Michaela Copeland
Assistant Editor-in-Chief
Bella Beems
News Editor
Laci Burnett
Reporters
Middle Scholar Bowl competes at their last meet this season!
p. 4
Meet your Junior and Senior King and Queen Candidates before next week’s vote! - p. 6-9
Learn about Senior Braylee Brown and her future plans! -p. 13
Katlyn Boydston
Grayson Moore
Photographers
Lauraly Lane
Josephine Long
Designers
Ashlynn Bowen
Gunner Delp
By: Lauraly Lane
On Tuesday, January 27, the head coach of the Saint Joseph Mustangs, Benton High School’s baseball team, and Mrs Miller’s former student at Benton, Johnny Coy, talked to Mrs Rangel’s eighth grade careers class about the Mustangs Coy was born and raised in Southside Saint Joseph, then went to Wichita State for basketball and baseball
Discussing his coaching career, Coy said the fans make games fun, and away games don’t have that type of fun that the fans bring. He says the fans and host families make the players love Saint Joseph so much that they don’t want to leave. “Most of the guys didn’t even know what St. Joe was before their time on the Mustangs. But on that last Monday they’re crying, almost fully grown men, crying about leaving because they love the people here They don’t want to go back to their homes because they love their host families ”
Coy wants to pass down the team to one of his players whose dream of coaching this team in a few years He also talked about how it’s not just the players it’s all of the staff that makes what we know as the Mustangs “From photographers to the concession stands, they all matter,” said Coy
Coy also gave the 8 graders some pointers as they begin to think about their own futures “If you aren’t good at something, then work hard on that It could be three-point shots or math problems ” He also told them to try to excel in something they know they can be really good at and get a scholarship “Success is always the way to go,” added Coy th
Lauraly Lane
By: Grayson Moore
If you like 2010s pop music, then I recommend Bruno Mars. Bruno Mars is a very popular male artist mainly known for his albums Doo-Wops and Hooligans, Unorthadox Jukebox, and 24K Magic He regained a lot of his popularity in 2024-2026 from his songs Die with a Smile with Lady Gaga, APT with Rose, and I Just Might
Bruno Mars also has an album with Anderson .Paak, in their band Silk Sonic, called An Evening with Silk Sonic. Songs you may know from that album are Leave That Door Open, After Last Night (with Thundercat and Bootsy Collins), Smoking Out the Window, and Silk Sonic Intro
Bruno Mars is also known for his songs It Will Rain (from the Twilight Breaking Dawn movie), Locked out of Heaven, That’s What I Like, The Lazy Song, Finesse (ft Cardi B), 24K Magic, Just the way You Are, Talking to the Moon, Gorilla, and Grenade from the 2010s and earlier Bruno has been a global star since his debut album.
Bruno Mars is also coming out with a new album called The Romantic The album comes out February 27, 2026 The album has 9 songs on it, with I Just Might as track 3 This will be Bruno’s first solo album since 2016
The DeKalb Boys High School Basketball team is participating in the King City tournament this week
Their first game of the tournament was against Maysville, and they lost 17-64. Their last game being on Wednesday, January 28th against Stanberry was a loss with 37-62.
Junior Cooper Wachtel says, “I think I played well. I made a few mistakes. I could’ve cleaned up my passes and made a few more shots, but overall I played pretty well
The next game in the tournament is tonight against Northeast Nodaway at King City.
The team’s next regular season game is a home game on Monday, February 2nd, against Doniphan West.
By: Gunner Delp
In the mood for a game that requires your full attention and focus? Lately, I have found myself playing quite a bit of Quarantine Zone: The Last Check, a game that requires such things. This game has become popular amongst YouTubers, Twitch streamers, and the overall gaming community.
Quarantine Zone: The Last Check is a simulation game in which you are tasked with screening survivors entering your military checkpoint to ensure they are not infected with the zombie infection. There are four places in which a survivor can be sent: if the survivor shows no signs of a sickness or infection, they are then sent to the survivor block; if the survivor shows signs of being sick, but not clear signs of an infection, they are sent to quarantine; if the survivor shows clear signs of infection, they are sent to liquidation to meet their inevitable end; and if the survivor has any unknown symptoms, they are sent to the lab for further testing.
Inspection starts off fairly easily with no tools, and all that is required of you is to look The further you progress throughout the story, the more tools that are introduced and the more upgrades and challenges you must face. You must be able to inspect and keep your survivors safe, fed, and healthy, all while keeping the zombie forces lurking outside of your gates from coming in.
Quarantine Zone: The Last Check, developed by Brigada Games, is available on PC and Xbox It is priced at $19 99 on both systems This game is good if you are up for a challenge and want to test how sharp your cognitive skills are. I recommend this game for people who enjoy simulation games.
By: Bella Beems
This week, our Middle School Scholar Bowl team traveled to Union Star to quiz in their last meet of the season against Jefferson, Osborn, and Union Star.
DeKalb won 140-100 against Jefferson and 7060 against Osborn, but sadly lost 140-80 against Union Star. “I think we did really good because one of the readers was really hard to understand,” says Coach Taylor about the meet overall.
The most recognized player this season was seventh grader Meredith Sawyer. Meredith was third overall, with six questions answered correctly all season and being a starter her first year. She plans on continuing in Scholar Bowl throughout the rest of middle school and high school
“It was great to see even the quiet kids be recognized for doing good things,” were Coach Taylor’s final words for this season.
High School Scholar Bowl meets will begin in early March.
