April 14, 2010

COCO’S NEW HOME: Conan O’Brien leaves NBC drama behind for a new gig on cable npage 5

Wednesday n April 14, 2010

DOUBLE TAP: Mustangs softball strikes twice against Cameron npage 8

thewichitan

your university n your voice

Coach’s termination leaves tennis in limbo Brittany Norman Editor in Chief

For head tennis coach Larry Wiggins, a 16-year career at MSU came to an abrupt end with a registered letter.

The form letter, delivered last August, told him his services were no longer needed.

The document left him with a lot of unanswered questions.

Almost two semesters later he still has the same questions.

Not only would he have to leave at the end of May, he was informed by university President Dr. Jesse Rogers, but he was also being barred from the classroom.

“As a faculty member (who has been notified of contract termination), you cannot teach,” Wiggins

said. He could, however, coach. That led him to believe “it wasn’t an issue of misconduct of any kind” that led to the termination of his three-year contract, which ends May 31.

According to Wiggins, Rogers will not tell him why he was fired until his contract is up.

Meanwhile, he continues to coach both men’s and women’s tennis.

“I made him (Rogers) understand I was not upset,” Wiggins said. “It’s not a personal thing. There are coaches who have been fired and those who will be fired. It’s really not a big deal.”

Wiggins said he learned of his contract termination before he received the official letter in the mail.

“The chair of the Mustangs Club, Denny Bishop, told a friend of mine after a lunch with Rogers: ‘I guess you

heard Wiggins has been fired as a tennis coach,’” Wiggins said.

Wiggins’ friend called him up and asked what had happened.

“I said, ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about,’” Wiggins said. “About 30 minutes later I went to the mailbox and got the letter.”

Wiggins said he has since been unable to recruit new players for the team. Recently, he has had difficulty getting new scholarships signed for current players.

“Nobody will tell me anything,” he said. “I’m left in the dark. The kids are left in the dark.”

Even though he has known he won’t be returning as coach since August, Wiggins said he has seen no evidence that the school is advertising for a new coach.

The current budget for MSU tennis, not including scholarship funds, is approximately $9,000 per team each year.

“That’s all we get for uniforms, balls, travel, everything,” Wiggins said.

And Wiggins, who has never been paid extra beyond his faculty salary to coach the team, is on his own coaching both the men and women.

“We don’t even have an assistant coach,” he said. “We have two teams.

Volleyball has an assistant and two graduate assistants for one team. I have to drive the bus because we can’t afford a bus driver (on our budget).

I’m the only coach on staff with a commercial driver’s license.”

Wiggins said he has to raise money Larry Wiggins’ contract was terminated after each year for the team, because with 16 years coaching tennis for MSU. (Photo by

See WIGGINS on page 3 Brittany Norman)

Business school gets thumbs up from AACSB Chris Collins Managing Editor

The Dillard College of Business has finally received official accreditation, something administrators have hoped for since the school opened its doors about 40 years ago.

The college received the merit from AACSB International (The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business), a global accrediting body for business and accounting schools offering bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees.

The organization has accredited 593 colleges in 37 countries, but only 30 percent of U.S. schools have the distinction of AACSB recognition.

“This assists us in assessing where we are in rela-

See DILLARD on page 3

Students, faculty walk for hope Amanda Potysman For the Wichitan

Students, faculty and community members gathered Monday evening for the Yom Ha’Shoah candlelight vigil. Yom Ha’Shoah is Isra-

Though Jewish Heritage Month falls in May, MSU hopes to give students a chance to better understand the faith and its history by offering events throughout the month of April. The Yom Ha’Shoah candlelight vigil has passed, as has the first of two lectures on Judaism, but there are events still to come.

For more information, contact the Multicultural Services office at (940) 397-4948 or multicultural@mwsu.edu

el’s day of commemoration for the approximately 6 million Jewish people who died during the Holocaust. (Photo by: Brittany Norman)

Events

n Judaism 102: Wednesday, April 14 at 7:00 p.m. in CSC Wichita I & II n Film: The Boy in the Striped Pajamas: Monday, April 19 at 7:00 p.m. in CSC Shawnee Theater n Speaker: Holocaust survivor Max Glauben: Thursday, April 29 at 7:00 p.m. at the House of Jacob Synagogue on Kemp street. Shuttle services will be provided to the event.

Students strut their scholarly stuff Chris Collins Managing Editor

MSU’s got talent.

That’s what students showed the audience in Clark Student Center Friday with presentations ranging from the First Amendment to musical compositions to sequencing mitochondrial DNA. “We’re celebrating schlolarship,” said Betty Stewart, dean of the College of Science and Mathmatics.

Stewart said she first got the

idea to hold a student colloquium when she taught at Austin College. Since the project received positive feedback there, she expected the same result at MSU. She said Patti Hamilton, dean of graduate studies, also played an integral role in pulling together the project.

They pitched the idea at one of the monthly dean’s meetings and asked the colleges how they could participate.

“It was a cooperative effort,” she said.

The deans went back to their respective schools and asked students what they had been working on. From there students discussed what they wanted to present and how they wanted to present it.

Students Brittany Walsh, Daniel Hayden, Lauren Wood, Colleen Wilson and Bethany Rumble presented on mass communication’s behalf, Chair Jim Sernoe said.

They put together a presentation called, ‘How far does the

See SCHOLARS on page 3

Dr. Betty Stewart looks over a student’s presentation during the scholarship colloquium Friday. (Photo by Julia Raymond)

MSU students are preparing for the second annual Relay For Life at the quad on Friday from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. Relay For Life came to MSU last year when two ambitious students were looking for a way to contribute to the fight against cancer.

Mass communication major Susie Hassan and dental hygienist major Tiffany Johnston went to Leslie Crutsinger at The American Cancer Society and asked if there were any cancer walks in the area.

“I just want to be able to give back and do my part.” Hassan said.

Her mom, a cancer survivor, inspired Hassan to contribute to the cause.

There weren’t any fund-raising events at the time

See RELAY on page 3

No new sheriff in town for MSU Chris Collins Managing Editor

Michael Hagy, formerly the MSU police chief, officially stepped down from the post last Wednesday.

Administration has yet to find a replacement for Hagy, even though they have been aware of his upcoming retirement for about a semester.

Hagy held the post for 10 years. His pay was about $70,000. Sergeant Michael Cross is in charge in the interim.

Howard Farrell, vice president for university advancement and student affairs, said the university has made three unsuccessful offers to candidates.

“We’re still looking,” Farrell said. “The search continues.”

MSU interviewed university police chiefs from

See CHIEF on page 3

2 n The Wichitan

campusvoice

thewichitan

nour view

SHHHHHHH!

When a speaker walks into a lecture hall at a university to see every seat filled, he or she should feel something.

In an ideal world, they’d feel flattered, perhaps a little excited to have attracted so much interest. Those who worked to schedule the event should be overcome with a sense of fulfillment.

In the case of last week’s installment of the Professor Edwards Discussion in Politics series, featuring Douglas Rhon, a high-ranking U.S. State Department Official, any positive feelings about the crowd were quickly proven premature.

Rhon spoke of his work in the Caribbean, the Middle East, Africa and Latin America during his 30-year career with the State Department.

He was attempting to inform the student attendees about a possible career path in a world where finding employment after graduation is a major uncertainty, but students weren’t interested in the message.

Rhon probably didn’t know the majority of the lecture attendees were there for one reason: extra credit.

Apparently, the extra credit many students received was dependent only

upon their attending the lecture.

Paying attention and getting something out of it seemed to be an optional part of the assignment, one that many of the attendees impolitely declined.

