Category Archives: Sports

Lacrosse team destined for greatness

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by Kylayah Davis

Patterson High School’s lacrosse team is on the rise. At the time of writing this article, the team is number 3 in the city with 9 wins and 2 losses this year, an improvement over last year’s record was of 5-7.

Coach Falcone said he has been coaching lacrosse for seven years and has been coaching at Patterson for two years. When asked what he likes about coaching at Patterson he said the kids and getting to build the varsity program from the ground up and watching it grow. The coach is hopeful that in the next two or three years there will also be a JV team.

Coach Falcone had goals for this year’s lacrosse team:

  1. Beat the teams they lost to last year
  1. Have a better record than last year
  1. Be able to compete.

This team is not the same team from last year and it is not the same team from the beginning of the season when they won their first game against NAF by a score of 13-3. The team has gotten even better at coming together, sharing, and being a family on the field. An extra pass or an extra rep to get to the next goal can make the difference between victory and defeat. The Clippers are always looking for ‘the one more’. However the team has a laid back demeanor and it takes them a while to get started, so their next goal is to work on urgency, coming out of the gate ready and starting fast.

Offensive player Yohan Hernandez is a sophomore who also plays for Patterson’s soccer team and started playing lacrosse at Patterson this year. He came into lacrosse looking for people to hang out with. Hernandez is close with his teammates. He keeps up good grades off the field and he is good with moving the ball on the field. Hernandez had this to say about his coach: “Coach Falcone is a coach that understands discipline. He’s not easy on them because he knows they can do it and understands what it takes to get there.”

Goalie Lykiea Anderson recently reached a record of 100 career saves in lacrosse. When asked about next year’s goalie she says that if the current candidate for goalie takes it seriously she believes they have what it takes to do it.  

Another goal for the team is to have a great enough season that they can host their playoffs. Currently their record stands at 9-2.

The Patterson Lacrosse team has already accomplished great things this school year, and their future looks even brighter.

Let’s learn about badminton

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by Kylayah Davis

Patterson’s badminton team defeated Edmondson Westside High School on Friday, April 19.

Now, I always like to do research before any event but today I decided to go completely ignorant and learn from the team. So I interviewed Coach Bomar and players Banny and Jeani, where I learned some interesting facts about badminton:

  1. There are both JV and varsity teams in badminton.
  2. They play the best 2 out of 3 matches to determine a winner.
  3. A typical game takes around 10 minutes.
  4. It takes 21 points to win each game.
  5. You have to win by at least 2 points.
  6. There are no referees.

Yes, you read that right: There are no refs or officials in badminton. As Coach Bomar explained, badminton is a sport of integrity and etiquette; it goes by honesty. 

The players keep track of the score themselves by saying “Are you ready? (number of points) serving (number of points)”. You have to ask “Are you ready?” before you serve because if your opponent isn’t ready and you serve, it would be unsportsmanlike. 

When I asked Coach Bomar why he coaches badminton, he told me to look around.

“No-one’s yelling, no one’s arguing, there’s no flags, no fighting after the games.”, observed Coach Bomar. “There are Edmondson girls playing with Patterson girls. It’s really a fun sport”.

Coach Bomar has been coaching badminton for ten years, and Coach Bloom has been doing it for two years.

Badminton is an all girls sport in Maryland that was established in order to balance out the amount of male and female sports. Check out our school’s badminton games every Tuesday and Thursday.

Patterson competes in first City Schools esports event

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(Photo by Mr. Sokolski)

by Deontay Blackwell

April 11, 2024 marked the first ever Electronic Sports (esports) event in Baltimore City Public Schools with Patterson High School competing against Benjamin Franklin High School in a Super Smash Bros. Ultimate tournament bracket. Patterson defeated Ben Franklin by a score of 4-1 in Super Smash Bros Ultimate. The team persevered through a bad internet connection to pull out the win.

Mr. Sokolski (or Mr. Ski, as most students call him) is the coach for Patterson High School’s esports team and runs Patterson’s gaming club.

“I think it is an awesome opportunity for students, especially students who may not have other activities that they are interested in. It’s a place where they can get more involved in the school, and competing against other schools, and be part of that school spirit.”

Mr. Ski wanted students to gain a group of friends, have fun together, and especially get good at video games. As esports events have been becoming more popular, students can potentially start a career in gaming by competing in cash cups and being on an esports team. 

