As a professional pickleball player sponsored by Selkirk Pickleball, the leading
pickleball gear company, Dylan Unkert ’28 stands out from the crowd of talented PHS
athletes. He has played pickleball recreationally for around six years, but has started
competing this past year. He currently plays in individual, team, and mixed events in
tournaments across the nation, although he mainly competes in doubles. In the past
year of play, he won medals at almost every tournament he participated in, including a
division in the U.S. Open, and hopes to continue his winning streak at nationals.

**How did you first get into playing pickleball? Why did you choose this sport?**

[My grandma and I] went down to Florida one year for Christmas and I was really
hesitant to play because I didn’t really know anybody. She thought [pickleball] was a
good, inclusive sport that all ages can play, so she brought us down and I just fell in love
with it. Before, I would only play once a year but then I found more courts [nearby] and
we were able to play once a week. Now I’ve been playing almost every day.

**How was your transition as a player from middle school to high school?**

 I play on a team outside of school. It can be hard managing school and [playing]
because the practices are four to five hours each day, on top of competing ... I definitely
think that the jump from middle school to high school has been more challenging.

**What makes playing doubles special for you? How do you build the necessary
chemistry with your teammates?**

 I’ve been playing with some of my partners for a year. Just knowing each other and not
having to communicate because I know [they will] be there ... I think that really helps. I
think even if you’re playing two people that are better than you, it’s your chemistry that
really sets you apart from the others. It’s really [about] how well you can communicate
[and] how well you can work together and uplift each other.

**What misconceptions about pickleball do you frequently encounter?**

 That pickleball is an old people’s sport. If you play at a lower level, you’re obviously
not moving as much. At the pro level, especially singles, there’s studies that show
that [pickleball is] harder on your body than tennis because there’s more of a jolting
movement than just side to side ... you need to have hand-eye coordination and a [solid]
mentality.

**What are the biggest challenges you have faced as a pickleball player, and how have
you overcome them?**

 At least in competitions, I have been one of the youngest people — everyone else is
in their twenties, thirties, even fifties. I just try to maintain knowing that I’m a kid, not
getting too crazy on the court because [my opponents] are a lot older than me. Being so
young ... it can give you opportunities, but other times it can be a hindrance.

**What was your most memorable moment during a match?**

I was playing singles in the pit and during my final match on game point, I ended up
getting hurt — I pulled my hamstring. Not knowing that I pulled my hamstring, I kept
on going and I won [the match] with one leg only.

**Can you describe your trip to the U.S. Open?**

 It was overwhelming at first because there were so many people, especially good
people. It was a national qualifier tournament — if I won it, I would be able to go to
Arizona and compete in nationals. I went undefeated [while injured], so I’m going to
nationals in a few weeks!

**What do you think your next steps are for pickleball in the coming years?**

 So the APP (Association of Pickleball Players), which is one of pickleball’s main
foundations, is starting a boarding school for the best junior pickleball players.
Thankfully, I was invited to be there. Now I just have to decide if I want to move to
Florida or not!

Dylan Unkert ’28: pursuing perfection in professional pickleball 

To most, Homecoming is a sports game with the bonus
of a dance. To me, Homecoming was a dance with the
bonus of a sports game. I’d never seen a football game
before. All I knew was that PHS was unusually terrible at
it (based on past years’ statistics) and that the announcer
was so loud I could hear him speaking from my backyard.

But this year, I wanted to go and have that typical
American high school experience. I had accidentally
bought two tickets to the game, so I dragged my
mom along with me. When we arrived at the field
fifteen minutes late, everything was already in
chaos: the cheerleaders were shaking their pompoms, spectators were sitting everywhere they
possibly could, and someone scored a touchdown?

I think that first touchdown made it quite
clear to me how little I knew about football. In
fact, about two hours of my viewing were spent
just trying to figure out what I was watching.

When I finally understood, it was hard not to get
sucked into the game. With every touchdown, the
audience stomped; I stomped too. With every musical
interlude, my heart beat a little faster. The constant
stopping and starting barely even bothered me anymore.

At halftime, when the players left the field, I started to
see things clearly again. How did I get so caught up in
the game? How did years of disinterest vanish so quickly?

A little thought and I realized: it was all a show. The
music, the roars, the crowd, the cheerleaders, the blinding
lights. The commentators, the subtle digs at the other
team, the row of substitute players that blocked our vision.
It was like sitting in a theater box, watching something
beautiful but mostly unreal. The atmosphere was what
made the game; the game could not possibly stand alone.

And then I had some questions. Why football? Where is
this excitement for other school sports? Why isn’t there a
Homecoming for any girls’ team? Why is girls’ role during
the biggest game of the school year to be cheerleaders
wearing players’ names? Is this tradition worth it?

Then the lights turned back on, the music started
to play, and those thoughts were pounded out of my
head as if by a hammer. The fanfare was a cover, a
distraction. It was hard to think but easy to cheer.

That isn’t to say that I didn’t have fun. I’m glad PHS
won, and I now have a genuine interest in football. I had
a great night at Homecoming. But how much of it was
the game, and how much was the crazy show of it all? 

A Homecoming retrospective

According to multiple studies compiled into “The
Influence of Music Preference on Exercise Responses
and Performance: A Review,” published in 2021 by
Christopher Ballmann, who has a Ph.D. in exercise
physiology, music has been proven to benefit athletes
during endurance, sprint, and resistance-based activities.
Music distracts the athlete, making them have a distorted
perception of their level of fatigue and even motivating
them to enjoy the exercise more, ultimately improving
the quality of the workout. But is music always helpful
during workouts? How do people react to it on a caseby-case basis?

At PHS, many students participate in athletic activities,
from school sports to personal exercise. PHS track athlete
Bhavya Yaddanapudi ’25 often does cardio
and lifting, and testifies to the effectiveness
of music during her workouts.

“I listen to music because it distracts me
from the pain of working out, and it boosts
my mood,” said Yaddanapudi. “If you’re not
listening to anything, you really focus on
how you feel while working out and what
muscles are being activated.”

Research conducted by Matthew S. Biagini
of California State University suggests that
increased activity in the brain while listening to music is
associated with better performance while exercising. On
top of that, a 2022 study led by Chenyang Li of Liaoning
Normal University’s Physical Education Institute shows
that syncing movements with songs may save energy and
even make them more efficient. Yaddanapudi notes that
listening to slow-tempo songs seems to have a negative
effect on her workouts, making exercise feel even more
tiring for her.

