February 2018

IN THE NEWS:

Volume 60: Issue 2

ShanaFlics Movie

Reviews By Lucas Riordan

From home runs to complete flops, Lucas tells you which to see and which to skip.

Bishop Shanahan on the March

On January 19th, ninety-four BSHS students participated in the March for Life in Washington, D.C., the largest pro-life march!

Photo submitted by Mr. Aquilante.

Respect Life

Club Takes

Washington By Jack Fulco, Local News Editor

A group of more than 100 students trav-

eled to Washington D.C. on January 19th

to take part in the nation’s largest and

longest running pro-life protest. This

year’s march proved to be a historic one,

as the largest crowd in years was in the

Capital to protest abortion. This year was

also the first year in history in which the

president addressed the march live. Presi-

dent Donald J. Trump spoke via simulcast

from the White House Rose Garden to the

marchers, including the group from

Shanahan. Shanahan students, as well as

thousands of people, marched all the way

to the steps of the Supreme Court. Then

the Shanahan group got a special treat,

walking right up to Senator Ted Cruz of

Texas. Shanahan got an opportunity to

meet and greet with the Republican Presi-

dential candidate himself.

This is not the first time Shanahan stu-

dents have fought for the right to life. In

addition to promoting the March in Wash-

ington, Shanahan students have raised

money throughout the year and promoted

awareness of the issue both inside and

outside of school. The March for Life is

just a small part of what the Respect Life

Club does at Shanahan.

All in all, Shanahan once again did their

part, and pushed even further to end legal

abortion in America.

Hilarious or Harmful? By Mia Bellafante

Is self-deprecating humor a

way of humbling ourselves, or

an indicator of a greater prob-

lem?

Opinion, PAGE 1

The Philadelphia

Eagles’ Season in

Review By Joseph Gill

Entering into a new season, the Philadel-

phia Eagles began with multiple new addi-

tions: a second year coach, and a second

year quarterback. During the off-season

months, Howie Roseman, the Eagles gen-

eral manager, made a lot of moves to im-

prove the weak team. First, he tackled the

ailing receiving corps as he added premier

wide receiver Alshon Jeffery, and speed-

ster Torrey Smith. In addition, Agholor has

finally found his star power and Ertz re-

mains Carson’s favorite target. Next, Rose-

man picked up a much needed running

back, Legarrette Blount, from free agency.

In the NFL draft, the Eagles received de-

fensive end Derek Barnett, cornerback Sid-

ney Jones, and cornerback Rasul Douglas

among others. Finally, Roseman traded

wide receiver Jordan Matthews for corner-

back Ronald Darby from the Bills. Unfor-

tunately, Darby would end up getting in-

jured in week one. With these new acquisi-

tions, the Eagles flew into the season with

high hopes.

The Eagles charged into the season

flying high as they soared to a 4-1 start,

with victories over the Redskins, Giants,

Chargers, and Cardinals. The birds fell

short to the Kansas City Chiefs as their

only loss so far. The Eagles have played a

fantastic season under coordinator Jim

Schwartz. Fletcher Cox along with Bran-

don Graham, Chris Long, Derek Barnett,

and Tim Jernigan form one of the league’s

most formidable defensive lines. Wentz led

the offense in an MVP candidate perform-

ance as his offense became the top scoring

in the league. Scoring, on average, 30

points a game, the Eagles held the league’s

top scoring offense until Wentz was hurt.

Continued on Page 5

Boys’ Soccer Makes

History By Robert Duncheskie and Matthew

Eaglehouse

The Shanahan Boys’ Soccer

team finishes the season with

several broken records

Sports, PAGE 7

Shanaviews Social Me-

dia Launch

Sick of fake news in your

feed? Can’t wait until the end

of the quarter? Follow the

Shanaviews Instagram for fre-

quent updates of what’s hap-

pening at Shanahan.

Taste Victory By Jack Fulco, Local Editor

Never been to Downingtown’s

famous Victory Brew Pub?

Jack Fulco reviews the trendy

restaurant.

Local, PAGE 6

No More Net Neutrality By Jessica Zaccarelli

What the decision means, and how it will affect the internet, services, and communications around the world.

World, PAGE 3

A&E News, PAGE 8

Italian and French

Clubs Celebrate

Carnivale By Jack Fulco, Local News’ Editor

On the Monday before Lent, the Italian

and French clubs brought a little piece of

the wild festival of Carnivale to the main

hall of school. The foyer turned into a

masquerade hall and as couples de-

scended the main stairs, the atmosphere

changed to the streets of Europe. Danc-

ing, food, and fun were all a part of the

event, and the party was on. If you

missed this year’s event, be sure to at-

tend next year and as the French say, Let

the Good Times Roll!

Sam Capriotti and Jack Shields perform a

traditional Italian dance, February 12, 2018

Submitted by Mr. Aquilante.

