Optimist Print Edition 09.06.19

ACUOPTIMIST.COM | Friday, September 6, 2019 | 1

A student publication of Abilene Christian University since 1912

Women’s soccer hits ground running PAGE 5

Law mandates assault reporting

BY ALLISON HARRELL EDITOR IN CHIEF

University employees are now required by law to promptly report incidents regarding sexual harassment and assault against a student or another employee as of Sept. 1.

Senate Bill 212, which went into effect Sept. 1, says all employees of an institution, public or private, must “promptly report” any reports made to them involving the sexual harassment, sexual assault, dating violence or stalking in regards to a student or other employee.

“I think this was a state of Texas reaction to some past examples where per-

BY RILEY FISHER | CHIEF PHOTOGRAPHER

ACU Title IX Office expects release of final federal regulation changes in the later fall. haps employees at other universities were not reporting things,” said ACU

Police Chief Jimmy Ellison.

“So I think the state legislature is wanting to be a

national leader in this field and they’re wanting to make it clear to everyone that not

only are you expected to report these things, but now you’re going to be required by Ellison law.”

Prior to this law passing, the federal law for failure to report incidents regarding sexual assault created a civil penalty on the university or institution. Now, in addition to the civil penalty that the university would fall under, there is a criminal offense on the individual level.

Criminal punishment for not adhering to this law will go into effect Jan. 1. An employee’s failure to report an incident or the act of making a false report will create

a criminal offense as a Class B Misdemeanor.

Wendy Jones, chief human resources officer and Title IX coordinator at ACU, said it is important to note that the Title IX Office is still expecting the release of the final federal Title IX regulations from the Department of Education later this fall.

“We are including information about the new laws in our training and making additional training sessions available to faculty, staff and students throughout this year,” Jones said.

Another law that passed on Sept. 1, House Bill 449, requires universities to make a notation on a stuSEE LAW AT PAGE 2

BY DAVID MITCHELL | PHOTOGRAPHER

Students learn important interview skills at the Career Center’s Job and Internship Fair on Wednesday.

ACU Dallas beats undergrad goals

NEWS

New program enrollment exceeds targets

BY DILLON DANIEL MANAGING EDITOR

BY RILEY FISHER | CHIEF PHOTOGRAPHER

Kipp Bangham uses the Epilog laser in the Maker Lab.

Maker Lab, Foundry partner to inspire Monday creativity Darren Wilson, director of the ACU Maker Lab, said he is excited to see The Maker Lab and In- students and faculty have novation Foundry will the “lightbulb effect” of partner for the third year creating and finishing to host a series of work- a new project in these shops for students and workshops. Wilson has faculty. The workshops been director of the Makare designed to help be- er Lab for two years now. ginners to intermediates “My favorite thing to who are interested in us- see in students is their exing Adobe software. citement and to see how The Maker Lab work- they turn an idea into shop is called Maker confidence that they can Monday, and the first do it, as well as helping session begins on Sept. people think through the 23 upstairs in the Brown design process because Library, where they will that is the central point discuss how to work on getting things comwith Adobe Illustrator pleted in creative ways to and will go step-by-step go through the method on how to use this soft- process,” Wilson said. ware. These workshops Wilson’s sole purpose are designed for stu- for this workshop is not dents and faculty with only to help others but no prior experience to to draw in a crowd of these softwares and is students and faculty that completely free. have never been to or

BY ANDREW TOOTHMAN STAFF WRITER

heard of the ACU Maker Lab. The Fall schedule has been released as it is set to start in the month of September.

The first session entails the introduction to the software for vinyl cutting, and following that the second session is focusing on using the laser cutting tools on Sept. 30.

On Nov. 18 they will be focusing on the design use of the CNC Router.

The faculty to student ratio has been in favor of the faculty and Darren Wilson’s vision is to get students more involved that are seeking help and want to improve. Also, if you are interested in this please contact Darren Wilson at darren.wilson@acu.edu or Stephen Rektenwald, Director of Educational Technology at smr97a@acu.edu.

Enrollment in the ACU Dallas online undergraduate programs has surpassed expectations.

Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer for the Dallas campus Stephen Johnson said they originally projected 25 students across the Bachelor of Science in biology and the Bachelor of Science in information technology administration programs but said there are approximately 40 students enrolled as of the first week.

Johnson said he believes that there is an increase in student interest in the programs due to well-executed marketing of them.

“We set a specific number of prospected students leaning towards these degree-plans and the number we got back ended up being 30 percent higher,” Johnson said.

He said he believes people are drawn to the reputation of ACU, that the university is not only committed to an excellent education but the spiritual and vocational formation of its students as well.

Assistant Dean for Undergraduate programs at ACU Dallas Dr. Sarah Lee said they are very excited about the number of students enrolled in online programs.

“The students enrolled represent a demographic

“We set a specific number of prospected students leaning towards these degree plans and the number we got back ended up being 30% higher.”

STEPHEN JOHNSON VICE PRESIDENT AND CHIEF ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER FOR ACU DALLAS

that has historically been very difficult for ACU to reach and the accessibility of distance learning means that we are connecting these students with amazing faculty who are leaders in their workplaces and academic fields.”