The lecture didn’t even last an hour, but social lives just could not wait for the government official who had traveled to Wichita Falls for the sole purpose of speaking to a few students to finish.

Before he had even been formally introduced, cell phones were clicking away, screens illuminated beneath every row of desks in the Bolin lecture hall.

Maybe these phone users weren’t texting – maybe they were tweeting about the lecture in real-time.

But we doubt it.

Then there was the whispering. Lesson number one: just because it’s a whisper doesn’t mean your conversation will go unnoticed. In fact, some people don’t seem to grasp the concept of a whisper at all (Hint: when the hissing sounds reach a decibel level on par with normal talking, you’re doing it wrong).

And when you’re whispering during a presentation by a State Department of-

April 14, 2010

3410 Taft Blvd. Box 14 n Wichita Falls, Texas 76308 News Desk: (940) 397-4704 n Ads: (940) 397-4705 Fax (940) 397-4025 n E-mail WICHITAN@mwsu.edu

ficial who is speaking about the rewarding and dangerous nature of working in volatile countries and you burst into uncontrollable giggles, trust us, no one thinks you’re laughing at the presenter.

If you’re going to show up for a lecture just to get the extra credit, that’s absolutely fine. Everyone knows college students are generally lazy and unlikely to do anything for which they don’t receive some sort of positive reinforcement. But when the man (or woman) behind the podium starts speaking, kindly shut your mouths and at least have the decency to turn your cell phones on silent and hide them well while you text.

If you have to be rude, at least be sneaky about it. Passing notes is also a far less annoying alternative to hissing incessantly while you whisper-gab with your bestest buddy. Yes, it’s still rude. We’re just trying to aim for the lesser of the etiquette foibles here.

When that lecturer steps away from the podium, don’t be the person who made him or her feel as if the hour they spent talking at you was a complete waste. Trust us, your social life will survive.

editorial board

nEditor in Chief: Brittany Norman nManaging Editor: Chris Collins nEntertainment Editor: Lauren Wood nOp-Ed Editor: Position open nSports Editor: Josh Hoggard nPhoto Editor: Julia Raymond nAdvertising manager: Jamie Monroe nCopy editor: Phoebe Kurmi and Amaka Oguchi nadviser: Randy Pruitt nReporters: Leah Roberts, Jaleesa Bealom, Ashley Nesbitt, Matt Ledesma, Loren Eggenschwiler nPhotographers: Loren Eggenschwiler, Patrick Johnston, Kassie Bruton

Copyright © 2007. The Wichitan is a member of the Texas Intercollegiate Press Association. The Wichitan reserves the right to edit any material submitted for publication. Opinions expressed in The Wichitan do not necessarily reflect those of the students, staff, faculty, administration or Board of Regents of Midwestern State University. First copy of the paper is free of charge; additional copies are $1. The Wichitan welcomes letters of opinion from students, faculty and staff submitted by the Friday before intended publication. Letters should be brief and without abusive language or personal attacks. Letters must be typed and signed by the writer and include a telephone number and address for verification purposes. The editor retains the right to edit letters.

KFC doubling down

Jenny Gaylor For the Wichitan

Well, Kentucky Fried Chicken has finally done it. That fast food chain famous for its fried chicken has invented a handheld heart attack.

The new Double Down Sandwich features four elements: bacon, pepper jack cheese, special sauce and most importantly, chicken. The sandwich trades out bread for two fried chicken fillets.

That’s right. Fried chicken instead of bread.

Are you thinking what I’m thinking?

Gross.

America’s obesity stats are staggering without the addition of the newest fattening meal on the menu.

Although it may be tempting, I’m going to steer clear of this “sandwich.”

It packs a punch with 540 calories and 1,380 mg of sodium.

The average person should only ingest about 1,500 calories per day and 2,400 mg of salt. Being healthy is hard enough in this country with fast food restaurants packing our heads full of pictures of fried sandwiches.

KFC has taken a strange turn from its healthier options. I feel

like it was yesterday when they were chanting, “Taste the unfried side,” forcing grilled chicken on its patrons.

This new fried sandwich seems like a strange item to add to the menu in the midst of a healthconscious America. The Double Down makes me ask, ‘Why?’ What was so wrong with the KFC items before this behemoth was introduced?

If you ask me, the Colonel is going to catch more negative feedback than positive for this move. Only time can tell us if the Double Down will be a success or a massive, greasy mistake.

Until then, eat up!

nLetter to the Editor This letter is in response to the one that Cameron Shaffer wrote which was published in the April 7th edition of The Wichitan.

From Amendment I of the Bill of Rights: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

In Article 6, Section 3 of the Constitution of the United States, it reads as follows: “no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States.”

While the “Texas Board of Education” was not specifically stated—since the official state of Texas did not even exist at that time—what our founding fathers were saying is that we should not and shall not be governed by religion.

When you remove the requirement of a separation of church and state from Texas history books, you give children the mistaken impression that mixing religion into politics is allowed. It is not. This is evidenced in recent news by the U.S. Supreme Court’s refusal to hear an appeal of a ruling that a stone monument listing the Ten Commandments—originally placed in front of an Oklahoma County Courthouse—violates the First Amendment to the Constitution, forcing the move of the monument to a location unassociated with

government.

As far as editing out Thomas Jefferson from the books, the idea is absurd, offensive, and frightening. Thomas Jefferson was not only the 3rd President of the United States, he was Secretary of State under Washington, was John Adams’s vice president, and was the author of the Declaration of Independence.

You stated that thinkers such as John Locke were influenced by Thomas Aquinas and John Calvin. True. But he was more greatly influenced by Plato, Socrates, his contemporary philosophes, by scientific discovery and innovation of the time by the likes of Isaac Newton and, before him, Galileo Galilei, as well as by Thomas Paine and our own founding fathers.

While there were a number of our ancestors who came to the newly settled area of what would someday become the United States in order to develop a “Zionist state,” those Puritan settlers were not associated with the development of the government of this great country.

The founding fathers of our nation, including Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and Thomas Paine—who was called the “firebrand of the American Revolution—were Deists.

Here are some quotes from or about our founding fathers: Our first president was notoriously close-mouthed about his personal beliefs, but historian Barry Schwartz writes of

him: “George Washington’s practice of Christianity was limited and superficial because he was not himself a Christian... He repeatedly declined the church’s sacraments. Never did he take communion, and when his wife, Martha, did, he waited for her outside the sanctuary...

Even on his deathbed, Washington asked for no ritual, uttered no prayer to Christ, and expressed no wish to be attended by His representative.” [New York Press, 1987, pp. 174175] “This would be the best of all possible worlds, if there were no religion in it.”— John Adams.

“Millions of innocent men, women and children, since the introduction of Christianity, have been burnt, tortured, fined, imprisoned; yet we have not advanced an inch towards uniformity. What has been the effect of coercion? To make one half the world fools, and the other half hypocrites. To support roguery and error all over the earth,” and “History, I believe, furnishes no example of a priest-ridden people maintaining a free civil government.

This marks the lowest grade of ignorance, of which their political as well as religious leaders will always avail themselves for their own purpose.”—Thomas Jefferson “All national institutions of churches, whether Jewish, Christian or Turkish, appear to me no other than human inventions, set up to terrify and enslave mankind, and monopolize power and profit;” and “Of all the tyrannies that affect mankind, tyranny in religion is the worst.”—Thomas Paine.

“. . . Some books against Deism fell into my hands. . . It happened that they wrought an effect on me quite contrary to what was intended by them; for the arguments of the Deists, which were quoted to be refuted, appeared to me much stronger than the refutations; in short, I soon became a thorough Deist.”—Benjamin Franklin “Religious bondage shackles and debilitates the mind and unfits it for every noble enterprise.”—James Madison “The Bible is not my book, nor Christianity my profession.”-- Abraham Lincoln, as quoted by Joseph Lewis.

