The Optimist - 04.23.14

Senior Farewell Women’s tennis plays final home matches of the year

vol. 102, no. 52

wednesday, april 23, 2014

1 SECTION, 8 PAGES

Sports Page 7

INSIDE SPORTS Lyndi Smith proves experience is valuable in senior year

Page 7

OPINION Headed back to your parents after graduation? There’s no shame in that, the Editorial Board asserts.

50 YEARS

ON THE

JOB

Page 6

NEWS Project REACH hosts a fashion show to raise funds

jarred schuetze Staff photographer

Dr. Gary McCaleb takes the first pitch at the baseball game on Monday in celebration of his 50th anniversary of working for ACU. Before the game, a luncheon commemorating his dedication and influence sold out to more than 350 people.

McCaleb marks 50th year working with university Page 4

logan sartain student reporter

SPORTS Wildcats honor McCaleb in an allAbilene match-up

Vice President Dr. Gary McCaleb was honored Monday for his 50 years of service at ACU. During Monday’s Chapel, President Dr. Phil Shubert recognized McCaleb and presented to him an authen-

dents, faculty, alumni and guests, said Lea Watkins, assistant to the vice president.

Notable guests in attendance included Congresstic ACU Baseball jersey with man Randy Neugebauer and the number 50 on the back, Representative Susan King, which he wore while throw- Watkins said. ing the first pitch that afterAt the luncheon, Channoon at the ACU v. McMurry cellor and former ACU presibaseball game. dent Dr. Royce Money gave a Following Chapel, a lun- tribute to McCaleb. cheon was organized to honAlso announced at the or McCaleb. luncheon was the founSeats for the luncheon dation of a scholarship to sold out to more than 350 be called “Complete the people, including ACU stu- Dream.” The scholarship is

being funded at a $100,000 level by an anonymous donor and will be for student athletes majoring in business, Watkins said.

At Monday’s baseball game McCaleb threw the first pitch, which was caught by his son, Bryan McCaleb.

In addition to serving as the university vice president, McCaleb founded the Center for Building Community and serves as its Executive Director.

As a result, more than 150 Pulse and Lynay students at-

tended the game to honor McCaleb, said Prentice Ashford, assistant director for the Center for Building Community.

“ACU would not be what it is today without Dr. McCaleb,” Ashford said.

“I am very grateful for him and the relationship we have,” Ashford said. “He’s been a great mentor to me.

We have a Paul and Timothy like relationship.”

Watkins said McCaleb has see mcCaleb page 4

Rushing begins with rule change Page 8

kirsten holman copy editor

NEWS Weekend Campaign to Laredo focuses on a Spanish-speaking mission Page 5

SPORTS Wildcat tennis team dominates Golden Eagles 5-2 over the weekend Page 8

Pledging requirements have changed for the fall; Potential girl pledges will now be expected to attend at least one rush for each girls club.

“One of the things that we were noticing is that with the girls in particular, several were only going to one tea, which is kind of the kickstart for rushes,” said Mark Jackson, associate director of student organizations and

KACU sees increased pledges after it shifts to more news Page 5

ONLINE VIDEO Watch the JMC Newscast for an update on the latest news on campus

114 men have registered to pledge so far. Last year there was a total of 204 that registered, but not all were eligible; Only 150 men continued the pledging process in the fall, Jackson said.

332 women are registered to pledge so far. Jackson said last year more than 400 registered, but only 250 stayed in the pledging process.

Jackson said this new requirement will only apply to girls, not guys.

The student body nominates seniors who have constudent reporter tributed to the University Ms. ACU Mr. ACU or have been an exemplary Chelsea Lanier Dylan Benac Five men and five women leaders of the student body.

Courtney Martin Jake Hall from ACU’s graduating class “It is a huge honor just to have been nominated by stube on the nomination list,” Amy Morris Keegan Kinder dents to receive the honor of said Aubree Selinger, senior Madison Sandifer Landon Long being named Mr. and Miss family studies major from Aubree Selinger JP Ralston ACU. Grapevine said.

Rodney Johnson, junior Once the nominations marketing pre-law major President Dylan Benac, who “These are definitely are in, the top five female from Odessa, executive vice would normally have been in people held in high regards and top five male nominapresident of the Students’ As- charge of the honor, stepped at this university,” Johnson tions are placed on the ballot sociation, is in charge of the down when he was nominat- said. “It is a wonderful tradi- for the entire student body to 2014 Mr. and Ms. ACU. SA ed for Mr. ACU. tion.” vote on.

MR. AND MS. ACU NOMINEES

Johnson notified the candidates last night of their nomination.

Students may vote once at vote.acu.edu from today at 11:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday.

Johnson tells students, “Trust your gut and ask around. You want to contribute to this great tradition.”

contact the optimist at jmcnetwork@acu.edu

Condoleezza Rice to visit Global Samaritan Civic Center Nov. 18 at an do at Global event sponsored by GlobSa ma r ita n al Samaritan and all three Resou rces local private universities. and within Abilene nonprofit Global “A couple of months 24 hours I Samaritan Resources will ago we reached out to had a rebring one of the most fa- her representatives,” said s p o n s e mous women in America Danny Sims, executive Dr. rice from to Abilene in the fall. director of Global SamariRice agreeFormer Secretary of tan Resources. “After that ing to come and speak for State Condoleezza Rice I wrote her a hand-written us.” will speak at the Abilene letter describing what we Rice was the second

matt sloan

sports director

Read more at acuoptimist.com

paige otway Staff Photographer

Marquita Bugg, junior nursing major from Dallas, gets to see pledging page 4 know possible pledges for Fall 2014 at the All-Club Rush.

Students nominated for Mr. & Ms. ACU nathan lundeen

NEWS

programs. “They would then only go to one club’s rush and then voting would happen and if they didn’t get voted on, they are immediately out of the process.”

This defeats the purpose of what rushing is about, Jackson said.

“It’s about going and checking out, and there is no problem with having a favorite or two or a preference, but it’s more of checking out as many clubs as you can to have a good idea of what is best for you,” he said.

Abilene Christian University

African-American to be the Secretary of State, but the first black woman to hold the office.

Rice will address “How Ordinary People can make an Extraordinary Difference.” Rice is the Denning Professor in Global Business and the Economy at the Stanford University Graduate

School of Business.

“We thought Dr. Rice was a great fit for a lecture about people helping people, which is what we do at Global Samaritan Resources,” Sims said.

“The title of the lecture is a play off of her best-selling memoirs titled ‘Exsee samaritan page 5

Wednesday 04.23.14

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wednesday

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6 p.m. Women’s Softball vs. University of Texas at Arlington

6 p.m. Worship Extravaganza 3

Saturday

8 a.m. Kirk Goodwin Run

7:30 p.m. ACU Theatre: “The Glass Menagerie”

7:30 p.m. ACU Opera - Susannah at Civic Center

2 p.m. Women’s softball vs. Houston Baptist University

8 p.m. Freshman Formal

7:30 p.m. ACU Theatre: “The Glass Menagerie”

7:30 p.m. ACU Theatre: “The Glass Menagerie”

9 p.m. Pancakes for Parkinson’s

7 p.m. Red Thread Fashion Show at Windsor Hotel

Announcements

Chapel checkup To date:

26

friday

Thursday

2

Remaining:

ACU’s annual Pancakes for Parkinsons fundraiser will be at 9 p.m. tomorrow in Gardner West lobby. A $2 minimum is required to receive a plate of pancakes and T-shirts will be on sale for $1.

88 12 @acuoptimist The Optimist optimist@acu.edu

Worship Extravaganza 3 will be at 6 p.m. on Thursday in the amphitheatre. There will be contemporary and a capella worship, dance and spoken word.

Upward Bound Summer Academy is seeking students to work as student advisors this summer. For more information, contact D’Angelo Sands at 324-674-2514.

Registration for the Kirk Goodwin Run is open. Applicants can register for the Run the West half marathon for $80 or the classic 5K for $20. The race will be on Saturday. To register, visit www.kirkgoodwinrun. com.

The International Students Association is looking to hire a script writer to write a short script for the annual Ethonos Culture Show.

SALT is hosting the annual recycle day at 1 p.m. on May 5 at University Church of Christ.

The annaul Red Thread Fashion Show will be at 7 p.m. on Saturday at the Windsor Hotel. Tickets are on sale for $7 in the Campus Center, but are $1 off if you like the Red Thread Fashion Show Facebook page.

The ACU Opera will perform at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday and Saturday at the Abilene Civic Center. The show is titled Susannah. For more information, visit facebook. com/AbileneChristianOpera.

ACU Theatre will perform “The Glass Menagerie” at 7:30 p.m.

April 24-26 in Fulks Theatre.

Tickets cost $15. To purchase tickets, visit acu.edu/theatre or call 325-674-2787.

The 2nd Annaul Sanctify Spring Showcase will be at 7:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday in the amphitheatre. Tickets are $5 pre-sale and $7 at the door.

Registration for the intramural softball tournament closes today. Cost is $35 per team and the tournament will be on April 25-26 at Nelson Park. To sign up, visit www.imleagues.com.

Police log SELECTED ACUPD CALLS FOR THE WEEK 04/02/2014 11:10 p.m. A student’s vehicle was keyed and deceased birds left on it as the vehicle was parked in the Nelson Hall lot.

04/03/2014 7:30 p.m. A student’s vehicle was struck by an unknown driver who fled the scene; investigation continues.

04/07/2014 5:54 p.m. ACUPD issued 5 Criminal Trespass Warnings to the five HSU students involved in the offensive prank citation incident.