These two programs are targeted toward non-traditional adult learners. This means any student out of high school who wants to take this option will not be able to do so.

The requirement to be enrolled in these programs is a student has been out of high school for at least four years without pursuing a college degree.

With all of the factors leading up to enrollment, Lee said she hopes this will allow for other opportunities for online undergraduate degrees.

“My hope is that the university will offer a suite of online undergraduate programs that are designed with the student in mind.

I believe higher education can be transformational in the lives of learners and we will see this firsthand in the stories of our new online students.”

Read about recent recycling changes

PAGE 2

SPORTS

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PAGE 6

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2 | Friday, September 6, 2019 | NEWS

Restrictions from overseas affect campus recycling

BY ANDREW NORSWORTHY STAFF WRITER

For the first time in decades, China is no longer receiving plastics and glass from the U.S. for recycling.

China’s reason for the change is the plastics from the U.S. are not sorted properly. This has resulted in China spending more money in order to sort out plastics before processing.

Plastics are separated into subsets due to different chemicals compounds which all require different forms of processing. The city of Abilene does not have a method of separating these recycling materials into their proper subsets before processing. As a result, the Abilene City Recycling Department is now unable to find a suitable buyer for collected plastics and glass.

“No more plastics anywhere in this area are

BY ANDREW NORSWORTHY | STAFF WRITER

Abilene City Recycling Department is now unable to find a suitable buyer for collected plastics and glass. being accepted for recycling. The only option is to take them to the landfill at this point,” Josh Brokaw, associate professor of biology, said.

Until a method of processing the different materials is developed, the landfill is the only viable short-term solution.

“We produce so many

plastics that a large fraction of them just escape out to the environment and blow away,” Brokaw said.

The consequences to the surrounding commu-

nities are increased use of landfills leading to quicker fill up in landfills and decreased awareness of the current issue at hand in ACU students and Abilene

city residents.

“The best solution that we have available to us is to not use plastics any more than absolutely necessary,” Brokaw said.

Another long-term solution is to use recycled plastic products over non-recycled plastics. This will increase non-recycled plastics value in parts of the world that specialize in taking in plastic waste.

“One way of to encourage [recycling] and become independent of China is to encourage people to buy things that are made from these recycled materials,” Dr. Tom Lee, professor of biology and chair of the department, said.

In addition, the use of aluminum and paper products over plastic products is another viable solution. Aluminum and paper are naturally occurring elements which are easier for the environment to break down.

Financial aid office plans new workshops for students

BY BRYCE LURKENS STAFF WRITER

Financial Counseling and Student Services is offering new programs to help current students better understand the scholarships available to them.

“We are providing new programs this year to better assist students,” said Jordan Jones, associate director of financial counseling and student services.

“We have a financial

town hall meeting on Sept. 4 to discuss resources and answer questions students have about the financial aid process.”

Financial Counseling and Student Services will provide a meet and greet opportunity in Resident Halls from Aug. 27 to Sept. 12, for students to get basic questions answered and to discuss the workshops planned for the fall.

There will be two scholarship workshops in

“We are providing new programs this year to better assist students.”

JORDAN JONES ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR OF FINANCIAL COUNSELING AND STUDENT SERVICES

the fall on Sept. 10 and 17. The workshops will assist students in creating winning scholarship essays.

“Our big event this year will be the Financial Literacy Confer-

ence on Nov. 2 where we are partnering with the community of Abilene to teach students what they need to know about money before they graduate,” Jones said.

This event will give students information on how to manage their money. Students are encouraged to sign up as early as possible. Sign up for the Financial Literacy Conference will open on Aug. 30.

Jones a r r ived at ACU

last yea r a nd made it h is m ission to help st udents rea l i ze t he d ifferent ways t hey cou ld be sav i ng money at col lege.

“I saw a need to help st udents in areas t hat most of t he popu lat ion st r ug gles w it h,” Jones sa id. “I k now when I was in col lege I d id not keep a budget, never k new where to go for scholarsh ips, and I d id not k now t he resources t he campus prov ided. I part nered w it h our Di-

rector, and she ag reed t hat a proact ive approach wou ld be helpfu l to t h is popu lat ion.”

Jones said he hopes that these programs provided by the office of Financial Counseling and Student Services will reach students and give them financial stability moving forward so that they can focus on school without the stress of money.

These provided workshops will take place on Sept. 4, 10 and 17.

LAW: Employees required to report sexual assault CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

-dent’s transcript when the student is ineligible to re-enroll in the institution for a reason other than an academic or financial. This applies to any disciplinar y process which may result in the student becoming ineligible to re-enroll and requires the school to continue the

process even if a student withdraws, “until the institution makes a final deter mination of responsibility.”

All three bills in Texas related to sexual assault were passed to become law on Se pt. 1.

T his will result in new chang es to university requirements in reg ards to re por ting sexual as-

sault incidents.

ACU Police Depar tment, ACU’s Title IX Office and ACU’s General Counsel are working together to infor m the ACU community about the recent law changes.

