Who Runs
the World?
G R A N D VA L L E Y L A N T H O R N
Past, present lady Lakers showcase leadership
Intoxicated individual arrested for stealing GV golf cart POLICE | A5
Nothing if Not Entertaining: The 2021 Grammy Awards AWARDS | A10
M O N D A Y, M A R C H 2 2 , 2 02 1 // VO L . 5 5 N O. 2 3
@ GV L A N T H O R N
LANTHORN.COM
A2 | NEWS NEWS BRIEFS GV COVID-19 CAMPUS DATA UPDATE
The GVSU community has had a cumulative total of 2,624 COVID-19 cases since Aug. 1. The university’s update for this brief was from Friday, March 19. Through testing results this past week, GVSU’s Virus Action team have so far reported 60 current active cases including 3 members of faculty, 4 staff member, 18 on-campus students, 27 “off-campus Ottawa” students, 6 “off-campus Kent” students and 2 “off-campus other” student with active COVID-19 cases. “Current active cases” is the count of positive cases reported to the Virus Action Team over the past ten days. This is an estimate of those currently in isolation, assuming a ten-day symptomatic period following the reporting of a positive test result. Actual periods of isolation are specific to the individual and determined by the county health department. Testing and Incidence: GVSU’s own testing program has performed 64,879 tests overall since August 21, for a cumulative positivity rate of 1.31% from the latest update as of last week. “GV Surveillance” includes the GV/ Spectrum administered programs of randomized testing, regular testing of high-risk groups, and invited testing of individuals connected to potential clusters. A calendar is available. “GV Total” includes surveillance testing plus all symptomatic/exposure tests administered by Spectrum. The Virus Action Team remind students to stay safe amid slight rise in cases: The Virus Action released that there has been a continual increase in COVID-19 cases in March. They reported in the release that there has been an average of six new cases a day in the GVSU community. In February, there were only an average of 2 new cases a day. Out of the new cases this week, about one-third of the cases are on-campus residential students. To help combat the spread of the virus, GVSU is expanding its student testing. weekly invitations for free antigen tests online will now be sent to students taking in-person classes, students who live on or near campus, and other students who are expected to be on campus in some capacity. Faculty and staff will still have the same invitation process as before.
GRADUATION
GV announces plan for winter class of 2021 commencement BY HAILEIGH HUBER NEWS@LANTHORN.COM
The last few grafs feel out of place. Maybe there’s a way to weave them in more naturally? Grand Valley State University announced that they will be holding an optional virtual commencement ceremony Friday, April 30 at 7 p.m. followed by a Laker Graduation Celebration on Saturday, May 1, in the Fieldhouse on the Allendale Campus. GVSU has been holding virtual commencement ceremonies the past two semesters and felt it was the best decision to keep everyone safe. LeaAnn Tibbe, Associate Director of the Office of Student Life, has found them to be very successful. All deans will be filmed and introduce their colleges. The student’s name, the official title of their degree and if they have any high awards will all be shown on the screen. The graduation celebration on Saturday is something new GVSU is trying. “It will provide a little more of the graduation feeling,” said Tibbe. Any student that decides to attend is allowed to bring four guests and will go to the Fieldhouse where they will be assigned a five-minute time slot based on their college
GRADUATES: The GVSU administration has announced that it will provide online and in-person graduation options for students graduating in the Winter 2021 semester. GVL | KATHERINE VASILE
and given a card with a QR code. The graduates will line up and as they get close to the stage their family will separate and go stand in the viewing area. The graduate will scan their QR code which will project their name onto the screen. There will be three “X’s” marked on the stage, each one representing a different place to stand for a
photo opportunity with their diploma and the turning of their tassel. “Students just want the opportunity to cross the stage and get those photos, and that’s what we’re providing,” said Tibbe. LOG ON TO: www.lanthorn.com FOR THE FULL ARTICLE
HEALTH
Following case uptick, GV encourages students to get vaccinated when eligible BY OLIVIA FELLOWS ASSOCIATE@LANTHORN.COM
THE SECOND GVSU PRESIDENTIAL ROUNDTABLE WILL DISCUSS THE MEDIA’S ROLE IN POLITICS
GVSU President Philomena V. Mantella and former presidents Thomas Haas, Mark Murray, and Arend Lubbers will be joined by two national reporters for the next GVSU Presidential Roundtable. The virtual event will be held at 7 p.m. on March 22. The media’s role in the election will be the topic of discussion for this roundtable. Astead W. Herndon, NYT national politics reporter, and Lisa Desjardins, CNN political analyst will be included in the conversation.
MARCH 22, 2021 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLNEWS
ELIGILITY: GVSU is encouraging students to plan their vaccine and get the shot when they become eligible. COURTESY | MICHIGAN RADIO
Following an uptick in COVID-19 cases on campus and the announcement from the United States government that individuals 16 and older may be eligible to receive vaccinations by the beginning of April, Grand Valley State University is encouraging students to plan their vaccine when they know they are eligible to receive it. The GVSU Data Dashboard shows daily new cases of COVID-19 in the GVSU community have been increasing in March. During the past week, the Virus Action Team has reported an average of about six new cases per day, compared to about two cases per day in mid-February. The Ottawa County Department of Public Health notified GVSU on March 11 that the U-K B.1.1.7 variant was detected on campus, indicating variants are circulating within the community. In response, the GVSU COVID-19 Testing Program is expanding free, on-campus antigen testing for students. Invitations to
test will now be sent weekly to students who are taking in-person classes, live on or near campus, or are expected to be on campus in some capacity. The invitation process for faculty and staff will remain the same. According to the Virus Action Team, the university will not be able to offer vaccines as of right now, but encourages students to reach out to health care providers to learn more about how they can get vaccinate when they become eligible. The university is in the process of looking into options for how to offer vaccines to students. “We routinely encourage the GVSU community, through our weekly VAT emails and on the Lakers Together website, to register for a vaccine so they will be able to get one as soon as they become eligible,” said Dottie Barnes, GVSU Associate Director of News, in an email. “GVSU does not have the ability to offer vaccines, which is handled by health departments, hospitals and pharmacies. LOG ON TO: www.lanthorn.com FOR THE FULL ARTICLE
MARCH 22, 2021 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLNEWS
CONTENTS GRADUATION
| A2
EDITORIAL
| A4
CAMPUS
| A5
IMPACT
| A6&7
CONVERSATION
| A8
RESEARCH
| A9
AWARDS
| A10
SOCCER
| A11
SWIMMING
| A12
VOL. 55
NO. 23
Lan thorn EDITORIAL STAFF
Layout Editor VIVIANA RUBIO
Editor-in-Chief NICK MORAN Associate Editor OLIVIA FELLOWS Associate Editor XAVIER GOLDEN News Editor MARY RACETTE
Layout Designer KHOI TRAN PROMOTIONS Promotions Manager ALEX DAGOSTINO ADVERTISING STAFF Advertising Manager SHANE MCATAMNEY
Sports Editor ZACK GOODROW Laker Life Editor YSABELA GOLDEN
