Wednesday 4/08/15

State News The

SOLID FOOD SCRAPS COLLECTED FROM DINING HALLS

MATERIAL BROKEN DOWN IN WORM BEDS

Completing the cycle BROKEN DOWN SOIL REUSED TO GROW MORE FOOD

With tons of waste coming out of the dining halls, one has to wonder where it is all going.

Several sources on campus are taking the steps to create a clean food cycle. See pages 6-7

PHOTOS; ALLYSON TELGENHOF | GRAPHIC: RYAN LOGAN

REMEMBRANCE

A D M I N I S T R AT I O N

In memory of “Princess Lacey” Today marks the anniversary of the death of Lacey Holsworth — PAGE 11 WE DN E S DAY, A P R IL 8, 2 015

@THESNEWS

Steering Committee discusses policy for undocumented students One of the biggest roadblocks for undocumented students is that they don’t know their status — PAGE 5 STAT ENEWS .COM

OPINION

LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Microaggressions affect the underrepresented

— PAGE 2

Opinion

Greg Monahan Opinion editor opinion@statenews.com @thesnewsopinion

OPINION P O LL T U E S DAY ’ S R E S U LT S

Do you think universityrequired classes are valuable for your education?

54%—No, I don’t. I am spending too much money for a field I’m not going into.

46%—Yes, I do. The point of a wellrounded education is exploring beyond your desired program.

TOTAL VOTES: 48 AS OF 4 P.M. TUESDAY

TO DAY ’ S Q U E S T I O N

Do you believe marginalization or discrimination against minorities is a problem at MSU? MIKE HOLLOWAY

To vote, visit statenews.com

LETTER: Intentional or not, microaggressions severely affect underrepresented members of society It is not just the act itself that tears away at you. It is the pressure in the chest that follows.

It is the scurried walk you intuitively employ — hands timidly submerged in pockets or clinched onto the straps of a backpack, your spine slightly hunched over, leaning forward, eyes scanning for anything available to clasp onto, any temporary thing to grasp,

2

an item to hold in the absence of time to hold yourself — as you search desperately for space and solace.

It leads you to the public restroom on the second floor — too much traffic on the first — of some indiscriminate building that you stumbled into only out of proximity and the immediate need for safety and silence.

It is the aloneness you feel

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there. It is the slow de-escalation of heartbeats and taut breaths.

It is the weariness that befalls you. It is being too disoriented to make out the reflection in the slightly streaked bathroom mirror, but conscious enough to feel the salty wetness move over the slope of your cheek and past your reddening nose.

You recollect and leave, less armored than when you rose

WEDNESDAY, APRI L 8 , 2 01 5

out of bed.

It appears again between disapproving glances and underneath quickened, fearful steps that respond shallowly to the sight of your skin. As you walk, it lingers at the bottom of your water-filled soles after two white men decide, irrefutably, that the sidewalk is not built for three.

And you, clearly the least entitled, are forced to take several steps in the muddy embankment just nearby.

A mother, a few paces ahead, pivots backward, and after a fleeting glimpse of you, clutches her purse and crosses to the opposite side of the street with her children to maintain enough distance from you to feel secure.

You inhale and exhale deeply, vying to keep your breached humanity intact. It conceals itself in the gentle, qualifying words you utter to yourself on buses when someone chooses to stand rather than take the vacant seat beside you. They would just rather stand. It reveals itself once that person takes a more crowded seat next to someone — perhaps someone they consider less dangerous looking — the following stop.

It taunts you as underhanded jokes about Ebola or immigration or Ferguson or SAE spew from mouths into your frustrated ears. It parades mockingly in statements like “I didn’t expect

you to be so articulate,” “you speak English so well,” “you’re not like those other black people” or “that’s so gay.”

It can be buried beneath words like ghetto, ratchet, urban, thug, sketchy, inner city, illegal and sassy.

When discovered, it tells you to keep quiet. It asserts that resistance is futile.

It follows you into elevator lobbies where people, with a deceptive candor, tell you that they will wait for the next one, even though the only one in the elevator is you. As the doors close, sharp whispers and snickers attempt to cloud your character. The inertia of the elevator begets a pitted emptiness in your stomach.

It imposes, slyly demanding its space — covert, yet powerfully present. The stories are neither imaginative nor fabricated, but rather a snippet of my own experiences at MSU. The events described, although personal, characterize the daily encounters and emotional trauma endured by many underrepresented students nationwide.

These exchanges, whether intentional or unintentional, are subtle and can severely damage the sense of comfort and space of marginalized peoples. These experiences, formally defined as microaggressions, can tremendously affect an indi-

vidual’s physical, emotional and psychological equilibrium. They often accompany reductive, narrow and negligent assumptions about a person’s character or identity.

On a campus — and nation at large — in which whiteness, patriarchy, heteronormativity, cissexism, ableism and classism prevail, students that are not privileged by these constructs often have difficulty navigating hegemonic, oppressive environments.

These spaces largely exclude, ostracize and stigmatize marginalized peoples, leading to issues such as depression, social anxiety disorder, distress, insomnia, pain, fatigue and so many more disorders.

As we move on from Mental Health Awareness Week, we must continually familiarize ourselves with microaggressions and understand the ways in which they compromise mental well-being. We must be active in preventing them.

To do this, we must understand and be accountable for our privilege. We must be willing to address the uncomfortable in a wholly racialized, politicized and sexualized society to create safer spaces for all to exist and thrive in.

Rashad Timmons is a journalism senior and the president of Black Student Alliance.

Contents

RELIGIOUS GUIDE

INSIDE

Transgender activists discuss transphobia and racism at event

Student releases EP on iTunes with focus on pop and folk music

Former wide receiver Tony Lippett’s versatility makes him valuable

PAGE 4

PAGE 9

PAGE 10

Look for this directory in the paper every Wednesday and online at: www.statenews.com/religious

Political theory and constitutional democracy sophomore Blake Isaacs dips parsley in salt water during a Passover meal Friday at the Lester and Jewell Morris Hillel Jewish Student Center, 360 Charles St. in East Lansing.