February 2018 Page 2

Opinion

Shanaviews

Editor-in-Chief Annie Goetz

World News Editor Jordan Jaramillo Local News Editor John Fulco

Sports Editors Bridget O’Donnell

A&E Editor Nicole Vertigan Opinion Editor John Fader

Photographers Editor Kate O’Neil

Faculty

Photographer Mr. Hetherington

Secretary Bridget O’Donnell Moderator Mrs. Ivkovich

Views expressed by individual authors do not

necessarily represent those of Bishop

Shanahan High School or the Archdiocese of

Philadelphia. Students interested in joining or

writing for the club can contact Mrs. Ivk-

ovich at: sivkovich@shanahan.org. Meetings

are on Mondays in Room 212 after school.

Self-Deprecating

or Self-Esteem

Destroyer By Mia Bellafante

“Yeah, I can be pretty annoying.”

“Wow, I’m so dumb!” “Honestly I don’t

even know why anyone would even want

to be friends with me.” These are just

some of the common phrases you might

hear when strolling through the hallways

of a high school, sitting in the break

rooms of offices, or just walking down

streets. They’re jokes, not meant to taken

seriously, just little self-deprecating jibes

said to remind people of how humble and

self aware you are. With this type of

comedy becoming more and more typical

in our world today, with comedy specials

devoted solely to comedians bashing

themselves or the internet being filled

with posts telling the world just how un-

impressive we are, the question begs to

be asked: Can this type of self-judging

humor actually be hurting us?

While it’s easy to claim that these jokes

are all in good fun and that when push

comes to shove you don’t truly believe

the things you’re saying, that might not

be as true as you think. Studies have

shown that the way we talk about our-

selves, whether in our own heads or out

loud, drastically affects our self esteem

and self worth. Constantly talking badly

of yourself, whether it’s a “joke” or not,

causes you to start to truly believe the

terrible things you say about yourself. In

fact, one of the first things people with

mental illnesses such as depression and

anxiety are told to do is change the way

they think and talk about themselves,

from nasty, hateful thoughts to more op-

timistic and forgiving sentiments. Al-

though it may seem trivial, the effects of

this can be enormous. So by extension,

this principle shows that by making a

joke about how ugly, unintelligent, or

bothersome you are, you are teaching

your brain to truly think about yourself

that way, which can obviously bring

about terrible consequences.

However, despite all this, numerous

benefits to self-deprecating humor exist

as well. It can be used as a bridge to con-

nect people who may be of different so-

cial classes or places in life. For example,

if a billionaire were at an event filled

with working, middle class Americans, a

comment taking himself down a peg can

break the ice and show that he knows

he’s no better than anyone else. Self-

deprecation can also be used as a way to

laugh at and make light of your flaws.

Everyone has things they wish they could

change about themselves or perform bet-

ter at, and the pressure to do so can

sometimes feel crushing. Sometimes a

well placed joke about your insecurities

can actually serve as a reminder that im-

perfections are normal and nothing too

serious.

So the question remains, are these types

of jokes good or bad? In a society where

the concept of perfection is idolized, does

laughing at our imperfections help or

hurt us? The answer probably varies de-

pending on who you ask, but next time

you make a joke about your awful cook-

ing or terrible vision, just make sure you

know you’re so much more than

that.

5 facts about the

2018 Olympics

in PyeongChang By John Fader Opinion Editor

The 2018 Winter Olympics will be-

gin on February 9th in PyeongChang

and in spirit of the games here are

five facts about them.

1. The mascot’s names are Soo-

horang and Bandabi. Soohorang is a

white tiger and is the official mascot

of the Olympics, and Bandabi is a

Asiatic black bear representing the

Paralympics.

2. The Olympic torch relay for the

2018 Olympics began on October 1,

2017 in Greece and has been mak-

ing its way through through South

Korea provinces to arrive at Pyeong-

Chang on February 9th, 2018.

3. The venues for these games are

split into two clusters, a mountain

one and a costal one. The mountain

cluster will host the skiing and snow-

boarding events while the coastal

cluster will host the hockey, curling

and respective skating events. There

are additional venues for award cere-

monies and Olympic shops.

4. The United States of America is

sending a total of 244 individual ath-

letes to the 2018 games. This is the

most athletes ever sent to the winter

games from an individual country.

5. In conclusion, these games also

signal the launch of a new program

known as New Horizons. This pro-

gram’s goal is to expand the horizons

of culture, environment, geography,

and economics in South Korea. The

objective is blend traditional culture

with new, establish infrastructure for

a green future, open communication

between South and North Korea, and

reinvent economic structure.

Alabama Wins 2018

CFP National

Championship By Nick Downing

On the night of January 8th, the fourth-

seeded University of Alabama Crimson

Tide defeated the third-seeded University

of Georgia Bulldogs 26-23 in overtime.

Alabama’s freshman quarterback Tua

Tagovailoa threw the game-winning 41

yard touchdown pass to receiver DeVonta

Smith to shock Georgia, who led for most

of the game. Alabama coach Nick Saban

replaced struggling sophomore quarterback

Jalen Hurts with Tagovailoa at the begin-

ning of the second half, a move which

proved masterful. Tagovailoa finished the

game 14 of 24 for 166 yards and three

touchdowns with one interception. For

Georgia, offense came relatively easily in

the first half and Georgia went into the

locker room up 13-0. However, the second

half was a different story. Georgia’s fresh-

man quarterback Jake Fromm did throw an

80 yard touchdown pass to receiver Me-

cole Hardman with six minutes and fifty-

two seconds left in the third quarter, but

that would be Georgia’s final touchdown

of the half and only points until a field goal

in overtime.

