It is a tradition of the Christian Action Team (CAT), Saint Ignatius High School’s community service organization to hold an annual State of the CAT meeting around the time of the State of the Union, with upwards of one hundred attendees to review the last year of service, recognize seniors for their work, and celebrate both with pizza and a mystery drink.
This year the State of the Union, and hence the State of the CAT both did not happen because a new president was just inaugurated, but in a year that has been challenging for many extracurricular groups, members of the community may be wondering what state the group is in. Mr. Connor Walters ‘09, who works at Saint Ignatius in communications, knows from his first-hand experience helping to run CAT.
In terms of the CAT programs, Mr. Walters shares information about how they have fared with COVID restrictions saying, “Arrupe programs have continued over Zoom. Labre has not missed a week. Pallbearers have been able to serve funerals.” Mr. Walters said, “The Gonzaga Society continues to pray for the sick every week. The Christmas Food Drive delivered to 700 families–even while we were operating in Distance Learning! Spring Into Action is right around the corner. CAT has remained strong.”
But despite Mr. Walter’s optimistic outlook on the overall work of the group, he does recognize that COVID has prevented student participation in several service initiatives from taking place as it did before the pandemic affirming that, “COVID restrictions have lessened the number of students allowed for some initiatives, like Labre and Pallbearers.” Mr. Walters said, “Because of the health concerns of our Friends with L’Arche brothers and sisters, we have not been able to do our monthly visits. Furthermore, the West Side Catholic Center has not been open for sit-down meals, and so our St. Monica Monday Night Meal has not been able to happen each month.”
This year’s A/B schedule has made it tough for some students to be able to participate in extracurriculars. When asked about student participation, Mr. Walters detailed how he felt participation has fared due to the A/B schedule. “Sometimes, at weekly CAT meetings, it has felt like fewer students are attending–but when I remember that only half the student body is on campus at any given time, the total numbers in attendance seems pretty close to normal,” Mr. Walters said.
With the end of the year rapidly approaching and the change to the new schedule starting March 15th, Mr. Walter shared how he felt the CAT would fare in this new schedule. “I expect that more students will gradually be allowed to participate in Labre and Pallbearers,” Mr. Walters said. “The Arrupe Summer Program will happen in-person again–and we will have more opportunities for students to participate, especially students who missed out on in-person service during Sophomore Service this year. We will also return to one CAT meeting a week, on the traditional Thursday afternoons.”
With an end to the pandemic in sight, the state of the CAT will undoubtedly grow stronger as they increasingly become able to continue, resume and increase the great work they do for the community.
In November 2020, Dr. Michael Gallagher ‘71 announced he would end his 17-year reign as head cross country coach. On February 26, it was announced that his position will be taken over by the current cross country assistant coach Mr. Bob Wolf ‘08.
Mr. Wolf began his Ignatius career as a student running cross country and track. He went on to run at Kenyon College before returning to Ignatius as a science teacher as well as an assistant coach in cross country and track, where he works with sprinters.
In taking over the cross country program, Mr. Wolf wants to preserve the “fantastic family atmosphere” established by Dr. Gallagher, saying many of the cross country runners “are basically each others’ best friends.” Wolf wants to keep those close bonds between runners, and even wants to “keep the parents close.”
Wolf plans to “carry on the faith tradition that Doc [Gallagher] brought in”, praying at every event and “always being able to center and refocus our minds and hearts back to God after every practice.” He said Dr. Gallagher excelled at finding talented coaches, saying, “I would like … not only to be able to do that as well, but also I am blessed that most of those coaches are still sticking around.”
As an Ignatius student, Wolf had no plans to become a coach. Instead he thought he “was gonna be a doctor.’’ But as he got closer to graduation at Kenyon, his thoughts began to change.
“It wasn’t really until my senior year in college where I really didn’t want to give up the sport and I wanted to continue running through coaching,’’ he said, “I wanted to give off what I had learned over the years and give it back to young men. … It’s a blessing to be here, it’s a blessing to be at Ignatius, and obviously it’s a blessing to be coaching.”
