner who made the All State Second Team did their job well making junior goalie Ciru Franklin look really good.  Two of O'Hara's four losses went into overtime before their opponents could claim the wins.

MADISON CLARK IS O'HARA'S 2013 SCHOLAR ATHLETE

    Four volleyball letters and three basketball letters spoke well for Madison Clark's athletic ability while her 4.368 GPA gave evidence of her scholarship at Archbishop O'Hara High School. 
    She was chosen as the 2013 Scholar Athlete from the school. 
    She was a member of the Missouri All-State Volleyball Team. 
    Active in other areas, Madison was a member of the Campus Ministry Team, a peer mentor for the Special Needs Students, and participated in the Big Sister/Little Sister Program.
   She plans to attend Missouri University.
   Also nominated for the Scholar Athlete Award from O'Hara was Ben Janet.

30th Annual Alumni Golf Tournament on Friday June 7th

     The Archbishop O'Hara High School Alumni Association is celebrating its 30th annual golf tournament at Drumm Farm Golf Club on June 7th.

     The committee members for this year are Jack Foley '70, Jim Naudet '81, John Mitchell '82, John Cosentino '84, John O'Connor '88, Mike Pizzichino '90, and Mark Wernsman '93.

     Sponsorship levels for the tournament are the Celtic Level $1000, Gold Level $600, Green Level $300, and Cart Sponsor $100.

     Volunteers and faculty members that are contributing their services include Lisa McNamara, Carrie Mayle, Monica Rieger, Jane Schaffer, Ann Wright, Mary Rohan, Ann Julich, Kristen Mitchell, Laura Bachkora, Allison Seck, Sarah McInerny, Eileen Monteil, Bernie Stegmaier, Mary Goforth, Alan Hull, Andrew Denzer, Andrea Bobert, Anne Roth, and Brother Richard Geimer.

     The Celtic Tradition continues benefitting the Lasallian Education Fund.

O'HARA TAKES THIRD IN STATE SOCCER

   On June 1st, the Archbishop O'Hara High School Celtics won 5-2 against Springfield Catholic in Class 1 Missouri State Soccer to take the Third Place State plaque.
   Within the first ten minutes of the game, Sydney White had two of the O'Hara goals.  With just over two minutes before the half, Bridget Wages made the score 3-0 with her first goal of the game.
   Seven minutes into the second half, Kenzie Champion added a Celtic goal to increase the score to 4-0.
   Springfield Catholic got on the scoreboard on a score from Sydney Miller that just made it in the corner of the Celtic goal halfway through the second half.
   Bridget Wages finished the O'Hara scoring with a goal with ten minutes remaining on the clock.
   Both teams completed the game playing the remainders of their rosters, and with less than three seconds left in the game, the Irish managed their second goal credited to Katie Bolin.
    O'Hara and Duchesne, the State Champs who won the Championship defeating Saint Pius X by a score of 4-0, are thus the only two teams in Class 1 to end their season with a win.  The Celtics' record for the year is 19-4 while Springfield Catholic ended with a 14-12-1 record.

O'Hara Soccer Team Makes Final Four in State

    The Archbishop O'Hara High School Celtics soccer team reached the final four in State competion along with the Duchesne Pioneers, the Saint Pius Panthers, and the Springfield Catholic Irish in Missouri Class 1.

    On May 31st, the Celtics lost in the semifinals 0-3 to the Pioneers while the Panthers beat the Irish 4-0.

    In O'Hara's game, the two squads fought to a 0-0 halftime score.  Five minutes into the second half, the Celtics gave up their first goal of the late afternoon and ten minutes later, another goal.  The final goal was recorded with only three minutes remaining in the game.

   The loss broke a thirteen game winning streak that began on April 16th.  It was the first time O'Hara lost by more than two points during the season.  It was the first time the Celtics failed to score a goal.  It brought O'Hara's record to 18-4.  The only other three teams that were able to win a game this year with the Celtics were Bishop Miege, Notre Dame de Sion, and Smith-Cotton.  Ten of O'Hara's wins were shutouts.

Celtics in the MO/KAN Senior Track All Star Meet

Cardell Miller, Miles Ogletree, and Cydnee Reese from Archbishop O'Hara High School contributed to Missouri's win over Kansas in the MO/KAN Senior Track All Star Meet on May 29th. 

Miles and Cardell were part of the winning 4x200 relay team.

Miles also took first place in the 200 meter dash.

Cydnee won the shot put event.

Cydnee Reese is the State Champ in The Discus Field Event

The Missouri 3-A State Championship in the discus throw was won by Cydnee Reese from Archbishop O'Hara High School.

On her first toss, she recorded a distance of 151.10 to take first place.  Her nearest opponents had distances of 138.9 and 138.3 in the event.

QUARTERFINALS IN SOCCER WON BY O'HARA 4-2

Ten minutes into the State Quarterfinal soccer game, Kenzie Champion scored for the Archbishop O'Hara High School and the Celtics went on to win over the Maryville Spoofhounds with a 4-2 decision. 

Hayley White added O'Hara's second goal midway through the first half.

With less than fifteen minutes remaining in the half, Bridget Wages scored for the Celtics with the first of her two goals in the game to put O'Hara ahead 3-0.

Maryville got  a goal just five minutes prior to halftime, but Bridget Wages tagged on her second goal of the day which was followed shortly by the Wolfhounds' final scoring in the game.

The second half was scoreless.

O'Hara goes on to play Duchesne (13-9) on May 31 at 3 PM for the State Semifinals at the Blue Springs South High School field .  The State Championship game is scheduled for June 1 at 12 PM on the same field.

Hailey Jordan is Valedictorian at O'Hara

The following was published in the Kansas City Star:
   At just 16 years old, Hailey Jordan graduated from Archbishop O’Hara High School on Sunday. She was the valedictorian and the first minority student at the high school to graduate at the top of her class.
   “I wanted to cut the barriers of race and all that and show other kids that they can do it,” Jordan told FOX 4 News.
   She wants to inspire others because she said it was her own role model that led her to achieve greatness.
   “It has to be my family and mostly my mom. She’s inspired me to do well to do my best all my life,” Jordan explained. “Through all the hard work she’s made many sacrifices for me. My achievements are as much as i can do to repay her right now.”
   “It’s been a journey when she walked into O’Hara as a 12 year-old eighth grader,” said her mother Nancy Allen-Simmons. “I told her, ‘Yes, you will be on that wall and I’m going to help get you there.’”
   Now, as one chapter closes, another one opens.
   “Next I’m starting to fill out housing forms for Stanford University,” Jordan said.
   Her mother joked that she doesn’t know how she’s going to handle the distance of the thousands of miles that will be between them.
   “They’re probably going to have to check me into an institution somewhere, because I really am not sure how I’m going to be able to handle that,” Allen-Simmons said. Jordan was awarded a full four-year academic scholarship to Stanford.
   Her dream is to become a medical doctor.