Nowhere in the Constitution of our United States are any of the following words mentioned: God, the Bible, Christianity, or Jesus. NOWHERE. Words that ARE in the Constitution: “We the people,” “free,” “welfare,” and “union.”

Since we live in a free nation with guaranteed freedom of speech rights, you are allowed to state what you did in your letter to the editor, Cameron, but a part of that freedom of speech is the freedom to not have others’ beliefs pressed upon you.

We are a multi-national melting pot of a nation with a thousand different faiths.

It is abhorrent to me that the Texas Board of Education would so blatantly disrespect the storied history of our nation in an effort to further their own personal agenda.

But then, I am a Deist.

Abigail Scott

news

April 14, 2010

campus briefs

RELAY.....................................................................................................................continued from page 1

n today:

Judaism 102: Religious Practices and Traditions in Wichita I & II at 7 p.m.

n tHURSDAY:

Theatre: Lobby Hero in the Bea Wood Studio Theatre at 7:30 p.m.

n Friday:

Relay for Life MSU in the Quad

TLRC Brownbag Luncheon recap in

Wichita I & II at noon Symphonic Band Concert in Akin Auditorium at 7:30 p.m.

but Crutsinger let them know about the Relay U organization.

Relay U is a committee of college students from different universities who meet to discuss upcoming Relay For Life ideas.

Last year was the first year MSU held a Relay For Life.

More then $18,000 was raised.

This year it is Johnston’s goal is to raise more then $25,000. Relay for Life is open to all MSU students and alumni.

MSU student Tiffany Johnston is the head chair of Colleges Against Cancer, the committee at MSU that organized Relay For Life.

“Our goal is to create a world where more people survive can-

cer so they can have another birthday,” Johnston said.

Hassan and Johnston attended the Relay U meeting in Lubbock two months ago to talk about relay plans. At the meeting, representatives from all Panhandle universities met to discuss ways to raise more money and get more people to attend their Relay For Life event.

Texas Tech University has one of the biggest relays, so Hassan and Johnston get ideas from them.

So far 40 teams are signed up to be involved in Relay For Life, but Johnston is still taking applicants and donations up until the event. To be a team you must

pay a minimum $100 commitment fee. The teams have raised $9,549.14 to date.

Teams must have a minimum of eight people and a maximum of 15 people. Some teams just split up the cost between themselves. One person from the team must be walking or running at all times in the 24-hour period.

According to the American Cancer Society, Dr. Gordy Klatt began the first Relay For Life in Tacoma, Wash.

He envisioned that a 24-hour event would be a good way to raise money.

Hassan described Relay For Life as a way to celebrate survi-

vors, fund research, and inspire the public to become involved in advocacy efforts.

Another important aspect of Relay for Life is for people to come together and remember loved ones lost to cancer and celebrate with ones who won their battle.

During the event survivors are honored with an Opening Survivor’s Lap around the track.

There will also be a Luminaria ceremony where participants can purchase a lighted votive candle in a paper bag to honor someone who has been touched by cancer.

First Amendment go?’ in which they outlined significant free speech cases – some of them landmarks and some of them recent.

“A lot of it was individual research,” said Sernoe, who compiled a PowerPoint presentation for the project.

“It seemed like people enjoyed our presentation,” said Wilson.

She said the group decided to speak about the First Amendment because it’s an interesting and ever-changing subject.

“I enjoy the law cases because they’re so subjective,” she said.

“Nobody’s ever really right or

wrong.”

The Colleges of Humanities, Health Sciences, Mathematics and Business also participated in the program. Mass communication also showed studentdirected documentaries from the last eight years while theatre and music also honored talented students.

“We had a wonderful time,” Stewart said. “I learned about art, theatre, dental hygiene and other things, too. Students got to talk to one another and that’s exactly what we want.”

One of the main points of the program was to encourage com-

munication between students of different backgrounds and interests, she said.

“We want communication across disciplines instead of just within disciplines,” Stewart said.

She plans to make the colloquium an annual event. Also, Stewart said she’ll pitch the idea

of a ‘Scholarship Day’ to the administration, where school is cancelled for a day to make time for a project like this.

She hopes to improve on the project next year by recruiting earlier.

“We need to start publicizing more in the fall,” Stewart said.

tion to high-quality programs,” said Barbara Nemecek, dean of Dillard College.

Nemecek took the post of dean in July. She was formerly a dean of business at University of Wisconsin at River Falls, which is also accredited by the AACSB.

She said her goal is to make business students accountable to the community.

“We want to be recognized as

a center of excellence in business education and to be a service in North Central Texas,” she said.

“We’ll provide the right services to the community because we want students to be leaders in the business community.”

The school is working to update and improve curriculum, she said.

“We’re continually striving to improve,” she said. “And we’re always working on curriculum.”

SCHOLARS.............................................................................................................continued from page 1

Theatre: Lobby Hero in the Bea Wood Studio Theatre at 7:30 p.m.

n Saturday:

MSU hosts cycling races

Relay for Life MSU in the Quad Autism Conference of Texoma in CSC at 8 a.m.

n Sunday:

Theatre: Lobby Hero in the Bea

Wood Studio Theatre at 7:30 p.m.

DILLARD...........................continued from page 1

n Monday: Movie Showing: Boy in the Striped

The Wichitan n 3

Pajamas in Shawnee at 3 p.m.

n Tuesday: Academic Recovery Group in CSC

Apache at 3:30 p.m.

Speakers and Issues Series: “Per-

spectives on the New Deal” in Akin Auditorium at 7 p.m.

COMING SOON TO A CAMPUS NEAR YOU…

Hagy.................................continued from page 1 Missouri, Texas and South Carolina, but have been turned down every time. Farrell said when the candidates’ schools realized that they could lose their chiefs, they upped salaries and benefits to keep personnel.

Currently Farrell doesn’t have an estimate of how long it’ll take to find a new chief.

“We have to find the right person,” Farrell said. “We don’t want to fill the position just to fill the position. I want somebody who can be a student advocate.”

The committee in charge of finding a new police chief is headed by Keith Lamb, associate vice president for university affairs.

“We need somebody who can

the

Wednesday, April 14 6:00pm, CSC Shawnee

Greek Roundtable Forum Share your thoughts and ideas for Greek Life at MSU.

Wednesday, April 14 6:30pm, CSC Comanche

UPB Presents: The Virus… Music, Art & Culture Hear and see a variety of performing and visual arts.

Wednesday, April 14 7:00pm, CSC Wichita

Judaism 102: Religious Practices & Traditions Expand your mind. Celebrate Jewish Heritage Month!

Friday, April 16 6pm-6am, Quadrangle

2nd Annual MSU Relay for Life Sponsored by Colleges Against Cancer.

Friday, April 16 7:30pm, Akin Auditorium

MSU Symphonic & Wind Ensemble Concert Hear some great music from talented MSU students.

Sunday, April 18 7am-2pm, MSU Campus

MSU Cycling Races: Campus Criterium Support Team Arrow in its bid for another national title!

Monday, April 19 7:00pm, CSC Shawnee

Movie: The Boy in the Striped Pajamas Expand your mind. Celebrate Jewish Heritage Month!

Tuesday, April 20 7:00pm, Bolin 127

Student Government Association (SGA) Meeting Your campus; your voice. Open to all MSU students.

Thursday, April 22 3-10pm, Rec Center

Spring Bash 2010: O waho pa’ini (Hawaiian Outdoor Party) Oxygen Bar, Kiowa Kooks, Pool Party, Outdoor Movie & Way Cool Stuff!

