St. Benedict Track and Soccer Post Strong Week

The St. Benedict Prep High School athletics teams have had a very successful week, highlighted by the accomplishments of the track and soccer teams.

 The girls soccer team advanced to Saturday’s regional final  with a 3-1 victory over St. Gregory on Wednesday evening. The Bengals were led by sophomore AnnaTai Malone (Ancona Elementary), who tallied two scores, and freshman Malanii Rosa (Audubon Elementary) who beat St. Gregory’s keeper for the final score. Junior Angelica Cabrera (St. Stanislaus Kostka) had another stellar night in goal, turning away all but one Greyhound attempt.

Sophomore AnnaTai MaloneWith the victory, the Bengals will square off against Rickover at 2 p.m. on Saturday afternoon at the St. Scholastica Academy fields. Game time is scheduled for 2 p.m.

The Bengals boys track team capped an extraordinary week on a windy Wednesday night at the Dunbar Invite. Junior Josh Weichert (St. Ben’s Elementary) topped the 3,200m field, out-sprinting the second place finisher in the final 100m to win his first race of the season. Sophomore Sylvester Pydych (St. Josaphat) won the long jump for the sixth time this season, posting a best jump of 19’11”.

The victory for Pydych came on the heels of an outstanding conference championship meet on Monday at Luther North High School. Pydych captured the long jump title with a leap of 20’4’, placed 2nd in the 100m dash and 2^nd in the 400m sprint. Weichert turned in a personal best in the 1,600m to take 3^rd with a time of 5:24. Sophomore Eric Howard (PACE) closed the meet with a personal best mark in the 100m.

Sophomore Sylvester Pydych

Next up for the Bengals track team is the sectional meet, next Thursday, May 17^th at Chicago Christian High School in Palos Heights, IL.  Field events will begin at 4:30 p.m. and running events start at 6:10 p.m.

Ms. Landor Named Class Nobel Educator of Distinction

Teacher Sarah Landor of St. Benedict Preparatory School, was recently selected as a Claes Nobel Educator of Distinction by The National Society of High School Scholars (NSHSS).  A role model to pupils, Sarah was nominated by student Lillian Bianca Baldwin for outstanding dedication and committment to excellence in the classroom.

Student members of NSHSS have the opportunity to nominate the educator who made the most significant contribution to their academic career.  The Claes Nobel Educator of Distinction award recognizes teacher role models who have made a lasting difference in their classroom by encouraging students to strive for excellence. 

"Dedicated educators who exhibit a committment to excellence deserve our highest praise and appreciation," said NSHSS President James Lewis.  "We're excited to provide an ongoing means to do so, and we encourage our members to nominate teachers who have contributed to their academic success."

Ms. Landor is in her second year of teaching Spanish at St. Ben's. 

Congratulations Class of 2011

Our best wishes and congratulations to the class of 2011!

Allen, Joshua – Triton College

Bryant, Donna – University of Illinois at Chicago

Cockerham, Lana – University of Illinois

at Urbana-Champaign

Collins, Terrion – Columbia College

Cortes, Arman – University of Illinois at Chicago

Custodio, Jessica - undecided

Dinh, Daniel – Loyola University Chicago

Dominguez, Jennifer – University of Illinois at Chicago

Eckhardt, Stephen – University of Illinois at Chicago

Gacharna, Amanda – Dominican University

Gago, Krysztof – Lewis University

Genge, Amanda – Carthage College

Gerhardt, Dustin – Columbia College

Greco, Natalia – Northeastern Illinois University

Grosvenor, Erin – University of Illinois at Chicago

Hernandez, Matthew – Northeastern Illinois University

Herrerra, Yolanda – University of Illinois at Chicago

Hinostroza, Bill – Northeastern Illinois University 

Irigoyen, Cecilia - undecided                                                            

Sr. Fran Wohn BVM and this year's student council VP Gertrude Kasole pose at the 2011 graduation

                                                                                 