04/10/2014 6:40 p.m. A suspicious male not associated with ACU entered the Moore House two days in a row without authorization.

04/10/2014 4:03 p.m. A middle-aged male was acting inappropriately while sitting in a light blue Dodge pickup in front of Edwards Hall; the suspect drove away prior to ACUPD’s arrival.

04/12/2014 7:35 p.m. A student ingested a chemical and was transported by ambulance to Hendrick Medical Center.

04/13/2014 9:36 a.m. An unknown suspect shattered the rear window of a student’s vehicle while it was parked in front of Gardner Hall.

04/14/2014 5:45 p.m. A student’s vehicle was struck by a hit-and-run driver in the Mabee Edwards Lot.

ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIVITY 9 ALARM 2 ASSIST 6 ATTEMPT TO LOCATE 2 BARRICADES 3 BUILDING LOCK/UNLOCK 27 CART PATROL 1 CHECK BUILDING 189 CRIMINAL MISCHIEF 1 DISABLED VEHICLE 1 DISTURBANCE 3

Weekly Stats For Week of April 01 - April 15, 2014 - Total Events: 358

EVENT SUPPORT 2 FOOT PATROL 8 FOUND PROPERTY 1 HARASSMENT 1 INFORMATION REPORT 2 INVESTIGATION REPORT 2 INVESTIGATION FOLLOW UP 15 LOST PROPERTY 1 MAINTENENCE: UNIVERSITY ASSETS 1 MONITOR FACITLITY/LOT 2 MOTORIST ASSIST: INFLATE TIRE 1

Alameda Neighborhood Association needs 5-25 volunteers to help go out into 28 alley blocks to pick up trash and help clean up the neighborhood on April 26. Teams will go out and walk the alleys picking up trash and picking up bulk items that have been left in the alleys or from senior citizens who have made previous arrangements to have bulk items picked up. Volunteers will meet at Alameda Community Center at 9 a.m. For more information, contact Denise Davidson at 325-370-3642 or hofabilene@ hotmail.com.

Beltway Park Baptist Church is seeking volunteers to help with special needs children in their program Kingdom Kids.

Volunteers would be needed on Sunday mornings and Wednesday evenings. For more information, contact Sharla Sanders at 325-692-6540 or sharlasanders@beltway.org.

MOTORIST ASSIST: JUMPSTART 8 MOTORIST ASSIST: OTHER 1 MOTORIST ASSIST: UNLOCK 8 NOISE VIOLATION 5 OTHER 5 PARKING LOT PATROL 10 PARKING VIOLATION 3 PATROL VEHICLE: MAINTENANCE 11 PATROL VEHICLE: REFUEL 9 RANDOM PATROL 8

Volunteers are needed to help with daily activities organized by the staff at Chisholm House. This could involve playing board games, helping with arts and crafts and helping with a walking club. For some of these tasks volunteers may be asked to lead a group or work along side a staff coordinator. Volunteer opportunities are from 2-4 p.m. or 6-8 p.m. daily. Contact Larissa Blankenship at 817-578-9296.

The Noah Project is seeking volunteers to help with tasks such as answering phone calls, providing child care and doing maintenance and housekeeping. To volunteer call 325-676-7107.

Grace Point Church is looking for creative students with craftsmanship skills to volunteer for Vacation Bible School.

Volunteers will be creating props, sets and decorations in preparation for the program. For more information, call Ruth Gregory at 325-675-5060.

The Betty Hardwick Center is seeking volunteers for the Human Resources Center to help with filing and organizing. This job requires someone with attention to detail who wishes to learn more about Human Resources. The job is open Mondays through Fridays from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. If you are interested, please contact Martin Walker at 325-690-5235 or mwalker@ bhcmhmr.org.

The International Rescue Committee in Abilene needs your help in welcoming refugees to our community. We are seeking the following donations: hygiene and cleaning supplies, bed linen, towels and kitchen items (dishware, silverware, pots/pans etc). Donations are accepted Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 2-4 p.m. or by appointment.

Their office is located at 3303 North Third Street Suite D in Abilene, Texas. For more information contact MariePascale Manishimwe at 325-675-5643.

House of Faith is an organization that seeks to take Jesus to neighborhood children. Volunteers are needed to help with the various programs they do throughout the week. Backyard Bible studies are hosted Mondays and Wednesdays and a youth program takes place on Thursday evenings. The organization is seeking volunteers who can commit to a specific day a week. House of Faith lasts from 3-5:30 p.m. To volunteer or gain more information contact Amy Jeffers at abj09a@acu.edu or call 832-331-5324.

Treadaway Kids is looking for more students and volunteers to join the group. For more information, contact Carly Henderson at cah10a@acu.edu.

Breakfast on Beech Street is seeking volunteers to help set up, prepare and serve breakfast to homeless/lower income folks any Monday, Wednesday, Thursday or Friday at 5:30 a.m. or Tuesdays at 5 a.m. B.O.B.S. is located at First Christian Church on 3rd Street and Beech Street Service times must be scheduled in advance. To serve on, Mondays contact Jody Depriest at 325-669-3312 or jody.depriest@ gmail.com. To serve on Tuesdays contact Allen Daugherty at 325-660-6949 or ale.al@suddenlink.net. To serve on Wednesdays, contact Jane Harvey at 325-695-0092 or jharvread@aol.com. To serve on Thursdays, contact Margaret Beasley at 325-692-4149 or mbeasley5@suddenlink. net. To serve on Fridays contact Terry Stremmel at terry. stremmel@acu.edu.

JUMP @ Abilene North Apartments is seeking students to assist in teaching the gospel to at-risk low-income children. Students must be available to volunteer from 4-5:30 p.m. on Mondays. Service opportunity begins Jan. 27 and lasts until April 28. For more information, contact Caroline Thompson at 281-782-2956 or crt12a@acu.edu.

Friends for Life is seeking volunteers to help with both elderly residents and independent living elderly. Nursing home service opportunities include visiting, playing games, reading to the blind and assisting in arts and crafts. Independent living service opportunities include mowing lawns, grocery shopping and changing light bulbs. To volunteer contact Cecilia Barahona at 325-672-2635 or cecilia@ friendsforlife.org.

Love and Care Ministries is looking for volunteers to help with sorting clothing, stocking their food pantry, assisting in prayers in their prayer room and serving food to the homeless. For more information call 325670-0246.

Univerity Place is seeking volunteers to help with resident birthday parties for residents on the third Wednesday of each month at 2:30 p.m. For more information, contact Linda Tijerina at 325-676-9946.

The Food Bank of West Central Texas needs volunteers to help sort and stock food and other items any weekday Monday - Friday from 8 a.m.-3 p.m. The Food Bank is located at 5505 N. 1st St. For more information contact Janice Serrault at 325-695-6311 or abfoodbk@camalott. com.

REPORT WRITING 7 SUICIDE (ATT & ACTUAL) 2 SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY 2 SUSPICIOUS PERSON 1 THEFT (NON VEHICLE) 1 TRAFFIC HAZARD 1 TRAFFIC STOP 1 Springtime means severe weather season.

Stay current & enrolled with ACU ALERT. Go to acu.edu/acualert.

The Christian Service Center is seeking volunteers to help with filing requests for items such as clothing and bedding from the donation center, sort and organize donations and occasionally pick up donated items. Volunteers are needed every weekday and the first Saturday of each month between 9 a.m.-12 p.m. and 1-4 p.m. For more information, contact Roberta Brown at 325-673-7561 orrobertabrown51@hotmail.com. For more information on the program visit http://www.uccabilene.org/ministries/ csc.htm.

Big Brothers/Big Sisters offers two volunteer programs.

Lunch Buddies pairs volunteers with a little brother or little sister to have lunch with once a week for 30 minutes.

Lunch Buddies has a preferred time of 10:30 a.m.-1 p.m.

The Community Based program pairs volunteers with a little brother or little sister that they will hang out with two to four times a month. Both programs require committment to the program for 12-18 months. To sign up, stop by the Big Brothers/Big Sisters office at 547 Chestnut St. or contact Randy Woods at 325-674-3102.

The Salvation Army is looking for volunteers for a variety of needs such as sorting and pricing items in the thrift store, helping in the kitchen and/or doing yard work.

Times are flexible and volunteers are needed Monday Saturday. The Salvation Army is located at 1726 Butternut St. For more information contact J.D. Alonzo at 325-6771408 or visit www.satruck.com.

Meals on Wheels Plus needs volunteer drivers to deliver afternoon meals to seniors and adults with disabilities Monday-Friday between 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Drivers must be at least 18 years old and have a valid driver’s license. Training is provided. For more information contact Samantha Barker at 352-672-5050 or visit http://mealsonwheelsplus.com.

Christian Ministries Food Pantry needs volunteers to help with tasks such as cleaning up, stocking shelves and bagging flour. It is looking for students who can make a commitment of 1-3 hours a week. For more information contact Becky Almanza at 325-673-5295 or balmanza7@ sbcglobal.net.

The Center for International Education is looking for one male and one female volunteer to serve as conversation partners with ACU scholars who are looking to improve their English language skills. Volunteers will be required to spend one hour a week practicing conversation, but the day, time, and location are up to the students to decide. For more information or to volunteer, contact Leanne Moore at 325-674-2821 or lmm10b@acu.edu.

For additional volunteer opportunities visit: www. acu.edu/campusoffices/ccsl/ministry-service/volunteer-opportunities/

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news

wednesday 04.23.14

Big Brothers and Sisters reduces list size meigan gardner student reporter Two hundred and thirteen Abilene children have been removed from the Big Brothers Big Sisters (BBBS) waiting list thanks to Communities of Abilene Federal Credit Union (CoAFCU) and their record-breaking, fiveyear fundraising campaign.