Friday, April 23 6:30pm, WF Country Club

2009-10 Student Honors Banquet Recognizing the recipients of the 2009-10 Outstanding Student Awards.

Tuesday, April 27 TBD, Lucy Park

Afternoon Hiking Trip (sponsored by UPB) Get more information and sign up at the CSC Information Desk.

Thursday, April 29 7:00pm, House of Jacob

Holocaust Survivor Speaker Free MSU Shuttle at 6:45pm from Sunwatcher Statue. Celebrate Jewish Heritage Month!

Spring Bash 2010

Spotlight A SPECIAL CONGRATULATIONS...

-To all of the MSU students who contributed to the 3rd Annual Great Day of Service on Saturday, April 10, 2010.

-To all of the members of the Greek community at MSU for raising $590 and donating over 800 needed items to First Step of Wichita Falls, as a result of Greek Week 2010.

-To the MSU Cheerleaders for positively representing Midwestern State University at the National Collegiate Cheerleading Championships.

Congratulations to the Winners of the 2009-10 Outstanding Greek Awards!

O waho pa’ini

Greek Woman of the Year Sarah Jo Spaniel Gamma Phi Beta

Philanthropy of the Year Chi Omega Week of Wishes

Basically, the coolest program of the spring in the new student wellness center.

Festivities will include sand volleyball, a pool party, oxygen bar, Kiowa Kooks, poolside movie (the Proposal), Earth Day tree kits, mocktails, prizes, live music, and more. The fun starts at 3:00pm. Brought to you by Student Development & Orientation, UPB, We-REC, and the Student Wellness Center.

Kristen Bolser Chi Omega

Alpha Phi Alpha AlphaApollo (Honorable Mention)

(The Hawaiian Outdoor Party)

(Honorable Mention)

Greek Man of the Year Luke Shelton Tau Kappa Epsilon

deal with everything from crisis management to writing tickets,” Farrell said.

He said having a police chief is one of a university’s top priorities. A chief has to stay on top of MSU Alert, threatening weather, looking after residence halls and working with other police departments like the Wichita Falls Police and Sheriff ’s Departments.

“The safety of our university community is a primary concern,” he said. “Colleges are one of the safer parts of our society, but there’s been a recent phenomenon about violence.”

Farrell said he hopes to ensure that MSU is a community of scholars.

Community Service of the Year Alpha Kappa Alpha Risk Management Program of the Year Sigma Alpha Epsilon

2010 Greek Week Champions: Gamma Phi Beta, Phi Sigma Kappa, Alpha Kappa Alpha, and Kappa Sigma

The Spotlight is brought to you by The Office of Student Development & Orientation Endless Opportunities. Lifelong Connections.

Clark Student Center, Room 194 (940) 397-4500 http://activities.mwsu.edu

Look for the next Spotlight on Wednesday, April 28, 2010!

4 n

news

The Wichitan

April 14, 2010

WIGGINS.......................................................................................................................................................................................................continued from page 1 such a small budget they’d be unable to do much otherwise.

Knowledge of Wiggins’ contract termination, delays in scholarship approval from the athletics department, schoolwide budget cutbacks, a lack of recruiting and the fact that a search for a new coach has not yet begun has led to concerns among players.

They, along with some community members, have expressed fear that MSU’s tennis program might be coming to an end.

NCAA Division II rules require that, even in the event a team is eliminated, existing scholarships must be extended for a year after the end of the program. The students wouldn’t play, but would continue to receive their scholarships.

Still, some of the athletes have said they feel as though they aren’t getting a straight answer about the future of the program – and the future of their own collegiate athletic careers.

Athletic Director Charlie Carr called the rumor that the tennis program is facing elimination “ridiculous.”

“We’re not going to drop any of our sports, certainly not tennis,” Carr said, adding that he has been fielding phone calls from people asking whether or not the program will be cancelled.

“In fact, (tennis) is one of our more successful sports. We look forward to continuing it.”

Rogers also confirmed that tennis would not be dropped.

“I don’t know where that vicious rumor got started,” Rogers said. “We have got a long history of tennis teams and tennis players here. It’s a big part of our model Division II athletic program.”

Rogers also added that the search for a coach had, in fact, begun.

“We’re on a national search right now for an experienced, first-rate tennis coach,” Rogers said Friday. “We didn’t start the search until maybe a couple of weeks ago.”

On Tuesday, however, Carr said an official search is not yet underway.

“We haven’t formally started (searching for a new coach),” Carr said. “We’re waiting until the end of the season. We’re trying to give our current coaching staff and the players a chance to finish the year and enjoy the year that they have. I didn’t want to intrude on that.

But we’ll find (a coach). There’ll be plenty of interest.”

He said while there are no official prospects, people have contacted him expressing interest in the position.

Carr also said that bringing in a part-time coach as a backup plan in case a full-time head coach was not found is not even an option.

Qualities Carr said he will look for in a new coach include experience, preferably at the college level, and at least a master’s degree.

He also said current players’ scholarships are safe.

“There’s been some discussion (about scholarships),” Carr said. “None of our current players scholarships will be changed. We will retain all of our kids as they are. No scholarships will change, no statuses will change.”

Carr verified that there has been no recruiting for either the men’s or women’s teams.

“We’ll do that (recruit) after we make some decisions,” he said. “It’s more of a summer recruiting anyway. Both teams

really have the majority of their (players) coming back.”

NCAA Division II fall signing dates for tennis were Nov. 11-18. Spring signing begins today and will continue through Aug. 1.

According to an article posted on the National Collegiate Recruiter’s Association blog on Feb. 10, “time is slowly running out” for prospective athletes to be recruited.

Wiggins said that without recruiting, the women might

not have a full roster for the upcoming season.

Rogers said the plan remains to continue the program in its full capacity.

“My hope is that we’ll have a full contingent of players and our intention is certainly to continue both men’s and women’s tennis,” Rogers said. “I will assure you of that, that we’ll continue to play a full contingent of players.”

Despite a tight budget and concerns about the future of the

program, members of the men’s and women’s tennis teams have seen success this season and in seasons past.

Both teams are regionally ranked.

As of April 7, the men were ranked seventh in the south central region and have a season record of 13-4. Women sit eighth with a record of 11-6.

Wiggins has led MSU tennis to NCAA postseason play 22 times. The men’s and women’s teams have both made it

to the Sweet Sixteen. In 2006, the men advanced to the Elite Eight.

According to the MSU Athletics Web site, Wiggins is the second winningest coach in the history of MSU athletics. Since becoming eligible for NCAA postseason play in 1998, all of his teams have qualified for the NCAA Division II postseason with the exception of the 2008 women’s team. The men have advanced to the postseason in each of the last 11 years, while

the women dropped a 10-year streak of playoff appearances in 2008.

Now, Wiggins hopes to take his experience elsewhere. He has begun seeking coaching jobs at other Texas and Oklahoma schools, not because he needs the money, but because he said he’d be bored if he wasn’t working.

“I would have liked to leave on my own terms,” he said.

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The Wichitan n 5

Cage emerges in new films, ‘Kick-Ass,’ ‘Apprentice,’ ‘Witch’ Lauren Wood For the Wichitan

Nicolas Cage has been working overtime the past several years; last year alone he worked on Knowing, G-Force, The Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call – New Orleans and Astro Boy. And on Friday, his new film Kick-Ass comes out.

So why is Cage scraping for every film job out there? Maybe it’s due to his current financial situation, but the A-list actor claims he took the Kick-Ass job to go “global.”

Cage, born Nicolas Coppola, pursued acting as a career, making his debut on television in 1981.

