OH SPORTS WRAP: Wrestler Leidaly Rivera wins second consecutive state championship while boys send five to states; Spring sports in limbo; Soccer teams win district titles; Two teams honored for academic excellence

April 1, 2020

The Olympic Heights wrestling team closed out its season with a very strong showing in postseason competition with the highlight being senior Leidaly Rivera winning her second consecutive state championship in the girls 122 pound weight class.  On the boys’ side, the OH wrestling team’s postseason got un...

Easy steps to staying safe during coronavirus pandemic

Halli Arthur, Staff Writer

March 24, 2020

Coronavirus/COVID-19 is known and feared by people on every continent it has swept over. Societies have been informed on the proper means of prevention - social distancing, self quarantine, and isolation.  The issue at hand for many Florida citizens currently, however, is the disregard for these p...

College Board announces online AP course testing in response to coronavirus; no word on AICE testing yet

Arielle Perry & Ashley Perry, Managing Editors

March 20, 2020

Advanced Placement (AP) exams are undergoing a facelift this year. According to a March 20 College Board statement, as a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, AP tests scheduled to be administered in May will be offered online to students for the 2019-2020 exam administration. Balancing th...

MUSIC REVIEW: Lil Uzi Vert drops two versions of Eternal Atake, and both are amazing

Matthew Nebenzahl, Entertainment Editor

March 16, 2020

Eternal Atake has finally arrived! Lil Uzi Vert’s long awaited studio album is available to fans on all platforms and has received fantastic judgement from many so far. Fans have been waiting for around two years for the project, and after record label drama and other shenanigans, the wait is...

Olympic Heights softball team’s undefeated streak put on hold by coronavirus shutdown

Jordan Lanson, Staff Writer

March 15, 2020

 The last thing the Olympic Heights softball team and new head coach Dylan Lee needed was for the blistering streak the team is off to in its 2020 season to be put on hold. But that is exactly what has happened with the coronavirus forcing the closing of schools and the suspension of all high school a...

OH HAPPENINGS: Marine Corp JROTC shoots lights out at competition; Chinese program brings home superior rankings; Class of 2020 Top Ten announced

March 6, 2020

The Olympic Heights Marine Corp JROTC Marksmanship Team placed second at the Superintendent’s Cup at Jupiter High School competing against other Palm Beach County and Martin County Marksmanship Teams on Feb. 22. The team is made up of captain Julia Darocha, Nathalie Calderon, Sofie Sasso, Tren...

New Orleans Pelicans rookie Zion Williamson may be the best new NBA talent since LeBron James

Andrew Kaye, Sports Editor

March 4, 2020

NBA fans are seeing possibly the best physical specimen in NBA history. At six foot seven and 285 pounds, Zion Williamson has an explosive 45-inch vertical. Zion has given fans a glimpse at future stardom with his amazing first few weeks of games wherein he has scored 20 points in all but one game s...

EDITORIAL: District should abandon class rankings

March 2, 2020

Excessive amounts of homework, physically demanding sports and clubs, long hours of work, and countless nights without sleep are just some of the many conflicts that pervade the lives of academically advanced students. This is embodied no more clearly than in Olympic Heights salutatorian and National Merit...

More teens are turning away from the traditional novel for their personal pleasure reading

Ashley Perry, Managing and News Editor

March 1, 2020

Teenagers are not reading as much anymore.  While this statement may seem highly debatable, the facts surely prove otherwise.  In the 1970s, about 60 percent of high school seniors read a book, a magazine or a newspaper every day. In 2016, that number plummeted to a mere 16 percent. This is acc...

As many communities struggle with recycling, Palm Beach County and Olympic Heights keep going strong

Marie Preuss, Editor-In-Chief

February 28, 2020

Over the past year, headlines have frequently proclaimed the “death of recycling” in America. This disheartening forecast sparked concern that the things we put in recycling bins don’t actually get recycled, as cities are finding themselves overwhelmed with recycling they are unable to process...

Olympic Heights Fine Arts Department to showcase talent in The Mane Event on Thursday, Feb. 27

Isabelle Eisenberg, Social Media Editor

February 26, 2020

The Olympic Heights Fine Arts Department will be presenting The Mane Event, a collaborative showcase that features performances from Band, Chorus, and Theatre with insightful works of Art on display from the creative minds of the art students. The wide-ranging showcase of talent will take place on Thu...

How fair was the NBA dunk contest? How can the contest be improved? Basketball geek Torch staffers weigh in

Andrew Kaye, Sports Editor; Matthew Nebenzahl, Entertainment Editor; Joshua Wolf, Staff Writer

February 26, 2020

The NBA Slam Dunk Contest occurred on February 15, 2020. Participants Aaron Gordon, Dwight Howard, and Pat Connaughton all gave fans an unreal show; however, it was the Miami Heat’s Derrick Jones Jr., who brought home the title of NBA dunk champion. Jones Jr.’s victory was highly debated, so we asked...