Celtic Soccer Team Win Sectional Game with Barstow 2-0

Ciru Franklin recorded yet another shutout as the Archbishop O'Hara High school soccer team won their Class 1 sectional game played at Paul Monteil Stadium.

Both of O'Hara's points were by Sydney White who opened the scoring with a goal halfway through the first half of play.  She added her second one ten minutes into the second half.

Next round is vs Maryville on Saturday.

Panthers top Celtics in Baseball Sectionals 3-1

After the Oak Grove Panthers scored three runs in the first inning, the Archbishop O'Hara Celtics could only answer with one run in the Class 4 baseball sectionals.

The lone O'Hara run was the result of Zack Drake singling, taking second on a passed ball, and scoring on Addison Schmidt's RBI double.

The remainder of the game was a pitchers' duel with neither team offering much offense.

Celtics on the All West Central Conference Baseball Teams

Six players from Archbishop O'Hara High School were selected for the All West Central Conference Baseball teams.

Addison Schmitt and Hondo Pearcy were selected as pitchers and Eric Sullentrup as an infielder on the First Team.
On the Second Team Ben Janet and John Allard were outfielders and Zach Drake in the infield.

Two From O'Hara to Compete at State in Track

     With a time of 50.82, Ife Siffre from Archbishop O'Hara High School, came in second in the Class 3 Sectional 4 Track in the 400 meters dash to qualify for State competition.  He was edged by a runner from Grain Valley who completed the race at 49.91.
     Cydnee Reese's 127-08 discus heave netted third place to qualify her for the State title.  The two athletes ahead of her had throws of 132-02 and 127-10. 
     In the competion held at Blue Springs High School, the boys track team was tied for 14th place out of 25 schools and the girls were 19th among 26 schools.

At O'Hara's Baccalaureate

    On May 17th, The Archbishop O'Hara High School seniors had their Baccalaureate Mass at Saint John Francis Regis Church with four members of the clegy present.  Rev Richard Rocha presided and Rev Tom Holder was the homilist.  Also concelebrating were Revs Robert Stewart and Adam Haake.
    The class Salutatorian, Claire Banderas, gave an address on the Journey Over Four Years.  Hailey Jordan was introduced as the class Valedictorian and will give her presentation at the graduating ceremony on Sunday.
   The Tyler Jones Scholarship was awarded to Kaitlin Kimbrell and the recipient of the Saint La Salle Award was John Tyler.
   Claire Banderas and Robbie Irick were announced as the Elks of the Year.
    Special attention was given the the best senior projects and they were displayed at the reception after the ceremonies in the O'Hara school commons.

Seven Celtics on All District Soccer Team

     On the CLASS 1 DISTRICT 13 ALL DISTRICT SOCCER TEAM, seven players from Archbishop O'Hara High School were named.
     They were Sydney White, Bridget Wages, Hayley White, Maddie Champion, Mary Pat Brage, Lindsay Beachner, and Lucia Crosetti.
     Summit Christian Academy had five named to the All District team, Oak Grave had three, and Saint Mary's had three.

Four from O'Hara on All-District Baseball Team

The MSHSAA DISTRICT BASEBALL 2013 ALL DISTRICT TEAM CLASS 4 – DISTRICT 14 was announced with two pitchers, an outfielder, and a shortstop included from Archbishop O'Hara High School.

The pitchers were Austin Pearcy and Addison Schmidt. Ben  Janet was named to the outfield. Eric Sullentrip was the shortstop.

Pembroke Hill had three named to the All-District Team,  Grandview and Center each had two,  and  one was included from Cristo Rey.

O'HARA BASEBALL AND SOCCER TEAMS GO TO SECTIONALS

    The Archbishop O'Hara High School baseball and soccer teams won their District games and move on to Sectionals.

   In baseball Class 4 District 14, the Celtics defeated the Grandview Bulldogs 7-0 with Addison Schmidt earning the shutout in the initial round.  In the third inning, O'Hara got the first run of the day on an infield error, a failed pick-off play at first base, and a passed ball.  Schmidt helped his own cause in the fourth inning with an RBI single.  He also pitched his way out of a bases loaded situation later in the game.

    The District Championship game was much closer with the O'Hara squad sqeaking ahead of top seeded Pembroke Hill 4-3.  Pembroke Hill had had an easy time in their semifinal game with Center winning 9-0.

  The baseball team (12-8) meets Oak Grove (19-7) on May 21 at 4:30 at Webb Park in Oak Grove.

   In Class 1 District 13 soccer, the Celtic team moved into their Championship game with a one-sided 10-0 win with Saint Mary's. 

     For the District Championship itself, O'Hara outscored Summit Christian 8-1.  Sydney White led in the scoring with 4 goals followed by Bridget Wages with 2, and single goals by Hayley White and Kenzie Champion.  O'Hara's record stands at 16-3.

    The soccer team (16-3) will face Barstow (12-7-1) from District 14 on May 21 at 5:30 at Paul Monteil Stadium.

O'Hara Soccer Team Wins Two Games With Shutouts

     The Archbishop O'Hara High School soccer team won 4-0 in their game with Pleasant Hill on May 1st.  Three of the Celtics' goals were by Sydney White and Kenzie Champion kicked the other one. 
    Then the next day, senior night for the Celtics, Sydney White scored three more goals in a 3-0 shutout with Clinton.  O'Hara brought their record to 11-3.
    Thus goalkeeper Ciru Franklin was credited with two more shutouts.  Seven of O'Hara's total victories were by shutouts. 

O'HARA'S JOHNSON SIGNS LETTERS OF INTENT

After excelling in football and wrestling at Archbishop O'Hara High School. Eero Johnson signed letters of intent to Benedictine College on April 30th.  The son of Tim and Eija Johnson, Eero took fifth place in State heavyweight wrestling and was the Celtics' big man  on the line as a tackle during the football season.  Coaches that were present for the signing were O'Hara's head football coach Jim DeMarea, head wrestling coach Kevin Stanley, athletic director Alan Hull, and Benedictine coach Thomas Williams.