A3 | NEWS EDUCATION
GV representatives testify in Lansing on school’s behalf BY MACKENZIE KELLER NEWS@LANTHORN.COM
On March 11, Grand Valley State University sent a team of representatives led by President Philomena Mantella to testify virtually at a legislative panel in Lansing. This testimony took place during a meeting of the Higher Educations Appropriation subcommittee of the Michigan House of Representatives. Mantella was joined by Trustee Susan Jandernoa and Student Senate Vice President Joel Pagel. Each representative had a different important point to make before the panel. “The goal for the meeting was for the House of Representatives to walk away with a stronger view of what Grand Valley contributes to the state, its economy, and to the people we serve,” said Mantella. Mantella also said that she received a lot of positive feedback from other participants and people who observed the event. The main points that the representative team brought up helped achieve that goal. The three main topics that they focused on were GVSU being an asset to the state, how much the state needs that asset right now, and how the university could be the strongest return on investment. She also called for lawmakers to pay attention to the education gap in Michigan
ADVOCACY: GVSU President Philomena Mantella testified with representatives in Lansing on behalf of the university, encouraging lawmakers to address Michigan’s education gap. COURTESY | GVSU
and urged them to consider adjusting appropriations for institutional enrollment and performances. Joel Pagel, the Vice President for External Relations of Student Senate, provided the student perspective for the meeting. He hit on many of the same points that Mantella did. “Grand Valley is one of the freshest universities, one of the youngest universities, with one of the biggest impacts especially in West Michigan,” Joel said. “During the testimony, I talked about the Laker Effect, what it can offer, and our retention/graduation rates just among our campuses. They’re
among the very best.” Pagel also spoke about the challenges of paying for the university as a student when state appropriations fail to keep up with the rising costs of education, which leads to a rise in tuition. “I know that I’ve certainly enjoyed my time at GV, and I think with more funding we could open up that opportunity to future Lakers and hopefully expand higher education in general,” said Pagel. LOG ON TO: www.lanthorn.com FOR THE FULL ARTICLE
BUSINESS STAFF
A&E Editor MARY DUPUIS Image Editor MEGHAN LANDGREN
PROGRAM
Business Manager RACHEL MCDOWELL
GV Board of Trustees approves recreational therapy master’s program
Asst. Business Manager DAYTON HAMMON
BY LAUREN FORMOSA NEWS@LANTHORN.COM At the Lanthorn, we strive to bring you the most accurate news possible. If we make a mistake, we want to make it right. If you find any errors in fact in the Lanthorn, let us know by calling 616-331-2464 or by emailing editorial@lanthorn.com. The Grand Valley Lanthorn is published weekly by Grand Valley State University students 31 times a year. One copy of this newspaper is available free of charge to any member of the Grand Valley Community. For additional copies, at $1 each, please contact our business offices.
The Lanthorn is published on recycled paper and is printed with soy bean ink. This means that our newspaper is entirely compostable. Help us do our part to be kind to the environment by recycling or composting this newspaper after you enjoy reading it. POSTMASTER: Please send form 3579 to: Grand Valley Lanthorn 0051 Kirkhof Center Grand Valley State University Allendale, MI 49401
OPPORTUNITY: The newly-approved master’s program will allow students to learn more about recreational therapy work. COURTESY | GVSU
The recreational therapy department at Grand Valley State University has recently announced its newly approved advanced practice master’s program. Starting in the Fall 2021 semester, current first-year students in the recreational therapy undergraduate program will have the opportunity to take graduate-level classes that will count towards their master’s degree. The department then plans to open their one-year advanced practice program to students who have finished their degree in recreational therapy in Fall 2022. The recreational therapy master’s program has been in the works for three years and was just recently granted approval by the Board of Trustees after passing through many committees and finally reaching the provost. The department said they are nonetheless excited to begin working with future graduate students
and getting the program off the ground. “I am excited to be on the cutting edge for our field and moving towards this advanced practice,” said Dawn De Vries, Program Director and Associate Professor in the Recreational Therapy Program. “As a field, we are talking about moving to be a master’s to practice and we’ll be one of those early programs that can achieve that. I think having the master’s program and having students who are passionate about working with different populations will allow us to teach more, explore more of those issues and look at how we as Grand Valley recreation therapists can affect research and practice globally.” While Clemson University has an advanced practice program housed in their parks and recreation program, GVSU will be the first in the United States to offer advanced practice in health professions. LOG ON TO: www.lanthorn.com FOR THE FULL ARTICLE
A4 | OPINION GVL EDITORIAL CARTOON
MARCH 22, 2021 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLNEWS
By Xavier Golden
EDITORIAL
Discrepancies in gendered NCAA treatment real ‘March Madness’
D
3/22/21
editorial@lanthorn.com
‘The Father’ masterclass in bringing stage to screen
BY SIMON WAGNER SENIOR MULTIMEDIA JOURNALISM EDITORIAL@LANTHORN.COM
Empathetic and devastating, “The Father” places its audience into the mind of a man struggling with dementia, and how the denial of assistance can have an emotional tear on those closest to you. Led by two staggeringly-poignant performances from Anthony Hopkins and Olivia Colman, Florian Zeller’s adaptation of his own play is a masterclass in stage-to-screen transformation. In fact, although the film comes off as a play, the production design and ever-changing landscape makes the intimate setting feel like a Christopher Nolan production. Zeller himself comes off as a low-budget Nolan through his twisting
of time and identities. The only difference between the two is that Zeller’s often mind-bending approach is well justified towards the subject of his material -- this subject being Hopkins’ role as our main character, Anthony. As a man struggling with his own reality through the deterioration of his mind, Zeller purposefully, and often masterfully, tells the story through Anthony’s eyes. Everything you witness in the film comes from the point of view of how Anthony believes he has experienced a certain situation. This can leave you feeling frustrated at times, but that’s the point. Zeller wants the audience to experience what it’s like to live a life where one’s mind is constantly erasing and changing what they’ve just seen. An example of this is the lingering subject of Paris in the film. The movie opens with Anthony’s daughter, Anne, telling her father that she is going to be moving to the café city with a man. To which he charmingly replies, “they don’t even speak English there.” This one scene becomes a main talking point throughout the film, in which Anne constantly denies ever telling her father about Paris. It’s a constant cat and mouse game of what is actually true. And because we experience the film through Anthony, nothing is ever as it seems.