“T he g ood news is that the faculty and staff at ACU are al ready doing a phenom -

enal job at re por ting crime,” Chief Ellison said. “ACU has done a g reat job of making the community aware of their Title IX op tions as well as re por t ing oblig ations. T he employees at ACU have been incredible about re por ting these types of instances while also walking with vic -

tims through the Title IX as well as the criminal process. We like

to think that is all par t of the ACU difference, having employees who want to make sure students are g etting ever ything that they need. Sometimes ever ything that they need involves resources and maybe just a friendly voice or holding their hand through a ver y traumatic incident.”

THURS., SEPT. 12

FRI., SEPT. 13

SAT., SEPT. 14

6 p.m.- Volleyball vs. Cal

State Fullerton 6 p.m.- CSSA Mid-Autumn Festival Celebration West Texas Fair and Rodeo

6:30 p.m.- Volleyball vs.

PVUAM 7 p.m.- Soccer vs. North Alabama West Texas Fair and Rodeo

1 p.m.- Sancify Hip Hop Dance Co. Auditions 2 p.m.- Volleyball vs. North Texas 6 p.m.- OMA’s Just what is a TCK? West Texas Fair and Rodeo

“The good news is that the faculty and staff at ACU are already doing a phenomenal job at reporting crime.”

JIMMY ELLISON ACU POLICE CHIEF

WHAT’S HAPPENING? MON., SEPT. 9 West Texas Fair and Rodeo

TUES., SEPT. 10 West Texas Fair and Rodeo

WED., SEPT. 11 West Texas Fair and Rodeo

POLICE LOG SELECTED ACUPD CALLS FOR THE WEEK: •

A student reported unknown suspect(s) stole the front tire from their bicycle. 08/30/2019 9:53 a.m.

•

A student reported unknown suspect(s) stole their Cannondale road bicycle. 08/30/2019 9:45 p.m.

•

A student reported unknown suspect(s) stole their 18in Westlake 21 bicycle. 09/01/2019 2:40 p.m.

911 Call Administrative activity Alarm Animal call Assist Attempt to locate Building lock/unlock Burglary: motor vehicle Cart patrol Check building Criminal trespass Direct traffic Disturbance Escort Foot patrol Found property Information report

3 24 1 2 1 1 12 1 4 332 1 1 1 3 6 3 2

Investigation follow up Lost property Maintenance: univ. assets Medical emergency Monitor facility/lot Motorist assist: inflate tire.

Motorist assist: jumpstart Motorist assist: unlock Other Parking lot patrol Parking violation Patrol vehicle: maintenance Patrol vehicle: refuel Public service Random patrol Reckless driving Report writing

7 1 25 1 12 1 8 4 2 21 11 5 9 2 14 1 13

Sex offense Special assignment Suspicious activity Suspicious person Theft Traffic stop Vehicle collision Welfare check

3 1 4 2 4 6 1 2

Total

562

*List of selected statistics of this week’s ACUPD activity report.

MESSAGE FROM POLICE CHIEF ELLISON: “Bike thefts have increased recently but ACUPD has developed a suspect and are working to obtain arrest warrants for him. Please remember to lock bikes and keep a record of your bicycle make/model/color/serial number.”

FEATURES | Friday, September 6, 2019 | 3

BY RILEY FISHER | CHIEF PHOTOGRAPHER

Stephanie Hamm, chief diversity officer and associate professor of social work, hopes to make campus an inclusive environment.

HAMM SEEKS TO CREATE INCLUSION

New Chief Diversity Officer plans to increase diversity and retention

BY ALLISON HARRELL EDITOR IN CHIEF

The university has appointed Stephanie Hamm as the university’s first chief diversity officer.

Hamm graduated from ACU in 1990 with a bachelor’s degree in social work. She went on to obtain her Master’s Degree in Social Work at West Virginia University and then received her Ph.D. at the University of Texas at Arlington. She worked in social work for a number of years before returning to ACU to teach in 2008.

Although she and her husband, Scott Hamm, director of online education and the Ed.D. program at Hardin Simmons University, joked they’d never come back to Abilene after both graduating from ACU, she said they are happy to be here. Their son attends ACU as a sophomore and their oldest daughter graduated from ACU in 2018.

Hamm is now an associate professor in the School of Social Work. Hamm assumed the role of Chief Diversity Officer in the fall of 2019.

“I think that ACU has had a long history, and some of our history is actually steeped in racism, which is sad, but it actually is in terms of who has been let in,” Hamm said. “There’s actually some history about who was allowed to own property around ACU, so there’s been a long history. But along that history also, has been little spurts of equity and activity to move us forward, which is really good.”

Hamm said the student population at ACU is becoming increasingly diverse. Almost 40 percent of the student population is diverse.

“We need to be able to examine our culture here, our environment, our traditions, to make sure they are inclusive of everyone,” Hamm said. “I think the bottom line is, that students graduate from ACU with a complete and fulfilling col-

lege experience having felt like they belong here, that this is their place, that they are supposed to be here, and that every individual is needed here.”

Hamm said the other part of her role as Chief Diversity Officer is to eliminate any microaggression that is of harm to students.

“We have people on-campus that experience microaggressions,” Hamm said.

“They experience hard stuff, sometimes on a daily basis because of their culture, because of where they come from. Whether it is because they are international students, black or Hispanic, first-generation, not Church of Christ or not Christian.

“This role specifically has to do with race and ethnicity, but we want to eliminate as many of those uncomfortable hardships and frustrations as we possibly can so that people can stay here.