When asked which coaches had the greatest impact on him, Wolf immediately responded with “Doctor Gallagher and Mr. [Chuck] Kyle [’69].’’ Wolf admired not only Gallagher’s desire to learn about running, but also “his ability to adapt to change and go from one thing to the other.” He also remembered coach Kyle once saying in a speech “just outwork ’em”. This quote resonated with Wolf, who took to heart the message that, regardless of a person’s skills, “as long as you put forth your best effort, then at the end of the day you can’t necessarily have any doubt or concern about anything. No regrets”.
Wolf said the switch to head coach is “gonna be a lot of work”, but he is “blessed to have a fantastic coaching staff” to help him make the switch. He also stated that, since he has experience with most of the current runners, he will rely on that familiarity in his first year as head coach.
Wolf’s primary strategy will be to get input from the runners and “build a training program around the individual athlete.” As an example, he mentioned that some runners are “a little bit more distance-oriented” while others will “benefit from shorter interval workouts.” This will allow each runner to play to his individual strengths and challenges. He also wants to focus on improving running technique to improve speed.
When asked his expectations for the 2021 season, he simply said, “winning, and just being confident.”
On the morning of Thursday, February 25th, a small fire in a basement closet of the Saint Ignatius High School Main Building was contained and extinguished before it could grow out of control. Its effects were limited due to the quick and momentous action of the school’s Campus Security and maintenance staff. While it did cause classes to move online for the day, as acknowledged by Principal Dr. Anthony Fior ‘02, the school is “incredibly fortunate [as] the situation could have been much worse.” No injuries were reported.
Photo Credit: Melissa Murphy
The Eye has confirmed key details about the incident and the effort to extinguish the fire.
At around 6:30 am when Plant Services Staff Member Mr. Ed Sass was completing his morning checks, he discovered the fire in a storage closet in the lowest level of the Main Building. Taking quick and pivotal action, he shut the door of the closet temporarily containing the fire, and pulled the fire alarm. The Public Information Officer of the Cleveland Fire Department, Lt. Michael Norman, said Sass’ “actions effectively contained the damage to that one room. We encourage people to close the door to their bedrooms when they sleep at night. We call that ‘compartmentalizing’ and it is effective at containing the fire, smoke, and heat.”
Photo Credit: Freddy Diaz
At the time, Security Officers John Nypaver and Andre Marti were on campus. Nypaver, who was interviewed for this report, has worked at Saint Ignatius for 18 years, since August 2003, and thoroughly enjoys his job here. His last job working for Pinkerton Security had him supervising the second shift at General Motor, and he gained experience in fire, police, and medical and he received fire brigade training. Nypaver’s years of experience and wealth of knowledge served the team well during events that followed.
Photo Credit: Melissa Murphy
After Sass shut the door, he notified Campus Security on his radio, shouting, “We have a fire!” Marti dialed 9-1-1 informing the Fire Department while Nypaver headed over the Main Building basement. As he approached, he says he “could smell smoke halfway down the hallway.” When Nypaver arrived at the storage closet door behind which the fire raged, he “could see the flames under the door.” He shared, “I felt the door frame was hot on one side and the wall was hot on one side. That told me that the fire was going pretty good.” While he waited for the firefighters to arrive, Nypaver says, “I kept an eye on the wall though because I didn’t want it to go through the wall.”
Photo Credit: Cleveland Fire Dept.
When the Fire Department arrived on campus, according to Norman, “Crews laid out a line but were able to extinguish the flames with a pump tank, which is a small portable water fire extinguisher all companies carry for small fires. We will use the pump tanks to get water on the fire quickly and to minimize water damage.”
Lt. Norman also remarked that “Naturally, there were members on scene who graduated from both St. Ignatius and your beloved rival St. Edward. The Assistant Chief on scene was Patrick Mangan, who went to St. Ignatius with your School President.”
