Ubiquitous as he ever was, Jayson stands at the main gate that serves as an entrance and exit at John Ryan Stadium. The Jesuit mascot had just emerged from the grandstand area where he mingled with Blue Jay fans and led the cheering for the Jesuit baseball team. Turns out that Jayson was searching for something cold to quench his parched throat, er, beak. and he found it at the concession stand. While he yearns for sunflower seeds, Jayson knows those are not allowed in the stadium. Besides, he gave up the delicacy for Lent.

Seniors Ryan Ellinghausen (standing, right), Patrick Steen, and Thomas Nimmo take names of students who want to compete in the March Madness tournament that will support the Mission Drive sponsored by the Sodality. Students crowded behind the sign-up tables in the Commons to take aim at their best shot at winning the 10% of the earnings while the rest of the income will support the drive.

While being measured and fitted for his Jesuit letterman jacket, junior Austin Pfister tries on a sample jacket to test out the jacket’s length and fit. Blue Jay athletes who played on one or more of Jesuit’s basketball, soccer, and wrestling teams received their stripes and were measured for their letterman jackets today.

Sophomores in Master Gunnery Sgt. J.R. Piseno’s leadership education class fill out a questionnaire where they examine their own strengths and weaknesses as well as identify classmates’ strengths. The responses will be used to help the cadets learn and grow as they continue through the Marine Corps JROTC Program.

It’s like the next best thing to be. Having dispensed with 3rd quarter exams on Friday, Blue Jays hustle hither and yon across campus, eager to begin a weekend which almost certainly includes catching one or more of the various parades celebrating St. Patrick and St. Joseph. Pre-freshmen Peter Carr (left) and Aidan Roberts are engrossed in conversation while using the third floor walkway overlooking the Traditions Courtyard as a shortcut to the Banks Street side of the school. The Wild Photographer snapped the photo from the school’s roof, an ideal spot to practice becoming acclimated to a 300mm Canon lens, a beautiful tool for capturing images of all sorts of birds, the two-legged species as well as those with feathers and wings.

The varsity tennis team figures out the logistics of packing their equipment and bags to travel to the McGill-Toolen Invitational Tournament in Mobile held March 14-15. Six singles and three doubles teams will compete. Pictured from left are: assistant coach Jay Combe ’83, coach Travis Smith, sophomore Jonathan Niehaus, senior Kevin Mickan, sophomore Brandon Beck, senior Jordan Tufts, junior Andrew Depascual, sophomore Jacob Niehaus, and junior Gregory Suhor.

Pre-freshman Jay Brantley (left) and senior Cole Johnson retreat to a quiet corner in the Resource Center to study for upcoming exams Wednesday morning. Exams continue through Friday, with late exams scheduled for Saturday morning. Blue Jays begin the 4th Quarter on Monday.

The faculty luncheon committee brought a smorgasbord of snacks, entrees, and desserts to treat Jesuit faculty and staff to lunch after the first day of third quarter exams. The committee, chaired by Blue Jay mothers Kim Lee and Jan Mickan, is made up of parents who volunteer their time and talents, and coordinated through the Volunteer Office.

Freshman Evan Fogg purchases some exam time brain food, specifically ice cream, from Br. Billy Dardis, S.J. ’58. Br. Dardis frequently sets up a table outside the Student Commons to sell a variety of frozen treats to hungry Blue Jays. The proceeds from Brother’s efforts benefit the mission drive.

Every Jay’s a King at Friday’s King Cake Party in the Traditions Courtyard. The King Cake Party is a new tradition at Jesuit with its genesis coinciding with the “Year of the Saints.” For those with short memories or were in third grade, that was 2009 when those Boys in Black & Gold won the Super Bowl. It seemed as good a time as any to have a King Cake Party back then, and ever since, on the Friday before Mardi Gras, several co-curricular organizations serve all manner of the special treat, including plain, lemon, cream cheese, strawberry, and “BlueJayberry.” Whatever is left over, and it’s not much, is brought to the faculty lounge, where every single slice disappears by the time of dismissal.

Once a month, members of the Herpetology Club bring their exotic pets to school for a little “show and tell.” Today’s pets on display are a leopard gecko, a bearded dragon, and a hognose snake. Members share their expert advice for pet care and pet selection. Members shown here are (front row, from left) pre-freshman Jack Baudouin, pre-freshman Christopher Womble, junior Steven Sibley, pre-freshman Chris Ross, (back row) pre-freshman Mason Peres, pre-freshman Mason French, pre-freshman Jay Brantley, and junior Francis Weller. Mrs. Helen Swan, who moderates the club, appreciates the intensity and thorough knowledge the students bring to their meetings.

Students in Mr. Joseph Latino’s Biology I class work in groups to dissect an earthworm. From left, freshmen Cullen Unsworth, Josh Harper, and Rusty Gros work together to carefully cut and pull apart the flaps of skin to begin the dissection and study the worm’s anatomy.

Senior Eric Hartupee trims one of 15 unfinished wooden bats for the Philelectic Society‘s upcoming production of Damn Yankees. In addition to being the co-president of the Phils, Eric is the crew chief and an actor (playing Henry, a baseball player) in the show. Damn Yankees is a big musical featuring a large cast, including a whole baseball team singing and dancing in the popular number, “Shoeless Joe.” The show opens April 3 and tickets will go on sale mid-March.

A trio of Blue Jays — pre-freshmen Harrison Landry, Matthew Ward, and Rene Paysse — relax and enjoy the spring weather. These Jays better soak it up as long as they can as the mild temperatures won’t last long. The forecast calls for cooler weather moving into the metro area beginning on Wednesday and lasting at least through the Mardi Gras weekend.

Under a beautiful wispy sky in the cool of the Traditions Courtyard (even in the sun, a breeze made it delightful), seniors form a queue at the beginning of one of their special lunches. Senior Lunch is a tradition that began a long time ago. It takes place about once every four to six weeks. The Class of 2014 has so far notched six such special lunches. Orders are placed a couple of days in advance, typically with a restaurant that delivers directly to Jesuit. With military-like precision, a small team — headed by senior class president Quentin Marks — manages this upper-classJay’s perk, from announcing the date of the event, collecting money (all up front, no CODs), and ordering the food, to setting up tables and overseeing the well-oiled task of quickly distributing the meals within 15 minutes or so. One of the joys of being class president is that Marks chooses the restaurant. Today’s lunches were delivered by Five Happiness and marks the second occasion that seniors have ordered from the Carrollton Avenue landmark. Other restaurants that seniors have done business with are the Italian Pie, Felipé’s, Chic-fil-A, and Voodoo BBQ. Usually about 200 of the approximately 260 seniors participate. Rarely has a lunch not been claimed, but when it does happen, senior charity kicks in. And woe to the surreptitious underclassman who would be foolish enough to try helping himself to a senior’s lunch. The perp would be dining on gruel the rest of the year.

Pre-freshman Wes Mobley takes advantage of a quiet corner in the Resource Center to do his Christianity course homework after school. Located on the second floor in the Hall of Honors, the Resource Center is open 7 a.m. – 4 p.m. on regular instruction days; 8:50 a.m. – 4 p.m. on faculty meeting days; and 7 a.m. – 12 p.m. on exam days. The Resource Center includes several environments that provide space for research, leisure reading, individual silent study, and information literacy instruction.