O'HARA GOLF TEAM MOVES ON TO SECTIONALS

     On April 29th, led by Tanner Bainbridge who earned All-District Honors, the Archbishop O'Hara High School golf team qualified to go from Missouri Class 2 District 7 to Sectionals scheduled for May 6th.
    Barstow (323), Summit Christian (350), and Butler (351) had lower scores than the Celtics who had 372 but all four teams advanced from a field of ten schools.
    Individually Tanner Bainbridge tied for 10th place, both Sam Bryant and Brett Kies tied each other for 18th place, Amere Taylor took 20th place, and Trey Bainbridge landed in 28th place.
    O'Hara had a better team score than Knob Noster, Warsaw, Lexington, Archie, Lafayette, and Saint Paul.  The Celtics' coach is Kyle Sellnow.

Wright and Day are O'Hara's Prom Queen and King for 2013

At the "Unmask the Night" Prom for Archbishop O'Hara High School, Brianna Wright, daughter of Larry and LaToya of Kansas City, was the Prom Queen, and John Day, son of Antoinette Day of Independence, was the Prom King. The Selections were announced at the Prom Dance on April 27th.

Lady Celtics Ranked Fourth in Final Basketball Rankings

The Archbishop O'Hara High School basketball team was ranked 4th in the Star's Final Rankings for the Star's Girls Small Class.

The Celtics won 19 games, tying Paola for most wins.  Paola was ranked on top with Tonganoxie second with 15 wins and Bonner Springs had the third place ranking with 17 wins.  Saint Pius X ranked fifth winning 17 of their games.

In the loss column, O'Hara lost 8 as did Tonganoxie.  Bonner Springs dropped only 4 games and Paola came up short in 6 of their games.  Saint Pius X lost an even dozen games.

Saint Elizabeth Grade School is Tops in O'Hara Math Contest

    With an accumulative score of 634, Saint Elizabeth won the April 26 mathematics contest sponsored by Archbishop O'Hara High School.
   The runner-up school was Nativity scoring 594 points followed by Presentation with a score of 564.
   Beka Leuschen and Jann Withrow were the top mathematicians for the eighth and seventh grades, both from Saint Elizabeth, and Gabriella Mesa was the top sixth grader from Holy Cross.
   Four other Saint Elizabeth scholars were among the top five in their grade levels: Daniel Pfaff, Lanie Mannebach, Sebastian Barrett, and Charlie DeLong.
   Three others from Nativity finished in the top five: Gabi Cook, Diana de la Cruz, and Drake Weber.
   Saint Thomas More had two eighth graders in the top five: Maguire Radosevic and Jake Lynn.
   The remaining top five positions were earned by Caden Gabel from Presentation, Matthew Strobl from Saint Regis, and Kaitlin Jones from Holy Cross.

O'Hara Soccer Team Record Advances to 9-3 With Win Over Harrisonville

The difference in the score between the Archbishop O'Hara High School girls soccer team in their game with the Harrisonville Wildcats was the two goals by Kenzie Champion on April 25th.

The Celtics won the game 3-1 with Sydney White scoring O'Hara's other goal, and increasing their season record to nine wins and three losses.  The Wildcats' record went to 7-7.

O'HARA'S REESE SIGNS LETTER OF INTENT

On April 25th, Cydnee Reese, winner of All-State discus in Missouri, signed her letter of intent for her appointment to Air Force Academy.  The Archbishop O'Hara High School athlete was accompanied at the signing by her parents Ronald and Gina Hunter along with O'Hara coaches Alan Hull, Sam Hampton, and Ian Moses.  In addition to her track and field successes, Cydnee was a starter on the Celtics basketball team and performed in O'Hara's theater and musical productions.

27 New Inductees to O'Hara NHS

   On April 24th, twenty-seven new members were inducted to the Archbishop O'Hara High School Chapter of the National Honor Society.
   Stephanie Best, MacKenzie Champion, Aidan Eckart, Emma Gray, Carter Halil, Gerard Harker, Joseph Hollo, Cameron Koob, Lisa Lamble, Kelsie Leathers, Brian Locasio, Caitlyn Martin, Nicholas McCracken, Abby Monteil, Margaret Novak, Charles Ononye, Peyton Podschwit, Stephanie Rieger, Melissa Sayer, Samuel Schwaller, Ife Siffre, Emily Tierney, Timothy Tinsley, Bailey Tousley, Katherine Tyler, Hayley White, and Jordan Wilcoxson made up the new members.
   The ceremony included signing in and the recitation of the NHS Pledge.  The Presentation was performed by the officers of the National Honor Society, President Lindsay Beachner, Vice President Claire Banderas, Secretary Cameo Miller, Treasurer Cydnee Reese, and faculty advisors Susan Ambrose and Jason Balistreri.
   Kyle Sellnow, Theology teacher at O'Hara, gave the keynote address focusing on leadership, academic achievement, service, and character.
   Taking part in the readings and prayers were NHS members Hannah Tarwater, Reagan Young, Annie Mahlberg, Patricia Wankum, Christina Duerr, and McKenzie Roberts.
   The ceremony included the songs "We Are Called" and "Go Make a Difference."

Another 10-0 Win for O'Hara Soccer Team

On April 22nd, The Archbishop O'Hara High School Lady Celtics shut out the Center Yellowjackets 10-0.  It is the third time this year for the O'Hara team to win by that score.  By halftime, the score was already 8-0 and Coach Haggerty was able to play every player on the team roster.

The ten goals were kicked by Sydney White (5), Bridget Wages (3), and Hayley White (2).  The Celtics are now 8-3 with five shutouts.  Ciru Franklin is O'Hara's goalkeeper.

O'HARA PROM QUEEN & KING CANDIDATES ANNOUNCED

The candidates for Prom Queen and King at Archbishop O'Hara High School were announced on April 22nd.

The Queen candidates are Brianna Wright, Nallely Saavedra, Lucia Crosetti, Claire Banderas, and Whitney Allen.

The King candidates are Ben Janet, John Day, Tony Darling, Ronald Clark, and Brett Bass.

The dance is on Saturday evening April 27th.  It is entitled "Unmask the Night."