Overall, the 2018 CFP National Champi-

onship was an exhilarating game between

two top Southeastern Conference rivals

and an instant classic. Alabama’s dominant

run continues, as the program has won five

national championships in the eight years

under head coach Nick Saban. Meanwhile,

Southeastern Conference teams have won

ten national championships since Louisi-

ana State University’s victory in 2003.

Olympic Venues in PyeongChang 2018

(pictured above from top to bottom)

The Gangneung Ice Arena located in the

coastal cluster of arenas, the Olympic

Sliding Center located in the mountain

cluster for luge and bobsled competi-

tions , and the Olympic rings installa-

tion located in the coastal cluster of

arenas.

Photo source: Kyodo News/Getty images

Illustrated by John Fader

February 2018 Page 3

World News

FCC Votes No

More Net

Neutrality? By Jessica Zaccarelli

Net Neutrality is the principle that inter-

net service providers (ISPs) must allow all content, regardless of where it comes from, to reach consumers at fair speeds and at no extra cost. The idea is that this makes the Internet a level playing field. Without it, certain websites could be blocked by ISPs for any reason, providers could charge more for faster connections to businesses of their choosing, and users would no longer be in control of their online experi-ence.

On December 14, 2017, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted to kill net neutrality protections and effec-tively change how the Internet is used by people around the country. This is not good for Internet users. The gutting of net neutrality means that Internet providers such as Verizon, Comcast, and AT&T can slow down competitor’s content or inter-fere with political sources with which they do not agree. They can also charge extra for services such as video or music stream-ing, allowing only big names such as You-Tube and Netflix to survive, and leaving small startups in the dust.

The regulations that are being repealed were approved by the FCC in 2015. Originally, their purpose was to protect American Internet users from busi-nesses abusing power. During the major transition to country-wide Internet usage, the agency wanted to make sure that no one service provider could control the flow of service. Now, with a simple vote, all of these regulations will be taken away.

Many service providers such as Verizon and Comcast have already announced that they will not be changing Internet users’ experiences. They want to ensure that the Internet stays fair as intended when it was created. However, these promises do not mean that these companies will never fall into the trap of using these deregulations to their advantage. Whether or not they use these new rights might not be up to them if their competitors start using them first. Actions like these may leave Com-cast, Verizon, and other ISPs with no choice.

But the fight’s not over yet. It is still possible to call our state congressmen to repeal the FCC vote and maintain the cur-rent Internet regulations. Allowing these companies to censor our information could silence many voices and limit our ability to prevent future misguided attempts to change the way we use the Internet.

New Embassy,

New Enemies

By Jordan Jaramillo, World News Editor

Amid the controversy surrounding

the White House, one critical decision

has left many offended overseas, and

potentially added fuel to the fire in the

Middle East. While tensions with the

Middle East have been rocky in the past,

the last four to five years has seen an

uneasy balance within many of the na-

tions. However, old tensions resurfaced

in a big way after President Donald

Trump declared that the U.S. would rec-

ognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel,

which overturns nearly 70 years of inter-

national agreements. This kind of claim

by such a large and important country as

the U.S. means that the peace talks be-

tween Israeli and Palestine is effectively

mute.

The consequences of this decision

have far reaching effects that will likely

reignite the debates over who lays claim

to the holy city. Beforehand, all of the

embassies were located in Tel Aviv, out

of respect for both sides of argument.

Now, with the U.S.’s decision to offi-

cially recognize Jerusalem as the capital

of Israel, conflict and debate will surely

follow with potentially dangerous out-

comes for both countries. Advocates in

Israel have lauded the decision, but with

many Palestinians feeling betrayed by

this short lived peace in the Middle East,

many fear the repercussions of this seem-

ingly random decision that does not help

the already strained relations in the Mid-

dle East.

On top of that, the Russian Olympic Committee must pay a fine of 15 million dollars. This is one of the most severe punishments that the I.O.C. has adminis-tered for doping.

After only winning a total of 15 metals in the 2010 Vancouver Games, Russia came racing back in 2014 with a total of 33 metals, the highest for the 2014 Sochi Games. However, these metals are slowly decreasing as more evidence proves that Russian athletes used illegal steroids.

Russian medalists from the 2014 Sochi games are being stripped of their ti-tle. Furthermore, these athletes are banned from ever competing in the Olympic Games again. In light of the situation, this has led the United States to take the lead in metal count for the 2014 Sochi Games with 28 metals.

So, what does this mean for Russian ath-letes that did not participate in steroid us-age and have trained to compete in the Olympics? The I.O.C. is allowing, with discretion, certain athletes to compete in the Olympics, but under the Olympic flag as individuals rather than under the Rus-sian flag for a country. Fans in Russia looking forward to watching their favorite athletes compete will have to watch them wear neutral uniforms, but under the con-dition that they are eligible to compete.