Hopkins’ and Colman’s back and forth as father and daughter truly is a sight to behold. Colman’s often reserved and patient performance makes her emotional scenes that much more powerful, and shows just how in command she is of her craft. Hopkins on the other hand, puts on a much more charismatic and bullheaded performance, which makes his vulnerability in a number of scenes that much more heartbreaking. For one actor having won an Oscar for portraying a cannibalistic serial killer and the other having won for being a mad queen, both show their range in the most emotional way possible. This film would not be what it is without Zeller at the helm. Although Hopkins and Colman elevate every scene, no scene would work without Zeller’s guidance. His writing isn’t just personable and clever, but it’s his direction that is simple, yet grand. You can tell just how close to home this story is to Zeller, and you feel it through his watchful eye. No other person could have made this film, and that’s the best compliment I can give. The theme of dementia in cinema can oftentimes be a cliché, but “The Father” puts a fresh, mind-bending perspective on the intimate subject. “The Father” is available in theaters now.
iscussions surrounding inequalities between men’s and women’s sports, both collegiate and professional, are nothing new. This week, yet another instance proving the disparities in collegiate sports was put on blast after Stanford University sports performance coach Ali Kershner posted a photo comparing the weight room set-up for the NCAA women’s and men’s March Madness basketball tournaments. Sedona Prince, a forward for the University of Oregon, posted a TikTok video calling out the differences in equipment provided in the respective men’s and women’s weight rooms and later team meals provided, both of which quickly went viral. Following the initial posts outing the differences, other female athletes shared additional photo and video evidence of clear disparities in meals provided, weight room equipment and ‘swagbags’ for participants in the respective programs. Further evidence uncovered the women’s teams clearly being provided less substantial treatment and resources from NCAA organizers than men’s participants. Prominent athletes like NBA star Stephen Curry and NCAA National Player of the Year Sabrina Ionescu weighed in with their disappointment in seeing the
level of inequalities, calling them unacceptable and demanding immediate change. This is just one example in a series of dialogues involving inequality within women’s sports. Professionally, female athletes have been fighting for equality on the basis of equal pay for years. 2019 was a defining year for the U.S. National Women’s soccer team, who performed exceedingly better than their male counterparts, and whose athletes took a stand against ‘institutionalized gender discrimination’ against the team, calling for equal pay following their win. In another professional sports example, the Women’s National Ice Hockey Team, prior to their historic gold medal in the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics, were fighting for equal pay and treatment to that of the men’s team. Most talk around inequality in women’s sports has stemmed from unequal pay, but this most recent collegiate sports exposure brings to light the issues that exist within funding and appropriations to teams in college sports in terms of providing support in the form of training rooms, supplemented meals and nutrition programs. LOG ON TO: www.lanthorn.com FOR THE FULL ARTICLE
GVL OPINION POLICY The goal of the Grand Valley Lanthorn’s opinion page is to act as a forum for public discussion, comment and criticism in the Grand Valley State University community. Student and columnist opinions published here do not necessarily reflect those of the paper as an entity. The Lanthorn strives to be a safe vehicle for community discussion. With this in mind, the Lanthorn will not publish or entertain any forms of hate speech, but neither will it discriminate against any other views, opinions or beliefs. The content, information and views expressed are not approved by— nor do they necessarily represent those of—the university or its Board of Trustees, officers, faculty
or staff. Letters to the editor should include the author’s full name, relevant title and a headshot, along with a valid email address and phone number for confirming the identity of the author. Letters should be approximately 500650 words in length, and they are not edited by the Lanthorn staff except to fix technical errors or to clarify. Reader submissions on the opinion page appear as space permits. To make a submission, email editorial@lanthorn.com or drop your submission off in person at:
0051 KIRKHOF CENTER GRAND VALLEY STATE UNIVERSITY
MARCH 22, 2021 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLNEWS
A5 | NEWS
CAMPUS
GV named voter-friendly campus BY AUDREY WHITAKER NEWS@LANTHORN.COM
Grand Valley State University has received the designation of a voter-friendly campus by the Campus Vote Project and National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA). According to the NASPA website, the title was awarded to 235 colleges and universities across 37 states that engaged their campus communities and promote voter registration and voting as part of their institutional mission. Associate Director of Student Life Melissa Baker-Boosamra said that the title is a reflection of the hard work of GVSU students. Students are the ones working hard to do this work on behalf of the GVSU community, she said. “More than anything else, it’s an affirmation of our students’ passion, commitment and willingness to do the work to make sure that their voices are heard in the democratic process,” said Baker-Boosamra. Student senator Julian Sanders spearheaded a vote early initiative called Parade to the Polls during the fall semester. Along with other student leaders, Sanders planned events encouraging students to vote in the 2020 election.
For Sanders, the designation reflects the hard work done by the GVSU community that sets the university apart. “All of us as a campus community play a part in receiving that recognition because we all play a role here at the university,” Sanders said. “To me, it shows that are we in great hands under our current leadership and that we’re continuing to be an example to our surrounding institutions and future students.” Sanders said that providing young people with the opportunity to exercise their right to vote, in many cases for the first time, was an inspiration to him. “There are so many young Americans who either weren’t able to vote four years ago because of their age, or simply because they didn’t have an accessible polling place to go and vote,” Sanders said. “This was a really important inspiration for me, utilizing the satellite clerk’s office that we had on campus to really drive our campus community to vote.” Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the office of student life had to get creative with events and making voting accessible to students, Baker-Boosamra said. “I’m really proud of how creative our students were, and the ways that in light of all of those challenges, we were still able to get out the messaging and make sure stu-
ADVOCATES: GVSU’s Community Service and Learning Center is active on campus encouaging voting and sharing election information with students on campus each semester. COURTESY | GVNEXT
dents knew how to register, how to request an absentee ballot, or how to vote,” said Baker-Boosamra. The CSLC hosted events for Vote Early Day, like the Parade to the Polls, and registration “couch parties” during National Voter Registration Week. Bak-
er-Boosamra said that over 800 students registered or requested absentee ballots through the satellite clerk’s office located in Kirkhoff Center this November. LOG ON TO: www.lanthorn.com FOR THE FULL ARTICLE
POLICE
Intoxicated individual arrested for stealing GV golf cart BY ADAM TROMBLEY NEWS@LANTHORN.COM
ARREST: GVPD arrested a student who was found driving a stolen GVSU golf cart while intoxicated this week. COURTESY | GVL ARCHIVES
The Grand Valley Police Department has seen its fair share of incidents involving alcohol throughout the years, and this case was no different as an officer pulled over an individual who not only was driving while intoxicated, but they were also driving a golf cart that was stolen from Grand Valley State University property. While an officer was on a nightly patrol around West Campus Drive late Thursday night into Friday morning, they noticed a pair of headlights that did not resemble the headlights of a normal car or truck. After closer inspection, they realized it was a golf cart heading away from campus. The individual who was driving was then pulled over. “This highlights one of the many examples where alcohol can induce you to make a decision you wouldn’t otherwise make that leads to consequences that you otherwise wouldn’t experience,” said GVPD Capt. Jeffrey Stoll. In this situation, alcohol is believed to be one of the factors that lead to the individual taking the golf cart. The officer performed a traffic stop, and the individual was arrested and ultimately taken to jail for operating a vehicle under the influence of alcohol. It is
believed that the individual wanted to take the golf cart for a joyride but was caught in the process of doing it.