He has appeared in over 60 films and has won the Academy Award for Best Actor in 1995 for his lead role in Leaving Las Vegas, and the Toronto Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor in 2002 for Adaptation.

Cage has appeared in over 60 films including Face/Off (1997), National Treasure (2004), and Ghost Rider (2007).

Cage has been married three times: to Patricia Arquette, Lisa Marie Presley, and Alice Kim Cage, his current wife.

Through his father, Cage is the nephew of director Franci Ford Coppola and actress Talia Shire, as well as the cousin of directors Roman Coppola and Sofia Coppola, late film producer Gian-Carlo Coppola, and actors Robert Carmine and Jason Schwartzman.

In order to avoid the

appearance of nepotism as the nephew of Francis Ford Coppola, he changed his name early in his career to Nicolas Cage, inspired in part by the Marvel Comics superhero Luke Cage.

Since his minor role in the film Fast Times at Ridgemont High, with Sean Penn, Cage has appeared in a wide range of films, both mainstream and offbeat.

Other Cage roles included appearances in the acclaimed 1987 romantic-comedy Moonstruck, starring Cher; the Coen Brothers cult-classic comedy Raising Arizona; and Ridley Scott’s 2003 quirky drama Matchstick Men, in which he played an agoraphobic, mysophobic, obsessivecompulsive con artist with a twitch disorder.

He took the lead role in the 2001 film Captain Corelli’s Mandolin and learned to play the mandolin from scratch for the part.

In 2005, two offbeat films he headlined, Lord of War and The Weather Man, failed to find a significant audience despite nationwide releases and good reviews for his acting in those roles.

Cage did a horrible job in the film Ghost Rider as well as Next, but did a phenomenal job in his older work, The Family Man. The plot was already pretty awful to being with in Ghost Rider, and Cage didn’t help the film at all. The film didn’t do well in the box office, and Cage’s reputation was a little wounded as well.

Left: Nicolas Cage stars as Big Daddy in his latest film, “KickAss.” Top: Cage has appeared in over 60 films, winning an Academy Award. Bottom: Cage plays a knight chosen to transport a witch in “Season of the Witch.” (Photo Courtesy)

Most of Cage’s movies that have achieved financial success were in the action/adventure genre.

In his second-highest grossing film to date, National Treasure, he plays an eccentric historian who goes on a dangerous adventure

nGentlemen Prefer Blondes: AN ENTERTAINMENT COLUMN

Conan O’Brien moves to TBS On Monday TBS released a short promo declaring, “Coco’s with TBS,” officially announcing that O’Brien has made the move to cable.

O’Brien, who had been without a TV home since his abrupt departure from NBC in January, spent weeks in deep negotiations for a show with Fox. His surprising move to TBS was signed and sealed in a little over a week. Conan’s new show is scheduled to run in the 11:00 p.m. time slot and will begin airing sometime in November.

TBS is hardly a cable giantit has less late-night viewers than its network competitors.

Fox, NBC, ABC, and CBS all have higher ratings.

The million dollar question: will Conan’s legion of fans follow him over to cable?

I think so, and here’s why.

First of all, O’Brien’s upcoming stand-up comedy tour, Legally Prohibited from Being Funny on Television, sold out within hours in most major cities.

Even the VIP meet-andgreet packages sold for upwards of $500. O’Brien’s only been on Twitter since March 24, but already he’s amassed more than 823,000 followers.

That doesn’t include his Facebook fan group, “I’m With CoCo,” that organizes blitz Twitter campaigns to keep Conan a “trending topic” and was responsible for the proConan rallies outside of NBC studios in L.A. before O’Brien was ousted from NBC. The group has nearly a million members, and whenever someone in the media questions whether or not CoCo fans have the attention span to stay loyal, the answer is

Jamie Monroe Advertising Manager always a vehement, “We’re still here - let’s spam Twitter and show those guys!”

O’Brien isn’t even on TV anymore, but his fans are still loyal. It’s likely they’ll at least check him out over on TBS. Many critics of O’Brien have pointed out the obvious - all of his loyal fans weren’t exactly tuning in in droves during his brief stint as The Tonight Show host.

But O’Brien never really did fit into the 11:30 slot at NBC. His jokes seemed censored, and his sketches lacked the spontaneous energy of his previous show, The Late Show.

Triumph the Insult Comic Dog, The Masturbating Bear, and the frat-boy comedy that made O’Brien a hit at 12:30 didn’t translate to his new audience, and his old audience wasn’t tuning in, either.

Until he got royally screwed

by NBC, and instead of quietly switching time slots to accommodate Jay Leno and his chin, O’Brien essentially gave NBC the finger on national TV. Those last glorious shows weren’t hilarious because everyone likes to laugh at NBC. They were hilarious because it

was old-school Conan.

Number one in the ratings, but with the attitude of “Who in the world would watch this crap? I don’t know, who cares!”

If that attitude follows him to TBS, it’ll be a hit, despite him coming up against popular Comedy Central comedians Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert.

The second, most important reason that O’Brien will do well is that even though he’s a Harvard-educated millionaire, he’s someone that everyone can relate to. He was bullied

by Leno and NBC and ended up giving up his dream job because he cared more about the principle of the show than the salary he was earning for it.

In his move to TBS, O’Brien refused to oust other hosts so that he could have the 11 p.m. timeslot. The deal with TBS initially ran into snags because TBS already had a show -The George Lopez Show - at 11.

The fact that O’Brien refused to do to someone else what had already been done to him speaks volumes about his character, and fans pick up on that.

It’s almost a rarity to see people in the TV business treat other people decently. Whether or not it financially pays off for him, he’ll at least have respect for it.

“In three months I’ve gone from network television to Twitter to performing live in theaters, and now I’m headed to basic cable. My plan is working perfectly,” O’Brien said, regarding the TBS move.

Hopefully TBS works out for him. If not, at least he won’t have to worry about Jay Leno coming in to steal his job.

to find treasure hidden by the Founding Fathers of the United States.

Other action hits include The Rock, in which Cage plays a young FBI chemical weapons expert who infiltrates Alcatraz Island in hopes of neutralizing a terrorist threat, Face/Off, a John Woo film where he plays both a hero and a villain.

In 2009, Cage starred in scifi thriller Knowing, directed by Alex Proyas.

In the film, he plays an MIT professor who examines the contents of a time capsule unearthed at his son’s elementary school. Startling predictions found inside the capsule that have already come true lead him to believe the world is going to end at the close of the week, and that he and his son are somehow

involved in the destruction.

The film received mainly negative reviews but was the box office winner on its opening weekend.

Cage will star in the period piece Season of the Witch, playing a 14th-century knight transporting a girl accused of causing the Black Plague to a monastery.

He was also cast as the lead role in The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, in which he will play the sorcerer who is fighting evil villians while trying to train his teenage apprentice.

Not really Oscar-worthy stuff.

It is rumored that he will star in National Treasure 3, which has a possible release date as early as 2011.

Cage’s newest film, Kick-

Ass is about a character named Dave Lizewski. He is a comicbook fanboy who decides to take his obsession as inspiration to become a real-life superhero. The only problem is that he has zero super-powers. However, he looks at that as a minor detail.

He inspires a group of copycats and soon meets a sword-wielding girl named Hit Girl, and her father, Big Daddy, played by Cage.

The previews look promising, but Cage’s ability to pull off this type of comedy is uncertain.

Check out this film, premiering Friday.

Kick-Ass is rated R for strong, brutal violence throughout, pervasive language, sexual content, nudity and some drug use - some involving children.

theatre performances: n “Lobby Hero” Midwestern State University Theatre Performances: Thursday, April 15 at 7:30 p.m.

Friday, April 16 at 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, April 17 at 7:30 p.m.