“In the weight room, sometimes, there’s slower songs or
ballads, and those are somewhat miserable to work out
to,” said Yaddanapudi.

According to Healthline, instrumental music is
particularly good for studying, as it offers a minimallydistracting background sound. For working out, though,
instrumentals can be too faded to provide the ideal
balance of focus and distraction. Debdeep Sen ’26 recalls
his experience of listening to slow instrumental music
while working out.

 “I tried listening to lofi, and it did not work out. It made
me more tired,” said Sen.

 These differences in perceived exhaustion may arise
from personal preferences in music, but also from the
effect music has on mood. Psychology Today proposes
that music can validate emotions someone is feeling and
also inspire new ones. Music’s ability to change a person’s
mood can be beneficial during workouts,
allowing people to harness more energy and
inspire themselves to work harder, but it can
also disrupt someone’s rhythm. Sen admits
having experienced a similar disruption in his
workout pace.

“I listened to metal sometimes ... it made me
angry, which was distracting from the workout,
but it didn’t make me work harder,” said Sen.

When listening to the right music, though, an
athlete can truly surpass their limits. Sen sees a
change in how his body reacts when working out while
playing music.

“After a set, I’ll feel even more tired than if I didn’t listen
to music,” said Sen.

According to the National Center for Health Research,
music has the ability to set the tempo of a workout session.
Faster-paced songs can set a strong rhythm, especially
when doing repetitive exercises. When an athlete is able
to access this focus, they are able to surpass themselves,
working harder than they would normally and building
muscle effectively.

Whether it’s to maximize gains or enjoy exercise more,
music has a potent effect on a person’s experience while
training. Music’s effect on workouts depends on its
tempo, the mood it inspires, and an athlete’s personal
preference. Ultimately, the right playlist can make or
break a workout.

Investigating the link between music and exercise

 Many are interested in martial arts for self-defense, while others are interested for their physical and mental benefits associated with them. Marginalized groups such as women, people of color, and LGBTQ+ people feel the greatest pressure to protect themselves and therefore to learn self-defense and other such skills. However, United States gyms and dojos are not always the most welcoming. With that in mind, is it worth it to learn martial arts?

According to Psychology Today, many people do martial arts for their physical and mental benefits, as they help build strength and flexibility while also instilling important life lessons about discipline, confidence, and responsibility.

Taekwondo practitioner Noah Lee ’27 agrees, emphasizing that martial arts are especially good for building mental strength.

“[Taekwondo is] definitely useful in terms of feeling safer and more confident about yourself. [Martial arts is] definitely something that can boost your confidence, make you stand up straighter,” Lee said.

On the other side of the coin, bring more positives to light, fellow taekwondo player Paula Kutin ’27 highlights the physical benefits of martial arts.

“I’m learning how to defend myself quickly; my reaction speed is up, and [I’m less afraid],” Kutin said.

Kutin also touches on martial arts’ usefulness in self defense, adding that even the basics of martial arts can be helpful in bad situations.

“If someone were to attack me and I were to get into a good sparring stance, my hands are at the ready. even just being prepared might scare off someone,” Kutin said.

Although martial arts have many proven benefits, gyms and dojos, especially in the United States, have historically not been welcoming to many demographics. According to a 2022 report by Gymdesk, about 73 percent of martial arts practitioners are straight, white men. This environment can discourage marginalized groups like women, people of color, and LGBTQ+ people from practicing martial arts.

Thus, many marginalized people who want to learn martial arts end up turning to self-defense groups. Although lacking the historical prestige of martial arts, self-defense classes can teach similar physical and mental skills, from attacks and deflections to mental preparation and awareness in dangerous situations.

One such group at PHS is the Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Club (SAAP). Although SAAP is mostly focused on spreading awareness about assault, the club is currently developing more interactive programs, namely a self defense class. SAAP co-leader Maya Hagt ’25, who is a former martial artist, believes that self-defense classes are crucial in assault awareness and prevention.

“I’ve actually attended self-defense classes and I think they are really excellent because they show you how to utilize your surroundings, yourself, and anything you have with you in the case of a surprise attack,” said Hagt. “I think it’s a really excellent way for you to be better prepared if the worst does happen.”

Though Hagt points out that self-defense classes are a great tool for people in groups at higher risk of assault to try, she also acknowledges the fact that martial arts can be a very tough space to enter, especially for members of marginalized groups.

“I think that, because [martial arts are] so hypermasculine, it’s important for women to be in these spaces, but it shouldn’t be a burden on women [or other vulnerable groups] to stand up for themselves in those spaces,” Hagt said.

Fortunately, it seems as though martial arts spaces in theUnited States are slowly but surely becoming more diverse and accepting, something Kutin says she has observed.

“[My dojang] is diverse; it lets anyone in ... I have friends there who are five; I have friends there who are 50. [In terms of] taekwondo masters, there are ladies and guys,” Kutin said.

Martial arts gyms and dojos are also increasingly including special self-defense classes as parts of their program to create an environment where people are encouraged to learn how to defend themselves, with the option to learn other aspects of martial arts if they want to. These kinds of places make martial arts gyms more welcoming to marginalized groups who are looking to learn those skills, inviting diversity and building stronger communities — a trend that is likely to continue across the United States. 