Saint Pius Falls to O'Hara in Girls Soccer 3-1

On a cold windy evening on April18, the Archbishop O'Hara High School girls soccer team hosted the Saint Pius X Warriors on a neutral field at Rockhurst and posted a 3-1 West Central Conference win.

O'Hara's three tallies were from Stephanie Rieger, Sydney White, and Bridget Wages.

O'HARA'S BAKER SIGNS LETTER OF INTENT

Scoring over 1000 points in his four years at Archbishop O'Hara High School, Kyle Baker signed a letter of intent on April 18th to the University of Arkansas at Forth Smith. 

Playing at the guard position and known for his accuracy with three-point conversions, Kyle was the Celtics top scorer in most of his games and usually was in double figures much of the time. 

Present at the signing were his freshman year coach Todd Maguire, his O'Hara varsity head coach for the next three years Mark Scanlon, and Kyle's parents Vaughn and Glenda Baker of Kansas City.

Lady Celtics Take Second Place in Miege Tournament

On April 12, the Archbishop O'Hara High School girls soccer team defeated LsBlond Saint Joseph 10-0.  The game was halted before regulation time when O'Hara reached ten goals.  The tournament was sponored by Miege High School.

On the following day, Bishop Miege tied the Celtics 1-1 and was declared the Tournament Champs on penalty kicks to break the tie.  Stephanie Rieger kicked O'Hara's goal before the scoreless double overtime.

A few days after the tournament, on April 16th the Lady Celtics added another 10-0 win with goals scored by Bridget Wages (3), Sydney White (3), Hayley White (2), and Maddie Champion.  The game was with Cristo Rey.

O'Hara Baseball Team Loses Two Conference Games by a Total of Three Runs

     On April 3rd, the Archbishop O'Hara High School Celtics baseball team lost a close 4-3 game with the Saint Pius X Warriors.
     O'Hara scored first pushing across a run in the first inning without the benefit of a hit.  Zach Drake drew a walk, took second on an error on an attempted pickoff play, went to third on a wild pitch, and went home on a sacrifice fly by Eric Sullentrup.
   O'Hara's second run was also scored by Zach Drake who singled and eventually scored on an error in the third inning.
   Brock Hughes walked in the sixth inning and singles by Ryan Adams and Jordan Wilcoxson brought him home.
   The Warriors got two runs in the second inning when they loaded the bases and brought two runners home.  They got two more in the fourth inning from two back-to-back doubles and a single.
   Addison Schmitt pitched the entire game for the Celtics and had to take the loss.

   The Warrensburg Tigers baseball team outscored the Celtics 9-7 in a slugfest on April 2nd in which the pitching for both teams had a difficult time.  Both games were West Central Conference games.

Girls Soccer Team Wins First Conference Game with a 7-0 Shutout

Hosting the Clinton Cardinals on April 2nd, the Archbishop O'Hara High School Lady Celtics opened their West Central Conference competition with an impressive 7-0 shutout.  It was Ciru Franklin's second shutout of the young season.

Taking a 2-0 lead in the first half on goals by Bridget Wages and Hayley White, the Celtics dominated play in the second half with five more.  Sydney White and Bridget Wages alternated goals throughout the half to the end of the game.

Lady Celtics Add Two Soccer Wins

On consecutive days just before Easter, the Archbishop O'Hara High School girls soccer team won two contests with Grain Valley and Barstow.

With goals provided by Bridget Wages, Sydney White, and Mary Brage, the Celtics beat Grain Valley 3-1.

The game with Barstow was much closer with the two teams tied at 1-1 until O'Hara scored once more in overtime.  The Celtics' goals were kicked by Bridget Wages and Sydney White.

O'Hara Opens Golf Season With a Win

     Carding a 38, Tanner Bainbridge was the medalist in Archbishop O'Hara High School's varsity golf opener on March 20 with Raytown as the Celtics won 188-207.
     The rest of the winners' score at the Heart of America course came from Amere Taylor 46, Brett Bass 50, and Brett Kies 54.
     James Bradish led the way for the JV win with a 35 as the team won 154-191.  In this competition, Trey Bainbridge had 38, Sam Bryant had 40, and Jacob Lillig had 41.

O'Hara Opens Baseball Season with two wins and one loss

    The Archbishop O'Hara High School baseball team started the 2013 season off with a shutout win with Raytown on March 18th.  The Celtics scored a total of nine runs in the game.
    Sophomore Michael Briggs had a first inning grand slam and senior Hondo Pearcy pitched six innings giving up only three hits.  He registered thirteen strike outs.
    Eric Sullentrup went 2 for 2 with a ground rule double and a run scoring single.
    The team lost to Oak Grove 3-1, then defeated Van Horn 9-4.

CELTICS ROBOTICS RANKED ELEVENTH IN WEEKEND COMPETITION

The Archbishop O'Hara High School Robotics team had their best ranking in their school's history. 

In the total competition they finished 11th out of 55 schools. 

On Friday March 15th, they qualified to captain the eighth seed for the Championship round the following day.  

At one time the team got as high as fifth.

O'Hara Girls Soccer Open Season With a Win

Backed by a shutout by Ciru Franklin, the Archbishop O'Hara High School girls soccer team opened their 1913 season with a 5-0 victory with Sacred Heart High School on March 15th.

Sydney White had three of the Celtics' goals and Hayley White had one. 

O'Hara Alumnus Max Storms Receives Cross County Honor

     The University of Missouri Tigers' Cross Country teams were honored recently by the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association for their work off the course, and some runners were named to the All-Academic Teams list.
     Senior Max Storms, an alumnus of Archbishop O’Hara High School in Kansas City, came away with an individual recognition, making him the third Tiger in the past four years to earn a spot on the individual All-American Honorees list.
     Storms is one of 67 student-athletes from forty institutions to be recognized for his accomplishments on the course and in the classroom.
     Criteria for earning this All-Academic honor include a cumulative GP of 3.25 or higher, and either an USTFCCC All-American status or a finish in the top ten per cent of the Regional Championship.
     Max Storms, who is studying Civil Engineering at MU, finished 18th in the field of 190 at the Midwest Regional in the fall.
     He went on to compete for the Championship where he had the highest finish for a Tiger since 1972, crossing the line in 56th place.

O'HARA ALL-DISTRICT AND ALL-CONFERENCE BASKETBALL

     Two Archbishop O'Hara High School boys basketball players received District recognition.  Kyle Baker made the First Team All District and Graham Naudet was an Honorable Mention.
     Kyle Baker was named to the First Team All West Central Conference and Desmond McDaniel landed on the Second Team.
     All Conference Honorable Mention included CJ Naudet, Nick Naudet, Isacc Uche, Luke McCarville, and John Burton.

