NEVADA SAGEBRUSH SERVING THE UNIVERSITY OF NEVADA, RENO SINCE 1893
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TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2017
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NEWS in REVIEW By Madeline Purdue
INTERNATIONAL WORLD’S OLDEST PERSON DEAD AT 117 The world’s oldest living person died on Saturday, April 15, at the age of 117. Emma Morano was the last person known to be born on Nov. 29, 1899. She lived in Italy and held the Guinness World Record for the oldest living person and oldest living woman. Morano told the New York Times that she credits her long life to ending her abusive marriage in 1938 and her diet of raw eggs and cookies. She loved cookies so much that she would hide them under her pillow so that other people would not eat them. She became the world’s oldest person in 2016 after American Susannah Mushatt Jones passed away at 116 years old. Morano was five years younger than the oldest person ever, 122-year-old Jeanne Calment, when she died. Guinness said they will announce the new oldest living person after reviewing evidence, as reported by CNN. They said the oldest living man is Israel Kristal, an 113-year-old Holocaust survivor.
VOLUME 123, ISSUE 29
Student starts homemade bath bomb business By Emily Fisher Drop, splash, fizz, ahhhhh. No, this isn’t the sound of your favorite breakfast cereal, this is the sound of a bath bomb. A delectable bath experience conviniently packaged in a colorful ball of joy and relaxing smells. Bath bombs are taking the world by storm, and one student at the University of Reno, is bringing the craze to Reno by starting his own bath bomb business. Brandon Rusk is a political science major at UNR who also minors in international affairs, Latin American studies and entrepreneurship. He is the owner of the new business called Virginia St. and Company, which specializes in homemade bath products.
Rusk is a busy student with his fulltime school schedule, part-time job and his new company. He has help from his business partner and friend Jordan Van Brunt, who is a business management major and entrepreneurship minor. The two met in the summer of 2016 through mutual friends and became close due to their mutual passion for business. After taking a few entrepreneurship classes together, the two students ended up enrolling in a special Wintermester Entrepreneurship course, led by two local business owners and instructors at UNR, Matt Westfield and Rod Hosilyk. This two-week long entrepreneur crashcourse gives groups of students the opportunity to brainstorm, plan and bring to life real businesses.
What started as an undeveloped idea in Rusk’s head became Virginia St. and Co., home of the biggest little bath bomb, with the help of fellow entrepreneurship students and expert guidance from Westfield and Hosilyk. “If I hadn’t brought my idea up in the winter class, I don’t think it would have taken off the way it did,” Rusk said. “The entrepreneurship program has helped me more than any other course on campus.” After working through competitive analysis, finance and other business strategies, Rusk did extensive amounts of research and experimenting to develop the perfect recipe for the bath bombs. “Before I would have to worry and stress myself out if they were going to
GOP REPS GRILLED AT RENO TOWN HALL
NATIONAL FIRST WOMAN RUNNER OF BOSTON MARATHON RETURNS TO RACE Katherine Switzer, the first woman to run the Boston Marathon, returned to the race on Monday, April 17, for the first time since she made her historical run 50 years ago. She wore the same number that many of the other racers tried to pull off of her. When Switzer ran the Boston Marathon the first time, she was a 20-year-old college student at Syracuse University. Now at 70-years-old, she has run 39 marathons. This is her first race since 2011. After running the Boston Marathon in 1967, Switzer became a national icon and advocate for women’s equality in sports. Switzer told CNN that she did not enter the marathon intending to make a change. Roberta Bingay Gibb had competed in the Boston Marathon the year before, but ran it unregistered. “Everything changed,” she said. “I said, ‘This is going to change my life, maybe going to change women’s sports and change the world.’”
LOCAL GOOGLE BUYS LAND NEAR TESLA FACTORY The Wall Street Journal broke news on Monday, April 17, that Google bought a 1,210-acre piece of land the week before near the Tesla factory outside of Reno. The company said they plan to build a new data center. The land could also be a space for the company to test Waymo self-driving cars. Google is currently backing a bill in the Nevada Legislature that would make self-driving test restrictions less strict than those in California. Google does not have plans to break ground on construction of the new data center right away, but TechCrunch thinks it is unlikely the company will wait very long before they start building. The purchase of land comes after Tesla bought land at the Tahoe Reno Industrial Center. The company is building a $5 billion factory to produce an estimated 500,000 battery packs for their electric cars and will employ 6,500 people once operational. More companies have bought land at the industrial center since Tesla’s purchase. Madeline Purdue can be reached at mpurdue@sagebrush.unr.edu and on Twitter @madelinepurdue.
DRAG SHOW
Jacob Solis/Nevada Sagebrush
A town hall attendee holds up a “disagree” sign during a joint town hall from Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nevada, and Rep. Mark Amodei, R-Nevada, on Monday, April 17, inside the Reno-Sparks Convention Center. The left-leaning crowd spent nearly two-and-ahalf hours grilling the state’s only two congressional Republicans.
By Jacob Solis For the second time this year, the GOP duo of Sen. Dean Heller and Rep. Mark Amodei faced a number of difficult questions at a public town hall. Held inside a ballroom at the Reno-Sparks Convention Center, the event hit capacity with several hundred squeezed inside for a near twoand-a-half hour question marathon. Bedecked in the pink knit “pussy
hats” that sprung out of January’s Women’s March, many of the liberal attendees wore Planned Parenthood stickers on their shirts and booed loudly at mentions of either Heller’s or Amodei’s conservative bonafides. Back in February, the pair had a Carson City business lunch turn town hall when angry constituents turned out to grill them — and perhaps boo them too — on what was then only rumors about a Republican plan to
repeal and replace Obamacare. That meeting ended with Heller, who had up until then avoided holding any town halls that weren’t lottery-based telephone town halls, saying that he would only hold an official one if there would be no booing. “I’ll do a town hall meeting if you
See TOWN HALL page A2
WHEN THE CAMPUS WI-FI IS DOWN...
Photo courtesy of Taylor Pardick
A sign on Virginia St. near campus construction sites was hacked on Wednesday, April 12. The hacker has not been caught despite widespread attention the sign has caused.