LOG ON TO: www.lanthorn.com FOR THE FULL ARTICLE
A6&7 | NEWS
MARCH 22, 2021 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLNEWS
Former GV athlete embracing challenges as new business owner BY JACOB DEWEERD NEWS@LANTHORN.COM
CAMPUS: Sara Polanco is the Campus Activities Board President and helps improve campus experiences. COURTESY | GVSU
TELEVISION: Gillan Noonan is the Station Manager of GVTV. She helps students on campus create content. COURTESY | GVTV
SENATE: Alison Zdunczyk is a student senator and sorority member of Gamma Phi Beta. COURTESY | ALISON ZDUNCZYK
Women shine in
Fitness is not something Valarie James takes lightly. As a former Grand Valley State University track and field sprinter, James is no stranger to putting in the work to rise above her competition. Now, instead of competing in track and field events, she has been following her fitness passion by teaching and coaching personal fitness through her business, VSJ Fitness, for the past three years. James graduated from GVSU with a bachelor’s degree in Public Administration and received master’s degrees in Social Work and Public Health from Michigan State University. After finishing her college education, she decided to put the skills she learned to use as a personal fitness instructor. VSJ Fitness was born out of James’ love for fitness and her desire to improve the lives of women through mental and
physical exercise. After she attended the IGNITE Women’s Empowerment Summit, James knew that she wanted to start a business that focused on the betterment of women’s lives. “My mission is to inspire the everyday woman to reach their wellness goals through support, motivation and empowerment,” said James. VSJ Fitness offers one-on-one personal training, group fitness programs, and dance fitness classes. Training used to be in-person only, but James has expanded her services because of COVID-19 restrictions and now provides virtual training to clients. She is certified to teach Zumba, kickboxing, TRX suspension, and High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT). James specializes in HIIT workouts because of the unique array of benefits they offer. HIIT can result in a high amount of burnt calories in a short amount of time, a heightened metabolic rate long after exercising and lower blood pressure and
blood sugar levels. “I have found HIIT to produce the best results, especially for my clients who are focused on weight loss and want to get more muscular endurance,” said James. As a one-woman show, James has built her business from the ground up. Aside from hiring contractors for graphic design work and other small jobs, she runs dayto-day operations completely by herself. “For the most part, it is just me,” James said. “There are times where it’s a challenge because I wish I could be in multiple places at once.” James has also utilized a few local small business assistance programs, LendGR and SpringGR, for help along the way. LendGR is offered through GVSU’s Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation and provides one-on-one technical consulting to entrepreneurs. SpringGr, on the other hand, is a 12week program that offers business coaching and opportunities to develop business
plans and other entrepreneurial skills. Participants have to pitch their fully developed business idea at the end of the program, and James’ business pitch won the competition against 59 other entrepreneurs. “In that program, that’s where I really learned the ins and outs of being a business owner,” said James. As a woman fitness trainer, James is also taking on an industry that she feels can be viewed as male-dominated. She explained that people often think they will get better results if they work with a male trainer and are surprised when they see what her classes can do. “As a woman, I love being able to prove them wrong,” James said. “After working out with everyone, the facial expressions and feedback tell me that I am helping everyone and as a woman, I’m giving people the challenge they’re looking for.” More information about VSJ Fitness and the other services James offers can be found at her website www.vsjfitness.com.
leadership throughout campus BY TOVI GENTILUCCI NEWS@LANTHORN.COM
Celebrating Women’s History Month can be done in many ways, including looking at strong leaders on campus. Women in leadership roles are found all over Grand Valley State University’s campus from the president of the university to the roles of student-run organizations. There are many aspects to being a leader, each one creating a unique individual. Students such as Sara Polanco, Gillian Noonan, and Alison Zdunczyk are some of the female leaders around GVSU’s campus. “It’s important to think of leadership as this combination of all your personal experiences, and your knowledge, and your resources, and bring all of those things together,” said Julia Mason, Associate Professor of Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies. Sara Polanco, the president of the Campus Activities Board, has left her mark on campus by helping to provide events for students. Polanco helps to provide stu-
dents with entertaining events that help to improve upon the campus experience. Her experience as a freshman and contemplating if she could really be in a big university or returning home has shaped her view of her position. As president, she is in charge of helping CAB bring events to life. Working with advisors, budgets and the directors of the CAB are some of the main tasks she has. Determining what the campus and its community would want are some of the struggles that she faces. Her goal as a leader is to leave the feeling of being welcomed and the sense of belonging. Gillan Noonan, the Station Manager of GVTV, helps other students in broadcasting, and film majors to create content and learn outside of the classroom. Noonan started out helping on a show called ‘Late Night Brew’ and has slowly made her way to the position of Station Manager, the equivalent of being president. Noonan has always felt a pull towards leadership, which she feels has been thanks to her outgoing personality. COVID-19 has offered a push to ideas
even when hindering GVTV’s production, giving the club the opportunity to become more centralized. The club created a Discord server where their members are more easily accessible to one another. Being more accessible makes these times only a little easier. With the restrictions required by COVID-19 safety guidelines, GVTV has had to limit their production for the safety of everyone involved, but it hasn’t stopped the group completely. “Our last president was absolutely phenomenal,” Noonan said. “He kind of restructured a lot of the club and really raised the bar. So coming out of his presidency I knew I had big shoes to fill and COVID made it very hard to fill those shoes.” Alison Zdunczyk is a member of the Student Senate with a chair on the campus affairs committee. Zdunczyk is also a member of the Gamma Phi Beta sorority and has held the positions of philanthropy chair, financial vice prescient, and personal chapter enrichment chairwoman. She comes from a family of women self-starters, her aunt being one of the first
girls to play peewee baseball in Toledo, resulting in her grandparents receiving death threats. Zdunczyk learned through her experiences of planning events for her sorority that there is a time to do the work on your own, and there are times to delegate. When planning an event she was also balancing school and social life, this resulted in a stressful time for her. After being sat down with one of her sorority sisters, she said she was able to ask for help and receive it from her sisters, enabling her to properly fulfill her responsibilities. “My greatest influences by far are my grandma and my mother,” Zdunczyk said. “My grandma, Barbra Walters, was a huge civil rights activist back in the ’60s. And just her stories are so amazing. And how much she cares about women and minority rights.” Leaders can be found all over GVSU’s campus and these three are only a few of the female leaders. These women may hold similar titles, but they have very different duties and experiences that have shaped them.
