Jeffersonville defeated Austin 1-0 to earn 1st win of the season.
All photos by Phillip Steinmetz
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Jeff baseball comes up short against rival Highlanders (Photo Gallery)
Photos by Phillip Steinmetz
Athlete Spotlight: Bailey Falkenstein
story by Tristan Jackson
Kenneth Groth, Brent Falkenstein, P.K. Falkenstein, Kasey Falkenstein and Kooper Falkenstein — the Falkenstein family has been churning out Jeff High basketball greats since the 1930’s.
Brent’s son, Bailey, is next in line.
Bailey has been playing on the Varsity team since his freshman year. Now a junior, he is the team’s top scorer (18.9 points per game) and has solidified himself as a leader.
“There’s definitely some pressure there,” Falkenstein said about being a top scoring option for Jeff. “But I have to do it for my team.”
With guard/forward Michael Minton being Jeff’s lone starting senior this season, Falkenstein has stepped up and made strides in his own game. He has become a role model for underclassmen, who have also played a large role in the team’s success this year.
“It motivates you to want to elevate your game and get to the level he is at,” said sophomore Drew Taylor on playing with Falkenstein.
Since Falkenstein’s freshman year, the team has seen constant improvement. After a 2014-15 season that saw Jeff only managed an 8-14 record, new head coach Joe Luce was brought in to return JHS to its winning ways. Last season, the team posted a 19-13 record in Luce’s debut.
“Bailey has gotten to the point where not only is he a fantastic scorer and a go to guy for us,” Luce said. “He has learned to make others better around him, and I think that’s why we’ve been able to play better basketball.”
Along with the excellent skillset Falkenstein brings to the floor on a nightly basis, a winning mentality is something he prides himself on.
“I just want to be remembered as a great player who won. That’s really what I want to bring to Jeff — winning,” Falkenstein said.
In the hotbed of basketball talent in southern Indiana, Falkenstein says he is motivated by hearing what other players are doing on the court, and believing that he is just as good, if not better, than every opponent he faces.
A lack of confidence has never been an issue for Falkenstein, as he feels his work ethic has put him in position to not only be a leader on the basketball team, but to also headline a star-studded baseball team at Jeff.
“Bailey is always showing leadership by getting people focused, giving constructive criticism, and letting others know when he made a mistake,” said pitcher, and teammate, Gabe Bierman.
Falkenstein looks for both teams to have great seasons this year and next, and said his goal for the upcoming baseball season is to win a state championship.
Additionally, Falkenstein credits all athletes for finding the time to balance school and a sport. Although it’s difficult to put the work into two different sports, he says sports helped make him a better person and “the man (he is) today”.
As talented as he is on the court, it’s hard to imagine Falkenstein choosing another sport over basketball in the future, but it’s very possible.
Falkenstein is one of the team’s top baseball players, and he believes that he is talented enough to wind up playing professionally at some level.
Battle of Blue Bloods
Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images
In a day full of upsets, the Kentucky Wildcats managed to escape the Wichita State Shockers, 65-62, thanks to stifling defense at the buzzer.
The win advances Kentucky to the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Tournament for the sixth time in John Calipari’s eight-year tenure as head coach. But, the road to Phoenix gets bumpy when the Wildcats hit Memphis.
The second-seeded Wildcats have a re-match with another blue blood program, the UCLA Bruins.
UCLA and Kentucky met in a high-scoring affair back in December, but the Bruins managed to knock off the Wildcats in Lexington, 97-92.
In December, these two were nearly identical teams. They scored almost 100 every game and didn’t worry too much about the other side of the ball. Now, Kentucky’s offensive has taken a dive shooting-wise, so they made changes on defense.
These two teams have gone in different directions since their last meeting, Kentucky focuses on defense while UCLA outruns their opponents. They have bought into their systems and have taken completely different paths to the Sweet Sixteen.
A highlighted match-up will be UCLA’s Lonzo Ball against Kentucky’s De’Aaron Fox in a battle of elite freshman point guards.
Fox has taken control of the team from the moment the SEC Tournament started, driving to the rim strong without turning the ball over. With Malik Monk still coming out of his slump, Fox will need to continue to lead his team if they want to get past UCLA.
Ball is another type of monster when it comes to point guards. Coming off a near triple-double against Cincinnati, Ball proved just how explosive he can be when his team needs him to take over.
Kentucky’s got a player that can take over a game, but he hasn’t been much of a factor since March began.
Monk has been slumping since Kentucky’s final regular season game against Texas A&M in which he only scored six points. The freshman shooting guard changes his team when he’s knocking down his shots.
