The Times-Delphic (03.02.16)

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Wednesday March 2, 2016

timesdelphic.com

Unite Iowa CAMPUS EVENTS

‘The Color of Democracy’ conversation

Students join dialogue on how race fits in democracy

TOP: Virgina Hill shares her opinion on race and democracy at the #UniteIowa event. Hill was a part of the team that planned the event in Parent’s Hall. PHOTO BY CASSANDRA BAUER | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER LEFT: Des Moines Register Columnist Kyle Munson stands with Drake professor Carol Spaulding-Kruse (left) and Hill (right). All three helped plan Friday’s event. PHOTO BY ALEXIS CRUZ | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER RIGHT: Attendees of the event sit and discuss a poster, which read “This system is rigged and my vote doesn’t matter.” Posters were set out to lead discussion. PHOTO BY ALEXIS CRUZ | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Drake Rhone Staff Writer drake.rhone@drake.edu @drakerhone

The Des Moines Register partnered with a Drake professor to bring #UniteIowa: The Color of Democracy, a discussion on race relations to Olmsted Center last Friday.

Kyle Munson, columnist for the Des Moines Register and founder of #UniteIowa, planned the event with the help of English professor Carol Spalding-Kruse and Drake seniors Virginia Hill and Brytani Cavil.

Munson has hosted events under the #UniteIowa name before, but it was his partnership with Spalding-Kruse that brought

the conversation to Drake.

“We (Spalding-Kruse) began to talk,” Munson said. “I appreciated her decade of history in bringing polarized sides to the table in her ‘Talking With Your Enemy’ seminars. She was a perfect choice as collaborator.”

In Friday’s event, people were first separated into groups according to issues, and then engaged in discussion.

Phrases on posters around the room ranged from ‘I think we need to get big money out of politics’ to ‘I feel like my race is under-represented in politics.’

“You went in, looked at all of them, and decide which one you identify with the most,” first-year Isabelle Barrett said.

Attendees were separated several more times according

to their political party, their stance on issues in politics, their religion and their race. This led into discussion through these separations.

Ultimately, the discussion attempted to answer one question.

“We answered a question about defining the solution to race in politics,” Barrett said. “And we just talked about different ways to possibly change people’s opinions on race, and what the government should do about it.”

Barrett said that one of her favorite parts of the event was that the conversation stayed friendly, and didn’t escalate into arguments.

“People weren’t at each other or anything, which was really great,” Barrett said. “Everyone

was really polite. Our viewpoints differed, but we were willing to talk about it. It’s not like we were writing down a solution or anything, but so many people were willing to compromise and say, ‘Yeah, I see your point and that makes sense.’”

The discussion was the first of five events in the #UniteIowa on Race series.

“This is a series that connects Drake with the rest of the capital city in new and interesting ways,” Munson said. “We began on campus, circle around the metro and then come back to campus May 6 for a major festival with live music and a keynote speaker.”

With four events left in the series, Munson said that he encourages all students to become involved in the cause.

His goal is to create a proactive conversation about race, instead of reacting to the latest crisis or headlines.

“Our intention is for people to join the movement and have as much of a voice in it as they’re willing to lend,” Munson said.

“We want participation, feedback, criticism, all of it. ” Students can reach out to Munson with feedback at iowaunited.org, on Facebook at UniteIowa and @uniteiowa on Snapchat, Twitter and Instagram.

The next event, “Clashmates: Race in Schools”, is tomorrow at Valley West High School.

CAMPUS EVENTS

No students attended ‘Practicing Safer Sex’ presentation Jessie Spangler Assistant Relays Editor Jessica.spangler@drake.edu @jessiespangler3

Sex can be an uncomfortable topic to discuss, which could explain why no students showed up to Alysa Mozak’s “Do You Have it Covered? Practicing Safer Sex” presentation last Thursday.

Mozak, who is the coordinator for sexual violence response and healthy relationship promotion,

brought in Dana Stuehling from Planned Parenthood to speak to students about sexually transmitted infections (STIs), birth control and other aspects of safe sex.

“Some people may not feel comfortable asking those questions, especially in a group like this, if there were people here,” Stuehling said. “That also tells you why people aren’t here.”

According to Stuehling, sex is a topic that college students usually feel uncomfortable discussing.

“One of the biggest reasons is

that sex and sexuality are shamed in our society,” Stuehling said.

“Some people may not feel comfortable asking those questions, especially in a group like this, if there were people here.”

Dana Stuehling Planned Parenthood Representative

“So people are taught not to ask questions, not to be open about it and not to talk about it. So that’s where we see a lot of unplanned pregnancies and STIs, but also a lack of pleasure and intimacy and healthy sex lives.”

The safe sex presentation is part of a four-part educational series titled “Let’s Talk About Sex” held by Mozak.

This was the second event in the series. “When we talk about comprehensive sexual education, that is a more sex positive approach to education

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that recognizes that sex as something that can be absolutely normal, healthy and pleasurable,” Stuehling said.

Sexual education is required for K-12 education in every state, but not at the collegiate level.

“I think it’s especially important for college students,” Stuehling said. “You all start to have more freedom in exploring your identities and your wants and desires a little bit more.”

CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

02 | news

March 02, 2016

NEWS CAMPUS EVENTS

THE ANDERSON GALLERY opened the 45th annual Juried Student Exhibition on Sunday. Twenty-nine students have their artwork featured in the gallery until March 25. PHOTO BY JESS LYNK | NEWS EDITOR

Anderson Gallery displays 45th annual student exhibition Samantha Ohlson Staff Writer samantha.ohlson@drake.edu

Drake University art students were honored at the 45th Annual Juried Student Exhibition on Sunday.

The exhibition featured 50 works by 29 students in the Anderson Gallery at the Harmon Fine Arts Center. Juror Matthew Harris, administrator of the Iowa Arts Council, selected these works from 98 pieces submitted by 38

students.

Any Drake student who had taken an art class could submit a piece they had created in a class.

Those submitting pieces were able to elaborate and change their works before submission.

Jessica Podemski, a junior drawing major, said drawings and paintings were judged at the Anderson Gallery for judging, while sculptures were judged at the Studio Arts Hall. Judging lasted for three days.

Podemski, who had all three of her submissions accepted, said she was “really surprised” and “super happy” when she found

out about the honor.

“I know that there are so many great artists at this school,” Podemski said. “It kind of reaffirms the fact that I am a good artist.”

Drake University President Marty Martin and his wife, Laura Martin, were at the gallery opening to present the Juror’s Choice Awards. The 11 awards went to 10 recipients who each received a certificate and $200 prize.

Recipients included Brett Budzinski, Olivia Hockey, Rachael Kreski, Linzi Murray, Ryan Topete, Hannah Erickson,

CAMPUS NEWS

Drake University students discussing social justice issues isn’t a new phenomenon. But the Community Advisory Board’s (CAB) February social justice discussion focused on a topic that is not widely talked about.

“Another Drake student who was at our last dialogue suggested ableism as a topic, and it made me think that that is a topic that is extremely under-discussed at Drake,” Jamie Willer said.

Willer, a junior, is the President of CAB and is majoring in psychology and sociology.

“We’re all about talking about inclusivity in any regard of social justice, but not even in one of my sociology classes have I talked about ableism,” Willer said.

This month’s social justice discussion was last Wednesday in Stalknaker hall. The social justice discussion series aims to create a comfortable space of discussion for students to discuss issues affecting Des Moines and campus.

This month’s topic, ableism,

for her digital print on semigloss paper,“Swoosh, Vroom, Whoosh.” Walton’s work will be displayed in Old Main.

Friends of Drake Arts funded the exhibition. The Thad Archie Memorial Fund paid for the awards.

Heather Skeens is the director of the Anderson Gallery. Gallery intern Paul Brenin curated the exhibition.

The exhibition will be on display until March 25. The Anderson Gallery is open Tuesday-Sunday from noon4 p.m. and until 8 p.m. on Thursdays.

CAMPUS EVENTS

Community board holds discussion on ableism Grace Rogers Staff Writer grace.rogers@drake.edu @TheGraceRogers

Pamela Mulhern, Paul Brenin, Amy Matthews and Monica Campbell.

Hockey, who won for her untitled permanent marker piece, said she hadn’t thought much of her piece, but others kept telling her it had interesting qualities.

“I just find that piece to be so unexpected and different,” Hockey said. “I’m a little surprised, extremely excited.”

Hockey also had an acrylic on canvas work featured in the gallery.

Interim Provost Joseph Lenz presented the Provost Purchase Award to Emily Walton

is described as discrimination against people with mental, physical or other disabilities.

Common examples include buildings or rooms that are not handicap-accessible, or even just the common phrase “disabled” instead of “people with disabilities.”

“I really think that it’s important to have these sorts of conversations on Drake’s campus especially in regards to disability, whether that be physical or mental,” junior Annika Grassl said. “These problems do exist and they are not spoken about nearly as often or as strongly as issues of gender or race inclusion.”

The conversation ranged from a discussion of ableism in mainstream society to specific instances on Drake’s campus.

“Most of the handicap accessible door buttons do not open and most of the ramps are not shoveled before stairs,” Grassl said. “It’s a big issue on campus.”

Some students, like Grassl, attended the dialogue because they already felt passionate about the issue. Others came to learn.

“I am involved with the group that was heading all the campus climate stuff and figuring out the next steps for Drake to take,” junior Jackie Heymann said. “So

whenever there’s a dialogue like this, I go to listen for ideas of things we can keep pushing Drake on.”

According to Heymann, discussions like this can spur real change.

“The Drake Administration is very responsive to students strategically using student power – pressing different buttons, tapping different levers, or whatever metaphor you want to use – to try and get things done,” Heymann said. “President Martin has been extremely responsive to students concerns and working with students to make sure that the university is a place they feel included, from what I’ve seen so far.”

This was a goal Willer had when creating the discussion, which she came up with the idea for over the summer.

CAB is planning on hosting one discussion each month in collaboration with residence hall staff.

“I know that these dialogues are a great way of initiating conversation,” Willer said. “It’s a way to get the conversation going, and what happens after that is out of my control, but obviously I’m going to hope for the best that the conversation continues.”

Safe-sex event stresses importance of education CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Stuehling discussed that it is important when the typical sexual education begins.

“The more kind of concrete, STI and birth control kind of lessons in the state of Iowa generally starts around seventh grade,” Stuehling said. “That’s when a number of middle schools generally start teaching, then again in high school and then hopefully repeated often and regularly throughout a person’s life.”

In order to continue this education after high school, Stuehling also mentioned how long running programs are beneficial for nearly all ages, even older adults.

She said that it gives group members time to build the trusting relationships that’s needed to talk openly about sex and discover what they want in a relationship.

“I think that’s one of the key components sexually to be able to build those relationships and be comfortable asking,” Stuehling said.

To Mozak, receiving apathy

from students can be a hurdle, which goes along with motivating students to care about sexual health and violence.

“Unless it happens to them or it’s someone they know, or have had experiences or are generally wanting to be explorative, and open to new areas of cognitive development or personal development, that’s the biggest hurdle I see,” Mozak said.

In order to help this hurdle, Mozak created the “Let’s Talk About Sex” series to further students’ education about sexuality and relationships.

This is a part of Mozak’s job to focus on assisting students with multiple social justice issues.

“I do a lot of mental health, body image, eating, sexuality, communications skills and interpersonal skills,” Mozack said. “I do a lot around gender issues, gender identity, gender violence.”

The next “Let’s Talk About Sex” event will be on Mar. 3 and will be about building healthy relationships. The last event, “Finding Sexual Agency” will take place on Mar. 31.”

03 | news

March 02, 2016

NEWS CAMPUS EVENTS

Parents describe loss of child to bulimia, raise awareness Ashley Kirkland Relays Designer ashley.kirkland@drake.edu @_AshleyKirkland

Author and educator Doris Smitzer, and her husband Tom, spoke about her late daughter Andrea’s personal battle with bulimia that took place Thursday night at 7 p.m. in Sheslow Auditorium. This was a part of National Eating Disorder Week sponsored by the Drake Counseling Center.