Read more on page 5. PHOTO: ALICE KOLE

Ascension Lutheran Church 2780 Haslett Rd., E. Lansing Between Hagadorn & Park Lake Rds. (517) 337-9703 Sunday Worship: 10am Sunday School: 9am Adult Bible Study: 9am ascensioneastlansing.org Edgewood United Church, UCC 469 N. Hagadorn East Lansing, MI 48823 (517) 332-8693 Sunday: 10am LGBTQ Celebrating, Justice and Peace Congregation www.edgewood.org Faith Fellowship Baptist Church 1001 Dakin St. Lansing, MI 48912 517-853-9897 Sunday Morning Worship: 11am Sunday School: 10am Wednesday Prayer and Bible Study: 6:30pm Van service available to church Campus Bible Study: Thursday at 7:30pm in Chemistry Bldg. www.ffbc.us

Hillel Jewish Student Center 360 Charles St., E. Lansing (517) 332-1916 Friday Night Services: 6pm, Dinner: 7pm September - April

VOL . 105 | NO. 125

Islamic Center of East Lansing 920 S. Harrison Rd., East Lansing, MI 48823 (517) 351-4309 www.Lansingislam.com info@Lansingislam.com 1st Friday Prayer: 12:15 pm 2nd Friday Prayer: 1:45 pm

CONTACT THE STATE NEWS (517) 432-3000 NEWSROOM/CORRECTIONS (517) 432-3070 feedback@statenews.com GENERAL MANAGER Marty Sturgeon (517) 432-3000 ADVERTISING M-F, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

(517) 432-3010 ADVERTISING MANAGER Kelsey Taber COLOPHON The State News design features Acta, a newspaper type system created by DSType Foundry.

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Celeste Bott

The State News is published by the students of Michigan State University, Monday through Friday during the academic year.

MANAGING EDITOR Anya Rath

Subscription rates: $5 per semester on campus; $125 a year, $75 for one fall or spring semester, $60 for summer semester by mail anywhere in the continental United States. One copy of this newspaper is available free of charge to any member of the MSU community.

Additional copies $0.75 at the business office only.

State News Inc. is a private, nonprofit corporation. Its current 990 tax form is available for review upon request at 435 E. Grand River Ave. during business hours.

W E D N E SDAY, APRI L 8, 2015

BREAKING NEWS EDITOR Simon Schuster TRENDS AND ISSUES EDITOR Olivia Dimmer SPORTS EDITOR Geoff Preston FEATURES EDITOR Casey Holland PHOTO EDITOR Erin Hampton

Okemos Community Church 4734 Okemos Rd. Okemos, MI 48864 (517) 349-4220 www.okemoscommunitychurch.org Sunday Worship: 10am Sunday School: 10am-11:15am Adult Studies: 9am & 11am

Little Flock Christian Fellowship A Non-DenominationalEvagelical Church MSU Alumni Chapel (Basement Hall) Sunday Worship Service: 10am-12 Noon.

Fellowship Lunch after the service

Peoples Church 200 W. Grand River Ave. East Lansing, MI 48823 (517) 332-6264 www.peoples-evolution.org Sunday Worship: 10:30am Tuesday: Love Life: 7-9pm Wednesday: Dinner at 5:30pm, Journey at 6:30 Quan Am Buddhist Temple, MSU Meditation Center 1840 N. College Road Mason, MI 48854 (517) 853-1675 (517) 347-1655 www.quanamtemple.org 7-8:30pm Every Thursday Red Cedar Friends Meeting 1400 Turner St. Lansing, MI 48906 (517) 371-1047 redcedarfriends.org Sunday Worship: 9:00am, 10:30am River Terrace Church 1509 River Terrace Dr, East Lansing, MI (Across from Hubbard Hall) (517)-351-9059 riverterrace.org Sunday: 9 am & 11:15 am w/ Shuttle Service

St. John Catholic Church and Student Center 327 M.A.C. Ave., E. Lansing (517) 337-9778 Sunday: 8am, 10am, 12pm, 5pm, 7pm www.stjohnmsu.org Trinity Church 3355 Dunckel Rd. Lansing, MI 48911 (517) 272-3820 Saturday: 6pm Sunday: 9:15 am, 11am http://trinitywired.com College/Young Adult Service Sundays at 11am in the Student Auditorium Unity Spiritual Renaissance 230 S. Holmes St. Lansing, MI 48912 (517) 484-2360 or (517) 505-1261 Sunday: 10:30am Wednesday: 6:30pm meditation Office: Monday-Thursday 9:30-12:00 University Baptist Church 4608 South Hagadorn Rd East Lansing, MI 48823 (517) 351-4144 www.ubcel.org 10 AM Worship service 11:15 Coffee Hour 11:30 Sunday School University Christian Church 310 N. Hagadorn Rd. East Lansing, MI 48823 (517) 332-5193 universitychristianwired.com Sunday: 11:15 am Sunday Bible Study: 10:15 am University United Methodist Church MSU Wesley 1120 S. Harrison Rd. East Lansing, MI 48823 (517) 351-7030 universitychurchhome.org msuwesley.org Sunday: 10:30am 9:00am Garden Service in the summer TGIT: 8:00pm Thursdays Sept. - April WELS Lutheran Campus Ministry 704 Abbott Road East Lansing, MI 48823 (517) 580-3744 www.msu.edu/~weisluth 6:00pm Saturday

Religious Organizations: Don’t be left out of the Religious Directory!

Call 517-432-3010 today to speak with an Account Executive

COPY CHIEF Elena Cronick OPINION EDITOR Greg Monahan Copyright © 2015 State News Inc., East Lansing, Mich.

THE STAT E NE WS

Martin Luther Chapel 444 Abbot Rd. East Lansing, MI 48823 (517) 332-0778 martinlutherchapel.org Sunday: 10:30am & 7:00pm Wednesday ON FIRE : 7:09 pm Mini-bus pick-up on campus (Fall/Spring)

One Community-Lutheran (ELCA)/ Episcopal (TEC) Campus Ministry 1020 South Harrison Rd. East Lansing, MI 48823 (517) 332-2559 www.facebook.com/onecommunitymsu First Baptist Wednesdays: On campus Church of Okemos Student Worship 7:00pm 4684 Marsh Road (at MSU Alumni Chapel) Okemos, MI 48864 Sundays: 8:30, 10:45am (at (517) 349-2830 University Lutheran Church) www.fbcokemos.org Worship Celebration - Sundays Sundays: 8:00, 10:00am (at All Saints Episcopal Church) at 10:45am Greater Lansing Church of Christ 310 N. Hagadorn Rd. East Lansing, MI 48823 (517) 898-3600 Sunday Worship: 8:45am Sunday Bible Study: 10:15am Sunday Evening: Small Group Wednesday Bible Study: 7:00pm www.greaterlansingcoc.org

EDITORIAL STAFF (517) 432-3070

Weekly Bibly Studies & Students’ Meetings. littleflock.msu@gmail.com littleflock@hotmail.com www.littleflock.org

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News Black transgender activists host talk on racism, transphobia Well-known transgender activist CeCe McDonald was the keynote speaker for #BlackTransLivesMatter, an event hosted by various student organizations Detroit resident Racquelle Trammell speaks about her experiences Monday during the #BlackTrans LivesMatter program.