Granted, Kentucky hasn’t lost despite the shooting woes for Monk, but that won’t cut it against UCLA. To beat a high offensive team such as the Bruins, they will need a big game from their star.
Kentucky and Monk have had their backs against the wall on many occasions this season, managing to take charge during these high pressure situations.
Chalk this meeting in Memphis up as just one more obstacle Kentucky will have to overcome on the road to Phoenix.
Wizard of Oz photo gallery
Photos by Phillip Steinmetz
On to the Nexgen…
Story by Carley Calabro
Leadership Southern Indiana was initially started 36 years ago with a leadership program for business leaders called Discover.
However, in 2015, LSI has created a program specifically for high school juniors titled Nexgen.
Nexgen is a five-day leadership program for high school juniors representing every high school in both Clark and Floyd County, as well as a school in Kentucky.
Nexgen LSI is a year-long program that starts with five days of students attending different businesses and companies. Each class is dedicated to one aspect of becoming a leader, as well as learning about the community.
“Nexgen was created in 2015 because LSI thought we would get our young leaders to learn more about our community while in high school,” said program coordinator Lisa Bottorff. “We were hopeful our youth would learn more about our community so they would realize how wonderful it is a so that they would want to live, work and play here after high school and/or college.”
While there, students learn about team building, diversity and financial literacy. They tour various businesses and companies and learn about the economy and government. Along with the tours students will be given time to meet with business, community and government leaders.
In addition, students learn about the importance of philanthropy and choose a non-profit organization to give their time, talent and treasure to. To start the program off this year, First Savings Bank donated money to the charities students learned about.
For junior Ethan English, Nexgen has already taught him how to act in the real world.
“It has taught me to be a big time leader and philanthropist in the community,” English said. “I like the fact that we get to meet an abundance of unaccustomed young adults at contradistinctive schools around the area to come together and deposit time and money into southern Indiana.”
The Nexgen organization teaches students necessary aspects in order to become a successful leader. It not only helps young leaders today, but benefits more in the long run by giving life-long lessons for the future.
Top five most influential African Americans from Louisville
Story by Makiyah Owens & Braxton Troutman
Muhammad Ali (1942-2016)
Born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr., Muhammad Ali was a professional boxer and civil rights activist. Born and raised in Louisville, Ky., Ali is known as one of the most influential and favored sports figure of the 20th century, and easily the most significant person from the Louisville Metropolitan area.
After attending Central High School, he went on to beat more champions and top contenders than any heavyweight boxing champion in history. Ali won medals, awards, and executed many selfless acts that made him such a significant person not only to the city of Louisville, but to the African American community nationwide.
Bryson Tiller
Bryson Tiller is an American singer, songwriter and rapper. Born and raised in Louisville, Ky., Tiller attended Iroquois High school before his career started in 2011. His big break came in 2014 when he gained recognition for his single “Don’t” from his album Trap Soul. The album was released in 2015, and climbed as high as No. 8 on the US Billboard 200.
The single “Don’t” reached No. 13 on the US Billboard Top 100, the highest a Louisville-based hip-hop artist has ever reached. In March of 2016, Tiller received the key to the city from Greg Fisher, and in the same year he received his first awards: Best New Artist and Best Male R&B/Pop Artist at the BET Awards.
Darrell Griffith
Darrell Griffith was born and raised in Louisville, Ky., and is a graduate of Male High School. Griffith attended the University of Louisville, where he played basketball all four years at the university. While at Louisville, Griffith led the Cardinals to their first NCAA National Championship against the University of California Los Angeles in 1980.
Griffith went on to the NBA, where he was picked second overall in the 1980 NBA Draft by the Utah Jazz. Griffith played 10 season, all with the Jazz, averaging 16 points and three assists per game in his career. In 1997, Griffith started the Darrell Griffith Foundation to help give back to the community of Louisville. More recently in 2014, the Darrell Griffith Athletic Center was opened at the West End School as a gift to the community
Sadiqa Reynolds
Originally from The Bronx, Sadiqa Reynolds has found a home, and a remarkable career, in Louisville. Reynolds is the President and CEO of the Louisville Urban League, and former judge of the 30th Judicial Court. Reynolds is also the first African American woman to clerk in the Kentucky Supreme Court.
Reynolds has brought a positive and energetic attitude since taking over as President of the Louisville Urban League back in October. Reynolds has been recognized for her actions and been called a ¨Woman of Influence¨ by the city of Louisville, and a civil rights advocacy. Reynolds has also been a part of over six different boards and worked as a public servant and role model for most of her life. Reynolds is married to Keith Reynolds and has two daughters, Wynter and Sydney.