D. Smitzer’s novel, “Andrea’s Voice: Silenced by Bulimia,” includes Andrea’s poems and journal entries, as well as her grievances about her daughter’s death at age 19.

The Smeltzers shared what they learned from their daughter’s eating disorder and how their experience taught them to be understanding. The aim of the Smeltzers’ talk was to reduce the stigma surrounding eating disorders.

Melissa Nord, a guidance counselor at the student Health Center, helped organize this event.

“This is to put the spotlight

on the eating disorders and what the causes are, what to look for, what sorts of treatment there are available and knowing that there is treatment available,” Nord said. “Just being aware that this is a big thing, especially on college campuses.”

Drake’s campus has four counselors and offer treatment on weekdays from 8 a.m to 5 p.m.

“I think it’s really wonderful that Drake provides counseling as part of our tuition,” firstyear Cooper Warner said. “As someone who has mental health problems in their family, it means a lot to me that Drake makes it such a priority.”

Fifty percent of young women and thirty percent of young men use unhealthy weight control behaviors such as skipping meals, fasting, vomiting and taking laxatives to control their weight.

“I think that it is great that Drake is trying to raise awareness about eating disorders because it’s a very prevalent issue in today’s society,” first-year Taylor Szala said. “Students should know the triggers and be able to help before an issue becomes life threatening. You never know who could be going through such an issue.”

PHOTO BY CASSANDRA BAUER | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

DORIS AND TOM SMITZER spoke about their loss of their daughter, Andrea. When Andera was 19, she lost her battle with bulimia. Now, the Smitzers speak on college campuses to raise awareness about eating disorders and its affect in college. The event, which was Thursday in Sheslow Auditorium at 7 p.m., was sponsored by the counseling center.

STUDENT SENATE

Senate to vote on restructuring positions Beth LeValley Staff Writer beth.levalley@drake.edu

Student Senate fiercely debated whether to split the facilities and technology senator title into two positions for the 30th session of Senate.

The Student Senate Structure Ad Hoc Committee, consisting of Vice President Zachary Blevins and Senators Cecilia Bernard, Kevin Kane and Kerstin Donat, vouched for having one facilities senator and a separate technology senator. The changes would be implemented in the fall of 2016.

The debate on this position led to an open discussion about the structure of the senate and whether or not it is the most efficient it can be.

Sen. Olivia O’Hea was the first to speak about this decision.

“Something that irks me and comes off bad to students is that all of the changes seem like short term fixes to long term problems, and that splitting up the facilities and technologies position for me typifies that short-term fix mentality,” O’Hea said.

The committee cited the pure amount of work that a facilities and technology senator faces as the main reason for the split.

“I know that it seems like a lot right now, but I think the restructuring of some of these other positions will remove some of that burden,” O’Hea said.

O’Hea refers to other positions having an effect on senate structure, which is mainly the addition of a health and safety senator. This senator would focus on student safety and sexual assault on campus.

The other factor in this decision is the role of the student services senator, who currently works with the Student Services Center and Alysa Mozak on services for mental health.

Student Body President Kevin Maisto did not back the committee’s recommendation to split up the facilities and technology senator.

“This is the one thing that I just can’t support,” Maisto said.

“A lot of the elements of student services that are initiative-based are now being absorbed by health and safety.”

Maisto believes that the health and safety senator can take over

the role of mental health on campus, which would leave the student services senator with the task of “customer service” for the campus.

This would alleviate some of the workload from the facilities and technology senator, evening out the tasks among more senate members.

During the Student Senate retreat, the majority of members felt that they could do more for campus as a senate member.

Maisto cited working with Drake Public Safety Director Scott Law as one of the biggest roles the facilities and technology senator would pass on to the health and safety senator.

While the voting will happen next week, Student Senate ended the discussion by amending the motion to keep the facilities and technology senator as one position.

Other changes in the senate structure include removing the community outreach senator atlarge, supported even by current Community Outreach Senator Daniel Creese.

Sen. Donat said that this would not put more work on the Community Action Board, but instead eliminate redundancy on campus.

“What Daniel is doing now is exactly what (the Community Action Board) is doing at the moment,” Donat said. “Instead of having two people working on the same thing, there will only be one.”

Senate also agreed to change the title of the diversity interest senator to equity and inclusion senator, which coordinates with the new title of the Office of Student Inclusion, Involvement and Leadership.

Finally, the committee proposed to elect the student body treasurer from a separate ballot alongside the executive elections instead of the senator at-large elections. This would allow for a finance-focused student to run for an exact position.

Student Senate also confirmed the election schedule for the year. Please refer to the left for information.

04 | opinions

March 02, 2016

OPINIONS STAFF OPINION

National Eating Disorders Awareness Week raises awareness of self-harm

Katherine Bauer Staff Writer katherine.bauer@drake.edu

When people hear the words “eating disorder,” what might they think of?

Maybe they think of someone who lacks the self-control to eat less or eat enough. Maybe they think of someone who wants pity for their bad life choices.

Maybe they think of the stigmas surrounding people with bulimia, obesity or anorexia. You may question why we need a week to focus on these people.

Well, I’m here to tell you that National Eating Disorders Awareness Week (Feb. 21-27) is a necessary time to discuss very real diseases.

Eating disorders are not blackand-white situations. Like any mental disorder, there are varying degrees of severity. Some of the most extreme cases are anorexia and obesity. The milder areas of the spectrum are healthy eaters or those making slightly unhealthy eating choices.

The problems arise when these disorders disrupt daily life and overall health. Someone who is bulimic structures their days around when they eat and when they can purge. Someone who is anorexic may not have the energy to get through their day or spends too much of their time exercising.

Someone who is obese struggles with daily tasks due to their weight.

But the most problematic characteristic of an eating disorder is someone who cannot change his or her actions without some sort of help.

Eating disorders go beyond someone who simply doesn’t want to take responsibilities for their actions. Eating disorders aren’t so much about the action, but the mentality behind the action.

People with eating disorders act the way they do because it makes them feel like they are in control of some aspect of their life, even though they aren’t. They fail at

times to see that they are not in healthy control of their eating.

You may question how I supposedly know the things I say about people with eating disorders. While I admit I don’t know everything about eating disorders or the reasons behind them, I have been around people who never ate enough and around those who couldn’t get their excessive eating under control.

I listened to the material in psychology and P.E. classes about eating disorders and took much of it to heart. I have also struggled with seeing myself as I truly am and eating in the best way possible for the right reasons.

In high school, I would look in the mirror in the morning and see way, way, way too much fat around my mid-section and thighs. Well, I thought, if I didn’t eat so much I wouldn’t be that way. So I wouldn’t eat breakfast.

I would eat maybe a serving of vegetables and a portion of the main dish at lunch. I would skip snacks between these meals and skip supper all together. Even though my stomach rumbled, I would ignore it and go on with my day. While this is nowhere as severe as a diagnosed disease like anorexia, it was not healthy and did not give me the proper energy

“Eating disorders go beyond someone who simply doesn’t want to take responsibilities for their actions. Eating disorders aren’t so much about the action, but the mentality behind the action.”

Katherine Bauer Staff Writer

to get through a busy day.

I think people often fail to realize how hard it is to change a habit. My mother grew up in a time that did not value healthy food choices. She’s spoken about the fatty and sugary meals her family would make. She has struggled with her weight her whole life.

She’s also experienced health problems and has a higher risk of future diseases because of this.

However, she has been working for a weight loss company for several decades now, constantly working to improve her lifestyle.

Through her actions, she has helped me to know the healthy ways to eat and exercise, to see myself as I truly am. Thanks to her, my experiences with eating

too little in high school weren’t worse than they were.

National Eating Disorder Awareness Week exists to help people see the harm they are doing to themselves. It also provides resources on how to make healthy changes or seek professional help. There are oftentimes psychological reasons for someone having an eating disorder. They may have not learned healthy living habits well enough when they were younger.

They may have been abused physically or mentally, leading them to feel that eating is their comfort and the only thing they can control. Whatever the reason, there are ways to help change their mentality.

National Eating Disorder Awareness Week provides help for those who never had effective help in the past. It also enables those who know someone struggling with an eating disorder to help end the bad habits. Eating disorders can be something an individual struggles with their whole life. It may be easier at times or harder, but this past week offers a time to start people on their journeys to healthier life styles.

STAFF OPINION

Warmer weather is in the future: a guide to spring clothing essentials

Marissa DePino Staff Writer marissa.depino@drake.edu @MarissaDePino

With spring just around the corner, it is time to shed off those parkas and let go of those clunky

boots. The smell of spring is in the air, and with it comes spring fashion.

There are countless spring pieces out, but the problem that always occurs is what to wear. At this time of year in the Midwest, the weather decides to flip-flop often. The weather will slowly begin to warm up and then fake us out again by going back to winter.

The key to make it through spring weather is layering. To achieve this, there are a few musthave pieces to keep in your closet this spring.

One of the most essential pieces is a versatile jacket. The trick is to choose a jacket that is lightweight, comfortable and can easily transition from the harsh

cold to a nice sunny day.

For women, this may mean a trench coat. A trench coat has just enough versatility that it can fit anyone’s style. Coming in countless colors and textures, this piece is sure to make a statement. It allows for many layers beneath it, but can also be worn with simply a T-shirt or dress underneath on a nicer day.

Men, on the other hand, may find a fleece more appealing.

With a soft texture, it can easily be used on a cold day by bundling it up with a thick scarf and hat.

But on a warmer day, it’ll allow breathing room. This piece is perfect because it can go with any outfit, similar to the trench.

Another must-have this season is a good pair of short boots. They

transition well into the spring by providing foot support— depending on the boot—and keep your feet dry from the torrential downpours that often come with spring.

Women can easily evolve their shoe collection from winter to spring by transitioning to shorter boots. These booties can be highheels or not, and many come in neutral tones that can enhance any outfit.

Men can take shorter boots and make them more into a work-boot style. With this style, the boot will continue to provide support, while having the ability to be added to a multitude of clothing.

To accompany the trench and boot ensemble in the spring

essentials is the notorious flannel.

Flannels are not given enough credit. For both men and women, this style complements many pieces by adding a more casual vibe to a comfy style. The flannel can be worn around one’s waist, buttoned-up or worn more like a jacket. Since it is so adaptable to all four seasons, it is a great piece to have in your wardrobe this spring.

These spring essentials are sure to aid any wardrobe in the strenuous winter-to-spring transition.

SPRING is right around the corner and warmer weather means packing away heavy sweaters and coats and trading them for more practical items such as a trench coat (left) and short boots (above) PHOTO BY MARISSA DEPINO

THE TIMES-DELPHIC The student newspaper for Drake University since 1884

TIM WEBBER, Editor-in-Chief timothy.webber@drake.edu JILL VAN WYKE, Faculty Advisor jill.vanwyke@drake.edu JESSICA LYNK, News Editor jessica.lynk@drake.edu ADAM ROGAN, Sports Editor adam.rogan@drake.edu PRANEETH RAJSINGH, Photo Editor praneeth.rajsingh@drake.edu

MORGAN GSTALTER, Managing Editor morgan.gstalter@drake.edu JAKE BULLINGTON, Digital Editor jacob.bullington@drake.edu GIULIANA LAMANTIA, Relays Editor giuliana.lamantia@drake.edu TAYLOR EISENHAUER, Copy Editor taylor.eisenhauer@drake.edu

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The Times-Delphic is a student newspaper published weekly during the regular academic year and is produced by undergraduate students at Drake University. The opinions of staff editorials reflect the institutional opinion of the newspaper based on current staff opinions and the newspaper’s traditions. These opinions do not necessarily reflect those of individual employees of the paper, Drake University or members of the student body. All other opinions appearing throughout the paper are those of the author or artist named within the column or cartoon. The newsroom and business office of The Times-Delphic are located in Meredith Hall, Room 124. The Times-Delphic is a member of the Associated Collegiate Press. The editor-in-chief sits on the Board of Student Communications.