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turn out right,” Rusk said. “But with the recipe I’ve started using now they’re perfect and I can sell them within the hour.” As Wintermester came to a close and Spring semester began, Brandon officially launched Virginia St. and Co, listing a few different bath bombs online on Etsy. The company’s introduction on their website reads, “Here at Virginia St. & Company, we strive to capture the essence of our breathtaking Sierra Nevada landscape. We use crisp mountain air, locally sourced ingredients, and the best combination of fragrances to bring our home into yours.” Rusk also said that his bath bombs are
See BATH BOMB page A2
Legislature scraps death penalty bill By Meaghan Mackey Nevada lawmakers set out to abolish the death penalty in the state of Nevada because of concerns over costs and moral issues. AB237 hoped it would not only abolish the death penalty but commute the death sentences of 82 inmates on the state’s death row to life without parole. Although the bill was heard once at an Assembly Judiciary meeting on March 29, the bill was scuttled shortly after on April 14, the deadline for bills to make it out of their original committee. State Senate Judiciary Chairman Tick Segerblom, D-Las Vegas, and Assemblyman James Ohrenschall, D-Las Vegas, sponsored the bill. The bill would have made life without parole the strongest punishment in place for heinous crimes. Since the death penalty was reinstated and ruled constitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1976, Nevada has executed 12 people. Eleven of the 12 death row inmates chose capital punishment over life in prison. In total, 160 Nevadans have been sentenced to death in the last 40 years for various crimes including first-degree murder, armed robbery, sexual assault in the first-degree, murder of law enforcement, and in most instances a combination of heinous crimes. In the Assembly Judiciary Committee meeting on March 29, many victims’ families spoke in support and against the bill. Washoe County District Attorney, Chris Hicks, spoke in opposition to the bill: “The death penalty is not misused by prosecutors in the state of the Nevada. Throughout all our counties, the decision to seek the death penalty is made sparingly and judiciously. It is reserved for the very worst of the worst,” Hicks said. “In Washoe County, in the last 20 years, my office has prosecuted over 300 murders. In that exact same timeframe, we have sought the death penalty only 5 times.” Hicks added the accounts of Holly Quick and Brianna Denison, the last two cases which drew a death penalty conviction. Denison’s killer, James Biela, sexually assaulted two young females near the University of Nevada, Reno, campus prior to his attack on Denison. The attack in question happened on Jan. 20, 2008, at a sleepover Denison was having at a friend’s house. Denison was sexually assaulted, choked to death with her own underwear, and abandoned in a field with a discarded Christmas tree pulled over her body. Denison’s aunt was at the hearing on March 29, while Hicks shared statements from Denison’s family opposing AB237. Denison’s killer, James Biela, currently sits on death row in Nevada along with 81 other inmates. In addition to the death sentence for murdering Denison, Biela also received four consecutive life prison terms for the sexual assaults of the two women on the University of Nevada, Reno, campus. Cynthia Portaro, a Las Vegas resident, spoke in support of abolishing capital punishment. “Is killing someone going to bring my
See DEATH PENALTY page A2
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Student voice of the University of Nevada, Reno, since 1893.
Volume 123 • Issue 29 Editor-in-Chief • Jacob Solis jsolis@sagebrush.unr.edu
News Editor • Rachel Spacek rspacek@sagebrush.unr.edu
Asst. News Editor • Madeline Purdue mpurdue@sagebrush.unr.edu
Sports Editor • Brandon Cruz bcruz@sagebrush.unr.edu
Asst. Sports Editor • Javier Hernandez bcruz@sagebrush.unr.edu
Opinion Editor • Ryan Suppe jsolis@sagebrush.unr.edu
A&E Editor • Joey Thyne jsolis@sagebrush.unr.edu
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Photo Editor • Andrea Wilkinson awilkinson@sagebrush.unr.edu
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Copy Editor • Clay Temme jsolis@sagebrush.unr.edu
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Web Manager • Willis Allstead wallstead@asun.unr.edu
Illustrator • Zak Brady jsolis@sagebrush.unr.edu
Social Media Manager • Alana Ridge aridge@sagebrush.unr.edu
Staff Writer • Emily Fisher efisher@sagebrush.unr.edu
Distribution • Michele Cardnuto jsolis@sagebrush.unr.edu
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Media Adviser • Blythe Steelman
TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2017
SENATE RECAP
Bath Bomb
APRIL 12 By Madeline Purdue
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made with organic and vegan ingredients, and they even use Tahoe water in the recipe. Rusk started brainstorming specialty seasonal items that would attract customers in order to find a way to stand out among other bath products on the site. “With Easter right around the corner, I was trying to think of the best thing and I thought, ‘Why not Easter eggs?’” Rusk said. He did just that and listed the Easter egg bath bombs at three for $6. Over spring break his sales skyrocketed. Rusk described this with surprise, saying he had over 13 orders a day for multiple bath bombs. “I was so excited. I didn’t expect that, and next thing you know my listing hit No. 5 on Etsy,” Rusk said. Rusk said his biggest challenge is making the bath bombs. Right now, he is the only one that makes them, though he is trying to train some of his friends to help. Rusk said the accuracy and specificity of the process makes it difficult to replicate and teach. “I think it takes a special touch,” Rusk said. Rusk said he’s trying to get better at teaching
Death Penalty Continued from page A1
family back, bring my son back; no. It’s not, nothing is going to bring my son back,” Portaro said. “But maybe this kid can make a difference in the world, wherever he goes because I chose to say no to the death penalty.” Portaro’s son was murdered in 2011 but instead of seeking the death penalty during the trial period, she chose to spare her son’s killer’s life. Senator Segerblom, a sponsor of the bill, says the current system is ineffective and too expensive. “We had to spend $800,000 to build
The 85th session of the senate of the Associated Students of the University of Nevada kicked off on Wednesday, April 12, with President Noah Teixeira and Vice President Sebastian Atienza taking the oaths of office in the Joe Crowley Student Union Ballrooms in front of the new senate. The Speaker, Speaker Pro Tempore and Parliamentarian were then nominated and elected.
APPOINTMENTS Emily Fisher/Nevada Sagebrush
Brandon Rusk and Jordan Van Brunt hold homemade bath bombs that are shaped like Easter eggs. Rusk started a bath bomb business with the help of an entreprenuership class.
people how to make them, especially as his sales grow. In fact, Rusk says he’s made and sold around 500 bath bombs in just the past three months. The future is bright for Virginia Street and Co. as they continue to grow, and Rusk plans to eventually develop their own signature line of bath bombs once they gain more popular-
ity. He is also working to increase campus awareness of his company and products. He eventually hopes to sell his products in the Wolf Shop.
a death chamber but we can’t buy the drugs to even use the death chamber,” Segerblom said in reference to the shortage of lethal injection drugs in Nevada. “If killing is something which our society condemns, how then can we as a society turn around and kill people?” Segerblom asked the committee. Pharmaceutical companies in Nevada have been limiting access to lethal injection drugs. With the completion of the $860,000 project to build a new execution chamber approved by Nevada lawmakers in 2015, Nevada’s death row inmates being held at Ely State Prison won’t be put to death anytime soon. The new death
chamber that was built last year at Ely State Prison hasn’t been used, and the last person put to death in Nevada was in 2006. Governor Brian Sandoval has not said whether he would sign or veto the death penalty repeal but during his campaign back in 2010, he supported the death penalty for the worst crimes. No executions are scheduled in Nevada at this time, according to the Death Penalty Information Center.
Emily Fisher canw be reached at efisher@sagebrush.unr.edu and on Twitter @NevadaSagebrush.
Meaghan Mackey can be reached at rspacek@sagebrush.unr.edu and on Twitter @NevadaSagebrush.
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DISCLAIMER The Nevada Sagebrush is a newspaper operated by and for the students of the University of Nevada, Reno. The contents of this newspaper do not necessarily reflect those opinions of the university or its students. It is published by the students of the University of Nevada, Reno, and printed by the Sierra Nevada Media Group.
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Town Hall Continued from page A1
LEGISLATION Sen. Nicole Flangas from the College of Liberal Arts denied adopting the rules of the senate because she did not believe the he/him/himself/ she/her/herself pronouns represented everyone in the university the senate represents. She created a motion to add them/ they/themselves pronouns to the rules of the senate in order to be more inclusive, which was seconded by Sen. Becker and passed unanimously. The rules were then adopted.
Meaghan Mackey, Paolo Zialcita
Letters can be submitted via email at jsolis@sagebrush.unr.edu
Hannah Jackson, who was elected the College of Education senator for the second year in a row, was nominated for Speaker of the senate by Sen. Narinder Mall from the College of Engineering. Sen. Zach Mah from the College of Business nominated Sen. Anthony Martinez from the College of Liberal Arts for Speaker, but he did not accept the nomination. However, Sen. Martinez was nominated again for Speaker Pro Tempore by Sen. Cammie Lee from the Interdisciplinary Program. This time he did accept. Sen. Mall nominated himself for the position as well. After giving their presentations and the senate discussed it, Sen. Martinez was elected Speaker Pro Tempore. Sen. Ryan Becker from the College of Health Sciences nominated Sen. Connor Billman from the College of Agriculture, Biotechnology and Natural Resources for Parliamentarian. He ran uncontested and was elected.