And so that people can have a very enriching time while they’re here. As a Christian university, I kind of feel like we should have been about this a long time ago.”

Dr. Phil Schubert, President of ACU, said the new position of Chief Diversity Officer at ACU stemmed from the Diversity Task

Force about three years ago.

About a year ago, a report was made by the Senior Leadership Team with the recommendation to create the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and hire a Chief Diversity Officer.

President Schubert said when choosing Hamm as the Chief Diversity Officer at ACU, they took into consideration that bringing in an outsider for the position would be challenging in this initial role and felt it would be much more affective to hire someone who had a strong knowledge of the culture and landscape of ACU to make quick progress.

“From that standpoint, Stephanie really fit all the criteria,” President Schubert said. “She was somewhat of an obvious choice given the nature of her work and her leadership on our campus over the past several years, her knowledge of who we are and her credibility among our faculty and staff.”

The Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion has two main purposes, to ensure everyone has an enriching experience and to eliminate all of the hard things as much as possible. Many universities now have a chief diversity offi-

HELP WANTED

cer, as well as businesses and organizations.

Hamm has three overarching goals set in place. One goal is to increase retention of diverse students. Diverse students are the students that are most likely to leave before graduation.

“They leave for various reasons,” Hamm said. “Maybe they leave because of money, but maybe people say, ‘It’s just not my school. I just don’t belong here.’ And that’s sad.”

Another goal is to increase diverse faculty and also increase their retention.

“Again we get diverse people, but then they can’t stay for whatever reason,” Hamm said. “And some of that is because of Abilene, there’s not a lot happening in Abilene. But what I’ve found is that often, there hasn’t been something terrible that causes someone to leave, but there also hasn’t been something so compelling that makes them want to stay. We are very, very good at relationships here at ACU, we just need to make sure we extend it to everyone.”

Another goal is to educate and train students, faculty and staff. Hamm said faculty have already been doing great things, like the use of the Adams Center for

“We need to be able to examine our culture here, our environment, our traditions, to make sure they are inclusive of everyone.”

STEPHANIE HAMM CHIEF DIVERSITY OFFICER AND ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF SOCIAL WORK

Teaching and Learning.

“It’s kind of like the teacher’s lounge but way better,” Hamm said.

The Adams Center holds book studies for faculty and staff and regularly invites speakers to speak on different topics. Hamm said that a recent book read by faculty and staff was called “I’m Still Here” by Austin Channing Brown, about the experience of a black female working in a predominately white, Christian organization. The author of the book, Austin Channing Brown, has been invited by the Adams Center to visit campus next week. She will speak at Chapel Monday.

Hamm said one challenge the office faces moving forward is deciding what exactly needs to be done.

“We can look at other universities and see what they have done but that may not fit ACU,” Hamm said.

“We’re unique in a lot of ways. And so we don’t want

to just pick something up there and move it over here.

There may be some good things, but it may not fit.”

Another challenge for the office is prioritizing what comes first and what comes second. And yet, another challenge they face moving forward is buy-in.

“I’ve had a lot of really positive comments, ‘I’m so glad we’re finally doing this,’ and ‘What can I do to help?’,” Hamm said. “But then I’ve had other comments about, ‘Why are we doing this?’ and, ‘Is this really necessary?’ So there may be some push-back with some just not understanding the purpose of the office.”

Eventually, Hamm said there may even be some curricular changes. Based on campus research a few years ago, the collected data showed that students want information about diversity and more curricular options, but they do not want it to be required.

“But this is the quandary, if we offer things that are voluntary, the people who want to do it are the ones who are going to do it,” Hamm said. “And sometimes the people who don’t want to do it, are the people that we really need to hear the information.”

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4 | Friday, September 6, 2019 | OPINIONS

Newspapers have a historic responsibilty

Alex Hill | Opinions Editor Classification: Senior Major: English Homewtown: Fort Worth

In 1704, the first regularly published newspaper in the United States was printed by John Campbell in Boston.

In 2019, we live in a world where we can access anything at the drop of a hat.

We get notifications straight to our smartphones about anything from the newest arrival of the latest fashion trend, to celebrity engagements and what is happening in the political arena. What fascinates me the most about newspapers today, is that they have come a long way.

With its original purpose being printed to inform farmers about weather and harvesting information, to now being filled with articles about the community, job opportunities, cartoons, world puzzles, are a few examples that shows how versatile newspapers can be.

Newspapers have survived decades and have learned to adapt to keep up with society and the constant changes and growth with technology.

With the birth of the newspaper, also came the birth of journalism. Without writers who want to get the scoop on the latest that is happening in the world, the newspaper would have died.

Journalists play such a huge role in educating people. It is their sole responsibility to bring all the facts to the table from the research and interviews the conduct for their story. It is important that as a journalist they present news accurately.

Accurate news helps to battle ignorance in modern day society. It is hard to blame someone for not knowing something about topics if they were never taught. So with the

proper information provided by journalists, people are able to see multiple points of view, get accurate information, and grow to be open to new things.

Instead of getting stuck in a cycle of reading the same wrong information being recycled. As we know, ignorance breeds ignorance.