ATHLETE: Valarie James is a former GVSU athlete, competing as a track sprinter. COURTESY | VSJ FITNESS
COACH: James’ love for fitness and training led her to start her business, VSJ Fitness. COURTESY | SWEATNET POWER: In a male-dominated business, James is making her mark in the industry. COURTESY | VSJ FITNESS
MARCH 22, 2021 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLNEWS
A8 | NEWS CONVERSATION
Groundswell holds event on Anishinaabe Tribe, environmental sustainability BY ZSOLT PALMER NEWS@LANTHORN.COM
“An Indigenous Way of Being,” a Groundswell event held March 16, focused on teaching environmental sustainability and how Native Americans provide a crucial perspective on the issue. The product of a collaboration between the Integrative, Religious and Intercultural Studies Department and Grand Valley State University’s Native American Heritage Celebration, the virtual event hosted two speakers, Andrea Riley-Mukavetz and Hunter Genia, to talk about Anishinaabe teachings, and how they provide sustainable paths to protecting the environment. “As we continue to talk about global climate crisis or sustainability, or environmental justice, we have to begin by listening to indigenous peoples and tribal nations,” said Riley-Mukavetz, an assistant professor in the Integrative, Religious, and Intercultural Studies Department at GVSU. “There already are frameworks around how to do this. For us to engage in environmental justice, we have to treat the land as if it is a teacher, a living being, or something that we are in reciprocity with, and not as if it’s something to extract from. Then we can have a different kind of approach to sustainability.” Riley-Mukavetz used her experiences as a lens into how better environmental poli-
cy could be put into practice. The Groundswell event had a strong focus on how Anishinaabe culture and traditions could be integrated into the classroom to support the teaching of environmental education, and Riley-Mukavetz stressed that change started with how students learned about the earth. “In general, for Anishinaabe people, we approach education in a very holistic and interconnected way,” Riley-Mukavetz said. “All of our traditional cultural practices, whether it’s foraging, hunting, fishing, building teaching lodges, or gardening, all of those practices have important educational components built into them. Educators can learn a lot from these practices when teaching about environmental sustainability.” Genia took a different focus for his section of the event, to speak about some lesser-known parts of Native American history. He focused primarily on the Indian Boarding School era and the negative impact that these government-funded institutions had on Native American families while they still operated only a few decades ago. His segment of the event helped serve to better clarify the perspective that Native Americans come from, and help establish why what they have to say is important. “One of the big problems I see is that a lot of institutions stop teaching history by around the year 1900,” Genia said. “But important Native American history happened
WAY OF BEING: Groundswell’s March 16 event titled “An Indigenous Way of Being” presented a crucial Native American perspective on environmental sustainability. GVL | ANNABELLE ROBINSON
after that too. Both my parents and siblings attended Indian boarding schools, so this is very recent history, but even educated adults can have a lack of awareness about Indian Boarding Schools. It’s not that people aren’t willing to promote the truth- it’s that they didn’t know in the first place. We do need systematic change, and to provide
training and workshops to teachers and organizations. We have to do a much better job to make sure that important and relevant history is taught in our classrooms.” LOG ON TO: www.lanthorn.com FOR THE FULL ARTICLE
LAKER EFFECT
Sam Jacobs accepts position into Newman Civic Engagement Fellowship BY RACHEL MATUSZEWSKI NEWS@LANTHORN.COM
LEADER: Junior Sam Jacobs’ passion for voting led him to become an incoming Newman Civic Engagement Fellow. COURTESY | GVSU
If you remember the “GVSU Votes” signs that lined campus lawns back in November, this was just one project behind Grand Valley State University junior and public relations administration major Sam Jacobs’ role and passion for voting engagement on campus. He has recently been nominated and accepted a position with the Newman Civic Engagement Fellowship with President Philomena Mantella’s recommendation. The Newman Civic Engagement Fellowship is a program connected to the nationwide nonprofit, Campus Connect. According to GVNext, the Newman Civic Engagement Fellowship will provide learning and networking opportunities for personal and professional growth. Jacobs will join 200 other students in the year-long program. “The Newman Fellowship is intended to recognize and support students who have exhibited the potential for public leadership through their civic engagement work and
commitments,” Mantella said. “We have a committee of civically engaged students and staff that coordinate a call for nominations to the campus community and then we carefully review those candidates to select one that most closely aligns with the criteria set forth by Campus Compact.” Mantella said Jacobs stood out as a candidate for the fellowship due to his steadfast commitment to increasing voter turnout. His past experiences as a student senator, a current member of the Campus Activities Board and earning the Eagle Scout honor all demonstrated his commitment to public service. Jacobs knows his work in the fellowship will align with what he has been doing on campus to continue institutionalizing voter resources, voter education, and positive dialogue on campus. His dream job is to work as a city manager and eventually run for office in Michigan. “I really want to be a city manager and just engage in a community, not just through voting but through community development programs, housing, and getting
citizens to engage and give back to the community,” Jacobs said. “It’s a really big part of my philosophy of how government and leadership should work.” Until his nomination from a friend and official nomination based on the committee’s choice by Mantella, Jacobs did not know if he would be considered for the fellowship. In his current role as Campus Election Engagement Project Fellow in the Office of Student Life, Jacobs has been hard at work encouraging students to vote in the past 2020 election. He was involved in planning the GVSU Election Day Celebration, where students were encouraged to vote absentee on the day of the election through the satellite clerk’s office on campus in Kirkhoff. “That was our main focus and we tried to point people to that as they had motive already,” Jacobs said. “We actually had handouts and giveaways at the clock tower to engage students and point them down to where the satellite clerk’s office.” LOG ON TO: www.lanthorn.com FOR THE FULL ARTICLE
A9 | LAKER LIFE
MARCH 22, 2021 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLLAKERLIFE
A LOOK AT LIFESTYLE CAB HOSTS DISNEY WEEK
Starting on Monday, March 22, the Campus Activities Board is putting on a full week of events inspired by the classics of the Disney animated canon. All week long will be a “Dress Disney” social media challenge, where members of the GVSU community can wear clothes and costumes relating to everyone’s favorite media monopoly conglomerate and tag @gvsucab on a post on Instagram. Other events include craft nights on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, a Disney trivia night (which will take place both virtually and in-person) on Wednesday, March 24, a “Magic Kingdom Adventure” scavenger hunt during the day on Saturday, and a Lion King watch party at the Kelly Family Sports Center starting at 8 p.m. on Saturday night. A full schedule of events can be found on CAB’s website at www.gvsu.edu/cab.
WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH CONTINUES
The various departments and organizations at Grand Valley have been hosting events celebrating Women’s History Month since March began, and this week features more programs covering a wide range of periods in both local and national history. Among these events is Wednesday’s “Grand Rapids Women & Their Work During the Great War” from the Kutsche Office of Local History, Thursday’s “Tea Time” conversation on women’s history hosted by the Community Service Learning Center, and Friday’s “A Decade of Upheaval: Grand Rapids Women and Public Office in the 1910s,” a part of the Grand Rapids Time Traveler Series. For a full schedule of all Grand Valley’s programming on the subject, visit www. gvsu.edu/events.