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05 | opinions

March 02, 2016

OPINIONS STAFF OPINION

Take time to thank Sodexo workers

Chamindi Wijesinghe Business Manager wachamindi.wijesinghe@drake.edu

We might complain about the food, but from our breakfasts at 7:00 in the morning to our midnight dinners, we rarely think about the work it takes Sodexo workers do to get the actual food to us. This is not to say that we don’t say “thank you.”

“Can I have a chicken melt, please?”

“Thank you.”

This is a recurring word that someone is indeed always using – to the point that most of us

have this conversation absentmindedly and mechanically, as it is the ultimate act of kindness that we have mastered and infused into our daily life.

Sometimes, between rushing to classes and taking a break from the constant studying, our time is limited as well, and the chitchat is kept to a minimal, friendly exchange. Other times, the lines are so busy that we have no option but to keep moving as quickly as possible.

However, be it behind the scenes in the kitchen or up front at Hubbell and Quad, Sodexo workers are always on the move.

The workers who make our chicken melts at Quad or our omelets at Hubbell (the only line worth the wait, in my opinion!) might change, but the hours they spend standing and flipping ingredients are a constant that we have familiarized ourselves with.

After having campus food for a month or two, any probable appreciation gets buried, and it is easy to forget that the chefs, supervisors and student workers who stay until the closing hours put in a lot of work to ensure,

to their best, that we get exactly what we ordered.

Let’s not forget the friendly faces staffing the C-Store and different coffee shops on campus.

The reason we are able to purchase a smoothie from Olmsted or a F’real milkshake is due to the people who tirelessly do a good job. We might not get the best product but the people providing the services are undoubtedly among the friendliest.

There is no need to showcase a fervor of forced gratitude, but merely harnessing the power of genuine appreciation goes a long way.

So, next time, whether you are at Quad, Hubbell, the C-Store or any other coffee shop on campus, remember to say the magic words genuinely and add an extra thought.

A special thank you and shoutout to all Sodexo workers across campus for the services and friendliness they provide.

STUDENTS SPEAK

Dear future president: Here are some of my requests for you, the next ‘leader of the free world’

Shelby Starace Staff Writer shelby.starace@drake.edu

I’ve got a couple suggestions, well, demands, really, for our next president.

Transparency, for one. Over the years we’ve dealt with a lot of big vague ideas with little-tono detail presented to the public.

There was the whole Bill Clinton fiasco, which resulted from coverups and deals made behind closed doors.

Then with George W. Bush, we had the war with no proof to support it started by taking advantage of the hurt and angry patriots and pointing their aggression towards a country that

wasn’t actually to blame.

Now, here we are with Barack Obama, who made a lot of promises about “change” that haven’t been fully detailed nor executed as far as I can see.

This, along with his “chill guy” persona is starting to get a little old. Personally, I’m getting a little sick and tired of the show; yes, I understand it’s so cool that the President was on SNL, but come on. We didn’t elect the guy to make jokes on TV; we elected him to run the country.

All I’m asking for is a clearly laid-out plan of attack for the issues facing the country. Don’t side-step when asked about a difficult subject, give me a straight answer. Yes, I realize some things are controversial and don’t look great for a campaign, but the respect the candidate gains from the people when they give their honest opinion rather than trying to please the masses with vague crumbs of an idea is monumental.

As a country, I’m pretty sure we can all agree we’re not as dumb as we look, and we’d appreciate if candidates would start to notice.

Along with transparency, I’d honestly love to just see ignorance eradicated from the presidency and the country. I’m so sick of

seeing hate perpetuated by false information. We all remember the faked Planned Parenthood video that came out and how some candidates were citing it like it was fact. I’ve heard plenty of speculation and just blatantly false information about immigrants and more come out of the mouth of several presidential candidates. Why, though?

It all goes back to transparency, really, because ignorance and lies are just cover-ups for the Islamaphobic, homophobic, racist, misogynistic, hateful tendencies within people. If they’re going to run the country, it’d be great if they didn’t hold malice towards a large percentage of their citizens. This is a popular opinion, I know, but I feel like it’s pretty valid. I’m pretty sure I’m sitting in the same boat as the rest of the country. I’m just fed up with candidates trying to lie, steal and manipulate their way into office, only to continue with the same tricks once they find their way in.

Whether you agree or not, though, please go vote. Millions of people on this planet don’t get that opportunity. Take advantage of yours and maybe we can actually change something.

STAFF OPINION

A proud Pandorian, loyalty to music provider

Molly Adamson Staff Writer molly.adamson@drake.edu

In our technology-controlled world, there are now many ways for people to get music. Two of the more popular companies are Spotify and Pandora. There is often a debate over which service is better. While I’ve never seen these debates turn into fist fights, they may have come pretty close.

Take my family members, for instance. Ever since we got a fancy sound system in our

house, they have been dedicated Spotify listeners, whereas I have remained partial to my Pandora: a consistent, simple music option.

It’s not flashy like Spotify — it gives its customers what they want, and you can get a lot of music for free.

Spotify, on the other hand, saves its best features for the premium user, such as commercial-free listening and quality sound. But it doesn’t have the randomness of Pandora.

Pandora does have commericals (unless you pay for premium, much like Spotify), but as a dedicated user, I am able to look past that. I like the randomness of it. It’s like putting your iPhone on shuffle. You have some idea of what you’re going to get, but you’re not quite sure.

You get exposed to a variety of artists and styles, all while getting a similar vibe to your preferences you picked out.

My Pandora account is one station with so many artists added to it that I have lost count. This allows a lot of variety, without

the predictability of a playlist.

Some people may argue that you could just as easily hit shuffle on your phone, but where’s the fun in that? You know every song on your iPhone. Pandora has the ability to surprise you.

I’m a huge 1990s and early 2000s music fan, and when I hear a song I haven’t heard in over 10 years, I reach a level of indescribable excitement. I can barely stand the music of today, so it makes me happy knowing I have a station where there will be absolutely no invasion of my music by the contemporary garbage.

With Spotify, I am not necessarily guaranteed this safety.

Random music could pop up on a playlist I thought I would enjoy.

Or it will only allow me to play one of my favorite artists when I really just want a simple blend.

These may seem like some petty reasons to favor one music service over another, but all the others Pandora lovers know what I’m talking about. Pandorians, unite!

Humans of Drake Each week, staff writer Rachel Wermager captures stories of students on Drake’s campus

Genna Clemen • Sophomore Digital Media Production and Graphic Design Major “I am passionate about sex education, Kanye West, dogs, the sky, brushing my teeth twice a day, wearing colorful pants, smashing the patriarchy, trying new food — food in general, but potatoes especially — going to concerts and not taking pictures on my phone, working on my fitness with my roommate, sleeping and learning other people’s passions.”

STAFF OPINION

Sony holds Kesha hostage

Parker Klyn Staff Writer parker.kyln@drake.edu

It seems like we can’t go a full week without another heartbreaking story of sexual assault in the music industry.

In January, allegations surfaced against indie publicist Heathcliff Berru that accused him of sexual assault. Industrial rock band Swans’ frontman, Michael Gira, was accused of rape by one of his collaborators just last week.

Many of these alleged incidents have come under the guise of furthering the careers of the victim, which is a horrific abuse of power in an industry where people should be free to create.

“My problem is with Sony, whose horrific mistreatment of an artist says that they are paartially responsible for years of abuse. It is simply disgusting ” Parker Kyln Staff Writer

The most prolific of these cases, however, is platinumselling recording artist and pop star Kesha Sebert, who recently filed a preliminary injunction to release her from her six-album contract with Sony. However, New York Supreme Court Justice Shirley Kornreich dismissed the injunction on the grounds that there would be no irreversible harm to Sebert for remaining with Sony.

A civil lawsuit filed by Sebert in 2014, detailed how the famed

super-producer Dr. Luke (his real name is Lukasz Gottwald, and he is known for producing most of the discographies of Sebert, Katy Perry and Kelly Clarkson) allegedly sexually abused her.

Sebert alleges years of emotional and physical abuse committed by Gottwald, including one specific night when she was given “sober pills” and woke up naked in Gottwald’s bed feeling “sore and sick with no memory of how she got there.”

The specificity and vividness of the allegations lend themselves to being very believable.

Once the preliminary injunction was struck down, Twitter exploded into a firestorm of support for Sebert. The #FreeKesha hashtag was the top worldwide trend, and Gottwald himself defended himself on the social media platform. Multiple celebrities, including Kelly Clarkson, tweeted their support, and Taylor Swift donated $250,000 toward helping Sebert get back on her feet.

The main problem I have with this case isn’t the judge’s ruling.

No criminal charges have been filed against Gottwald, and the judge was generally following precedent as far as these cases go.

My problem is with Sony, whose horrific mistreatment of an artist says that they are partially responsible for years of abuse. It is simply disgusting.

Sony claims that Sebert’s allegations are completely made up, as if admitting to the world that she was sexually and physically abused is something that people do. They even cite financial reasons for Sebert’s desire to leave Sony, as if being dropped from her label would somehow help her finances.

Sebert has never been a particularly prolific artist for Sony. Her singles have sold exceptionally well, but her album sales and touring have been distinctively subpar for an artist of her caliber. I would hope that even the thought of an artist suffering any kind of abuse while working at Sony would cause them to fight for that artist.

Instead, Sony holds her hostage with no intention of promoting future music and forcing her to work with the person she says made her life a living hell for years. Shame on Sony.

06 | opinions

March 02, 2016

OPINIONS THE MOVIE BUFF

STUDENT LIBRARIES

Book nook: ‘Beautiful Ruins’ DiCaprio bares all in hauntingly beautiful ‘The Revenant’

Jessie Spangler Assistant Relays Editor jessica.spangler@drake.edu

At first, “Beautiful Ruins,”

by Jess Walter, seems like your classic love story or an easy beach read. For the first few pages, you might think so.

But after the first chapter, it’s obvious that Walter’s novel is a lot more complex than an average love story. The book depicts the heartbreaks, victories and challenges several characters face—characters that are all connected because of an event that occurred in 1962.

Dee Moray, a supposedly dying actress, and Pasquale, an Italian innkeeper, meet one day in 1962, setting off a chain of events that affects multiple people over the next several decades.

Dee Moray, who believes she has stomach cancer, is left in a tiny village on the Italian coast to wait for a man that she believes will come to help take care of her.

The story picks up again in the future with an elderly Pasquale traveling to Hollywood in search of the director who abandoned her in his hotel all those years ago.

The novel smoothly shifts from first person to third person, and the focus changes to different characters that are connected to Pasquale and Dee’s story. There are many unexpected turns in the plot that will keep the reader engaged and interested in what will happen next. Whoever you think is going to end up together in the beginning probably won’t.

“Beautiful Ruins” is a love story, but not in the way you would expect. It tells the story of love between parents and children, love between two people who can’t be together, love for home, love for career, love of money, self-love, and the list goes on. It effectively connects people that otherwise would be unlikely ever to meet in a way that shapes each character’s life. Each character, all at different places in their lives, are struggling with past choices and trying to figure out where their lives are going.

Walter tells a well-written story of the continual struggle to choose between what we desire and what is right. Sometimes those two things line up, but most of the time they don’t, which is where a hard decision has to be made.

At one point in the novel, Pasquale remembers his mother saying to him as a child, “What we want to do and what we must do are not the same… Pasqo, the smaller the place between your desire and what is right, the happier you’ll be.”

I definitely recommend “Beautiful Ruins” to anyone, especially those who like a good story about travel, love and the complexity of human lives.

Eric Deutz Film Critic eric.deutz@drake.edu

Okay, can we get one thing absolutely clear? Yes, Leonardo DiCaprio stars in this film. Yes, Leo’s been eluded by those shiny Oscar trophies for quite some time now, but not anymore. With his newest film “The Revenant,” old Leo finally achieved his goal of filling that empty shelf on his wall, by having gone naked in sub-freezing temperatures and eaten raw buffalo meat in a show of his dedication.