Lady Celtics Settle for Second in District

     The Archbishop O'Hara High School girls basketball team lost to Lafayette County 47-41 after a big snow storm interfered with the completion of the Class 3 District 14 Championship for the date it was orginally scheduled. The Championship game had to be postponed to Saturday, February 23rd.  The Fayette County Falcons (20-7) go into Sectional play against  the Stockton Tigers (15-12).

     Making the All-District First Team were Alexa Williams, Cydnee Reese, and Amanda Hull.  Selected as Honorable Mention were Madison Clark and Maddie Champion.

      In taking second place the Celtics had defeated Richmond 54-30 on February 20th to move into the Championship game with Lafayette County the winner of their game with Saint Paul Lutheran 50-36. 
     O'Hara's top three scoring athletes were Alexa Williams 17 points, Amanda Hull 13 points, and Cydnee Reese 8 points.  Williams had five baskets that were three-pointers.  The Celtics went ahead by seven points in the first quarter and led 25-17 by halftime.

     The team began their District competition with an easy win 60-29 in their first round game with Lexington.  The other three teams that won their first round games were Lafayette County, Saint Paul Lutheran, and Richmond. 
     The Lady Celtics' top scorer in this win was Amanda Hull with 17 points.  The contest ended with a running clock.  Richmond  had been the winner of their game with Knob Noster 49-20.

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The boys team lost in the first round of their District to Saint Paul Lutheran 62-50.

THREE O'HARA WRESTLERS MEDAL AT STATE

Three wrestlers from Archbishop O'Hara High School won medals in Class 1 State competition.  Maverick Griffin took fifth place by decision, Eero Johnson took fifth place with a pin, and  Stephen Conway lost his bid for fifth place on a decision and settled for a sixth place.  Teamwise, the Celtics took 16th place among the fifty schools that scored points in the State Tournament.

Final WCC Standings in Girls Basketball

ARCHBISHOP O'HARA HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS
ARE WEST CENTRAL CONFERENCE CHAMPIONS.
The final standings are:
8-2 O'Hara
6-4 St. Pius
5-5 Clinton
4-6 Smith-Cotton
4-6 Center
3-7 Warrensburg
Archbishop O'Hara High School  moves into District play
with a record of 16-5.

O'HARA WRESTLERS IN STATE QUARTERFINALS AND SEMIFINALS

On February 15th, three O'Hara wrestlers reached the State quarterfinals in Class 1 competition. After the completion of the semifinals, the O'Hara team was in 16th place.


QUARTERFINAL ROUND: Stephen Conway won a 6-4 decision and moved on to the semifinals, but Robert Martin dropped a close 11-10 decision and Maverick Griffin suffered a pin.

SEMIFINAL ROUND: In his semifinal match, Stephen Conway lost with a pin.

Thanks to the wrestlebacks, Maverick Griffin, Eero Johnson, and Stephen Conway were provided the opportunity to wrestle for fifth place on Saturday.

Although Maverick Griffin (152) lost by pin in the quarterfinals; he won by decision in second round wrestleback, won by pin in third round wrestleback, but then lost by pin in the fourth round wrestleback

Eero Johnson (285) won his second round wrestleback by pin, won in the third round wrestleback by decision, and lost fourth round wrestleback by pin.

Stephen Conway (182) had won his quarterfinal by decision and lost in the semifinals by pin; and lost in the fourth roundwrestleback by decision

O'Hara and Center Split in Basketball

On February 15th, the Archbishop O'Hara High School basketball teams hosted Center, and the Lady Celtics won a close 54-51 game but the boys' contest was a decisive 82-58 win for the visiting Yellowjackets.

The results of the two games had minimal effects on the West Central Conference standings inasmuch as the O'Hara girls and the Center boys had already won their Championships with their pevious games.

For six young ladies and one gentleman, it was "senior night."  Madison Williams, Cyndee Reese, Lindsay Beachner, Maddie Champion, Madison Clark, Alexa Williams, and Kyle Baker played in their last home game for the Celtics.

In the girls' game, Center moved out in front 14-5 in the first quarter and were up 33-22 at halftime.  Trailing all through the third quarter, the Celtics finally managed to tie the score at 42-42 to end the third period on a basket by Alexa Williams.

The O'Hara team took the lead for the first time at the start of the fourth quarter and led 50-43 halfway through the period.  The Yellowjackets rallied to take a one point lead at 51-50 when Cyndee Reese scored the go-ahead basket and Alexa Williams tagged on two free throws.

The top O'Hara scorers in the game were Cydnee Reese with 17, Amanda Hull with 11, Alexa Williams with 10, and Maddie Champion with 9.

In the boys' game, Center moved out in front 18-11 in the first quarter and were up 40-25 at halftime.  The Yellowjackets outpointed the Celtics by six more points in the third quarter, and coasted to a one-sided victory.

For the O'Hara team, Desmond McDaniel had 19 points and Nick Naudet had 11 points and they were the only Celtics to reach double figures.  Kyle Baker and John Burton were each held to 8 points.

Three O'Hara Wrestlers Survive First Round in State and Two Win Wrestlebacks

Although Archbishop O'Hara High School had ten wrestlers qualify from District to compete in the Missouri Class 1 State competition, three made it beyond the first round and two stayed in competition by way of wrestlebacks. 

Of the fifty schools that scored first round points, O'Hara had enough to tie Holden and South Harrison for 11th place.

Maverick Griffin (152 lb) won with a pin in 27 seconds, Robert Martin (220 lb) won with a pin with nine seconds remaining in the first period, and Stephen Conway (182 lb) moved on due to an injury default.

Two Celtics went the distance but lost their decisions: Eero Johnson (285 lb) 6-4 and Gerard Harker (145 lb) 7-2.  Two wrestlers lost on technical falls: Andres Garcia (106 lb) 17-2 and Sylvester Newman (138 lb) 16-0. 

Only three from O'Hara were pinned in their first round matches: Spencer Mathews (160 lb) in 5:03, Nihkil Fenani (113 lb) in 1:36, and Ethan Ambrose (126 lb) in 0:33.

Eero Johnson won his wrestleback with a pin and Spencer Mathews took a "sudden victory" in his wrestleback to continue in competition.

