It's Spring - Refresh & Get Woke!

TALON

ISSUE 103

Students attending a game (Lia McLoughlin, Kayvonna Renee, Tenka Stringer, Breonne Maltbia, and Charisma Davis) by Marlon Jones

INSIDE FEATURE

P 6 GLOBAL WARMING | P 8 ECOSIA| P 10 THE STRUGGLE

LIFESTYLE

P 26 CAFE THIEVES | P 28 BLACK FRIDAY | P 30 HYPERLOOP | P 32 DRIPPING IN GOLD

SPORTS P 36 KICKING AWAY CANCER | P 39 HITTING THE ‘MARC’| P 40 NIKE DREAMS | P 42 NEW FACE ON CAMPUS

Check out talon360 on issuu.com to see all of our published content! If you have a story, poem, etc to contribute email them to our editor! parris473881@avila.edu

CONTRIBUTORS EDITOR IN-CHIEFSAVANNAH PARRIS TAJH DOWNS ADRIAN GUZMAN SARAH DAVIS GUILHERME BERBEL MANNY HERNANDEZ MADELINE SCAVUZZO JOSH SABAJAN GEORGE HOWARD

MANAGING EDITORSARAI JORGENSON COPYING EDITORBRELANDE EDMOND SOCIAL MEDIA EDITORSARAI JORGENSON SPORTS EDITORJOSH DYSON DESIGN EDITORSAVANNAH PARRIS

INSTRUCTOR/ ADVISORDR. J ANTHONY SNORGRASS

PHOTOGRAPHERMARLON JONES

STAY CONNECTED Download the QRReader app to stay connected with the Talon. Scan our QR Codes to take you directly to our Website, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

ON THE COVER & BACK: GUILHERME BERBEL & SARAH DAVIS ISSUE 103 |

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Strong language & mature themes

AVILA UNIVERSITY THEATRE PRESENTS

Music & lyrics by William Finn Book by Rachel Sheinkin Conceived by Rebecca Feldman

Limited Seating Available!

STUDENTS FREE!

Whitfield Center at Avila University | 11901 Wornall Road | Kansas City, MO 64145

APRIL 23, 24, 25 | 7:30 p.m.

APRIL 26 | 2 p.m.

Avila.edu/Tickets

2020

Additional material by Jay Reiss; Originally directed on Broadway by James Lapine; Originally produced on Broadway by David Stone, James L. Nederlander, Barbara Whitman, Patrick Catullo, Barrington Stage Company, Second Stage Theatre The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee is presented through special arrangement with Music Theatre International (MTI). All authorized performance materials are also supplied by MTI. www.MTIShows.com

APPROVED BY STUDENT LIFE

FROM THE EDITOR 2020 is here and making itself known! There has been so much going on already and we are only two months into the new year, matter of fact, the new decade. Can you believe it? This issue is all about being woke to those things going on in the world and aound us! If you want to participate and be a part of the publication, my email is parris473881@avila.edu! We post on issuu and our social media’s!

Sincerely, Savannah Parris Editor-in-Chief

Marlon Jones, Photographer

EDITORIAL POLICY The Talon News Magazine is produced by students of Avila University. Opinions expressed are those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect those of the Talon News Staff, the Trustees, administration, faculty, or staff of the University. The Talon News Magazine encourages letters to the editor. These may be submitted electronically or in writing and should include the writer’s name, address, and telephone numbers for verification purposes. Letters can be mailed to the Talon News Magazine Editor, Avila University, 11901 Wornall Road, Kansas City, MO 64145. The Talon reserves the right to edit letters for reasons of space, clarity, or inappropriate language. Copies of the Talon News Network Operational Guidelines may be requested by writing to the above referenced address.

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GLOBAL WARMING Time to pay attention Manny Hernandez

As environmental disasters become more frequent with more severity, you begin to ask yourself why? Parts of the United States are in a state of emergency due to extreme flooding and overflowing rivers.