The campaign raised about $150,000 through their organized annual “Skip-A-Loan” program.

“Our members are so supportive and look forward to the annual Skip-a-

Payment program so they can donate, even if they don’t have a loan to skip,” said Pauline Reese, CoAFCU Vice President in a press release. “It gives all of us here at the credit union a great feeling of accomplishment that over the last five years we have been able to mentor 213 children. We look forward to many more years of partnering with BBBS.” The “Skip-A-Loan” program allows CoAFCU members to skip a loan payment during Nov. and Dec. by making a $10 donation to BBBS. “Communities of Abilene

Federal Credit Union is an exceptional corporate partner for the agency and we are grateful for their generous donations,” Reese said.

“Their continued support is paramount to the success of mentoring youth in Abilene and the surrounding area.”

Summer Thompson, sophomore speech pathology major from Austin, has been a part of BBBS in Abilene for a year.

“I heard about Big Brothers Big Sisters at the ‘Welcome to Abilene’ event,” Thompson said. “They had a booth set up and they reeled me in.BBBS sounded like a

good way to get involved in the community and to get plugged in at ACU.” Thompson said she has learned a great deal from the program and was excited to hear the news.

“That partnership will bring needed growth and benefit many children in the Abilene area,” she said. “From participating in BBBS, I learned what it meant to be a mentor. I learned to connect with kids by having fun and interacting with them in a different context. I benefited more from the experience than I would have ever thought.”

Chandler Matlock, engineering major from Pocahontas, Ark., has been a part of the program since September.

“I, personally, am a huge fan of the corporate partnership for the simple reason that the biggest issue with BBBS is that we have a huge demand by kids, but a huge deficit of college students and adults to volunteer,”Matlock said. “If the financial burden can be taken from the volunteers and handled by BBBS I feel like the program would be more attractive to volunteer for.”

Being part of the BBBS program will not only help others in the community and count for volunteer hours, but it is also a great personal learning experience.

“I highly recommend that people sign up to be a Big Brother or Big Sister,” said Thompson. “It was a rewarding experience for me and got me involved in the greater Abilene community.

Do it.”

contact the optimist at jmcnetwork@acu.edu

Students audition for “Big Fish” grace coan student reporter Open auditions for the Homecoming musical in the fall, “Big Fish”, took place last week in Fulks Theatre in the Williams Performing Arts Center.

Any student or members from the Abilene community were welcome to audition. Those who auditioned were required to prepare a cut of a song in the style of “Big Fish” as well as a minutelong monologue.

There were two sets of callbacks for “Big Fish.”

The first was a vocal callback Monday night during which students were asked to sing a portion of one of the songs from the show. The second was a dance call Tuesday night.

The directors selected several from those who auditioned to be called back for certain roles.

Callbacks were Monday and Tuesday and began at 7 p.m.

“Big Fish” will be directed by Dawne Meeks, associate professor of acting and movement, alongside the vocal direction of Kari Hatfield, assistant

professor of acting and theatre history.

“Dawne is a great director, she really knows how to convey what she is trying to accomplish as a whole with a show to her actors. I love her directing style and it’s something I look forward to working with,” said Joseph Burnam, a junior theatre edu-

“

It has very intense material about trust and betrayal, but it’s also just a play-on of what is real.” joseph burnam junior theatre education major from Dallas

cation major from Dallas.

Meeks and Adam Hester, department chair and director, take turns each year directing the homecoming musical. Last year for “Les Misérables”, Meeks and Adam co-directed.

The cast list will be sent out to everyone involved in the show during the summer. Rehearsals will begin the week before school.

Performance dates for “Big Fish” are Oct. 10-12 at the Abilene Civic Center.

“There is definitely a lot

of dancing,” Burnam said.

“The year before last when we did ‘42nd Street’, it was an all tap show, and it’s going to be more like that.”

This is the first time “Big Fish” will premiere in Abilene.

“It has very intense material about trust and betrayal, but it’s also just a play-on of what is real,” Burnam said.

“It’s a great contrast because ‘Les Mis’ is kind of a darker story and ‘Big Fish’ is going to be real familyfriendly and a lot of fun,” said Caleb Pierce, junior musical theatre major from Coppell.

The Homecoming musical attracts more students, alumni and members from the community than any other productions.

“I do like the small intimate shows and it helps you in that specific area,” said Sara Williams, sophomore musical theatre major from Abilene. “But homecoming is like Sing Song in the sense that it’s so memorable; it’s huge.”

jarred schuetze staff photographer contact the optimist at optimist@acu.edu

Dr. Gary McCaleb takes the first pitch at the baseball game on Monday in celebration of his 50th anniversary of working for ACU. .

Relay for Life runs for two days on fields micah hermsdorf student reporter The American Cancer Society will host Abilene’s 20th anniversary Relay for Life event Friday and Saturday, from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m.

The Relay will take place at Big Country Soccer Complex. Amy Carnes, Relay for Life Specialist for the American Cancer Society, helped organize this event.

“Cancer never sleeps and so that night, neither do we,” Carnes said.

Relay For Life is the largest fundraising event in the world. Starting at 6 p.m., members of teams that have chosen to raise money will begin taking laps for those who have passed away, battled or survived cancer.

Team members switch off taking laps throughout this twelve-hour event.

“Sometimes we feel like

cancer is too big and we can’t do anything about it,” Carnes said. “But this is one way you can. You can fight back.”

“Finish the Fight” is the superhero theme chosen for the Relay this year. The Luminaria Ceremony takes place after dark to remember those who have fought cancer. Their names will be lit up using candles. Games, activities and concessions will also be provided to reflect the theme and further donations toward the fight against cancer.

“Even buying a dollar brownie makes an impact,” Carnes said. “That one dollar can be used to fund research to find a cure for cancer.”

Last year, $130,000 was raised, which is the goal set for this year.

“It is more than just a job to me,” Carnes said. “I have a team myself. Every person

on my side of the family has had cancer or some cancer scare. This is a chance for Abilene to make a difference and to help finish the fight.”

Members of Alpha Kai Omega have created teams and are excited to participate in the Relay. Ruby Poole, senior nursing major from Frisco, has participated in Relay For Life for three years. This year will be the second year she has served as AKO’s team captain.

“I started when my dad was diagnosed with cancer,” Poole said. “I Relay for him and for many other family members and friends.”

Alpha Kai Omega has been participating in Relay For Life for a few years and has helped students join the cause, said Lydia Miranda, junior education major from Clarksville, Tenn.

“I’ve never experienced a family member or friend go

SA allocates $3,000 to three bills jc peeples staff reporter The Students’ Association Congress voted to allocate $3,000 to three separate events on campus.

The allocated money will help fund the Band Banquet, Raid the Rec and Party on the Patio.

The first bill was proposed and written by Trevor Wyatt, freshman music education major from Fort Worth.

“The budget for the Williams Performing Arts Center would greatly benefit from the financial help,” according to the bill.

Wyatt said the WPAC covers the majority of the banquet’s expense.

“Funding from Congress would be appreciated to help out the WPAC,” Wyatt said.

No more than $500 from the Congressional Project fund will help aid the cost of

the Band Banquet. The bill passed with a 22-member approval.

The next bill passed was proposed and written by Sean Branchaw, senior financial management major from Derwood, Md. The bill was created to help fund Raid the Rec, an end-of-the-road celebration for seniors that will give them a sense of unity and closure.

“Anything you like about Abilene will be there, we want to bring in the best of the best,” Branchaw said.

“Things like Sharkys’ chips and Nikkis.”

Branchaw said Raid the Rec will have a full-on party feel that seniors should look forward to.

“I did an informal survey that showed many people will be able to make Raid the Rec,” Branchaw said.

The bill will allocate the remaining funds from the Senior Class fund, Congressional Class fund, Congres-

sional Project fund and Congressional Concert fund to help cover the cost of the event. The bill passed unanimously. Raid the Rec will be on May 3.

The last bill passed was written by JP Festa, junior multimedia major from Mckinney, which proposed to allocate funding to Party on the Patio, an end of the year event for journalism and mass communication students and faculty.

“Party on the Patio facilitates a time for students to support each other,” according to the bill.

The bill will allocate no more than $250 from Congressional project fund to provide food and drinks to attendees of the event. The bill passed with a 27-member approval.

contact the optimist at optimist@acu.edu

through the traumatic experience of cancer,” Miranda said. “I can’t even begin to imagine the pain people go through. I want to help find a cure more than anything.”

Meredith Thornton, senior psychology major from Cedar Hill, is also a member of the AKO team. However, unlike Miranda, cancer has been a part of her entire life.

“My grandfather was diagnosed and passed away with lung cancer when I was eight. My grandmother has also had cancer multiple times, but thankfully she is still with us,” Thornton said.

Thornton’s best friend when she was 8 was also diagnosed with cancer. She survived for five years until she passed away at age 14.

It is these experiences that motivate her to donate and walk.

“I Relay for those I have lost and for those I still

have,” Thornton said. “I Re- tion or for more informalay so that no one else will tion, visit relayforlife.org/ lose their daughter, best abilenetx. friend, grandparent, confidant or hero. I Relay so that someday cancer will be a contact the optimist at horror story from the past.” optimist@acu.edu To sign up, make a dona-

news

Wednesday 04.23.14

4

Project REACH debuts cultural fashions ship for the Office of Multicultural Enrichment.

When Nkrumah came to ACU last year, she said it felt bland when it came to cultural experiences around Abilene.

“We had to think of new ideas to enrich culture on campus,” Nkrumah said.