The 15 million dollars required by the Russian Olympic Committee will be used to create an organization for further drug testing among the Olympic athletes as well as repay the I.O.C. for the costly investiga-tion of this scandal.

The 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics will continue on for many countries, but for Russia, it has come to end for most. The remaining question now is how the country wil l react to future Olympic Games. Regardless of this banning, the Russian President Putin comments that he “will not forbid anything to anyone, block anything, making any impossible condi-tions for participation...the athletes will have to make a decision them-selves…” Ultimately, the scandal has made Olympic history and crushed many athletes’ dreams to compete for their coun-try. The I.O.C continues to assert justice by ensuring that athletes who deserve to be medalists were not cheated by Russia’s doping scandal.

“The President

Stole Your Land” By Emma Smith

There is no better uniting force than a

common enemy and a cause to fight for. In December 2017, when U.S. President Don-ald Trump ordered the Bears Ears National Monument in southeastern Utah to be re-duced in size by about 85%-over 1.3 mil-lion acres-the Native American tribes whose ancestors lived in that region and environmentally-friendly companies like Patagonia were given both a common en-emy and a cause. National monuments are protected areas of land created by the fed-eral government through presidential proc-lamation. Bears Ears is just one of 129 of these regions in the U.S., but Trump’s ac-tion makes it unique in that it is now both the first monument to be reduced in size since 1963 and holds the record for being the one to undergo the largest reduction ever.

Former President Obama’s decision to establish Bears Ears as protected federal land in December 2016 was a victory for the Bears Ears Intertribal Coalition, who claimed the region as “ancestral land.” The unusual rock formations in the area, de-scribed by author Robert McPherson as “unlike any other rock in the world,” also had aesthetic value and beauty for visitors. But other residents who lived nearby were worried, citing claims that they had wanted to keep the land available for future use.

Trump’s move prompted Patagonia Inc. to support the Native Americans, and the clothing company launched a campaign through their website to protest the reduc-tion. Now visitors to Patagonia’s site are greeted with the declaration that “The President Stole Your Land” and are en-couraged to join the protest. Three lawsuits have been filed so far against Trump’s administration, including one by Sierra Club and several other environmentalist groups and another by Patagonia.

Olympic Games for

Everyone Except

Russia? By Lauren Bradley

It’s 2018, and you know what that

means. Around the world, athletes train tirelessly, preparing for the most intense competition of their lives while fans excit-edly anticipate watching the best sporting event of the year. For many countries The 2018 Winter Olympics are here, but not for Russia.

Russia, the previous host of the 2014 Winter Olympics, received an official ban-ning by the International Olympic Com-mittee from participation in the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympic Games for “state-sponsored doping.” The reason for this banning goes back to the Sochi Games in 2014. Recent investigation proved that Russia’s sports ministry obscured urine samples of many athletes to mask their use of performance-enhancing steroids. The consequences of this illegal action by Rus-sia affect the government and citizens of Russia as well as Russian athletes from the 2014 Games and the upcoming 2018 Games.

According to the International Olympic Committee, no Russian athlete will carry the flag in the opening ceremony nor com-pete for their country, and Russian officials are banned from attending the Games.

The Grand Staircase-Escalante national monument in Utah. President Trump’s proposal would drastically shrink the protected land.

Photo by kuer.org

February 2018 Page 4

Local News

Chester County

Gets Country

Festival By Jack Fulco, Local News’ Editor

Get your boots ready, because coun-

try music is coming to Chester County.

California based Impact Entertainment

announced the Country Spirit festival

which will be held at Ludwig’s Corner

in Glenmoore. The festival will take

place between August 24th through 26th

and will feature numerous high profile

country acts. Impact Entertainment

expands to the East Coast with Country

Spirit, after several years of promoting

the successful California Summer festi-

val which attracts acts such as Florida

Georgia Line, Little Big Town, Toby

Keith, Maren Morris and many more.

Be sure to keep your eye out as tickets

go on sale and performers are an-

nounced.

Victory Brewing

Company…

More than Just

Beer

By Jack Fulco, Local News’ Editor

At first glance, the Victory Brewing

Company may not seem like a good to

place for a teenager. After all, it’s mainly

known for one thing: beer. However, I am

here to tell you that there is a whole lot

more to this brewpub than meets the eye.

Walking into Victory gives one the feeling

of an abandoned factory that’s been repur-

posed into a trendy microbrew. And that’s

exactly what it is. Built in a former Pep-

peridge Farm factory, Victory has food that

is rivaled only by Station Taproom. Our

meal began with two delicious appetizers,

the nachos and the Wings of Victory

(Korean Style). This gave us an intriguing

taste of what’s to come. The main course

was the real show-stopper: the sausage and

peppers pizza. The heat was not over-

whelming, but provided a perfect amount

of spice. The crust was thin, and not over-

powering, and provided a nice crunch.