The board of black transgender women shared stories of their struggles with violence.

BY RAY WILBUR RWILBUR@STATENEWS.COM

PHOTO: KENNEDY THATCH

BY MARIA BRAGANINI MBRAGANINI@STATENEWS.COM

On a Saturday night in June 2011, CeCe McDonald was attacked by a racist, transphobic mob while walking to the grocery store. After stabbing a person while defending herself, McDonald was sentenced to 41 months in a men’s prison for second degree manslaughter after one of her attackers died following the incident.

As a black transgender woman and LGBTQ activist, McDonald’s attack drew the attention of many, inspiring other activists to come together and fight for her release.

Through community activism, McDonald was released in January 2014 after serving 19 of her 41-month sentencing.

McDonald accompanied other black transgender panelists speaking toward the transgender community at MSU Monday evening in the Residential College in the Arts and Humanities Theatre.

McDonald uses her freedom to raise awareness about intersectional movements as an activist for racial justice and transgender liberation, aiming to inspire others to take action against mass incarceration.

The event was sponsored by West Circle PRIDE, the Black Student Alliance, Students United, African and African American Studies, the LBGT Resource Center, among many others.

In addition to McDonald, panelists Patricia Fly, Ahya Simone, Racquelle Trammell and Bre’ Campbell represented all black trans women, telling their stories and sharing advice.

McDonald advocated for a greater sense of community and compassion, which 4

ASMSU feeling drought of candidates in general elections

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helped her through her time in prison.

Other members on the panel spoke about transitioning, particularly in college.

“Your transition is your own, and you do it at your own pace,” Trammell said.

“You do it when you feel right, the setting doesn’t define you.”

Trammell credits her strength and strong identity in her transgender body to an ongoing transition and patience to her authentic true self.

“You don’t let anyone else write your narrative,” Trammell said.

Transitioning in the middle of her freshmen year at Wayne State University, Ahya Simone had a different experience than many of her transgender friends.

Simone felt a lot of opposition and isolation from the general residence at Wayne State University after living in the dorms her freshman and sophomore years.

“It was very isolating at times being in the largely cis spaces and being the only open and out trans women on campus,” Simone said.

Cis, or cisgender, is defined as a type of gender identity where individuals’ match their own gender to the sex they were assigned at birth, and is something Simone has come to believe is not the standard.

Simone described the depressing and numbing feelings she received from daily transphobia and harassment at school.

As a recent December graduate, Simone said a person can never have too much self-care.

“I keep affirming people around me at all times, or as much as I can to help to minimize my exposure to transphobia and anti-blackness,” Simone said. “That WEDNESDAY, APRI L 8 , 2 01 5

has been working for me for the past few months, just to make sure I have affirming people around me as much as I can and minimize my time in spaces that are not affirming.”

Simone said loving herself has been a journey, but a rewarding one.

“Be consumed with being you, not to be cis,” Simone said. “Although passability is a safety issue, it can be a mode of safety and protection by passing as cis. I would say, be consumed with being yourself, recognize yourself and own it.”

Another panelist, Campbell, identified as a woman since age 3, advocating for knowledge in transitioning.

“I’m a firm believer that it’s one thing to want to transition, but it’s another thing to actually do it and to make sure that you have all of the right information in front of you so you make the most informed decision with your transition,” Campbell said.

Campbell said she believes transitioning is a growing and learning experience, unassociated with her physical body.

“A lot of times we stumble into it thinking it’s going to look one way, but it turns it ends up being the opposite of what we envision it to be,” Campbell said.

Focusing on providing support to future transgender generations and using her “transcestors” as inspiration for beginning the transgender acceptance movement, McDonald advocated for a collective movement including all races and genders.

“We have to think about the things we need to leave for them, and the things we want to leave for them,” McDonald said. “Because they’re going to carry the torch.”

ASMSU student representative elections are this week. But of the 34 total seats that can be filled by college representatives in ASMSU’s general assembly, currently there are only 15 candidates running for a college representative position.

In 2013 The State News reported 9.2 percent voter turnout, which equaled 2,636 voters out of 28,628 eligible students. While engaging students to vote is an real issue, the problem closer at hand, representatives said, is candidacy turnout.

The college representatives that MSU students vote for are the people who elect the office of the president, which consists of six vice presidents and one president.

If a respective college has open seats that need to be filled, there is an appointment process that takes multiple weeks. During that time the college will miss the vote from that seat.

“That’s an issue because the colleges that don’t usually have as many votes or people running for seats aren’t going to be represented as well by the office of the president,” ASMSU James Madison College representative Wyatt Ludman said.

In order to be considered a candidate to represent one’s respective college, the hopeful candidate must obtain 25 signatures from MSU students, which is meant to engage students who would otherwise neglect elections.

Then, the candidate must achieve a minimum of 25 votes in order to win, and if it is a competitive seat, candidates must acquire the minimum of 25 and any more that are required to win.

Certain members of ASMSU, such as College of Social Science representative Evan Schrage, believe getting 25 votes on top of 25 signatures is arbitrary and superfluous, and doesn’t really engage more students, instead deterring them from running.

“It’s rather unfortunate to think you have the 25 signatures, and then come up short with 24 votes,” Shrage said.

Shrage introduced a bill this year that would have eliminated the 25-vote minimum, but the bill eventually failed in a general assembly vote last week after a long discussion.

Members who opposed the bill reasoned that getting the 25 signatures and votes engages students, and that taking away the minimum would allow candidates to be “lazy,” said Kathryn Mass, ASMSU vice president for internal administration.

Shrage and others believe that eliminating the 25-vote minimum would not create laziness, and instead would just make ASMSU elections like every other political election in the country – the candidate with the most votes wins.

For now, ASMSU officials said they need students to vote, because no matter what the election code says, representatives are in their positions to represent MSU students, and if students feel they aren’t, they have the ability to change that.

ASMSU’s junior class council is hosting a cookout 4:30 p.m. Thursday at the rock on Farm Lane.

Students can eat free Conrad’s College Town Grill, Leo’s Coney Island, win prizes and vote for ASMSU representatives.

Olivia Dimmer and Simon Schuster Trends and issues editor Breaking news editor campus@statenews.com @thesnews

Jewish community honors struggle, celebrates survival at Passover Students and community members join for a Passover supper Friday at the Lester and Jewell Morris Hillel Jewish Student Center, 360 Charles St. in East Lansing.

