PALADIN PROUD Newsletter

December 2024

Congratulations to our High School Men's and Women's Cross Country teams who are BOTH the 2024 TAPPS 3A State Champions! This marks the fifth year in a row that our men are state champions and the fourth year for the women! The Lady Paladins had a massive win with six of our athletes medaling in the Top 10 of their 2-mile race, earning the designation of TAPPS First Team All-State: Sarah Kleppel 1st, Savannah Ohmes 2nd, Sara Bachelder 4th, Kennedy Lynch 5th, *Berkeley Scott 6th, and Isabelle Eppers 8th place. Our final female runner, Ivy Medders, finished 23rd. The Paladin Men also seized a decisive victory in their 5k race with First Team All-Staters *Steven Wimberly 1st, Kaeden Beno 2nd, *Henry Stevens 3rd, Elijah Zuniga 5th, and Carter Self 9th place. Our other men finished in the Top 20 with Price Jenkins in 17th and Owen Eppers in 20th place. Thank you to Coach Jones, Coach Zuniga, and all our parents and volunteers for investing in these student-athletes. Way to go, Paladins!

*These Paladins also earned TAPPS Academic All-State, awarded to juniors and seniors who placed in the Top 15 at State and have a cumulative average of 90 or above.

Congratulations to the Paladin Varsity Volleyball Team who made PCS history as the undefeated TAPPS 3A District 5, Area, Regional, and STATE Champions! Because they finished first in District, they earned a bye for the Bi-District playoff game and advanced as Top Seed in the Area playoff, hosted at PCS. The Paladins won the Area playoff in straight sets over Live Oak Classical from Waco. They advanced to the Regional playoff against Keystone School from San Antonio at a neutral location in Columbus, TX, and again won in three straight sets. The Lady Paladins went on to the Final Four at the TAPPS State Tournament in Waco where they defeated Wylie Prep in 3 sets in the semi-finals. In the Final State Championship Game, the Lady Paladins shut out Faith Academy of Marble Falls in three sets to win the TAPPS State Championship! We are incredibly proud of these hard-working and talented student-athletes. A huge thank you to Coaches Mallori Howington and Talicia Johnson, our dedicated volleyball families, and our amazing PCS super-fans for a fantastic season! To God be the glory!

Back Row: Dan Barnes (Memorial Hermann Trainer), Talicia Johnson (Assistant Coach), Emarie Graham (11th), *†◊Mia Crowley (11th), *†◊Peytyn Pyle (District MVP - 11th), ※Finley Albiston (10th), ※Cambry Wick (10th), ‡◊Savannah Goodwin (10th), Mallori Howington (Head Coach)

Front Row: Lexa Lancaster (9th), Hannah Wylie-Young (12th), *‡◊Megan Sneller (12th), †◊Makenzie Turosik (9th), *※Berkeley Scott (11th), Angie Dupu (9th), Ellie Lancaster (11th)

*TAPPS Academic All-State
†1st Team All-State
‡2nd Team All-State
◊1st Team All-District
※2nd Team All-District

The PCS Middle School Cross Country teams had a phenomenal showing at the HAPS District Championship! Our Division I Boys and Division II Girls teams both took first place, and Division II Boys finished fourth. Top 10 medalists included Sara Kate Beno 5th, Ava Witherspoon 6th, James Wimberly 2nd, Isaiah Zuniga 4th, Grace Kleppel 1st, Hadley Witherspoon 2nd, Selah Birch 3rd, and Susanna Bachelder 5th place. Thank you to Coach Jones, Coach Zuniga, and our fantastic parent volunteers for another successful season!

Congratulations to our Middle School Volleyball teams who both played fantastic seasons! Our A Team ended the season second in their district and advanced through the playoffs to the Division I Championship where they finished Runners-Up. The B Team finished their regular season in first place, having lost only one game. They also advanced through the playoffs to the Division II Championship and finished Runners-Up. Thank you to Coaches Melanie Hudson and Jennifer Javens and our dedicated parents for doing so much to develop these young athletes!

A Team
Back Row:  Melanie Hudson (Head Coach), Addie Metry (8th), Olivia Simons (8th), Jennifer Javens (Assistant Coach)
Middle Row:  Charlotte Goodwin (8th), Avery Miller (7th), Sofia Boulos (8th), Davy Connor (8th), Ellery Farbe (8th)
Front Row:  Katy Fuchs (8th), Brittany Valerio (8th), Eliana McDonough (8th), Aggie Marusik (8th)

B Team
Back Row:  Melanie Hudson (Head Coach), Sage Williams (6th), Leah Sneller (7th), Jennifer Javens (Assistant Coach)
Middle Row:  Bree Hogan (7th), Andrea Cunningham (7th), Olivia Schultz (6th), Zoey Stepan (7th), Lillian Talkington (6th)
Front Row:  Gemma Cardenas (7th), Savannah Javens (6th), Sarah Mentesana (7th), Mia Metry (6th), Grace Kleppel (6th), Evelyn McDonough (7th)

Grammar School Assistant Principal, Kerry Price, and her daughter, Emma Price (c/o 2019), turned their creativity, resourcefulness, and passion for thrifting into a business called Plain to Jane in 2022. They repurpose and flip home decor items, sold from their booth at the Antique Gallery of Houston. Americans throw away around 12 million tons of furniture and décor pieces each year. Kerry's and Emma's mission is to combat this waste by reclaiming, repurposing, and restoring a fraction of these items. While Kerry manages the hands-on tasks of the business, Emma keeps things running smoothly behind the scenes and oversees the company's social media. Check out their gorgeous work on Instagram or Facebook!