Sunday, April 18 at 2:30 p.m.

Location: Bea Wood Studio Theatre Admission: $8 General Admission

Free for MSU Students and Faculty with valid ID

Purchase tickets at the Box Office in the Fain Fine Arts

Building The Production: “Lobby Hero” tells the story of Jeff, a luckless young security guard, who is drawn into a local murder investigation that questions his sense of justice.

n “To Kill a Mockingbird” Royal Theater Performances: Thursday, April 15 at 7:30 p.m.

Friday, April 16 at 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, April 17 at 7:30 p.m.

Thursday,April 22 at 7:30 p.m.

Friday, April 23 at 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, April 24 at 7:30 p.m.

Location: Royal City Theater in Archer City Admission: $14 General Admission

Visit royaltheater.org for tickets

or call (940) 574-2489 The Production: “To Kill a Mockingbird” tells the story of growing up under extraordinary circumstances in the 1930s in the southern part of the United States. A young girl grows up fast when her lawyer father defends a black man accused of raping a white woman.

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The Wichitan

April 14, 2010

going one day without shoes Students go barefoot for a day in participation with TOMS campaign Josh Hoggard For the Wichitan

Amy Atkeisson, Josh Hoggard, Kelsey Davis, Jacob Smith, Alyssa Campbell spent April 8 walking barefoot as part of TOMS Shoes’ One Day Without Shoes campaign. TOMS mission statement says “for every pair of shoes sold, TOMS will donate a pair of shoes to a child in need. (Photos by: Alexis Tate)

For a majority of Wichita Falls students, getting ready in the morning typically involves finding clean clothes that look good together and suit the unpredictable weather.

But, for a few dozen MSU students, getting ready on Thursday, April 8 did not involve picking out matching shoes.

On April 8 students and adults around the country left their shoes at home and participated in TOMS Shoes’ One Day Without Shoes campaign.

TOMS is a nonprofit organization started in 2006 in Venice, California, with a simple mission statement; “For every pair of shoes sold, TOMS will donate a pair of shoes to a child in need.”

That “need” is being felt all over the world.

In underdeveloped countries, poverty isn’t the only reason a need for shoes exists.

Soil-borne bacterium and viruses are a leading cause of illness and disease.

Without shoes, children’s feet become cut up and scraped, which, beyond discomfort, makes it easy for these soilborne diseases to find their way into the human body.

Furthermore, shoes are required for school uniforms. Without shoes, children cannot receive an education.

So, for the past four years, TOMS has been working to put a dent in the worldwide need to, as Steve Miller said, “shoe the children with no shoes on their feet.”

“I first stared seeing people wearing TOMS about two years ago,” freshman Grace Johnson said. “I thought they looked unique, so I asked about them. I thought the charity behind them was great, so I ordered my first pair!”

The One Day Without Shoes campaign

is a charge to TOMS wearers and people who don’t own a pair alike to go one day without shoes, both to raise awareness for TOMS and, according to junior Janie Hessing, to “experience what the children all over the world experience daily.”

“It made a huge impact on me,” Hessing said. “I realized how much I take something as simple as a pair of shoes for granted.”

Hessing is a campus representative for TOMS, and hosted a barbecue and barefoot walk on Thursday to further the awareness she hoped to raise.

Freshman Amy Atkeisson participated in this year’s One Day Without Shoes.

“Ironically, it was to ‘put myself in another persons shoes’ and experience the slightest amount of what third world children go through,” Atkeisson said Students experiences ranged from sparks of interest to fiery, dirty looks.

“I got a lot of dirty looks and stares,” Alyssa Campbell explains.

“People stared at me and asked me, ‘Why aren’t you wearing any shoes?’

“But, that opened the door for me to tell them about TOMS!” Grace Johnson roused a similar response from her co-workers.

“I work at an antique shop with old ladies. They looked at me and didn’t want to bring it up. Then one of them finally spoke up, thinking I was just being a wild child, but I got to tell them about the charity.”

Awkward stares and comments weren’t the only form of discomfort brought on by a lack of shoes.

“I quickly discovered that the Prothro-Yeager parking lot was not made for barefoot people,” Grace Johnson said.

By raising awareness with the One Day Without Shoes campaign, TOMS Shoes hopes to not only broaden their client base, but to add to the 600,000 children in need who have already received a pair of shoes.

“Since I am in college it’s hard for me to just go all the way across the world and help all of those people,” says Alyssa Campbell. “So, if the least I can do is not wear shoes for a day to spread the word about TOMS, why not do it?”

More information about TOMS can be found at their Web site, www.tomsshoes.com.

One wild ‘Date Night’ with Carell and Fey amuses audiences Lauren Wood For the Wichitan

Phil Foster just wanted to take his wife on a nice date in Manhattan, but instead of a relaxing, romantic evening, the Fosters spent the their night running from corrupted cops, committing crimes and dancing for a District Attorney at a strip club.

Date Night stars Steve Carell and Tina Fey as Phil and Claire Foster, a boring, married couple who is trying to spice up their marriage since the news of their friends divorce.

Between their jobs, two young children, and all the other daily responsibilities that go into a day-to-day life, the two of them can barely muster up enough

Left: Tina Fey and Steve Carrel star as a couple who is trying to spice up their marriage. Right: Mark Wahlberg aids the Fosters and refuses to put a shirt on. (Photo Courtesy)

energy to go out by themselves once a week for dinner at a nearby steakhouse.

So instead of going to their

usual family-friendly restaurant for their usual “date night,” they try to get a table at hip new restaurant, Claw.

But when they can’t get a table, they take the reservation of a noshow couple, the Tripplehorns.

As they are enjoying expensive

$385

15

Number of MSU students who have been spending their Saturdays working for the United Way Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program. The program helped return more than $2 million to the community.

* Free Wi-Fi

wine and risotto, their evening is interrupted by two angry men, accusing them of blackmailing their boss.

From then on the movie took off and didn’t stop until the ending credits. It was non-stop action, Carell and Fey trying to find the real Tripplehorns while avoiding the two corrupted cops.

They become involved in a wild night of blackmail, police chases and prostitution.

Through the crazy plot turns and one of the most surprisingly creative car chases ever, is a moral lesson that most couples can identify with.

Carell and Fey were hilarious, however not very believable as a married couple. The two

comedians definitely lived up to their usual comedic acts, but just didn’t sell that act. Other than that, the two did a phenomenal job and kept the audience laughing throughout the film.

Director Shawn Levy is a comedic director of films such as Night at the Museum, Cheaper by the Dozen, and Just Married.

Levy seems to know when he has two actors that know how to do funny, he lets them do their thing, which allows for some strong laughs in the film.

And there’s still plenty of room for others in the cast to get laughs as well.

A half naked Mark Wahlberg plays a small role in the film as an ex-military hunk that helps the couple when they knock on his door in the middle of their adventure.

He gets a laugh every time he shows up to open his door lacking a shirt.

Other cameos include Will.I.Am as himself, Common as one of the dirty cops, as well as Mila Kunis and James Franco as the real Tripplehorns.

Date Night is a comedy, romance and action film all rolled into one.

It has plenty of laughs, a few slow moments, but what isn’t too distracting, and overall has a good lesson in the end.

It is definitely something to see on your next date night.

April 14, 2010

feature

The Wichitan n 7

t a e r g All in a day’s work Clockwise from left: Rozike Janzen Van Rensburg helps out the Association of Retarded Citizens by helping organize and clean their building.

To help support Faith Mission, Linh Bo car hopped at Sonic.

Setting up for the spring football game, George Atang sets up the sound system.

Waiting for their next assignment, students lend a hand at preparing for the Spring football game.