Mr. Ski has an Advisory class and after-school club for the gaming club. He has multiple Nintendo Switches and a PlayStation to run games like Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, all current year Madden, 2K, FC24, Brawhella, and Rocket League. The students who participated in the esports event against Franklin were Jeremy Jones, Rachard Ockimey, Nicholas Callis, Phillip Jones, and myself–Deontay Blackwell.

For the other players, it has been a great experience for them being able to participate in an esports tournament for the first time.

“You don’t know how experienced they are at the game. You don’t know who they play as. It’s only fun when you actually give yourself a challenge.”, said Rachard Ockimey as they all shared how they felt during the tournament. 

This was the first school year that Patterson participated in esports, but it will not be the last.

(Video by Mr. Sokolski)

Wrestling Team Interviews

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(Photo by Phillip Jones, Patterson Press)

by Phillip Jones

The Patterson wrestling team had a great season this school year. To learn more about what drives the team, the Patterson Press sat down with wrestling Coach Andrews and wrestler Angel. Here is what they had to say:

Coach Andrews

What inspired you to coach the team?

Being a former Patterson varsity wrestler, I’ve seen over the years that many of the wrestlers did not have the technique needed to compete. To be honest, I was not concerned with my impact on the young people being taught to compete at first.

How did you prepare the team?

Preparing the wrestling team has to be ongoing, meaning constant communication and building a relationship between the coach and a wrestler. It’s not just in school; communicating with the parents/guardians and building trust in the key.

How do you feel about your team’s progress?

Progress has been improving since becoming the head coach in 2019. Now, in the 23-24 season, the wrestling program is starting to peak. We now have athletes that are placing in the regional tournaments. Also, the city tournament next year will be exclusive to those who really buy into the coaching.

How much experience do you have with wrestling?

I started wrestling in the eighth grade, from there going to Patterson High School. I made the team as a 10th grader because I was getting better and learning from great coaches. Many of the leaders of the team during the ’80 to ’83 seasons built up the strength of the team and understood Patterson Pride. Helping for all the years going to coaching clinics and competing, I have well over 15 years.

What were your best and worst years?

My worst year was 2019-2020. COVID shut everything down that year. My recruiting list was 179 males and [it was tough] not knowing what the outcome would’ve been. By far my best year was 2022-2023. We had five wrestlers and a winning percentage as individuals. It lets me know we can compete anywhere at the high school level.

Angel (Patterson wrestler)

Who is your biggest motivation?

My biggest inspiration is Coach Andrews. He pushed me to be a greater person.

What do you want to work on?

I want to work on obtaining a degree in engineering.

What did you nail this year that you didn’t last year?

This season I was more [well] rounded, having only lost once. I limited my technique to a handful [of moves], unlike last year where I would get confused and fall short.

How did you feel about your second year?

I feel like I did as much as I could this year with everything I’ve learned.

What’s your favorite wrestling move?

I personally don’t have a favorite move or set up, I take what I learned from all 3 styles of wrestling.

(Photos by Phillip Jones, Patterson Press)

Boys basketball team wins Regional Championship

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by Kylayah Davis

The Patterson Clippers varsity boys basketball team came back from a rough start to what was ultimately a very successful year, ending their season with a final record of 18 wins to 7 losses.

On Tuesday, December 5th, the boys basketball team lost their first game of the season. In a post game interview with Coach Oliver about the team’s performance, the coach felt his team did poorly because they were undisciplined and wanted to do things their way, resulting in 27 turnovers.

“They need to improve on listening and being disciplined. They need to work on every aspect of the game, free throws, running sets, not throwing the ball away, layups and doing what they are told, improving on the basics.”, Coach Oliver had said at the time.

Coach Oliver is the head coach of the boys basketball team. He has been coaching basketball for over 30 years and at Patterson since 2011.

When asked in December about his hopes for the season, Coach Oliver said he hoped that all his seniors graduate and go to school and that his team wins city, regional and state championships.

The Clippers had another game that Friday, December 8th, against Bard where they won 67-15. They went on to accomplish their goals of winning the city championship against Poly by a score of 55-52 and the regional championship against City with a score of 56-52. The team then went on to win their first playoff game against Edgewood, 66-53.

On March 8th, Patterson competed in their second playoff game against Northeast High School, where they narrowly lost by a score of 69-65. The top scorers in that game were:

  • Sincere Bartfield -25 points
  • Caleb Burgess – 10 points
  • Marcellus Dobbins -13 points
  • Montrell Burgess – 8 points
  • Amare Carr – 4 points

There were 12 turnovers in that game.

