St. Bernard 5K Run deemed successful

St. Bernard Prep School hosted the first Annual Octoberfest 5K Invitational on October 17, fielding 22 teams and 208 runners. Cold, and dreary rainy weather may have hampered the open race which kicked off with only nine runners.

Longtime local runner, Duane Ricketts finished the 5K course in 19:18.42 in the open race.

St. Bernard Cross Country Coach, Jeff Taylor said for the day to be so cold and wet, we had an outstanding meet. “North Alabama is fortunate to have so many gifted athletes. Overall it went well. We learned a lot, and definitely plan to do this again.”

The 5K open course was hosted on the grounds of St. Bernard Abbey’s Treasure Forest. The race started on the north side of the softball field, and traversed Boniface trail at the North property line of St. Bernard, then travelled Perimeter Road onto Seminary Trail toward Eight-Mile creek and back toward the Fazi-Richard Athletic Center. “Because of the nature of our trail, the athletes find it fun to run,” Taylor said.

The initial scholastic race of the day featured Saralyn Miller leading the Cullman Bearcat Jr. High team to a first place finish in the Girls 2-mile race with a time of 14:20.79 followed by Shayna Cooper of Arab High School, leading her team to a second place finish with a time of 14:57.98; followed by Albertville, led by Jenny Carbajal with a time of 17:06.35.

Arab’s Conner McClendon claimed the title for the JV Boys division with a time of 13:02.38, followed by teammate, Caleb Marshall (13:11.09) and Cullman’s Nick Harbin finished third with a time of 13:28.35. The team competition was won by Arab, followed by Cullman, and Albertville placed third.

The Varsity competition began with Pisgah High School winning the girls 1-3A 5K race. St. Bernard finished second and Belgreen third.

Cullman’s Kelsey Crawford blistered the 5K course in a 19:28.92, leading the way in the Girls Varsity 4-6A race. Scottsboro’s, Maggie Thompson (20:11.92) and Decatur’s, Sally Adams (21:11.10) placed second and third respectively. Scottsboro’s girls won the team competition with 27 points, followed by Cullman (44), Decatur (56), and Austin(97).

The Boys Varsity races began with Pisgah’s Corey Wheeler leading the way over the 5K course with a 19:27.11 time to take medalist honors in Class 1-3A. St. Bernard’s Will Faulk (20:24:19) and John Russell (20:26.59) finished out for second and third place finishes.

Taylor said the 4-6A completion featured several of the state’s elite runners. Lucas Sieb of Scottsboro covered the 5K course in 16:04.83 leading his team to a first place victory. Matthew Dunn of Austin High School finished second with a time of (16:54.14), and Brig Kilgore of Cullman finished third. Cullman finished second in the competition followed by Austin, Arab, Albertville, and Decatur. “This competition was outstanding. “Considering the course conditions, the times for this event were phenomenal,” continued Taylor.

Taylor wishes to thank all parents, students and sponsors for their participation in the invitational run. Taylor humbly said, “We would also like to thank the schools for their participation, The Alabama National Guard for directing traffic, the Cullman Rescue Squad, and the Cullman Track Club for their assistance. We invite everyone to return for the Bloomin’ Festival 5K Run on April 17, 2010.”

St. Bernard presents seniors with cross

Twenty-four seniors at St. Bernard Prep School in Cullman were honored recently during a Senior Dedication Mass in the Abbey Church. Abbot Cletus Meagher, Chairman of the Board; Fr. Marcus Voss, President; Fr. Joel Martin, Headmaster; and Fr. Bede Marcy, School Chaplain concelebrated the Mass.

Abbot Cletus defined the meaning of a Senior Dedication Mass. “Senior means elder or wisdom gained through age and life experiences. Dedication means to concentrate or set aside for a noble purpose. Our Mass is a prayer of Thanksgiving and a celebration of the mystery of salvation by God’s generosity,” Abbot Cletus said. “We celebrate with the senior class that they may all share in that which is ours in Christ, dedicated to a divine purpose, and as they dedicate themselves to the principals and beliefs on which St. Bernard was founded.”