Taking a break from carhopping for Faith Mission, Tin Phan and Nick LaMere enjoy the perks of volunteering at Sonic.

(Photos by Julia Raymond)

DANCE CREWS AND CHARIOTS

(Left) Amanda Mitchell and Masa Kamada wheel their way to the finish line in the Greek Week Chariot Race of 2010. (Right) MSU sororities and fraternities joined together to choreograph and perform an original step dance.

(Photos by: Julia Raymond)

Greek Week activities included a step show and ancient Olympian-style athleticism

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The Wichitan

sports

April 14, 2010

THE WIND-UP

Brittney Tanner, who was named the Lone Star Conference Pitcher of the Week, led the Lady Mustangs to two victories over East Central Oklahoma State University on April 3. MSU swept the Ada team in two games, winning the first 2-1 and the second 6-5. (Photo by Patrick Johnston)

Lady Mustangs dust off Oklahoma Chad Steele

For The Wichitan The Mustangs kept up their winning ways as they beat a tough Cameron team twice Saturday in Lawton.

Senior pitching star Katie Petersen took the circle in the first game to claim her 18th-straight victory in the 2-3 win. Petersen chalked up six strikeouts, walked two and allowed five hits.

Petersen had not allowed a home run in her last 123 innings until Cameron’s Micah Lierly and Drew Wright both blasted solo homers off her. The two home runs, one in the third and one in the fifth, were Cameron’s only runs of the game.

Despite the two rare home runs, Petersen continues to come closer to breaking many Lone Star Conference records.

Center-fielder Elena Bennett got the first inning started as she reached on a bunt-single and stole second. Natalie Rodriguez’s RBI single to left field scored Bennett and put the Mustangs in the lead, 1-0.

Cameron would tie the game up in

the third with Lierly’s home run.

Midwestern fought back to take the lead again in the fourth. Rodriguez continued her performance with a lead-off double to center field. Lauren Craig’s RBI single to right field scored Rodriguez.

Brittney Tanner’s RBI double to left would provide all the offense the Mustangs needed for victory. Cameron tried to mount a comeback in the fifth with Wright’s Homer, but fell short.

Midwestern’s Rodriguez had her 12th multi-hit game of the season and led the Mustangs’ offense going 2 for 3 with an RBI and a run scored.

Tanner took the pitching circle for the second game and had an all-around amazing game in another 3-2 victory.

Tanner struck out 12 batters, only allowed 4 hits and one earned run in the complete game. Tanner has won 11 of her last 12 starts and has had 10 plus strikeouts in each of her last three contests.

Cameron took the lead 2-0 in the third inning. Aggies’ senior starter Ashton McBride pitched tough and allowed the Mustangs only one hit in the first

five innings.

The Mustangs would get the bats started in the sixth. The Mustangs were able to string together three hits with one out to take the lead.

Craig doubled to right field, allowing Rodriguez to score after reaching base on a single. Tanner then sent one over the fence for her first ever home run to drive in 2 RBI’s and take the 3-2 lead.

The No. 5 Mustangs improved their record to 40-6 and 14-2 in LSC play.

On Wednesday they beat Oklahoma Panhandle State twice at a windy Mustangs Park.

In the first game, Junior Brittney Tanner recorded her fourth shutout of the season with a dominant performance to lead the Lady Mustangs to a 5-0 victory.

Tanner improved her season record to 13-2 as she struck out 10 batters, only giving up one hit. She had a no-hitter going into the seventh inning. The junior from Burkburnett lowered ERA to a career-best 1.79 and didn’t allow the opposition to even reach second base.

The Mustangs got the bats started in the third inning. Junior third baseman

McKenzie Sickler sent a solo bomb over center field. Lauren Craig then followed with a single up the middle to score Nicki Duff, widening the lead to 2-0. Craig’s RBI increased her hit streak to 14 games.

Sickler again stepped up for the team in the fourth inning with a sacrifice fly to score Alyson Reynolds, who singled earlier in the inning, to gain a 3-0 advantage.

Duff continued her strong play in the fifth with a single and a stolen base.

Duff scored off of Natalie Rodriguez’s double. Tanner helped secure her victory with a one out RBI single that scored Rodriguez from third.

Reynolds, Craig, and Sickler accounted for half of the Mustangs 12 hits.

The second game proved to be just as difficult for Oklahoma Panhandle State.

Junior Pitcher Kristina Gutierrez took the circle for a heavily defensive 1-0 victory for the Mustangs. Gutierrez blanked Panhandle State for the second shutout of the day and her third shutout of the season.

Gutierrez struck out 10, walked one,

strew out four hits while not allowing a runner to pass first base as she improved her record to 7-2 for the season.

Center-fielder Elena Bennett was the only player to cross the plate. Her unearned run in the first was enough for the win as the Mustangs bats were uncharacteristically quiet.

Bennett reached base on an error by the first baseman. Rodriguez moved Bennett into scoring position off a single.

A crafty double steal moved the runners to second and third, which allowed Bennett to score off of Craig’s groundout up the middle.

The Mustangs would have runners in scoring position in the next couple of innings, but couldn’t get the key hits to drive them home.

OPSU’s Joni Stegman limited the Mustangs to one run and four hits and struck out two. Stegman, who had an alarming high 8.19 ERA coming into the game, was problematical for the Mustangs.

Duff, Bennett and Rodriguez provided all the hits for the Mustangs as the rest of the lineup went 0-15.

March 24, 2010

sports

The Wichitan n 9

Eskridge, Maroon topple Gold team

Brandon Kelsey proved he is much more than a slash-type athletic player in Saturday’s annual Maroon vs. Gold Spring Game at Memorial Stadium.

Kelsey, a junior-to-be from Arlington, fit the mold perfected by former Pittsburgh Steeler Kordell Stewart, who used his athleticism far beyond the reaches of the quarterback position to extend a stellar career as a utility player.

Kelsey accounted for two touchdowns while spending time at the running back and wide receiver positions to find a way to contribute to MSU postseason run last fall.

But Saturday he proved his worth at the quarterback position as he completed 10-of-11 passes for 118 yards which included a pair of scoring strikes to Ethan Rosales (35 yards) and Thomas Carper (20 yards) to help the Gold squad erupt for a 28-0 lead with just two minutes remaining to halftime.

“Brandon managed the game pretty well and didn’t take any sacks,” MSU coach Bill Maskill said. “He made some good decisions in the first half.”

That’s when 2009 Harlon Hill Finalist Zach Eskridge and the Maroon squad began to force its will on the way to a thrilling 31-28 comeback victory.

After senior Marcus Mathis finished a seven-play, 40-yard drive with a 4-yard touchdown run to push the Gold lead to four scores, the Maroon team went to work behind Eskridge.

The Rockwall product quickly marched the team down the field by connecting on each of his four passes. He hit senior wideout Sheldon Galloway for a 25-yard strike down the left sidelines before zapping a 19-yard out route to Tyron Morrison to move into Gold territory. Eskridge then hooked up with Matt Tanner on a 9-yard strike followed by another offering to Galloway for a 7-yard gain to move inside the 10 before Lester Bush carried the ball in from the 5 to put Maroon on the board.

Gold had controlled the opening half, beginning with P. J. Grundy’s 99-yard interception return for a touchdown after Galloway slipped on an outright to give Gold a 7-0 lead less than five minutes into the game.

Kelsey followed with scoring connections to Rosales and Carper before senior Marcus Mathis blasted in from 4 yards out to give Gold a 28-0 lead.

It was all Maroon after that.

Matt Tanner, a younger brother of former All-American Andy Tanner, got behind the Gold defense on a 49-yard strike from Eskridge to cut the Gold advantage in half at 28-14.