These past few years have been terrible due to environmental disasters. The answer? Global Warming or in a more common term “Climate Change”. Many famous people have taken action against climate change such as Leonardo Dicaprio who is very much involved in the movement against Global Warming. Just recently in an instagram post Jeff Bezos vowed to donate 10 Billion dollars to start the “ Bezos Earth Fund”. Supporting environmental activists will help the fight against Climate Change. Swedish seventeen year old Greta Thunberg has been a motivational backbone for young activists to take action. She’s travelled all over the world and given speeches in Climate Change summits. Government institutions such as NASA have evidence of Climate Change and the severity of the past years. NASA has proven that the ocean levels have been rising and have risen 8 inches in the last century. The rate of the past two decades has nearly doubled in the last century and keeps rising every year. The oceans have been warmed about 0.4 degrees since 1969. With this happening it has damaged the ocean ecosystems and pushed species to extinction. Our president does not believe

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in Climate Change and pulled the United States from the Paris climate agreement in June 2017. Donald Trump believes Climate Change is a hoax and many other Americans. There is clear evidence of climate change that has recently happened, on February 12th it snowed in Kansas City and in Antarctica reached an all time high of 65 degrees. Causing the polar ice caps to melt and thinning ice sheets. Greenland has lost an average of 286 billion tons of ice per yearly between 1993 and 2016. Antartica has lost 127 billion tons of ice per year during the same time and it has tripled in the last decade. We need to take action against climate change and take control as the youth of the world. With big motivators and people with a large following we can motivate others to take action against climate control and stop it before irreversible. Climate Change will only get worse as time goes on without taking action. Many countries have vowed to stop using fossil fuels and begin to use renewable resources and their main source of energy. The U.S. struggles with this step in society. We continue to frack soil and use fossil fuel as a source of energy and it is encouraged by President Donald Trump. Thinning the earth’s atmosphere to an extent where it will become irreversible. This will cause environmental disasters such as the California wildfires. We become woke as a society and we can manage to end climate change together.

We can have a better future for ourselves and future generations. We can fix our planet together that we all share.

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ECOSIA Let’s work together to save the planet Madeline Scavuzzo & Guilherme Berbel

Are you worried about the environment? Are you worried about our available natural resources from Earth? According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the next 18 months are going to be critical to fixing climate change. Without action the planet won’t have some of its natural resources anymore. It is because of this that we have decided to research some ways that we can help the environment in our daily life.

Alex Wissner-Gross is a Harvard University professor who conducted a study claiming that two Google searches can produce the same amount of CO2 as bringing water to a boil. The study states that a typical search through Google can generate about 7 grams of carbon dioxide. After researching better options to restore the lost CO2, we came across an app called Ecosia. Ecosia was started in 2009 after Christian Kroll traveled around the world. During his travels he began to understand the problems of deforestation, and the loss of CO2. Kroll decided to create a search engine that enables you to help the environment for free! Ecosia is available for any device you may have at home, desktop computers, laptops, and mobile via iOS and Android.

The app funds the planting of a new tree through the user’s searches. It takes roughly forty-five searches to plant one tree. Ecosia use at least 80% of its monthly

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profits to plant trees where they are needed most. By 2011 Ecosia had already won several awards for its clever concept and growth around the world. Ecosia is the first German company to become a B Corporation (certification issued to for-profit companies). By 2019 they have planted around sixty million trees around the world, and they have built their own solar energy plant to power the data of every search. According to Ecosias’ website, the search results are powered by Microsoft Bing and enhanced with Ecosias’ own algorithms.

Bing is the second largest search engine in the US, after Google. After using the app for a few months it has become our default browser by choice. We were able to notice one difference while using Ecosia as our search engine. Google gives answers to questions, quick, and right to your face. Allowing you to find your answer without looking through the results. Ecosia doesn’t do that, however, the information that Google gives you is not always trustworthy. According to Trudie Carter (Social Media Manager at Ecosia), said that “if Ecosia were as big as Google, it could absorb 15% of all global CO2 emissions! That’s enough to offset vehicle emissions worldwide.” By planting trees and using renewables, each search with Ecosia removes around 2lbs of CO2 from the air. In a few words, Ecosia is a carbon-negative search engine that is helping the environment already. The more people to start using it, the more it will help the planet.

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The struggle Students have it harder Sarah Davis

Over the last decade, a lot of things have changed in the United States education system. In particular, college students seem to be under a lot more stress now than they were thirty and forty years ago. A lot of that is due, in part, to rising costs of higher education. Other factors include rising mental illness rates among young adults, and the continuous access to technology that did not exist at the beginning of the millennia. As far as Baby Boomers are concerned, today’s students are “weak,” but in reality, they face a number of problems today that Boomers never had to think about.

In 1985, the national average cost for a college education (including room and board) was just under

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$5,000. Today, the average cost for higher education is over four times that amount, at almost $21,000 per year for public schools.

