The official student newspaper of Walter Johnson High School

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The official student newspaper of Walter Johnson High School

The Pitch
The official student newspaper of Walter Johnson High School

The Pitch
All content by Photo by Sanir Byanjankar
Senior SGA president Ethan Mendes hypes up the crowd and gets them ready for the pep rally. "There is nothing quite like jumping on the field for the pep rally under the scrutiny of 3000 + students. The crowd has an great vibe that reciprocates my energy I give to hype the people up," Mendes said.

Leadership hosts spring pep rally

Noel Haptemariam, Staff Writer
Mar 27, 2023
Senior captain Ethan Birndorf lines up for a faceoff against Marriotts Ridge. The Icecats went on to win the game in style, 12-1.

Icecats blaze trail towards state championship

Luke Liden, Print EIC
Feb 24, 2023
Senior Christion Wright waits to defend his man as Seneca brings the ball up. The Wildcat's record is now 6-9.

Wildcats fall to Seneca Valley

Audrey Ring, Online Sports Editor
Feb 16, 2023
Pitch staff writer Andrew Plotnick dives into the week with a sports recap of last week.

Inside the Den: Weekly Sports Recap Feb 6th-10th

Andrew Plotnick and Sanir Byanjankar
Feb 14, 2023
From left: seniors Adam Greene, Ethan Birndorf, Utkarsh Srivastava and sophomore Liam Mannle celebrate team Captain Birndorf's second period goal against Whitman.

Icecats enter county playoffs as the team to beat

Luke Liden, Print EIC
Feb 7, 2023
Senior Christion Wright shoots two at the line. Wright went on to make 4 back-to-back three-pointers in the third quarter.

Boys’ basketball loses last-second heartbreaker at BCC

Audrey Ring, Online Sports Editor
Jan 31, 2023
Senior Andre Gaskins goes up for a catch in football's 7 on 7 summer league. The Wildcats use 7 on 7 games over the summer to prepare and build team chemistry for the regular season in the fall.

WJ sport’s biggest secret: The story behind the Wildcat offseason teams

Andrew Plotnick, Joshua Singer and Blake Bailey
Jan 25, 2023
Sophomore Jordan Silverstein races down the court on a fast break. The Rockville game was the first victory the Wildcats had in six games.

WJ boys’ basketball falls to RM and Gaithersburg, defeats Rockville

Audrey Ring, Online Sports Editor
Jan 17, 2023
Senior Niko Natsvlishvili walks across the stage after graduating. June saw the graduation of the Class of 2022

WJ: A year in review

Joshua Singer, Liann Keren and Seyun Park
Dec 21, 2022
Junior Ben Kim looks for an open opportunity on the court. Kim was the leading scorer with a game-high 18 points this season.

WJ improves to 3-1, victory over Blair

Audrey Ring, Online Sports Editor
Dec 19, 2022
Senior captain Christion Wright lines up as Blake Baily shoots free throws. The Wildcats are now 2-1 entering the game Friday night against Blair.

Boys’ basketball bests Northwood

Audrey Ring, Online Sports Editor
Dec 16, 2022
Christion Wright shoots at the line two free throws after getting fouled during a layup. Wright went on to score nine points in the game against Wootton.

Boys varsity basketball falls to Wootton

Audrey Ring, Online Sports Editor
Dec 14, 2022
Freshman RB Dylan Byrd powers forward against Wootton. The roaring crowd fueled the players in the win.

Raising MCPS GPA thresholds serves athletes off the field

Blake Bailey, Online Opinion Editor
Dec 11, 2022
Icecats swarm Alex Chang to celebrate in front of a full crowd decked out in black. Even though they were in the process of killing off a penalty, Chang was able to put one past BCC's goalie.

Early goals propel Icecats to victory over Barons

Luke Liden, Print EIC
Dec 10, 2022
Senior and captain Ethan Birndorf picks up his stick after laying the boom on a Churchill player. The crowd's energy was off the charts and contributed to a more physical affair.

Icecats eruptive offense brings hope for states

Luke Liden, Print EIC
Nov 30, 2022
Freshman running back Dylan Byrd breaks a tackle. Byrd had success running the ball multiple times against Seneca Valley and will make an effort to perform similarly in the regular season finale against Wootton.