Journalists that bring accurate news on a consistent basis allow the newspaper to be used as another tool to help educate others.

However, with all the good that came from those who do journalism for the right reason, there are some journalists who love to take things out of context to make them very negative. There are journalists that will spin stories to make the topic or person of interest appear worse than the truth they uncover.

Some journalists do it for

the views to become famous and develop a reputation in the journalism world. Some even bend the truth in their articles to help cover up what is actually happening in regards to the story they are following.

So with all of that being said, why should ACU students read the Optimist? Well one good reason students should read the Optimist, is because we provide information on all of the events that happen on campus and in Abilene. From the West Texas Fair, to Ethnos, Summit and so much more.

The Optimist is also good for students to read because of the constant spotlight that we shine on students and staff for achieving incredible milestones and making history. What could be better than learning about current students and

Turning the news back on

Allison Harrell | Editor in Chief Classification: Senior Major: Convergence Journalism Homewtown: Lampasas

Honestly, I used to have a negative view of media and the news. I still barely read the news, but here I am, writing for a newspaper.

After years of watching my grandfather sitting in his recliner, leaned back, yelling at the television because the Republicans were doing this or the Democrats were doing that, I started to tune it out. After years of turning on the early morning news before jumping in the car to go to elementary school and hearing about the day’s mass shooting and terrorist attack, I began to change the channel.

I am a very optimistic person by nature. In fact, Positivity is one of my top strengths on the Clifton StrengthsFinder Test. The news seemed to highlight the worst in people and always left me feeling almost depressed by the latest stories of disaster and conflict.

However, in my very first introduction to journalism course, we were told that the

news is supposed to cover what is out of the ordinary, what grabs people’s attention. This stuck with me.

Maybe what we see on the news, isn’t everything that is going on. Maybe, we can find rest in that what we see on television isn’t “normal”.

Then I began to think, “What would the world be like if we all remained ignorant to the more painful parts of our world?” Nothing would change. No one would be called to action for good to counteract these wrongs.

Nothing about the motives or composition changes when you sweep an object under the rug, except it’s out of view for the time being. Jesus calls us to boldly step out in faith and call out unrighteous acts, that we may spur each other on in the way that is righteous.

Thinking about it in this perspective, the motivation for news falls more in line with this command than I originally gave it credit. The news

keeps us accountable. It sheds light on the things that were once in the dark, and I now believe this to be a good thing.

Reporting accurate and truth about the facts of our society has the power to create change for good. That is the reason I am writing. If I can make some change for the good of the majority, I feel like that is a worthy motivation for journalism.

Journalism doesn’t always revolve around the negatives in society either, though. Sometimes journalists cover extraordinary advancements that will benefit society for the greater good or stories of extraordinary people doing extraordinary things. These stories have the power to inspire and shed light on good in the world.

So for these reasons, I have learned to trust more in the journalistic process and how a news story makes it to my television. The news is there not to discourage us into not doing anything, but rather encourage us to do something.

alumni from your very own news source on campus?

Lastly, the best reason in my opinion to read the weekly issue of the Optimist is it is free. Most well known newspapers such as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, to name a few that are still continuing successfully with digital copies and regular printed copies. These three well known and respected newspapers have a monthly prescription that you have to pay that ranges from $3.75 a week (New York Times), $10 a month (Washington Post) to $19.50 a month (Wall Street Journal).

However, with the Optimist that is not a worry at all, students have access to the issue for free every Friday after Chapel and online at acuoptimist.com

Tweets Slayde Anderson @slayde_anderson I wonder if excel can make a formula to accurately predict how many people are gonna get engaged at ACU this year Clayton @cl4yt0n_c00p3r Having class on Labor Day is not very wwJd :( Jillian Erhard @erhard_jillian Acu is literally the real version of mean girls. Instead of pink on Wednesday it’s purple on Friday.

ACU WHATS THE MOVE ? @AcuWtm Day 3 feels like month 3 #ACU Linsey @LinseyTomlinson BE KIND :) ACU Mens Basketball @ACU_MBB We finally received our @SouthlandSports rings! We want to thank everyone that’s been a part of the journey #GoWildcats ACU Facilities Mgmt @ACUCampusMgmt ACU has lowered flags to half-staff in memory of those who lost their lives in #OdessaShooting Our hearts & prayers are with both communities & their families. #PRAYFORODESSA

THE OPTIMIST STAFF ALLISON HARRELL

SARAH BLANKENSHIP

JALEN GARRETT

KENNETH PYBUS

DILLON DANIEL

ASHLEY LANG

LEXI KIRGAN

CADE WHITE

OWEN SIMPSON

DEVON HILLARY

RACHEL POE

CELESTE KINKADE

TAVIAN MILES

EMILY PERRYMAN

TYLER HENDERSON

ABBEY LEE

WILLIAM HEYEN

CLAIRE SHIPLEY

RILEY FISHER

ANDREW NORSWORTHY

DAVID MITCHELL

ALEX HILL

ANDREW TOOTHMAN

MEGAN HOLLEY

ERNESTO GUAJARDO

BRYCE LURKENS

EMILY SHAFER

LEAH FIKES

SYDNEY VARNER

KAUY OSTLIEN

RACHEL CROSSNOE

AVERY JACKSON

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SPORTS | Friday, September 6, 2019 | 5

PHOTO COURTESY OF MEDA BOW

Wildcat defense makes a tackle at UNT game in Denton on Saturday evening.