BY CAMERON MACKO CMACKO@STATENEWS.COM

The Jewish people have faced a diaspora, the widespread f light f rom their historic homeland due to religious and ethnic persecution, for more than two millennia. For that reason, some Jews who celebrate Passover outside of Israel celebrate one of the most important holidays in the religious calendar for eight days, one more than Jews in Israel.

Students and community members gathered for a Passover Seder on Friday and Saturday nights at the Lester and Jewell Morris Hillel Jewish Student Center to mark the celebration of Passover.

Passover began at sundown on Friday and is traditionally marked by a Passover Seder, a meal commemorating the Exodus of the Jewish people from Egypt.

T he ter m “passover ” or “pesac h” in Hebrew designates the final of the 10 plagues of Egypt, where the Israelites were instructed by God to mark the doorposts of their homes with the blood of a slaughtered lamb so God would know to “pass over” the Israelites and not slaughter their firstborns as he did the firstborns of the Egyptians.

“The main part about Passover is we want to tell the story and we want to celebrate our freedom,” said Justin Polk, program associate for Hillel.

All food at the celebration was kosher, a specific way of

PHOTO: ALICE KOLE

preparing food in a Jewish setting, and no outside food was allowed in the building because it had been cleansed for the holiday.

Each item of food held some symbolic significance to the story of the Exodus and a number of Hebrew prayers

and stories from the Torah were read. All of these were contained in a “Haggadah,” a Hebrew word meaning “telling” and “by reading the Haggadah we are observing the biblical commandment to tell the story of the Exodus from Egypt,” according to a

handout given to those at the Seder.

Hillel held two Seders over the weekend and Polk, who helped lead the Seder, said they wanted to give people a place where they could celebrate the holiday. At one point a student from New York

who couldn’t make it home over the weekend personally thanked him for the opportunity to be there.

“This Seder that we do here, it’s for us to allow the students to be able to celebrate the holiday and it’s really important for us to keep our doors open,”

Polk said.

The Seder ended with this phrase of both literal and figurative meanings, symbolizing both the diaspora and the hope to be together again the next year: “L’shanah haba’ah b’yerushalayim,” or, “Next year in Jerusalem.”

Undocumented students focus for policy changes

BY CAMERON MACKO CMACKO@STATENEWS.COM

One question took Joel Maurer, the assistant dean of admissions for the College of Human Medicine, by surprise at a college admissions talk back in 2013, and it’s something he still ponders today.

“Does your medical school consider applications from undocumented students?”

At the Steering Committee meeting Tuesday afternoon, Maurer spoke on this issue to begin a dialogue at an institutional level.

“It had never really crossed my mind that in higher education that there were colleges and universities that were actively educating non-citizens of this country, yet were liv-

ing here (and) were raised here in this country,” Maurer said.

He said he wasn’t sure where to begin after he spent a great deal of time educating himself on this issue but he recognized this wasn’t something individual colleges could handle on their own. It had to be dealt with at a university level.

Maurer studied the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, an executive program spearheaded by the Obama administration after the failure to pass the DREAM Act. DACA states undocumented immigrants who arrive in America before they turn 16 can apply for a two-year renewable work permit and an exemption from deportation.

Eight universities in Michigan are considered

DACA-friendly, according to a report titled “DREAMers of Medicine,” put out by MSU’s Center for Ethics and Humanities in the Life Sciences. Three more universities offer in-state tuition to undocumented residents who meet Michigan residency requirements.

MSU isn’t on either of those lists. In Michigan alone, there is estimated to be about 15,000 who could qualify or are already enrolled for DACA, Maurer said.

Maurer said one of the biggest challenges undocumented students face is that it becomes incredibly difficult to pay for school and especially to receive student aid.

He also brought up the issue of students not knowing they weren’t residents because they were brought here at such a young age. June WE DNE S DAY, AP RI L 8 , 2 01 5

Youatt, MSU provost and executive vice president for academic affairs, also commented on this.

“We‘ve actually had students who didn’t know they were undocumented until they applied for financial aid,” she said.

The Steering Committee took no immediate action Tuesday, but did recognize this as an important issue to be discussed later, probably at a meeting in August.

Maurer said he and the College of Human Medicine would lend its help if the university decided to act to help students who could potentially be contributing members of society, asking “how can we start to limit those inherent obstacles so that their dreams can come true?”

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Spotlight

This story is a continuation of last week’s spotlight: ‘Where does MSU get its food?’

Campus facilities compost waste from dining halls into fresh soil

Cayden Bunnell, MSU Surplus Store employee in the post consumer organic recovery program, shovels compost Tuesday while at work at the MSU Surplus Store and Recycling Center. Bunnell says this is his dream job, because it allows him to be outside all the time. PHOTO: ERIN HAMPTON

It’s a continuous cycle. The Student Organic Farm grows crops that are harvested for the dining halls.

Then the waste from those meals is composted and turned into fertilizer for the next batch of crops

“We see compostable material as one of the last great obstacle to having zero waste on campus.”

Cayden Bunnell, compost manager for the MSU Surplus Store 6

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BY RACHEL FRADETTE RFRADETTE@STATENEWS.COM

John Biernbaum’s connection to the Student Organic Farm is deeply rooted.

In fact, he was the one to plant the first seeds in the farmland.

For Biernbaum, a co-founder of the farm, it’s difficult to look at the farm without a sense of nostalgia for where he once was.

The horticulture professor was a part of the original team who established the farm in 2002.

The farm regularly sells its products to main dining halls on campus, including Brody Square, Heritage Commons at Landon, The WEDNESDAY, APRI L 8 , 2 01 5

Vista at Shaw and The Gallery between Snyder and Phillips halls. They also work with MSU food stores, like the Eat at State On-The-Go food truck and Kellogg Center.

The farm’s success as a producer was met with a nearly complete food cycle, but the massive amounts of food waste produced by MSU dining halls left the cycle inconsistent.

A composting system was introduced at the farm in 2010, which changed the system just enough to make the farm a full-fledged resource stream.

Teaching the future leaders of environmental impact about the importance of a closed, consistent food cycle has become their major focus, Biernbaum said.

COMPOSTING Every system has a starting point. For the farm’s composting system, it starts in dining hall kitchen prep.

While the farm’s primary concentration is raising the produce used in the MSU dining halls and sold on the market, composting education also has gained traction in recent years.

Starting in fall 2011, the farm began to receive several tons of pre-consumed food from the Brody Square to help jump start the composting.

That level of production increase could become daunting for a medium-sized farm, but Biernbaum said the larger production was met with equally hard work.