“And everyone wears clothes. I want the audience to get a glimpse of what cultures are.”

Last year’s show went well, Nkrumah said, but most of the models wore her own clothes. She said she wanted to expand this year’s show to more than just African culture.

Nkrumah decided to partner with African Students Association for Project REACH this year to deanna romero chief photographer not only promote the new Students strut down the runway at ISA’s Project REACH fundraiser. multicultural group, but also to encourage interacsponsored by African Stu- the spirit of high fashion, tion between students of allison brown dents Association, was in formal attire was encour- different cultures. student reporter the old bowling alley area aged for those who atNancy Ndekwe, sophoof the Campus Center yes- tended the show. more business manageProject REACH Fashion terday at 6 p.m. The show Janice Nkrumah, soph- ment major from Kigali Show hit the runway yes- featured 17 students from omore kinesiology major Rwanda, is the vice presiterday to showcase differ- different cultures mod- from Houston, started dent of ASA and was inent cultures on campus. eling attire from all over Project REACH last year volved with planning the The fashion show, the globe. In keeping with as a project for a scholar- show.

Traditional Asian, African and Hispanic attire was modeled, even the styles of American col-

“

I hope from this people can be more open-minded when it comes to culture.”

Janice Nkrumah sophomore kinesiology major from houston

lege students, Ndekwe said. Students were able to see models wearing native cultural fashions and showing off some different outfits, as well.

“We didn’t want it to be, ‘Oh I’m from here so I should wear this,’” Ndekwe said. “We want people to experience other people’s cultures. I hope it impacts the stereotypical ways of thinking of different cultures.”

“This is a chance to say, ‘Hey there’s different cultures here,’” Ndekwe said.

“Because basically college is a culture of itself.”

In addition to showing

off cultural fashion and traditional clothing, Project REACH’s inf luence extends out to Abilene and around the globe.

For admission, students could pay $5, or $2 with two cans of food, which will be donated to West Texas Food Bank.

The proceeds from the fashion show will be donated to KIVA, a microfinance company that gives loans to small business start-ups around the world. Two different vendors, Premier Designs and Women Worth A Million, sold jewelry and beauty products from different countries, as well.

Nkrumah selected these organizations because of the wide range of people they impact.

“Culture should hit everyone,” Nkrumah said.

“Both locally and outward. I hope from this people can be more openminded when it comes to culture.” contact the optimist at optimist@acu.edu

Kirk Goodwin Run alters traditional race meigan gardner student reporter The men of Galaxy will put on the 31st annual Kirk Goodwin Memorial Run 5K and the Run the West half marathon, this Saturday.

The run will begin on ACU’s campus and go around the Abilene area, varying on route for both types of races. Individuals can run the 5K for $20

and the Run the West half marathon for $80.

Aaron Brooks, senior marking major from Burleson and member of Galaxy is a race director this year and has been for the past three years.

“Through a collective effort this year, we really tried to make sure that we covered costs before we marketed to the runners,” Brooks said. “Because of that, we have had people and sponsors from

all walks of life come together to make KGR and the half-marathon a reality this year. In the beginning our financial goal was to raise $20,000 so that we could give back even more after covering race costs. We’re expecting to double what we brought in last year.”

The race has taken place each year in memory of Kirk Goodwin, former ACU student, track team member and Galaxy

member, who was killed in a car accident in 1984.

“I hope that this event, that has changed so many lives over the past 31 years, will continue to grow in strength and awareness throughout Texas,” Brooks said.

“Families will always have the burdens of medical costs, and I know that KGR can continue to grow and bless those families over the years.”

The race will benefit

different causes in the Abilene community. This year the race partnered with Medical Care Missions, a nonprofit that helps families in the Abilene community.

Brady Kile, senior marketing major from Fort Worth, is also a race director and has been working on the event and expand the race into the 5K. “If one person runs the 5K, we can use that registration money to essen-

tially give a doctor’s visit to someone that can’t afford it,” Kile said. “A little goes a long way.”

Students and members of the Abilene community are still encouraged to sign up now online at kirkgoodwinrun.com or at ACU on the day of the race.

contact the optimist at jmcnetwork@acu.edu

Buffalo Gap hosts new “Zombie Games” dystanie douglas student reporter The Buffalo Gap Historical Village will have its third annual fundraising event, “The Zombie Games.”

The Zombie Games is a family-friendly, teambuilding apocalypse game that combines acts as seen on The Walking Dead, the Hunger Games and Survivor. Participants will work together in physical and mental challenges to gather

supplies, solve puzzles and out-wit the other camps as they race to the finish.

Heather Reed, site manager of Buffalo Gap Historical Village, is organizing the event.

“The reason why we decided to have games this year is to be able to reach more of our visitors who weren’t necessarily able to participate in a 5K, but were able to play a game and experience the fun of an apocalypse,” Reed said.

Reed said they took other

themes into account for the fundraiser as well.

“There are many of us here who are into The Walking Dead and zombies,” Reed said. “It is just an interest between several of us and the more and more we talked and visited with our volunteers and our guests, we realized there are a lot of people interested.”

All proceeds from the event will be used to support the preservation of the Buffalo Gap Historic Village.

In previous years, Buffalo

Gap Historical Village has raised more than $12,000 with each fundraiser and had more than 500 participants.

“I think this year is going to be the best year yet,” Reed said. “There is just so much intrest, and so many people involved.”

This year, the Village is adding another portion to the event which will cater to college students.

“We are adding a university portion,” Reed said.

“The last game of the day

is going to be the University Brawl. We are encouraging all four universities in Abilene to come out and compete against one another to see which college is the ultimate zombie hunter.”

Students look forward to putting their zombie skills to the test.

“I am a huge fan of The Walking Dead, so I am so excited to go out there and see if the stuff I watch on TV works in real life,” said Claire Carmichael, sophomore business management

major from Haskell.

The Zombie Games will take place Saturday, April 26 at 9 a.m. The price is $35 for individuals, $30 for students, $30 for BGHV members and $100 for teams of four. Spectators are welcome to come and watch. To register, call (325)572-3365 or register online at www. buffalogap.com. Registration ends April 18. contact the optimist at jmcnetwork@acu.edu

Pledging: Interested women must rush each club from page 1

“Processes are so different between guys and girls, numbers are so different between guys and girls, but I don’t know that we would do that, at least not right now,” he said.

This requirement will also apply to the fall and not the spring for several reasons, Jackson said. He said the amount of students eli-

gible to pledge is uncertain.

He doesn’t want students to feel pressured to go to all of the rushes within the last few weeks of school in the spring. Some students are still unsure if they want to pledge or not and the smaller clubs might not have the budget to support this new requirement right away.

During the first week of pledging in the fall, potential pledges will be able to attend each club’s rushes.

Jackson said he tells clubs not to plan rushes at the same time, so pledges can have the option to attend each one By the third rush, clubs will overlap their rushes, allowing students to make choices about where they want to be, Jackson said.

Clubs will also start voting, limiting the number of students who can attend their rushes.

Jackson said he is still fig-

uring out the details of the new requirement.

“How that is going to initially play out, I don’t know.

We have talked about some sort of a stamping system.

They used to do a punchcard system before I was in this role, and so we talked about that as well,” he said.

“The good news is we have summer to kind of toy with that and decide how it is officially going to look.”

Jackson is also unsure about what the consequences will entail, but said it is possible if a potential pledge does not attend at least one rush per club, the consequence could be that they wouldn’t be able to continue the pledging process.

Jackson said he has re-

ceived positive feedback about the new requirement.

“We have been talking to the girls’ presidents about it and they have been really supportive of it. Most of the officers we have talked to feel very supportive of it. I think the advisors will be very supportive as well,” he said. “We think, as a whole, it will be a good thing.”

Sarah Hendrix, junior psychology major from Abilene and president of Sigma Theta Chi, is supportive of the new change.

“I think the new requirement creates an incredible opportunity for these girls,” she said. “This will give each girl an exposure to every club and I think that is a very important detail of rushing.

You need to allow yourself

to explore all of the possibilities before making up your mind on which club you want to be a part of. You never know where God will lead your life and I think this is a fantastic way of keeping an open mind and truly finding the place where you feel most accepted.”

Hendrix said she loved attending different rushes when she pledged.

“I loved meeting girls in all of the clubs,” Hendrix said. “That was one of my favorite parts of going to different clubs rushes. I hope this will create lasting friendships that transcend what jersey you wear.” contact holman at keh09c@acu.edu

McCaleb: Influence remembered at luncheon from page 1

on in your life,” she said.

Both McCaleb and his made his job into one that wife Sylvia are very inconstantly interacts with volved in the lives of stustudents. She has worked dents at ACU, Selinger with McCaleb for 13 years said. and said she would deMcCaleb said the best scribe McCaleb as a “stu- part of his job is the opdent person.” portunity to continue to “He’s been kind of like connect with students. a grandfather to me,” said “The students are the Aubree Selinger, senior energy of our campus,” family studies major from McCaleb said.

Grapevine.

His wife, children, Selinger said one word grandchildren and other that kept surfacing at the extended family members luncheon as people spoke have all attended ACU, about McCaleb was inten- McCaleb said. tional.

“ACU is like a part of “He’s very intentional my extended family,” Mcin knowing what’s going Caleb said.

The crowd was on its feet cheering as McCaleb threw the first pitch at Monday afternoon’s game.

McCaleb, once an ACU baseball player himself, was responsible for bringing baseball back to ACU, Ashford said.

McCaleb and his son, who caught the pitch, said it was a strike.