None of that should be overlooked. But to simplify this film down to a showcase for the golden boy’s talents would be so incredibly wrong. In reality, this is a film where every element works, every cast and crew member is firing on all cylinders and, at the end of the day, DiCaprio’s performance? Fantastic, but just one small addition to what is easily one of the greatest movies of the year.

Inspired by true events, “The Revenant” finds us in the 1820s frontier of a very young America, where the wilderness still makes

the rules, and civility is nowhere near where it is today.

Hugh Glass (DiCaprio) is a fur trapper, traveling with a crew of other trappers and his halfNative American son, Hawk. In a politically incorrect world like this was, they get picked on. But problems really start to mount when Glass is mauled within inches of his life by an angry bear, and with so little for supplies, fellow fur trapper John Fitzgerald (Tom Hardy) makes an executive decision—they have no choice but to leave Glass behind to die.

Of course, he doesn’t. And for the remainder of the movie, we watch as he endures terrible hardships and gorgeous scenery with only one goal in mind: revenge on the man who left him behind.

Having no idea what the outcome of the Academy Awards was going to be, I can now safely say that DiCaprio finally won one of those shinny little figures.

“Revenant” racked up 12 nominations, more than any other film this year, and it earned every one.

DiCaprio gives an incredibly committed performance as a desperate man facing death in the face, and Tom Hardy (also nominated) serves as an equally powerful antagonist — a man who thrives in this isolated world by holding fast to the “survival of the fittest” ideal that’s gotten him this far.

But the real heroes are the men behind the camera. Director

BATTLE OF THE SEXES

This week: Parents texting Joe thinks parents and grandparents texting is funny and always will be funny, while Claire thinks the older generation will never be as good at texting as we are.

Who do you agree with?

Tweet us your response @timesdelphic

Joe Herba Staff Writer joseph.herba@drake.edu When I am bored, I occasionally go online (okay, more than occasionally) and one of my favorite articles I have read on BuzzFeed has to be the “Parents are evolving the texting game” piece. I try to explain my favorite conversation from that entire article to my friends and they just don’t get it. Regardless, I will try explain it to you. It goes: Daughter: Hey Dad! Can you please come pick me up?

Dad: Omg Daughter: No really Dad! It’s raining!

Dad: Omg Daughter: Don’t make me call Mom! Dad: Omg no I don’t know what it is about these texts that just make me crack up. I think it has to be the fact that I can totally see myself doing this to my daughter when I am finally old enough to earn one.

But across the board, parents are known for being bad texters.

However, I think that the recent trend has been on the up-andup. I downloaded Snapchat on my Mom’s phone, and it has been a very interesting decision, considering that I know for a fact

that she doesn’t know how to use it at all.

My grandma also recently got a cell phone, and she has been a pretty non-stop texter.

Surprisingly, she has been pretty good at it, however, like every senior, she does have a couple of flaws.

First, she thinks that texting is like writing a letter or an email and always signs her name. Like: “Hey Joe, I hope college is going well! Just know I miss you and to keep studying! – Love Grandma.”

Now you might be thinking I am a jerk for putting my grandma on blast — I am, but she will understand because it is purely for entertainment purposes.

But overall, I think that while parent texting will never NOT be funny, it may also be a thing of the past. That or it is starting to be funny how “with” our generation they can be. I mean, just look at some of the biggest Vine stars now. One of them is a family of four with two “hip” parents!

The world is changing — I would like to say for the better — and I think the only way to see more of this comedy is to start taking screenshots of your parents’ conversations. You may be thinking, “Oh, my parents aren’t that funny.” They can be! Just fool them into being ridiculous! “Hey mom, what does ‘vape’ mean?” You’ll be surprised by the next text back!

Claire Franksen Staff Writer claire.franksen@drake.edu My grandparents have had flip phones for a few years now, and I can say with a lot of confidence that they will never upgrade to smartphones. They live in rural Wisconsin and barely manage to use the computer they bought a few years ago. That being said, I don’t recall a time where I have ever texted my grandparents, mainly because they get charged for every character they send in a text.

A few years ago, I do remember my grandma showing me a book that she bought about texting lingo. I opened up to a random page and read that LOL apparently meant “lots of love.”

I tried really hard not to actually laugh out loud, which is what the masses know this abbreviation stands for. She has never actually used the book, and she rarely texts.

My parents are a different story. They’ve been texting for longer than I have. However, they aren’t as proficient as they could be.

My mom really loves to send random texts to me in the hopes that she’ll make my day a little better or just to check up on me.

If you look at her text messages on her own phone, you’ll notice that she uses the biggest font size that her phone offers. This is because she refuses to take her reading glasses around with her. She sends long paragraphs of information that could be conveyed in a short sentence.

Maybe this is how parents text nowadays, and there’s no way to change it. But then there is my dad.

My father, Bob, is quite the character. There was a time in his life where he swore texting would ruin quality conversations. He now is obsessed with his phone and texting, although he is not very “good” at it. He always has to end every single text with a period, question mark or exclamation point. You will never see a text from Bob Franksen that says “OK” — it will always say “OK.” If I ask him to pick up something at the store, he never responds with an “oh sure no problem,” it’s always just “OK.” He also can’t seem to read what’s on his phone unless he takes is glasses off and holds his phone four inches from his face.

We all know that our parents will never be as good at the texting game as we are, and that we have to leave the ironic emojis and accurate meanings of acronyms to the texts with our squad and the OKs to our parents.

Alejandro G. Iñárritu (director of 2015 Best Picture winner “Birdman”) has set himself up well to be nominated for Best Director and Best Picture Oscars for the second year in a row with his brutally realistic and cringeworthy work here, reminiscent of his earliest success with “Amores Perros.” Iñárritu took won for Best Director. Cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki also won the Best Cinematography Oscar for the third year in a row (“Gravity,” “Birdman”). He outdoes even his own best work with the masterful shots and pictures here.

Don’t misunderstand me, it’s not always an easy film to watch, and you very well may find yourself covering your eyes from time to time. But when you take the chance to peek through your fingers, take it all in, because this is filmmaking at its finest.

Grade: A

07 | features

March 02, 2016

FEATURES THEATER

Drake Theatre starts spring with two student-led productions Fuddy Meers pairs confusion with hilarity in play of colorful characters Ellen Koester Staff Writer ellen.koester@drake.edu

The student-directed “Fuddy Meers” was both a funny and crazy production.

The play ran from Friday to Sunday last week in Drake’s Studio 55 in the Harmon Fine Arts Center. Drake senior Eric Deutz directed the play, and David Lindsay-Abaire wrote it.

Most of the laughs came from the craziness that the audience witnessed on stage between the different characters, all of whom had some screws loose.

The production was about a woman with amnesia named

Claire (Courtney Gordon) who had to be reminded of her identity every morning by her husband (Henry Fisher).

However, one morning a deformed man claiming to be her brother (played by Nathan Smith) whisks her away, insisting that her husband was trying to kill her. As more characters are added into the mix, the play gets more convoluted and outrageous from there.

The audience was mostly in the same situation as Claire throughout the play. No one knew quite what was going on or how to react to it.

This is what made the play unexpected. The plot was so twisted that it was hard to tell where the story was going next.

It was also hard to tell from whom or where the next joke was going to come.

Theater major Paul Grewe, who has seen every Drake show in the past, read the script and knew what he was in for.

“I enjoyed it.

I really appreciated it. The way (Deutz) weaved in the circus fun house was very interesting,” Grewe said.

He went with a fellow student, Anne Matte, who said she particularly loved the performance of “stoner boy,” played by Matthew Greenbaum.

The stoner boy, otherwise known as Claire’s son, Kenny, brightened an already colorful cast. Aside from Claire’s amnesia, the audience was treated to all sorts of varieties of crazy. Soft-

spoken criminal Millet (Brock Webb) paired with his Catholic, foul-mouthed puppet, Hinky Binky (also Webb), produced many laughs, mainly at the juxtaposition of Millet’s quiet complaints and Binky’s screams of profanity.

Although much of the craziness came from obviously unhinged characters like Millet, some characters had more to them than first met the eye.

Gertie, Claire’s mother (Haley Ashlin), looked like a perfectly normal grandmother-type character until she opened her mouth.

Claire’s husband was also not the typical, caring husband as he first appeared. As the play went on, their marriage proved to

be much darker than expected.

The mind of Claire’s brother was even more messed up than his scarred face. And don’t even try to guess where the lady cop (Hannah Stibbe) fits into this chaos.

As Grewe had predicted before the show’s curtains rose, the play had a weird and twisted feel. It explored some darker themes alongside chaos and humor. This boosted the play to another level, as it played with the emotions of the audience at times and was not simply a comedy.

Overall, with amazing acting, interesting set design and a puppet that swore more than the average Drake student, the play was a great success.

FUDDY MEERS, student-directed by Eric Duetz, featured a wife with amnesia, her sympathetic husband, her stoner son and her deformed brother/kidnapper. In a comedic and crazy turn of events, all of the twisted characters came together to create a production that brought laughs, content confusion and the anticipation to see what the next scene would bring. PHOTO COURTESY OF ERIC DUETZ

STUDENT LIFE

Students avoid peer pressure in decisions to smoke, drink Emily VanSchmus Staff Writer emily.vanschmus@drake.edu @vansmooches

We’ve all heard the lectures: Just say no. It’s a saying that’s been drilled into the minds of high school students across America. But stepping onto a college campus can make the decision to say no more difficult.

The typical college lifestyle revolves around homework on the weekdays and bars on the weekends – so where do students who don’t drink fit into the college equation? When alcohol is seemingly everywhere, the number of students who choose not to participate is dwindling.

Junior Paige Ernste has never tasted alcohol and will not until she is at least of legal age. She explained that this decision was easy for her, but she was skeptical of the acceptance levels of her peers before coming to college.

When she got to Drake, however, she found that most people were very accepting.

“Up to this point in my life, it really just hasn’t been for me and I’m fine with that and apparently other people are, too, because luckily I still have friends despite the lack of popularity surrounding my decision,” she said.

Although her friends are accepting, she is one of a small few who choose not to drink.

“I literally could not name one other person on campus who doesn’t drink or smoke,” Ernste said. “I’m not saying there aren’t others, but I have yet to meet someone who isn’t shocked when

I tell them I don’t drink.”

It can be difficult to hold your own in social situations when others are pressuring you to do what everyone else is doing, but Ernste said that the Drake community is accepting: all she has to say is “I don’t drink,” and they respect that. She said after being in social situations where drinking is occurring, people have stopped trying to see if they can change her mind.

“I get offered drinks all the time, but no one really tries to persuade me to drink anymore,” she said. “I usually just tell them I don’t drink and they leave me alone. People are pretty respectful to my face, even if they do turn around and think I am a total weirdo.”

Alcohol is prevalent and pretty readily available, and has been for quite a while. Drugs like marijuana are becoming more popular, especially in social situations, and can be hard to say no to as well. The argument that “you don’t know if you like it until you try it” is thrown around a lot, and the pressures to try the substance are growing almost as fast as its popularity. Kasia Spyrka, a P1 pharmacy student, has never smoked and says she has no plans to do so, no matter what others say.

“It’s getting so popular now that people are surprised when you say you’ve never smoked, but honestly I have no interest in it,” she said. “If I’m in a situation where that’s happening, I usually try to remove myself, just because I’m not interested in being part of that.”

Ernste and Spyrka are both

members of Greek life, which has a notorious reputation across the country for drinking, hazing and peer pressure. Ernste explained that Drake Greek life differs from these stereotypes, and she credits

the difference to recruitment.

“Fortunately, Drake Greek life is values-based, so whether or not someone drinks or smokes is pretty irrelevant when it comes to being accepted into the

community,” she said. “I’ve never felt ostracized for my decision not to drink and I am thankful for that.”

