![After placing second in their respective LDEs at the Capital District contest in early November, freshman Jesus Jaramillo-Gallegos and freshman Wyatt Pickett will compete at the Area XII LDE contest in Georgetown on Nov. 23. Jaramillo-Gallegos is competing in Greenhand Spanish Creed Speaking, while Pickett’s LDE is Greenhand Creed Speaking. “Honestly, [I’m excited for] just traveling around, maybe meeting more people,” Jaramillo-Gallegos said. “And [I’m] nervous about probably just not being able to define my weak areas. I feel like I did decent for my first time ever doing this. I just think it’s fun.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Navy-and-Yellow-Simple-Group-Project-Presentation-1200x675.png)
![Holding up T-wolves, the tour group poses for a picture in the Chinese classroom. Sophomore Lydia Ou, junior Phu Trung and senior Yushan Pan gave a tour to Taiwanese diplomat Andrea Yang on Nov. 8. “I was so excited when I heard I would get to give the tour because it’s a big deal,” Ou said. “She’s from the US embassy for Taiwan, so she’s really important. I’m so privileged [to get this opportunity] and I’m so excited.” Photo by Skyler King](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Main-Taiwan.jpg)
![Sitting at a desk past the rows of books laid out for the Book Fair, senior Kimberley Walters assists people in purchasing books and finding titles. The Book Fair is taking place Dec. 16 through Dec. 20, and is an annual event during which students and faculty have the opportunity to go and purchase books and other trinkets in the library. Kimberley said she encourages all to go to the Book Fair, even if they think they don’t like to read. “If you make reading something that is fun for you and you find the things that you like to read, it will never be a chore,” Walters said. “So [the Book Fair is] a good opportunity to find something that will respark your want to read [like] when you were a child and you went to the book fair and you loved the ‘I survived’ books. Maybe you'll find your ‘I survived’ books of your high school experience, and it'll re-spark that kind of love for reading that may have died out.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Addie-L-47-1200x800.jpg)
![Smiling at the camera, sophomore Olivia Mahlmeister and seniors Samantha Jameson, Adhit Eswaramoorthi and Justin Khadavi celebrate completing first chamber in the Congress Meet. All four students advanced to the final chamber. “Out of the 20 kids in the final chamber, we had a seventh, ninth, 11th and 13th, and they took the top four to move on to state,” AP US History and Debate teacher Josh Marsh said. “[Even though] we didn't make state this year, all four of them moving on [and] placing is phenomenal.” Photo courtesy of Josh Marsh](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/2024-Regional-Congress-Team.jpg)
![Standing in front of a small audience, senior Kimberley Walters shares a social criticism poem titled “Pity the Nation” by Lawrence Felinghetti. Every month, sponsored by the poetry club, the library hosts a poetry reading. “I never thought I would be interested in [poetry readings] because I’m not the biggest poetry fan,” Walters said. “I think poetry is a very succinct way to express feelings and get a story across. Whereas lots of books have a span of a whole story, but it’s put in a lot of words. The power of poetry is that you can be so succinct within, and there’s a lot of power within the words that are used.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KIM-1200x800.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)
![Holding the Grand Nationals trophies, drum majors Helashi Wijayawardhana, Abigail Pettey and Eddy Kim pose for a photo. The BOA Grand Nationals competition took place in Indianapolis on Nov. 14-17. “My favorite thing was just looking back at the field, and I was like, ‘Oh, crap. I know all of their names, I know who all of them are’,” Wijayawardahana said. “It's just insane to me that I was able to make so many connections. [Being a drum major] taught me how to build relationships with people who I’m not really that similar to, and how to juggle a ton of things all together.”
Photo courtesy of CPHS Band SmugMug](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/AJC.GrandNatsFinals-169-1200x801.jpg)
![Delicately placing the string to form the shape of a cornucopia, seniors Haley Burton and Avery Nelson create the November arrangement for the Flower of the Month Club. This club is led by Advanced Floral Design Students and provides a monthly arrangement to community members who subscribe to receive them. “I think flower of the month club is a really impactful way to show your loved ones ‘hey I really care about you,’ or even if they’re just for yourself, they’re a little pick-me-up throughout the month that [say] ‘I’m doing ok, and these flowers make my day a little bit brighter,” Nelson said. “I like giving people flowers because people value the flowers more and they value themselves more.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Ava-Holmes-3-edit.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)
![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)
![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)
Preview: NFL Championship Sunday
The matchup of Super Bowl LIII will be decided on Sunday, Jan. 20, as the Rams take on the Saints and the Patriots take on the Chiefs.