Self-defense and martial arts kick up a storm

For decades, sports movies have followed certain plot beats. A typical story might go like this: a young man dreams of becoming a baseball star. He tries out for his school’s team but it’s much harder than expected. He works diligently and makes it in the end, leading his team to the championship finals. When they win, he kisses his girlfriend in the middle of the court and his teammates carry him off to the blaring tune of “We Are The Champions.” 
When the end goal for players in most sports movies is to be as strong and successful as possible, it makes for good television, but certainly not a nuanced story. However, sports films today seem to be shifting in a different direction, often by relying less on the same few storylines and excessive motivational messaging.
An older film that exemplifies the typical sports movie plot is “Rudy,” which centers around high school student Rudy Ruettiger who dreams of becoming a football player at Notre Dame University. Although he faces financial and personal obstacles, Rudy is eventually able to transfer to Notre Dame, but decides to quit when he realizes that he is not allowed a starting position on the team. After a conversation with a friend and former player, Rudy realizes that he shouldn’t give up so easily and leads the team to victory in their final game.
This victory, although extravagant, does not seem undeserved. Viewers have seen how far Rudy has come and are almost certainly rooting for him by the end. Even though he was backed by nothing but his own perseverance, he still achieved the ultimate victory. But this is a very idealized portrayal of the life of a student athlete, following the incredibly common tropes of the underdog and their crucial success in the final match, both of which are tried and true in television but have become too predictable. Of course, it must be acknowledged that “Rudy” is geared towards a slightly younger audience, so its complexity and depth must, to an extent, be limited. However, this limitation does even less to draw in the teenage audience the film hopes to attract. The unimaginable and unlikely success in “Rudy” almost kills the movie’s motivational message as it eventually becomes too overly inspirational to be genuinely relatable past sentimental appeal. 
This isn’t the case for some newer sports films, especially not for the recent hit “Challengers,” which centers around the intertwining journeys of three tennis players: Tashi, Art, and Patrick, who meet while in high school and continue to encounter each other throughout their adult lives. The movie explores the multi-faceted romantic relationships between these three complex individuals, the aftermath of a career-ending injury for Tashi versus a successful recovery for Art, and the unpredictable nature of an athlete’s life and profession. In the end, the three players do not regain everything they have lost but keep moving forward anyway.   
In “Challengers,” the life of an athlete is not depicted in as clear-cut a way as in “Rudy.” There is no initial setback, initial success, critical setback, and final victory, but rather every success is somehow followed by failure and every failure by success. Tashi is so deeply obsessed with tennis that her injury completely breaks her. Patrick has a bright start but ends up a failed professional. Art pushes himself to the point where he just wants to retire. This movie shows the dangers of obsession with a sport in a way that most sports movies do not. The characters’ determination is not always rewarded with success, which, no matter how painful, is much more realistic. Their relationships and lives are intertwined with their sport and become more complex because of it — something student athletes can certainly relate to as they juggle sports with the rest of their lives. 
Unlike “Rudy,” “Challengers” has a higher age rating and therefore more freedom in terms of depth and complex storytelling. For generations, teenagers have begged to be seen and taken seriously, to be treated as mature and capable. Movies like “Challengers” that don’t shy away from the realities of lasting pain and failure in the sports world offer an alternative for the plethora of feel-good sports movies like “Rudy” that already exist. The success of “Challengers” points to a new, more mature market for sports movies that will likely be capitalized on in the future, a move away from the over-optimism and perfect victories in older sports films and towards more relatable representations. 
At PHS, student athletes are forced to balance many different challenges to keep up with the school’s intense academic climate, which makes it difficult to absorb the idealized representations displayed in older sports films. According to data collected by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the 2022–2023 season, only about 6.6 percent of high school athletes go on to play at Division 1 schools. A study done by Ohio State University in 2017 also found that only approximately 0.023 percent of high school athletes become professionals. The chance of failure is so much greater than the chance of success that it’s easy for student athletes to become disillusioned when comparing their futures to the impressive careers characters their age frequently end up having in movies. 
New films like “Challengers” help to counter this unrealistic perspective. By depicting injury, emotional struggle, and failure, these movies combine sports with reality into a much more believable narrative. For hard-working student athletes, this balance is a refreshing break from the standard success story championed by older sports films. 


"Challengers" is changing the game

Sepak takraw
Sepak takraw originates from Southeast Asia and shares many similarities with traditional Southeast Asian sports like chinlone, which is from Myanmar, and sipa, which is from the Philippines. Sepak takraw is similar to volleyball but with one key difference: players can only touch the ball with their feet, knees, chest, and head. This makes for interesting, acrobatic matches as players often do flips and bicycle kicks to hit the ball. Sepak takraw was first standardized in Malaysia in 1960. It can be played indoors or outdoors, and teams consist of two to four members. In recent years, sepak takraw’s dynamism and uniqueness have brought it popularity in Europe, Africa, and the Americas. 

Hurling
Hurling is a traditional Gaelic team sport with origins in Ireland. The sport is currently administered by the Gaelic Athletic Association. It is an exclusively outdoor game, and teams consist of fifteen players with several substitutes. In hurling games, players use a stick called a hurley to hit a ball called a sliotar into a net. The sport is similar to lacrosse and American football, but the only protective padding players are required to wear is a helmet. The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization has labeled hurling as an element of intangible cultural heritage because of its deep connection to  traditional Gaelic values. For example, the sport promotes humility by not letting athletes put their names on their jerseys.  

Bossaball
Bossaball was invented in Brazil. This sport includes elements of volleyball, gynmastics, music, and soccer. The court it is played on is also unconventional — a large inflatable ring with trampolines on either side of a central net. Bossaball is typically an outdoor sport and is usually played on the beach. Teams consist of four players, and each team can touch the ball a maximum of five times before sending it over the net. The most unique part of the sport is its musical aspect. Referees, called “samba referees,” equally serve as DJs and Masters of Ceremony. The word “bossa” is also associated with “bossa nova,” a Brazilian style of music that has become popular worldwide. 

Unconventional sports around the world

In New Jersey, sports betting has been legal at casinos and racetracks since 2018. With MLB player Shohei Ohtani’s and NHL player Shane Pinto’s recent involvements in betting scandals, the question for many is whether sports betting should continue to be promoted so strongly. At PHS, many students are interested in these betting scandals, and it’s common to hear conversations about these issues in the halls. 

PHS Takes: Should New Jersey ban sports betting? 

