UNCERTAINTY SURROUNDS KNIGHT OPPOSE PIONEER VALLEY TONIGHT.Byline: Ramona Shelburne Ramona Shelburne is an American sports journalist currently writing for the Los Angeles Daily News. Shelburne was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. She attended El Camino Real High School in Woodland Hills, California where she was a class valedictorian. Special to the Daily News The first day of school was the hardest. It was the little things you'd never think of that ended up making the biggest impressions. For example: How do you find your way around a school when nobody else has any idea where they're going either? ``That was pretty funny. Even the teachers were getting lost the first day because nobody had maps of the campus,'' said Jerrell Cotton, a junior at Pete Knight High in Palmdale, of his first day of school two years ago. ``I liked it though. I was excited to be part of a new school and be part of the first graduating class.'' Tonight, Cotton and his teammates on the football team will begin to write another part of the school's history. Knight played five varsity games and five junior varsity junior varsity n. Abbr. JV A high-school or college team that competes in interschool sports on the level below varsity. Noun 1. games last year. This year, the Hawks join the Golden League and play all varsity games. They open the season tonight at 7 at Pioneer Valley High in Santa Maria Santa Maria, city, Brazil Santa Maria (sän`tə mərē`ə), city (1991 pop. 217,592), Rio Grande do Sul state, S Brazil. It is a major railroad terminus and the site of an important military base. . The opponent seems fitting. Pioneer Valley is in its second year of existence. Tonight is its first varsity game too. No one has much idea of what to expect from either school. Pioneer Valley was successful at the freshman and junior varsity level last year while Knight went 5-5. Knight hopes that will play to its advantage. ``I don't think they're going to take us seriously,'' said junior running back Terrell Merritt. ``We're expecting that. They think we'll be the new kids on the block New Kids on the Block (later NKOTB) was a boy band that enjoyed enormous success in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Assembled in Boston in 1984 by producer Maurice Starr, the members consisted of brothers Jordan and Jonathan Knight, Joey McIntyre, Donnie Wahlberg, and Danny and we'll just tumble over. But our team has a lot of character and a lot of personality so I don't think that's going to happen.'' Knight coach Jim Bauer, who came over from Littlerock and is well-respected in the area, said he's focusing on laying the foundation for long-term success. The last school to join the Golden League was Lancaster in 1997. The Eagles went 10-0 as a junior varsity team For the American rock band, see . In sports, usually at the high school and college levels, members of a team who are not the main players in a competition (such as a football or basketball game) are called junior varsity players. in 1996 but only 3-6-1 (0-4-1 in varsity games) in 1997. Knight has some talent, especially on defense and the offensive line, but they lack depth this year and the quarterback position remains unresolved Not completed; not finished; not linked together. See resolve. . The starter for the past two years is ineligible in·el·i·gi·ble adj. 1. Disqualified by law, rule, or provision: ineligible to run for office; ineligible for health benefits. 2. so Mike Solano, the third-team quarterback of the junior varsity last season, will be the starter. Freshman Cody Schramm has looked good in practice, but he injured in·jure tr.v. in·jured, in·jur·ing, in·jures 1. To cause physical harm to; hurt. 2. To cause damage to; impair. 3. an ankle two weeks ago and missed some time, then got sick with the flu and missed a week. Calvin Reed, a starting defensive back and running back, is the emergency quarterback. ``I expect us to compete hard from the opening kick to the final whistle A simple whistle is a woodwind instrument which produces sound from a stream of forced air. Many types exist, from small police and sports whistles (also called pea whistles), to much larger train whistles, which are steam whistles specifically designed for use on ,'' Bauer said. ``We are not sure how that will translate to wins and losses this year, but we will definitely compete.'' Adding to the uncertainty is the ongoing construction of Knight's football field. The Hawks have a practice field on campus, but will have to play home games at Quartz Hill High or Palmdale High until the stadium is completed next year. Heddy Cotton, Jerrell's mother, said she's been impressed with the school so far. She attended Birmingham High of Lake Balboa Balboa, town (1990 pop. 2,751), Colón prov., in the former Panama Canal Zone, on the Gulf of Panama. The port for Panama City, Balboa was the administrative headquarters of the Panama Canal Zone. It was also the site of a U.S. navy base (closed 1999). but said she doesn't have a problem with her son attending a new school that lacks in tradition. ``I'm happy for him,'' she said. ``So far it has been real good. He's happy he'll be part of the first class to graduate from there. He's happy he's making history.'' Ramona Shelburne, (818) 713-3617 ramona.shelburne(at)dailynews.com |
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