LADY CELTICS WIN BASKETBALL CONFERENCE TITLE

With O'Hara's 59-47 win over Smith-Cotton along with Warrensburg's 40-32 win over Saint Pius X, the Celtics 7-2 are guaranteed the the top place in the West Central Conference for the season.

The closest opponent is Saint Pius X with a Conference record of 5-4.  Both teams have one game remaining in the Conference with the Celtics to face Center and the Warriors to meet Smith-Cotton.

The other four teams have the following records as the season draws toward a close: Smith-Cotton 4-4, Clinton 5-5, and Center 3-5 and Warrensburg 2-6

Both O'Hara Basketball Teams Top Smith-Cotton

     On Mardi Gras evening, the Archbishop O'Hara High School varsity basketball teams both beat Smith-Cotton, the girls winning 36-28 and the boys victors at 59-47.

     Off to a bad first quarter, the Lady Celtics fell behind 12-2 until Amanda Hull sank two free throws putting the Tigers ahead by eight points by the quarter's end.
    The second quarter was another story as the Celtics held the visitors to only one basket while piling on 15 points to lead at the half by four points.
    The Tigers could only muster three points in the third quarter as the Lady Celtics went ahead by ten 28-18.
     Along the way, Alexa Williams hit three three-pointers for her 9 game points tying Amanda Hull for the Celtics top scoring recognition who got her 9 points inside the first three quarters.

   In the boys game, O'Hara led virtually through the entire contest, although the Tigers with their height advantage kept pace until halftime when the two squads were separated by just two points 20-18.
   A seven point spurt by the Celtics at the start of the third quarter put O'Hara on top for the remainder of the game, and they were leading 39-26 going into the fourth quarter.
   Before O'Hara relaxed their defense within the final quarter, they were ahead 55-33, but the Tigers did manage to get within eleven points with just under two minutes of playing time left.
    Two Celtics were in double figures: Kyle Baker with 16 and Desmond McDaniel with 14.

O'HARA WRESTLERS WIN DISTRICT

     Archbishop O'Hara High School had the top score of 173.5 points in the Class 1 District 3 Wrestling competition and qualified ten wrestlers to continue onto State.  Of the fourteen schools involved, Lawson was second with 166 points followed by Lathrop with 163.
     Of the ten O'Hara wrestlers that qualified to go on to the next level, Maverick Griffin took first at 152 lbs on a pin and Eero Johnson came in second place at 245 lbs.    
    Five Celtics ended the day's competition with wins for third places.  They were Ethan Ambrose (pin), Sylvester Newman (pin), Stephen Conway (pin), Spencer Mathews (5-2 decision), and Gerard Harker (6-4 decision).
    The final three that qualified to continue with fourth places were Robert Martin, Nikhil Fenani, and Andres Garcia.

Lady Celtics 41 Warrensburg 38

The Archbishop O'Hara High School girls varsity basketball team registered another West Central Conference win by winning a close 41-38 game with the Warrensburg Tigers on February 8th.  The Lady Celtics have a 6-2 Conference record with games with Center and Smith-Cotton yet to play.  Their closest Conference rival is Saint Pius X at 5-3 who also have two games remaining in Conference play.

Alexa Williams provided the Celtics with an outstanding outside shooting show, hitting on five three-pointers of  her 18 games points.  It made up for the Celtics making only 4 successful free throws in 13 attempts while the Tigers were were 10 for 13.

Following the girls game, the O'Hara boys won by eleven points 56-45.

Lady Celtics Still Ranked Among Top Five

In the Star's Basketball Rankings for girls small class category, the O'Hara Celtics slipped from second to third trading slots with Tonganoxie as of February 6th.  The other three teams (Bonner Springs, Lawson, and DeSoto) remained first, fourth, and fifth. 

SIGNING DAY INVOLVES THREE FROM O'HARA

On February7th, three Archbishop O'Hara High School seniors were included in the lists for College Signing Day.  Eero Johnson signed for Benedictine College.  He was an offensive lineman for the Celtic football team.  The other two athletes signed as soccer players: Sydney White to attend William Jewell and Bridget Wages to Emporia State.

O'Hara and Saint Pius Split in Basketball

On February 5th, the Archbishop O'Hara basketball teams hosted the Saint Pius X Warriors with the Celtics winning he girls game handily 47-24 and the Warriors outlasting the O'Hara boys 67-61.

Alexa Williams nailed three three-pointers in the first quarter of the girls contest to help the Celtics to a 13-8 lead.  By halftime O'Hara moved further ahead 24-15.

The Warriors couldn't cope with O'Hara's third quarter full court press and did not score a single point during the quarter while the Celtics tallied for 13.

Seven different players for the Lady Celtics scored points as Coach Haggerty utilized her entire bench.  The top two scorers were Amanda Hull with 15 and Alexa Williams with 12.

In the boys competition, Brian Kaufman broke a 9-9 tie with a three-pointer in the first quarter to give Saint Pius their first lead in the game.

The O'Hara team found the Warriors too tall to handle through most of the second and third quarters, and at one time the Warriors led the Celtics by 16 points when the score reached 43-29.

However, not only did the Warriors squander their large lead, a successful free throw by Zach Drake with 1:47 on the clock broke a 58-58 tie and O'Hara actually led by a point.

A basket by Brian Kaufman followed by a three-pointer by Nick Morgan added five points to the Saint Pius cause, and the Celtics were unable to catch up with so little time left in the game.

O'Hara was led in their scoring by Kyle Baker with 22 points, Desmond McDaniel with 18 points, and Isaac Uche with 10 points.

FIVE O'HARA WRESTLERS MAKE ALL-CONFERENCE

Stephen Conway and Andres Garcia were named to the All West Central Conference Wrestling First Team.  Eric Gossman, Maverick Griffin, and Peyton Franklin won Second Team Honors.  With a 4-1 Conference record, the Celtics were second in the WCC.

O'Hara and Clinton Split in Basketball

On February 1st, the Archbishop O'Hara High School basketball teams traveled to Clinton where the boys team won 61-54 and the Lady Celtics were upset 53-50.
Fifteen of Kyle Baker's 21 game points in the O'Hara win were three-point shots.  Desmond McDaniel also reached double figures with 12 points.
In the first half the Celtics were only ahead by one point 18-17 but stretched the lead to four points before entering the final quarter.

