Andrea Goble

After spending nearly a year recuperating from an ACL tear, senior Ravenwood Dance Team member Andrea Goble is gearing up for Nationals.

"It was so hard not being able to dance, but I am actually thankful now because my mom and I have become so close.  Everyone calls us the Siamese Twins,"  Goble says.

The national competition begins Feb. 5 in Orlando, Fla.  Ravenwood Dance Team has won the state title for the past three years, and placed second and fifth in competitions at Nationals last year. Andrea predicts this will be their strongest showing in her four years.

After Nationals, Andrea will travel to the University of Alabama, where she has already been accepted, to audition for a dance major.  If accepted into the dance program, Andrea will double major in dance and business.

At Ravenwood Andrea is active in DECA, and loves doing community service through her sorority RGC.  She also dances competitively with her team at DC Dance Factory.  Since fifth grade Andrea has been with the same team, and they have traveled all over the country for competitions.  Kristen Hawk has been her coach the entire way, and also started the Woodland Dance team.

Andrea's sister, Cassandra, is only 17 months older and the two danced on the same teams growing up.  Cassandra is a freshman at Belmont studying nursing.  Lee and Sandy Goble are her parents.

Mary Rachel

Mary Rachal, a junior on Brentwood High’s bowling team, might be the first undercover FBI agent/pro bowler in history.  Mary's plan is to attend LouisianaStateUniversity and major in criminal justice.  Then she wants to attend the FBI training academy in Virginia.  Then, we may never know....

This was the first year BrentwoodHigh School sponsored a bowling team, with Jennifer Perry as coach.  Mary was thrilled to see it finally happen as she has enjoyed bowling with friends and family since the 6th grade.  Her highest scoring game - 192 – came on  Jan.  2 at Cosmic Bowling.  She has also had six strikes in one game, and participates in a bowling league at Franklin Lanes. 

Mary, the youngest of six children, is the daughter of James and Deborah Rachal.  Mary love for bowling stems from how it brings her large family together.   "Whether it is three, six or eight of us, bowling is something we automatically do.  We will always have this fun sport we can do together that has created so many funny family memories."

Mary credits her brother Justin, 25, for teaching her the game and being the family organizer for any bowling get-togethers.  Most of the Rachal family lives in Louisiana, so Mary looks forward to spending time with them while attending LSU.

Beyond bowling, Mary plays on the BHS Rugby team, studies hard, and waits tables at Logan's Roadhouse.  With any spare time, Mary is a talented pastry chef.  She will certainly have many options to disguise her undercover agent identity.

Donovan Freeman

Senior wrestler Donovan Freeman  is Ravenwood's  Athlete of the Week.  Though he’s only wrestled for two years as compared to his four years as placekicker on the RHS football team, wrestling has turned out to be his favorite sport.

"It's the best of both worlds.  You are a part of a team, yet you are completely responsible for your individual win or loss," he said.

It is also in his blood.  The Freeman family has a long and successful history in wrestling.  Donovan's father Don was a star wrestler in high school. Brother Jacob, a RHS freshman, has a 36-1 record this year (as of last week), and their younger brother, fifth-grader Nicholas, is already a wrestling stand out.  Mom Michelle holds everything together. She’s the "real reason for the Freeman's  family success," Donovan said. He also credits Coach Pappas , a RHS coach, for instilling his love for the sport.

Freeman will enter the State Duels tournament with a record of 30 wins and 4 losses and 15 pins.  The team currently has a 40 - 3 record, which hopefully will gain them the No. 1 seed in the Regional tournament.

Donovan has a 3.7 GPA, and is already taking college classes at ColumbiaState every afternoon.  His dream would be to attend and wrestle for OhioState.  University of Tennessee-Chattanooga is also where he aspires to attend, and has been contacted to wrestle there also.

Brandon Sudzius

Brandon Sudzius is the top senior bowler on BrentwoodHigh School's new bowling team.  His highest scoring game - 198 with five strikes, was against PageHigh School on Dec. 9. 

Throughout his four years at BHS, Brandon has played on the tennis team, the Ultimate Frisbee Team and the hockey team.  He is also a member of the computer club and National Honor Society.  He currently has a 4.2 GPA, taking all honors and AP classes and plans to attend the University of Illinois.  Bowling on the Illinois team is a possibility he will consider once he gets to school.

The BHS bowling team usually practices and competes at The Franklin and Tusculum Lanes, taking up only three to four hours a week from his extremely rigorous study schedule.  Brandon stated it was a great way to be a part of a BHS team sport and hopes the team will grow over the years.

"We had beginners, we had kids who have bowled for years.  It didn't matter your level, we just had a lot of fun all the time."

Brandon is the son of Linas and Cathy Sudzius. His sister Amber is a BHS sophomore.  Much of his success bowling in bowling came from watching and learning from his dad, who has scored a 280 and had 10 strikes in a row.