PRONOUNS ADDED TO SENATE RULES
CONTRIBUTING STAFFERS
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
SPEAKER, SENATE OFFICERS ELECTED
Photo via CA Corrections
A lethal injection room sits empty after being built at the San Quentin State Prison in 2010. AB 237 would have eliminated the death penalty in Nevada, however it died on Friday, April 14, in the Nevada legislature.
Lawmakers target rape kit backlog By Jacob Solis Nevada could be making a dent in its extensive backlog of untested rape kits — a backlog that’s grown to roughly 8,000 over the last three decades. That’s if the legislature passes a bill heard last Wednesday in the assembly judiciary committee that would require police to send rape kits to be tested in a lab within 30 days of receiving that kit. Rape kits, also known as sexual assault forensic evidence or SAFE kits, are a collection of physical evidence gathered by police and a nurse or doctor following a reported sexual assault. That evidence is then sent off to a forensic lab that tests those materials for DNA evidence. These testings can be expensive, around $1,500 each, and have proven a thorny issue for police jurisdictions around the country. Sponsored by Assemblywoman Teresa Benitez-Thompson, D-Reno, and Senate Ma-
jority Leader Aaron Ford, D-Las Vegas, the bill would seek to cut into the thousands of rape kits — about 6,500 in southern Nevada and 1,500 in northern Nevada — that remain untested. Even since the issue came to the fore in late 2014 when a nationwide backlog of 400,000 rape kits was revealed, Nevada has only cut its number of untested kits by about 900. The bill also represents a bipartisan consensus between the Republican Attorney General’s Office, represented in the meeting by Wes Duncan, Nevada’s first assistant attorney general and legislative Democrats. Both groups have been working since 2015 to address the issue. Ford said that it is an “injustice” that the state has let the backlog grow so large in the first place. “This examination can be a painful process for survivors of sexual assault,” Ford said. “Once that evidence is collected, it is im-
of Heller’s remarks were followed by some form of audible protest from at least some parts of the crowd. It wasn’t all jeers and boos though. The crowd applauded statements in favor of increased access to health care, women’s health issues, Planned Parenthood and the environment more generally. There were also at least a few friendly faces, and a late questioner pledged to support the pair in next year’s election. While both Republicans will be up for reelection in 2018, it’s Heller that will likely sit in the hot seat. Amodei’s district, while it does contain Reno, is largely rural and has never gone for a Democrat in its history. Heller, on the other hand, will have to contend for the votes of the broader Nevada electorate. That complicates things on two dimensions: first, it means Heller simply has to please more people than Amodei does, and while he will be advantaged by his incumbency, he’s not particularly popular. A January poll from the Mellman group had only 29 percent of respondents viewing Heller positively while 40 percent viewed him negatively. Thirty-one percent said they didn’t know or weren’t sure. Second, Heller has to deal with the historical disadvantage that comes with midterms that follow a new president. In every midterm but two (which happened during the Civil War and in 2002, following the September 11 attacks), the president’s party has lost seats to the out-party. A Heller loss would still require a strong Democratic challenger, something that has yet to appear. In any case, it will be months before the senator’s 2018 prospects become clear.
if you promise one thing is that you won’t applaud. No applauding alright? And I tell you what, no booing either,” Heller said. “Just no applauding, no booing and we’ll have a one-on-one dialogue. Is that fair?” But even before then, Heller had his phones swamped by progressive activists energized by the non-traditional, often extreme cabinet picks made by Trump in early February. While Heller and Amodei had said they wanted to focus on health care and immigration, President Donald J. Trump ended up dominating the early conversation. They were pressed multiple times with questions on the controversial confirmation of EPA chief Scott Pruitt, who sued the EPA multiple times during his tenure as Oklahoma attorney general, and the recently confirmed Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch. Heller drew more boos when he was asked by a former California college professor whether or not the federal government should have a role in environmental policy. “As a Republican, I would push that down to the states as much I possibly could,” Heller said. “I have more confidence in Gov. Sandoval than I do with anybody in Washington D.C. That doesn’t mean we don’t have a responsibility back in Washington, D.C., I just want the majority of the responsibility down at the state level.” Heller’s equivocal remarks, like those on the environment, often seemed to stir the crowd up more than quiet them down. A chant of “yes or no” was Jacob Solis can be reached at jsolis@sagebrush.unr.edu quick to spread at one point, and on the whole, many and on Twitter @NevadaSagebrush.
perative that it is processed in a timely and expeditious manner. And so far, our state, the state of Nevada, has been derelict in its duty to support survivors of sexual assault.” Originally, the bill contained language that would require forensic labs to test materials sent to them by police within 180 days. However, that language will likely be removed at the behest of the state’s law enforcement agencies, who say that it would be too costly (to the tune of about $3 million over the next four years) and that it would hurt their ability to prioritize kits within the backlog, some of which date back to the 1980s. Benitez-Thompson said that the amendment is necessary, and while it would no longer bind forensic labs to a hard provide a soft guideline to see whether or not these labs were testing kits in a timely matter. The introduction of AB 97 comes after rape
See RAPE KITS page A3
The senate must fill each of their six committees with a committee chair and five to nine other senators. Each senator must sit on at least two committees. Sen. Brennan Sullivan from the College of Agriculture, Biotechnology and Natural Resources was nominated for the Academics Committee Chair. However, after Sen. Sullivan’s speech, the senate did not feel he knew enough about the committee to take on the position, and he was not elected. Sen. Haydon Cook from the College of Health Sciences was nominated for the Public Affairs Committee Chair. The senate decided not to elect him as well. Both senators can be re-nominated for the positions at the next meeting, but for now, those committees remain open. Sen. Justin Kuykendall from the College of Business was elected the Budget and Finance Committee Chair, Sen. Flangas was elected the Civic Engagement Committee Chair, Sen. Austin Thummel from the College of Business was elected Government Operations Committee Chair and Sen. Derek Bussman from the College of Liberal Arts was elected University Affairs Committee Chair. Madeline Purdue can be reached at mpurdue@sagebrush.unr.edu and on Twitter @madelinepurdue.
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Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nevada, laughs during a town hall on Monday, April 17 inside the Reno-Sparks Convention Center. Heller’s office has been inundated with calls from progressive activists since the start of the year.
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TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2017
Students share stories at portrait event Dear World, an international portrait project, was at the University of Nevada, Reno, on Wednesday, April 12, and Thursday, April 13, as part of the Associated Students of the University of Nevada’s Unity Week. The portrait project aims to tell people’s stories in a unique way— by writing on their skin. Students were able to attend open photo shoots on Wednesday and Thursday to get their picture taken, then on Thursday night there was a photo reveal and storytelling opportunity in the Joe Crowley Student Union ballrooms. “[Dear World] is important for diversity inclusion because everyone has their own story and their own identity, and for all of us to understand your identities is the first step in becoming a more inclusive campus,” said ASUN President Noah Teixeira. Robert X. Fogarty, the founder of Dear World, started this project in 2009 after New Orleans wrote love notes to the city, according to the Dear World website. “We ask people to share a story that only they can tell,”
Fogarty said on the website. “We’re working towards a beautiful, wonderful world where more people send a message to family, friends and strangers in this way. Where people get that we’re connected and that you can build something fast alone, but to build anything great you have to go together.” Dear World has started a college tour where they go to different campuses and share the stories of students and faculty members. They have traveled all over the world to different campuses and have taken more than 50,000 portraits. Fogarty describes Dear World as a business, an art project and a social experiment. “Our process began simply, to ask a person to share a message about something or to someone they love,” said the website. “By the end of the night you realize that through our stories, there’s actually much more that brings us together than what keeps us apart.” Madeline Purdue can be reached at mpurdue@sagebrush.unr.edu and on Twitter @madelinepurdue.