The world of motorsports reaches far — audiences from all over the world tune in to popular competitions like IndyCars, MotoGP, NASCAR, Esports racing, and the Formula championships. The Formula championships in particular are incredibly popular, with the top Formula competition, Formula 1 (F1), garnering one to two million viewers per race. Although F1 world championship winners like Max Verstappen, Lewis Hamilton, and Fernando Alonso and their impressively fast cars are the emblems of the competition, the sport could not exist without its extremely advanced engineering and mechanic teams. Their ability to both completely rework existing car models and make quick, performance-optimizing changes during race weekends is a big part of what keeps racing relevant and interesting every year.
As some of the fastest vehicles on the planet, F1 cars are constructed in a unique way, with low floors, lightweight carbon fiber chassis, aerodynamic front wings, and Drag Reduction Systems. According to the Engineering Institute of Technology, these elements work together to minimize cars’ drag and increase their downforce, allowing them to go as fast as possible in straight-line sectors and remain close to the ground in corners to avoid spinning out and damaging the car or crashing and endangering the driver. 
However, as the basic elements of every F1 car are the same, specific aspects of their construction are what decide the car’s endurance, speed, and overtaking ability. Handling a complicated combination of sports, science, and statistics, F1 engineers and drivers must work together to understand their team’s car and figure out what to change to give the driver the few tenths of a second they need to win a race. This relationship, one not frequently seen in the sports industry, is an inspiration to many racing fans and engineers who are able to understand the hard work that these engineers do every day, both on and off-screen.  
This admiration is evident in several of PHS’s motorsports and engineering clubs, who, though they partake in different activities, unite in their respect for how innovation in the field has both helped revolutionize many sports and allowed technology to progress at unimaginable speeds. Ben Gitai ’25, co-leader of the Sim Racing and Motorsports Club and long-time car and racing fan, believes that many of the events he watches are able to stay relevant and exciting because of advances in engineering.   
“Engineering is one of ... the most important parts of motorsports. I think the best place to see this is in the [World Endurance Championship], which events like the 24 hours of Le Mans and others are a part of. The new cars in the Le Mans Prototype 2 class are a great example of this, as they just keep getting faster and more reliable each year,” Gitai said.
The Aston Martin F1 team is another example of this, as they, before the Japanese Grand Prix, made several changes to their cars’ sidepods and floor. These adjustments made their car more competitive, and driver Fernando Alonso noted that the changes had improved the car’s performance — his qualifying time went from 1.5 seconds slower than the top teams in 2023 to just 0.4 seconds slower in 2024.
Such engineering victories throughout the field of motorsports and sports in general have not only impressed racing fans like Gitai, but also PHS’s own engineering clubs. One club with a particular focus on sports engineering is the Princeton Soccer Robotics Club. Leaders Jieruei Chang ’24 and Shrey Khetan ’24 spend their time building autonomous robots, with their club’s current main project being a team of small robots that can be programmed to play soccer against other robots. Khetan himself has a strong interest in sports, and although he plans to pursue robotics rather than sports engineering, he still appreciates the growth the field has seen recently and looks forward to its future. 
“I see technology, and especially artificial intelligence, playing a major role in the future, and not only [in] sports, like soccer, but almost every sport, because [it] can [help] capture moments, faster than the human eye,” Khetan said. 
Khetan has also been paying attention to Formula 1, and observes that some advancements in the field beyond just racecar engineering are overlooked, describing innovations in F1 camerawork, another important technical aspect for fans worldwide who tune in to live coverage every grand prix weekend. 
 “When there’s more groundbreaking discoveries in STEM and teams making really interesting devices, [I think they should get more attention]. Recently, I saw a team that made a drone for following F1 cars ... where they could just go, and their acceleration was as fast as an F1 car ... they’ll add a new aspect for F1 fans where you can actually see the car from a bird’s eye view,” Khetan said.
 Chang agrees with Khetan, but also believes that even lesser-known inventions like the car-tracking drone are frequently prioritized over other innovations due to their flashiness, leading to an image of engineering as solely an exciting and active profession rather than one that is mostly based on necessity and effort. 
 For example, according to Weil College Advising, robotics, aerospace, and software engineering, three fields that frequently work on big, acclaimed projects like space rovers or planes, are the most desirable engineering majors. Meanwhile, there is a lack of field service engineers and manufacturing engineers, who have to do much more physical work but are just as necessary to their fields.  
“There’s a lot of engineering that doesn’t sound very glamorous, very flashy, but [is] necessary,” said Chang. “They’ve got every company in the world trying to make an electric car, or [they’ve] got virtual reality ... but what about everything else that’s going on?” 
Although engineering produces beautiful results, it takes months of trial-and-error just to put out a finished product. As the field becomes more prominent across the world, its origins may be overshadowed by its success, just as F1 race-winning engineering marvels overshadow the long hours of failure that brought them about. According to Chang, this real human effort is a part of engineering that cannot easily be replicated and deserves its own acknowledgement. 
  “It’s a real thing that you’re building. It’s a real tangible thing. And that’s ... what separates engineering from more theoretical fields, or even computer science,” Chang said. 


Formula 1: engineering the future

Badminton is often thought of as a game that is played at the family cookout or on a warm day at the park,
not a sport. Few know of its professional side or its 
reputation as one of the most intense and fast-paced
sports in the world. These professional players train for years to hone their speed and accuracy, but are still 
underestimated because of the casual viewer’s lack of knowledge about the sport. 
  Badminton has centuries-old roots, originating from a
game called “battledore and 
shuttlecock,” different variants of which were played in ancient civilizations such as Greece, 
China, and India. The 
modern version of the sport became popular in the 
middle of the 19th century in 
British India and eventually spread worldwide, becoming an Olympic sport in 1992.
  However, the sport has never gotten much 
recognition in the United States. This is due to the fact that there is already an abundance of 
professional sports leagues in the United States. 
However, times are changing: the UBX Pro League, the  first 
professional badminton league in North America, will launch in 2025. The UBX Pro League’s goal is to make badminton more prominent. Here at PHS, the 
Badminton Club has begun implementing this same 
initiative, which has introduced many more students to the sport.   
    Founded by William Yao ’24, the Badminton Club strives to create camaraderie among the student body through badminton. Although badminton is played in most gym classes during the winter, Yao noticed that many students view the sport as simple recreation or even as a chore due to its association with the class.             
 Through his dedicated 
leadership, the club has 
created an inclusive 
environment in which 
students of all backgrounds can come together to enjoy the sport. 
 As an immigrant, Yao realized that 
badminton isn’t as popular in America as it is China, so founding the club was his way to not only expand the variety of options students had for sports, but also to teach others about an important part of his culture by trying new things.
   “We have [this] club to [introduce other] people to our  culture,” said Yao. “It’s brought more of the  people who weren’t involved in sports together … [people can] come in and have fun with their friends.” 
   There are a few basic techniques needed to play a game, such as different serve types, which are easy to learn and put into practice, making accessible badminton accessible. 
  Aside from the sport’s convenience and accessibility, club co-leader Nags Muthiah ’25 also places great value on badminton’s recreational and unifying potential. 
  Although few U.S. schools have an official badminton team, many, including PHS, have clubs that occasionally play friendly matches with each other. This makes the club members hopeful about the creation of an official team. 
   “We’re gathering up to make a team and we play against other schools,” said Yao. “Our first match was against 
Basking Ridge in November last year.” 
 These matches were entirely 
organized by students, from funding to 
transportation and any other resources the players required. 
Badminton is yet to have a large impact,  but Muthiah remains optimistic on its potential influence. 
   “I don’t think it’s changed the culture at PHS ... yet, since the Badminton Club still feels [very] small. I’d say it 
changes more like the break culture,” said Muthiah. “It opens up a new activity to do at lunch time, Tiger Time, or if you have a free and if you want to join someone’s gym class.” 
   Although badminton may not become an official sport at PHS for a long time, as the sport is steadily gaining 
popularity through the Badminton Club, with true 
potential to positively impact the whole PHS community through its emphasis on inclusion, fun, and connection. 
   “We had few people [when I started]... we have way more people now,” Yao said.   