Photo Credit: Freddy Diaz
At 6:58 am, Dr. Fior notified the school saying, “Due to a small but contained fire on campus in the Main Building, on campus classes are cancelled.” Around that time, according to a later email sent by Fior, BMS Cat arrived on campus to address the smell of smoke. According to Nypaver, “once they extinguished the fire, it was like London in the building. Smoke was just… [everywhere] in the building.”
Photo Credit: Freddy Diaz
It soon became evident that several important factors contributed to the successful extinguishing of fire with limited damage. Perhaps the most important of all was the timing which was almost perfect because there were people on campus to discover the fire, contain it, and call the fire department, but the campus was also not full of students, faculty, and staff which could have created other hazards, chaos, and barriers along with the monumental task of clearing out the entire school.
Photo Credit: Freddy Diaz
Yet the cause of the fire remained unknown early that morning. The Fire Department’s Investigators sought to determine the actual cause. Until they could make a determination, the Campus Security team faced one of its biggest challenges of the day: keeping people away from the scene.
Photo Credit: Cleveland Fire Dept.
School Resource Officer Freddy Diaz said that his team could not “allow anyone into the area until various factors are ruled out, for example, was this an intentional fire or are there other dangers evolving secondary to the first fire.” This task proved itself to be difficult because, as Diaz observed, “it is human nature to want to know what is going on immediately.”
Later that day, however, the cause of the fire was determined to be electrical and accidental. Norman revealed that the “Fire Investigators believe that when the air handlers turned on at 6 am, a faulty relay switch on the wall in that closet sparked and ignited paper and cardboard being stored below.”
Photo Credit: Freddy Diaz
Almost immediately after the first email from Fior was sent notifying students and parents, students began receiving emails from their teachers with Zoom links and further instructions. To some students, who had not been scheduled to attend class in person until after 11:50 am, this news of class beginning online at 8:30 am was less than an exciting development. Within that group, some students, unaware that they were supposed to be in class until they saw the updates when they woke up, missed the beginning of their day, asleep.
Photo Credit: Freddy Diaz
Additionally, some teachers, planning to come into school, found themselves without their chargers and others without their computers. Adapting, they found other ways to persevere with some even resorting to teaching on Zoom from their phones.
The story about the fire has not reached its conclusion. Repairs and restoration to the impacted part of the building are ongoing, questions about what the school will do to prevent further electrical problems remain, and how the fire will live on in Saint Ignatius history is still undetermined.
But to some of these further questions, answers are coming soon. As for how the fire will be remembered in Saint Ignatius’s history, it can be said that it will be remembered in a better light than if the situation had been worse. Thanks to the timing, the quick action by Campus Security and the school’s maintenance team, and the work of the firefighters, this story turned out to be a story of the successful combined efforts of diligent, dedicated, hard-working people, efforts which saved the Saint Ignatius High School Main Building from going up in flames.
All Photos Acquired By The Eye:
Photo Credit: Freddy Diaz
Photo Credit: Cleveland Fire Dept.
Photo Credit: WKYC
Photo Credit: Freddy Diaz
Photo Credit: Freddy Diaz
Photo Credit: Freddy Diaz
Photo Credit: Freddy Diaz
Photo Credit: Freddy Diaz
Photo Credit: Freddy Diaz
Photo Credit: Freddy Diaz
Photo Credit: Melissa Murphy
Photo Credit: Melissa Murphy
Photo Credit: Melissa Murphy
Timeline Of Events on February 25th:
~6:30 am – Fire Discovered, Fire Alarm Pulled
6:30-6:58 am – Firefighters are on scene, contain the fire, and get the situation under control
6:58 am – The first email sent by Principal Dr. Fior notifying the school and canceling on-campus classes
7:04 am – The Eye picks up the story and begins collecting all known information
7:20 am – The second email sent by Dr. Fior
Before 8:00 am – BMS Cat arrived on campus to address the smell of smoke
~8:00 am – The process of cleaning out the building began
8:30 am – Classes begin online
2:30 pm – The school day is over
3:13 pm – Dr. Fior updates Students, Parents, and Teachers with more information
Editor’s Note:
Special thanks to Officer Freddy Diaz, Officer John Nypaver, and Lt. Michael Norman for their contributions to this article.