“Northeast out-rebounded us 45-25.”, explained Coach Oliver. “To other people and our supporters we had a good season, but to me the season was trash; we shouldn’t have lost any games.”

The team ended their season with a record of 18-7 and as Coach Oliver acknowledged, the players’ peers and the school are proud of them. 

At the time of publishing, senior Trent Tedder is committed to go to Methodist University and Sincere Bartfield–who won the Player of the Year award for Baltimore City–is committed to go to Baltimore City Community College.

Get ready for the 2024-2025 school year and all our boys basketball team has to offer.

Clippers track and field team makes history at City Championships

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(Photo by Kylayah Davis/Patterson Press)

By Coach Smith

The Patterson track and field team made history at the Baltimore City Indoor Track and Field Championships on Thursday, January 25 at the Prince George’s County Sportsplex. Najah White AKA “Little Nae” won 2 gold medals. She won a gold medal in the mile and rebroke the school record. Then, an hour later, she won a gold medal in the 2 mile.

Additionally, many of our other runners also broke school records. The girls 4 x 400 meter relay team of Ahmawanyah Lewis, Najah White, Dayvia Weaver, and Quintine Nterere broke the school record. Additionally, Rancel Corporan Lagombra broke the school record in the 500 meters. The boys 4 x 800 meter relay team of Joel Lukoo, Vema Maneno, Aaden Hopkins, and Rancel Corporan Lagombra broke the school record. And the boys 4 x 400 meter relay team of Aaden Hopkins, Joel Lukoo, Marshall Mallory, and Rancel Corporan Lagombra broke the school record.

Our track and field team is comprised mostly of freshmen and sophomores. In the next year or two, Patterson track and field will take over the city of Baltimore.

(Photos by Kylayah Davis/Patterson Press)

Patterson wins silver medal in tennis championship

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By Deontay Blackwell

The Patterson High School unified tennis team competed in the City Championship at Coppermine Fitness Club on October 24, 2023. Patterson faced off against six other schools: ACCE, Edmondson, Forest Park, Western, Carver, and Frederick Douglass. Each school had three to four matches to determine the winner in its respective section, with Patterson taking home silver medals for placing second in the B section. 

 “It was really fun… I was kinda nervous.” Said Nalia Jenkins, one of the tennis players who competed at the City Championship.

Ms. Mahoney is the unified tennis coach for Patterson and has been coaching it for two years but has been coaching other sports, such as swimming and softball, for the past eleven years. Patterson’s tennis team is new, having started only two years ago. In the previous year, the Clippers won third place in the City Championship.

The Patterson unified tennis team still has a bright future ahead as the team is still very new with many more games to come.

Students and staff show their Patterson Pride during Spirit Week

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By Kylayah Davis

Every year, on the week of Homecoming, we have Spirit Week, where the student body shows their school spirit for the upcoming football game, and this year at Patterson High School the Clippers really showed their school spirit!

This school year, Spirit Week took place on the week of October 16. The first day of Spirit Week was “Manic Monday”, where you dress up in your sports paraphernalia. While most students committed to wearing sports clothes, others took a different approach and wore hospital gowns to truly be manic. 

Our beloved hall monitor Mr. Walker, affectionately known as “Snitch”, is considered by many to be our school’s most manic sports fan, as his everyday attire shows his support for the Baltimore Ravens and Orioles. 

On Tuesday, it was Celebrity/Decades Day and there were a variety of outfits on this day. Students and staff wore outfits from the 80’s and 90’s or dressed as Chris Brown and other celebrities.

Wednesday was “Wacky Tacky” day where, as the name suggests, you dress in your wackiest, tackiest clothes. 

Thursday was Class Colors day and each cohort wore their colors: 

  • Class of 2024: Red & white
  • Class of 2025: Green and gold
  • Class of 2026: Maroon and gold
  • Class of 2027: Green and white

Friday was our pep rally, which took place in the football stadium and was attended by the entire school, and a Homecoming dance where the theme was “Sneaker Ball”.

All of these festivities were to prepare for our Homecoming football game on Saturday, October 21.

Read more about the Homecoming dance here.

MANIC MONDAY (SPORTS):

CELEBRITY/DECADES DAY:

WACKY TACKY WEDNESDAY:

PEP RALLY – PART 1:

PEP RALLY – PART 2:

PEP RALLY – PART 3:

PEP RALLY – PART 4 (includes earlier photos from a second camera):

PEP RALLY – PART 5 (second camera):

HOMECOMING GAME – PART 1:

HOMECOMING GAME – PART 2:

(All photos by Patterson Press)

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