ALCOHOL, and the abundance of it on Drake’s campus and in universities around the nation, is a tempting distraction that many students struggle to avoid during their college careers. PHOTO BY PRANEETH RAJSINGH | PHOTO EDITOR

08 | features

March 02, 2016

FEATURES COMMUNITY

Des Moines Playhouse celebrates over 90 years of live theater Molly Adamson Staff Writer molly.adamson@drake.edu

Theater has a prominent place in Des Moines, and part of that is because of the Des Moines Playhouse. The Playhouse is coming up on its 100-year anniversary, which will be celebrated in 2019, although it has already begun the celebrations.

The Playhouse has always put on fun events for the community, but over the next couple years, there will be some special events to look forward to.

One event the Playhouse will be putting on to celebrate the anniversary is titled “Countdown to 100: A Musical Revue of the ‘60s and ‘70s.” This event will be held March 4-5 at the Playhouse, and includes plays that were either performed at the Playhouse, or plays that premiered on Broadway during that time.

The Playhouse holds special events throughout the year, including a Halloween event and a very unique event called “Sip! Savor! Switch!” Participants get taken around Des Moines on a bus to different historical homes, at which people get to enjoy the beauty while also enjoying gourmet meals and wines served by gourmet chefs.

Lee Ann Bakros, the public relations and marketing director, explained what makes the Playhouse special.

“We produce all of our own

shows, so it’s not like someone just comes in and puts on their show that you can see at every city,” she said. “We produce each show. It’s live theater, so that always makes things fun here.

What’s really special is that it’s all produced by people here in our community. It’s people that you know and see around town. That just makes it really neat.”

“There’s something about going to a live performance and being with, in our case, 400 people, and experiencing the same thing. Yes, it’s the same actors, the same lighting, and the same costumes every night, yet every performance is different.”

“They let me run the light board, and I just remember being like ‘who would let a 16-year-old do this,’ but that’s the great thing about community theater, you’ve got an 8-year-old, a 38-year-old and an 80-year-old all in a show, and they’re all working for the same goal of entertaining the audience,” she said. “I think that makes it very special.”

Nikki Syverson, the development director, also spoke of the importance and impact of live theater.

“Live theater is unlike anything else. I think about how I go home and sit in front of the TV and how

I don’t go to the movies as often as I used to because movies are on DVD now. But there’s something about going to a live performance and being with, in our case, 400 people, and experiencing and seeing the same thing.

“Yes, it’s the same actors, the same lighting, and the same costumes every night, yet every performance is different,” Syverson said. “When my nephew was younger and I would bring him to the theater he always loved it when someone dropped something or tripped. He’d ask, ‘Were they supposed to do that?’ and I’d say, ‘no, but that’s

part of live theater.’ There’s just something about being with people and seeing something that is being created for you in that moment that won’t be recreated.”

Drake student and Playhouse intern Marianna Moroz also knows the magic of community theater.

“I think it’s about how engraved it is in the community, that’s what sets it apart from other theaters in the community.

It really allows for a wide variety of theatrical experiences,” she said.

Lee Ann Bakros Public relations and marketing director

All of the productions come together with the help of the 1,700 volunteers the Playhouse has. These people do everything from helping put together sets for the next upcoming show to performing in the shows themselves.

Bakros, who has been coming to the Playhouse since she was 5 years old, discussed the importance of community theater.

THE DES MOINES PLAYHOUSE has been a part of the central Iowa community for over 90 years and will celebrate its 100 year anniversary in 2019. Currently, the playhouse is showing “Sarah, Plain and Tall (above). There was a substantial crowd gathered on Monday night to see the show in a close and personal setting (top). PHOTOS BY MARIANNA MOROZ | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

THEATER

[title of show] plays off of reality in playwrights’ struggles toward success Katherine Bauer Staff Writer katherine.bauer@drake.edu “[title of show]”. No, that’s not a typo. “[title of show]” tells the story about two guys writing a play about two guys who are writing a play. You get a play-ception sort of feel watching this performance.

Hunter (Jackson Kealy) and Jeff (Adam Dooley) are the main characters doing the writing in the show, while secondary characters Heidi (Molly Mayne) and Susan (Maddie Sell) become actors in their story.

The writing gives believable insight into what it’s like to be a writer in New York, working completely unrelated jobs to get by and waiting for a big break.

From a play festival, to off-offBroadway and beyond, you experience everything with the characters within the walls of Hunter’s and Jeff’s apartments. “[title of show]” has many

punch lines, but you aren’t overwhelmed and don’t feel like the writers were maybe trying a little bit too hard to make their audience laugh. It’s genuine humor. While the show is primarily comedy, you get to see the obstacles and internal fears writers and actors struggle with. Perhaps one of my favorite songs was “Die Vampire, Die!” where Susan uses vampires as a metaphor for the hindrances that stop people from succeeding.

“I liked that it had a lot of different types of humor,” firstyear marketing major Grace Dunn said. “Each character had their own different way that they were funny.”

Having a cast of only four main actors, each needed to be in character every second they were on stage. Each cast member did a fantastic job of this. Even when my attention wandered from the front and center player, I could still see those in the background reacting and remaining engaged.

This convinced me even more

that they were truly their character and made the story seem that much more realistic.

The attention to details made this show.

“I liked the humor in the voicemails that they left in between scene changes,” Dunn said. “It was something to add to it when there wasn’t anything on stage. Or there were the funny little things they were posting on the bulletin board.”

It may be my own bias as an eccentric female character myself, but Sell as Susan stood out to me the most. I am convinced that she is a corporate drone by day and an actress by night. I was convinced of her craziness and that the things that came out of her mouth were genuinely spontaneous. This was only Sell’s second performance here at Drake.

Kealy offered a variety of personalities, especially in his manifestation as inanimate objects like the blank script and the original Broadway play in Jeff’s dream. I was hesitant to fall

in love with this character, but as the show progressed, I began to see the depth in his character and the skills Kealy holds as an actor.

Lastly, but surely not least, Mayne as Heidi. Mayne had the most beautiful voice and was given the opportunity to show case her range and character as a vocalist. It was wonderful to watch her perform as an actress, singer and dancer.

Beyond the four main characters were several people who were present onstage wearing black. The keyboardist and stage crew added the extra sparkle to this production. Trevor Wiley was the onstage accompanist given the name Larry. He could quickly become your favorite character.

While his lines were minimal, his delivery and reactions during key moments in the play shined through. He definitely had a lot of sass in him.

“I fell in love with Larry and if I ever see Larry again I might kiss him,” first-year public relations major Emma Haselhuhn said.

“He was just so delightfully, subtly funny. The very few lines that he had, he made them count. They were totally his time to shine. And of all the secondary characters I’ve seen in a play or musical, he definitely stands out in my mind.

(I) freaking love Larry.”

Stage crew members would bluntly hand things onstage to the players, but they developed their own little characters to make these exchanges natural.

One in particular was not too thrilled about their job and not afraid to show it.

With foul language and people removing their shirts as notable components, “[title of show]” is designed for a certain audience.

But I found myself being a part of that audience, loving practically every minute of the show. This is a real testament to the work director Violet Saylor put into this production.

Unfortunately, there isn’t another chance to see this amazing production; “[title of show]” closed on Sunday night.

09 | features

March 02, 2016

FEATURES CAMPUS CLUBS

Hammock club encourages students to relax and de-stress New student-founded club allows students to hang loose on campus Emily VanSchmus Staff Writer emily.vanschmus@drake.edu @vansmooches

As temperatures begin to rise, students are tying hammocks between trees and taking less conventional study breaks. Because of their growing popularity, first-year Audrey Byerley co-founded Hammock Club this fall. She wanted to get together with other students who “hammock” and meet people she had that connections with.

“We wanted people to be able to come and go as they please, as well as meet new people they may not have usually met otherwise,” she said. “We really wanted to

attract all kinds of people and bring people together because we think that relaxation is a key component of success in college.”

Byerley went through Student Senate, but the vote to approve the club was tabled, so they had to jump through a few hoops before Senate ultimately approved Hammock Club. Now, the club is working on gaining a following. Byerley said a common misconception is that students without hammocks at school can’t join in.

“You don’t need a hammock to hang out with us,” she said.

“It would be great if you did, but feel free to bring a blanket or whatever you want. Everyone is welcomed. Nobody is excluded.”

Members of the club get together on warm days and sit

and chat. Byerley explained that one of the core goals of the club is adding relaxation to college students’ busy and stressful schedules.

“We really wanted to attract all kinds of people and bring people together because we think that relaxation is a key component of success in college.”

Audrey Byerley Club Co-Founder

“We just talk about our life and create a fun environment for

everyone to share their ideas,” she said.

The club’s growing popularity around campus has been a great way for members to meet people.

“They are a conversation starter for sure, and it is really awesome to see how many people come up to you when you are hanging out around campus and start a conversation,” Byerley said. “People have been really interested in it and a lot of my friends have gotten hammocks because they want to join the fun.”

The Hammock Club meetings are different from others that might happen around a table or have a specific agenda. Member Lauren McEvoy has a hammock and attends the club’s gatherings.

“We usually all just hang out

and talk. People will bring their homework or listen to music or watch Netflix. It’s really nice just being able to sit outside and enjoy the weather,” she said.

Hammocking can be an individual activity, so the club allows people to have this relaxing time for themselves while being surrounded by others doing the same.

“People hammock on their own time whenever and where ever they want but specific times and dates are set up through the club so everyone can hang out together,” McEvoy said. “I just enjoy being outside, and it’s actually super peaceful to be able to just sit while hanging from a tree.”

ATHLETES

Drake basketball players balance academics with athletics Molly Adamson Staff Writer molly.adamson@drake.edu

Many college students could testify that they have too much on their plates. They have to balance homework, friends, family, sleep and eating, all while trying to stay healthy. Now, add the demands of a sport, and things begin to look even more complicated. But that is exactly what the Drake men’s basketball team has to do.

C.J. Rivers, a sophomore broadcasting major, explained how he is able to manage the workload.

“The coaches and the staff make it pretty easy for us,” Rivers said. “They offer tutors and study halls and things like that to help us balance both. Obviously we’re on the road a lot so many of us, if we’re in the same major or have taken a lot of the same classes, will kind of study together while we’re on the road. There’s plenty of ways for us to succeed and balance the two.”

For A.J. Rutter, a junior biology and health sciences major, it is all about scheduling.

“It’s key to have a schedule,” Rutter said. “I have a planner and to do lists. I plan out my day and have tasks that I want to get done for that day. When I get that free time I am able to hang out with friends.”

Coach Jeff Rutter praised his athletes for being so driven about their schoolwork.

“We’re basketball coaches; I’m not the chemistry professor,” Jeff Rutter said. “I get to focus my time on basketball and recruiting, but there are a lot of college basketball coaching jobs where the coach has to spend a lot of time with their guys counseling, advising, and emphasizing the importance of academics. That’s just not the case with our guys, because they’re really self-driven and academic minded guys. We offered them a scholarship with that in mind. We’re very into the ABC model of recruiting, and that stands for academics, basketball and character.”

A.J. believes that part of his success as a student and an athlete comes from the support of his coaches. “They’re really big about keeping up with our academics. They follow up on all

the guys on our team, asking how classes are going, seeing if you need extra help,” he said.

But of course it’s not always just basketball and school with the boys. They get some free time, too.

In his free time, Rivers likes to produce videos, which is why he’s a broadcast major. He has his own radio show on 94.1 The Dog that airs on Thursday nights at 11 p.m.

One of A.J.’s favorite hobbies is hanging out with friends, simply because he often doesn’t have enough time for it. As a team, though, the boys do get to participate in fun activities like laser tag.

“It was interesting to shoot my dad (Jeff Rutter),” A.J. Rutter said. “One of our other coaches was in a corner trying to shoot us.

It was really fun.”

While the players are driven when it comes to basketball and school, they are still able to relax in their limited free time. They’re just like any other student who wants to succeed but also have fun.