Ashford said McCaleb’s pitch served as a fitting representation of his numerous successes at ACU. contact the optimist at jmcnetwork@acu.edu

5

news

wednesday 04.23.14

Campaigns end year’s outreach programs <Micah hermsdorf student reporter Spots are still available for any students interested in going on the free, final Weekend Campaign in Laredo from Friday to Sunday.

Jaymee Myller, a senior nursing major from Arvada, Colo., is one of the leaders of the campaign.

She is responsible for the location of the campaign at the Latin American Lutheran Mission.

“My grandparents have been actively involved in supporting the Latin American Lutheran Mis-

sion for over a decade,” Myller said. “ I heard their stories about this organization and what it does for the poor in Texas and Mexico, and I thought that it would be a perfect opportunity for a weekend campaign.”

A lot of planning and detail management has gone into organizing this campaign. Myller had to communicate with the mission to determine what kind of projects could be accomplished, along with the best dates to come work.

“We will be helping clean and paint a sanctuary at a Spanish-speaking

church in a little town called El Cenizo,” Myller said. “We will also be putting together a VBS for some of the kids from the congregation.”

The Latin American Lutheran Mission provides service to the poor in Laredo and many are immigrants who speak little English. However, participants do not need to know how to speak Spanish to go on the campaign.

“We will have the chance to attend a Spanish-speaking church service in the community on Sunday morning,” Myller said. “It’s a great opportunity to learn about the life

and culture of the people this mission serves.”

Another leader this weekend is Rachel Smith, a senior English major from Wiggins, Colo.

“I want to be as helpful as possible,” Smith said. “I know the most important thing is that I will be there to serve.”

Smith has been involved in weekend campaigns since her freshman year. She started as a regular campaigner and moved up to the leadership position for campaigns in her second semester as a freshman.

She has been a leader ever since then.

“It first started out as a friend thing,” Smith said.

“All of my friends were going, and it was a good way to get out of Abilene.

I continued for the next three years because of the feelings that came along with being able to help people.”

This weekend will be her last campaign before she graduates in May. Smith said she is looking forward to seeing the younger members on the trip step into the roll of being a servant and taking ownership of making a difference in someone else’s life.

“Weekend Campaigns

are like a complete retreat where I can serve others and act as a light for God in a community that sometimes doesn’t have one,” Smith said. “They have helped me focus on what’s important in my faith throughout my college life in a way that wouldn’t have happened if I hadn’t done it.”

To sign up or for more information email weeke nd c a m p a i g n s @ g m a i l . com.

contact the optimist at jmcnetwork@acu.edu

Pancake fundraiser to flatten Parkinsons & Lane Luttrell. T-shirts for the event will be sold for $10 in the Campus Center April 21-23 and at the event The Pancakes for Parkin- that Thursday night. son’s fundraiser to raise Addie Schmitz, junior money for Parkinson’s will youth and family ministry be April 24 at 9 p.m. in the major from Grapevine is in Gardner West lobby. Stacks charge of the fundraiser. of pancakes will be provid- Her father, Gary Schmitz, ed with a minimum dona- was diagnosed with young tion of $2 per plate. onset Parkinson’s 14 years The event will feature ago. live music from The DogThe proceeds will go to woods, Josh & Caroline a boxing group based in Levinson and Claire Heath Fort Worth called Punch-

price bahcall

staff reporter

ing Out Parkinson’s.

“This program is really incredible and does wonders for the fighters, physically, emotionally and spiritually,” Schmitz said. “This program is continuing to grow more and more, which is awesome, but that also requires a lot more money to keep the program running.”

Schmitz said they will help the group fundraise but also support them in their fight.

This group offers several hour-long classes a week for people fighting Parkinson’s disease where they come and do basic, non-contact boxing drills that help them maintain or regain control over things that Parkinson’s causes them to lose, such as reflexes, balance, hand-eye coordination and even basic mobility skills.

“I’m excited that even though we aren’t in Fort Worth or even though we

don’t know all 50-plus boxers that are benefiting from this program, we can still support them and cheer them on by us having a pancake dinner and concert,” Schmitz said. “It was really awesome to see what God did with one night last year, and I’m excited to see what He does with this one night this year.”

Greta Pittman, sophomore nursing major form Allen is an RA along with Schmitz.

“It totally changes your attitude when you are raising awareness for something that affects someone you love,” Pittman said.

“I don’t usually get really into fundraisers but I am pumped about Pancakes for Parkinson’s because I know how much it means to Addie.”

contact the optimist at jmcnetwork@acu.edu

Two professors take year-long sabbaticals catherine blakemore student reporter Two professors in the Department of Engineering and Physics will each take one-year sabbaticals in 2014-15.

Dr. Rusty Towell, chair of the Department of Engineering and Physics and professor and associate professor Dr. Timothy Head, will take separate sabbaticals for research.

Dr. Timothy Head will begin his sabbatical June where he will be working with Ludlum Measurements in Sweetwater.

“I’m going to look at the feasibility of designing solid-state photomultiplier,” Head said, “which turns a photon into an electrical signal. Hopefully by the end of the year, we’ll have looked at feasibility and found something reasonable to do and designed the prototype and actually make the prototype.”

The applied research Head will work on will not only benefit Ludlum, but will be brought back to ACU as a lasting relationship with the company.

“What I hope will happen is that we’ll end up

having a longer term collaboration with Ludlum,” Head said. “We can do some projects that will help students. They can give us projects that they don’t have time to work on themselves, but that they’re interested in. Our students can eventually work on those projects.”

The projects would allow for students to participate in real-world research, and ideas from Ludlum would allow physics and engineering students to gain experience in development. The connection will potentially serve to bridge the

company and ACU students for employment and research in the future.

“This is a chance for me to broaden the scope of my research away from some of the things I’m doing now,” Head said. “And just see more of what’s out there.”

Dr. Rusty Towell will start his sabbatical in line with the coming school year, working with Liquid Thorium Fluoride Reactors, LFTRs, which is a nuclear power using thorium instead of uranium for energy.

“There are a lot of safety advantages,” Towell

said. “It produces a lot less waste. There’s a lot more thorium than there is uranium in the world. It’s hard to make a bomb out of it. For those reasons, thorium reactors appear to be the right energy source for our future.”

Towell will work with Flibe Energy, which is based out of Huntsville, Ala. He will primarily do work from a distance and some travel to the company.

“I do think that it’s certainly possible to make plans and help advance the design [of the reactor],” Towell said, “so that

a prototype is made, realistically, in the next five years. I think that if I’m involved with the early design stages, my students and I be able to continue to be involved with this.”

Both of the sabbaticals will benefit ACU students through the applied knowledge and research that Dr. Head and Dr. Towell will be able to bring back to campus in the year after their sabbaticals. contact the optimist at jmcnetwork@acu.edu

KACU focus on news brings in more funds allison brown staff reporter KACU’s shift to become more focused on news and information has increased pledges from some donors during the spring pledge drive.

The drive brought in over $33,000 in donations from listeners around the Abilene area last week.

Though the station came up around $4,000 short of their $38,000 goal, they raised more than the previous spring drive.

“So we’re happy,” said Nathan Gibbs, general manager of KACU. KACU, Abilene’s public radio station, is a part of the Journalism and Mass Communication Department. Basic funding for

full time staff comes from the department but the station depends on the fall and spring pledge drives to cover the cost of programming. NPR programs cost KACU about $100,000 - $150,000 a year.

The remainder of the funding is covered by a grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

Gibbs, who is new to his position as general manager, said KACU has changed up their programming since his arrival in January.

“Since January, we have added a bunch of new programs,” Gibbs said. “We used to air a lot of music but we are making a strategic shift to air news and information during the business day.”

When he stepped into his new role, Gibbs took time to evaluate the station’s performance as part of the JMC student media experience.

“There are certain ways I didn’t think the station was doing its job,” Gibbs said. “DJ-ing music isn’t a fundamental part of what our goals are for students.”

Student roles have since been shifted at the station, changing titles from “announcers” to “news anchors”.

With more emphasis on the news part of the job, KACU student employees will now be more involved with the editorial process. For the first time, the station has partnered with local news organizations like Abilene

Reporter News, KTAB, and KRBC, as well as the Texas Tribune for state news.

“We are adding local news to the radio,” Gibbs said. “So I’m getting that started with partners but ultimately we want to grow our reporting efforts. We want to take advantage of the talent we have with students.”

This new emphasis on news is not only helping students gain better and more professional experience, but it increases the value of content on air during the day.

This added value is ref lected in the increased pledges of some donors during the drive.

“People increased donations because they liked what they heard,”

Gibbs said.

Gibbs also noted that many callers said they loved the new programming.

“My hope is that new programming and new transitions we’re doing with the students increases that value proposition for people listening,” Gibbs said, “which would get new people to donate.”

Dr. Cheryl Bacon, JMC department chair and professor, said she is excited about the work Gibbs has done so far with KACU. “Nathan has done a terrific job working in more news, information and culture content,” Bacon said. “For a university that has a public radio station, it is very consis-

tent with our mission to be providing news and cultural information to the community.”

Bacon said the station has received positive feedback for the changes even without much assertive marketing.

“We plan to do that in the coming fiscal year,” Bacon said.

For now, Gibbs hopes the station’s strategic focus on news and information continues to bring in more listeners and more supporters of the station.