Anya Rath Managing editor arath@statenews.com @thesnews

“At different scales you need different solu- WTHE PROCESS Proceed with caution when walking past the tions or different options,” Biernbaum said.

He said when they measured the scraps from hot composting pile on the farm.

The stench from the compost juices is nearly Brody Square for the first time three years ago, there was about 100,000 pounds, or 50 tons, unbearable, particularly when the pile is rotated to mix old material with the new. of pre-consumed kitchen scraps.

The hot composting, which breaks down food The kitchen scraps were measured and accucompletely naturally with its own heat, takes mulated over the course of one year.

Composting has gone from a virtually care of certain processes before it even reachunknown movement to a common resource es worm composting.

Worm composting, known throughout the past few as ver micomposting, is years, especially on MSU’s exactly what it sounds like campus.

— worms break down the Both the Student Organfood material, scraps and ic Farm and MSU Surplus produce cultivated soil.

Store have their own comThe only worm type used posting systems. The Stuin the farm’s composting dent Organic Farm composts are the red wiggler worms pre-consumed food while the that came from Biernbaum’s MSU Surplus store composts own home, the manure post-consumer food. piles from his horses.

Pre-consumed food conTons of pre-consumer food collected at Brody Square The worms reproduced sists of the food that is over the course of a year throughout the years, growthrown away during kitching in numbers, to get to en preparation or before it their current population in reaches the consumer, such as pineapple tops, rotten potatoes and mel- the compost.

After the worms work their way through on rinds.

The post-consumed food is different because the material, the soil is eventually ready to it goes through the consumer part of the cycle, be used.

The finished soil product is sent out and sold so the uneaten pieces are then composted.

“Part of the concept for us is turning it more through the MSU Surplus Store and Recycling from a waste stream into a resource stream, Center as well as used for the future produce.

It is a fascinating process considering where that aspect of how to use the materials in the end and creating quality compost,” said Brooke the material first starts, Comer said.

The MSU Surplus Store and Recycling Center Comer, a horticulture doctoral student and has a different approach to the same system. research assistant at the farm.

50

Pre-consumed food is taken care of on the farm, but steps for composting post-consumer material such as apple cores, banana peels and paper towel are starting to be taken.

The Surplus Store began their own compost pile and hopes to one day have a bigger audience of post-consumer material through progression.

One of the largest student locations on campus, the Main Library, is now a partner with the store through a pilot program, according to Cayden Bunnell, their compost manager.

As a partner, the Main Library supplies its own post-consumer food material to the store for it to be composted.

“We see compostable material as one of the last great obstacles to having zero waste on campus,” Bunnell said FROM LOCAL TO GLOBAL IMPACT MSU’s agricultural roots have a significant affect on environmental innovation and risk.

“We are the original land-grant university in the nation, and I think we need to remember that and continue moving forward with that in mind as school that was originally built to teach people how to raise their own food,” Stawara said.

Broadening student experiences and research within agriculture develops their hands-on work that can help promote organic farming on a larger scale.

It is an investment into the research done at the farm and could eventually be a part of every dining hall’s agenda, Biernbaum said.

Each year as the composting program evolves and grows, it becomes easier to incorporate

“Part of the concept for us is turning it more from a waste stream into a resource stream, that aspect of how to use the materials in the end and creating quality compost.”

Brooke Comer, research assistant at the Student Organic Farm

other participants in the cycle. For instance, the other dining halls that are not yet a part of the system.

“It’s positive that students want to know where their food is coming from. We’re putting the care back into it,” said Carla Iansiti, the sustainability manager for Residential and Hospitality Services.

Eating clean is not just a trend, but is gaining enough attention to create larger, global impact.

MSU is small within its food system and composting, but it’s growing every day, Biernbaum said.

“How does social change come about? It’s basically one person at a time,” Biernbaum said.

ONLINE

To see a video of the process, visit statenews.com/multimedia

Fruit and vegetable waste is moved to start the heat compost process March 26 to eventually produce rich soil to harvest crops in at the Student Organic Farm. PHOTO: ALLYSON TELGENHOF

WE DNE S DAY, AP RI L 8 , 2 01 5

TH E STATE N E WS

7

Crossword

L.A. Times Daily Puzzle Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Lewis

News

HUMANS OF EAST LANSING

BY SERGIO MARTÍNEZ-BELTRÁN, PHOTO: KELSEY FELDPAUSCH

ACROSS

1 Victorian 5 Like much 67-Down 10 Bay of Bengal setting 14 Extinct pigeon relative 15 First name in puppetry 16 __ jar: lab glass 17 Hold banned in amateur wrestling 19 Take one’s leave 20 Make sure of 21 Stretched to the max 23 Reggae cousin 24 Premier League athlete 28 Apply gently 31 CBS-owned cable sta.

32 Pond gunk 33 Prefix with footprint 34 Pulls down 37 Winter pick-me-up?

40 Innocents 44 Mite-sized 45 “Tut-tut!”

46 Actress Tyler 47 Important stretches 50 Beef cut 51 Maple syrup source 52 Influential teams 57 Louisville Slugger wood 58 Comfy footwear 59 Jewish scholar 63 Swindle

65 April golf tournament, four of whose winners appear in 17-, 24-, 40and 52-Across 68 Movie plantation 69 Sea-born jewelry material 70 “Right now!”

71 Song and dance 72 Urgency 73 Snoopy

DOWN

1 Sharable digital docs 2 Libertine 3 Onetime Palin collaborator 4 Feathers one’s nest, in a way 5 Full of: Suff.

6 Gp. with Sharks and Penguins 7 Decorator’s asset 8 Cheering like crazy 9 Hangers in lockers?

10 Justice Fortas 11 Figures in 9-Down 12 “Very nice!”

13 A proposal may ultimately lead to one 18 Lasso loops 22 Dr. Mom’s forte 25 Spiced tea brewed in milk 26 Toe woes

27 Mustang, for one 28 Chapter 11 factor 29 Berry in faddish supplements 30 Star of a classic sitcom set at a Vermont inn 35 Imprecise degree 36 Like provolone piccante 38 1998 Sarah McLachlan ballad 39 Initial request for an answer?

41 Brontë heroine 42 German actor Jannings 43 Some outdoor grills 48 Slot machine part 49 __ tape 52 Macaroni Grill selection 53 Acting honor 54 Golfer Lorena 55 AOLers, e.g.

56 “Paradise Lost” figure 60 Spanish smooch 61 Lingerie catalog buys 62 Car trip game 64 Some advanced degs.