Badminton birdie catches wind at PHS

What was your favorite part of the season?

Boys Swim (13-1)
Alex Aprikian ’24- “I think my favorite parts of the season were the fun, intense meets where everyone was supporting each other and giving [their all]. I will cherish [my teammates] forever. I proudly call them family after everything we’ve been through together.”

Zachary Guan ’24- “My favorite part of the season was winning [Mercer County Tournament].”

Girls Swim (14-1)
Vivian Lee ’26- “I really enjoyed the energy that the team had.” 

Viviana Cristofanilli ’25- “The most memorable part was the last meet since everyone showed up to support the girls team, and, even though we didn’t win, it was really nice to see the school spirit.”

Boys Basketball (11-13)
Henry Doran ’24- “[My favorite memory of the season was] going out to dinner with the team. We got super [close], spending time outside of practice [to] hang out [because]... Coach Noone had us going really hard for 90 minutes [every practice].” 

Matthew Ghaim ’26- “My favorite [part] of the season was connecting with the team ... which helped us play together better.”

Girls Basketball (15-9)
Ash Nieman ’26- “The Colonial Valley Conference [named] us the surprise team of the year. It definitely carried us through some tough victories, which was great for team chemistry.” 

Anna Winters ’26- “We had ten wins in a row, and it was just the best feeling ever to be able to achieve such a great thing with my teammates!”

Girls Fencing (0-10)
Hatsune Ishii ’26- “[I liked] the state championship … it was great. [There are] many stronger fencers out there, and it was tough, but it was very interesting and a good opportunity.” 

Helen Yu ’27- “My favorite part of the season would be the meets. Not only was I able to cheer on my teammates, I was also able to coach them, and see them improve in live time.”

Boys Fencing (7-5)
Kyle Grzymala ’25- “The most impactful event for me was senior night. It was an opportunity for the team to celebrate the seniors and to honor those who are moving on with their lives. It’s a celebratory moment … it’s an opportunity to have fun.”

Nicholas Kopaliani ’26- “My favorite part of the fencing season was the Centrulo/Santelli Championships. It was an excellent display of skill, and ... Boys Épée got 4th in the state.”

Girls Hockey (3-11)
Maya Hagt ’25- “I think my favorite part of the season was all the team bonding we got to do, like the team dinners and team lunches ... it really brought us closer as a team.”

Tatiana Hadzic ’25- “[I loved how] when we have our last practice, we dress up in costumes and ... we spend the practice doing different types of games and drills ... it’s super fun.”

Boys Hockey (5-13) 
Graham Baird ’24- “My favorite part was Emil Vecchi’s [’26] first goal during an end-season game against West Windsor. It got the whole team rowdy and he proved Tyler Goldberg [’24] wrong.”

Noah Vitulli ’25- “My best moment of the season was probably either the second game against Notre Dame or the first game against Hopewell. It was just a real competitive game against rival schools, and you could tell everyone out there [had their] heart on the line.” 

Track (N/A)
Steven Cenci ’26- “For me, the best part of the season were my races. They are challenging in the moment, but when they go well it is really rewarding. The competitive aspect of them is also fun because it adds a level of importance to the race.”
 
Kacey Howes ’26- “My favorite part [of the season] was going to the Armory in New York City. My teammates and I wore matching bows in our hair to run the 400 [meter race]. Talking to people in the heat lines is always so fun, and they’re all nice. After our race we just got to hang out, and on the bus ride home we stopped for snacks.”

Winter Sports Recap

   Every March, basketball fans across the United States switch their television channels from the NBA to college basketball to watch collegiate athletes compete in one of the most highly-anticipated sports competitions of the whole year: March Madness. 
  This National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I tournament began in 1939 with eight teams. As viewership increased, the tournament developed into a 68-team super tournament, with enthusiastic fans tuning in every year to cheer on their local teams.
    Before 2023, Princeton University was ousted from March Madness four times in a row. However, a great run to the Final 16, with wins over both the University of Arizona and the University of Missouri, sparked interest for the tournament in the Princeton community and especially at PHS. 
  Among those invested in the tournament are PHS’s basketball players, who look up to famous collegiate players. Justin McLeod ’25 is a player on PHS’s junior varsity basketball team and a long-time fan of the tournament. 
   “I find it very entertaining,” said McLeod. “I’ve been watching [March Madness] for four years now. I like the intensity.”
   One aspect that sets March Madness apart from other tournaments is its unpredictability. The yearly tournament is based around a seed ranking, in which the teams with the best records play the teams with the worst records. Despite this, lower-ranked colleges frequently beat well-known institutions. Taking into account that one loss results in total elimination from the tournament, even the favorites to win the tournament may not be  guaranteed the title. 
     An avid fan, Jackson Zwick ’27 has been watching March Madness for seven years and dedicates hours to rewatching games and predicting the potential outcomes of the tournament in his own bracket spreadsheet. 
   “There’s always the one blue blood that goes down to a small mid-major school ... I love watching the small teams upset the big teams,” Zwick said.  
 One such big team is Duke University, which has a strong academic and athletic reputation. The Duke Blue Devils have won 17 NCAA titles and have had some of the biggest comebacks in NCAA history. However, Duke has also lost seven times in just the first and second round of the tournament. Even for Duke, all it takes to lose is one bad day. For McLeod, this uncertainty is one of the best parts of the tournament. 
   “There are so many upsets in March Madness because of the pressure on the players, which causes them to fold,” McLeod said. 
  The ups and downs of March Madness may make it entertaining, but another beloved part of the tournament is the game brackets, which viewers fill out with their predictions for how matches will play out. Out of 2.8 billion brackets ever filled out, not one has been perfect. While these odds may seem discouraging, the prospect of being the first to have a perfect bracket is exactly what motivates people to fill out their brackets every year.
    There are plenty of bracket makers at PHS. Owen Kelly ’25 is one of the most passionate, and has dedicated hours to creating the perfect bracket.
   “What makes creating brackets so exciting is the fact that no one has ever had a perfect bracket before,” said Kelly. “It gives you a reason to care about these games even if you are not a fan of [some of the] teams.”
   These brackets and their fame have spawned many copies, with predictions on various themes running alongside the basketball ones. For example, PHS’s biology department sets up an animal-themed bracket every year, something that biology student Marcus Strum ’27 really appreciates.  
  “[March Mammal Madness] adds character to the science wing and lets students continue their education when hanging out in the hallways,” Strum said. 
   PHS’s drama classes have a similar activity: March Monologue Madness, a contest based around four rounds of themed monologue performances. Drama teacher Julianna Krawiecki created this activity to inspire her students to improve their acting through friendly competition.
   “[March Monologue Madness is] a fun way to bring everyone together and work on a variety of acting skills, memorization, collaboration and camaraderie,” Krawiecki said.      
    Although not as popular at PHS as March Madness, the biology and drama departments’ brackets still reflect the widespread excitement and anticipation surrounding the tournament in an academic environment like PHS.