“Long term, people support public radio because it’s kind of a special thing,” Gibbs said.

contact the optimist at jmcnetwork@acu.edu

Students awarded at Texas journalism competition producers of News at Noon and Gabi Powell received three first place awards for her work on Students in the Journal- the features page for the ism and Mass Communi- Optimist. cation Department won KACU’s Daniel Zepeda dozens of awards in print, won first for his sportsradio and video at the an- cast, Kaitlin Sacco renual Texas Intercollegiate ceived first for her Spot Press Association conven- News and Breylin Bectin tion in San Antonio last received two first place week. awards, and a second and The awards for previ- third place. ously submitted work inThe production of the cluded first place awards Ken Collums Show, the in sweepstakes to KACU, JMC Sportscast and the overall excellence to the JMC newscast earned

shera Niemirowski student reporter

Honorable Mentions in the television category.

First place awards were also given for the Optimist’s online and video coverage of last year’s auto accident involving several students.

Former student Taylor Langston’s (’13) received first place in Breaking News Video for covering the auto accident and will move onto the national competition later this year.

In addition, Madeline Orr, next year’s Optimist

editor, was elected parliamentarian of the Texas Intercollegiate Press Association.

ACU students also garnered six awards in the on-site competition, including Gabi Powell’s third place in Feature Writing, Brittany Jackson’s third place for Spanish News Writing, Matthew Sloan’s third place for Print Advertising, Austin Kilcullen’s Honorable Mention for News Photo and Shera Niemirowski’s Honorable

Mention’s for TV Advertising and TV Announcing.

ACU competed at the Div. I level, putting them in company with Baylor, Texas Tech, Texas State, University of Houston, TCU, SMU, Texas A&M, and UT-Arlington.

The JMC Department has been competing at the Div. I level in TIPA for about 30 years.

Dr. Cheryl Bacon, professor and chair of the Department of Journalism and Mass Communication, also spoke on behalf

of ACU alumni Max Lucado at the convention.

“We had some bright spots,” said Kenneth Pybus, associate professor of Jouralism and Mass Communications. “What was most heartening to me was that we excelled in writing, design and photography. That says to me we are emphasizing all aspects of modern journalism.” contact the optimist at jmcnetwork@acu.edu

Samaritan: Rice to lecture at Abilene non-profit after Dr. Rice is finished with her lecture.” traordinary Ordinary Global Samaritan RePeople.’ We will have a sources is hoping to sell lecture with a discussion out the 2,000 available and question-and-answer spots in the lecture this session for 30 minutes fall and raise awareness from page 1

about what Global Samaritan Resources does for the Abilene community and around the world.

Global Samaritan Resources focuses on four platforms: Humanitar-

ian aid, water, food and disaster services. It is an interdenominational non-profit organization based in Abilene that collects surplus supplies and distributes these supplies

around Abilene and the world. The organization is also involved in purifying water around the world.

“With the lecture, we are hoping to engage as many people as possible,”

Sims said. “We are also looking to raise friends and funds through the event.” contact sloan at mes10b@acu.edu

Opinion

6

Wednesday 04.23.14

Editorial

Preparing to co-habitate with your parents the issue After graduation many former students will move back into their parents homes.

our take The Editorial Board has created some tips to help recent graduates readjust to life at home.

With less than 30 days until the handing of diplomas, graduating seniors will grab their gowns and mothers will wait to welcome them home with baby blankets and cheekstaining lipstick love. According to Pew Research Center study, 36 percent of young adults ages 1831 will return home to live with their parents, the

highest share of post-college, parent-quartering in at least four decades.

Whether for financial reasons or real-world denial, coming back to the home that built you is a challenge of college debt loan proportions. A few tips for the post-college parent-cohabitation.

Remind mom you are now an adult whose taste

palate has matured above Cocoa Puffs, like cold pizza for breakfast, hot pizza for lunch and probably nothing for dinner, because pizza and profits are gone and so are Bean Bucks.

“Cat’s Cradle” has been on a loop since you left, so humor Dad by accepting his invitation to learn how to ride your bike. For the second time.

For the love of your mother, separate your darks from your white laundry.

YouTube how-to videos and learn to fold shirts like a GAP employee and show mom and dad the education a college degree has served you.

No one at the din-

ner table is going to care about Sally Mae from Pi Pie Pi social club getting engaged. All they care about is why you are not.

Your head hasn’t hit the pillow before 2 a.m. for four years. So be in bed by 8 p.m. and mom can do her obligatory, tuck-you-in. Appreciate the mom muscle for five minutes then struggle for 10 to untuck yourself from the suffocating swaddle.

If siblings are still at home, retire the tonguesticking-outs and grant them shotgun on car rides.

Instead, remind them their student debt loans will take twice the time and cost twice the price of yours.

Also, volunteer to babysit the youngins so as to carry on that nap time tradition college made into a concrete appointment.

Invest in a goldfish pet or utilize Skype so as the parents won’t worry about your deteriorating post-college social life.

Ready those resumes.

Dad will take copies to work the way he once guilted coworkers to buy fundraiser tubs of cookie dough.

Refamiliarize yourself with your birth name. Long gone are the days of nicknames, last-name summons. You now answer by that wretched four-syllable name, or “darling,” “hon-

ey,” “baby,” “sweetie,” etc.

Avoid being made to eat your vegetables at dinner by telling the family you adopted a fleshitarian diet over the past four years to protest the mistreatment of plants.

As you return to the driveways where you once first learned to drive, ready your patience and relinquish the privacy college once granted you. Mom will be waiting on the porch every night chanting, “I love you forever, I like you for always, as long as you’re poor unemployed, you’ll call me mommy.” contact The Optimist at jmcnetwork@acu.edu

DAILY doodle dosage

Column

Ben Todd

A quick lesson in college life DAILY DOODLE DOSAGE BEN TODD CARTOONIST

It’s hard to believe that just a year ago I was hanging out with my high school graduating class during our spring break trip at the beach. Since that point, I’ve graduated, moved my life across the world, made new friends, gained new experiences and learned a lot of lessons. Here’s a list of things I’d tell my past self if I had the chance in regards to my freshman year.

A quick way to make friends is to jam to some 80s music, and look around to see if anyone else is bobbing their head or jamming on their air guitar.

The best way not to gain the freshman fifteen; don’t go for seconds. Just eat everything you have on the first plate. Also, take advantage of the Rec center; make it your second or third home.

Have the healthy assumption that as soon as you arrive in America, you are an adult that can take care of yourself and no one is going to help you. That way when people do help me do my laundry, move my stuff, drive me to church or lend me spare winter underwear, I consider it a big deal and accept it with the upmost gratitude.

Speaking of winter underwear, don’t forget to pack some winter clothing.

The only justification to lie is when you’re keeping a surprise engagement party a secret from your sister.

Situations go much more smoothly when you admit your mistakes rather than deny them. Nobody wins if you deny your mis-

“

Look up from your screen; it will still be there after you enjoy the company of the people around you. Those people won’t be there forever.

takes. This technique got me out of tight social situations more than once.

Listen more than you speak.

Let your actions and words speak. That is how people will see you, no matter what you tell them you are on the inside. You might tell yourself you have a kind heart, but we won’t believe you if you’re dropkicking puppies every Saturday night.

Girls may be getting the talk about staying pure, saying no and protecting yourself. Let’s acknowledge that those lessons apply to guys too.

Being in a relationship with someone opens a Pandora’s Box of possibilities. It can be great, but it’s a double-edged sword.

Look up from your screen; it will still be there after you enjoy the company of the people around you. Those people won’t be there forever.

Lastly, there is no time like the college time. I highly recommend writing your experiences down so you can look back on the memories you’ll make. Your brain won’t stay sharp forever. contact Todd at bat12A@acu.edu

Column

Training for the adulthood marathon by no means easy.

But, no matter what, it’s important to push through.

Because, before you know it, you’re in, you’re past the second mile marker.

Responsibilities come, they store up and leap at you. Like a stitch in your side, they’ll slow your stride but that is no reason to stop.

If you do, they’ll overwhelm you. They’ll stop you halfway through and leave you gasping for breath, stretching your sides and batting away disappointment.

Everyone starts somewhere. Each person experiences their own pain, their own limitations to growing up, but no one has to stop short.

We are capable of so much. Our bodies were designed to be strong, to

I’M SORRY, MS. JACKSON

BRITTANY JACKSON MANAGING EDITOR

Running is a lot like growing up.

It took me years to want it and to realize it was what I needed. You see, running starts off as an ideal, like being a grown-up.

It’s good for you, you know. It helps you breathe. It helps you live.

Growing up isn’t easy. Before you do, it’s like lounging on the couch, begging the nagging feeling to go away.

But your life doesn’t give up on you, and neither do your muscles, or your mind.

They call you to more, they’ll call you to run and to

exercise every part of you.

You can feel it, can’t you?

The muscles straining as you climb up the Administration Building’s stairs, your thoughts pleading with you to challenge yourself with a tougher curriculum.

For me, the first mile is the worst. No part of me wants to continue. My eyes blur and my breath feels like a mixture of fire and ice in my throat.

Getting your foot in the door is like that too. Learning how to grow up and manage things. Accepting responsibility and taking blame. It is

hashtagACU

April 20 6:22 p.m.

April 20 8:27 p.m.

April 17 1:37 p.m.

“The boys at ACU wanna get married, like, yesterday.” #ACUprobs @overheardACU @acuoptimist

@Macie_Liptoi

Reading about all the traffic on 20-W makes me even more glad that I stayed in Abilene this weekend.

@joshsmith_93

April 20 8:01 p.m.

So...I have a professor on snapchat now? #wut #JustNo

@Pocolocoelijah

OMG can i plz just graduate without changing my ACU password again. PLZ.

@Sh4zam

@DarciHalstead

contact Jackson at bkj12a@acu.edu

April 20 4:03 p.m.

It just brought immense joy to my heart watching a freshman walk from Mabee to the side doors of the library just to realize its closed #LOL

April 19 4:44 p.m.

carry us through this life.