66 Floor pad 67 Part of IPA

Jeff Reava and daughter Abigail Reava Fact: Reava is a Grand Rapids resident and 1994 MSU Alumnus

“I told my daughter that (her mother and I) met volunteering at a hospital, but the reality was, I met her DJing at a house party over in Lansing and I proposed to her that night. ... She didn’t say yes. It took awhile. It took a couple of years, but eventually she said yes ... I saw her and that was it.”

Get the solutions at statenews.com/puzzles Level: 1

2

3

4

Complete the grid so each row, column and 3-by-3 box (in bold borders) contains every digit, 1 to 9. For strategies on how to solve Sudoku, visit www.sudoku.org.uk SOLUTION TO TUESDAY’S PUZZLE

4/8/15

8

© 2015 The Mepham Group. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency. All rights reserved.

THE STATE N E WS

WEDNESDAY, APRI L 8 , 2 01 5

Bus rapid transit project presented to City Council Capital Area Transportation Authority is continuing to make progress on its plan for the Bus Rapid Transit program, initially proposed in March last year.

The BRT program would replace the current 1 line bus running from Okemos to downtown Lansing and makes several stops along MSU’s campus. CATA is considering using newer articulated buses for the route.

Debbie Alexander, CATA’s assistant executive director and rapid transit project manager, detailed the environmental assessment review CATA has been working on since September of last year in a presentation to East Lansing City Council last week.

The environmental impacts that would come with dedicating two lanes of traffic exclu-

sively for buses include loss of sidewalk space, pollution, traffic congestion and changes to historic properties. CATA is developing a document for the traffic model based on the results of the environmental assessment and is expecting to publish it later this spring.

CATA is still receiving funding for the program and expects to have environmental clearance by the end of the year. Construction is expected to begin sometime in 2016 with the program implemented as early as 2017.

Tim Dempsey, East Lansing’s Director, Department of Planning, Building, and Development said a public hearing is expected to take place in September or October regarding the potential options for BRT construction.

— AJ Moser

Meng Long Li, alumnus accused of assault, offered plea deal in retrial A plea deal of has been offered by the prosecuting attorney in the case of MSU alumnus Meng Long Li, who is currently facing charges for his alleged involvement in the assault of former MSU student Yan Li at a Meridian Township karaoke club on Jan. 31, 2014.

Li received an offer to reduce his charge to a one-year misdemeanor of aggravated assault.

If he accept the charge, Li will only face up to one year in jail, instead of the 10 years that accompanies his current felony.

On Feb. 5, 2015, Shan Gao, another alleged attacker in the case, was found not guilty, while the jury remained hung on the decision of Li. That is, until Tuesday afternoon — when the plea bargain was offered by Ingham County Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Kimberly Hesse in a pretrial at Ingham County Circuit Court.

Li has until his next and final pretrial April 28 at 2 p.m. to accept the deal. After that, the court will not recognize any plea deal.

Li’s final court date is currently set for May 26.

— Ryan Squanda

Features

Casey Holland Features editor features@statenews.com @sn_features

MSU senior teams up with her uncle to release first EP Advertising senior Sarah Brunner has been playing guitar since she was in high school and has since released her self-titled EP album on iTunes. So far, the response from fans has been encouraging Advertising senior Sarah Brunner performs at The Craftsmam Chop Company in Portage, Michigan.

BY LAUREN OWINGS LOWINGS@STATENEWS.COM

Since she was 15, advertising senior Sarah Brunner has been singing and playing guitar.

In the past month, she has taken one huge step closer to her dream with a newly released extended play on iTunes.

Brunner said she has always been interested in music, but her passion peaked in high school when she joined choir and was introduced to some people who played guitar.

She said her high school friends were the ones who got her to pursue music more, and as a senior at MSU, Brunner continues to work at becoming a better musician.

Brunner said she practices whenever she has even a little bit of free time. For her, balancing school and music isn’t a problem.

“I basically have to understand that school is coming first, which it does a majority of the time,” Brunner said.

She said the idea to create an EP came from her uncle, whom is always offering to produce music for her.

Last summer Brunner finally took the opportunity to write and produce an EP. “I took it as a small project,” Brunner said, “I’ve written and recorded music in the past, but this is the first time I’ve taken it to places like iTunes and Spotify.”

She said this is the biggest step she’s taken toward getting her music known.

“It feels good to put a piece of music out there and tell people to listen to it and this is the final thing. It’s really exciting,” Brunner said.

So far, she said the EP has gotten really good responses, not just from her family and friends but also from people she meets when performing.

Brunner said an interesting fact about this EP is that all of the main vocals are live.

“I did that on purpose. It’s an artistic deci-

PHOTO COURTESY OF MANDI FU

sion to do so,” Brunner said.

She said the biggest challenge she faced while producing the EP was deciding which out of three or four takes per song sounded the best. Her goal, she said, was to keep it sounding like the audience was listening to the music in person.

Brunner said her music is a combination of pop and folk music.

MSU alumnus creates new “anti-gravity” phone case

BY KARAM HADID KHADID@STATENEWS.COM

While she ordinarily uses solely a guitar and her voice, this EP includes other instruments such as drums and violins.

“I think the musicality on this EP is nice to listen to. It’s very rich,” Brunner said.

For the future, Brunner said she would eventually like to be in a band or working with other people in some way. “ I t h i n k t h at ’s t he w ay to le a r n ,”

BY KARAM HADID KHADID@STATENEWS.COM

Nearly 17 years after MSU alumnus Carl Winans graduated, he has become the CEO of his own company, Mega Tiny Corporation, and has created a new product — the Zero G iPhone case.

“I’ve been fascinated with mobile products since 2007, when I got my first iPhone,” Winans said. “I was looking for ways to do more with my phone and see how a mobile accessory can help.”

The new iPhone case has a unique nano-suction material on the back of it, allowing it to stick to nearly any smooth, flat surface.

This helps users take hands-free pictures, and watch videos easier without having to hold the phone.

Wannie Park is a co-founder of Mega Tiny Corp. and has worked with Winans

Brunner said.

When she graduates in May, Brunner is moving to Seattle and aims to get a job with her advertising degree.

But she said she’s not planning on giving up her pursuit of music.

“Hopefully I’ll meet a solid group of people where I can start to produce more and get better,” Brunner said.

for years.

He said he is especially excited for this product because of its ability to add value to the iPhone.

“We thought of what we could do to accessorize and bring value to iPhones, and we came up with this thing,” Park said.

The idea came when Winans came across a material like this, and he would stick it to his phone every day. After some time, it clicked that this material should be on the back of his phone all the time.

Winans searched for manufacturers of the material and found one in Japan.