If you’re looking for a funny family show to watch, then I recommend you Abbott Elementary.
The show is about a group of teachers and how they survive their school day. They face many different challenges throughout the seasons, including teaching in a mall, a ringworm outbreak, and a furnace breakdwon. They also show the love stories of multiple different teachers.
The first season came out on December 7th, 2021, and it had thirteen episodes. The show also has several celebrities on it including Jalen Hurts, Jason Kelce, and Taraji P. Henson.
The latest season of this show came out on October 1st, 2025 My favorite thing about this show is the subtle jokes and the modernness.
he has been promoted to father status
What sports/ activities are you in? FFA
Why should people vote for you? I don’t know, you do you. If you were an animal, which one would you be and why?
I would be an otter because they are friendly, high-energy, and very cutie.
What sports/ activities are you in?- Newspaper and Band
Why should people vote for you? Because I’ll invite you to my cottage.
If you were an animal, which one would you be and why? A seal, because I am funny.
What sports/ activities are you in? Basketball
Why should people vote for you? Because I can dunk ;)
If you were an animal, which one would you be and why? I would be a panther because they are big, aggressive cats.
What sports/ activities are you in?FFA and Trapshoot
Why should people vote for you? Because I’m a good person.
If you were an animal, which one would you be and why? I would be a bee because I’m a hard worker.
What sports/ activities are you in? Scholar Bowl and FFA
Why should people vote for you? Because I love my grandma.
If you were an animal, which one woul A goat, because I am a goat.
ivities are you in? Band
ple vote for you? Because if you buy one hn's for the price of 2, you can get one fr
If you were an animal, which one would you be and why?
I would be a bat because I took a test online and it said I share similar philosophical views.
ports/ activities are you in? Footb ould people vote for you? Because Sam, I am. were an animal, which one would you be and why? be a Walrus because, as good-natured as I am, I can ankerous and aggressive
What sports/ activities are you in? Basketball
Why should people vote for you? Because I will buy Taco Tuesday
If you were an animal, which one would you be and An eagle because I am a leader.
What sports/ activities are you in? Basketball, Softball, FBLA, FFA, and Track
Why should people vote for you? Because I am very involved. If you were an animal, which one would you be and why?
According to Mrs. Hansbrough, I would be a chimp.
What sports/ activities are you in? Basketball, softball, FFA, track, and FBLA
Why should people vote for you? Because I’m funny.
If you were an animal, which one would you be and why?
I would be a cougar because I'm fast and I'm old.
What sports/ activities are you in? Cheer, FBLA, FFA
Why should people vote for you? Because I am the funnier twin (: If you were an animal, which one would you be and why?
According to Stacy, a Hen, because I take care of my little sibling and care for everyone.
What sports/ activities are you in? Basketball, Softball, FFA, FBLA, and Track
Why should people vote for you? Because I already told my grandma I won.
If you were an animal, which one would you be and why?
Peacock
What sports/ activities are you in? Football, Scholar Bowl, and Newspaper
Why should people vote for you? They shouldn't because they need to vote for Sam. If you were an animal, which one would you be and why? A walrus, so I can be just like Sam.
What sports/ activities are you in? Basketball, Baseball, FFA, and Track this year
Why should people vote for you? Because I am the only Senior boy playing Basketball.
If you were an animal, which one would you be and why? I would be a hummingbird because I am quick.
Voting for candidates opens on Monday, February 2nd, and closes at the end of the school day on February 6 Please vote for your favorite juniors and seniors before the polls close!! th For any questions, please contact Ms. Cagle.
By: Katlyn Boydston
The DeKalb High School Girls Basketball team is still going strong this season, including in this week’s King City Tournament. So far they won one game.
Monday night’s game was an amazing win against Maysville with a score of 57-45. Coach Rumpf said, “We are in the home stretch of the year and love to have some more support from our students and friends. It should be fun, we have Districts coming up in a couple weeks and hopefully we could have the ultimate of winning it ”
Wednesday night’s game was against Stanbarry with a score of 51-24. Lilly Wagner said her best moment of the game was, “probably when in the 3rd quarter I hit a buzzer beater”
The girls are playing tonight against King City at 4:45. After that, their next game is a Home game on Monday, February 2, 2026, against Doniphan West. Come out and support the Lady Tigers
Order by February 12th $ 1
By: Michaela Copeland
For this week’s What to Read, I would like to recommend Women by Charles Bukowski I have read several mixed reviews online about this book; some say it’s a classic, while others say it’s vulgar and inappropriate. Like many others, this book has mature themes discussed, but I don’t believe that it makes the book any less important or necessary to read.
Throughout the novel, it follows a lowlife writer turned poet named Henry Chinaski as he struggles with alcoholism and relationships with himself, women, and writing
In the Introduction to the novel, he states that he has only been in love with two women in his life. Yet, he makes every possible relationship mistake, including struggles with fidelity and commitment.
Charles Bukowski states that this is a semi-autobiographical novel, where Henry portrays his alter ego.
Although I haven’t finished the book or gotten very far yet, it’s been an interesting experience as a female reading from a male’s perspective, because his storytelling is straight and to the point, while women typically have a more prolific storytelling element. Charles states, “An intellectual says a simple thing in a hard way. An artist says a hard thing in a simple way.” I’m not sure I agree with him.
Although this book has mixed reviews and heavy topics, I recommend this to anyone who wants to change their point of view or outlook on other people
byMrs.Powell