January 18, 2019
On Sunday, Jan. 20, the Super Bowl LIII matchup will be decided. The winner of the NFC Championship Game (Rams @ Saints) will take on the winner of the AFC Championship Game (Patriots @ Chiefs) in Atlanta at the Mercedes Benz Stadium on Feb. 3. Here are my predictions for Championship Sunday and what to watch for.
Rams @ Saints, 2:05 p.m. CT on FOX
The Saints advanced the NFC title game after coming from behind in impressive fashion against the defending Super Bowl Champion Philadelphia Eagles. The Saints rallied back from a 14-0 deficit in the first half, and ultimately won the game on a Marshon Lattimore interception. The Rams defeated the Cowboys in a thriller, 30-22, behind 273 combined rushing yards.
The Saints’ defense completely shut down Philadelphia’s rushing attack in the Divisional Round, only allowing 49 total yards. The Saints must shut down Rams’ RBs Todd Gurley and newly acquired C.J. Anderson in the championship game. The Cowboys’ defense seemingly gave up big play after big play when the Rams ran the ball. The two RBs combined for 138 rushing yards and 3 TDs against Dallas. Rams WR Cooper Kupp tore his ACL back in November, and since his injury, the Rams have struggled to throw the ball. Los Angeles must be able to pass the ball against the Saints’ younger corners if New Orleans shuts them down in the run game.
Loading ...On the other side of the ball, the Saints have to continue to feed Pro-Bowl WR Michael Thomas. The Eagles couldn’t stop Thomas and he racked up 12 receptions for 171 yards and a TD. Now, the Rams did shut down Cowboys star WR Amari Cooper in the Divisional Round – Cooper had six receptions for 65 yards and a TD. Experts would argue that Thomas is a totally different receiver than Cooper is, especially playing in New Orleans. My matchup to watch for in the NFC Championship Game is Michael Thomas vs. the Rams corners. Thomas is the center point of the Saints’ offense, as Drew Brees throws his way a lot, but the Rams have a great secondary. I ultimately predict the Saints win the game, like they did back in November 45-35, by a score of 27-21, and advance to Super Bowl LIII.
Patriots @ Chiefs, 5:40 p.m. CT on CBS
Just like the Rams and Saints game, the AFC Championship game is a rematch of a wild game that happened earlier in the season when New England won a thriller 43-40 in Foxborough back in October. It was a back-and-forth game for all four quarters, with the Pats ultimately coming away victorious. I expect this matchup to be similar to the October game because both teams are playing great football right now.
The Patriots clobbered the Chargers in the divisional round last weekend, clinching yet another milestone for QB Tom Brady; Brady has now won more playoff games than any other QB in NFL has started. The Chiefs proved their worth in the divisional round by defeating the Colts, avoiding the highly predicted upset. Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City is one of the loudest stadiums in all of football, so I expect the crowd to provide their hometown Chiefs with the home field advantage.
The Patriots last week shut down the Chargers’ run game completely, only allowing 19 total yards to pro bowl RB Melvin Gordon. They must continue this success this weekend in KC. Though the Chiefs released RB Kareem Hunt earlier in the year, Damien Williams has stepped up nicely in his role. New England is loaded up with secondary talent, so it will be a key matchup to see the Patriots’ DBs against the Chiefs’ WRs, especially Tyreek Hill. Hill has one of the better 40-yard dash times in the league and can take a short pass the distance if the defense isn’t ready. The Patriots’ defensive backs must come to play, and for the Chiefs, they must stop the run. Last week, Patriots RB Sony Michel ran all over the Chargers’ defense, racking up 129 yards and three touchdowns. When Brady passes, the Chiefs must generate pressure on him—he seemingly had all day to throw on every drop-back vs. the Chargers. Pats WR Julian Edelman has had tremendous success in the playoffs throughout his career, so I would watch for the Chiefs to double-team him and make Brady throw it to his other WRs.
Loading ...In the end, I trust Tom Brady. Patrick Mahomes is a great, young QB, but in only his second career playoff start, I think the stage will just simply be too big for him. Weather reports are saying there will be a blizzard going through Kansas City during the game, which I feel favors the Patriots because of Tom Brady. He’s been here, he’s played in every weather condition imaginable. I predict Patriots will defeat the Chiefs, 33-28, and advance to Super Bowl LIII.