RESEARCH
CLAS faculty present research on art, classical music, political origins of rap BY YSABELA GOLDEN LAKERLIFE@LANTHORN.COM
On Mar. 18, the College of Liberal Arts and Scientists held its last Faculty Research Colloquium of the 2020-2021 school year. The forum featured presentations from three professors from departments across the college: Eric Harvey from Multimedia Journalism on “the history of rap and reality,” Leon Lou from Psychology on modes of vision, and Sookkyung Cho from Music, Theatre and Dance on 19th century composer Franz Schubert. “For his entire lifetime, Schubert was in the shadow of Beethoven, which shaped his compositions tremendously,” Cho said. “He grew up hearing Beethoven’s pieces all the time, and he wanted to do something different than him.” Schubert eventually found his niche in writing sonatas, a kind of composition focusing on solo instrumentalists that was already considered archaic when Schubert wrote his first in the early 19th century. “They weren’t seen as meant to be played or really enjoyed, simply to be preserved,” Cho said. “Pianists didn’t really have the skills to play Beethoven’s sonata, they would create more simple dance tunes that they could actually be paid to write and pay. Schubert turned to them despite there not being any money to be made.”
INFORMATION: Several GVSU professors within the CLAS department shared their research on topics covering music, art and politics in education and modern society. COURTESY | SOOKKYUNG CHO
Unlike other composers of his era, historians have a large number of manuscripts containing Schubert’s unpublished compositions — fortunate, given how relatively few of Schubert’s pieces were actually sold. It was with great excitement when he recorded in his journal on June 17, 1918 that he “composed for money for the first time.” “Just imagine somebody writing 500 works before even publishing one work,”
Cho said. “He never really owned his own house, he was known for just staying with people everywhere.” Despite his lack of financial success, Schubert was a masterful composer who succeeded in his dream of composing outside of the influential shadow of Beethoven. LOG ON TO: www.lanthorn.com FOR THE FULL ARTICLE
WOMEN’S HISTORY
Kutsche discusses “Lesser Known Women” BY KATHERINE ARNOLD LAKERLIFE@LANTHORN.COM
LGBT CENTER PROMOTES TRANS VISIBILITY
In preparation for the Transgender Day of Visibility on March 31, Grand Valley’s Milton E. Ford LGBT Resource Center is inviting artist, educator and activist Chelsea Thompto to give a keynote on how “technologies of visualization” (such as facial recognition software and gender markers on governments IDs) can create difficulties and outright danger for trans people. The event will take place virtually from 2:30-4 p.m. on March 25. Those interested can register online on the Center’s website at gvsu.edu/lgbtrc, as well as check out Thompto’s art project that inspired the presentation at landmarks.glitch.me
LADIES: The Ionia Historic Society’s discussion highlighted the leadership talents of past women in local history. GVL | KATHERINE ARNOLD
Every March, the Grand Valley State University community comes together to celebrate Women’s History Month with several events and panels hosted throughout the entire month. On March 17, the Kutsche Office of Local History held their second event for the month featuring a series of presentations about lesser-known women in West Michigan history. Their mission is to give voice to diverse communities through history, and one of the ways they do so is by running their annual local history roundtable. Part of recognizing and celebrating women’s history is featuring the successful and famous women throughout history. Unfortunately, it isn’t often that time is put aside to recognize those who were important to their communities but never reached national fame. Who recognizes and understands the voices of these lesser-known women in West Michigan’s history? For the historical societies and museums, their employees and members work hard to give a voice to the underrepresented voices of women across time. The three panelists for
this event came from those same organizations, David M. McCord of the Ionia County Historical Society, Brenda Nemetz from the Lakeshore Museum Center, and Kristen Wildes of Ada Historical Society. Each presenter brought with them the life story of one lesser-known woman who played a significant role in their communities. McCord’s presentation featured the legacy and life of Nina Kate Preston who resided in Ionia township during the late 19th and 20th centuries. Born in 1874, she went on to earn a certificate in library work. Her most significant work existed in her role as a librarian in Ionia, library visitor across the state of Michigan, and in the Michigan Library Association as president and secretary at separate times across her life. Under her direction, she implemented and continued the expansion and progress of many libraries across Michigan, sometimes helping as many as 80 communities’ libraries in one year. LOG ON TO: www.lanthorn.com FOR THE FULL ARTICLE
A10 | ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT ARTS AT A GLANCE GV PERFORMANCE STUDIO SERIES VIRTUAL PRODUCTION SET TO TAKE PLACE Grand Valley State University’s Theatre program will be presenting their virtual production of “Orphan Trains” by Deborah Craig this week. Taking place on March 25 and 26 at 7:30 p.m. and directed by Marcus Chapman, the play is based on primary records from the Children’s Aid Society of New York and takes place between 1853 and 1929. The storyline features The Orphan Trains Project that joined adoptive parents with orphans across America and highlights the hardships and victories of the time for a diverse group of children. Ticket information is forthcoming.
NEW LIGHTING ADDED TO MURAL-FILLED ALLEYWAY IN DOWNTOWN GRAND RAPIDS The “Angeline Kelsey ‘Naw Kay o say’ Yob” Way, a previously nameless, desolate alleyway off of Sheldon Boulevard is now filled with new lighting. Painted as part of the larger “Women’s Way” alley activation initiative, the alleyway is named after Angeline Yob, an educator, community activist, and citizen of the Grand River Bands of Ottowa Indians. Local artist Alan Compo painted the mural of Yob last year to help honor her legacy and bring life and vibrant colors to a darkened, overlooked area.
DOWNTOWN GRAND RAPIDS CELEBRATES WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH WITH “RAD WOMEN” WALKING TOURS Downtown Grand Rapids Inc. is celebrating women throughout history with public art and free walking tours around downtown Grand Rapids. The artwork and tours are based on the New York Times bestselling book, “Rad American Women A-Z” by Kate Schatz, and are led by Grand Rapids Running Tours. All tours meet at the Rosa Parks Circle and last around two and a half hours each. The walk features 27 works of public art and is based on electoral boxes featuring portraits of #RadWomen stretching from Angela Davis to Zora Neal Hurston. The tour includes background on each public figure and the local artist behind the artwork. The tours are free and no registration is required. More information on dates and times can be found on Downtown Grand Rapids Inc.’s Facebook page.