In the 80s, most students were just that – students.

They could earn enough money during summer and winter breaks to pay for school. Today, many universities suggest that a fulltime college student work no more than 20 hours per week. A recent social media poll shows that, out of 65 students, 56% work over 20 hours every week, and 23% even work a full-time job.

Aside from working an outrageous number of hours during the semester, students today are under a lot of pressure academically. With a constant access to school, technology has made it difficult to leave school behind at the end

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of the day. Of course, Baby Boomer students had to do homework, but the added pressure of that “11:59” deadline is something that they have never had to face. The need to constantly meet deadlines also makes managing a healthy work – school – life balance increasingly challenging, as a lot of college students are finding significant others, trying to build a resume, or even take a few moments for themselves to unwind.

One glaring difference between higher education today and the 1980s is mental health. Today, depression affects 36% of all college students, and anxiety plagues over 40%. These two illnesses can make work difficult.

Depression can cause apathy, fatigue, and lack

of concentration. Anxiety can also cause a lack of concentration, but also comes with racing thoughts, and a constant fear of impending doom.

With much more going on in the lives of today’s students, it is no shock that academic-related stress is higher for millennials than for boomers. College is now five times more expensive than it was in the 1980s, and most students work between at least 20 hours just to pay a chunk of tuition each year. The constant access to studies, while beneficial at times, can lead to unnecessary stress, trouble balancing life, and even depression or anxiety. Though college was not an easy task 40 years ago, it is a different monster in today’s world.

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ISSUE 103 / SPRING / 2020

Lifestyle Section

Contents

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FAMILY FIRST DAILYOM ENJOYING KC ROTTEN APPLE

PHOTO BY:

Marlon Jones WORDS FROM THE EDITOR

Be sure to follow our social media (Twitter: talonnews_avila, IG: @talon_magazine, and Facebook) to see the issues, individual stories, and events happening on campus!

Sarai Jorgenson, Social Media Editor

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FAMILY FIRST When tragedy strikes Adrian Guzman

“When tragedy hits a family, their faith is always tested. I never knew how strong my faith was in God until that very moment”, Faanimo Samana said these words to me because that is exactly what happened to her and her family. When a family’s faith is tested sometimes it can make you and break you. In her family’s case it tested them to the fullest but they overcame it. They believed that God tested them with this accident and in the end they still believe that their God is good and their Faith is stronger than ever. She had to grow up so young because while her parents stayed at the hospital with her brother, Faanimo had to raise her sister while her parents tended to their brother. It’s not easy talking about something that has hurt you deeply and affected not just you but your whole family.

“God does things for a reason. We may not like what happens, especially something as tragic as this but everything happens for a reason.” She said this with so much humbleness and such devotion that you can tell her faith never withered. In April of 2005 a tragic accident hit her family and it changed the lives of her siblings and her parents but also the one who was affected the most. Her little brother and only brother at the time who just turned one the month before.What occurred in that month is something no family is ever prepared for or in her case had to witness at such a young age. Faanimo Samana witnessed her one year old brother get run over by a SUV of a family friend.

She couldn’t move, couldn’t react, couldn’t run to him,

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and she couldn’t even scream. She just remembers seeing her mom holding his bloody body and someone pulling her inside the apartment where they lived.

The outcome of this accident was that her brother’s whole left side from head to toe was run over and smashed. The family was told he wouldn’t make it due to the loss of blood but instead he went into a coma.

The family was told he wouldn’t wake up, but he did.

The family was told he wouldn’t be able to speak, but he can. The family was told he wouldn’t be able to walk and he can. This family was told so many things would happen but they believed that with their strong faith and the power of prayer is where they succeeded. 15 years later her brother is striving in high school.

He is a sophomore in high school, he does well in his special ed classes. From what Samana has told us he is loved by everyone and he is very outspoken even though it is hard to understand his speech, he lets you know one way or another. I asked Faanimo Samana, if she has any advice or words to give to others when dealing with any type of tragedy. She said, “ I know many people do not believe in a God and I know sometimes people will lose their faith because they are hurting. But from experience watching how my family came together and depended on one another to get through it. That is where it matters the most, most families will point fingers at each other because they need someone to blame. Not realizing it’s not always someone’s fault. It was literally just an accident.”

As a unit it is often hard for families to come together and get through tribulations together. So what Faanimo was trying to say is that choose love and choose each other when hardships comes to you.