Andrea Wilkinson/Nevada Sagebrush
Andrea Wilkinson/Nevada Sagebrush
Top: A student poses with her message “I am who I am!” Bottom: A student poses for her Dear World portrait. Left: A computer screen shows participants how to design their messages to help with ideas.
Top: A banner advertising the Dear World photo shoot hangs in the Joe Crowley Student Union on Thursday, April 13, above where the photo shoot was taking place. Bottom: An ASUN volunteer writes a student’s message on her back before she is photographed. Dear World is an international project that has visited college campuses across the globe.
Rape Kits Continued from page A2
kits became a hot-button issue in the race for Nevada’s open U.S. senate seat in 2016. Former state Attorney General Catherine Cortez-Masto, who eventually won the seat, was accused by a slate of attack ads of ignoring the backlog during her time as the state’s top law officer. Those ads were found half-true in an analysis by PolitiFact, which noted little evidence that Cortez-Masto, a long-time advocate for victims of sexual violence, moved to solve the backlog problem. Indeed there were questions from Assemblyman Ira Hansen, R-Sparks, about why the measure is just coming up now. He asked of the bill’s sponsor, Benitez-Thompson, if anyone should be “hung, drawn and quartered” for the delay.
While she didn’t have a name to be drawn and quartered, she did say that many jurisdictions, including the legislature, had dropped the ball. “We have a chance with this legislation to right a wrong, to make sure this backlog never happens again,” Benitez-Thompson said. “This issue is so important, it, quite frankly, rises above politics.” And while there were no legislators opposed to the bill, partisanship did still manage to sneak its way into the meeting. Republican legislators made a point to praise the current attorney general, Republican Adam Laxalt, for his efforts in putting the bill together while committee chair Steve Yeager, D-Las Vegas, made a point of his own in praising former Vice President Joe Biden’s initiative to provide federal money for the issue. Jacob Solis can be reached at jsolis@ sagebrush.unr.edu and on Twitter @NevadaSagebrush.
FREAKY FAST! FREAKY GOOD! ®
Photo via Rebecca Linder
Medical professionals learn how to use the Sexual Assault Evidence Collection kit at Camp Phoenix near Kabul, Afghanistan, Aug. 15, 2010. In Nevada, there is a backlog of roughly 8,000 untested rape kits that date back to the 1980s.
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PACK N THE EVENTS THINGS TO WATCH OUT FOR THIS WEEK By Joey Thyne
TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2017
DRAGSHOW2017 QSU and ASUN team up for a night to remember
EARTH DAY CELEBRATION DATE: Tuesday TIME: 10 a.m. LOCATION: Gateway Plaza INFO: Come and thank
Mother Earth for all she provides for us. Conversations will help people understand climate change and what we can do to help. A number of environment-friendly student groups will be in attendance. If there is rain, it will be moved to the 15th Street Food Court.
FIRST AMENDMENT UNDER ATTACK?
DATE: Tuesday TIME: 6 p.m. LOCATION: JCSU INFO: Guests David Greene
and RonNeil Andersen Jones are visiting UNR to provide guidance in this time of political uncertainty. They are having a conversation in the third floor theater at the Joe followed by an audience Q&A. This event is free to the public. If you don’t make it, Professor File won’t be angry, he’ll just be very disappointed.
THE LEGO BATMAN MOVIE DATE: Thursday TIME: 6 p.m. LOCATION: JCSU INFO: Come experience
the spinoff to the modern animated classic. It boasts a 90 percent on Rotten Tomatoes. It’s showing at the movie theatre on the third floor of the Joe, at 9 p.m. on Thursday and 6 p.m. and 9 p.m. on Friday. Admittance is free to all students. Complimentary snacks and beverages will be provided.
ESCAPE ROOM DATE: Thursday TIME: 6 p.m. LOCATION: JCSU INFO: In groups of up to
Andrea Wilkinson/Nevada Sagebrush
The Drag Show showcased drag queens and kings giving their all at the Joe Crowley Student Union on April 12. Contestants performed to a full house.
By Joey Thyne The fabulous kings and queens of UNR strutted their stuff at the 2017 Drag Show. The Drag Show took place on Wednesday, April 12, in the Glick Ballroom at the Joe as a part of Unity Week. The event was hosted by Katya from RuPaul’s Drag Race. The contenders were Val Veeta from the house of Wynters, Fairyboi, Sebastian Drake, Arabella Aspergina, Zeeno Bianchi, Kenysha Jontel, Chronic & Tonic, Himself, Iris, Nikki Vuitton and Naughtia Biznass. All of the kings and queens competed admirably, but only one champion could claim the title. Nikki Vuitton came in first place with her rousing performance of Rihanna’s “Love on the Brain.” She won merchandise from Katya and a $100 donation to the charity of her choice. First runner-up was Sebastian Drake and the second runner-up was Naughtia Biznass.
This marked the first time ASUN was involved in the Queer Student Union’s annual Drag Show. “One of the issues we have every year is generating attendance for unity events,” said Erica Bickel, event programmer for ASUN and lead “Unity” programmer. “I knew the QSU held a drag show every year but didn’t have as much participation as they would like, so I reached out to them to partner on the event. ASUN purchased the talent (Katya) and did more logistical stuff, while QSU provided the performers, judges and other expenses.” Preparation began back in December. Every two weeks, Bickel and QSU president Kim Uribe met to figure out details like staging, performances and lighting/sound. The Drag Show was free to students and community members. Eager spectators quickly filled the ballroom, which had
a capacity of 500 people. Staff ended up turning away about 200 people away. The crowd was pumped up, making lots of noise and supporting each participant. Katya did a great job of entertaining, as well as making sure she pronounced “Nevada” correctly. Between acts, she kept the energy up and made everyone laugh. She breezed through topical subjects, including Sean Spicer’s Holocaust comments, the infamous Pepsi ad and the United Airlines incident, as well as more serious points like transgender issues. Toward the end, while the judge tallied their votes, she even performed herself. “She is by far the most fun and interesting artist I’ve ever worked with,” Bickel said. “She is very accommodating, flexible and low-maintenance and was always checking up with me during the show to make sure that things were going okay. She is just as funny in person as she
is on stage.” The night was full of memorable highlights. Fairyboi’s live rapping/singing enchanted the judges. Sebastian Drake’s elaborate costuming complemented Fall Out Boy’s “My Songs Know What You Did in the Dark.” Zeeno Bianchi brought a voluptuous rendition of Tenacious D’s “F— Her Gently.” Himself rocked “Kiss” by Prince. Nikki Vuitton stole the show, accepting dollar bills from adoring fans. The show was closed out by Naughtia Biznass, performing “Cherry Bomb” by the Runaways despite technical difficulties, blowing away the audience, including her supportive mother. The Drag Show was a big hit for everyone in company. “Even though my friend and I didn’t get in right away because it was so crowded, even seeing Katya host for an hour was awesome,” said UNR junior Amy Serrano. “Drag shows are just so empowering and fun, the school
should definitely host more.” Although Drag Shows are fun entertainment, they also provide a platform for an often marginalized group. When asked why events like the Drag Show are important, Serrano quoted her intern Grant Uba: “I believe that for a university to completely achieve 'unity in diversity’ we must think about representation--that is, focusing on providing an environment for individuals to be present around people they resonate with. As an event programming intern, I believe that we are lacking in the aspects of "inclusion" and "representation." Our efforts to partner with the QSU in planning their Annual Drag Show work to reassure all of the students that they have a place on this campus -- a seat at the table.” Joey Thyne can be reached at jthyne@sagebrush.unr.edu or on Twitter @joey_thyne
Centro’s tapas emphasize quality over quantity
10 for 45 minutes, you will be put in high stakes scenarios. The two Escape Rooms are BOOM (a bomb squad office) and Patient Zero (a genetic engineering laboratory). Can you work in a team? Can you solve a puzzle? Can you handle the pressure? If not, you will die. (Not really)
WALTER ROBINSON DATE: Wednesday TIME: 6:00 p.m. LOCATION: Wells Fargo
Auditorium INFO: Join the Reynolds School of Journalism for a screening of the film “Spotlight” and a Skype Q&A with Walter Robinson. Walter Robinson is the Editor-at-Large for the Boston Globe. Robinson led the investigative journalism team which exposed the Catholic church sex scandal. Joey Thyne can be reached at jsolis@sagebrush.unr.edu or on Twitter @joey_thyne
Paolo Zialcata/Nevada Sagebrush
Centro is a restaurant located on California Avenue. They serve tapas and cocktails.
