LC Lions

    In recent years, as Louisa's audience knows, it has been a tough road for the Louisa County High School Varsity football team. In the last two years, the team, coached by Coach Jon Meeks, won only six games out of twenty. After being playoff contenders from 2009-2011, the unexpected drop was devastating. Now, in the 2014 season, Coach Meeks has left and carried his talents to Brookville High School. As replacement head coach, Louisa traveled to South Carolina to bring back former coach, Mark Fischer, who had an extreme amount of success at Louisa in past years. Now, Louisa is looking to bring back their glory days of a winning football team. 

    This year, the Varsity Lions are 6-2 and they are looking much improved from last season. Under the leadership of the senior Trey Cherry on the offensive side and the leadership of seniors Jordan Spotswood, Demetrius Washington, and Marcus Jackson on the defensive side of the ball, Louisa is finding ways to win. As a whole, it seems as Louisa is evolving with a winning attitude and all the guys know their role on the team. They strive to win and that is just what they do. This season, four freshman players have really stepped up to play big roles at the varsity level: Job Whalen, Raquan Jones, Malik Bell, and Quinton Ragland. All these student athletes have either acquired starting positions or they are often subbed into the game. The Lions will put these players up to their next challenge this Friday, October 31, against the Albermarle Knights.
   
    For the first time in a while, the Louisa Lions have the chance to play a game on Halloween. Coincidentally, this is also their senior night/pink out game. So, this a very special game for many reasons. To top off all the exciting news, they even play this football game on their home turf, in the jungle, for all their exuberant fans to see. Everyone in the crowd: players, fans, and the student section, will be decked out in their best pink outfit to give tons of support to not only for these athletes, but also for the patients who have been diagnosed with the deadly breast cancer. Senior tight end/wide receiver Brian Townes, when asked about the game, gave the statement, "We (the lions team) are more than ready for the upcoming match and we are eager to take the field." Hopefully, the mighty Lions will come out of the jungle Friday night with another win under their belt.

Boston Celtics

    For a while, the Celtics have been one of the top basketball teams in the Eastern Conference. History has gone to prove that the Celtics have remained an elite basketball team for a while considering their organization has won more national basketball championships (17) than any other organization. Their last time winning was in the 2007-2008 season. That year, the team was able to rally against the Los Angeles Lakers in six games to win the NBA Finals. Entering the league in 1946, The Celtics came across a few respective legends of their generation. Names like Bill Russell and Larry Bird are normally among the first to pop into the minds of individuals. In their combined careers, the two of these outstanding men won fourteen out of the seventeen championships the Celtics have won all-time. Russell won eleven while Bird won only three, but both men were equally respectable. Although these guys are all-time greats that could never be replaced, there have been a few players of considerable talent that have come along since their prime time has passed.

 

   To more recent Celtic fans, names such as Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Ray Allen are three names that typically come to mind when thinking of great players of Boston's team. Together, this dynamic group worked together in the season of 2008 to win the championship against the Lakers. Although the "big three", as they were referred as, were relatively old when they came to the Celtics' team, these three veterans were quickly able to meld together and play together as a team. With Kevin Garnett providing a huge improvement on the defensive end and Paul Pierce continuing to be a dynamic scorer, the Celtics quickly became a championship level basketball team. In time period of 2007-2013, the big three constantly made the Celtics a threat and respectable championship contender in Eastern Conference. In 2010 they were able to make it to the NBA Finals again, only to fall short to the Lakers in game 6. In last their season as Celtics teammates (2012), these three athletes gave it their all to win one more championship for the organization. Despite all their hard effort, they lost in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals to the Miami Heat, who were favored by sports analyzers to win the NBA Finals. In the offseason after that season, the Celtics traded all three individuals were traded. The team has not been able to be the same explosive team as before.

    In recent years, since the three players have been traded, the Celtics have been struggling. Under the inconsistent leadership of their starting point guard, Rajon Rondo, the NBA team was not the same offensive, aggressive team as their reputation once was. Rondo, even though he is a very talented star, cannot stay healthy and lead the team in every season like he needs to. In the year of 2013, the Celtics barely made it into the playoffs with the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference and did not make the playoffs at all in the season of 2014. During the 2013-2014 season, Rondo officially went down with a gruesome ACL tear in his knee, a season ending injury. Without his presence and play, the Celtics were nothing and couldn't compete with other teams. Going forward into 2014-2015 season, the Celtics are looking to bounce back in the competition with a healthy Rondo and new acquired rookie Marcus Smart from Oklahoma State.