The Eye is also in the process of setting up interviews with key campus personnel and is documenting the repair and restoration process.
This article will be updated with more quotes, pictures, and any other documentation of the fire that The Eye can acquire in the days and weeks ahead.
If you have anything that could contribute to the documentation of the 2021 Saint Ignatius fire, please contact The Eye at the email address [email protected]. Thank you.
Over the past three weeks, this column has focused on each of the three pillars of Lent. The focuses of the last two weeks were fasting and then prayer. This week will conclude with almsgiving.
When his disciples told him to turn the masses away so that they could feed themselves, Jesus refused and instead fed the crowd that was said to be around 5,000 with five loaves of bread and two fish. After everyone was full, there were twelve baskets of food left.
Yet what Jesus did was not a supernatural phenomenon as you might be led to believe. Instead, what actually happened is that when Jesus shared the food that he had, enough other people in the crowd were compelled to share their food until no mouth was unfed. This story serves as an example of the immense power of sharing what we have with one another.
While we care for our relationships with ourselves and God through fasting and prayer, almsgiving is about caring for the people around us and particularly the people most in need of our love and care. We care by sharing what we have with them. There are many amazing things that we can all do to fulfill this pillar of Lent, which is arguably the most important of the three.
The first, and perhaps most obvious way, is to donate money. When deciding which charity or organization you would like to contribute to, making sure that you support the mission of the group and that the group is using the money effectively for its mission are both important. Websites such as Charity Navigator can help you do that.
But if you are looking for charities to give to, here are three local ones worth checking out:
Catholic Charities Diocese of Cleveland: Right now Catholic Charities is having its annual appeal, and every dollar we give will be matched. If you are looking for a charity with a broad impact, this charity does an incredible amount of good for Northeast Ohio serving 400,000+ people who are hungry, homeless, without employment, facing addictions, elderly and alone, and those with mental and physical disabilities each year. You can read hundreds of stories of the people served through this organization on their website.
The Metanoia Project: The Metanoia Project provides overnight respite to and care for our brothers and sisters without homes who would otherwise be staying in tents, doorways, alleyways, abandoned buildings, and other precarious environments during Cleveland’s treacherous winter months. If you are looking for a more targeted way to directly help those struggling the most among us, this could be the perfect charity for you to support. You can read about the history of The Metanoia Project here.
The West Side Catholic Center: Since 1977, the West Side Catholic Center (which is right across the street from Saint Ignatius) has offered hot meals, hospitality, clothing, and household goods, emergency services, advocacy, a family shelter, housing solutions, and workforce development training to those in need at no charge, regardless of religious affiliation. One part of the WSCC’s work is the Moriah House which gives a place to live to homeless female veterans and families facing economic hardship, physical and emotional trauma, chemical dependency, mental illness, physical illness, lack of education, or lack of employment.
There are countless other charities you can look into and give to. UNICEF‘s life-saving interventions and programs around the world have helped reduce the number of deaths among children under the age of 5 by more than 50% since 1990. WFP feeds starving children and families. Refugee Response helps refugee families right here in Northeast Ohio and the Malachi House helps those struggling financially at the end of their lives to die with dignity and comfort in a loving place. The Clean Air Task Force is a US-based charity that works to reduce air pollution and the Coalition for Rainforest Nations has stopped the equivalent of 8,628,471,593 tons of CO2 from going into the atmosphere. Just by giving them money, you can make a difference in the world, and that difference can be one that you want to see.