By Paolo Zialcata RESTARAUNT REVIEW: Centro The Place: Reno locals no longer have to take a flight to Barcelona for delicious tapas. Located on California Avenue, Centro Bar & Kitchen lies on the border of Midtown and Downtown. Sundance Books and the Nevada Museum of Art are less than a five-minute walk from Centro, making it a prime location to end a day of activities. The Vibe: During lunch on a weekday, Centro is laid back and quiet; a perfect environment to sit down and enjoy a nice meal. However, the weekend dinner crowd leaves the restaurant packed and with a long wait to those unfortunate enough to get beaten by the crowds. The atmosphere can only be described as trendy. There is always music that the casual music fan will never be able to identify. Even the menu is trendy. Most of the ingredients are locally sourced and organic, and the drinks are called “libations” instead of cocktails. Those sitting inside will have to yell over the bustling of dishes, the loud conversations and the music to talk to their companions. The inside seating is noticeably tight too, so be ready to hear uncomfortable conversations from the next table over. Those seeking a more
ambient environment on the weekend will have to brave the Reno weather and sit on their back patio. Luckily, the staff provides heat lamps on a cold night. The Food: Centro serves tapas style dishes, meaning lower prices for a smaller portion. Prices range from $5.00 to $14.00, depending on how fancy the dish is. Hungry people may not enjoy the Centro experience. The Centro experience comes from the unique flavors, not the portions. A majority of the menu are predetermined dishes that do not change until the menu does. However, the specialties are their daily dishes, such as their daily tacos and tartine, which change every day. One day the tacos may be a measly chorizo, but the next day may bring escargot tacos. I started my meal with a $10 cheese plate to hold me over until I can decide what else to get. The plate comes with chef cured meats and mustard, which changes every day. This serving came with three different local kinds of cheese, bruschetta and duck prosciutto. The dish was great, my only complaint being the unproportionate amount of bruschetta to cheese. The next dish out was the daily tartine. The daily tartine took form as rosemary meatloaf and garlic aioli served on challah bread. It is always hard to take a
chance on the daily specials, especially if you are afraid of change. In this case, the surprise was surprisingly lackluster. The flavors were there, but the meatloaf texture was hard to ignore. The plate was redeemed by the bread because gluten is hard to mess up. These two dishes were joined by the drop pepper bruschetta and the filthy fries. These plates were purchased for cheap stomach fillers, not really for the flavor. They were safe options that would satisfy our stomachs. Some good portions for a good price. Dessert was the daily fudge. The waitress dropped off a plate with surprisingly large pieces of chocolate fudge with pieces of raspberry and pecan. Again, taking a chance was scary, but worth the risk. At over $40, the bill was pretty inexpensive when split between three people. I left the restaurant with my wallet full, but my belly not. Centro will leave one of your wallet or your stomach empty, so be ready for that. Overall, Centro is a great experience for those looking to try new, unique flavors. However, if you are looking for a filling, cheap meal, maybe just go to another restaurant. Paolo Zialcata can be reached at jthyne@sagebrush.unr. edu or on Twitter @nevadasage
TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2017
UNR theatre breathes new life into ancient myth By Joey Thyne
A&E | A5
@NevadaSagebrush | nevadasagebrush.com
Schyler Delano designed the set. Ruhl specifies that the underworld should not look like hell, it should look like Alice in Wonderland. This adds a fantastical element to the set, adding to the overall magical realism of the play. “Magical realism is a sense of heightened realism,” Cabral said. “For magical realism, the logic of the environment shifts. There’s opportunity for the unexpected to happen.” The play is performed with thrust staging, a theatrical technique with the audience on three sides of the stage. “Depending where you sit you’re going to get a different story, which is one of the things that draws me to a thrust stage,” Cabral said. “If you come on a different night and sit in a different spot, you’re going to connect to a different element of the story.” Although it is based on an ancient Greek myth, it still has the power to resonate with audiences today. “This play is a battle for Eurydice about choosing the family she has in the underworld or the family she has in the upper world,” Cabral said. “That really drew me in, especially for college student audiences. How do you balance the family life you were brought up in for 18 years and the new life you are trying to create for yourself?” The only people more excited than the director is the cast. “I hope the audience feels free to laugh and cry and just be available to the story,” said Chubb a freshman theatre major. “It’s beautifully written and the cast and crew are wonderful people to work with. I hope we can convey all of our hard work to each member of the audience and they will love this show as we have loved it for the past few months.” Don’t worry, there is still a chance to see “Eurydice.” It is showing at the Redfield Studio Theatre in the Church Fine Arts Building on April 19-22 at 7:30 p.m. and on April 23 at 1:30 p.m. A limited amount of $5 tickets are available to students. at the Lawlor Events Center box office.
The cast and crew of UNR’s production of “Eurydice” are looking forward to their second weekend after performing on April 14 and 15. “Eurydice” is a retelling of the Orpheus myth through the perspective of Eurydice. It was written by contemporary playwright Sarah Ruhl. Directing “Eurydice” is Adriano Cabral, UNR’s Assistant of Acting in the Department of Theatre and Dance. The original myth of Orpheus tells the story of a musician (Orpheus) who is able to enchant people with his lyre-playing. However, on his wedding day, his wife is bitten by a snake and dies. He must venture to the underworld to save her. After many misadventures, he is allowed to take her, but he is not allowed to look back as they travel. “Eurydice” follows this story, but through the lens of Orpheus’s wife, Eurydice. “I’m all about female representation in theatre,” Cabral said. “Get a female playwright taking the female side...and I am all about it.” Preparation began in February. Riley McKinney plays the part of Eurydice, Matthew Denny plays her father and Thomas Chubb plays Orpheus. “It’s important to have new takes on these classic myths because these shows are still relevant in today’s society,” said Denny, a resident assistant on campus and a junior studying Secondary Education with an emphasis in theatre, English and ESL. “A good quote that I use to describe this is from Constantin Stanislavski who says, ‘Spectators come to the theatre to hear the subtext. They can read the text at home.’ The Theatre is a place of storytelling, with these new aspects and perspectives, we are able to see so much more about these myths. This allows us to gain a better understanding of a myth we think we know.” Amari Callaway designed the costumes. There is no specific time period to the play so the costumes are used to highlight character traits. “My favorite part is getting to see all the costumes that I spent months imagining in my head come together and have the actors bring them to life on stage,” said Callaway, a graduating senior receiving a bachelor’s degree in theatre with a Joey Thyne can be reached at jthyne@sagebrush.unr.edu minor in studio art. or on Twitter @joey_thyne
Get involved with your Student Government
Positions ASUN Director of Sustainability ASUN Director of Clubs and Organizations ASUN Director of Programming ASUN Director of Legislative Affairs ASUN Director of Campus and Public Relations ASUN Director/Assistant Director (TBD) for the Department of Blue Crew ASUN Director of Diversity and Inclusion ASUN Attorney General ASUN Elections Chair ASUN Chief Presidential Aid ASUN Assistant Directors of Programming ASUN Assistant Director of Legislative Affairs ASUN Clubs and Organizations Funding Manager ASUN Clubs and Organizations Commissioner ASUN Assistant Chair for Civic Engagement ASUN Assistant Chair for Public Relations ASUN Blue Crew Programmer ASUN Projects Coordinator ASUN Projects Director ASUN Policy Analyst ASUN Policy Director ASUN Programmer
For applications and job requirements, please visit UNRSearch.com For more information, contact Noah Teixeira at speaker@asun.unr.edu
Opinion
@NevadaSagebrush | nevadasagebrush.com
A6
TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2017
STAFF EDITORIAL
“FAKE NEWS” IN REVIEW By Ryan Suppe
Dems should not abandon pharma bill
I
Photo via Alfredo Borba/Wikimedia Commons
Pope Francis greets a crowd in St. Peter’s square after announcing he forgot his Lenten sacrifice.