Following the homily, the faculty and staff joined the seniors at the altar as a sign of their support and concurrence with the decision of Fr. Joel and the administration that the seniors should with receive a blessing dedicating to roles of leadership in the student body of Senior Class by St. Bernard Preparatory School.

Each senior was recognized individually and presented a Benedictine Cross which symbolized their lives of service not only in the St. Bernard community but in whatever they do “Wear your cross with pride as a reminder of the privilege and dignity that is yours as you share in Christ,” Abbot Cletus said.

The 2010 senior class at St. Bernard Prep accepted their leadership roles. Abbot Cletus concluded the blessing by saying to the class, “You have been blessed with many gifts and talents. Recognize these gifts and be a blessing to others. You stand at the head of those who have gone before you. Strive for the gifts that have lasting value; and dedicate yourselves to seeing things with the eyes of faith. Embrace life with love.”

Dr. Rebecca Whited directed the St. Bernard Choral Music group and served as organist for the ceremony. St. Bernard students Jesse Schaffer, Jonathan Gray, Sean Nowocin, Christopher Presto, and Louis YuTiamco served as Knights of the Altar.

At the conclusion of the service, the Senior Class enjoyed a nice Italian Meal with their parents in the Brahma Room.

SBP Scholars Bowl defeats Fairview

St. Bernard is participating in the Cullman County Schools Scholars Bowl Competition each week at Wallace State Community College in Hanceville. Every school in Cullman county is scheduled a match each week with a different school. Two weeks ago, SBP fell short 20 points in a match with Hanceville; last week no games were scheduled. Yesterday, the team soundly defeated Fairview with a score of 160-110. Leading the Saints was Kate Gauthier,Captain; Elizabeth Schweers, Mark McDaniel, and Nathan Snow.

The Saints are scheduled to play Cullman next Thursday.

Saints take first place at Catholic High Invitational

St Bernard Cross Country All-State contender, Will Faulk, led the freshman boys team to the overall title at the Catholic High Invitational, Saturday, Sept. 19. Rain and sloppy weather couldn’t stop Faulk from breaking a new course record with a time of 12:28.80 in the 2-mile course. He was followed by teammate Oscar Perez who had a 13:12.46. Miles Bennett finished 11th; Ethan Arndt (12th); and Madison Pride (17).

“Even with a sloppy course and slower than normal times, the Saints beat defending champion 4A powerhouse Albertville by 2 points,” Saints Coach Jeff Taylor said.

The Jr. High Girls fared well with all runners in the top 10 in their race. They were led by Ayleana Mami (1st), Caitlin Varquez (3rd), Arabella Holsonback (5), and Brittany Branch (10).

The Saints Varsity Boys and Girls teams brought home the first place trophies for Class 1A in their races. The girls struggled with the course and conditions but did well in bringing home the title. Led by newcomer Shiru Diao (29:23.09;50/91 runners), the Saints showed promise as they approach the midpoint of the season. Ria Foye, Ying Huang, Katelyn Rusk, Jiae Park, and Minji Kang represented the school well with grit and determination.

The Varsity Boys team was led by veteran competitor John Russell (36/109) with a time of 22:28.38. Coach Taylor said, “His time was less than a minute slower than his best time for this meet, but the rainy conditions and slippery course made for some disappointment by all the runners.”

However, the mud and rain was worth the pain as Russell, Aaron Ezell, Louis Yutiamco, Michael J. Varquez, Jake Killebrew and Johnathan Gray accepted the 1st place trophy.

The teams compete next Saturday in the Kudzu Hills Invitational at Cold Springs High School. “We are looking forward to this event. This site will host the Section Meet-November 5 to determine which team has the strength to make it to state, Taylor said. “It will give us another chance to become familiar with the trails.”