THE DRAKE MEN’S BASKETBALL TEAM is not the exception to the rule in terms of handling the stress of school. With extracurriculars, clubs and sports in addition to both on and off campus jobs, Drake students are constantly juggling responsibilities while managing to make time to relax and recuperate each week with fun activities.. PHOTOS BY MOHAMAD SUHAIMI | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

10 | sports

March 02, 2016

SPORTS SOFTBALL

SOFTBALL COLUMN

Newman dominates, McKinnon struggles, Bulldogs to take on top Jonas walks off, Drake improves to 6-3 opponents in Las Vegas, Adam Rogan Sports Editor adam.rogan@drake.edu @Adam_Rogan

Drake split four games in a roller coaster weekend in Fayetteville, Arkansas, at the Razorback Invitational.

To continue two trends of the early Drake Softball season, the Bulldogs won a close game behind pitching from ace pitcher Nicole Newman against the University of Missouri – Kansas City Kangaroos on Saturday morning.

Even with Newman on the mound, however, UMKC would strike first.

A single scored two Kangaroos in the top of the second inning.

Only one of the runs was earned, however, as a passed ball had moved the runners into scoring position.

With nobody out and the bases loaded in the top of the third, Newman escaped with only one more run allowed.

Two, two out runs scored in the top of the third, both unearned on account of a fielding error committed by Drake right fielder Melissa Schlotzhauer.

Down 5-0 with the game half over, the Bulldog offense needed to respond. And it did.

With two outs and runners at the corners in the bottom of the fifth, sophomore Kelsey Wright singled to put the Bulldogs on the board. Freshman Kennedy Frank then stepped up to the plate, and stepped up for her team in a big way.

She connected on a pitch and sent it over the right field wall for a two-out, three-run homer. Only one run separated the Bulldogs and Kangaroos.

After leaving one runner stranded in the bottom of the sixth, the Bulldogs needed to score one run in the seventh to stay alive.

Again, it was Frank who would deliver with the big play.

With runners on first and second, Frank hit a single through the infield to score Wright and tie the game.

Megan Sowa and Teryn Pena entered the batter’s box next, but neither was able to come through

with a game-winning hit and the game entered extra innings.

Relief pitcher Kailee Smith stranded two in the top of the eighth to give Drake another chance to win it in the bottom of the inning.

With Pena on second and two outs, freshman Gabbie Jonas hit a ball deep into center to score the winning run – Drake’s second walk off thus far in 2016.

“I went up there and was like ‘Okay, try to do your best,’ and the outcome was better than expected,” Jonas said.

Against the Arkansas Razorbacks in the afternoon, however, Drake’s chance of comeback was miniscule at best.

The Bulldogs managed to score four runs in the five inning game, two of which were the result of errors. But the Arkansas offense made those runs appear almost non-existent.

Against senior pitcher Mariah McKinnon, the Razorbacks scored eight runs in two innings. Only six of those runs were charged to McKinnon, who was relieved by Smith in the second. She didn’t fare any better, allowing seven runs between the second and fourth innings.

“We have to work together on defense,” Jonas said. “That’s one of the big concerns going into this next weekend, just working together as a team.”

The game ended by mercy rule, 13-4 in favor of Arkansas.

After a night’s rest, the Bulldogs took to the field again on Sunday for rematches against the previous day’s opponents. And even if they faced the same teams, the results would prove to be the opposite.

Going up against UMKC for the second time in two days, errors plagued the Bulldogs defense. McKinnon finished the game with eight runs against, only one of which was earned in two innings of work.

“We had some defensive miscues … (that could be fixed) if we step up our communication and play more as a unit,” junior Kaitlyn Finneran said. “Very fixable mistakes.”

Smith didn’t do much better when she entered the game in the third. She gave up four runs in four innings. Again, none of them

were earned.

Drake avoided a mercy rule loss thanks to a two-run homer from Frank in the third inning and a three-run rally in the fourth, but its offense wasn’t able to overcome its defensive faults.

The game ended 12-5.

If the Bulldogs needed an outlet for their frustration after their last two blowout losses, they found it (and a bit of revenge) against Arkansas on Sunday afternoon.

With Newman back on the mound, the Razorback offense was held in check. She pitched a complete game, only allowed two runs and struck out six on the way to her fifth win of 2016.

Still, the Drake hitters didn’t give Newman the runs she would need for the win until it was almost too late.

Down 2-1, the first six Bulldog batters reached base in the top of the sixth inning and scored five runs in the process.

Finneran, Jonas, Newman and Pena all recorded RBIs in the inning. Jonas’ single was also extended her hitting streak to seven.

“I’m just trying to contribute as much as I can,” Jonas said.

“When I get up there (at the plate), I try not to think that much about it. I just try to do whatever I can when I’m up at the plate.”

Sophomore Tasha Alexander added a two-run home run for good measure in the top of the seventh to bring the final score of 9-2.

Nine games into the season, Frank is leading the team in on-base percentage (.529), slugging percentage (.857), home runs (3), RBIs (10), and is tied for best batting average (.429).

For batting average, Frank is tied with Jonas. The two of them are closely followed by Finneran.

She’s hitting .414 so far this season and is tied with Alexander for the team lead with seven runs scored.

“I just got to keep trusting in myself and trusting that my teammates will pick me up if I’m not doing well,” Finneran said.

The Bulldogs will travel to Las Vegas this weekend for the Alexis Park Resort Classic where they will play five games in three days.

TRACK AND FIELD

Men finish seventh, women eighth at conference Nine Bulldogs place, Van Leersum narrowly misses gold Katherine Bauer Beat Writer katherine.bauer@drake.edu @bauer_katherine

Several Bulldogs performed well for Drake Track and Field at the 2016 MVC Indoor Championship this past weekend.

“It’s always one of those meets where you can get there and be ranked 20th on a preseason poll and come out and score in conference. It’s a wild card,” junior Reed Fischer said. “All and all we had some good points from a lot of different people, which is cool to see.”

Distance runners had the most successful weekend for Drake overall.

Fischer finished second in the 5000-meter in 14:28.88 during the first day of competition. He placed third in the 3000-meter in 8:17.97 on Sunday. “(It was) a good way to end our indoor season on a high note and then carry that momentum into the outdoor season,” Fischer said.

Senior Emma Huston continued her season with a fifthplace finish in the mile with a time of 4:57.48. She claimed an eighth place finish in the 3000-meter in 9:48.40. She also ran the anchor leg of the distance medley relay, which finished second.

Senior Robert McCann finished the men’s mile in 4:15.39 to place fourth.

Sophomore Taryn Rolle finished second in the women’s triple jump and senior Kayla Bell finished third, both with leaps of 40-9.5. Bell also placed fourth in the long jump with 19-2.75.

“I wanted to do just the best I could for my team,” Bell said.

“Everybody’s goal is to win. You want to go out there, have a PR. (I) didn’t go out there and get a PR, didn’t win. But at the end of the day I realized, I helped my team.”

Drake sprinters and hurdlers continued the team’s success as junior Bas Van Leersum placed third in the 400-meter with a time of 48.61 in his first career MVC Championship.

“I didn’t really know what to expect,” Van Leersum said. “I knew the competition was going to be challenging, that they were fast. I was excited to run.”

Van Leersum’s time in the preliminaries was 48.30, the best time of the day in any heat.

Unfortunately for Van Leersum, it’s only the time in the final that matters for the podium.

“I was a little disappointed,” Van Leersum said. “What I did not like is that they split up the finals. There were two heats. It was kind of frustrating because I got second in my heat. But the guy in the other heat ran faster. It was annoying to lose like that.”

Senior Pierce Vincent matched his personal best in the 60-meter in 6.83 and finished fourth.

Sophomore Mary Young took third in the 60-meter hurdles in 8.58.

In the women’s distance medley relay, sophomore Bailee Cofer and seniors Virginia Hill, Taylor Scholl and Huston teamed up for a time of 11:48.31, finishing in second place As a team, the men finished in seventh place and women finished in eighth out of nine schools.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, these were the same team rankings the Bulldogs placed in last year.

The Illinois State women placed first, as did the Wichita State men.

The Alabama Relays is next on the schedule for the Bulldogs, taking place on March 18-19 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. It will be the first outdoor competition of the season for Drake Track and Field.

“I don’t really know what to expect,” Van Leersum said.

“I expect to get some good competition. I’m excited to go into outdoors, but it’s going to be a big switch.”

Although she’s been successful thus far in the season, Bell has even higher goals once the outdoor season gets underway.

“I want to win Nationals,” Bell said. I want to sweep the jumps.

Regionals are not a goal; it’s an expectation.”

Newman leads on the mound and in the huddle Flying is not something the Drake University softball team takes for granted and this year Drake Softball gets to fly west to Las Vegas, Nevada, to compete in five games in one weekend.

Over the weekend we will be facing off against top ranked schools, such as the University of Oregon, University of Las Vegas Nevada, New Mexico State University, Saint Mary’s University and Florida Atlantic University.

As we enter the weekend with six wins and three losses, we look to improve our record once again.

The season is looking bright and we are confident in the way the team is performing.

Leadership is one thing that plays a huge role in our performance on the field.

Nicole Newman, a sophomore pitcher, is coming off her conference Freshman of the Year campaign. The team looks to her for assurance as she leads us in the circle.

“I enjoy being someone the team can go to and trust in,” Newman said. “I love being able to lead team huddles on the field and pump everyone up.”

Having the team pumped up to play is a key factor in success.

We have to be ready and in the zone. We must have the energy to fight for the win.

When Nicole thinks about her leadership role she said, “I have such a passion for the game and I want all of my teammates to feel that passion too.”

This is what makes Nicole a great leader for the Drake University softball team. The

passion she shares with her teammates is contagious and it makes a difference. It makes everyone understand that she is all-in and she will give it her all when she is performing. It makes the rest of the team want to do the same thing for her.

This weekend when the Drake softball team faces some of the toughest competition in the country, Nicole says she looks to lead the team in the same way she has done throughout her career, “make my teammates believe that we can beat anybody.”

Passion, leadership and competition has led to the team’s past success and we look to continue that same philosophy moving forward.

Let’s win.

Kailee Smith

Columnist kailee.smith@drake.edu @therealkaismith

TRACK AND FIELD COLUMN

Standing on the podium One year ago, during the conference meet my freshman year, I looked at the athletes standing on the awards podium and told myself that I would be there someday.

I was so far from tasting victory that the thought was almost humorous. I raced in the 3,000-meter that year and took second to last place. I was disheartened, embarrassed and full of self-doubt. I had no idea how I was ever going to get myself onto the podium. I figured it would take years of training, abounding confidence and probably scientifically engineered legs to replace the ones I already had.

On Saturday night, I stood on that very podium with one extra year of training, a moderate amount of confidence and my own original two legs. But I did not stand on the podium alone.

Three of my teammates and I took second place in the distance medley relay at the MVC Indoor Championship on Saturday. We were one second out of first place and four seconds away from a school record, but we were on the podium. They called our names and placed silver medals around our necks, and we stood and smiled at the flashing lights.

The amount of pride I felt was overwhelming. I was proud of my teammates, who ran their guts out for each other and held back nothing despite having their own individual races later on in the meet. I was proud of myself for coming such a long way from the previous year. I was proud of the name I wore across my chest.

In the midst of my excitement and pride, I looked at my teammates beside me and realized I would not see these same faces again next year. They are all seniors, running their last races and winning their final medals. Their days of competing are coming to an end.

Mine are just beginning.

They will leave me, but they have given me everything I need to carry on. They have bestowed upon me excellent examples of work ethic. They have instilled confidence in me that only a true friend can. They have shown me a glimpse of victory. They have shown me the meaning of the word ‘teammate’. They have shown me how to get on the podium. They have lit a fire in me to do it again.

I will hang my medal where I can see it everyday to remind myself of what is possible and to dare myself to dream bigger than ever before. When I see it I will be brought back to this moment, I will feel fearless, and I will remember my friends.