INTERNATIONAL POPE FORGETS TO GIVE UP SOMETHING FOR LENT At an Easter mass Sunday, Pope Francis revealed to a congregation at the Vatican that he just totally spaced the “giving up something for Lent thing.” The blunder comes after thousands of years of infallible popes starting with Saint Peter. Pope Francis told the crowd he hoped to go to confession later in the day to ask God for forgiveness but wasn’t sure who would have seniority over him. The Vicar of Christ reflected on his past sacrifices for Lent including giving up sinning, giving up changing Church doctrine and he laughed about the 40-day Lenten period when he gave up bread, which made serving communion a tricky task.
n February, Sen. Yvanna Cancela, D-Las Vegas, introduced an omnibus bill to the Nevada Legislature with multiple provisions relating to prescription drugs, including placing price controls on diabetes medication requiring pharmaceutical sales representatives to be licensed, to report on their activities annually and to disclose any pharmaceuticalrelated contributions by health care nonprofits. Cancela said the numerous provisions are essential to ensure that patients in Nevada have access to the life-saving drugs. She also said the Senate Bill 265 would create greater transparency in the health care industry by forcing pharmaceutical reps to disclose . And at this point, she’s right. The price of insulin has seen an increase of 450 percent above inflation since its introduction 95 years ago, an issue Cancela said was brought to her attention in a meeting last fall put on by the Center for American Progress, Doctors of America and the Health Services coalition. Cancela also cited data that showed more than 12 percent of Nevadans are diabetic and 38 percent are prediabetic, a condition in which blood glucose levels are higher than usual. Medical expenses for individuals with diabetes are around 2.3 times higher than for those without diabetes. SB 265 was granted a waiver on Friday, the deadline for all bills and
Photo via sriram bala/flickr Insulin medication as it stands on Oct. 14, 2007. Senate Bill 265 would put price controls on insulin medication among other provisions.
resolutions to pass out of a committee, meaning it is not subject to deadlines and will stay in the Senate Committee on Health and Human services. Pharmaceutical companies have been active in Carson City within the last few months to encourage legislators to vote “no” on 265. Indeed there was a large-scale astroturfing effort from PhRMA, the trade association that represents the interests of pharmaceutical companies, last week that aimed to accomplish just that. Seven health care-related organization sent letters to Cancela’s office with eerily similar language, and all seven receive at least some funding in the thousands from PhRMA. Pharmaceutical companies have long-resisted implementing price
controls, saying they would make patients lose access to life-saving medicines. “Imposing aggressive price controls on innovative, often life-saving medicines to simply fatten the wallets of health insurers is irresponsible,” said PhRMA spokeswoman Priscilla VanderVeer in a statement opposing SB 265. Companies have also said the bill ignores the importance of negotiation in the pharmaceutical drug industry and the importance of private market competition. In her statement, VanderVeer also said the value of prescription drugs create an environment of less hospitalizations and visits. Pharmaceutical companies have said they want to work with stake-
holders, but have said Cancela’s bill is “nothing more than a fatally flawed problem masquerading as a solution.” These protests from the pharmaceutical industry are veiled attempts at skirting accountability and transparency, something needed less than ever at a time when our country’s poorest and most vulnerable continue to reel from the effects of a devastating opioid epidemic. In point of fact, an epidemic that was caused at least partially by the money-hungry hands of pharmaceutical companies unconcerned with the long-term effects of their greed. The editorial board can be reached at jsolis@sagebrush.unr.edu and on Twitter @NevadaSagebrush.
Keep Netflix out of the movies
NATIONAL SEAN SPICER CONDEMNS PEPSI AD, SAYS NOT EVEN COKE WOULD USE KENDALL JENNER In a press conference at the White House last week, Press Secretary Sean Spicer condemned Pepsi for its recent ad, which depicted reality television star Kendall Jenner giving a soft drink to a police officer amid what seemed to be a Black Lives Matter protest. Spicer’s comments came after Pepsi was criticized heavily for the ad, which was later taken down. Spicer commented that not even Coca-Cola would stoop so low. “You have a company as despicable as Coke,” he said. “Not even they would sink to using Kendall Jenner.” Jenner has long been banned by the American Advertising Federation for use in advertisements since her appearance in the “Blacklight” music video by the boy pop band One Call.
LOCAL IMPENDING SIERRA SNOWMELT TO BRING FLOOD OF PATAGONIA VESTS TO DOWNTOWN RENO Thousands of Patagonia vests are expected to flood Downtown Reno when the record-breaking snow pack melts in the Sierra Nevada, city officials say. Lost Patagonia vests have been piling up in the mountains after a busy winter where Reno-ites attended music festivals, went skiing and snowboarding, and went on nature walks, among other winter activities. “On the first hot day this spring, it’ll be like an REI orgy on national John Muir day,” said Salomon Quest, a Tahoe park ranger. According to Quest, the last time a flood like this was expected was when the Donner Party’s Patagonia vests were scooped out the Truckee River. Ryan Suppe studies philosophy. He can be reached at ryansuppe15@gmail.com and on Twitter @salsuppe.
Editor’s Note “Fake news” is not real news and should not be interpreted as such. Interested in real news? Check out the news section.
Design by Nicole Skarlatos
M
ovies aren’t made for small screens. They aren’t even made for big screen televisions. They aren’t meant to be watched on an airplane, the porcelain throne or on a laptop on your chest. Netflix, Amazon and all the other streaming services are trying to convince us otherwise, but movies are made for and meant to be watched on big screens with big speakers and no distractions other than the occasional snoring old man or crying baby. Ryan In February, legendary filmSuppe maker Martin Scorsese said this: “Now you can see a film on an iPad. You might be able to push it closer to your [face] in your bedroom, just lock the door and look at it if you can but I do find just glimpsing stuff here or there, even watching a film at home on a big-screen TV, there is still stuff around the room.