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DAILYOM

Helping you stay focused Madeline Scavuzzo

This past month I decided to really channel my inner chi, so I took part in a 21-Day beginner yoga challenge.

DailyOM was created by Madisyn Taylor and Scott Blum for those who wanted “a universal approach to holistic living for the mind, body, and spirit.” (DailyOM) I have always wanted to learn about yoga. When I came across DailOM I just knew it was meant to be. Yoga helps you build strength, improve balance and burn fat. This 21-Day challenge is not for those who have a hard time getting up and down. It is fast paced and flowing. There are no breaks in the sessions, however, you can build up to the full pose over the duration of the challenge. Don’t push your body to do poses that you are not ready for. DailyOM is more than just yoga. There are also daily inspirations and horoscopes. The list of inspirations is almost never ending.

You can choose a topic that you feel relates to you closely.

Some of the recent inspirations are facing problems, experiences we don’t understand, life and entering into partnership. After you choose an inspiration you will be taken to an article. A short reading to help you overcome anything you have going on. There are a couple of categories under horoscopes all leading you to courses. These courses are similar yet different to inspirations. Choose a topic that you feel closest to. I decided to do one during my yoga challenge. I picked self-improvement. It was very eye-opening and helpful once I applied it to my daily life. Now, you do have to pay for the horoscope I chose. But you can get the majority of the information and courses for free.

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DailyOM is a site that I suggest everyone try out. Ever since I started my 21-Day challenge I feel more calm and relaxed inside. I have decided to pick a daily inspiration once a week. Finding ways to help keep me focused on the road ahead.

photos by Savannah Parris

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ENJOYING KC The city with it all Manny Hernandez Avila is a melting pot of incoming students from all over the United States and around the world, also Avila is a local college for many students. Making college a very diverse place for new experiences! Kansas City is a growing city with many different areas throughout the metro, whether you like history, art, or music there is an area that fits for everyone here. Avila is not a college located in a rural area as we can see, It’s in a very vibrant city open for everyone. Food is huge in Kansas City, especially Barbeque. There are many areas that have cultural influence to try and not just focus on Barbeque. In the Kansas City river market there are multiple different restaurants with food from all over the world. At the river market there is a Brazillian restaurant, Italian, and Mexican. This one area gives you multiple choices for new experiences to try new foods. They also provide fresh produce from local farmers. Many artists come to the River Market to sell their art and homemade items.

Kansas City’s art district is an area where you can see beautiful and gives you views of downtown and enjoy the street art. This is an area where the art is free. The Art art and the District is made of murals on walls and graffiti. The Nelson Atkins Museum is another location to enjoy Art in Kansas City. This museum includes sculptures, paintings with historical value, and a massive shuttlecock in the field along with a glass maze. They provide a mini golf course for visitors at the price of $14

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photo by Savannah Parris

a person. West Bottoms is an area with events such as “ First Fridays� where the street lines up with food truckers and there are antique stores that open for the public. For many students the only time they have free time is during the night and the weekends. The night life in Kansas City is really big and a great time for college students. A place where people can relax and have time to hang out with their friends.

Westport is a place filled with an exciting night life, an area where you can meet all kinds of different people including college students from the nearby universities. This area is a very big scene for young people and to socialize. The plaza is an area filled with fountains and restaurants where people take their families to eat dinner and shop. The plaza is a big area filled with different foods for a higher price than the River Market. The Plaza is a nightly area where it is always busy. Where as the River Market is a weekend getaway for a smaller price. Giving you time in the new year to start with new experiences of Kansas City.

Fresh produce, Fresh air, and Fresh food Kansas City provides it all for you to start the new year as a Refresher. As a city always growing there is always something to do and keep you occupied through the week and weekend.

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rotten apple Iphone sued over slowed down batteries Manny Hernandez

The Iphone is very popular with a younger generation and its camera quality. Many Americans have Iphones and especially need to have the newest Iphone. The newest Iphone is the Iphone 11. Apple had all new technology and even added three camera lenses. They made huge modifications to every new Iphone including removing the audio jack and the home button to the newest iphones. Without an audiojack this would require you to buy headphones made specially made for the iphone. Including this would require you to buy an audio attachment for other headphones.There’s a small problem with every upgrade though, the old iphones seem to slow down, glitch, and seem to die faster than any other iphone. Is it a coincidence? I believe not. Many people have had conspiracies that Apple would do this on purpose and cause this to make the consumer buy the newest Iphone. From first hand experience the Iphone 5s broke and its screen would freeze, and the battery would die faster than ever. Every Iphone has three different versions for memory space. The Iphone Lawsuit turned out to be something the public had seen coming for years now. With their new updates continuing their new phone technology, older models of the phone are not made to withhold the update. Without the owner’s consent these batteries and phones would not last long soon after a new iphone had been released. In a

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sense it is a smart move from apple to keep customers buying their new phones and continuing having customers buying the newest and most expensive.

