Starting Strong

Starting off in the Somonauk Break-Out Tournament the week before Thanksgiving, the Lady Norsemen Varsity basketball hit the ground running and overtook Plano the first night out, the first win of three in the tournament, their other wins coming from Hinckley Big-Rock and Wheaton Academy. The Lady Norsemen’s only loss came from Aurora Central Catholic, leaving the team coming out of week one with a solid record of 3-1, the best opening week record in the last four years.

The following Tuesday, November 22, the Lady Norsemen battled against Aurora Christian at home, their debut on their home floor. It was a close win but a win nonetheless. In addition to celebration of the win, the team celebrated the 1,000-point milestone surpassed by senior Jasmine Mitchell amidst the game.

The girls had their next game Monday, starting off with a win against conference match-up Leland-Earlville. The next night, the Lady Norsemen took their streak to Dwight and defeated the Trojans, boosting their record to 6-1. On Thursday, December 1, conference member Hiawatha came out to Newark and got blown away in a 76-27 point game. Lady Norsemen basketball headed to Marquette that Saturday for a brutal match, which left them with a win but an injury to their point guard, freshman Meggie Scott.

On December 5, the girls defended their home court against the Timberwolves of Indian Creek in a close game, the win coming with a buzzer beater from Jasmine Mitchell. The Lady Norsemen continued to nurse their bumps and bruises, having to brush it off. They play in their Christmas tournament the week of the 19-23.

By Jasmine Mitchell

Back to the Grind

After a heart-breaking loss in the Super Sectional game against Leroy last season, the Newark Boys Basketball program is hitting the court running, again.
Coach Rick Tollefson returns to lead the boys to keep up the Newark basketball tradition after graduating four seniors who contributed greatly all four years they were in high school. Stepping up to take the mantle are another four seniors, Will Clausel, Steve McGrath, Cameron Myre, and Caleb Dierzen, three of whom have played on Varsity since sophomore year.

"I’m expecting the season to go well," says senior Will Clausel. "It’s gonna be a great time with the boys."

Revving up their preseason in the second week of November, they have to wait until the week of November 21 through the 26 before getting a crack at game time. They head to Seneca that week for their Thanksgiving Tournament.

By Jasmine Mitchell

Cheerleading

Winter sports are gearing up for their seasons, including cheerleading, which is in full swing.

There are 15 people on the team this year, 9 returning and 6 new. This year, the team will be competing in their first competition in Tinley Park, Illinois. For the upcoming season, Junior Bailee O'Toole, one of the captains, is looking to "improve their dances for the halftime performances."

Since there are quite a few new people on the team this year, they will be doing a lot of learning and bonding with the team.

Junior Maggie Komes, another captain on the team, says her favorite part of the sport is "stunting, because it brings a challenge." Bailee and Maggie both agree that being junior captains this year could create some stability in the team, considering they could be captains next year also. December 2 is the first home game, and they will be out there cheering on the basketball team.

By Caeley Larson

Starting the Season Off Right

The volleyball season finally came to an end and with it, the onset of the girl’s basketball season. The changing of the leaves and turning chill of the weather represents a lot more to basketball players than the turning of fall to winter.

The Lady Norsemen are coming back from a winning record last season under now second year Varsity coach, Coach Barb Scott. They lost four seniors last year with only one junior returning as the seniority on the team. “We are going to be extremely young this year, but with leadership from our senior and juniors, we should do very well,” Coach Barb Scott tells.

Their practices began the week of Halloween, a mere three days after the Regional Championship for volleyball, which meant for nearly fifteen volleyball players only the briefest of breaks.

With only two weeks of real preseason, the Lady Norsemen will head into the Somonauk Break-Out Tournament in the week of November 14 through the 18, playing four games on the weeknights against Plano, Wheaton Academy, Aurora Central Catholic and fellow conference member Hinckley Big-Rock.

By Jasmine Mitchell

TOURNAMENT CHAMPIONS!

Congratulations to the Newark Norsemen Basketball Team for your Championship victory at the Seneca Thanksgiving Tournament! The Norsemen took 1st place in four games - vs Mendota 65-56, vs Hall 85-61, vs Reed Custer 81-52, and vs Illiana Christian 55-45. Way to go, Norsemen!!!