We aspire to get better each meet, and after each meet we will share one athlete’s new best mark.

This week’s featured PR: Taryn Rolle, triple jump, 12.43m (Previous PR: 12.40m). #GetAnotherOne

Bailee Cofer

Columnist bailee.cofer@drake.edu

11 | sports

March 02, 2016

SPORTS MEN’S TENNIS

MEN’S BASKETBALL

Lott survives three-setter to upset Denver Drake outlasts Loyola in OT Adam Rogan Sports Editor adam.rogan@drake.edu @Adam_Rogan

It was a good weekend for the Drake Men’s Tennis team. In their first two matches back inside the Roger Knapp Tennis Center, the 44th-ranked Bulldogs upset two highly ranked opponents: no. 39 Purdue Boilermakers and no. 40 Denver Pioneers.

Taking on Purdue Friday afternoon, Drake won its first doubles point since Jan. 31, snapping a six-match losing streak.

Senior Ben Lott and sophomore Ben Wood won their match 6-3, but sophomore Calum MacGeoch and freshman Vinny Gillespie fell soon after, leaving the deciding match to the no.

3 pairing of sophomores Bayo Phillips and Ben Stride.

With their match tied at five games each, Phillips and Stride won two consecutive games to win 7-5 and seal the point for the Bulldogs.

MacGeoch won his fourth straight match in straight sets to put Drake ahead 2-0, but Purdue’s Gergely Madarasz – ranked 58th in the nation – looked to put the Boilermakers on the board.

Madarasz faced Lott on the no. 1 court, where Lott took the first set 6-3. However, Lott had been battling illness throughout the day and his play suffered as a result. He lost the next two sets 6-0, 6-3 and the Boilermakers had pulled back to within one.

Stride and freshman Tom Hands responded on the five and six courts to secure the Drake victory, each of them delivering three set victories of their own.

Hands had been down 3-2 in the second set after losing the first, but then won 10 consecutive games to pick up the victory.

On courts two and three, Phillips and Gillespie also played three set matches. Phillips lost the first set in a tiebreaker but won the second 6-1. However, he wasn’t able to finish the comeback as he lost the final set 6-4.

Gillespie’s match was close from beginning to end, but managed to hold out for the win: 7-5, 4-6, 6-3.

Final score: Drake 5, Purdue 2.

The Bulldogs continued their success the next day against Denver, seeking revenge after losing to the Pioneers 4-3 last season in Colorado.

“We knew this Denver team is a potential top-25 team,” Kozlowski said. “They are very,

very good, especially at the top with their one and two singles players and their two doubles teams.”

In an attempt to keep the team engaged in the match at hand, Kozlowski used a somewhat oldfashioned tactic to get their minds off of Saturday’s win and focus on Sunday’s match.

“This morning, prior to the match, (I) had the guys write down prior to the match 100 times each, ‘I will win today,’” Kozlowski said. “I needed them to believe it.”

That belief seemed to pay off early. Lott and Wood improved to 2-1 as a pairing in the first doubles match with a 6-4 win, upsetting Denver’s 20th ranked pairing of Henry Craig and Alex Gasson. On court three, MacGeoch and Stride won 6-3 to secure the doubles point for the Bulldogs.

In singles, the Bulldogs took a 3-0 lead quickly behind MacGeoch and Hands who cruised to straight set victories.

“I put in a lot of work last week, hitting a lot balls there, and I guess it’s paid off,” Hands said. “(I’m) a lot more solid (with my forehands), hitting a few more winners, so I’m really happy with that and I’m really happy with these two wins.”

It looked as though the Bulldogs might have a quick victory, but the Pioneers didn’t see it that way.

“It’s a team game and it doesn’t matter what the score is on your individual match,” Kozlowski said. “It’s good to get some points on the board and get some guys off the court, but you need points no matter how you get them …

When you get some of those quick wins it almost puts a false sense of security into your team.”

Stride lost his match 6-3, 6-3 to give Denver its first point of the day. Gillespie fell soon after, losing both of his sets by just two games: 6-4, 7-5.

With Drake up 3-2, the Bulldogs still only needed to win one more match. Their top two players—Lott and Phillips—were still competing. But Denver had its best two players facing them.

Lott had won the first set and had a chance to finish off Craig in the second set. Down 40-love with the set tied at four games each, Lott battled back with five straight point wins to take a 5-4 lead. From there on out in the set, however, Craig took control, winning three straight games to extend the match to three sets.

Meanwhile, on the other end of the Roger Knapp Tennis Center, Phillips was fighting to stay alive

in the second set.

He’d lost the first set 6-2, but was taking the advantage in the second. With the set tied 3-3, Phillips won three straight games to push the match into a third set.

The third set reached a score of 3-3 as well, but this time Phillips lost the next three games and lost the match.

With the team score tied at three, all eyes turned back to the no. 1 court. The observing Bulldog and Pioneer players grew increasingly rowdy, cheering on their respective teammates and trying to distract the opponent.

“We deal with that each match and we practice that. The guys enjoy it,” Kozlowski said. “Both sides, whether you’re home or away and people are screaming and making noise, you somehow block it out or you’re hearing it and it’s fueling you, but you’re not really paying attention to it.”

Still, it wasn’t those in the stands who would start to bother Lott and Craig. A plethora of close calls were challenged by both sides, leading to Lott and Craig each getting angered and flustered with the referee at the end of the second set and the beginning of the third.

It would be Lott who settled down and found a way to win in the final set.

“Davidson really got onto me at the start of the third set, just telling me ‘Just believe, you can win this,’” Lott said. “He really helped me just to settle my mind and give myself the belief that I could pull it out.”

Lott took an early two-game lead in the third set, but Craig battled back to tie the set at three.

Another argued call from Denver went in Lott’s favor in the seventh game, further angering Craig and giving Lott a mental advantage. “(Lott) having calm nerves definitely showed,” Kozlowski noted.

Lott breezed through the next three games with wins, capped off with four service winners (two of which were aces) in the final game to win the match 6-4, 5-7, 6-3. Seconds after the final point was scored, Lott was mobbed by his teammates on the court.

Final score: Drake 4, Denver 3.

“It’s the best feeling I’ve had this season so far,” Lott said. “(We’ve) had some tough losses … but to grind that one out and to finally take a tight 4-3 win was very, very satisfying.”

Drake, now ranked 36th, has three home matches this weekend against the University of Iowa, Michigan State and Cornell.

WOMEN’S TENNIS

Bulldogs split road matches in Nebraska Adam Rogan Sports Editor adam.rogan@drake.edu @Adam_Rogan

In a dichotomy of matches, the Drake Women’s Tennis team was swept by the Nebraska Cornhuskers in the early afternoon of Saturday, Feb. 27, but turned it around in the evening with a 4-0 sweep of the South Dakota Coyotes.

It wasn’t all for the worst against Nebraska, however. A Big-10 program, the Cornhuskers have only lost one match this season and several Bulldogs held their own against their talented and proven opponents.

In doubles, senior Maddie Johnson and freshman Joely Lomas were ahead in their match on the no. 2 court when it was cut short after Drake lost on courts one and three.

Although Tess Herder and Mariel Ante had lost 6-0 in doubles, their match was tightly fought. They’d lost each of the first four games in a deuce, just one point away from wins in each. However, close wasn’t good enough to get the win, and the same would prove true in singles play.

Although both Johnson and Lomas had won their first set and were leading in the second, they were unable to complete their matches when Mela Jaglarz, Summer Brills and Herder went down in quick succession to give the Cornhuskers the 4-0 win.

“It’s good for (Johnson and Lomas) to know that they’re doing well against a good team, especially for Joely,” head coach John Hollimon said. “She’s coming off of a couple tough matches … so I was really happy to see her fighting hard still and competing really hard.”

Hollimon noted the fight that some of his players showed, but believes that a change in mindset could’ve turned the loss into a win. “(The girls) got to intimidate,” he said. “They got to know how to look the player in the eye and say you’re full of (expletive).

Intimidate them. Believe that they can win ... That’s tough to do. ... The reason that those teams are supposed to be good and better is that they are actually good and better.”

Against South Dakota that evening, the Bulldogs dominated from start to finish.

Brills and Jaglarz won 6-0 on the no. 3 court in the first match

of doubles. However, the match was a lot closer than it appeared on paper.

Johnson and Lomas sealed the point with a 6-2 win. Mariel Ante and Herder were ahead on the no. 1 court as well, just one game away from victory.

In singles play, the Bulldogs only lost two sets. Jaglarz was ahead 2-0 in the third set after starting 6-4, 1-6 and Brills had been defeated 6-4 on the no. 1 court, but was tied in the second when the match was called after her teammates breezed past their opponents.

Johnson won 6-2, 6-0 to put Drake up by two. Ante followed with a 6-3, 6-1 victory. Lomas dealt the final blow, winning 6-3, 6-2 on court five.

“We’re still trying to get some big wins here, but at the same time I’m happy that we’re beating the teams that we’re supposed to beat,” Hollimon said.

The win snapped a four-match losing streak for the Bulldogs.

They currently sit at an even 6-6 in 2016, with just five matches remaining before the start of conference play on March 26.

Next weekend, Drake will host Marquette and Gustavus Adolphus on Saturday.

GRAHAM WOODWARD defends Evansville guard Mizlav Brzoja. Brzoja is averaging eight points per game, but only scored two points in 16 minutes against Drake on Feb. 17. PHOTO BY MOHAMAD SUHAIMI | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Matthew Gogerty Beat Writer matthew.gogerty@drake.edu @matt_gogo

The Drake men’s basketball team’s (7-23, 2-16 MVC), losing streak was extended to six on Feb. 24 in a 62-51 loss to the Missouri State Bears (12-18, 8-10 MVC).

However, the Bulldogs ended the season on a high note with a 6959 overtime upset of the Loyola Ramblers (14-16, 7-11 MVC) at the Knapp Center on Sunday.

Facing a nine-point deficit with less than 10 minutes remaining in the first half against Missouri State, Casey Schlatter kicked off what would become an 11-0 run for the Bulldogs with two points of his own. Sophomore Ore Arogundade finished the run with five straight points on a jumper and a three from the beyond arc.

This culminated in the two-point lead for the Bulldogs that closed out the first, 29-27.

Shooting 40 percent from the field for the Bulldogs, compared to the Bears 20 percent, it was clear that the Bulldogs dominated the first half. From the arc the Bulldogs shot 42 percent, although no points came from the charity stripe in the first.

Entering the second half, the Bulldogs were able to stretch their two-point lead, and led by as much as seven early on.

Then things took a turn.

A scoreless six minutes for Drake midway through the half, leading allowed a 13-0 run for the Bears, giving them to a 41-35 lead over the Bulldogs.

Drake battled back to within two, 45-43, with nine minutes left on the clock.

However, an 11-2 run for the Bears over the course of the next seven minutes sealed the deal.

The Bulldogs converted a few more times, but it was too little, too late.

Overall, the Bulldogs shot 36 percent from the field, 35 percent from the arc, and 66 percent from the charity stripe. Arogundade had a career-high 16 points, with 12 of those falling in the first half.

Sunday’s game was even more competitive, especially in the second half after a turbulent first.

With neither team converting in the first 3 minutes of the game, it looked like it was going to be a low-scoring affair. But then the ball started dropping for Loyola and the Bulldogs were left with next-to-nothing, missing eight of their first ten attempts.

After what seemed like a futile effort in the first part of the half the Bulldogs were able to put some offensive plays together.

Dominick Olejniczak and Ore Arogundade were grabbing boards, each with a total of five in the first half, this contributed to the Bulldogs’ first half rebounding advantage, 21-16.

Olejniczak’s 11 first half points also helped the Bulldogs close out the half only behind by five, 28-23.

Coming out of the locker room the Bulldogs seemed to play with a renewed fire in their final game

in the Knapp Center of 2016.

“Ask anyone, our last two days of practice were our best, why would we do that to not come out and get the win?” head coach Ray Giacolletti said.