Wildcats fall to UNT in season opener

BY OWEN SIMPSON SPORTS DIRECTOR

ACU traveled to Denton Saturday night in a lost battle with North Texas, 51-31.

The defending Conference USA champions totaled 575 yards on offense in their victory over the Wildcats. Senior quarterback Mason Fine, the nation’s leading active passer, threw for 383 yards and four touchdowns.

Senior wide receiver Rico Bussey hauled in 156 receiving yards on just four catches, including a 57 yard touchdown catch from Fine.

Despite the loss, coach Dor-

rel defended his team’s performance in the season opener.

“I was very proud of our team. I thought they competed at a very high level in the third and fourth quarter,” Dorrel said. “I think we played really good football against a really good football team.”

The Wildcats limited themselves to just one turnover, but struggled especially on special teams.

The opening kickoff was returned for 61 yards to the ACU 32. The very next play, Mean Green delivered with the first touchdown of the evening. Later in the second quarter, UNT returned the kickoff

for 96 yards to extend the lead right before halftime.

Dorrel said that while these types of miscues are unacceptable, there is something positive to take away from it.

“The mistakes we made are very correctable. We did what we wanted,” Dorrel said. “We didn’t turn the ball over a lot or have a bunch of stupid penalties.

But unfortunately when you play a team of this caliber, we got punched in the mouth early on.”

It took UNT only four plays to score two touchdowns to start the game, and ACU’s offense struggled early in the first quar-

ter with just 49 total yards of offense.

After a rough start to the game with ACU trailing 31-0, the Wildcats were finally able to answer with a 17 yard touchdown run by senior running back Tracy James. James was the bright light on a rather forgettable evening for ACU. He finished with 106 yards rushing and two touchdowns on only 16 carries.

Despite his stellar performance, he’s more focussed on the offense as a whole unit.

“It’s never just thinking about me,” James said.

“It’s just over our whole offense on every aspect.”

Senior running back Billy

“I was very proud of our team. I thought they competed at a very high level in the third and fourth quarter.”

ADAM DORREL HEAD FOOTBALL COACH

McCrary was also a standout performer in the backfield. He finished with 80 yards rushing and a touchdown on just eight carries.

Dorrel said that during halftime, they made some key adjustments to make the running game more successful.

“Anytime you play the first game of the year, the unknowns are really hard,” he said. “We did not handle

BY MEGAN HOLLEY | PHOTOGRAPHER

Freshman forward Jordan Michie takes a shot at the goal in the second half at game against USW on Friday.

pressure early in the game very well. We finally came into halftime and realized there’s things we needed to do that we didn’t in the first and second quarters.”

Junior quarterback Luke Anthony was also under pressure throughout the game. He was sacked twice, but finished the evening 24-34 with 273 yards and a touchdown.

After the loss in the opening week, the Wildcats return home to face Arizona Christian in their first home game of the season Saturday at 6 p.m.

Meanwhile, North Texas heads to Dallas Sept. 7 to face SMU at 6 p.m.

BY MEGAN HOLLEY | PHOTOGRAPHER

The Mustang goalkeeper deflects junior forward Christina Arteaga’s shot on the goal at game against USW on Friday.

Soccer shut out by TAMU in first loss of season

BY RACHEL POE SPORTS WRITER

The Wildcats traveled east to College Station to face Texas A&M Sunday night.

The Aggies got off to a fast start, propelling them to a 4-0 victory over the ACU. Two goals were scored in the first minute of the game by junior defend-

er Jimena Lopez and senior forward Ally Watt of TAMU. The third goal came in the 19th minute from TAMU’s junior midfielder Addie McCain.

McCain was able to get her second and final goal of the game in the 59th minute.

This was the second time the Aggies and Wildcats have crossed paths.

The first time was four years ago, when the Aggies won 4-1 on Sept. 6, 2015.

The Aggies have finished with a winning record in all of its 26 seasons, and they’re on their way to continuing that streak sitting at 3-0-1.

Although the Wildcats did not manage to take home a win on Sunday,

they improved in the second half. ACU improved its shots from one in the first half to seven for the game.

Freshman midfielder Natalie Jones led ACU’s shot board with a total of two attempts. Meanwhile, Junior forward Christina Arteaga and four other Wildcats each had one shot. Junior goalkeeper

Erin Smith had a total of four tremendous saves.

T h e Wildcats Jones learned a lot facing the University of Texas A&M Aggies, losing their first official match of the sea-

son, and will look at it in a positive manner for the next two matches coming up.

Abilene Christian heads to Lubbock Friday to take on the Texas Tech Lady Raiders at 7 p.m.

After that matchup, they will travel to Portales, New Mexico for a match against Eastern New Mexico Sunday at noon.

6 | Friday, September 6, 2019 | SPORTS

STANDINGS Football Team UCA Lamar Mcneese SELU ACU HBU Nicholls NWSU SHSU SFA UIW

Ovrl.

1-0 1-0 1-0 1-0 0-1 0-1 0-1 0-1 0-1 0-1 0-1

Conf.