Apple offered a 30 dollar battery replacement to any iphone 6s or later model, a usual battery replacement costs 80 dollars to replace. Iphone has had many controversies behind it with people saying “ all the phones are the same, just bigger and a better camera”. Honestly, Apple has taken advantage of its consumers in a very strategic manner and without anyone really finding out. We have become sheep as Apple consumers and been forced to update our old phones to stick within societal standards. Apps such as instagram and snapchat have been made for the iphone and are programmed to work better with Iphone rather than a Samsung or Android. Everyone wants the bigger and better phone on the market when the phone they have now has no problems with it. Apple also dropped the airpods headphones, which are bluetooth and come with their own case. Even though phones from samsung have waterproof phones and have a better screen without cracking many people prefer an Iphone still considering its flaws. Iphones are considered superior in societal standards and according to Dr.J “ Works of art that are meant to form to your hand and are supposed to be shown off.” The glass back on the Iphone and different colors they provide give the phone a sense of elegance. The clarity on the camera is too good for other phones to compare and would not compete with the iphones resolution.

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FACTSTREAM Politics are boring, but..

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Guilherme Berbel It is election year once again and, as usual, politicians will try to tell us everything, not worrying about if the things they say may be true or not. They just want to win the election, and then they will worry about ‘fixing’ the country. I know what you are thinking, an international student writing about American politics. Let me tell you this, even though I am not from the U.S., the U.S. president’s election has a direct impact in my country because of the elections that happened there in 2018, and many other countries that look up to the United States as a dream becoming a true country. After living here for many years, I realize that the U.S. is not excellent. It is far from being excellent in many subjects. Starting with corruption in the government, lies during the election time, till distorted comments about each candidate. It is extremely hard to figure out who is telling the truth, and who is talking nonsense. However, I was able to find an app that will help you with this problem.FactStream is a lie-swatting, claim-debunking, fact-checking, app to stop the spread of falsehoods and politics in the U.S. In the home screen of the app, it will show you summaries of fact-check articles from partners as they are published.

In the events tab, it has live fact-checks for claims made during political events, and you have the option of receiving three different kinds of notifications or none.

FactStream brings together the work of the three largest U.S. fact-checking organizations (The Washington Post,

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PolitiFact, and FactCheck.org). The app was developed by the Duke University Reporters Lab, a project that is part of the Tech & Check Cooperative. They are still updating the app, to make it even more accurate with their ratings, and quick takes. The ratings are links to previously published fact-checks with ratings when the candidate repeats a claim that has been checked before. Quick takes are instant updates about a statement’s accuracy. They are labeled red, yellow, and green to indicate their truthfulness.

You can also search for fact-checks by a candidate’s name, subject, or keyword. And follow live fact-checks during major events, such as political debates and speeches.This is a great app for a person who is trying to stay up to date with politics, and for that person who is biased and needs more information on a candidate. I believe that by downloading this app and using it daily, you will be able to understand the political side of this country more than before.

photo by Guilherme Berbel ISSUE 103 |

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ISSUE 103 / SPRING / 2020

sPoRts section

Contents

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HOUSTON, YOU ARE THE PROBLEM ‘TIS THE SEASON

PHOTO ON THE COVER BY: Marlon Jones Glitter Girls Peyton Milstead, Deannah Herron, and Emma Davis LETTER FROM THE EDITORS

Ain’t no rewards for being real, just scars.

Josh Dyson, Sports Editor

Brelande Edmond, Managing Editor

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Houston, you ARE the problem..