Self defense taught at St. Bernard Prep

Officer Cindy Rohrscheib of the Cullman Police Department finished up a two week course of Self Defense recently with St. Bernard Preparatory School’s girls. Physical Education instructor, Ruth Anne Knight makes the self defense training part of her class time for both middle and high school students. “It’s important for young females to know the fundamentals of how to protect themselves if they ever need it. Officer Rohrscheib has done an excellent job in helping the girls in all aspects of training.”

Students concluded training recently by learning how to get up off the ground from an attacker, and how to handle an attacker who is carrying a weapon. Rohrscheib instructed and demonstrated self defense techniques for the students. “If someone has an edged weapon, the bicycle kick will protect your vital organs,” she said. Rohrscheib taught the basic trap arm, trap foot, bridge and roll. With the assistance of her son, Lance, Rohrscheib demonstrated each technique and had the student’s partner up for hands on training.

Rohrscheib said she has noticed students who have been in the class for the past three years have retained the knowledge and seemed more assertive. “They grabbed the concept and it didn’t take near as long to instruct them as it had previously.”

Chief Kenny Culpepper and Sheriff Tyler Roden allow Rohrscheib and her sister, Jennifer Chaffin, both city and county officers, to offer the self-defense course as a courtesy of the Cullman Police Department and Cullman Sheriff’s Office to help the community.

Statistically speaking 75% of victims know their attacker. The most common chance of an attack happening in Cullman is centered around date situations, violence, date rape, violent friends and relatives. Rohrschieb said, “Our job is to support these girls by giving them tools to defend themselves.”

SBP participates in Youth Leadership

CONGRATULATIONS to the two students from SBP chosen by the Cullman Area Chamber of Commerce to be members of Youth Leadership Cullman County: Mary Katherine Gray, Michael Justin Varquez.

Students were selected by submitting an application to the Chamber of Commerce. Students were also required to write an essay about their education and career goals, special hobbies or interest, naming a leader they admire most and why. The essay had to include why they wanted to participate in the Youth Leadership Cullman County program, and to discuss a specific problem observed in Cullman County. In addition students had to state why the problem was important, the issues it raised, and make at least one suggestion for its solution. A selection committee of adult leadership alumni judged the applications.

Gray and Varquez will attend a nine-month series of seminars and programs designed to bring together a class of two high school juniors chosen from each school in Cullman County to examine community issues such as education, healthcare, crime, government, economic development and quality of life.

Fr. Joel Martin, headmaster of St. Bernard Prep said, “These two students are fine representatives of our school and will be excellent contributors to the program. The Chamber made good choices.”

Mary Katherine Gray is the daughter of Tyrone and Kathy Gray of Cullman. Michael Justin Varquez is the son of Dr.’s Genaro and Mir Varquez of Cullman.

ACT scores up at St. Bernard

Officials at St. Bernard Prep School are pleased with the recent ACT Scores from 2009. Comparing the reading, math, English and science scores of the nearly 36,000 Alabama students who took the test before graduating in 2009, students at St. Bernard Prep met all four ACT College Readiness Benchmark Scores with a slight increase in composite scoring of 23.8, up from 23.0 last year.

The State of Alabama’s average composite score declined slightly to 20.3 from 20.4, which was posted by the state’s Class of 2008. The 2009 national composite score remained at 21.1.

St. Bernard Prep Headmaster, Fr. Joel Martin, said that at least half the students at St. Bernard take the ACT test and roughly half take the SAT, with a number using both. “We’re a school whose purpose is preparing students for college, so of course they are enrolled in college prep courses, and we expect our students to be well prepared for college-university studies.”

School counselor Barbara Rasplicka said, “It is reassuring to recognize that all of our students are accepted into colleges, and impressive scholarship offerings continue to be garnered by St. Bernard seniors.”

Rasplicka will be meeting with parents and students Sunday, September 13 at 4:30 p.m. for an informative session regarding the college application process.