But we can do more than give money! We can also give our time and care to people who need it. Now more than ever, people are in need of that type of sharing. So a lot of good can come from sharing our time, care, and love with those in need. Even the smallest acts of kindness and generosity can go a very long way.
In our world today, there is plenty of food, shelter, wealth, and love to go around, just as there were plenty of loaves and fishes in the possession of members of Jesus’s crowd. But unlike in the story of the loaves and fish, so many people in our world go unfed, unhoused, poor, and unloved.
This Lent, through the pillar of almsgiving, we can work to change that through our own small miracles of sharing. Giving of what we own and giving of ourselves may not be easy. But at the end of the day, we must remember Jesus as our example, the man who not only shared his loaves and fish but gave the ultimate sacrifice of his life for each and every one of us.
– No. 5 –
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‘At the End of the Day’ is a weekly column written by Terry McCafferty ‘22. Each week focuses on a different topic often related to politics, faith, culture, or society at large.
At Saint Ignatius, incoming freshmen form the letter "I" but are reminded that the "I", in turn, forms them.
By Patrick O’Neill ‘23
On March 12, 2020, Governor Mike Dewine officially announced that all K-12 schools in Ohio would shift to virtual learning. Beginning on March 16, 2020, the virtual learning switch was only supposed to last until April 3, 2020. Yet, as we all know, this aspiration did not go according to plan. Spring sports and Prom were canceled. Meanwhile, other events, such as graduation, Chariot Races, and the spring musical, were restructured, rescheduled, or both. Students and teachers had to finish the school year on Zoom and pray that they could safely return to campus the following year.
Now, almost a full year later, teachers, students, and faculty are preparing for the return of a full-day schedule and the entire student body due to the administration of COVID. As more vaccines are distributed throughout the Saint Ignatius community, a sense of normalcy seems to be on the horizon. Yet, even with a regained sense of normalcy, questions remain. Will a full student body allow for some social events, such as Prom, to be planned and executed?
In an interview, Senior Class President, Jackson Sonnhalter revealed that “Prom will happen and masks will be worn. We have secured a location and a back-up location.” Sonnhalter continued by stating, “We are awaiting the governor’s directions next week to determine the best location to best follow required protocols and give our seniors a deserved special event to celebrate their four years. We have not chosen a theme, yet, but that is also on the agenda for March.” Although it appears to still be in the early stages of development, rest assured that Prom is an imminent, central focus for Sonnhalter and the rest of the Student Senate.
Similarly, Mr. Yandek, one of the moderators for the senior class, said this when asked if Senior Prom was slowly coming together: “As of this moment, the administration and senior class moderators are committed to hosting a prom in some form for the Class of 2021. We are examining our options to host a prom that is both safe and inclusive for all members of the Class of 2021 who want to attend.” Mr. Yandek went on to state, “I can’t see us hosting an event at which masks would not be worn. We are still in the midst of a global pandemic. We are awaiting a formal announcement from Governor DeWine, who indicated last week that information regarding proms was imminent.”
After a year full of cancellations and reorganization, the upcoming Prom will provide a well-deserved celebration for this year’s senior class. For all of the seniors worrying whether or not they will get to take part in this once-in-a-lifetime event, fear no longer because Prom will happen.
Have you ever wanted to just create a world of your own? A world where every minute detail was in your control. For the Model Railroaders, that is something they do every day. Meet the members who put together the club’s first layout and the story behind it!