Eagles beat Wildcats in fight for playoff home field advantage

Elizabeth Finn, Print Sports Editor
Oct 28, 2022
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Football remains undefeated at home

Elizabeth Finn, Print Sports Editor
Oct 25, 2022
Senior captain and linebacker/running back CJ Newman prepares himself for the start of the game. To get ready, he listened to music including the song, "Forever" by Drake. "Sometimes before a game I'll give a little pep talk to the team, pretty much telling everyone to have confidence," Newman said.

CJ Newman: Leading the way to the next level

Elizabeth Finn, Print Sports Editor
Oct 22, 2022
The student section cheers on the football team as they face BCC. Only students from the participating schools are allowed to attend athletic events unless they have a chaperone with them.

Do students feel safe at athletic events?

Dylan Schmidt, Print Sports Editor
Oct 19, 2022
Senior captain and linebacker CJ Newman and junior wide receiver/defensive back Nick Zampardi line up to try and stop the Barons triple option offense. Zampardi was able to record an interception during the game.

Cats come back to defeat BCC in final minute

Joshua Singer, Print Sports Editor
Oct 13, 2022
Senior quarterback Andrew Plotnick hands the ball to freshman running back Dylan Byrd. Northwest trailed the entire game while trying to stop the WJ offense from continuing their successful.

Wildcats beat Northwest for first time in 12 years

Elizabeth Finn, Print Sports Editor
Oct 6, 2022
The mighty madcows were loud as the Wildcats came out of a timeout and went back into formation during a 42-0 route of Wheaton. Even with the new athletic policies being passed, the WJ student section remained loud and supported the team during a crucial away game.

New MCPS athletic policies receive mixed reactions

Jack Stashower, Multimedia Marketing Manager
Oct 6, 2022
The girls' soccer team celebrates junior midfielder/forward Irene Sánchez Burgueño's game-winning goal in overtime. The Cats defeated the Wootton Patriots 2-1 to improve their record to 7-0.

Week in review: Cats beat RM, get revenge in OT thriller vs. Wootton

Joshua Singer, Print Sports Editor
Oct 3, 2022
Senior quarterback Andrew Plotnick hands off the ball to senior running back Kiran Sen. Both players hope to find similar connection against Northwest. “I am confident in our team’s ability to come back after a loss last year, and we have the talent to perform well,” Sen said.

Football bounces back against Wheaton

Elizabeth Finn, Print Sports Editor
Sep 29, 2022
Junior Aranda Hurge tries to make a juke against senior Trinity Hill. While , she does this her teammates Yness Seidnaly, Isabella Mondelli, and Rita Bousadi run with her as they all try to advance down the field.

Seniors compete against juniors in powder puff flag football game

Noel Haptemariam, Staff Writer
Jun 17, 2022
Senior Niko Natsvlishvili walks across the stage after graduating from Walter Johnson.

Different preferences cause different colleges

Nick Opipari, Staff Writer
Jun 14, 2022
Senior captain Julia Beato performs a front handspring during the vault event. While the Wildcats finished in 3rd place, the whole team gave it their all and had a fantastic last meet.

Gymnastics team takes 3rd place in counties

Luke Liden, Print Sports Editor
May 24, 2022
Seniors Will Dash and J.P Rakis strategize their next attack in a game against Walt Whitman. WJ went on to win this game in overtime with the game-winner coming from Rakis.

Boys lacrosse gains momentum as the end of the regular season approaches

Jackson Buss, Online Editor-in-Chief
May 8, 2022
The team celebrates a point during their April 4 game against Wootton HS. The team lost one set against Wootton, one of only four sets they've lost all season.

Boys’ Volleyball clinch division, finish regular season undefeated

Seyun Park, Staff Writer
May 2, 2022
Junior and team captain Sebastiano Sani spikes the ball during the team's home game against Wootton HS, April 4th. The team ended up beating Wootton 3-1 to continue its winning streak.

Boys’ volleyball remains undefeated more than halfway through season

Seyun Park, Staff Writer
Apr 6, 2022
On Feb. 2, Amir Frye officially commits to Shepherd University. Frye is ready to take his skill to the next level and compete like never before.

A new journey begins for football commits

Marco Albertini, Staff Writer
Mar 28, 2022
Screenshot 2022-03-07 9.47.02 AM

WJ vs Richard Montgomery Round 1 of MPSSA Playoffs

Sanir Byanjankar
Mar 7, 2022
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