Kasim, Omodolapo – University of Wisconsin-Parkside

Kasole, Gertrude – Illinois Institute of Technology

Kattner, Kristin – Columbia College

King, Mariah  – Harold Washington 

Martinez, Jonathan – Triton College

McConville, Connor – Triton College

Nieves, Elizabeth – Concordia University Chicago

Nota, Adam – Triton College 

Nota, Amanda - University of Illinois at Chicago

Nungaray, Pedro – Northeastern Illinois University

Obmann, Heather – Northeastern Illinois University

Olowo, Habeeb – Northern Illinois University

Orlowski, Victoria – University of Iowa

O’Shea, Jake – Saint Louis University

Park, Jeong Eun - Northeastern Illinois University

Parrilla, Mireya – Harold Washington College

Perez, Kyle – Northeastern Illinois University

Segovia, Edgar – University of Illinois at Chicago

Silva, Adrian – Columbia College

Situ, Stanley – University of Illinois at Chicago

Smerko, Christina – Carthage College

Soto, Adam – Western Illinois University

Stiglic, Jennifer – Wright College

Sukhu, Brad – University of Washington

Thalhammer, Brian - undecided

Thomas, Dimitri – Eastern Illinois University

Ulrich, Preston – Harper College

Wagner, Zane – Oakton Community College

Weichert, Jacob – DePaul University

Young, Alex – Northern Illinois University

Zagora, Edin – Northeastern Illinois University

Zarate, Daisy – DeVry University

Valedictorian Brad Sukhu and Salutatorian Daniel Dinh (right) were also recognized as Illinois State Scholars; both boys including 2 of another 3 St. Benedict Elementary School alums were ranked at the top of the High School senior class.

2011 St. Benedict Trip to the Orient a Success

Nine St. Benedict Prep High School students and two chaperones enjoyed an extraordinary Spring Break experience during a visit to China, touring Beijing, Xi'an and Shanghai. We had the opportunity to tour some of China's most historical and culturally significant landmarks.

In Beijing, we enjoyed walking tours of the Summer Palace, the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square, where they were able to view Chairman Mao Zedong's tomb. We also visited pearl and jade factories to learn about two of China's specialized jewelry exports. Additionally, we had the opportunity to tour a middle and high school which had 3,200 students and received a taiji lesson.

The highlight of Beijing was the chance to visit the Great Wall. The group had over two hours to explore and climb the Wall, a task that was quite a workout due to the steep inclines and uneven steps. After the Wall, we visited the Hutong, a historic Beijing neighborhood, where we toured in rickshaws before enjoying an authentic homemade Chinese dinner in a family's home.

After flying from Beijing to Xi'an, we were whisked to an art gallery to view beautiful works of art created by student artists and were taught how to paint letters from the Chinese alphabet, an experience that our students thoroughly enjoyed.

 

The next day held the jewel of Xi'an as we spent over three hours visiting and learning about the famed TerraCotta Warriors, a collection of over 8,000 manmade clay statues arranged to guard Emperor Qin's tomb. The statues were individually carved over 2,000 years ago and are being excavated and rebuilt by a team of archeologists.

Our final stop on the journey was Shanghai, China's most modern city, which has nearly 20 million residents. While in Shanghai, we visited the Jade Buddha Temple, Yuyuan Garden, The Bund, the Shanghai World Financial Center-China's tallest building and Nanjing Road, China's biggest shopping road.

The trip was tremendous and allowed our group to experience the nuances of Chinese culture, customs and cuisine in an educational and enjoyable environment.



Visit Our School for a Day

Paired up with one of our freshmen, you have an opportunity to see exactly all aspects of what it means to be part of the St. Benedict Preparatory High School family. Experience the trimester schedule, see first hand the integrated technology in teachers' instruction, get to know teachers and students, take part in the new one-to-one laptop program, have lunch and get a feel for the friendly and welcoming atmosphere that we enjoy at SBPHS.

Call Mr. Kevin Walsh, HS admissions director, today to schedule a Shadow Day soon!  (773) 539-0066 ext. 325.