There’s a phone that rings. People go by. It is not the studio expansion in California, likely to match holbest way.” lywood studios at the rate Netflix is making money. As he made this statement Scorsese was in the The company also continues to update user process of signing a deal with Netflix for his upcom- capabilities on its website, some of which disregard ing movie The Irishman starring Robert De Niro, the artists who create entertainment in favor of Al Pacino and Joe Pesci. Scorsese is the first of the ease of use. Netflix is currently developing a button great directors to go to streaming, and thus, the first that will allow users to skip the opening credits of to break my heart. a TV show like they’re a Neutrogena advertisement Since it starting creating original content in 2013 on YouTube. with House of Cards, Netflix has climbed to the top Netflix is trying to take movies out of the theater of the television business. It went from a start-up and put them on your iPhone. The six plus is pretty mooching off old TV reruns and independent films big but not big enough for Once Upon a Time in the to one of the most popular original entertainment West, Blade Runner or even Elf. companies in the world in just a few years. Movies are sacred. Netflix can have TV because Now, Netflix is trying to take over the movie busi- it works for the small screen. (Bojack Horseman, a ness too. It has made a habit of poaching executives Netflix original, is the best show on TV right now, from other production companies, it’s buying top in my opinion). But, the movies don’t fit the same directors like Scorsese to make movies for the small model. screen and it’s trying to change the way movies are distributed to best fit the streaming model. Executives plan to spend at least $6 billion on Ryan Suppe studies philosophy. He can be reached at original content this year, and they’re planning big ryansuppe15@gmail.com and on Twitter @salsuppe.
Sports TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2017
SPORTS | A7
@SagebrushSports | nevadasagebrush.com
Nowaczewski leads Pack to series win over Spartans
Andrea Wilkinson/Nevada Sagebrush
Wolf Pack pitcher Mark Nowaczewski throws a heater down the middle in Nevada’s home match against U.C. Davis on April 26, 2016, at Peccole Park. The Wolf Pack won their second series win of the season with their victory over the San Jose State Spartans this past week.
By Javier Hernandez
This past week the Nevada Baseball team (11-26, 7-11 MWC) squared off in a three-game series against conference foe San Jose State Spartans (13-20-1, 7-9-1, MWC). Earlier in the season, San Jose State was able to sweep the Wolf Pack in their three-game series in San Jose. In each game in that series, the games were decided by a single run, including two games that went into extra innings. This time around, the Wolf Pack looks to avenge their early season losses in a three-game home stand against the Spartans. Heading into the series, Nevada went 1-3 on a four-game road trip, wherein they went 1-2 against the San Diego State Aztecs and lost a game against UC Santa Barbara. Below is a game-by-game look at this past week’s series
GAME ONE The Nevada baseball team lost another heartbreaker in the opening game of the series. With the loss, the Wolf Pack drops to 5-11 in Mountain West Conference games and 9-26 on the season. On the flip side, the Spartans improved to 7-7-1 in the Mountain West and 13-8-1 overall.
The Spartans struck first in the game, scoring two runs in the second inning. Spartans catcher Joseph Stefanki smacked a double into center field. The next batter, second baseman Kyle Morrison, drew a walk. In the next at-bat, the hitter Kyle Blakeman hit a productive infield groundout that advanced both runners into scoring position. Michael Breen was able to drive home the opening runner with a sacrifice fly that brought home the leadoff hitter, Stefanki, and advanced Morrison to third. Finally, in the next at-bat the hitter, Kellen Strahm, struck the ball down the right field line for an RBI single to extend the lead to 2-0, bringing home the base runner, Morrison. The Wolf Pack rallied to take the lead in the bottom of the fourth inning. Designated hitter Kaleb Foster was hit by a pitch in the opening at-bat of the half inning. With the lead-off batter on base, the following batter, Cole Krzmarzick, struck out looking. This was followed by a single to right field by Marco Valenzuela. Jaylon Mclaughlin hit a strong ball at the shortstop in the following at-bat which forced a throwing error that allowed Foster to score and Valenzuela to advance to third. Nevada was able to further capitalize on the error in the following
at-bat as Keaton Smith smacked a ball down the left field line for a bases-clearing double, allowing for the Wolf Pack to take a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the fourth. San Jose State was able to tie the game in the seventh inning with a thunderous Chris Williams home run that forced Nevada head coach T.J. Bruce to pull his starter, Trevor Charpie, from the game. Despite a shaky second inning, Nevada starting pitcher, Charpie pitched a solid game, throwing 122 pitches in 6.2 innings, giving up nine hits and only giving up three runs, striking out three batters. In the following inning, the Wolf Pack was unable to prevent the Spartans’ offense from scoring, as they gave up three runs to reclaim the lead. In the top of the eighth, with two runners in scoring position, Jack Veasey homered to give the Spartans a three-run advantage that proved to be too much for the Wolf Pack to overcome. The Spartans won the opener by a score of 6-5. The Wolf Pack offense was led by Morrison, who went 3-for-4. Stefanki also had three hits in five at-bats. Williams and Strahm also had two hits apiece on the day.
GAME TWO
The second game of the series was a back and forth affair with Mark Nowaczewski throwing the first complete game of the season for the Wolf Pack. The pitcher gave up four runs, two earned and two unearned, throwing an efficient 113 pitches on the day. Foster drew a walk after being hit by a pitch. A groundball to third advanced Foster to second, setting up a Grant Fennell RBI single to center field bring home Foster and give the Wolf Pack the opening run. The lead was short-lived, as the Spartans tied the game in the third inning when Kyle Blakeman hit an RBI double off of Nowaczewski to bring in a runner to tie the game at one apiece. In the following inning, Nevada capitalized on some mental lapses by the Spartans. The Wolf Pack was able to score two runs off of a throwing error by the center fielder and a sacrifice groundout by Fennell. With two runs scored, the Wolf Pack reclaimed a two-run lead. However, the Spartans would not go away, scoring a run in each of the next three innings to reclaim a onerun lead. With one last chance in the bottom of the ninth inning, the Wolf Pack was able to muster up some magic with some late-game heroics
from Chase Grant who hit an RBI single with the bases loaded to tie the game. This was followed by the game-winning RBI single by Justin Bridgman to seal the victory for the Wolf Pack. With the win, the Wolf Pack tied the series at 1-1 with a rubber match being played the next day to decide the series.
GAME THREE The final game of the series was preceded by an Easter Egg Hunt for Nevada fans as the Wolf Pack was hunting for another victory to win the series against the Spartans. Nevada rode the coattails of its freshman pitcher, Riley Ohl, who pitched a career-high eight innings en route to a 6-2 series-clinching victory. The freshman pitched an efficient 117 pitches, striking out six hitters and only allowing two runs on the day.
u u Javier Hernandez can be reached at bcruz@sagebrush.unr.edu and on Twitter @Sagebrushsports.