Overall, the meal was extremely filling and

satisfying. I would recommend this restau-

rant to any person I come across.

Philadelphia

Eagles, Super

Bowl Champs By Joseph Gill

The Philadelphia Eagles are Super Bowl

Champions! What a sentence! After 56

years of a football championship drought,

the Eagles have hoisted the Lombardi tro-

phy and are taking it home to the City of

Brotherly Love. This game left a mark in

the record books as it now stands as the

most amount of yardage recorded in an

NFL football game, ever. This game will

forever be remembered as one of the best

of all time as the clash of titans took place

in U.S. Bank stadium in Minnesota.

Underdogs since their franchise quarter-

back, Carson Wentz, tore his ACL, the

Birds stayed upright and tough as nails as

they went head to head against the most

dominant dynasty in professional football,

the New England Patriots. Tom Brady,

considered one of the greatest, if not the

greatest, quarterback to play the game,

came out of this shootout with over 500

passing yards and 3 touchdown passes.

Meanwhile, Nick Foles, the backup quar-

terback to the injured Wentz, claimed the

game’s MVP with 373 passing yards, 3

touchdown passes and a touchdown catch.

What? A touchdown catch? Yes, you read

that right. On a gutsy 4th and goal play

call, Doug Pederson and Nick Foles pulled

some tricks out of their sleeves against

Belichek’s defense. In a play called “Philly

Special”, Foles faked to kill the play and

walked to the right yelling at offensive

tackle Lane Johnson, meanwhile the snap

went Burton then passed the ball to Foles

who was left all alone in the end zone for

an Eagles’ score.

This capped off a dominant offensive

performance of the Eagles in the first

half where Alshon Jeffery caught a TD

and Legarrette Blount punched another

one in for six. Late in the game, the

Patriots took a slim lead. Tom Brady,

the quarterback who had orchestrated

numerous fourth quarter comebacks

was ready to march down field and

pluck the hearts out of die hard Eagles’

fans ravenous for a victory.

Finally, Brandon Graham happened.

Team captain, defensive end, Brandon

Graham forced his way through offen-

sive guard Shaq Mason to knock the

ball out of Brady’s hand and bounce

into rookie Derek Barnett’s body. Jake

Elliott kicked a field goal to extend the

lead to 8 points. Comfort still didn’t

reach the minds of Eagles’ fans, as

Brady had one more chance to steal the

game from the Birds. In a desperation

throw to the end zone, the Eagles de-

fended the pass and prevented Gron-

kowski from making the touchdown

catch. Shock, awe, and excitement

consumed the Eagles’ fans’ hearts. The

Philadelphia Eagles have done it. They

have claimed the Lombardi trophy in

an ‘edge-of-your-seat,’ ‘down-to-the-

wire,’ riveting game. And no one can

take it from us. Fly Eagles Fly!

2017-2018 Mother-Son Breakfast

Seniors, Aiden Bracken, David Angelo, McCormac Barry and, Thomas

Ford with their mothers, January 28, 2018. Photo by Nicole Vertigan

2017-2018 Father-Daughter Dance

Betsy Lamb and her father celebrated the annual Father-Daughter Dance on

January 27th, kicking off Catholic Schools Week! Photo from shanahan.org

Club News: Community Service Corps Red Cross Blood Drive-February 28th,

Blanket Making– February 28th

Book Collection-Looking for children’s books through month of February

Visions: Next Issue comes

out week of February 19th

As reported by the Daily Local News on Febrary 9th, “Bishop Shanahan students

won the Governor’s STEM competition with an idea inspired by the rescue efforts

during the Barclay Friends West Chester fire.

Chester County high school students skilled in STEM pathways – science, technol-

ogy, engineering and math competed in this year’s regional Governor’s STEM com-

petition on Tuesday at the Chester County Intermediate Unit in Downingtown. This

year, Bishop Shanahan High School finished on top, with Oxford Area High School

finishing close behind in second and Coatesville Area Senior High School securing

third place.”