Baskets and Brackets: March Madness at PHS

Chess players like Magnus Carlsen, Garry Kasparov, and Bobby Fischer are legends to anyone who knows anything about chess. If someone were to think of a few more players, they would probably think of Hikaru Nakamura or Anish Girid — but what about players who are not men? Women are just as capable of excelling in chess as men, but they receive much less publicity and play much less in general. Transgender players are also frequently excluded or forced into strict, binary norms.

“The Queen’s Gambit” is a Netflix show about a young woman, Beth Harmon, who is a chess genius and completely dominates her opponents. Many people might attribute the cause of the recent spike in popularity of chess to this series because of its inspiring success story about overcoming all the odds. However, the series also highlights the obvious gender imbalance in chess in the 1950s–1960s; at every tournament, Beth is usually the only woman present who is actually playing and is often underestimated by both the audience and her competitors. 

This gender inequality still exists to this day. An article on chess.com shows that chess is still largely a male-dominated game, with only 15 percent of United States Chess Federation (USCF) rated players and 11 percent of International Chess Federation (FIDE) rated players being female. And in 2020, out of the 1,722 grandmasters, or players who have a rating of 2,500 or higher and achieve favorable results in at least three tournaments against other grandmasters, 37 were women. So why does this happen?

Some may still argue that there are less female players simply because they’re not as clever as male chess players, but these are groundless statements, as there is no concrete proof that men are innately more intelligent than women. The disparity comes from societal and cultural issues, as chess has always been a sport that only male elites were invited to. According to a study co-authored by Woman Grandmaster (WGM) Jennifer Shahade (2023), gender bias plays a huge role in why there are so few female chess players compared to male chess players. The study revealed that many coaches and parents of chess players, people who are closest to them, believe that girls are less likely to succeed. Of course, playing a game where nobody truly believes in one’s potential to succeed can definitely bring down one’s self esteem and motivation. This constant, often overwhelming, discouragement is a big reason why there are fewer professional female chess players in general. It also does not help that, because there are so few prominent female chess players, many girls who aspire to play chess as a career lack role models. This gender bias has recently become extreme. In August of 2023, more than 100 women signed an open letter denouncing sexist and sexual violence in the chess community. The fear of such actions is understandably another factor that discourages many women from participating in chess.

Additionally, male and female chess players are often separated into separate leagues and tournaments due to the commonly held belief that women are not be able to win when playing chess against men. The separation between men’s and women’s chess emphasizes that the chess world is an environment in which women’s skills are not fairly assessed and in which women as a whole are undervalued from the moment they enter a tournament.

This separation, which is strictly enforced by FIDE, also prevents players who do not fit the gender binary from playing. Transgender women, for instance, cannot participate in women’s chess tournaments without undergoing a legal gender change. Even after providing proof of a legal gender change, transgender women must still be subjected to “further analysis” by FIDE. Essentially, the vast majority of transgender women are unable to play in the correct gender category or stuck in a long legal process. However, when they successfully switch from male to female leagues, transgender women are allowed to keep all of their previous men’s titles, while transgender men are not allowed to keep their women’s titles and have to start from zero. Meanwhile, nonbinary people have no place in chess tournaments at all. Transgender people are excluded in all situations, forced into a gender binary that oppresses people of all genders and prevents the emergence of high-level players by placing restrictions on their play.

Yosha Iglesias, one of the only professional transgender chess players, expresses concern for her future as a chess player. Unsure of whether she can continue to play in women’s tournaments or if she will be able to continue her career, Iglesias, along with many transgender chess players, wonders if these coming years will be her last in the game.

Although there have been efforts to balance the game, there are still many challenges women have to face in the chess world, stemming from stereotypes that are rooted deeply in historical prejudices. In a game dominated by elite cisgender men from the start, women and transgender people struggle to find a place where they can learn, grow, and play at an appropriate level. If chess becomes more accepting, it would create a much healthier environment where all players are able to challenge themselves, no matter their gender. 

Breaking barriers, making moves: changing gender dynamics in chess

Standing in the goal at the far edge of the hockey rink, Logan Hollingsworth ’24 watches and waits. As one of the opposing team’s players rushes at her with the puck, Hollingsworth wastes no time, shooting out of the safety of the net to perform a two-pad stack, blocking a shot that almost certainly would have gone in.

When Hollingsworth started playing ice hockey for the first time in her sophomore year, adding it to her schedule alongside softball, she knew starting a new sport so late would be difficult. However, she gladly took on the challenge and became an invaluable part of the team, centering her game around teamwork and friendship.

“I want to get better and better,” said Hollingsworth. “But for me, it’s not all about winning. It’s more [about being there to] help my team improve.”

Hollingsworth was inspired to join the hockey team by her father, who encouraged her to try new things and to sincerely try her best at everything. She was also inspired by the upperclassmen on her team and sought to replicate their attitude and leadership on the ice. Most importantly, she wanted to step out of her comfort zone and learn something she had never tried before.