The O'Hara boys team are tied with Saint Pius X for second place in the West Central Conference with 4-2 records while Center is in first place at 5-0. 
The O'Hara girls team is tied for first place with Saint Pius X with 4-2 records and Clinton is in third place with a 3-2 record.

MARK WOO WINS MR OHARA CONTEST

Winning the talent category in the Mr. O'Hara Contest at Archbishop O'Hara High School on January 31st, Mark Woo was name Mr. O'Hara for 2013.  Among the other students competing, Brion Pitts won in the swimwear category, Connor Lynch won in the formal wear category, and Myles Ogltree won in the costume category.

Lady Celtics Move Up to Second in Rankings

On February 1st, the Archbishop O'Hara High School basketball team was second in the KC Star's Rankings in the Small Class Girls category. 

Bonner Springs was ranked #1 with an 11-2 record while the Celtics have a 13-4 overall record and are in first place in the West Central Conference with 4-1. 

Tonganoxie (9-4), Lawson (14-6), and DeSoto (9-6) are third, fourth, and fifth in the rankings. 

The teams behind the Celtics in their Conference are Saint Pius X (4-2), Clinton (2-2), Sedalia (2-2), Center (1-4), and Warrensburg (0-2).

O'Hara and Center Split in Basketball

   On January 29th, the Archbishop O'Hara High School girls varsity basketball team won 52-41 and the boys lost 73-57 in games with the Center Yellowjackets.
   The Lady Celtics shot ahead in the first quarter with 15 points while the Yellowjackets were held to just one free throw!  The trio of Alexa Williams, Cydnee Reese. and Amanda Hull combined for 35 points in the game.
   In the boys' game, O'Hara fell behind by seven in the first quarter. and although the team outscored Center in both the second and fourth quarters, they fell well back in the third quarter.  Kyle Baker, with four three-point shots among his scoring, led the scorers with 22 points.  The team also got 11 from Nick Naudet, 10 from CJ Naudet, and 9 from John Burton.

O'Hara Wrestlers Win at Grandview

The wrestlers from Archbishop O'Hara High School that won at the Grandview Dual Meet Tournament going undefeated 5-0 for the day were Andreas Garcia, Tanner Warner, Jeremy Ambrose, Maverick Griffin, Spencer Mathews and Eero Johnson.

LADY CELTICS TAKE THIRD PLACE IN GRAIN VALLEY TOURNAMENT

GIRLS:
The #3 seeded O'Hara girls basketball team won their first round game in the Grain Valley Eagles Sonic Show Down defeating #6 seeded Lincoln Prep on January 21st by a score of 45-39.  Nearly all of the Celtics points were from Amanda Hull 19, Cydnee Reese 14, and Alexa Williams 9. The Lady Celtics continued play on January 23 playing Grain Valley who won their first round game with Oak Grove 57-26.

In the semifinals, in spite of an impresive 17 point third quarter, the Celtics were unable to catch up with Grain Valley who took an enormous first half lead and went on the win 63-35.  Amanda Hull scored 14 for O'Hara and Alexa Williams added 12 as the Celtics went on to play the Bulldogs of Odessa on Friday for third place; Odessa had lost to Pleasant Hill 54-33.

The Lady Celtics jumped to a first quarter 17-4 lead and went on to a 43-38 win over Odessa for third place in the Tournament.  Cydnee Reese had a great scoring day with 17 of O'Hara's points and only one of her baskets was a three-pointer.  The Celtic defense did the rest.  Amanda Hull and Alexa Williams were named to the All Tournament Team.

Grain Valley was the Tournament Champion winning their game with Pleasant Hill 41-36 while Raytown South took fifth place with a 43-35 win over Oak Grove.

-------------------------------------------------

BOYS:
The #3 seeded O'Hara boys won their initial game with #6 seeded Grain Valley on January 22nd by a score of 57-39.  Following a relatively routine first quarter that separated the teams by three points, the Celtica had a very strong second period pulling twelve more points ahead and at the half, led 32-17.  Kyle Baker had three three-pointers while both Luke McCarville and John Burton each had a couple.  Kyle Baker and Isaac Uche scored in double figures with 14 and 12 points.  The win qualified O'Hara to meet Pleasant Hill on the January 24th game.

Ten three-pointers were not enough for the Celtics to win with Pleasant Hill, and O'Hara dropped a 62-56 decision to move them to the game for third place in the Tournament to face Lincoln Prep who lost in overtime to Winnetonka 66-65.  Kyle Baker and Luke McCarville were O'Hara's leading scorers with 19 and 14 points, and they each had four successful treys in the game.  C.J. Naudet and Nick Naudet had the other three-pointers. 

In the game with Lincoln Prep scheduled for Saturday, the Celtics lost by five points 55-50 and had to settle for fourth place in the Tournament.  Kyle Baker and Luke McCarville were named to the All Tournament Team.

Winnetonka was the Tounament Champs with a 66-47 decision over Pleasant Hill.  Oak Grove won the Consolation bracket 47-38 with Odessa taking sith place.

Both Celtic Basketball Teams Win Big

    On January 18th, the varsity basketball teams from Archbishop O'Hara High School hosted and won two separate games with the girls winning 56-18 and the boys winning 86-41. 
  The Lady Celtics played the Lee's Summit Christian  Eagles and the boys game was with the Olathe Christian Warriors.  Both games had a running clock for the fourth quarters.
  O'Hara built up a 14-0 score in the first quarter of the girls' contest and stretched the lead to 31-6 at the half. 
    In the boys' game, O'Hara was up 23-11 in the first quarter, 47-19 by half time, and 75-36 at the end of the third quarter.
   Both Celtic teams used full court pressure and lots of speed allowing most of the players ample playing time and spreading around the scoring.
   For the girls, Cydnee Reese led the way with 14 points, Amanda Hull had 10, and Alexa Williams had 9.
   For the boys, Kyle Baker scored 18, followed by Luke McCarville with 16, and Isaac Uche with 14.

Lady Celtics Still Ranked Fourth

The Star's Hoops Rankings, as of January 18th, has the Archbishop O'Hara High School girls basketball team ranked 4th in the Girls Small Class category.  The Celtics' record was listed at 9-4.

The three teams ranked ahead of O'Hara were Bonner Springs (7-2), Tonganoxie (8-1), and Lawson (11-4).  Basehor-Linwood (5-4) was the fifth place team.