From left to right is Michael Gomba, Mark Gomba, Jordan Jaramillo, Brendan

Manning, and Alana Pappas. Photo obtained from www.shanahan.org

February 2018 Page 5

Sports

Boys Soccer

Makes History By Robert Duncheskie and Matthew

Eaglehouse

From the blistering hot mornings, in Au-gust until today, the Boys Soccer teams have proven once again this year to be a success. After a disappointing loss at the hands of Radnor early in the season, the determined Varsity team bounced back to an outstanding 15-3 record, kickstarted by a 3-1 win over rival Radnor. Furthermore, the Varsity team concluded the regular season ranked 2nd in Chesmonts, as well as Districts. Likewise, the Junior Varsity team demonstrated dominance throughout the season. Despite starting off slow at just 2-2, these boys rallied back to reach a 13-5 record. The team furthered their success with the District semifinal and the clinching of a state playoff for the first time in Shanahan soccer history. The Eagles faced off with the Phoenixville Phantoms on a cold night at Jack Mancini Stadium. Despite being a home game, the Phantoms showed in full force and filled the opposing bleachers with students and parents alike. Still, the Eagles remained strong in their hopes of making history. After a long and strenuous battle, Shimon Hilton squeezed in a goal just as time expired. The fans screamed in excitement, as the team was bound for the state playoff! Next, the Eagles put their twelve game win streak to the test against Harriton in the District Final at Methacton. Down 2-1 in the final minute, leading Shanahan goal-scorer Jake Frank drew a penalty kick and didn’t look back, netting the equalizer to send the game into overtime. Suddenly, the momentum swung in favor of Shanahan, as the Eagles took the game by the reigns and scored the electric game winner just a few minutes into overtime. A beautifully lofted ball by Connor Bailey set up a sprinting Harrison Coron perfectly to complete the comeback, leaving the Eagles once again victorious. The Eagles ventured into unfamiliar ter-ritory with a state playoff game, in which they faced off against Greencastle-Antrim. Yet, this daunting task seemed to propel the Eagles to new heights as they fended off their opponents in a torrential down-pour at Downingtown West Stadium (also known as the swamp). Despite the puddles and the freezing temperature, the Eagles fought hard and pulled off a 3-2 win with a game winner by Captain Harrison Coron with less than two minutes. The result was memorable, marking the Eagles’ first state playoff victory. Unfortunately, this would be the only state playoff victory. Their 13-game winning streak and historical season was ended in heartbreak against Archbishop Wood in a 2-1 loss. After the hard-fought game, bodies lay strewn on the turf in resemblance of a historic battle-field; the white uniforms of the Eagles were seen covering the ground like snow as they collapsed and coped with the end of a truly historic season. Excitingly, some of our seniors have announced their commitment to colleges to continue their academic and athletic ca-reers. As of now, these commitments in-clude seniors Jake Frank, who committed to High Point University (a Division I school located in North Carolina), Harri-son Coron, who committed to Drexel Uni-versity (a Division I school located in Pennsylvania), and Shimon Hilton, who committed to Slippery Rock University (a Division II school located in Pennsyl-vania).

broken in Seattle. Philly’s offense was held in check and

the defense could do little to stop MVP

candidate Russell Wilson. Little did Phila-

delphia know, they would be facing a

much more costly loss next week in Los

Angeles. This loss, of course, came in the

late fourth quarter when Carson Wentz

was pinned between two defenders and he

tore his ACL. But that was not Wentz’s

last play. No, this ‘North Dakota tough’,

six foot five, 240 pound quarterback stood

in for four more plays including an in-

credible touchdown pass to Alshon Jeffery.

An amazing play suitable for the conclu-

sion of an amazing player’s season. Nick

Foles, the past quarterback of the Eagles -

turned second string, finished the game as

the team won the NFC East. Foles would

lead the Eagles through a successful sea-

son and, for the first time in history, a Su-

per Bowl win for the City of Brotherly

Love.

The Boys’ Varsity team secured the win against Coatesville earning the Ches-Mont title on February 13, 2018, at Downingtown West High School.

Photo submitted by shanahan.org.

Season Ends as Ches-Mont Champs!

By Kevin Gatti

After bringing back four of the five starters from last year, the expectations were high and goals were set for thie var-sity boys’ basketball season. Last year, the senior trio of John Kozinski, Brendan Dearing, and Dan Browne led the team to a 2nd place finish in the Ches-Mont league playoffs. However, the 2017-2018 Eagles have their eyes set on reaching new heights.

So far, this year the Eagles has been nothing short of dominant. They currently sit at 8-1 overall, are first place in the con-ference with a 5-0 record, and have given up the fewest points in the Ches-Mont by a mile. In addition, the Eagles have an eight game winning streak. They have disman-tled teams and won major battles against big-time rivals. Specifically, a game against the Coatesville Red Raiders in the beginning of the season set the tone for the remainder of the year.

Eagles Eliminate Coatesville to Win

1st Ever Ches-Mont Title

As reported by the Daily Local News at http://papreplive.com/ by Pete Digiovanni on February 13, 2018: “The Bishop Shanahan boys basketball team accomplished something no other Eagles team has ever done Tuesday night at a jam-packed Wagner Gymnasium. Shanahan defeated mighty Coatesville, 60-58, to take home the school’s first ever Ches-Mont League championship in a thrilling final. But it sure was not easy, as the Eagles (19-4) had to withstand a furious fourth-quarter rush by Coatesville (19-5) and could only watch as Dapree Bryant’s last-second runner bounced away, clinch the coveted title for the Eagles. Bishop Shanahan put four players in dou-ble figures with Joe O’Malley and Kevin Dodds leading the way with 14 points apiece. Dodds also grabbed 14 rebounds, blocked two shots and generally made all the right moves down low for the Eagles. “This is just an amazing feeling to win this title and to beat a team as good as Coates-ville,” Dodds said. “It was a very physical game and one we really wanted, but they wanted it just as bad as we did. I have a lot of respect for them. This is great and we will celebrate but we still want to do big things in districts starting next week.”