Nevada Women’s tennis team splits conference matches By Brandon Cruz
Nevada Women’s tennis took on two Mountain West Conference foes this past weekend. The team first traveled to Las Vegas, on April 14 to go head-to-head with the UNLV Rebels, a match in which the team lost to their conference rival 5-2. Following their loss, the team found its way back to Reno, licked its wounds and squared off against the San Jose State Spartans at McArthur Tennis Center on April 16. Nevada redeemed itself from its UNLV loss by narrowly edging out the Spartans 4-3. NEVADA VS UNLV It was a warm 77-degree day in Las Vegas as the Wolf Pack took to the courts in an attempt to defeat their bitter rivals, the UNLV Rebels. The Rebels entered the match with an impressive 15-7 record, looking to improve its stats with a win against Nevada. After quick warm-ups, the doubles portion of the contest quickly began. The Pack shined in their doubles outing, but still faced stiff competition from the Rebels. Court three finished first, with UNLV’s Paola Artiga and Anna Bogoslavets defeating Nevada’s Milena Achlamov and Carlijn Ketting 6-1. Due to UNLV getting the first win, all pressure was mounted on the shoulders of the final two doubles matches, as Nevada needed to win out in order to take the doubles point. The Pack did just that as the doubles teams of Blaga Delic and
Sheila Morales, along with Claudia Herrero and Adriana Gergelyova, outplayed their UNLV counterparts winning, 6-2 decisively on both courts. With the doubles competition point in its back pocket, the Wolf Pack appeared to be in a prime position to take a conference win on a foreign court. But nothing is ever as simple as it looks on paper. UNLV came out of the starting gates firing on all cylinders for the singles matches. UNLV’s Aiwen Zhu made quick work of Gergelyova, defeating her in just two sets. The rest of the singles matches would follow suit, as UNLV drubbed Nevada on every court but one. Nevada’s Herrero’s lone win on court one saw four sets played, where Herrero won three of the four. With Nevada’s inability to perform at a high level in the singles competition, the Pack received another loss on the season, putting their record at 7-8 overall and 1-1 in conference play.
NEVADA VS SAN JOSE STATE Following its devastating loss to UNLV in southern Nevada, the Pack found its way back to the northern part of the state for a home field showdown against the San Jose State Spartans. Unbeknownst to the Spartans, this would not resemble the Battle of Marathon in any way. “The 300” seems to be a more fitting comparison in this scenario. The doubles portion saw its fair share of push and pull. However, similar to that of the Persian might in the Battle of Thermopylae, Nevada
File Photo
Nevada’s Lais Ogata sends a shot back towards her opponent on Apr. 15, 2011 in Nevada’s 6-1 win against Utah State in Reno, NV. This years team is 8-8 on the season and 2-1 in conference play.
was victorious nonetheless. Gergelyova and Herrero kicked doubles off by placing a gracious 7-5 loss on the front door of SJSU’s Gaelie Rey and Marine Dan’s figurative homes. The Pack now just needed to secure one final match for title rights to the doubles point for the day, which Nevada’s dynamic duo comprised of Delic and Morales accomplished as they defeated Sybille Gauvain and Marie Klocker 6-3. The Singles match-ups came up next and were pendulum-like in nature.
Nevada took the first match, as Delic thrashed Dans 6-1, 6-2. But the Spartans quickly countered as Gaelle made quick work of Achlamov. Being that it was all knotted up at one, a tie breaker was imminent. Miyo Kobayashi broke the Spartans out of the Wolf Pack’s wake for the first time all game, taking a two to one lead over the Pack with a win against Carlijn Ketting on court five. The Wolf Pack needed a spark, as it found itself down 2-1 in the singles competition. Nevada’s Morales became the electricity
Nevada needed as she came through in the clutch, defeating Klocker 7-5 in two straight sets. Singles now sat at two all.
u u
Brandon Cruz can be reached at bcruz@ sagebrush.unr.edu and on Twitter @ Sagebrushsports.
Sports A8 | SPORTS
@NevadaSagebrush | nevadasagebrush.com
TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2017
Space Cam Oliver: Hubble, Apollo 11, or Out of this Universe?
T
he board-terrorizing, crowdelectrifying, spark plug that is Cam Oliver appears to be moving onward in his career. With NBA playoffs underway, draft boards are being constructed by GMs across the league. Oliver appears to be an early second round pick in accordance to nbadraft.com, as he is listed at 41 overall, placing him in a Charlotte Hornets jersey, in the event that no deals transpire. Along with nbadraft. com, draftexpress.com also has Oliver going in the first-half of the second round, except their predictions says Milwaukee would be the recipient of Space Brandon Cam’s athleticism. Both would Cruz be ideal landing spots for OliJournalism ver, as he’d more than likely get more optimal playing time than if he were on a stacked roster such as the Golden State Warriors or Cleveland Cavaliers. I’d also be more than elated to watch an Oliver, Giannis Antetokounmpo tandem go to work in the league, but that’s neither here nor there.
HUBBLE The Hubble telescope is an optical telescope that was originally meant to give scientists an unobstructed view of the universe. What should have been one of the greatest scientific creations of the 90s, actually ended up (initially) being a complete bust due to an optical defect. During its first use, a host of astronauts made repairs on site to bring the Hubble telescope to full form. Now, if Space Cam can stay in the league for a few years minimum, he won’t be considered a bust. But on the off chance that Oliver is overmatched at the next level, he’d follow suit with a few Nevada alumni who lost their mojo once they made it to the NBA. Unlike the Hubble, Space Cam won’t have a team of astronauts to fix his game if it goes sour. The year 2007 was an amazing year for Nevada, as star forwards Nick Fazekas and Kevinn Pinkney helped lead the Pack to a Sweet 16 appearance. Both Fazekas and Pinkney went into the 2007 NBA draft, but only one of the two would hear his name called. The Dallas Mavericks went on to select Fazekas as the 34th overall pick in the
2007 draft. Pinkney too waited for a call, but his phone failed to ring that night. Fazekas would not amount to much, as he bounced around for awhile, going from the Mavericks to the Clippers. Following his stay in L.A., he found his way to the Rockies and finally ended up in a green uniform in Boston. Fazekas blew the gold-plated opportunity that Pinkney didn’t get. But Pinkney did not get discouraged, as he went overseas to play in Europe. He then came back to the states to play in the D-League. The only time he’d find his way onto an NBA court was his small stint with the injury riddled Celtics in 2007. Though no bust is truly notable, another let down coming out of Nevada was 2010 2nd round 34th overall pick Arrmon Johnson. Originally drafted by the Portland Trail Blazers, Johnson only played two seasons in the big leagues, splitting time between the Blazers and the, at the time, New Jersey Nets. Hopefully, the second-round plague that seems to be consistent with Nevada players steers clear of Space Cam, and his NBA career is longer than 73 seconds.
APOLLO 11 I believe just about everyone knows about Apollo 11, the first successful space mission to place humans on the moon. Whether it was a farce or not is a conspiracy theory in itself, but for sake of time, we’ll assume the government should always be trusted in this context. If Oliver figuratively lands on the moon, he’ll be sitting pretty in the NBA for an extended period of time. His landing on the moon gives him a career of longevity, but solely as a journeyman. Oliver could land on plenty of moons in his career, he’d put up standard numbers for a role player and make a good salary. Although this may be the case, he’d never go down in NBA record books. Nevada has produced NBA-ready players who have had long fruitful careers, but seem to have a ceiling. Or is it a roof? Whichever you prefer, players such as Luke Babbitt, Ramon Sessions and JaVale McGee fit this role player mold in the NBA. Don’t get me wrong, role players are important! They’re necessary pieces to the game, be-
Andrea Wilkinson/Nevada Sagebrush
Nevada star forward Cam Oliver (0) twirls in midair and makes a behind-the-back pass in an exhibition game against SF State on Friday, Nov. 4. Oliver finished 21 points on 9-of-12 shooting.
cause without them stars such as Lebron James, Stephen Curry and James Harden couldn’t shine as brightly as they do. Due to Oliver’s competition level during college, and Nevada’s past history of its star-studded players’ college games not translating seamlessly to NBA play, this middle-of-the-Pack mentality looks to be a high possibility for Oliver’s professional fate. While moons are intriguing and necessary, every planet has them, which takes away the ‘wow’ factor that comes with the mysteries of the universe.
OUT OF THIS UNIVERSE? Speaking of James, Curry and Harden, let’s say Space Cam blows the already high expectations he has out of the water.
u u Brandon Cruz can be reached at bcruz@sagebrush. unr.edu and on Twitter @SagebrushSports
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