Last weekend, February 19-21, the Saint Ignatius Model United Nations (MUN) team attended the University of Michigan’s 34th annual conference, MUNUM XXXIV. This conference has been a staple of the Wildcats’ spring schedule for years, with the exception of 2020. Surely Michigan could not forget Saint Ignatius’ presence from years past; Saint Ignatius has long strived to be a luminary of peace, cleverness, cooperation, strength, and diplomacy in national MUN competitions. Although the Wolverines bested the Buckeyes in basketball the same weekend, MUN was far less disappointing. The Wildcats dominated competition from all over the country, though many of the teams hailed from the Midwest. Finishing third overall in terms of awards, Saint Ignatius brought home another podium finish back to Ohio City, the MUNUM XXXIV standings as below:
West Windsor (Plainsboro, NJ) MUNUM XXXII (2018)
Northville (Northville, MI)
Saint Ignatius (Cleveland, OH)
Calabasas (Calabasas, CA)
Columbia (Brooklyn, MI)
Greenhills (Ann Arbor, MI)
Forest Hills Central (Grand Rapids, MI)
Latin (Chicago, IL)
Dexter (Dexter, MI)
Grand Haven (Grand Haven, MI)
Kalamazoo (Kalamazoo, MI)
St. John (Toledo, OH)
Saginaw (Saginaw, MI)
Townsend (Queens, NY)
Forest Hills Northern (Grand Rapids, MI)
Novi (Novi, MI)
Seaholm (Birmingham, MI)
Washtenaw (Ann Arbor, MI)
Bloomfield Hills (Bloomfield Hills, MI)
Skyline (Ann Arbor, MI)
Owosso (Owosso, MI)
Canyon Crest (San Diego, CA)
Saline (Saline, MI)
Committee topics were expansive, only a few listed: hindering smugglers and falsified
medicine trading in the UNODC, stabilizing Japan’s 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami in the JRA, and flourishing within the political depths of China’s Tang Dynasty. Through these intricate and ambiguous issues, the Wildcats achieved a total of 9 individual awards from 30 total delegates, summing towards their 3rd straight podium finish in the 2020-21 season. The awards winners are listed below hierarchically (for all awards see https://www.munum.org/conference-handbook-1):
Best Delegate
Brendan Oliss ‘21 – United Nations Office On Drugs and Crime (UNODC)
Outstanding Delegate
Tyler Ove ‘22 – Japanese Reconstruction Agency 2011 (JRA)
Evan Johnston ‘22 – South American Independence Movement
Honorable Mention
Ferenc Somogyi ‘21 – War of 1812: Canadian Cabinet
Fitz Lokiec ‘24 – Disarmament and International Security Committee (DISEC)
Verbal Commendation
Kenny Li ‘21 – African National Congress (NECANC)
Braeden Pentz ‘22 – United Nations General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS)
Rithvik Ayyagari ‘22 – Council of the Tang Dynasty
Tyler Craciun ‘24 – World Trade Organization (WTO)
Sohan Shah ’22, Sean Poland ’21, and Brendan Oliss ’21 working together to prevent drug trafficking in the UNODC
For his first-ever award, Evan Johnston ‘22 hurdled onto the scene with a game-changing Outstanding Delegate, a second-place award for all those unaware. This saved the Wildcats from a possible 5th or 6th place finish. Using sneaky, undetected, and underwhelming tactics, he went unrecognized by his competitors in the Committee of South American Independence until it was too late: “While the rest of the delegates did very well, I think I maximized the opportunities specific to crisis committees. I was able to obtain information, assess situations quickly, use my knowledge of the history of the time period, and create good working relationships with other people. Ultimately, strategic thinking and the element of surprise worked to my advantage.” While this will be his last regular-season conference of the year, he may be selected for the annual University of Chicago conference, in the event that Saint Ignatius attends. Either way, he is excited for what the next year may hold: “Although I really enjoyed this last virtual conference, I am looking forward to in-person conferences with filled rosters next year. I think we have a really strong team this year, and I am excited to work with the new guys and some old friends next year.”
The Diplocats, concerned with a possible down-year due to COVID’s effects on extracurricular participation, managed to stay upright through February. Next season, the team looks to regain and exceed the usual roster number of 45 delegates, returning to college campus field trips rather than the library. Still, do not assume the Diplocats are satisfied with bronze; gold is sitting idly for the taking at Michigan State. MSUMUN XX remains the Diplocats’ final regular-season test from March 26-28, before looking ahead to 2021 recruiting. For the time being, the team will continue meeting Tuesdays at 3:30 in SC102. Go Cats!