The bad blood between the teams stemmed back to the Ches-Mont league champion-ship last year in which Shanahan lost in overtime to them. That heartbreaker was the fuel for this years heated matchup. The Eagles played stellar defense and forced a poor shooting night for Coatesville, thus giving them the edge to win 49-42. Seniors Kevin Dodds and Dan Dibeneditto each had great games as Dodds finished with 6 points and 10 rebounds, and Dibeneditto led Shanahan in scoring with 12. This vic-tory could be labeled as this years climax because since then, Shanahan has played with a fierce tenacity such as when they went on the road and beat rival Downing-town West 45-40. Now halfway through the season, the Eagles have accomplished many things and put themselves in a fan-tastic position for future success.

The season is not yet over, so there is still work to be done and much to look forward too. Fans need to continue to show our support for the squad through the rest of the year and into the playoffs. For some of them, it will be the last time they rock the Eagles’ uniform, so you better believe they are going to give us everything they got. There is something special about this team and the way they play, so you just never know how far they might go.

The Philadelphia Eagles

Continued from front page 1 Carson ‘Houdini’ Wentz displayed his ability to avoid tackles and complete throws downfield while under duress. So many broken down plays gave opportunity for Wentz to create with his athleticism and wits under pressure. Philadelphia con-tinued to power through the season as the wins kept piling up, until the streak was

Eagles win over Rustin on February 10, 2018 in the semi-finals. This pitted the Eagles

against Coatesville in the finals on February 13th, where the teams dominated Coates-

ville in the last seconds of the championship game. Photo obtained from

www.shanahan.org.

February 2018 Page 6

Arts & Entertainment

ShanaFlics

Movie Reviews By Lucas Riordan

The Shape of Water (R)

The Shape of Water focuses on the day to

day life of Eliza the mute janitor of OC-

CAM in 1962 Baltimore. OCCAM is a

high security, top secret government lab

who’s newest project revolves around find-

ing out how the newly discovered amphibi-

ous man lives and works. The amphibious

man is a scaled creature with human like

form that was found in South America

rivers, but it now lives its life in a water

tank with limited mobility. While Eliza and

her friend Zelda are cleaning the laboratory

after an incident, Eliza finds the Amphibi-

ous Man and grows a strange bond with

him. She begins to teach him sign language

and through this finds that he is just as

human as her. These actions do not go un-

noticed, as a Russian spy named Robert

Hofster observes the creature's ability to

communicate from a far. Once the power

hungry General Strickland decides they

must kill and dissect the amphibious man

Eliza, Zelda, Dr. Hofster, and Eliza's close

friend Giles plan a heist to break out the

amphibious man from the facility and set

him free. Through the story you find the

scaly man isn’t the true monster and that

the real monster is the one attempting to

kill him. This movie was great, as it was

able to introduce and characterize all of the

characters, even those who could not

speak. The storyline is strong and changes

pace only a few times. This is a very good

and strong film and has the Golden Globe

nominations to show for it. Though it is a

good movie I would not recommend it to

all, there are some scenes not suitable for

everyone but if you are fine with this I

would highly recommend it.

Rotten Tomatoes: 92%

Audience Score: 82%

Reality Score: A Must See

Jumanji: Welcome To the Jungle

( PG-13)

Jumanji: Welcome To the Jungle is the

remake of the 1995 movie, Jumanji. The

remake has Jumanji evolve from a board

game to a video game, creating a new

timely lure. This works when the game

traps Alan in 1997, leaving him inside for

twenty years. This is until 4 modern high

school students: Spencer, Bethany, Fridge,

and Martha are sucked into the game dur-

ing an afternoon of detention. They are

transformed into the avatars they chose and

must journey throughout the game to win

and survive in order to leave and return to

the real world. This game is filled with

wild beast soldiers who are all fighting for

Russell Van Pelt who wants to take the

gem away from the five in order to rule

Jumanji. They must return the gem to the

hundred foot tall monument in the heart of

Jumanji, but danger occurs around every

corner. Luckily, they all have 3 lives.

Through all of this, they learn more about

each other and become friends by experi-

encing the journey they just went through.

This movie is surprisingly good and is sure

to be loved by anyone who enjoys come-

dies or action movies. I would highly rec-

ommend seeing this movie.

Rotten Tomatoes: 75%

Audience Score: 90%

Reality Score: A Must See

Star Wars: The Last Jedi (PG-13)

Star Wars: The Last Jedi is the ninth

movie in the Star Wars Franchise and

shows the rebels being hunted down by the

First Order. The Rebels evacuate their base

planet and are now be hunted down by

much more powerful and deadly ships.

During this, Rey is attempting to get Luke

Skywalker to join and fight against the

First Order, but when he refuses she asks

him to teach her the ways of the Jedi.