Driving out of the Season

As the season came to a close, the golf team had some phenomenal achievements. In the conference tournament, sophomore Corey Jacobson won an individual first place. He had to win a double playoff to win the individual title, as he and another golfer were tied after 18 holes. Overall, as a team they came in second in the tournament. “He and the other golfer tied on the first playoff, then on the second playoff, Corey won by one stroke,” Coach Machetta said. In regionals, they headed over to Seneca and placed third to advance to the sectional meet up in Elgin. There they finished 12th out of 12 teams. Coach Machetta’s response to sectionals was, “we were happy to reach that point and there were a lot of good teams there. We had 3 guys shoot their average or better that day. They all gained great experience heading into next season.”

By Caeley Larson

The End of Another Great Season

Newark Soccer had 11 wins and 1 loss this year, a record which earned them first place in the conference. “We were upset in the conference tournament by Hinckley-Big Rock, but we were still able to take 3rd place in the Little Ten Conference Tournament,” said Coach Fitzer. There were two goals the team had this year. The first goal was to make the team better and the second goal was to be competitive. The team reached both goals. They will be losing four seniors this year who will be missed by the soccer team. “Luckily we have a young team, but it is going to be hard losing four good seniors,” said Coach Fitzer. The team had some injuries to the staring players this year but they got through the season. The bench had good support for the players on the team, which was huge for the players on the field. “There were a few important athletes that quit the team. It was difficult for the team, but they managed to get by without them,” said Coach Fitzer.

By Remington Kempiak

Resilience is the Name of the Game

After a slower start to the season than they’d hoped for, the Lady Norsemen ended up 1-2 after the first week, falling to Aurora Christian and Lisle, but gaining momentum by the end in the win over Dwight.

The following week, the girls fell again to Rosary but managed to overcome their first conference match later that same week against Leland-Earlville, that win taking them on to also defeat other LTC conference members Hinckley Big-Rock, Hiawatha, Lamoille, Indian Creek, and Paw Paw in the weeks to follow. During this time, the Lady Norsemen also won their non-conference match-up with Ottawa Marquette.

The ladies headed to Mount Pulaski on the weekend of September 17 and then IMSA the first few days in October. They placed a solid second at IMSA after an avenging win over ACS to get to the championship.

The week after, the Lady Norsemen completely devoted their energy to the Little Ten Conference tournament, easily whipping through opponents like Serena and Leland-Earlville to go toe-to-toe with Somonauk, the other undefeated champion in conference play.

Battling for the first time in the season, the Lady Norsemen were thrown off guard from the very beginning, dropping behind Somonauk to a 0-9 fault at the start of set one. The Bobcats ended up controlling the rest of the match and taking home the Little Ten Conference Tournament Championship, the title going to someone other than Newark for the first time since 2009, breaking the Lady Norsemen’s undefeated 82 conference winning game streak.

Bruised from their loss, the ladies brushed it off, or at least attempted to, in time for their match at Harvest Christian on October 11. They lost the non-conference match-up after a few serving streaks by the Lady Lions.

However, the Lady Norsemen had other goals that week, with their regular season conference game at Somonauk their main goal. They were seeking revenge from the week prior, and receive revenge they did. Newark ladies came into Somonauk October 13, their energy high and minds set on claiming the regular season champion title.

In the first set, Newark came back from a 17-9 deficit, their resilience noted as they finished that set with a win, setting even more momentum in their favor as they started set two on a 10-1 serving run. Needless to say, the Lady Norsemen reclaimed their glory and won over Somonauk, taking first place in conference for their undefeated regular season.

Nearing the end of the season, the ladies celebrated their Senior Night, seniors Emma Nelson and Jasmine Mitchell enjoying their final home game playing volleyball in that white uniform on that floor. The Titans of IMSA dared to enter the arena with them, losing in two quick sets to allow the team to enjoy the traditional senior night cake together. The very next night, Newark finished off their conference games, defeating Serena for the third time this season.

By Jasmine Mitchell