Dawne Gee
Dawne Gee was born in Louisville, and attended Pleasure Ridge Park High School. Gee attended the University of Louisville, where she maintained a Bachelor Arts degree in communications and biology. Gee has been a member of the Wave-3 news team since 1994. Before working at Wave, Gee worked in radio broadcasting at Cox Radio as an on-air personality for 17 years.
In 2009, Gee was diagnosed with kidney cancer, and on Nov. 25, suffered a stroke during a live broadcast. Miraculously, Gee recovered from both medical conditions and still continues to fulfill her role as a news anchor on Wave-3 News. Gee serves as an inspiration to the city of Louisville for her commitment to the media, and overcoming her medical issues .
Athlete Spotlight: Bailey Falkenstein
Story by Tristan Jackson
Kenneth Groth, Brent Falkenstein, P.K. Falkenstein, Kasey Falkenstein and Kooper Falkenstein — the Falkenstein family has been churning out Jeff High basketball greats since the 1930’s.
Brent’s son, Bailey, is next in line.
Bailey has been playing on the Varsity team since his freshman year. Now a junior, he is the team’s top scorer (18.9 points per game) and has solidified himself as a leader.
“There’s definitely some pressure there,” Falkenstein said about being a top scoring option for Jeff. “But I have to do it for my team.”
With guard/forward Michael Minton being Jeff’s lone starting senior this season, Falkenstein has stepped up and made strides in his own game. He has become a role model for underclassmen, who have also played a large role in the team’s success this year.
“It motivates you to want to elevate your game and get to the level he is at,” said sophomore Drew Taylor on playing with Falkenstein.
Since Falkenstein’s freshman year, the team has seen constant improvement. After a 2014-15 season that saw Jeff only managed an 8-14 record, new head coach Joe Luce was brought in to return JHS to its winning ways. Last season, the team posted a 19-13 record in Luce’s debut.
“Bailey has gotten to the point where not only is he a fantastic scorer and a go to guy for us,” Luce said. “He has learned to make others better around him, and I think that’s why we’ve been able to play better basketball.”
Along with the excellent skillset Falkenstein brings to the floor on a nightly basis, a winning mentality is something he prides himself on.
“I just want to be remembered as a great player who won. That’s really what I want to bring to Jeff — winning,” Falkenstein said.
In the hotbed of basketball talent in southern Indiana, Falkenstein says he is motivated by hearing what other players are doing on the court, and believing that he is just as good, if not better, than every opponent he faces.
A lack of confidence has never been an issue for Falkenstein, as he feels his work ethic has put him in position to not only be a leader on the basketball team, but to also headline a star-studded baseball team at Jeff.
“Bailey is always showing leadership by getting people focused, giving constructive criticism, and letting others know when he made a mistake,” said pitcher, and teammate, Gabe Bierman.
Falkenstein looks for both teams to have great seasons this year and next, and said his goal for the upcoming baseball season is to win a state championship.
Additionally, Falkenstein credits all athletes for finding the time to balance school and a sport. Although it’s difficult to put the work into two different sports, he says sports helped make him a better person and “the man (he is) today”.
As talented as he is on the court, it’s hard to imagine Falkenstein choosing another sport over basketball in the future, but it’s very possible.
Falkenstein is one of the team’s top baseball players, and he believes that he is talented enough to wind up playing professionally at some level.
While leaning towards baseball, where he has already received Division I offers from schools such as Indiana and Xavier, Falkenstein said this basketball season has opened up the possibility of playing basketball in college.
Whatever way he chooses, it’s likely his talents will carry with him to college, along with his work ethic and sense of leadership.
For the time being, Jeff fans will cheer on yet another Falkenstein from the stands as he carries on a legacy that has been over 80 years in the making.
Record-Drowning Red Devils
by: Haylee Hedrick and Adrian Blair
Michael Jordan, Elvis Presley, Gene Kelly, Tom Brady and Albert Einstein are looked at as superior for dominating within their field. They showcase power and influence over others — otherwise known as dominance.
The JHS boys and girls swim teams have been dominating within the Hoosier Hills for years, gradually beating fierce competitors and overcoming tough obstacles.
Second-year head coach Mike Pepa has witnessed his team push themselves to success.
“From a school standpoint, I think we’re one of the most successful programs in the building as far as our record in the conference, how we place at conference, Sectionals and at state,” Pepa said. “I think we’re probably one of the top three programs in the school building over the last 6-8 years, as far as dominance compared to our conference.”
