Band and choir perform at "Swing into Spring"

Above: Junior Alyssa Lyddon performs her vocal solo “De Pena, De Susto” at the Swing into Spring concert on Tuesday, May 8. Lyddon also received a I rating at State Solo and Small Ensemble contest.

by Kayla Werner

On Tuesday, May 8, the junior high and high school band and choir performed for their annual “Swing Into Spring” concert, which involved group performances as well as solos. 

The junior high band started off the concert playing “Salute to Freedom” by Andy Clark, “Storm Clouds” by James Swearingen, and “Rock Fourth” by Paul Clark. The high school band joined the junior high to play “Takeoff” by David Shaffer before starting their performance.

The high school band went on to perform “Second Suite for Military Band” by Gustav Holst, “Swing Machine” by Larry Neeck, and “Saturday in the Park by Chicago.” They finished up their performance with an encore of “Dynamite” by Taio Cruz. 

After the band was finished, the choir took the stage. The junior high girls’ chorus opened with “Over the Rainbow” by Audrey Snider. When the girls finished, the boys joined them on stage to sing “Another Op’nin’, Another Show” by Cole Porter and “Shine on Me” arranged by Rollo Dilworth.

Between the junior high and high school performances, Natalie Wheeler had a solo. She sang “Part of Your World” from the Little Mermaid. 

The high school women sang a mash up of “Start Me Up” by the Rolling Stones and “Living on a Prayer” by Bon Jovi. Clara Johnson followed their performance with a solo of “Pray” by Justin Bieber as a tribute to her baby cousin who is battling brain cancer. 

The high school men were up next singing “Gonna Build a Mountain” arranged by Norman Leyden.

Alyssa Lyddon performed her solo of “De Pena, De Susto.” She also performed this song at the high school State Solo and Small Ensemble contest and got a I (superior) rating.

Morgan Sanders also had a solo before the high school mixed chorus took the stage. Her song was “My Heart Will Go On” from the Titanic.

The high school mixed chorus ended the night with “Make Them Hear You” from the musical “Ragtime,” “Turn The World Around” by Belafonte and Freedman, and “You Can’t Stop the Beat” from the musical “Hairspray.”

The high school band’s director Scott Stanton also handed out letters that are meant for the band’s marching jackets. He also gave out the Most Outstanding Musician Award to graduating senior Elizabeth Ostrem.

JH track season wraps up

by Bridgette Moore

On Thursday, May 3, the Montezuma junior high girls’ track team competed at the annual Gayle Creswell Relays at Montezuma where they placed third overall. 

There were four first-place finishes: Katie Maschmann in the 100 meter dash, 200 meter hurdles and long jump, and the 4x100 meter dash team. 

In addition, there were two second place finishes: Ashley Moore in the 100 meter hurdles and Hannah Beenken in the discuss throw.

The junior high boys track team also competed at the Gayle Creswell relays. The team was split into Montezuma Blue and Montezuma White,  with the Montezuma Blue team earning first place with a total of 162 points. 

Carson Losure took first in long jump. Bobby McCulley also earned first in the 200 meter dash with a time of 26.18 seconds.  One of the two Montezuma Blue teams earned first in 4x100 meter relay. The 4x200 meter relay, 4x400 meter relay and 4x800 meter relay  teams also took first.

 Second place finishes included Losure in the 100 meter dash, Tyler Geiger in the 400 meter dash, Kaleb Kriegel in the 800 meter run, 1600-distance medley relay, 100 M hurdles, and the second Montezuma Blue team in the 4x100 meter relay.

Events that earned third place were Zach Townsend in the long jump, Tyler Thompson in shot put, the Montezuma White 4X100 meter relay team, and the Montezuma Blue 800-sprint medley team.

On Saturday, May 5, the Montezuma Junior High Boys’ team competed at the Mid-Prairie Invitational at Mid-Prairie.

The boys had one first place finish that event was the 4x800 Relay the team consisted of  Kriegel, Travis Lewis, Skyler Romberg and Brody McKeag.

There were several second placing finishes. These were the shuttle hurdle relay team with Shane Helm, Dakota Strong, Lewis and  McKeag. Losure in the 100 meter dash and long jump, Geiger in the 400 meter dash. The 4x200 relay consisted of Grant Johnston, Helm, Kriegel and Logan Price.

Coach David Brondyke said, “Overall I was really proud of how hard our young men worked this week and how they gave everything they had to this final meet. This was one of our more challenging meets and they definitely rose up to the challenge.” 

Overall the eighth grade boys placed second and the seventh grade boys placed fourth.

This was the final meet of the season for the teams.  It was a great season for the boys’ team. They placed first, second, and third at all of their meets.  

Brondyke said, “We showed tremendous improvements with personal gain and goals met in nearly all our events. As a coach I have a lot to be thankful for from the athletic director, to the volunteers, to the parents and the students. Together we made it a successful season. I would like to say to all of the boys I am proud of each of you for the effort in everything they do.”

Montezuma receives U.S. Best High Schools award

by Vincent Bushong

Each year, the U.S. News & World Report recognizes schools nationwide with a Best High Schools award in three categories: Gold, Silver and Bronze. This year, Montezuma High School received a Bronze award.

Montezuma was only  one of 104 high schools in Iowa to receive an award of any category. In the South Iowa Cedar conference, Montezuma and Keota were the only two schools to receive an award.

The algorithms used to determine a school’s ranking first test the school’s academic performance as compared to the average in the state. 

Then, the school’s least-advantaged students’ performances were compared to the state average of similar students. 

Finally, the students’ readiness for college was tested, using a college readiness index. 

U.S. News reported 88% proficiency in reading for MHS and 96% proficiency in math.

Superintendent Dave Versteeg, “The students are at the core of this award. When students are responsible for their own learning, they become engaged in the educational process. When students become engaged, wonderful results happen like the U.S. News award. This award is not an ending point to the achievement possible at Montezuma HS but a beginning point.”