“It’s [about] commitments, if you start something you have to continue,” Hollingsworth said.

Despite her lack of prior experience, Hollingsworth volunteered to take on the challenge of being the team’s only goalie. Although the habits she retained from playing softball, such as bending down to get a puck instead of using her pads, were an early setback, her ability to take criticism and turn every loss into a learning experience made a strong impression on everyone around her.

Head girls hockey Coach Christian Herzog was particularly impressed.

“My first impression of Logan ... she was willing to put herself in a position which is not very forgiving,” said Herzog. “But with each time she played, she got a bit better, made better saves, made more saves.”

Although it has been a tough season for the girls hockey team, with more losses than wins, Hollingsworth has never lost her spirit, staying optimistic and making sure her team learns a lesson from every loss and celebrates every victory.

“The stress never really seemed to get to her,” said Herzog. “Honestly, whether we win or lose, she has the right attitude.”

As captain and goalie, Hollingsworth’s main mission has been to make the team’s dynamic as friendly and close as possible, organizing team meetups, weight room sessions, and lunches to bring everyone closer together.

“She brings the team together in a way only she can,” said teammate Sophia Lee ’26. “With the effort she puts in at practice and games, we’re really proud of all the shots she’s blocked this season.”

Hockey is a sport that is difficult to adapt to for newcomers: the heavy gear, ice, and fast paced nature strain the limits of the body’s capabilities. Hollingsworth, as a goalie, is one of the team’s central players. If a game is lost, it’s usually blamed on the goalie. Although she’s been through many difficult and stressful games, Hollingsworth has always pushed herself to improve and learn from both wins and losses.

“I was ready to give up ... I was just so tired,” said Hollingsworth. “But I kept pushing through and, in the end, we didn’t win, but it [ended] up being a good game.”

Both her teammates and coaches will miss her when she graduates at the end of this school year. She has been an invaluable part of the team, bringing everyone together as captain and preparing next year’s goalie to take her place.

“I anticipate she’ll be coming back to cheer on the team in future years, even when she’s away at college,” Herzog said.

Hollingsworth will miss the team she has been a part of for three years, and will consider joining a club team in college. She is excited to see both new and old players succeed in the future, and will keep the lessons she has learned from hockey close to heart.

“A win is a win, but a loss is a lesson to learn from to get better next time,” said Hollingsworth. “Even though hockey [is] a team sport, it’s also about personal improvement.

Logan Hollingsworth ’24: ice hockey

Stroke after stroke, breath after breath, Zach Guan ’24 glides through the pool. His legs kick up and down consistently, propelling the rest of his body further into the water. For Guan, this is just another day.

Guan started to swim at the early age of seven. Although his parents supported his swimming, they wanted him to focus more on classical music. Guan liked swimming more, however, and chose to stick with the sport.

“I grew up in a very musical family ... my dad always played classical music on the radio. So [my family] wanted me to go into music ... but I really fell in love with swimming,” Guan said.

Guan frequently placed in the top three swim times in his individual meets in elementary and middle school, but gained a deeper appreciation for swimming after joining the high school team and becoming a part of its dynamic.

“When we won our first county meet ... It’s the first team experience [I had] where we won. I felt [awesome],” Guan said.

Guan’s talent, built up from years of individual practice, isn’t just limited to one kind of swim style. According to head boys swimming coach Carly Misiewicz, this makes him an invaluable asset to the team.

“[Zach is] very versatile, whether it’s freestyle, backstroke, butterfly, any distance,” said Misiewicz. “He can swim a variety of events, and he can be successful in any event that he does.”

Guan may be an excellent swimmer and leader in the pool, but he also plays a key role in leading his teammates and building team chemistry, something that his teammate of three years, David Brophy ’25, has noticed.

“I love being on the team with him. He’s a really good team player and he always tries his best,” Brophy said.

Guan loves his team’s dynamic and enthusiastically participates in team rituals, like the team chant and going to hang out at each others’ houses. He particularly admires how every member of his team supports the others, and how everyone does their best because they don’t want to let the team down.

“I’ve known these people for years,” said Guan. “When you’re swimming with people every day, around six days a week in a pool for two hours each time, it’s hard not to have an unbreakable bond.”

The boys swim team has had a remarkable winning season, with every player improving their individual skills and the team growing as a whole. Guan himself has consistently placed in the top three during meets and is proud of how far his team has come, seeing their victories as proof of their dedication and hard work.

“[We’re] representing [our] whole school,” said Guan. “[We have] the banner at the pool, and recently we’ve gotten a record. So our names [being] immortalized on the walls of the pool is pretty amazing.”

These victories are even more impressive considering the difficulty of swimming itself, a demanding sport based on precision, coordination, and technique. Although the PHS boys swim team has been undefeated for years, Guan makes sure to remind his teammates that they can push themselves further and should never rest on their laurels.

“You’ve got to always be on your toes. Always be ready, because there [will be] somebody who’s gonna drop five seconds somehow. You can’t just go in [thinking], ‘Oh, this is gonna be easy.’ You’ve got to be ready to swim your hide out every race no matter what,” Guan said.

Another aspect of Guan’s character that stands out is his attitude. He never seems to run out of steam or stop practicing, no matter how well his team is doing, making him a great role model for his teammates.

“He’s always trying his hardest on the relays. And, especially when we have meets early in the morning, he still has a lot of energy and he always brings a good energy [with him],” Brophy said.

Although Guan has certainly had a positive influence on his team, he has learned just as many lessons from his teammates, whom he will certainly keep in touch with after he graduates from PHS. For Misiewicz, Guan is someone who puts his trust in the team, and has gained the same trust from them.

“He’s very involved and outspoken in a very positive way,” said Misiewicz. “He’s someone who I can go to in a moment where I need to relay a message. And I know that he’ll relay that message in a positive way.”

In his time on the swim team, he has learned the value of improvement as an individual and as a team, and he hopes the next generation of PHS swimmers will have as much of a positive experience as he has. Guan will treasure everything he has learned from his team and take it with him into his adult life.

“When you’re feeling down or feeling blue, [your] teammates will help you,” said Guan. “Every time you’re swimming ... you’re racing yourself as well as the other people. You [race] to help [yourself grow].”