PCS juniors (and Varsity Volleyball State Champions!) Peytyn Pyle and Mia Crowley have been recruited to play Division 1 volleyball in college! Peytyn has verbally committed to play at Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama, on a full 4-year scholarship. Mia has verbally committed to play for Stonehill College outside of Boston, Massachusetts, also on scholarship. We are so proud of both of these dedicated student-athletes and know that God has great things in store for them. Congratulations to Mia, Peytyn, and their families!

PCS junior Emarie Graham spent her summer competing with her horse, Captain, in the United States Eventing Association (USEA) trials along the East Coast where she qualified to attend The American Eventing Championship in Lexington, KY. Horse eventing has been described as an “equestrian triathlon” with three phases that test the horse's and rider’s skills on the flat (dressage), over fences (stadium jumping), and galloping over fences across the countryside (cross country). Riders from all over the country compete at this championship. Emarie competed in the starter division and placed 12th out of 40 riders. Congratulations, Emarie!

Sophomore Turner Young won Honorable Mention in a local pro-life essay contest sponsored by Life First. He won $150, will have a chance to compete at the state level, and will soon receive recognition on the Life First website. Well done, Turner!

David Reenders (c/o 2021) is one of eight College of Engineering, Architecture and Technology students selected as Oklahoma State University Seniors of Significance for the 2024-2025 academic year by the OSU Alumni Association. This award recognizes students who truly exemplify and embody the Cowboy Code, which honors the University’s land-grant mission and commends academic achievements, character, and personal impact. David studies aerospace engineering and participates in Air Force ROTC. He will graduate in May and be commissioned in the Air Force. His wife, Anika Benthem Reenders (PCS c/o 2021), graduated last May and is currently pursuing a master’s degree in Public Health. We look forward to seeing how God continues to use them to impact their culture for Christ!

Evan Simons (c/o 2022) is a junior honors student majoring in management information systems at Oklahoma State University through the Spears School of Business. Having maintained a 4.0 GPA, Evan was one of only five students from the school, freshmen through seniors, who were awarded the opportunity to attend a major technology conference, all expenses paid. This international conference was hosted by the Technology Service Industry Association. Evan was able to hear firsthand insights into this industry as well as connect with professionals in the business. We are thankful to see him thriving and succeeding in his chosen field!

In September, we received an exciting update from the parents of recent PCS graduate Andrew Williams (c/o 2024). Andrew is a freshman at Trinity University in San Antonio. He is in the Pre-Law Department, double majoring in political science and philosophy on the prestigious, merit-based Murchison Scholarship. Upon attending his Intro to Philosophy class the first week of school, Andrew found it to be a repetition of material he had already fully covered at Providence. He met with the Chair of the Philosophy Department (a Harvard grad and former Harvard professor) and wrote a defense as to why he should be considered for one of the upper-level Philosophy courses. The Chair reviewed Andrew’s Senior Thesis as well as other papers he wrote at PCS. In her response, she said, “I have never waived a freshman requirement course, but in your case, you can take upper-level Political Philosophy." She also commented she wished that she had attended a school like Andrew's. He is now in her Political Philosophy class and working one-on-one with her to prepare for a dual major in law school. He plans to join the Mock Trial team in his sophomore year. Andrew's mother writes, "What a testament to the Providence curriculum and high standards!"

Avery Martin (c/o 2016) is the daughter of Grammar School Principal Melissa Martin and her husband, Steve. Avery married Kaman Turner in June 2022, and the couple live in Granbury, Texas. They welcomed a beautiful baby girl named Sunny Anne Turner on September 22, 2024. Congratulations to the Turner and Martin families!

Thomas Kopp (c/o 2014) and his wife, Brittany Alexander, welcomed daughter Hannah Renee Kopp on July 6, 2024. Thomas is the son of former PCS Latin teacher Rebecca Howard and her husband, Tom Kopp. Thomas and Brittany live near Washington, D.C., where Brittany works in survey statistics, and Thomas works for Bretton Woods Recreation Center in Maryland, teaching outdoor educational activities. Congratulations to the Kopp-Alexander family!

Corey'L Sams (c/o 2022) is a Forty Acres Scholar in the Canfield Business Honors & Marketing program at the University of Texas at Austin. He founded Create To Inspire Enterprises (CTIE), dedicated to transforming innovative ideas into reality for startups and companies. He recently partnered with Brrr Box and was featured on the STRT website. Click here to read!

Aydan Graham (c/o 2022) has started a nonprofit, service-based company called Red’s Helpers. Red’s Helpers provides home healthcare and pre-planning advocacy to families in Alabama at affordable rates, especially in rural areas. They accomplish this by partnering with local hospitals and pre-med college students. Aydan is currently a junior at the University of Alabama majoring in international studies and political science with a minor in Spanish. We look forward to seeing how God uses her to impact her community!

Join us in celebrating God's goodness! Send newsletter submissions to Dawn Adkins.

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18100 Stuebner Airline Road
Klein, TX 77379
281-320-0500
www.pcsclassical.org