Astros cheating scandal Sarah Davis

The gap between the 2019 and 2020 Major League Baseball season is not one that we will soon forget, and one that might even rival the hostility of the player strike in 1994-’95. In early November 2019, former Houston pitcher, Mike Fiers, told The Athletic news that was not all that shocking to some: The Astros had been illegally using a camera in center field to steal signs during their World Series run in 2017. Among those involved, Alex Cora and Carlos Beltran were the masterminds of the operation, as they had arranged for a camera feed from center field to be set up outside of their dugout at Minute Maid Park. Upon learning of the allegations made by Fiers, Major League Baseball launched a full investigation into the video feeds to listen for “suspicious banging” noises coming from any footage from the Astros’ home park. MLB’s investigation found that the decoding system was “player-driven,” and that not any one player played a more substantial role than another. Though he said that he could not prove “with any degree of certainty” which players had direct involvement, the investigation did conclude that a large part of blame should be placed on then bench coach Alex Cora, as well as Carlos Beltran. At the end of the investigation, there were several penalties handed down by both the league, and Astros owner,

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Jim Crane. Jeff Lunhow (General Manager) and AJ Hinch (manager) were suspended, and ultimately fired. Alex Cora (Red Sox) and Carlos Beltran (Mets) were also relieved of their duties by their respected teams. Houston was also forced to give up their first and second round picks in 2020 and 2021, and fined five million dollars. There are many people – fans and players – who disagree with the punishment handed down by MLB Commissioner, Rob Manfred. Other than Beltran, who is no longer playing, there were no player punishments being given, and the team had to “apologize” for cheating. In order to get to the bottom of the cheating scandal, Commissioner Manfred gave all the players immunity. Because of immunity, there are two things that are for certain: They uncovered all of the facts (or a good portion of them) that came to light in one of the biggest scandals in the game’s history. Rob Manfred also placed himself on many “Dunzo” lists. Players like Aroldis Chapman, Justin Turner, and Mike Trout have all spoken out against the commissioner. Last weekend, Manfred went on the defense, stating that he had to give immunity because “he could not find evidence.” There was plenty of evidence to be had, but it was apparently none that he wanted to look for. Right now, Rob Manfred looks like the most incompetent commissioner in professional sports. Between blackouts in local markets, a lack of media coverage, and the all-around mistreatment of the sport, and his inability to punish players who rightfully deserve it, Rob Manfred is about to put a knife through a sport that has been around for centuries.

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‘Tis The Season

Avila’s women’s softball season underway Blake Lodde

The 2020 women’s Avila Softball season is underway and there are high hopes across campus for a big season. Coming off a conference championship in the 2019 season the girls are looking to repeat last year’s season and bring another championship back to the University. Throughout the last few years the softball team has been one of the most dominant programs in Avila’s history. Since the 2015 season the girls have yet to end the season with a below .500 winning record and this season, they don’t plan on breaking that streak. One of the main reasons the women’s team has been so dominant is because of senior pitcher Madison McKinney. Mckinney has been part of the program since joining the team in the 2016 fall semester so she knows a thing or two about winning. One factor that goes unnoticed that helps the ladies push their way to victory is the loving support from the Avila community.

With winning brings fans, and with how much these girls win you know that there are sure to be plenty of fans in attendance this season. “I think the fans should be looking forward to us continuing to do big things for our program. Yeah, we lost some key players from last year’s team, but were a young team who’s still rebuilding and on a mission.” said Mckinney. This year’s team looks to be a squad that is destined to do great things.

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When their backs are against the wall, they have proven in the past that it doesn’t take much to move forward and keep on winning. The girls have started off the season with a 3-3 record but that doesn’t seem to faze them at all. Speaking to this team you get the feeling that they know where they want to be at the end of the season and that they know what needs to be done to get there. “Our biggest thing is communication. We have all the talent, we’ve put in the time and work, and we have great team chemistry, we just need to work on our talking and communication when it comes to on the field play.” McKinney said.

It starts with morning weights starting at 6:00am, full team workout to get themselves faster, stronger and best shape possible for the season. After weights and a day of classes it’s off to practice. Whether it’s a full team practice, or just meeting up to get some swings in the girls are always working. They know what’s at stake this season and losing their title as conference champs does not seem to be in this team’s future.

Even in 40-degree weather you can fully expect to see fans out their cheering on their Eagles as if it was normal summer weather. With this much hype surrounding this team, this may not be the year that you want to skip our home games. These girls are here for one goal and that is to win a championship, and with the support of the Avila community and the hard work that these girls have put in, I don’t see how they could be stopped.

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YOUR ONLY LIMIT IS YOUR MIND. -LILLIA LIPTAK