The Mat Cats geared up for Senior Night on Saturday in Sullivan Gym. This would mark the final match of the regular season and the last regular season match of the six seniors Calum Campoletti, Jack Bush, Anthony Santagata, Carter Zimmerman, Andrew Chime, and Grayson McLellan’s career, as they looked to cap their careers with wins.
Wrestling began at 6 p.m. against the Strongsville Stallions, following wrestling from the youth program, JV matches, and the senior night festivities.
As usual, the match kicked off at 106, and sophomore Mac Wright stepped out onto the mat to attempt to get the Cats going. Wright looked a little overmatched in the contest, as he was taken down quickly at the start of the first period and pinned soon after in 1:18.
Senior Grayson McLellan, ranked #7 coming into this match at 113, looked to earn the first senior victory. McLellan did just that in this match, completely dominating his opponent and living up to his high rank.
McLellan earned a takedown in seconds, immediately followed with two near-fall points. After riding his opponent out for a short time, McLellan put his Strongsville opponent on his back and got the pin in 55 seconds.
Next up at 120 was junior Joey Novak, who looked to keep the momentum established by Grayson rolling, and he did just that. Novak was able to take his opponent quickly and swiftly secured the fall for the Cats in 1:07.
Animal, also known as Ryan Putka, squared off with a tough-ranked Strongsville opponent at 126. The first period was all in favor of the Stallions, as Putka’s opponent earned an early takedown and three near-fall points. Putka started on top in the second but was reversed and surrendered two more near-fall points. Putka got two points back in the second with a reversal. In the third, Animal chose bottom and was able to escape, but was taken down soon after and was ridden the rest of the period to fall via significant decision 11-3.
Senior Captain Anthony Santagata was the second senior of the night to step onto the mat and kept the immaculate night for the seniors going. Santagata earned two takedowns in the first, giving up only one escape. In the second period, Santagata was on top and made two near-fall points before his opponent escaped, but he would take his opponent down again and finish the period on top. Santagata capped his stellar performance in the third with a reversal and three near-fall points, earning him the second senior win of the night and a significant decision by a score of 13-2.
The seniors’ dominance on their special night continued with Jack Bush at 138, as he wasted little time taking his opponent down in the first period and earning a pin in 49 seconds.
The night’s precise match came at 145, which saw Senior Calum Campoletti attempting to keep the seniors perfect against a tough-ranked Stallion opponent. The match overwhelmingly fell in favor of Strongsville at the start, as Campoletti was taken down and surrendered two near-fall points in the first. However, the tides turned in the second as Campoletti and his opponent traded reversals before his opponent escaped. In a defining moment of the season, Campoletti sent Sullivan Gym into a frenzy, as down 7-4, Campoletti hit his signature move, the gator roll, and secured the emphatic win with a fall in 2:50.
At 152 for the Cats, Sam Infante kept the Cats rolling with an early takedown followed by a swift pin in 1:07.
Second-year wrestler Victor Vyotskiy stepped out onto the mat for the Cats at 160, and inexperience hurt him in this match. Vyotskiy started well initially, earning two takedowns while giving up an escape and a reversal in the same period. In the second, however, jumping on top, Victor gave up an escape and a takedown before succumbing to a pin in 2:27 after a hard-fought battle.
Up next for the Cats was sophomore Jarell Young at 170. Jarell got the Cats back on track with an early takedown and a swift pin in 1:36.
Junior Mason Smart squared off with the Stallions at 182 and started the match like he was shot out of a cannon, earning a takedown and three near-fall points in the first period. However, after electing to go down in the second, Smart could not escape and was pinned in 3:27.
The Cats kept rolling at 195, as junior Patrick Clink showed up dominantly. Clink started the match with a takedown and three near-fall points before surrendering an escape. After this escape, Clink threw his opponent to his back and secured a 53-second pin.