After receiving samples, he began testing the product, and his phone began receiving some attention from co-workers and friends.

“It became really useful. People from the office began asking, ‘Where’d you get one?

I’d like one,’” he said.

Winans’ time at MSU certainly helped WE DNE S DAY, AP RI L 8 , 2 01 5

him get to where he is today. He said spending five and a half years at the university and bouncing around in his studies, he learned how to be an entrepreneur at a young age.

However, the phone case was not his first rodeo when it came to designing and coming up with creative ideas.

While living in Brody Neighborhood, Winans had a T-shirt press machine and would sell shirts to people all across campus.

Additionally, he began designing things primarily in East Lansing, creating fliers for events at Rick’s American Cafe and other bars.

The iPhone case is currently on Kickstarter, where the public can back the product and essentially pre-order the case.

The goal is set at $25,000 and would cover manufacturing costs, set-up costs, shipping and other fees.

TH E STATE N E WS

9

Sports Men’s golf looks to improve at event in Ohio

What position will Tony Lippett play in the NFL?

This weekend the men’s golf team will be in Columbus, Ohio for the Robert Kepler Intercollegiate.

The event will last all day Saturday and Sunday and will be held at the Ohio State University Scarlet Golf Club.

The team will most likely be looking to improve from their most recent event, The Talis Park Challenge which was held in Naples, Florida March 15- 16. They finished in seventh place, tied with Xavier University.

This was a huge drop from the previous event, the Colleton River Collegiate which was held in Bluffton, South Carolina on March 9 and 10.

The team, as a whole, finished in third place with a 19-over par 883 (290-295-298). They lost to Tennessee, which took first place, and Miami (Ohio) which took second.

Sophomore Sam Weatherhead won the Colleton River Collegiate though, which made him the second Spartan in a row to take the title.

After this weekend, the team won’t have much time to rest as they’re expected in New Haven, Connecticut April 18-19 for the Yale Spring Invitational.

Last year they were in West Lafayette, Indiana, for the Boilermaker Invitational where they tied for eighth place on the first day of the tournament.

After the Yale Spring Invitational they will look forward to the Big Ten championships which will last from April 24 through April 26.

—KAYLA CLARKE

421 E.Grand River

Congratulations Coach Izzo & team on a great season!

SBS has all your Green & White needs 351-4210

10

www.sbsmsu.com

THE STATE N E WS

Senior wide receiver Tony Lippett talks to sophomore running back Delton Williams during a timeout Oct. 25, 2014, during the game against Michigan at Spartan Stadium. STATE NEWS FILE PHOTO

BY MATTHEW ARGILLANDER MARGILLANDER@ STATENEWS.COM

With the NFL draft beginning at the end of the month, the final push for prospects hoping to get drafted is fast approaching. One of those prospects is former MSU wide receiver Tony Lippett.

Coming off of a senior season in which Lippett caught 65 passes for 1,198 yards and 11 touchdowns, it’s safe to assume there would be buzz surrounding the recent Big Ten Wide Receiver of the Year’s name on the offensive side of the ball.

With only a 4.61 40 yard dash, 10 reps on the bench press and a 36.0 inch vertical jump, none of his combine numbers stand out enough to suggest that his future lies at wide receiver.

It is the fact that Lippett’s finished his final season at MSU as a starting wide receiv-

WEDNESDAY, APRI L 8 , 2 01 5

er and cornerback that has created some intrigue surrounding his name.

At 6 feet 3 inches, Lippett has the size to be effective on both sides of the ball. His deep-coverage skills were evident in his limited time on defense last season. If Lippett was beat it was almost certainly not deep.

“He’s not going to get beat deep because he’s got two or three inches on most people, very long arms and he’s got great deep ball judgement,” head coach Mark Dantonio said. “I would equate that with (Darqueze Dennard’s ability) and the only other guy, maybe, because he was a wideout is Chris Gamble, who we converted when I was at Ohio State.”

It is his versatility that Lippett hopes will get his name called in the draft. He has the skills to be a productive wide receiver, even without eye-popping combine num-

bers, yet he also has the tools to be a NFL cornerback.

“I can fill the void on the offense or the defense for any team. I just try to embrace it and have fun with it. A lot of teams like me at (cornerback), a lot of teams like me at receiver.”

Tony Lippett Former MSU wide receiver

Lippett’s ability to provide depth at two positions makes him valuable.

“I can fill the void on the offense or the defense for any team. I just try to embrace it and have fun with it,” Lippett said. “A lot of teams like me as a (cornerback), a lot of teams like me as a wide receiver its kind of 50-50.”

Dantonio said he believes most teams already have a feel for what Lippett can do as a wide receiver and when he’s been asked about his former player it was mostly for the defensive side of the ball.

“When there’s things that are unknown, I think, at this day and age there’s very few of those (instances),” Dantonio said. “There’s very few of those diamonds in the rough, so people are starting to say, ‘Hey he may be (one).’”

With Lippett’s less than stellar NFL Combine, he is not considered to be a high draft pick.

Many mock drafts having him going somewhere between the third and fourth round, with others dropping him to the fifth round.

Geoff Preston Sports editor sports@statenews.com @thesnews_sports

Remembering Princess Lacey one year later

BY MATTHEW ARGILLANDER MARGILLANDER@ STATENEWS.COM

In honor of Spartan superfan Lacey Holsworth, the 8-yearold little girl who touched the heart of a nation with her relationship with former MSU basketball star and current Minnesota Timberwolves player Adreian Payne, students will gather April 8 to paint the rock on Farm Lane one year after she lost her unfortunate battle with cancer.

Last year hundreds of students, including head basketball coach Tom Izzo and many members of the team, gathered to acknowledge the passing of the little girl whose story exploded and became a national story during last year’s NCA A men’s basketball tournament. “ P r i nce s s L ace y ” m ade national headlines for her f r ie nd sh ip w it h A d r eia n Payne . She often referred to the 6-foot-10-inch standout as her “big brother.”

Lacey was able to travel to games with Payne and the

basketball team. The team said they were able to draw strength from her strength last season.

Last year the rock read “MSU loves Princess Lacey” and ‘Love Like Lacey’ across the bottom. Hundreds of students left messages on the rock.

T he students who came to paint and sign the rock stood in silence for most of the night, the crowd started small but continued to grow throughout the night until it was in the hundreds.

At last year’s rock painting, Izzo elaborated on her last moments according to her father and spoke about how proud of the students he was.

After traveling with Payne to Dallas, Holsworth came back and told her father that she was tired and it was time to go home.