MARCH 22, 2021 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLARTS
AWARDS
Nothing if Not Entertaining: The 2021 Grammy Awards BY PARKER LEARMAN-BLAAUW ARTS@LANTHORN.COM
Last Sunday, the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards returned to celebrate a year of music that was almost seven months old — as the cutoff date for eligibility was Aug. 31, 2020. In typical award show fashion, the performance-packed broadcast exceeded its time slot, lasting nearly four hours. While it was a little light on actual awards, the lengthy airtime was mostly devoted to bombastic performances from all walks of the popular music sphere. The biggest hits include Meg Thee Stallion and Cardi B debuting “WAP” in person for the very first time, Taylor Swift harnessing her 2020 cottagecore aesthetic to the fullest to sing three “folklore” cuts from inside and on top of a dreamlike cabin, and newly-minted pop star Dua Lipa bringing her eighties-infused dance-pop hits “Levitating” and “Don’t Start Now” to center stage. Rapper Lil Baby also delivered a rousing visual that started with a traffic stop of a black man and culminated with burning buildings and tear gas in the background as a line of officers in riot gear slowly advanced. He performed “The Bigger Picture” with a surprise verse from Killer Mike, an artist known in the hip-hop world for his socially-conscious lyrics and activism. “The Bigger Picture” was nominated for two Grammys, though it was beat out in both categories by Meg Thee Stallion, who had collected three golden record players by the end of the night. She was able to swing
MUSICIANS: The 2021 Grammy Awards included some exciting performances, big wins and some prominent nominee upsets that were recognized throughout the evening. COURTESY | GRAMMY.COM
Best New Artist away from favorite Phoebe Bridgers, and the Beyoncé- assisted remix to her viral hit “Savage” earned both Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Song. Meg shared a heartwarming story during her acceptance speech, thanking her fellow Houstonite and female icon for giving her the inspiration to try and build her career around: Bey, but “a little ratchet.” Clearly, she chose correctly, as Carter-Knowles also brought home the Gram-
my for Best R&B performance, pushing her to 28 total and securing the record for the most awards won by a woman and a singer. Harry Styles’ inescapable 2020 anthem “Watermelon Sugar” took Best Pop Solo Performance, but the “Fine Line” singer was no match for Dua Lipa’s “Future Nostalgia,” which was awarded Best Pop Vocal Album. LOG ON TO: www.lanthorn.com FOR THE FULL ARTICLE
EXHIBITION
Spring is here at the Grand Rapids Art Museum with ‘Art in Bloom’ Exhibit BY ALLISON RAFFERTY ARTS@LANTHORN.COM
DOWNTOWN GRAND RAPIDS INC. OPENS APPLICATIONS FOR POP-UP PERFORMERS
With activating downtown street spaces in mind, Downtown Grand Rapids Inc. (DGRI) is “calling all buskers.” DGRI plans to create a more enjoyable experience for people on city sidewalks through street performances. FLORAL: The newest exhibit at the Grand Rapids Art Musem focuses on the beauty of floral arrangement art pieces. GVL | SHEILA BABBITT
This year, the Grand Rapids Art Museum (GRAM) hosted their infamous floral exhibition, “Art in Bloom,” for the ninth time. Held from March 19-21, the event celebrated the combined beauty of art and floral design while highlighting the creativity of West Michigan’s most talented floral designers. GRAM’s Communications Manager, Elizabeth Payne, said the museum was thrilled to kick off the spring season with this exhibition. “We looked forward to safely welcoming guests to Grand Rapids Art Museum’s galleries and encouraged everyone to participate in a weekend of floral-inspired
fun through our virtual and in-person experiences,” said Payne. The 14 floral sculptures featured in “Art in Bloom” were created by floral designers from across West Michigan including Douglas Bates from Designs by Vogt’s, Renae Buning from Alice Hatch Floral, and more. Each sculpture was based on permanent artwork featured in the museum. The curatorial team assigned pieces of art to the floral designers who then created floral arrangements based on that artwork. Payne said much thought was put into choosing which artwork to base each sculpture on. LOG ON TO: www.lanthorn.com FOR THE FULL ARTICLE
A11 | SPORTS
MARCH 22, 2021 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLSPORTS
QUICK HITS
SOCCER
GVSU SOFTBALL SWEEPS OHIO DOMINICAN UNIVERSITY
On Saturday March 20, the GVSU softball team won both of their contests against Ohio Dominican. To start the double header, the Lakers won 1-0 with a dominating pitching performance from both teams. The game went into extra innings, and the Lakers were able to pick up the only score of the game in the top of the 8th inning. Hannah Beatus (3-1) pitched all eight innings, gave up zero runs and struckout nine batters. Shortstop Lydia Goble grounded out and Megan Koenigshof scored. In the second game of the series, GVSU won 4-1. The Lakers scored all of their runs in the fourth inning. Ashley Platek (2-1) pitched all seven innings giving up just one run and striking out five batters. Koenigshof once again provided an important at-bat, hitting a triple that scored three runs for the Lakers. Goble also had an RBI in the second game of the series.
GV BASEBALL DROPS TWO IN A ROW TO TIFFIN UNIVERSITY
Against Tiffin University, the Lakers dropped their first two games of their three game series. In the first game, the Lakers lost 1-4. Nick Rutkowski pitched 4.1 innings and gave up four earned runs, taking the loss for the Lakers. 2B Cade Stanton singled through the right side of the infield to pick up the only RBI of the game for the Lakers. GVSU lost their next game 1-4 as well. In this matchup, Austin Brown (0-1) picked up the loss for the Lakers, despite not giving up a single earned run. Brown struck out six Tiffin batters. The only score of the game for the Lakers came in the top of the ninth inning. CF Nathan Logan hit an RBI single to bring 1B Ryan Blake-Jones home. After their last game against Tiffin, the Lakers will take on Purdue-Northwest.
VOLLEYBALL WINS BOTH GAMES AGAINST ASHLAND
The GVSU volleyball team swept their weekend series against Ashland University. In their first matchup, the Lakers won all three of the first games of the series. GVSU dominated the contest by having 49 kills, six aces, 47 assists, and 70 digs as a team. Ali Thompson led the team with 19 kills and two aces. Rachel Jacquay had a dominant stat line with 45 assists. Jayla Wesley recorded eight kills and a team high four blocks. Abby Graham led the team with 23 digs and also contributed two assists. In the second matchup of the series, GVSU again won the first three games to earn a victory. They won these series by a larger margin in their second outing. In this series, Sarah Wright led the team with nine kills and three blocks. Jacquay had another impressive performance with 23 assists and one ace.