Zach Guan ’24: swimming

From the University of Connecticut’s renowned women’s basketball team to Michigan’s football team, every college has a sports team that they’re known for. Duke University dominates men’s basketball with 19 Atlantic Coast Conference tournament titles. College football has seen an alltime high viewership, with 27.2 million viewers watching a gripping semifinal game between Michigan and Alabama.

With certain sports having such a huge presence around the world, there is bound to be some favoritism towards certain “elite” sports based on how much income they generate, which, when paired with frequent bias against players based on race, gender, or economic status, brings about a set of issues that have plagued college sports for centuries, tainting their history. So how did these issues wind up affecting colleges’ favorite sports?

Before the birth of college sports, sports were mostly viewed as hobbies or a form of physical exercise without any real competition behind them. In 1843, rowing clubs were the first to be made into competitive sports teams at Yale, and at Harvard a year later. In 1852, the first ever Yale-Harvard Regatta, a rowing race, was held, marking the beginning of college sports and long-term rivalries between prestigious colleges.

In the early twentieth century, it became apparent that colleges began to dominate certain sports. Harvard and Yale won national championships in football and continued their rivalry that persists to this day. Many others take great care to uphold the tradition mainly because of the attention these sports still receive today. As time went on, getting attention from the public became important for revenue, so colleges’ focus began to shift to revenue-generating sports. More athletic scholarships became available for traditionally popular sports like football and basketball. Similarly, in the 1970s, athletic grants-in-aid were mainly for sports such as swimming, track, soccer, lacrosse, hockey, and baseball. The sports with large fanbases, such as football, received the most funding; improving the quality of other sports would stress the budget of the athletic department. This problem persists today — supporting non-revenue generating sports is not a gamble athletic directors want to take, leading to insufficient funds, equipment, and training space for them. College students today resent revenue-generating sports that siphon support and resources away from their school activities. However, despite pouring millions of dollars into their preferred sports, many colleges still face financial issues if their sports don’t make a profit that year. This leads to schools increasing their athletic fees and even college tuition. Favoritism of collegiate sports not only impacts nonrevenue-generating sports, but favors athletes and students with higher incomes that bring more to the team than just athletic prowess.

In addition to financial issues, colleges have a long-standing problem with representation in sports. Historically, college varsity teams were made up of exclusively white wealthy men. Racial bias and prejudice motivated colleges to favor white male athletes who were able to contribute to the team financially. This changed in the 1960s, during the civil rights movement, when Texas Western’s all-Black team won the national basketball championship in 1966 against the University of Kentucky’s all-white team. This event was a turning point that signified an important shift in acceptance of Black athletes into collegiate sports, opening new opportunities for people of color across the board.

Similar progress was made, not just regarding race, but also gender, beginning with the Title IX legislation. This landmark legislation forbade discrimination based on gender, leveling the playing field in collegiate varsity teams. However, there is still a huge gap in financial support for women’s sports, which is typically due to lower viewership. This leads to underfunding and fewer athletic scholarships for female athletes.

Despite their complicated history of economic, racial, and gender discrimination, millions of people enjoy college sports today, whether they’re watching the latest football game with friends or chatting about a new basketball matchup. While modern college sports are miles more accepting than they used to be, they are still lacking in many areas. Race- and gender-based discrimination are still prevalent, and opportunities for the less economically fortunate are very limited. Although watching college sports is fun and a staple of American culture, it’s important to understand the history of these sports and fight against their elitist status to truly bring equality to one of America’s most beloved forms of entertainment.

College sports - popularity built off a dark past

   As announced in the Chmiel Spiel on November 2, a number of new security measures will soon be introduced at PHS, all with the goal of increasing student safety. Along with requiring all students and staff to wear ID badges, these new measures will prepare the school for an emergency by ensuring that all of the school’s doors and windows are numbered.
   These changes were not prompted by any particular emergency, but are meant to improve the general safety of the school for everyone. PHS Assistant Principal Rashone Johnson stresses that he and the administration strive to make safety a priority for everyone at PHS. 
   “Everything that we do we’re doing for the safety of the entire building … It’s not just one group of kids, we’ve got over 2,000 people that we’re trying to make sure are staying safe,” Johnson said. 
   The primary purpose of the lanyards will be to make it easier for staff to discern between students, visitors, and those who shouldn’t be in the building. Students will be given a colored lanyard and visitors a differently-colored lanyard so that staff can easily tell the difference between the two. 
   According to Johnson, the lanyards will also make it easier for teachers to take attendance by letting students quickly record their attendance using student ID badges.
   “Once we evolve, [students] will have the ability to tap into the rooms that [they are] going to for attendance…We'd be able to see where everybody is, and then we'll be able to sooner know who’s here and who’s not here, accountability-wise, so it makes everything happen a lot quicker,” Johnson said. 
   Another new security measure is that numbers are going to be assigned to all doors and windows, ensuring that in the case of an emergency, emergency workers are able to navigate to where they need to be as fast as possible.
   “When we’re talking about emergencies, time is extremely important, so we want [emergency workers] to be able to get to and know the situation as quickly as possible,” Johnson said. 
   The administration is attempting to have these new policies implemented as soon as possible. While the exact timing of these changes is dependent on when the supplies arrive, they hope to introduce the lanyard policy, specifically, sooner rather than later.
   Johnson hopes that the changes will be instituted smoothly and as a result, benefit PHS’s school climate. However, because of the limited amount of information that has been released about the plan, Johnson feared that it would receive some criticism. 
   Ero Christy ’25 expressed feelings that the new security measures were largely unneeded.
   “I understand that a lot of the security policies were put in place because some kids [might come] in who aren’t supposed to, but I think [the new changes] are really unnecessary … It doesn’t seem like it’s actually that much of a security issue,” Christy said.
   Koen Moulton ’23 on the other hand isn’t as worried about the changes, as long as their impact on day-to-day learning stays small. 
   “To be honest, as long as they don’t keep it too strict, then I’m okay with it, but if I have to constantly show my ID all the time, I think that would be pretty troublesome,” Moulton said. 
   In response to criticism regarding the plan, Johnson argues that student safety should be the biggest priority for the school. He hopes that going forward, students and educators alike will recognize the benefits of the new changes. 
   “We’ve heard some opinions, but everybody’s safety in the building trumps that stuff,” said Johnson.  “[Wearing a lanyard] is not as big of an ask as you might think for the safety that it increases in the building.”

The Tower

Asya Morozov's Work

The Tower