All we have to do is believe in them, believe in the process, believe in ourselves.

Keep running, power through and create yourself.

Because you’ll never be more than you are at this moment if you don’t get up and allow yourself to grow, to break that mold around you. To stretch it, to bend it.

If there’s one thing about running and growing up, it’s that you keep learning, you keep teaching yourself.

After all, we’re all just training to be more, to be infinitely more, than what we are today.

So good luck, get going and don’t forget to trust yourself.

Hola to the Moonie that definitely caught me jamming to Jason Derulo alone in my car.. Can’t wait to awkwardly see you around campus now

@addiefs

April 21 9:29 a.m.

April 21 9:50 a.m.

“I think the most dangerous thing about being an accountant is dying of boredom” #COBAproffs #acuprobs

@audge2011

I formally apologize to everyone who saw a few Kojies screaming and running with water guns this morning. I promise we’re not crazy.

April 21 10:04 a.m.

April 21 12:36 p.m.

Royce Money is the coolest person alive.

@the_thundersonn @nikkiwilsonn

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April 21 11:33 a.m.

Oh yes, PDA is what I want to see in the library.

sports desk (325) 674-2684

April 21 10:08 a.m.

The real reason that GSP is at the top of my list is their crawfish rush.

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sports

Wednesday 04.23.14

7

Hermsdorf, Conrad play final home matches Daniel block sports reporter The women’s tennis team sent its seniors out in style last weekend with a pair of convincing victories over the University of Central Arkansas and Oral Roberts University. The two wins pushed ACU’s season record to 17-5, and 9-3 in the Southland Conference.

Last weekend’s matches were the last home matches for seniors Micah Hermsdorf and Emily Conrad, both of whom spent all four years competing for the Wildcats.

Saturday morning began with the Wildcats snapping UCA’s five-game winning streak with a 6-1 win, dropping the Bears to 12-10 on the season, and 5-7 in league play.

As has been the case for the majority of the season, strong doubles play led to a 1-0 advantage heading into the singles matches. Conrad

and her partner, sophomore Nada Marjanovic, disposed of their competition in a tight 8-7 (7-1) victory, while junior Brittney Reed teamed up with freshman Erin Walker to win 8-4. The third doubles match featuring Micah Hermsdorf and her sister, sophomore Kaysie Hermsdorf, was halted after ACU clinched the doubles point.

The Wildcats proceeded to win five of six singles matches, including victories

by Conrad and Micah Hermsdorf. Conrad came back from a set down to beat Bianca Strukelj, 3-6, 7-6 (7-2), 1-0 (105), and Hermsdorf bested Simona Horsikyan at the No. 1 position, 6-1, 7-6 (7-5). Reed, Walker and Marjanovic were also victorious, each with a straight-set victory.

Saturday afternoon the Wildcats played ORU, who entered the match 4-19 on the season, and winless in the Southland. The Wildcats breezed through doubles play, with the Hermsdorf sis-

was halted. The three remaining Wildcat players were up one set to none at the time.

Micah Hermsdorf said her team’s mental toughness was the key to victory in the matches over the weekend.

“Focus is a big factor to winning any match,” Hermsdorf said. “I think our team does a really good job at staying mentally and physically tough and always wanting to out-ready our opponents.”

Hermsdorf is 17-6 and 19-5 in singles and doubles play on the season.

“I could not be happier with our first season as a Div. I team. We showed we are capable of being successful at this level and I only see positive things in the future for ACU tennis,” said Conrad, who is 11-10 in singles and jarred schuetze Staff Photographer 15-9 in doubles in her first Freshman Erin Walker returns the serve for the Wildcats. season in Div. I. ters winning 8-4, Reed and spective opponents in singles The team will travel to NeWalker, 8-3 and Conrad and play, each winning in straight braska on Wednesday to play Marjanovic, 8-0. Reed, Kaysie sets and losing only one game in the National Invitational Hermsdorf and Conrad pro- through the entire match. Tournament, which features ceeded to dominate their re- With ACU up 4-0, the match other Div. I teams that are in-

eligible for the post-season.

The tournament will be the end of the road in terms of collegiate tennis for Conrad and Hermsdorf.

“My experience with ACU tennis has been nothing short of great,” Conrad said. “To have had this opportunity, I just feel so grateful for all of the wonderful times I had with the team these past four years. I wouldn’t have traded this experience for anything.”

“After four years at ACU, I could never see myself at any other school,” Hermsdorf said. “I wouldn’t trade this team for the world. We spend so much time together that they really are my family. I have gotten to travel to some incredible places. My tennis game has advanced so much since I started as a freshman and I have to thank my coaches for that. It’s an experience of a lifetime.” contact block at djb13a@acu.edu

Senior knowledge brings success daniel zepeda sports editor Lyndi Smith stands at the chain-link fence. She watches as her brother walks up to the batter’s box in one of his high school games. Growing up in Uvalde, about an hour and a half west of San Antonio, this was a regular occurrence for Smith, as it was one of the main reasons she fell in love with baseball.

“I have been playing since I was five years old,” Smith said. “My brother played baseball throughout middle school and high school and I really looked up to him. I just started playing and really found a lot of passion for the game. I wanted to be a part of something more and softball filled that place in my heart.”

Playing softball has always been second nature for Smith and it’s also one of the main reasons she found herself at ACU, where she would become one of the best hitters to come through the program.

“I came to ACU for a tryout my senior year of high school and took a look around the campus and knew this was the place for me,” Smith said. “I wanted to be far from home but not too far and ACU was the perfect fit for me. It was just one of those feelings where I knew it was right and I went with my gut.”

This year, Smith is hitting .323 through 40 games and is one of the league leaders in several offensive categories. In the Southland Conference, Smith is fourth in runs batted in (36), tied for fourth in home runs (9), sixth in total bases (77) and ninth in slugging percentage (.592).

“My expectations coming in every year are usually two things: I always want to be better than the year before and most importantly, I want to be the best that I can be,” Smith said. “My success in hitting this year has come with maturity in the game. I

paige otway Staff Photographer

Senior Lyndi Smith has been one of the pillars for ACU softball over the past four years. She currently is one of the Southland Conference leaders in home runs, runs batted in, total basses and slugging percentage. She has helped lead ACU to an 18-24 record this year with her bat and power. put forth extra time hitting outside of practice and I understand the game better than I ever have. Hitting is so mental and after playing for four years, I’ve learned to just relax and take it one pitch at a time.”

The move from the Lonestar Conference to the Southland has been relatively smooth for Smith.

As a Div. II player, Smith achieved a spot on the third team, All-Lonestar Conference her sophomore year and then earned secondteam honors last year.

“I think the difference

between Div. I and Div. II is pitching,” Smith said. “That has been a hard thing for us to adjust to, both our pitching and other teams’ pitching. It’s really just a faster-paced game but it has increased the challenge for us and I think we have held our own. I think through this transition year, the younger girls have grown and matured and this team will be really great in the years to come.”

Throughout her time at ACU, she has been the Wildcats’ cannon from behind the plate and takes defense

as seriously as offense.

“The most exciting part of the position is that I am involved in every pitch,” Smith said. “The relationship between a pitcher and catcher is very unique and it feels really good to be a part of something like that. The most difficult thing is to remain focused and not carry offense over to defense and vice versa.”

As the Wildcats near the end of their inaugural season as members of the Southland Conference, the team has had plenty to review in efforts to play at

Farquharson, Walker win big emily seidel sports reporter Track and field picked up two major victories on the second day of the John Jacobs Invitational in Norman, Okla.

Sophomore Johnathan Farquharson finished first in the men’s 100-meter dash, and freshman Kenzie Walker won the women’s pole vault on Saturday at the University of Oklahoma.

The Wildcats competed against several top-notch teams at the two-day meet, including Oklahoma State, SMU, Central Oklahoma, Tulsa and North Texas.

This was Walker’s third victory of the season and second outdoors with a personal record of 12 feet-2.5 inches.

Farquharson also finished fifth in the men’s 200-meter dash and ran anchor in the 4x100-meter relay team,

helping them finish second with a time of 41.01, only .12 seconds behind North Texas’s winning time.

Farquharson’s success contributed greatly to the ACU men’s overall score of 108 points, which put them in second place at the meet behind Oklahoma’s 197 points.

The ACU women’s team finished fourth out of five teams with a final score of 61.

Another standout for the Wildcats was Baptiste Kerjean, who earned his own victory Friday in the men’s hammer throw. Kerjean has been dominating this season, with several first-place performances already under his belt before Friday’s victory.

He has high hopes for the team as the season draws to a close and the Wildcats approach conference championships.

“I feel like the performances overall are really close to

our personal best, which indicates that we are close to reaching our peak in the season,” Kerjean said. “You should expect to see a couple of really good personal bests the few next weeks.”

Junior Lexus Williams earned another top-five finish for herself this weekend, coming in third in the women’s 100-meter hurdles. Teammate Emily Hill matched her, finishing third in the women’s 800-meter run, while freshman Shaunice Guyton finished fifth in the women’s 100-meter dash with a personal record of 12.26.

The men picked up numerous top-five finishes as well. Sophomore Luke Woods finished fourth in the 110-meter hurdles with a 15.25, just finishing behind third-place teammate Jeremy Tatham’s 14.98. Tatham also finished fourth in the 400-meter hurdles with

a 58.65. Osie Alleyne-Forte earned third place in the 400-meter dash with a 48.46.

Malcolm Barnes came fourth in the long jump, while Jelani Rainey also finished fourth in the men’s discus. Rainey’s launch of 44.28 meters fell behind teammate Aaron Bynum’s third-place discus throw 50.78 meters.