HOT START: In their first game of the season, the GVSU women’s soccer team defeated NMU. It was a good feeling for all the players to finally be back on the field after over a year of postponment due to COVID-19. After the chippy contest, the Lakers start their year with a win. GVL | JONATHAN LANTIEGNE
GV soccer wins physical game for first matchup of season BY JOSH CARLSON SPORTS@LANTHORN.COM
The Grand Valley State University women’s soccer team (1-0) kicked off their season opener at home against Northern Michigan University (0-1). GVSU came out with a dominate performance, proving exactly why they are ranked number one in the nation after the long wait to play. “It feels so good,” Cook said. “I know for a fact that there were definitely some excited nerves from everyone, rightfully so, we haven’t played in 15 months and this is the first game that really counts for something. It was great to be out on the field as a new group and see things finally be put together that we have been working on for so long.” Showing exactly what they have been working on, the Lakers quickly broke the game open in the first half with a Cook goal assisted by Catie Baron. The Wildcats then tightened up defensively and were pressing the Lakers heavily, but senior defender Sydney O’Donnel found the seam in the defense with an assist to junior Greta Deloach in the 30thminute to make it 2-0 before the first
half came to a close. Towards the end of the first half, the Wildcats tried to get physical and built their penalties up, ending the game with eleven to the Lakers three. Coach Jeff Hosler could be heard from the stands requesting for the refs to get the game under control. Junior forward Greta Deloach was on the receiving end of a tackle late in the second half while fighting for the ball. She was then carried off the field with an unknown injury and did not return to the game. “It’s just frustrating,” Hosler said. “You’ve gone 15 months looking to get to get to a game. The first thing you shouldn’t have to be worried about, is keeping your players safe, and I thought there were a lot of malicious tackles in the game.” As the second half began, things got lopsided in the Lakers favor with two quick Ava Cook goals to get her the hat trick for the game and make it 4-0. “It’s never surprising,” Hosler said. “She is a kid that just always works, she’s always looking to get better. For all the success that she has, for all the accolades, she continues to be humble and comes right back to work
the next day. It showed today that she’s top class, she’s currently the leading active goal scorer in all of the NCAA and I think she showed today why.” After Cook completing her hat trick, the Lakers continued to pour on the pressure with three more goals coming from sophomore Kennedy Bearden, freshman Taylor Reid and sophomore Chantel Carranza. The finished the game beating the Wildcats 7-0 and starting off the season 1-0. While fans have not been able to attend games, good weather and playing outdoors permitted for parents and students to be able to attend the game and cheer on the Lakers at home. Cook said that the energy was definitely brought up due to being able to play with an audience. “It was so nice,” Cook said. “It was so refreshing to have our fans, and have our parents be here. Even though we can’t really talk to them, it’s still nice to have them here, it’s so much better to play in front of a group of people than completely silent. Our parents go all out, they’re incredibly supportive of us and they come in numbers, and we couldn’t be more thankful for that.”
MARCH 22, 2021 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLSPORTS
A12 | SPORTS SWIMMING
GV swimming and diving impresses at DII tournament BY HOLLY BIHLMAN SPORTS@LANTHORN.COM
After a long and exciting weekend in Birmingham, Alabama, both the Grand Valley State University men’s and women’s swim and dive teams came out with a top ten placement in the tournament. The women earned the highest finish in school history tied to the best fifth place finish. Some severe weather on Wednesday, March 17 forced some of the day one preliminaries to be pushed back to Thursday morning. However, the Lakers didn’t let that stop them from having some successful races through Saturday, March 20. “It’s just that much more meaningful to have a championship and be able to participate in a championship like this,” said coach Andy Boyce. “We’re so grateful that we were able to do the things we did this year and to have such a positive outcome at the end, walking away with our heads held high with one of the most solid performances we’ve ever had at the national championships.” An especially stellar performance came from sophomore Gracyn Segard as she won her two National Championship titles in the 1-meter and the 3-meter as the first GVSU diver to sweep both in one year. Her 1-meter dive received a score of 448.35 alongside Al-
lyson Schafer and Nicole Taormina in third and fourth. Segard’s 3-meter was given a score of 487.15, starting in second place but ending with an inward 1.5 pike to steal first. “I wasn’t really expecting it, I was really just hoping to do well,” Segard said. “That was kind of my goal, but I just went out there and tried to do the best that I could and ended up where I did.” By the end of day two on Thursday, the women were sitting in eighth place with a score of 111 points where four of the Lakers took home All-America honors in the 1-meter including Segard, Schafer, Taormina and Nicole Carlson. Another All-America honors on the women’s side was Neta Shiff ’s 1,000-free and 400IM, finishing in seventh in the first and sixteenth in the second, earning her a pair of honors as well. The Lakers had the most divers of any team at the championships, giving them an advantage for points as well. On the men’s side, some notable All-America finishes included freshman Eric Hieber in his first swim at the NCAA National Championships for fifth place in the 1,000-free. Senior Oscar Saura-Armengol earned honors in his 100-fly race where he took eighth. The men’s 200-medley relay also earned an All-America honors with a time of 1:29:30 in tenth, won by Roger Mi-
MAKING A SPLASH: Several GVSU swimmers had All-American finishes at the Division II National Tournament March 17-20. Gracyn Segard was impressive in both of the diving events. GVL | ARCHIVE
ret Sala, Keegan Hawkins, Saura-Armengol and Hieber. On day three of four, the women climbed up to fifth with 203 points, and the men moved up to eighth with 147. Both teams swam the 800-free relay as the women placing seventh with a time of 7:29:70 and the
men coming in at third with 6:30:09 for the All-America honors. The relay races count for double the number of points that a regular race would, so these were some of the bigger wins for GVSU. LOG ON TO: www.lanthorn.com FOR THE FULL ARTICLE
BASKETBALL
Column: Blake Griffin’s buyout from the Detroit Pistons marks the end of an era BY ZACK GOODROW SPORTS@LANTHORN.COM
BUYOUT: After three and a half seasons, former Detroit Pistons star Blake Griffin signs with the Brookly Nets. COURTESY | CLUTCHPOINTS
March 5, 2020 marked an end of a severely mediocre era for Detroit Pistons basketball. Twelve-year forward Blake Griffin was bought out by the team as the Pistons were unable to find a trade partner. Three days later, Griffin signed with the Brooklyn Nets. He’ll now look to rejuvenate his career as a role player on a team filled with superstars. Throughout his career, Griffin has been an explosive player and a fan favorite. After jumping over a Kia Optima in the 2011 NBA Dunk Contest, Griffin became a star player on an extremely successful Los Angeles Clippers team. For the next six seasons, Griffin, guard Chris Paul, and center DeAndre Jordan led the Clippers to be a consistent threat in the NBA playoffs.
Too many unsuccessful runs at an NBA Championship led to the destruction of the teams core, leaving just Griffin as the only star left. Griffin signed a five year $173 million contract to stay in L.A. and to end his career in the city where it began it in. In January of 2018 however, Griffin was dealt in a shocking move to the Pistons. Forward Tobias Harris, guard Avery Bradley, center Boban Marjanović, and a first and second round pick were exchanged for essentially just Griffin. The following year, Griffin would have his statistical best season as the Pistons’ star player. He averaged 24.5 PPG, 7.5 RPG, and showed off his new shooting stroke from three, landing 36% of his shots from downtown. He was named an All-Star and was a member of the All-NBA Third Team that
season. Griffin almost single handedly led Detroit to the playoffs as the eight seed. They proceeded to be swept by the Milwaukee Bucks in an uncompetitive series. The following two seasons were plagued by injuries for Griffin. He appeared in only 18 games in the 2019-20 season and played in only 20 games for the Pistons this season before he was benched for the remainder of his tenure with the team. This season Griffin has struggled and he looks like a shell of his former self with knee troubles. Griffin averaged only 12.3 PPG with a disappointing 37% shooting mark from the field. Griffin’s release from Detroit fully sent the team into a long term rebuild. LOG ON TO: www.lanthorn.com FOR THE FULL ARTICLE