“She came back and said ‘Dad, I’m tired it’s time to go home,’” Izzo said in a previous report. “Now she’s home … In 30 years, I’ve never been prouder of a group of students than I am now.”

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Then Senior forward Adreian Payne holds St. Johns, Michigan, resident Lacey Holsworth, 8, and head coach Tom Izzo’s son Steven Izzo, left, March 16, 2014, after the game against Michigan at the Big Ten Championship at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.

PHOTO: ERIN HAMPTON

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Employment HANDYMAN: OKEMOS area. General maintenance work around the house, landscape and yard work.

Must have reliable transportation. Contact mbtsang@ hotmail.com HELP WANTED Williamston Horse Farm. Weekends, $10/hour, about 8 hours a weekend. Please contact 517-449-0983 LANDSCAPE SERVICES department at MSU Infrastructure Planning and Facilities seeks highly motivated employees to assist in the maintenance of campus. Please come to IPF Landscape Services at 1060 Stadium Rd East Lansing, MI to fill out an application or send a resume to landscapeservices@ipf.msu.edu

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Employment

Apts. For Rent

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The JNL Child Development Center in Okemos is looking for both full and part time support staff, lead and assistant teachers to work with children from 6 weeks through 5 years old.

Qualified applicants must have a passion for working with young children, an energetic, positive and playful personality and be available to work some or all weeknights until 7pm.

Please send resume to cmurphy@cclc.com and we will contact qualified applicants for an interview.

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G L E N W O O D APARTMENTS – 2 & 3 Bdrms. Available August.

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WATERBURY PLACEgorgeous, newer, highly sought after, 3 Bdrm. 3 bath available August due to a cancellation. 517-833-9064.

Duplexes/Rent

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Lansing, MI 48910

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Sports

Baseball team beginning to come alive following a sweep of Oregon The baseball team is now above .500 following their sweep of the then No. 23 Oregon

BY MATTHEW ARGILLANDER MARGILLANDER@STATENEWS.COM

After a slow start to the season, the baseball team (15-14 overall, 2-4 Big Ten) seems to have finally kicked it into gear. The team had its best weekend of the season in a three-game sweep of the then-No. 23 Oregon Ducks.

“It was a shorter trip home than they usually are, coming off of a sweep. The bus is a fun bus after you win,” head coach Jake Boss Jr. said. “Logistically, it’s not an easy trip, but when you go out and play well it certainly makes things a lot better.”

The team had a mid-week tune up with Eastern Michigan last Wednesday before it traveled out west.

Looking to gain some confidence before the trip to Eugene, Oregon, the Spartans were looking for a win over their in-state foe.

However, the Eagles rose to the occasion in a 10-5 win over the Spartans. The game was not the confidence booster the team needed heading into the weekend.

Despite not taking advantage of the opportunity to get back in the win the team traveled out west and made a statement against a ranked team.

The team opened the three-game set with a 2-1 win in 11 innings. The Spartans tied it up at 1-1 in the eighth before taking their first and final lead of the game in the 11th.

The second game of the series, a 9-4 win for MSU, brought the team to .500 again at 14-14.

The team trailed the game 2-0 before tying it up in the third and ultimately taking the lead for good with a four-run fifth inning.

The third and final game of the series, a 7-4 win over the Ducks, completed the sweep for the Spartans. MSU opened the game up with a four-run first inning and never trailed after

Sophomore pitcher Walter Borkovich throws a pitch during the game against Central March 24 at McLane Stadium at Kobs Field. It was the Spartans first home game of the season and they defeated the Chippewas, 8-3. PHOTO: ALLYSON TELGENHOF

jumping on Oregon early.

Boss has been looking for the team to find some offensive consistency all season and after putting five or more runs in five of the last six games the team seems to of done just that.

“Consistency is something that I think was the big question going into the year, we’ll see what happens this week but hopefully we’ve kind of turned a corner,” Boss said. “I think

Poor pitching contributing to lackluster softball season

BY TROY JEFFERSON TJEFFERSON@STATENEWS.COM

12

THE STATE N E WS

offensively we’ve swung it really well over the last two weeks which has been good to see.”

The team will play Western Michigan on Wednesday before taking a break from regular-season play to square off against the Lansing Lugnuts, the Class A Toronto Blue Jays minor league affiliate, in the annual Crosstown Showdown.

The team will round out the week with a

Another weekend of poor pitching has sunk the softball team into the basement of the Big Ten standings.

En route to being swept, MSU (16-20 overall, 1-8 Big Ten) allowed 33 runs against Rutgers (19-9 overall, 7-2 Big Ten) this weekend.

The low point for the pitching staff came Saturday afternoon, when the Spartans gave up 22 runs and squandered a 17-9 lead in the span of two innings, resulting in a 22-17 loss.

The 22 runs allowed were the most in program history and overshadowed an excellent hitting display by the Spartans in the fourth inning, During the fourth they set another program record for most runs scored in an inning by scoring 16.

Even pitchers who had success early

WEDNESDAY, APRI L 8 , 2 01 5

three-game series against Northwestern (8-22 overall, 2-4 Big Ten) over the weekend.

Boss said it is important to the team to play well in games against Western Michigan and the other in-state opponents because they want to be “state champs.”

“There’s good baseball in the state with the teams in the MAC, with Oakland University (and) with Michigan,” Boss said.

on in the season such as redshirt freshman Kristina Zalewski, whose ERA at one point was 0.56, are struggling to find a rhythm currently. “(Zalewski) isn’t in a good place right now, and (sophomore Valerie Kaff) isn’t in a good place right now,” head coach Jacquie Joseph said. “They’ll be the first ones to tell you that.”

Kaff has given up 13 earned runs in her last three appearances and Zalewski isn’t far behind with 12 earned runs over the same period.

On the season, the Spartans are allowing 5.01 runs per game, which is good for the middle of the pack in the conference.

MSU’s lack of quality pitching is exaggerated by an offense that has scored the third fewest runs in the conference.

“We scored enough runs to win at least

two games,” Joseph said about the series against Rutgers. “We’re scoring enough runs to win. We got to sure up some things a little bit.”

MSU’s staff may get a little bit of a reprieve when Toledo (12-22 overall, 0-6 MAC) comes to town. The Rockets average a little over four runs per game and hit at a pedestrian .281 clip.

“The players are playing extremely hard. They’re in the battle. They’re in the fight,” Joseph said. “I hope that we can come out and put a good effort in three categories together.”

The Spartans will take on Toledo in East Lansing during a one game matchup 4 p.m. Wednesday.

Toledo is on a six-game losing streak and is averaging three runs per game over their last three contests.