![The cross country team poses for the camera after finishing the district meet. The varsity boys, JV boys and JV girls all placed third and the varsity girls placed fourth. “Coach put in the right training for us for this season, so I think we will be peaking this week and the next couple of weeks,” varsity runner and junior Nathan Kukla said. “The chances of making it to state are very high, but we don’t settle for the lowest and there is always going to be that chance, so [we] race for the best.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Heidi-831-1200x900.jpg)
![Sucking in a breath of air, freshman Lily Pope competes in the 200 yard individual medley. On Oct. 25, the swim team competed in the AISD Swim Invitational. Overall, the girls team took second place and the boys team came in eleventh. “My favorite stroke is butterfly because I do the best in that stroke,” Pope said. “I feel like [butterfly] can test how [your ability] to convince yourself to keep going. The hardest part of swimming is convincing yourself to stay strong and keep pushing during a hard race [when] everything is tired.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/POPE-1200x804.jpg)
![Smiling at the camera, Author Ehigbor Okosun, members of Page Turners, and other students reflect on the author's visit. “I thought the visit was great,” Senior Amia De Leon said. “It was interesting talking to her and [getting to know] her process and her thoughts and books in general. But I think the reason it went well [was that] people got to ask questions. I'm glad that she said so much in response to the questions and it wasn't just one and done. [The author’s responses] felt very articulate.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Sebastian-5-1200x800.jpg)
![Standing in front of the field at a freshman football game, cheerleader freshman Jacob Gaudreau along with teammate freshman Bella Gibson pose for a photo during halftime of game. “[Cheer has] definitely given me a much more outgoing personality,” Gaudreau said. “I used to be very introverted, so it's definitely made me more extroverted towards people.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Ingrid-204-1200x800.jpg)
![Holding a wooden pizza toy, senior Taylor Peterson plays with small children in Bucaramanga, Colombia. During the summer, Peterson traveled to Colombia to help build an elementary school that only had two classrooms but five or six grades with one teacher. “We add[ed] two more classrooms,” Peterson said. “It’s kind of hard when you have two or three grades in one classroom and you only have one teacher. It’s very hard to actually get some beneficial learning. [The extra classrooms will give the students] a better quality of education because they’ll actually have a place specific for their learning.” Photo by Taylor Peterson](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Taylor-P.png)
![Swinging with his arm extended, senior Nolan Park hits the ball smoothly over the net and to the opponent’s side. Park is one of four varsity tennis captains and helped the team win district championships. “Winning district champs was a pretty awesome feeling,” Park said. “We had lost to Liberty Hill a couple of weeks before, but when we played them [again], we came out and really took care of business. We took them out and it was just a really awesome night.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Kassidy-419.jpg)
![Standing proud, varsity senior athletes Rafael Escobar, Griffin Jacobs, Jakob Martin, and juniors Jackson Springer and Jack Morris pose with their newly earned medals. The varsity team finished third out of 14 teams on Sept. 25. “The team's primary goal is to win the district championship,” head coach Cody Price said. "We're confident that with our action plan in place, we can accomplish this mission. [For the next tournament], our preparation involves assessing our strengths and weaknesses, celebrating milestones and creating individual development plans." Photo courtesy of Cody Price](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/golf.jpg)
FFA finds personal best success at Williamson County Livestock Show
![Senior Emily Miller, pictured on right, sits in an FFA meeting pertaining to the County Show. “[The show] was fun; mainly it’s good experience because through FFA, I’ve gained a lot of maturity and patience,” Miller said. “I actually prepared my animal more than myself.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/ffa-900x831.jpg)
Senior Emily Miller, pictured on right, sits in an FFA meeting pertaining to the County Show. “[The show] was fun; mainly it’s good experience because through FFA, I’ve gained a lot of maturity and patience,” Miller said. “I actually prepared my animal more than myself.”
January 23, 2015
FFA has a history of competing well in past shows and district contests, but the Cedar Park organization has experienced its most success to date at the Williamson County Livestock Show. At this year’s show, the amount of FFA members placing high and of animals qualifying for sale is the greatest it has ever been. Overall, there was a total of 60 exhibitors, 72 entries, and 23 sale slots.
Many members received high placements in the individual classes; of these members is sophomore Kara DiClemente.
“It was a fun experience since it was my first time,” DiClemente said. “I didn’t think we would do that well because there were so many pigs, but my pig got fifth so we made sale.”
Before and during the show, members must deal with the initial stress of the animals, and the later stress of the judgment.
“Before the show, you sit by your [animal] and calm them because it’s all stressful; pigs [specifically] can actually get too stressed out and die,” DiClemente said. “During the show though, you walk with it so the judge can look at it. [What makes an animal a prize-winner] depends on the judge – the judge we had for our pigs [liked them] stocky.”
While many members placed highly, some made first place; senior Scott Neely took home a first place title and made the sale for his pigs.
“One pig, I wasn’t expecting to do well, and the other placed first in her class. Charlie [Hoppe] is still sour about that,” Neely said. “The competition was really fun and we got some blue ribbons to take home. The one thing I hate about [the show] is coming back.”
Some members did so well with their animals, they excelled to the champion level; of these members are sophomore Logan Duffee and junior Charlie Hoppe.
“I got reserve champion final for showing four sheep and all four of them qualified,” Duffee said. “[The show] was fun; I got money for college and a lot of good experience.”
The members who made champion level are rewarded for their efforts with money and titles, but of these members, Hoppe stands out with his three reserve champion titles for gilts and swine and his reserve grand champion market pig. He attributes this success to his history with FFA and farm animals in general.
“Of course there’s the prize money [for participating in a show], but I actually really like doing it,” Hoppe said. “I’ve been doing it since I was a kid and I live on a farm so I get to take my animals home with me. It’s kind of my hobby.”