Eventually, one of the First Order ships

crashes into the rebels main ship killing

everyone in the bridge room and severely

injuring Leia. As Finn wakes from his

coma, he is filled in on the situation and

attempts to find Rey but once he is caught

in the act of “desertion” by new addition,

Rose, and is temporarily paralyzed. After

Finn and Rose compromise, they set off in

order to find a master code breaker to hack

into the First Orders tracking system to

allow them to not be tracked through light

speed. Once they arrive at the planet the

code breaker is on, they are captured by

the security and thrown into jail. This is

where they find another code breaker and

return back to the Rebel Ship to hack into

the First Order Ship. Rey and Chewbacca

make their way to the First Order Ship to

meet with Kylo. There Rey and Kylo fight

against General Hux. During this Finn,

Rose, and the code breaker fail in their

mission to hack into the ship. They are

ordered to be executed. Next, the main

rebel ship makes a huge game- changing

move and the rebels escape to a planet

where they are followed. They then flee to

rebuild the rebellion with the few people

remaining. This movie was good, but not

great. The plot was not strong. The only

thing that stayed the same was that the

rebel’s were running from the First Order.

The plot was difficult to follow and the

unnecessary side stories cluttered the near

three hour run time. This movie was not as

good as many expected it to be.

Rotten Tomatoes: 93%

Audience Score: 54%

Reality Score: If You Have The Time

The Greatest Showman (PG)

The Greatest Showman is a creative mu-

sical inspired by the life of P.T Barnum.

The movie begins with a young and broke

Barnum in love with the resident of the

mansion he helps tend to. He has a dream

though, a dream to entertain and put a

smile on everyone’s face. He fights for this

dream. Once he achieves it, he fails. No-

body shows up and his sales are barely

able to payoff the loan he took out from

the bank. His Wax Museum is not a profit-

able business until he is inspired by his

daughters to add live attractions to the

show in order to catch the attention of the

public. He employs several of the people

who are shunned by society and gives

them a home and a job. They are adored by

the public and are shown what it is to live

like the people who mocked and ridiculed

them. Barnum creates a family of these

people and then leaves them once he real-

izes he could be doing better with a singer

from Europe. He takes her and tours across

America abandoning his work, and his

family. He becomes selfish and rich, the

exact thing he despised as a young boy.

Once he returns home everything he had

worked for was gone. This movie was a

great musical and is much more than I

originally expected. With great scenery

and a strong storyline, you are able to fol-

low along, be amazed, and mesmerized by

award-winning music. I would highly rec-

ommend seeing this movie.

Rotten Tomatoes: 56%

Audience Score: 90%

Reality Score: A Must See

Shanahan

Students

Compete in All

Catholic Band By Annie Goetz, Editor in Chief

On Saturday, February 3rd, several

students got the chance to share their

talents with Philadelphia during the All

Catholic Band performance. All Catho-

lic Band is the meeting of catholic

school musicians. Students travel to

Philadelphia to audition against other

schools in the archdiocese. These audi-

tions are competitive, and top musi-

cians from archdiocese schools com-

pete for limited spots. If they are ac-

cepted, students perform at a venue in

Philadelphia with the rest of the Catho-

lic school students. Bishop Shanahan

has always been represented well in All

Catholics. Driven students, with help

from the band director, Mr. Keating,

get the chance to test their skills and

make friends with other young musi-

cians from the archdiocese. M o s t

importantly, the students involved de-

scribe a informative, supportive atmos-

phere of fellow music lovers. Thea De-

jong, a senior, has been involved in All

Catholics since her sophomore year.

She says “My three years in All Catho-

lic Band were an invaluable experience

that has deepened friendships and built

my skills.”

The performance went off without a

hitch, despite some bad weather. For

the seniors, it was their final bow, but

the freshmen players are already look-

ing forward to next year.

The band, Front Page, won 1st place in the band category. The members of the band included,

Christopher Subers, Mwihaki Kiiru, Sean Grahn, Joesph Fullam, and Nicholas Kruse, Battle of

the Bands on February 2, 2018. Photo by Nicole Vertigan

Congratulations to the students of the Bishop Shanahan All Catholic Band who pre-

formed in Philadelphia on February 3, 2018. Photo by Bishop Shanahan.

A Night Full of

Music - Battle of

the Bands

By Nicole Vertigan, A & E Editor

Friday, February 2, 2018 was the night

of Battle of the Bands and it was a good

time for all involved. The night was

filled with music of all kind, supportive

friends and students, and teachers from

all departments. The night started of with

a performance of the song Fireflies by

Owl City from duo, Nicholas Kruse and

Katherine Flanagan. The crowd turned

on their phone flashlights and swayed

back and forth as they listened to the

performance. It was a great way to start

the night. Right before intermission there

was a special performance from the

group The Band,, where they danced and

sung to songs such as God’s Plan by

Drake and Ain’t No Mountain High

Enough by Marvin Gaye. The members

of The Band consisted of seniors, Tho-

mas Waite, Andrew Smyth, Matthew

McCloskey, McCormac Barry Tristen

Lynch, and John Kennedy. At the end of

the night, Mr. Aquilante announced the

winners. The band Front Page (pictured

below), won first place in the band cate-

gory. They sang popular songs such as,

One Dance by Drake and Love on the

Brain by Rihanna. Junior Emmelaia

Daliwan, preformed for the third year in

a row. This year she took home the first

place trophy for the solo and duet cate-

gory. It’s safe to say that everyone is

looking forward to next year!