After a three-and-out by Gold, redshirt freshman Chauncey Harris pulled Maroon within 28-21 by capping an eight-play, 58yard drive with a 15-yard rushing TD to knot the game at 28-28.

Senior kicker Jose Martinez pulled Maroon even closer on the next possession as he connected on a 40-yard field goal against the wind to make the score 28-24.

Tanner was at it again later in the fourth quarter. This time as a passer.

The sophomore wideout took a reverse pitch from running back Peter Smith and gunned a 39-yard completion Jared Davis down to the Gold 6-yard line.

Three plays later Eskridge found Tanner for a 3-yard TD connection to give Maroon its first lead of the game at 31-28 with 11:18 to play.

“It was a competitive scrimmage, and for a time there I thought it would go to overtime,” Maskill said. “The kids played hard and we got a lot accomplished.”

Bush, a junior from Houston, led the Maroon rushing attack with 61 yards on 14 carries, while redshirt-freshman Keidrick Jackson led Gold with 82 yards on 10 carries.

Eskridge finished the game by going 19-of-29 for 238 yards with a pair of TDs and an interception for Maroon, while Kelsey connected on 10-of-16 passes for 118 yards and two touchdowns for Gold.

Morrison caught five passes for 89 yards to lead the Maroon receiving corps, while Tanner made five receptions for 68 yards and two touchdowns to lead Maroon, while junior David Little made four catches for 33 yards for Gold.

Senior safety Ryan Craven led all tacklers with 13 for Gold, while redshirt freshman Oswald Njoku made six tackles for Maroon.

MSUMustangs.com For the Wichitan

Alexi Martinez won the race against Baylor in Waco. He finsihed first in the men’s A race Sunday, an hour-long ordeal (Photo by Loren Eggenschwiler)

Mustangs cycling team races ahead Loren Eggenschwiler For the Wichitan

MSU hit the road again last weekend against Baylor in Waco.

The team started the weekend Saturday morning with a road race on a nice, hilly course.

The men’s A race began first with 75 miles, where Josh Carter was able to take the win after rolling of the front with an opponent from UT. Danny Robertson was also able to roll of the front, to take 3rd place.

The women’s A category raced 60 miles with the men’s B category shortly after the A’s start.

Jen Purcell took the win followed

by Marilyn Cullinane and Loren Eggenschwiler, respectively.

Sean Brown took 3rd for the Men’s B with Matt Sauls taking 5th. For the Men’s C Stanton was able to take a place in the top 10 in his first collegiate race.

After a nice little lunch break in Lorena, Tex., It was back to the race site for the time trials.

It was another hilly course and the winds had picked up a bit.

In the men’s A race, Todd

Elenz took 1st with 21:21.8, Jason Short took 2nd, and Carter with 4th.

For the women’s A, Purcell was able to pass a couple opponents for the win, with Tiffany Stewart and Eggenschwiler in pursue. For the Men’s B Roy Bracey took 2nd.

Sunday morning was the crit.

The Men’s B race was up first with a few of the women joining in for a nice warm-up. Bracey was able to take 2nd again. In the Women’s race, which had a few Men’s B join to add some action, Stewart was able to lap the field

and take the win. Claire Routledge and Purcell were also able to jump off the front to take 2nd and 3rd, respectively. The Men’s A race was an hour long and Alexi Martinez was able to take the win with Carter taking 3rd.

MSU will be hosting the races this weekend April 17 & 18. The Road race is at 7:20 a.m. Saturday and the Street Sprints, on campus, at 4:30 p.m.

Sunday will be the crit also on campus starting at 8am.

MSU tennis demolishes

competition at home Chad Steele For the Wichitan

The men’s tennis team destroyed the competition and shut out Southeastern Oklahoma 9-0 last Thursday afternoon at the MSU Tennis Center.

The Mustangs, after being defeated by Cameron last Monday, have won sever of their last eight matches to improve their record to 15-7 on the season.

The Mustangs were victorious in all six singles matches. Vjekoslav Stipanic won his 8th-straight match with a 6-4, 6-2 victory over Jose Argumedo at No. 1.

Bo Zaputovic beat Oriol Cortes 6-1, 6-7 at No. 2, junior Daniel McMullan beat Travis Truax 6-6, 6-2 at No. 3, freshmen Luke Joyce defeated Kevin Longo 6-2, 6-2 at No. 4, junior Chad Meeks bested Dave Henkel 6-0, 6-4 at No. 5 and sophomore Octavian Dinuta dominated Jonathan Rodriguez 6-0, 6-0 at No. 6.

The doubles matches were just as lopsided and the Mustangs continued to take care of business.

Doubles team Stipanic and Zaputovic bounced Argumedo and Truax 8-4at No. 3.

Joyce and Meeks kept the streak going with an 8-3 at No. 2, and McMullan and Dinuta destroyed the competition with an 8-0 victory at No. 3.

The Mustangs finished the regular season at the University of Texas-Tyler.

The Lady Mustangs Tennis Team rolled over Southeastern Oklahoma 8-1 Thursday at the MSU Tennis Center.

The dominant performance improves the Mustangs record to 14-7 for the regular season.

Monika Graff, the freshman phenom from Germany, continued to cement her legacy with her 17th-straight straightset victory, finishing 6-2, 6-0 over Amber Thompson at No. 3. She also improved her overall record to 18-1.

Vjekoslav Stipanic (Photo: Brittany Norman) In other singles, Alex Odell-Michels bested Cassandra Kleber 6-2, 6-4 at No. calves at No. 1 and increased the duo’s record 1. Kaja Banas didn’t allow Camilla Goncalves to score in the 6-0, 6-0 victory at No. to 18-0. Also, Odell-Michels and Holcomb 2; junior Leah Roberts defeated Mayra Leal beat Leal and Molina 8-3 at No. 2 doubles.

The Lady Mustangs are now busy prepar6-1, 6-3 at No. 4; sophomore Lindsey Holing to end the regular season next week at comb beat Sofia Molina 6-2, 6-4 at No. 5, the University of Texas-Tyler. and sophomore Holly Gunderson thumped Sara Schmidt 6-2, 6-2 at No. 6.

On the doubles side the team of Roberts and Graff won 8-2 over Thompson and Gon-

Klutts finishes under one, almost catching Cameron Chad Steele For the Wichitan The men’s golf team took fifth place against a strong field and strong winds at the UCO/ Kickingbird Classic in Edmond, Okla. last Tuesday.

The 19th ranked Mustangs had a solid performance at the Par-70, 6,722-yard Kickingbird Golf Course.

Junior Travis Klutts played exceptionally well and finished fourth on the individual leader board. Klutts had performances of 67, 70 and 72 to finish the tournament at -1. Klutts was one

of only four golfers, out of 104 total golfers, to finish the tournament under par.

Klutts finished behind tournament winner Jason Timmis of Cameron, who carded rounds of 69, 66 and 70 to finish -5. In second was Abilene Christian’s Cyril Bouniol who finished -3, and in third was Central Oklahoma’s Andrew Green who finished at -2.

Other Mustang standouts were sophomore Chad Bryant who carded a 69, 74, and 73 to finish +6, Freshmen Raine Copeland who carded a consistent 75 each day to finish +15, and senior Mitch Molen who carded a

77, 69, and 82 to finish +18.

The Mustangs closed the tournament with a three-round team total of 871 (+31) to finish 5th on the team leader board.

Abilene Christian won the tournament with a combined team score of 847 (+7) and were followed by Cameron with a score of 853 (+13) and Central Oklahoma which posted an 855 (+15) at their home course.

Midwestern continues to prepare for the Lone Star Conference Championships on April 18-20 at the WinStar Golf course in Thackerville, Okla.