Liam Piekarczyk - Photography Editor
Vocal and instrumental talent shines at OH: 13 participants attend ILMEA All-State
OH vocal and instrumental music departments attained honors at the Illinois Music Education Association's (ILMEA) All-State performance in Peoria, with a record of 13 participants. After auditioning for ILMEA in November and getting results back in December, OH choir and band students earning a spot performed in January at a district festival featuring multiple schools. OH's district, the ninth, includes the southwest suburbs of Chicago. For those who earned a spot, it was an award born out of hard work. “This was my first year making it to [[ILMEA]] All- State," said OH junior Hayden Esborn. "For the Oswego Vocal Music Department, OVMD, you’re able to audition for ILMEA in sophomore year. Looking back, I was very unprepared for my auditions, so this year I chose to familiarize myself with music and really make sure I was practicing it.”
Fans’ mixed feelings about the stranger ‘finale’ of beloved decade-long series
The final season of Netflix's hit Stranger Things had exciting and plot-twisting moments, but fans are left divided on whether it was a good sendoff to the story. On New Year's Eve, Netflix released Volume Three, the two-hour series finale of the beloved series which started in 2019. The final battle against Vecna had been described by the Duffer brother creators as a bloodbath with loss of characters. Nobody, it seemed, was going to be safe at series' end.
Podcast: The supreme-ly chaotic world of Marty Supreme
Join Entertainment podcast hosts Ethan Monahan, Torian Duncombe, and Liam Piekarczyk as they serve up their critique of the supreme-ly chaotic, yet ultimately well-made, winter film featuring Timothee Chalamet with scenes including Tyler the Creator. Recently named the top-grossing film for production company A24, Marty Supreme is a fast-paced ping-pong sequence of scenes and plot lines that keep the audience perfectly entertained.
OH boys basketball breaks 16 game loss streak at Crosstown
On Fri. Jan. 10, the OH boys varsity basketball team emerged victorious against OE, winning the game 59-52 in overtime. For the last 16 crosstown basketball games, OH has ended up in a loss against OE. All hope seemed lost with the Panthers losing by seven points with two minutes left, but then the comeback began. Of the win, OH senior Mariano Velasco said, “I hope this momentum can carry through after this big crosstown win, so we can win more games and carry home a win from the regionals game.”
Panther football ’25: Most memorable team since ’03
On Dec. 3, Oswego became the state runner up at NIU in the class 8A game. For the past 22 years, Oswego football has not made it as far as this '25 team did, which marked the best results Oswego has achieved since 2003. "I think every year is a great year, you deal with what you have and we did what we could," said OH senior kicker Kaleb Stumpenhorst. "Because of that, we went to the State Championship. [[And]] I think because of that, it was one of the best seasons.”