![With their T-Wolves held high, the varsity volleyball team huddles together in preparation at a match in early September. The team is 6-0 in match play and will start the second round of district play next week. “The second time isn’t going to be easy,” Head Coach Lori McLaughlin said. “That's the thing about this district. The coaches are so good and very skilled with what they do and every team is usually different the second time that we play. We just want to hope that we add some more finesse to our game, and then lead us into the postseason, which hopefully [has us] peaking at the right time.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/varvb-9.3-Julia-14.jpg)
![During passing period, parking lot security Alan Gallagher stands on the street between the portables and the main building, ensuring students get to the other side safely. Everyday, Gallagher monitors the parking lots, checks parking permits and helps guide traffic, even more so now with the addition of the portables. “I spend a lot of time making sure students and staff get across the walkway,” Gallagher said. “I haven’t had any real problems [with students] yet, it’s just about getting people adjusted to the new traffic patterns.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/IMG_0926.jpg)
![With her daily agenda displayed on the new interactive panels, advanced spanish II and III teacher Sofia Pickle explains to her students their tasks for the day. The new interactive panels come with many features including the ability to annotate directly on the board.“I do love the that I can display certain spanish vocabulary or spanish conjugation [on the panels],” advanced spanish II and III teacher Sofia Pickle said. “I can go and write underneath it or take notes directly on those words or the worksheet I have displayed. I really enjoy that the panels are accessible and have features that are fun for students.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Mrs.-Pickle-Panel-1200x800.jpg)
![Smiling at the camera, the Varsity Tennis team celebrates winning districts. They played against Liberty Hill on Tuesday night and won with a final score of 10- 5. “We improved a lot even from the last game,” senior Blake Hillis said. “We lost against them the last time we played [Liberty Hill], but it was really close. It was just really important for us to win this match since it was the district finals. [When we won I felt] overwhelmingly happy, especially being there with my teammates and it being my senior year. It was just really great. It [felt] like a community.”](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Tennis-Districts-e1728060882260.png)
![On March 20, the theatre program performed their UIL One Act play "Frankenstein". “I could barely believe what I heard after [it was] announced that we were advancing,” freshman Zack Williams said. “It was crazy. Being one of the only freshmen in the show and also [being] a lead definitely put pressure on my shoulders. I knew that the only thing I could do was my best, but that was until I started to think what if my best was not enough? I was feeling like I could never amount to being what [everyone else] thought I was. Although, after hearing that announcement, I realized that maybe I have something going for me after all.”
Photo courtesy of Cayden Bartolo](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Capture.png)
![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)
![Smiling during the annual Decals with Dads, varsity starting quarterback and sophomore David Cooper and his dad Jim Cooper pose for a picture. During this varsity event, players and their dads get together to put new decals on their helmets. This year, in addition to being announced QB 1, David was also voted as one of six captains on the varsity team, a role that he had difficulty adjusting to as a younger player on varsity. “It was a struggle for me, being younger than everyone else and being a leader,” David said. “I wondered if [the team] would respect me, or if they would just see me as a younger person from a younger class. I think I've become a leader, [though] and let people know that even though I'm younger, I'm still going to lead them well.” Photo courtesy of Cedar Park Football SmugMug.](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/IMG_8493-1-1200x801.jpg)
![Smiling with her hands on the wheel in her Camaro z28, senior Brooklyn Collinsworth savors these short moments until the car returns back to the shop. “I knew there would be work to be done, but there were too many problems with the engine in the car that they didn't address originally,” Collinsworth said. “The more [SW] takes it apart, the more they realize the issues with it, but I want to keep that car forever so I'm willing to deal with that stuff so I can have a better experience later.” Photo Courtesy of Brooklyn Collinsworth](https://cphswolfpack.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/55E3EE4E-12B3-4B85-B1CB-464B676FD3A9_1_105_c.jpeg)
Cheers of celebration echo from the dugout as the sevent inning comes to an end and the team secures the win in the second round of playoffs. Their success is a win, but now their determination to break the third round curse sets in.
The team won the series against Medina Valley last week 2-0, sending them to the Regional Quarterfinals against the Rouse Raiders tomorrow at 7 p.m. The game will be held at Lago Vista and will determine who moves onto the fourth round of playoffs.
“I feel really well [going into this round] we’re playing some of the best baseball we have played all year right now,” freshman third baseman Hudson Cuevas said. “We’ve been preparing the same as we have all year, nothing has changed because everything has worked through the whole year. Just the intensity is cranking up since it is the playoffs..”
The team has lost to Rouse in the third round at Concordia the past two years. While they did beat them in the district play twice, the player’s are still putting in their focus for the playoffs.
“It’s the [seniors] last year so it’s a different mindset,” senior second baseman and pitcher Carson Reid said. “We know we can beat them. We need to look at the positive not really the past and kind of forget about the past because it’s a different team every year. After this round, we don’t have this pressure anymore. This is just a big bump, that’s it.”
In the district rounds, the team tied for first with Liberty Hill, marking the fourth year in a row they have won district. The team also beat San Antonio Pieper in the first round of the playoffs in a 2-0 series.
“The team bond this year has been great, I love it,” Reid said. “Winning this round will really show who we are as a team because I don’t think there’s a team in this whole country that really comes together like we do.”
When asked about the wins against Rouse, senior right fielder Jake Cowlishaw, says he is looking forward to going into this round and getting to play them again.
“You can’t go into a playoff game like this and not feel confident,” Cowlishaw said. “I feel pretty good [about this round] . I think as a team we’re all playing well together. Losing to them in the previous years is definitely on our minds but we want to change that.”