0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0

Soccer

BY CLAIRE SHIPLEY | PHOTOGRAPHER

Construction workers finishing the roof to the Byron Nelson Clubhouse.

Byron Nelson golf facility nears completion

BY AVERY JACKSON SPORTS WRITER

ACU’s golf program is in the process of building a new clubhouse and golf facility.

The construction of the Byron Nelson Clubhouse started in April. The new golf facility and clubhouse allowed the program to focus more of their time on improving and gave them a permanent home at ACU. “This new facility brings

out the passion in many of the guys to work harder and get better since it’s right there and we don’t have to go 10 minutes out to the golf course now,” said junior Alex Clouse. “That’s our home and we really haven’t had a home yet on campus.”

Clouse also said that this new facility helps the players tremendously in the fact that they are now able to work on shots within 130 yards which is he said is

“That’s our home and we really haven’t had a home yet on campus.”

ALEX CLOUSE JUNIOR, MEN’S GOLF TEAM

where most of the players really need to learn to score.

“It’s a big game-changer for our program, it not only helps everyone here now but it also helps with recruiting for years to come,” said junior Chase

Allison. “It’s one of the top facilities in the nation right now and everything that‘s been done has had a lot of thought put into it.”

The new facility and clubhouse help with recruitment.

ACU now has a golf facility that many colleges in the nation don’t have access to.

“We’ve never had a home or a locker room or a place to have meetings where we weren’t begging for space on the university,” Tom

Shawn, head golf coach, said. “It’s upgraded in that aspect in terms of the communication process.”

The new facility stacks up against many of the other golf facilities in the nation.

This new facility gave the team a space to build a community and to better them by having own space to work.

ACU golf begins its 2019 season with the Badger Invitational Sept. 8-10 in Madison, Wisconsin.

Volleyball returners prepare to start season in Omaha

BY LEXI KIRGAN SPORTS WRITER

Volleyball kicks off their first few games of the season in the Omaha invitational tournament. After losing a hand full of seniors that were key players last year, this years team is excited to see where this season will take them.

However, not all of the talent is gone. Junior outside hitter Katelyn Mueller and senior middle block-

er Kennedy Shelstead are back and ready for another year. Redshirt sophomore middle blocker Lorin McNeil is also back for the 2019 season after an injury that caused her to sit out of the 2018 season last year.

Shelstead said she is more than ready to kick off her senior season as an ACU Wildcat.

“I am so ecstatic for this season to finally start,” Shelstead said. “This is my

final season as a Wildcat and I’m so excited to represent my dream school with this team. I am most excited about finally getting to see our new team dynamic come into play against these big teams.

We lost so many seniors last year and have big shoes to fill so I’m excited to see how we fill those shoes and compete.”

The Wildcats lost five seniors last year but have replaced them with six

new faces to their roster for the upcoming season.

Mueller said that the work they have put in during this years offseason will show in a good way on the court.

“We have worked so hard this spring, summer, and preseason to be ready for this season and I think that will really show,” Mueller said. “We have built a great team culture and our practices have been more competitive

than ever because we have so many girls stepping into new and bigger roles on the court.”

The Wildcats are coming off of a losing season of 13 wins and 16 losses but a winning season in conference with 10 wins and six losses.

With the 2019 conference season a few weeks away, the Wildcats are picked to finish second in the Southland Conference rankings.

Cross country youth shines as new season begins

BY TYLER HENDERSON SPORTS WRITER

The Wildcats’ cross country season began at home this past Saturday, winning individual and team titles.

The Wildcats faced stiff competition again this year at the Naimadu Classic, racing against Texas Tech, McMurry University, Western Texas University and Ranger College. The Red Raiders took the team win last year.

The events starting the year off for the Wildcats were the men’s Alfred Rugema collegiate 6K, followed

by the Casi Florida 4K for the women.

Sophomore and returning letter winner Kevin Kipkosgei took the title for consecutive years after missing all but one meet earlier this year.

Freshman Denis Lagat had a good showing, following that up with a second place finish. The women followed the men with another impressive race of their own.

With a 1-2 finish for the Wildcats in the 4K and another title win, Sophomore Briahna Gerlach won the race, followed by returning letter winner Senior Carnley

Graham coming in second.

Meanwhile, freshman Grace White finished third.

Coach Jarvis Jelen enjoys the youth and is looking forward to an exciting year.

Looking forward, he says the adjustment period for such a young team will be critical in how they see continued success.

“The adjustment period for a lot of the freshmen, especially the men will be key,” Jelen said. “Going from highschool races, which are 5K for men and 3-4K for the women, to collegiate distances of 6-10K

“As the season progresses, seeing the youth adjust to the longer distances metally will be exciting to see.”

JARVIS JELEN CROSS COUNTRY COACH

will be interesting.”

Coach Jelen has abundant confidence in the group, expecting great things to come for years to come. With a young core, the main point of focus moving forward will be staying healthy and strengthening the mental side of the races.

“As the season progresses, seeing the youth adjust to the longer distances mentally will be exciting to see,” Jelen said. “Watching how they mature and strengthen that side of the sport will be fun to watch this season and seasons to come.”