Bynum also finished fifth in the javelin with a throw of 56.33m.

“All of the throwers on the team had a really good meet.

We had a couple of PRs and everyone else threw close to their PRs,” Bynum said. “I can see that as a team we are steadily improving, but there is still a lot of work to do.”

The Wildcats return to action Wednesday at the Drake Relays in Iowa. contact seidel at eks13b@acu.edu

their highest possible level.

“The team’s greatest strength this year has definitely been hitting,” Smith said. “We have one of the best hitting teams in the conference and everyone on the team is always willing to help others and make extra

time to come in and hit. As a team, we have a great understanding of the game and what we should be doing offensively.” contact zepeda at djz11a@acu.edu

sports

Wednesday 4.23.14

Wildcats fall to Bearkats on the road hannah little sports reporter The ACU softball team suffered two losses and earned one win last weekend when it traveled to Huntsville to play against Sam Houston State University.

The Wildcats have faced Sam Houston State University several times this year and knew what to expect, players said. With SHSU having strong and smart hitters, the pressure was on for the Wildcats to make sure their pitching was on point.

In the first game, ACU lost 7-1 as its only run was a homer by Kyla Simmons in the top of the third. Sam Houston was able to score one run in the second inning and six in the third.

“Sam Houston State was able to make adjustments offensively and we couldn’t catch a break,” said senior Lyndi Smith.

“I felt like we hit the ball well, but we just couldn’t find a hole. Sam’s defense was unstoppable.”

paige otway Staff Photographer

Sophomore Demi McNulty makes the tag at second base for the Wildcats at home.

ACU defeated SHSU 4-2 for the first time this season out of five games in the second game of the series. The Bearkats made their two runs within the first two innings as pitcher Peyton Mosley held them

for the rest of the game.

Kaylee Crozier and Simmons scored in the second inning as Madison Buckley hit a single and advanced to second on the throw.

Later in the seventh, Buckley hit a double and

two RBI’s as Anna Jones and Jacquelyn Perez scored.

In Sunday’s game ACU lost to SHSU 7-4. Both teams scored two runs in the first inning and the game remained tied un-

til the bottom of the fifth when the Bearkats scored five runs to take the lead.

In the top of the seventh, ACU scored a pair of runs as Paige Stevens drove in a run and Cara Hoover singled in a run.

“I think we had good pitching on Friday, which is what carried us, and we play decent defense,” Smith said. “All around, it wasn’t a very good weekend for us in pitching, defense or offensive. We need to be better at making adjustments.”

The series against SHSU ended the away games for conference play. However, ACU will break from conference competition this week as it faces University of Texas at Arlington on Wednesday. The game will begin at 6 p.m. in Arlington.

ACU will pick back up conference play again this weekend as it faces Houston Baptist University at home. contact little at hll12a@acu.edu

8

standings Baseball Standings

Team

Div.

Ovrl

SELU TAMU-CC Nicholls St. SHSU Lamar UCA NSU MSU ORU UIW HBU SFA ACU NO

12-6 12-6 12-6 10-8 10-8 10-8 10-8 10-8 9-9 5-7 7-11 7-11 4-8 2-16

27-13 22-19 21-20 26-14 24-16 21-15 22-17 20-18 21-18 12-24 17-19 16-23 14-23 10-26

Softball Standings

Team

Div.

Ovrl

MSU SHSU Lamar NSU ACU HBU SFA UCA SELU TAMU-CC Nicholls St. UIW

15-5 13-7 12-8 10-9 7-7 10-11 9-10 9-11 9-12 8-12 7-12 5-10

32-13 24-20 19-21 21-19 18-24 16-23 18-24 20-29 17-22 13-30 17-30 19-26

Who’s Hot Sophomore pitcher Garrett deMeyere accomplished a feat that had not been demeyere duplicated since 2005. deMeyere pitched a complete game, nine-inning shutout Saturday against rival Stephen F. Austin. deMeyere gave up four hits and struckout six batters in the Wildcats 3-0 win over the Lumberjacks. He now holds a 4-4 record with a 4.08 earned run average.

briefings Sophomore pitcher Garrett deMeyere was selected as the Southalnd Conference’s pitcher of the week. deMeyere pitched a nine-inning complete game shutout against Stephen F. Austin in which he gave up four hits and struckout six batters.

mandy lambright Staff Photographer

Sophomore Emil Litterer swings at the incoming pitch on Monday against McMurry at the Crutch. The Wildcats gave up five runs in the 6th inning en route to a 7-4 loss. The team stands at 14-23 overall and 4-7 in conference play.

Five-run inning lifts Warhawks collin wieder assistant sports editor The ACU baseball team ended its nine-game skid this weekend as it took two out of three games in the series against Stephen F. Austin.

The Wildcats started off the weekend with a rough 12-8 loss on Thursday night. They had a nice comeback after being down 3-0 early on, but gave up a six-run fifth inning to solidify the loss.

The Wildcats hit well as junior outfielder Colton Hall and sophomore Heath Beasley each went 2-for-4.

Friday, the ‘Cats battled back to win on a close 8-6 finish. Senior pitcher Brady Rodriguez picked up his first win of the season in seven innings of work.

Rodriguez allowed only three earned runs and had five strikeouts in his tenth career win as a Wildcat.

Freshman infielder Brandon Grudzielanek continued his great season by going 3-for-5 with two runs batted in.

“We hadn’t won in a while and didn’t have a great game Thursday night,” head coach Britt Bonneau said. “It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure this stuff out. If you

get good pitching, you will have a chance to win.”

The final game of the weekend included a pitching duel from ACU’s Garrett deMeyere and SFA’s Kevin Bishop. The game was scoreless through six innings until the Wildcats scored two in the bottom of the seventh to send Bishop to the dugout.

Tyler Wiedenfeld came in to relieve Bishop but gave up one more run in the eighth to give the Wildcats the 3-0 victory. deMeyere put on a clinic as he completed the first complete game shutout for the Wildcats in nine years. deMeyere allowed

only four hits and zero walks to pick up his fourth win of the season.

“I was really impressed with how he was able to pitch on both sides of the plate,” Bonneau said. “We made some good plays behind him that helped him out. I felt like that game alone, when we needed a hit, we got it.”

ACU finished five games in six days with a game Monday against McMurry.

Starting pitcher Ladgie Zotyka started well but gave up the lead in the fourth with two runs. The bullpen did not find a rhythm after that, allowing five more runs and giving McMurry

the 7-4 win, their first ever against the Wildcats.

The offense found themselves in familiar territory scoring only four runs on 10 hits. Senior infielder Seth Spivey led the offense going 4-for-4 with two runs batted in. Brandon Grudzielanek also extended his hitting streak to six games by going 3-for-4 on Monday.

The Wildcats will return to action Friday in San Antonio to face Incarnate Word. First pitch will be at 2 p.m.

the undefeated Corpus Christi squad. They folsports reporter lowed the loss with two straight wins ending the The ACU men’s tennis season with a 14-10 reteam played its final cord overall and 5-1 in matches at home against conference play. their soon-to-be-former “We are very happy conference foe, Oral Rob- with the first year reerts. The Wildcats defeat- sults, which I believe are ed Oral Roberts 5-2 on directly related to our Friday to keep them win- previous tough Div. I less in conference play. scheduling, even though The men played three we were Div. II,” assismatches to end the sea- tant coach John Walker son against Texas A&M said. “We as coaches and Corpus Christi, St. Ed- the guys team knew they wards and Oral Roberts could compete with anyin which they went 2-1. one in our conference.

The Wildcats were They embraced the chalhanded their first confer- lenge and confidence ence loss of the season to grew as a team each and

every week.”

Coach Walker sees the success of this season overf lowing into the next season for the Wildcats.

“We will add some players and current players will mature and improve over the summer, so we look forward to what challenges next season brings,” Walker said.

“The success of this season will carry over with those returners and rub off on the new guys. We as coaches and the players will be looking forward to making another great run at the conference championship next season.”

The Wildcats jumped out to a 3-0 lead against Oral Roberts, but ACU No. 1 Borja Cortes dropped his match while freshmen Nico Agritelley and sophomores Jason Proctor and Marco Belsley lost their second set after being up 1-0.

If they all lost the Golden Eagels would have won the match.

Bensley again pulls through in the clutch and won his match in the third set, giving the Wildcats the victory.

Sophomore Jason Proctor said their performance this season is a confidence booster head-

Dr. Gary McCaleb was honored at the baseball game against McMurry Monday afternoon.

McCaleb threw out the first pitch in celebration of his 50 years of service to ACU. Be sure to follow @OptimistSports on Twitter for more stories and the latest ACU sports news coverage.

Upcoming contact wieder at cpw11a@acu.edu

Tennis keeps Oral Roberts winless price bahcall

Golf finished its first two games of competition in the Southland Conference Championship on Tuesday. It currently ranks eighth place overall.

ing into the post-season.

“Our strong results give us confidence going into the post-season,” he said. “However, 5-1 is just a number, and those results are in the past. We know we need to focus on the present moment and execute each point just like we have all season.”

ACU will finish its season next weekend in Omaha, Neb., where it will face teams from Nebraska-Omaha, Grand Canyon and New Jersey Tech. contact bahcall at pmb09a@acu.edu

Golf plays its final day in the Southland Conference Championship tournament Wednesday.

Softball travels to Arlington to take on the University of Texas Arlington Wednesday at 6 p.m.

Track and Field start its competition against Drake College Wednesday in Des Moines, Iowa.

Baseball begins its three-game series against Houston Baptist Friday at 2 p.m. in Houston.