Cayden Periandri suited up for the Cats in the penultimate match of the night for the Cats. The first period of this contest was fruitless, but Periandri was able to make a breakthrough in the second, earning a quick reversal before putting his opponent to his back and securing a pin for the Cats in 3:25.
The last match of the 2020-2021 regular season fell into Angelo Camargo’s hands at 285. Like the previous match of Periandri, the first period was scoreless other than Camargo earning a penalty point. However, in the second, Camargo also had a breakthrough, making an escape, a takedown, and eventually a pin in 3:20.
With that match, the team score settled out to 58-22 in favor of the Cats, giving the Cats their 18th win of the season, setting their final record at 18-3.
The seniors delivered perfectly on their special night, as those that wrestled went 4-0 in their matches.
Speaking for all of the parents, coaches, and wrestlers on this team, I want to personally thank this year’s seniors for everything they’ve done. Bush, Zim, Grayson, Santagata, and Campoletti, thank you all for what you’ve done for the team this year. Zim and Santa, thank you for leading the team. I know it wasn’t always easy, and it was hard to keep things serious this year. Still, from one captain’s eyes to two others, you guys did a fantastic job this year and helped everyone in the room grow into better wrestlers and better men. Grayson, Campo, and Bush; thank you guys for keeping the atmosphere of the room so special. You guys brought laughs, jokes, and fun to the room every day, and I know, especially for me, this helped me through the hard times I’ve gone through, and I know for a fact everyone else in the room feels the same. You guys were the main reason why this team was so special this year, and I hope you all will always remember the memories we made. I wish you all the best of luck as you move on to college, and I want you to know that I genuinely love all of you as brothers. Thank you.
With the regular season ended, the Cats now move on to the postseason. They travel to Strongsville High School for the sectional tournament this Saturday, the 27th. There will be split sessions for the sectional tournament, with 106-145 wrestling beginning at 9 a.m. and 152-285 beginning at 4:00 p.m. Information about streaming matches will be communicated soon. No spectators besides the parents of wrestlers will be allowed.
The Cats will look to match their stellar sectional performance last year, as they sent all 13 wrestlers that they brought to sectionals to districts. Senior captain Carter Zimmerman believes they can, as he says, “I think this team has a lot of potential, and I think we’re going to make a lot of noise this weekend.” Good luck this weekend, men, and Go Cats!
The Wildcats continue the winning streak as they advance in the OHSAA Playoffs after a 10-0 win over The Brooklyn Hurricanes.
It has been a long time coming for Five Ice-Cats to get their first varsity goal in the win. Junior Kevin Mays fed fellow linemate, Senior Brian Strick for Strick’s first goal of the year. Kevin Mays also notched his first in period one. Junior Logan Rechin, who was called up early in the season, also got one in his first playoff game as a Saint Ignatius Wildcat.
“The playoffs are a bit different this year because there aren’t as many fans,” says Strick. “We used that to our advantage, as we were able to communicate better, and we got the win.
Sophomore Ben Nadzam and Junior Quinn Tabol found the back of the net one time each as they also got their first varsity goals. This was an all-around team win for the Cats as they advance to play an excellent Olmsted Falls team Thursday at 5:30 p.m. in round two. Olmsted Falls pulled off the upset to beat Holy Name and play the Cats at John M. Coyne Rec Center. Tune in to The SIBN for Live coverage of the game, Go Cats!
medicine trading in the UNODC, stabilizing Japan’s 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami in the JRA, and flourishing within the political depths of China’s Tang Dynasty. Through these intricate and ambiguous issues, the Wildcats achieved a total of 9 individual awards from 30 total delegates, summing towards their 3rd straight podium finish in the 2020-21 season. The awards winners are listed below hierarchically (for all awards see 
Sohan Shah ’22, Sean Poland ’21, and Brendan Oliss ’21 working together to prevent drug trafficking in the UNODC