The Wildcats will head to Lubbock at the end of September to participate in the Texas Tech Open, followed by trips to the University of Arkansas, Texas A&M, and McMurry in October. The Southland Championship and NCAA races will begin in November.

FOOTBALL MATCHUP PREVIEW 2019 SEASON POINTS PER GAME

14

183

RUSH YPG

25

273

PASSING YPG

31

51

SPORTS DIRECTOR

Conf.

0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0

Volleyball Team UCA Nicholls SFA HBU NWSU UNO Mcneese Lamar SHSU UIW TXAM-CC SELU ACU

Ovrl.

4-0 3-0 3-0 3-1 3-1 2-1 2-2 1-2 1-2 1-2 1-3 1-3 0-3

Conf.

0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0

SCHEDULE Football Week 2

ACU UCA SELU Miss. Valley OPSU Mcneese TSU Midd. St. TX Wesleyan TX Southern

v v v v v v v v v v

ACU Austin Peay BCU Lamar SHSU OSU SFA NSU HBU UIW

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

Cross Country

White Freshman Grace White made her Wildcat Cross Country debut during the Naimadu Classic, finishing third in the Casi Florida 4K. She finished with a time of 14:48.81.

Coming off of an injury in high school and a late ramp up in conditioning, she made a statement to the coaches and other competitors with an impressive start to her ACU XC career.

20 Arizona Christian University (0–1)

ABILENE CHRISTIAN UNIVERSIT Y (0–1)

Owen Simpson

Ovrl.

2-0-1 3-1 2-1 1-1-1 1-2 1-2 1-3 0-3 0-3 0-3 0-3 0-4

Football

296

POINTS ALLOWED

Team Nicholls ACU Mcneese SELU HBU SFA Lamar TXAM-CC UCA SHSU UIW NWSU

Tavian Miles

ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR

Lexi Kirgan

SPORTS REPORTER

It’s hard to say exactly how lopsided this matchup will be.

Arizona Christian doesn’t even belong in the NCAA and are entering their fifth season as a football program. In the NAIA, Arizona Christian has been relatively successful winning the 2015 and 2016 CSFL championships. However, this will likely be the Firestorm’s toughest opponent to date. While ACU did struggle against UNT last week, they did manage to have success throughout the game running the ball. Senior running backs Billy McCrary and Tracy James showed promise running for a combined 189 yards and three touchdowns on just 24 carries. Junior quarterback Luke Anthony was also successful in his time last Saturday throwing for a touchdown and completing over 70 percent of his passes. I’d expect the Wildcats to push the run game early and wouldn’t be surprised if McCrary and James both exceed 100 rushing yards each. ACU grabs their first win of the season in this one.

To say that this could be a shootout is an understatement.

Arizona Christian has only had a football program for five years and hasn’t played any competition like the Wildcats. This will most likely be Arizona Christian’s super bowl and will most likely run a lot of trick plays and different schemes.

Although Abilene Christian couldn’t pull out the win against The Mean Green of North Texas, they did show a strong running game between Senior running backs Tracy James and Billy McCrary.

Junior quarterback Luke Anthony showed some light throwing for 273 yards and connecting with nine different targets. The Wildcats defense did show out in the second half by only giving thirteen points, while Senior linebacker Jeremiah Chambers had a total of 11 tackles. The Wildcats will most likely showcase the run game early along with a balanced passing attack like recent years. Expect for this game to be over by halftime.

I think Saturday’s game will be a very exciting first home game. Well, maybe not super exciting because I think it’s going to be a blowout as they are going to beat the feathers off the Firestorm. I honestly feel really bad for them because the Wildcats are coming off of a really hard fought loss, so I definitely feel like their blood is pumping and are ready to show the ACU fans what they are actually about. With Jeremiah Chambers ready to hit the life out of people and Tracy James and Billy McCrary bulldozing through people, I really feel like this Arizona Christian team has no chance of even coming remotely close to winning this game. I really think our guys are going to have a great year this year, and I feel like it’s going to start on Saturday on Anthony Field at Wildcat Stadium.

FINAL SCORE: ACU 45 AC 10

FINAL SCORE: ACU 49 AC 13

FINAL SCORE: ACU 49 AC 7

Jalen Garrett SPORTS REPORTER

Our first home game this season should be a breeze for the Wildcats. Struggling against UNT last week, ACU will bounce back into rhythm against Arizona Christian.

Last year, Arizona Christian’s opponents scored more points than the Firestorm.

Their opponents also had more total rushing yards, first downs, averaged more rushing yards per game and points off turnovers. I believe that our offense will be superior in Saturday’s matchup, and it won’t be close. Senior running backs Billy McCrary and Tracy James displayed their running abilities by combining for three touchdowns against UNT. ACU’s defense will need to make some improvements, allowing 456 yards of total offense. ACU will be dominant on both ends, and this will be a blowout game.

FINAL SCORE: ACU 49 AC 0

Clark Sophomore wide reciever Kobe Clark had a career game against the Mean Green in the season opener for the Wildcats. Tying his career high of nine receptions he joins an elite group of Wildcat receivers to have caught ten or more passes since moving up to Div. I, most notably Chicago Bears wide-out Taylor Gabriel. The Wildcats have their home opener Saturday.

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