Girls
There are over 3,000 high school girl swimmers throughout the Hoosier state, which correlates into over 200 teams. The girls JHS swim team are ranked 24 out of those 244 teams.
This year, the girls won all 12 dual meets in the Hoosier Hills Conference, as well as the conference championship meet. The swimmers, along with the girls basketball team, were the only JHS team to go undefeated during conference play.
On Feb. 4, the girls took home first place at Sectionals. Jeffersonville was down 48 points going into the second half of the meet due to the fact that there currently aren’t any divers on the team. With that in consideration, the meet came down to the 400-yard freestyle relay, where Jeff took home first place to edge Floyd Central 465-464.
“Our biggest issue has been not having enough divers,” said Junior Caroline Elliot. “We had two new girl divers who were ineligible to compete in meets due to not having enough dives, and our other diver suffered an injury just before conference leaving us without any divers during Sectional.”
At Sectional, the team broke two Sectional records, two pool records and three school records.
Senior Jacqueline Richard was part of a school record-breaking 200 medley relay. Senior Adeline Dixon broke her own school records in the 100 breaststroke and 200 IM. Junior Rachel Walker also broke her own record in the 200. Walker’s goal is to win a state meet by the time she graduates from JHS.
“Rachel Walker is our fastest girl swimmer. She’s one of the fastest high school swimmers in the state of Indiana,” Pepa said.
Walker qualified for the state finals in both of her events. She qualified fifth in the 500, with her time leaving her in the top seven in the state. She finished 14th in the 200.
The team is also poised to be good in the future, as well. Freshman Megan McEwen and fellow freshman Alyssa Miller, were both part of the 200 freestyle relay that placed second.
“We have two freshmen that made huge impact on the girls team: Megan McEwen and Alyssa Miller,” Pepa said. “Our two most improved swimmers on the girls team are Emma Ellis and Tonya Williams. They did a heck of a job this year compared to last year.”
Boys
The boys team lost seven swimmers from last year. Though thin in numbers, their season was a successful one, consisting of placing in conference despite being made up of mostly underclassmen.
“We’re in a little bit of a re-building phase, but we have the benefit of having some really strong swimmers from the front side, and then developing some new swimmers would be great,” Pepa said.
While the loss of seven boys swimmers stung, it was cause for a total team reconstruction. First-year boys swimmer Kip Jackson believes that the boys team is just a few guys away from being even more dominant.
“This year, we have a very young team, mostly freshman and sophomores. So we are seeing where the underclassmen fit best, whether it be relays or individual events,” Jackson, a junior, said. “There are only four seniors on the boys team and three seniors on the girls team. Hopefully after summer training, we will be back on top next year because I know we are all hungry for that Sectional title.”
On Jan. 28, the boys placed as conference runner-up behind Floyd Central. The Red Devils had three individual conference champions: sophomore Kameron Case with two (100 and 200 freestyle), and freshman Carter Dilger with one (100 butterfly.)
“For boys, Kameron Case was fastest in conference in his events, Levin Martin was very strong in his event, and we have Carter Dilger, who hopefully will have the opportunity to go to state maybe even place at state in his event,” Pepa said.
Dilger was top three in the state for 14-and-under in 100 butterfly and 100 backstroke. Case said his fastest event was the 200 yard freestyle. His time for that was 1:48.
The boys also placed third in Sectional, losing to Seymour (second) and Floyd (first). Case placed first in the 100 (48:07) and 200 (1:44.73). Both Dilger and Case with also be representing JHS at the state finals on Feb. 25.
The rest of the story …
Most athletes have a certain amount of time they must abide by when it comes to their performance. However, swimming is one of the few sports that doesn’t have that.
“We don’t have to worry about playing time…we worry about the clock. The clock doesn’t lie,” Pepa said.
In swimming, dropping a few seconds off of your last time is viewed as a success.
“Everyone has the same goal, whether you’re trying to be in the Olympics or whether this is your first season you’ve ever swam competitively,” Pepa said. “(That goal is) a personal best time.”
While swimming is a strenuous and time-consuming sport, Pepa believes the athletes on his team are some of the best around the school.
“It’s motivating to be around student athletes who perform well in the classroom and constantly try to reach their goal and potential,” Pepa said. “Swimming is not an easy sport. It’s an awful lot of hours and it’s very demanding. It all weighs on you mentally as well.”
In total, most of the JHS swim team trains 18 hours and 45 minutes a week to better their performance, further proving their devotion to the sport.
“Training hard, having dedication, and consequently reaching your potential faster than anybody else that we compete against — to me that’s dominance,” Pepa said.