CELTIC WRESTLERS BEAT THREE TEAMS ON SENIOR NIGHT

   Hosting Smith-Cotton, Center, and Saint Mary's, the Archbishop O'Hara High School wrestlers fared well on January 17th.  It was senior night and the last opportunity to wrestler at a home meet this year.  The six seniors on this year's team were Eero Johnson, Peyton Franklin, Tyler Adams, Jeremy Ambrose, Ethan Ambrose, and Nick Schofield.

Saint Mary's only won one match in losing 66-6 to the Celtics. 

   The competition with Smith-Cotton was much more challenging.  Stephen Conway put O'Hara ahead with a first period pin and the Tigers tied the team score with an open bout. 
   Tim Tinsley went into overtime in his match having completed three periods tied at 9-9 but after several overtime periods lost 13-12 putting the Tigers ahead 9-6. 
    Senior Eero Johnson's pin in 15 seconds put O'Hara on top 12-9, and a first period pin by A. J. Garcia made the lead 18-9. 
    O'Hara dropped the next four matches to fall behind 26-18. 
    Then the Celtics won three in a row: a pin by senior Peyton Franklin, a technical fall 17-0 by Gerard Harker, and a cradle pin by Maverick Griffin. 
    With two matches remaining, O'Hara was ahead 35-26. 
    Spencer Mathews  lost a 9-5 decision and Eric Gossman registered a pin with six seconds left in the first period to guarantee the Celtic team win.  Final score was 41-29.

     The Center Yellowjackets lost to the Celtics 54-28, but enjoyed being ahead until the eighth match.  While going up 22-18, Center gave up pins to A. J. Garcia and Tanner Warner.
     Except for six points in the final match when O'Hara left the weight class open, the Yellowjackets did not gain another point.
    Meanwhile the Celtics had pins from Sly Newman, Maverick Griffin, Spencer Mathews, and Stephen Conway.

Lady Celtics 45 LeBlond 37

The Archbishop O'Hara High School girls basketball team had a strong second and third quarter in their January 14th game with the Bishop LeBlond Eagles to overcome a three point first quarter deficit and go on to win 45-37.  Trailing 10-7, the Celtics poured in 15 points in the second quarter, holding the Eagles to 9 to take a slim halftime lead.  O'Hara outscored LeBlond 11-7 in the third quarter to increase the lead.   With 12 and 11 points, Amanda Hull and Alexa Williams led the Celtic offense.  It was the Eagles' 3rd loss in 11 games while the Celtics' record went to 9-4.

Lady Celtics 37 Notre Dame De Sion 53

Unable to cope efficiently with a full court press, the Lady Celtics from Archbishop O'Hara High School fell victims to too many first quarter turnovers and went behind 22-10 on their way to a 53-37 loss to the Notre Dame De Sion Storm on January 11th.  The margin remained in the vicinity of ten points until the fourth quarter when the Storm pulled further ahead.  Reaching double figures, Madison Clark ended the evening with 13 points, nine of which were scored on three pointers.

Lady Celtics 35 Warriors 27

The Archbishop O'Hara High School girls basketball team handed the Saint Pius X Warriors a Conference loss 35-27 on January 8th.  O'Hara led at halftime in the low scoring game 14-12 and slightly increased the lead to 23-19 by the time the fourth quarter started.  Alexa Williams, who had three three-pointers in the game, led all scorers with 15 points.  Cydnee Reese made double figures with 11 points.

In the boys game, O'Hara led at the half 34-30 and by a single point after the third quarter 41-40, but did not maintain the advantage the rest of the way, losing 55-51.  Desmond McDaniel with 13 points and Kyle Baker with 11 were the Celtics' top scorers.

Lady Celtics 47 Panthers 41

The Archbishop O'Hara High School girls basketball team quickly built up a large score against the Oak Grove Panthers on January 7th and ended up with a 47-41 win.  Holding their opponents to only two points in the first quarter while scoring seven, the Celtics went on to a 19-9 halftime score, and led 33-16 going into the last quarter of the game.  Alexa Williams and Amanda Hull each had 11 points for the evening.

In the boys game, O'Hara, coming from behind, won by one point 52-51.

O'HARA'S THE LITTLE MERMAID WILL STAR CLAIRE BANDERAS

   Archbishop O'Hara High School has chosen the ever poplular THE LITTLE MERMAID for this year's Spring Musical. 
   Claire Banderas will have the title role of Ariel and will be supported by Judy Becker as Sebastian, John Tyler as Prince Eric, Jack Berney as Scuttle, and Brian Locasio as Flounder. 
   Margaret Baldwin has the part of the formidable Ursula , Corbett McKinney has the role of King Triton, and Andy Vernon is cast as Chef Louie.
  Additional noteworthy actors in the show are Kyle Adams (Grimsby), Mary Roberts (Carlotta), Audrey Burdett (Jetsam), and Sharon Snow (Flotsam).
  Many O'Hara students will make up the mermen, merwomen, villagers, seas gulls, and ocean creatures in the frolicking presentation.

O'Hara 53 Clinton 49

    On January 3rd The Archbishop O'Hara High School boys basketball team won an exciting close game with the Clinton Cardinals 53-49. 
     The Celtics charged ahead in the first quarter 19-8 until Jordan Hall hit a three-pointer at the buzzer.  Within the second quarter, the Cardinals got hot and outscored the Celtics 11-2, but O'Hara held on and never trailed up to halftime, ahead by four at 27-23.  The Celtics nearly tagged on a three-pointer at the buzzer but the shot was ruled too late. 
     In the third quarter, the Cardinals got the lead for the first time on a pair of free throws by Joe Muehlberger.  They kept ahead through most of the quarter, at one time by as much as seven points when the score was 37-30.  Before the period was over however the Celtics managed a one point advantage thanks to six tallies by Kyle Baker and a basket by Nick Naudet. 
     Both teams pulled slightly ahead until C.J. Naudet tied up the game at 39-39 and a basket by Desmond McDaniel put O'Hara on top, and the home team never trailed again. 
     Only two Celtics reached double figures: Kyle Baker with 16 and Nick Naudet with 13.

     In the girls' game prior to the boys' contest, the two squads were running neck-and-neck into the fourth quarter.  O'Hara got six points ahead at 33-27 with just over three minutes remaining in the game.  Unfortunately for the Lady Celtics, Brooklyn Sisk buried a trey, and the Cardinals won the battle from the free throw line to eke out a 34-33 win. Amanda Hull led the Celtics with 12 points and Riley Cook had 10 for the Cardinals.