The Bulldogs came out with a 7-0 run. At 34-32, a 3-pointer from Graham Woodard put them up by one, with 11 minutes left of play.

Both sides kept on converting for the next nine minutes.

Loyola’s biggest lead for the rest of the half was only three.

Then things got crazy.

With Loyola in the lead 45-48, and only 12 seconds left in the game. Reed Timmer converted on 3-pointer to tie the game at 48.

“Back in the day I’ve had a few (big shots), but nothing like that,” Timmer said of the miraculous play. “It was something I’ll never forget.”

Olejniczak was fouled moments later, earning a shot from the charity stripe and perhaps the winning point.

However, the shot bounced off the rim and the score remained tied at 48 as the buzzer sounded.

In a bizarre start to OT, the tip-off bounced out of bonds.

With both sides blaming the other, the referees elected to have a do-over that Loyola won, one of the few things that went right for the Ramblers in the period.

Loyola was only converted on three of 13 attempts in overtime.

The Bulldogs dominated on both ends, shooting a near-perfect 90 percent from the field in overtime.

It was clear the Bulldogs wanted, maybe even needed, this win.

To cap off a lackluster season, Timmer drained a three with 20 seconds left followed with a message-sending slam dunk by Olejniczak, brought a round of standing applause and cheers for the young team. It seems like we were getting a good look at the future of Bulldogs basketball.

“We’ve been struggling this year, but we’ve been working hard these last two practices leading up to today,” Timmer said. “We knew our break was going to come and it was today.”

With 10 freshman and sophomores, and the lone senior Karl Madison playing his last regular season game for Drake, it’s obvious that the Bulldogs are still pups. There is still plenty of growing to do.

“I’m just so happy for these guys,” Giacolletti said. “You find your true colors through adversity.”

With Olejniczak performing the way he did (19 points, nine rebounds, six blocks), it’s safe to say that the practice he and his teammates have put in is paying off. And with leaders like Timmer who had 17 points and Arogundade who pulled down 15 boards and added nine points, it makes the future look bright for a team that is so young.

Drake will travel to St. Louis for the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament. The first game will be played against the hosts, Missouri State, on Thursday evening.

12 | sports

March 02, 2016

SPORTS WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

SOCCER

Losing streak ends in the Knapp, Bulldogs win two New coaches Wendell and Rhine collect conference honors, Senior Day for Donahue

added to Drake Men’s and Women’s Soccer staffs Adam Rogan Sports Editor adam.rogan@drake.edu @Adam_Rogan

Both the Drake men’s and women’s soccer teams hired an additional coach in February.

SARA RHINE, Drake’s freshman forward who has collected four MVC Newcomer of the Week Awards, drives the lane in the final home game of the season.

Coming off the bench, Rhine is currently averaging nearly 13 points and seven boards a game this season. PHOTO BY MOHAMAD SUHAIMI | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Austin Cannon Beat Writer austin.cannon@drake.edu @NotAustinCannon

Going into the final week of the regular season with the Missouri Valley Conference tournament less than 20 days away, the Drake women’s basketball team has righted the ship.

The Bulldogs capped their regular-season home schedule with wins over the Loyola Ramblers and the Bradley Braves to move into a tie for second place in the conference with Southern Illinois and Missouri State.

Accounting for tiebreakers, it’s unlikely Drake (19-8, 12-4 MVC) will catch first-place UNI, who leads the standings by a game, but the final two contests — including the finale against SIU — will still determine Drake’s seed in the tournament.

It was a bounce-back weekend for the Bulldogs, who had lost two in a row before dominating Loyola on Friday.

Facing their first losing streak in Missouri Valley play, the Drake Bulldogs turned to one of their upperclassmen leaders.

Junior Lizzy Wendell scored 27 points in 24 minutes to lead Drake to a 91-61 victory over the Loyola Ramblers Friday night at the Knapp Center, ending a twogame losing streak.

After being limited to 14 points a week ago against Northern Iowa, Wendell found open shots with ease, especially in the third quarter. She scored the Bulldogs’ first six points, all on easy layups near the basket.

Her first two baskets came on nearly identical plays. Both times Sammie Bachrodt took the ball on the wing and the Loyola defense would lose Wendell, who would receive the pass on the opposite block and make the wide-open layup. The Bulldogs held a 54-35 lead after her third consecutive bucket to open the half.

“They had to guard all of us tonight, so when you get them on a backdoor (cut) they’re busy guarding someone else and they can’t really help necessarily,” Wendell said.

Wendell’s 3-pointer with 2:32 left in the quarter sparked a 10-0 Drake run that left no doubt. The Bulldogs finished the quarter up 73-46, and she was responsible for 11 points in eight minutes.

For good measure, Wendell, who leads the MVC in scoring, went 3-for-3 on field goals in her short appearance in the fourth quarter. She shot 11-for-17 for the game, 3-for-5 from three-point range, with a pair of assists and five steals.

Wendell was supplemented primarily by Maddy Dean (17 points, eight rebounds) and Sara Rhine (15 points, eight rebounds).

“We feed off (Wendell) a lot,” Dean said. “She’s a great player, so when she gets going it makes

the game easier. She’s so fun to play with, and we get open looks because she takes two people and finds ways to score.”

With Wendell only netting two buckets in the first quarter, it was Dean who gave the Bulldogs their first multiple-possession lead of the night.

The Ramblers came out of their timeout with 2:54 remaining in the first quarter, and Dean made a layup off an Emma Donahue assist. Loyola responded with a free throw, but Dean scored the final five points of the first quarter to give Drake a 22-13 lead.

At the same time, Loyola was in the middle of a long drought from the field. Nieka Wheeler’s layup tied the score at 12-12 with 5:03 left in the first quarter, but then the Ramblers didn’t make a field goal for more than six minutes.

Loyola shot 38 percent for the game, but their main problems were turnovers and rebounding.

Drake scored 20 points on 19 Loyola turnovers, 12 of which were Drake steals. The Bulldogs also crashed the boards all night and grabbed 20 more rebounds than the Ramblers.

The Ramblers shot 43 percent in the first half but had 11 turnovers, six of which came on Drake steals.

“I thought we did a really nice job tonight of staying together and playing team defense,” Drake head coach Jennie Baranczyk said.

The previous two games had not been kind to Drake. The Bulldogs averaged only 63.5 points and shot 36.8 percent in the losses to Indiana State and UNI. Drake hadn’t won for two weeks, but they scored 91 points and shot nearly 46 percent against the Ramblers.

“What a fun game,” Baranczyk said.

All nine Drake players scored, and no Bulldog played more than 27 minutes. Wendell was only on the floor for 60 percent of the game. Dean played exactly 20 minutes and Rhine only played 18. Wendell might have scored the most, but as Baranczyk said postgame, they depended on all nine active players.

“I think that’s what sets us apart,” she said, “because I don’t think anybody was off the hook or anybody was held to a higher standard this entire week of practice.”

Drake (18-8) swept the season series with Loyola, winning 8165 in Chicago on Jan. 31. Neither second-place team — Missouri State and Southern Illinois — played Friday, so Drake’s victory pulled the Bulldogs into a threeway tie for second place in the MVC with an 11-4 conference record and three games to go.

The Bulldogs host Bradley on Sunday. The Braves lost 65-41 to first-place Northern Iowa Friday.

Friday also marked the Bulldogs’ annual Pink Game.

The players wore all-pink jerseys and fans received pink T-shirts to promote cancer awareness.

During a halftime video montage, each player named a friend or family member that was fighting cancer.

“When we wear the pink jerseys, it means a little bit more,” Baranczyk said. “That was definitely at the forefront of what I think we were doing today.”

Two days later, the Bulldogs capped their regular-season home schedule with a 78-45 blowout over the Bradley Braves.

“I think it was a great weekend for us,” point guard Caitlin Ingle said. “Every shot didn’t go in today, but I think that’s what made it fun. We still had that energy, we still had fun, so if we take that on the road we’re going to be good.”

On Sunday, Drake had only a two-point lead on Bradley after the first quarter, but the Bulldogs started scoring in bunches to take a 17-point lead into halftime, 4124.

The Bulldogs made six shots in a row at one point in the second quarter and finished the half shooting 9-for-11. Bradley missed 13 of their last 15.

That cold shooting stuck with the Braves in the second half.

They made only three shots from the floor in the third quarter and were 0-for-5 from behind the arc. They would finish the game shooting 27 percent from the floor.

Meanwhile the Bulldogs scored the first seven points of the third to take a 48-24 lead. A Whitney Tinjum jumper brought Bradley within 19, but Drake responded with eight straight points, six on free throws, to go up 58-31.

At the 4:49 mark in the fourth quarter, Drake was up by 30, basically the Knapp Center norm.

During the home conference season, Drake’s average margin in its seven victories was 30 points. It’s good entertainment for Bulldog faithful, with nearly 2500 in attendance on Sunday.

“People love to watch them,” head coach Jennie Baranczyk said. “They love to be a part of it and I think that’s something really, really special.”

The Bulldogs were once again led by Wendell, who added a pair of steals and five rebounds to her 24 points. It was the 46th time in career that she had scored 20plus points.

Wendell’s 51 points on the weekend led to her being named the MVC Player of the Week for the fifth time this season, more than anyone else in the conference.

“I think there’s no question she’s the best player in our league, to be honest, because she does so many different things,” Baranczyk said.

Rhine was also tabbed as the MVC Newcomer of the Week for the fourth time in 2015-16, also leading the conference.

The last regular-season home game is always designated as Senior Day, and center Emma Donahue was honored with a postgame ceremony in which she addressed the Knapp Center crowd.

She thanked everyone from the fans to the cheerleaders to her family and, of course, her teammates and coaches.

“You guys are seriously the best team in the world,” she said while fighting back tears.

After speaking, Donahue hugged each of her teammates and coaches individually. In her postgame press conference, Baranczyk made sure to mention her lone senior.

“This one was for her.”

LIZZY WENDELL pushes past her Loyola defender in Drake’s annual “Pink Game” at the Knapp Center. PHOTO BY MOHAMAD SUHAIMI | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Men’s – Kyle Smith Drake head coach Gareth Smith announced on Feb. 16 that Kyle Smith (unrelated) would be returning to the Drake Men’s Soccer coaching staff. “(Kyle’s) personality and his mindset lines up with the Bulldog Way, the tenets of who we are: integrity, character, pursuing excellence,” Gareth Smith said.

“He is a Drake guy through and through.”

Kyle Smith, a graduate of Lambuth University, had been an assistant coach for two years under former Drake head coach Sean Holmes in 2011 and 2012 alongside Gareth Smith, who had still been an assistant at the time.

Kyle Smith spent the last three years as the head coach of at Cumberland University, an NAIA program.

Last year, he coached Cumberland to a conference championship with a record of 18-2-1. Cumberland’s record improved in each of Kyle Smith’s three years at the helm.

However, Gareth Smith is looking to utilize his new assistant’s talents in more ways than just coaching on the field. “(Kyle) has an exceptional work rate in that he’s prepared to go anywhere and everywhere to find the best possible recruits to match up with who we are at Drake and who we want to bring in,” Gareth Smith said.

Drake finished 2015 with a record of 13-5-3, a conference championship and reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament, an eight-win increase over 2014 in Gareth Smith’s first season as head coach.

Women’s – Kevin Brennan One week later, Drake Women’s Soccer head coach Lindsey Horner announced that Kevin Brennan would become the program’s second assistant coach, alongside Mike Regan, who has been a part of the program since 2012.

“Kevin brings a lot of experience,” Horner said. “He’s going to bring a completely different perspective. It’ll be good for us to reevaluate where we’re at and some of the holes we have, moving forward before next fall.”

Brennan graduated from Cardinal Stritch University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 2007 after four years of playing defender. He joined the school’s coaching staff soon after.

Brennan later became head coach of both the men’s and women’s programs at Cardinal Stritch and held that position for five years.

In 2015, the women’s team won a school-record 15 matches under Brennan and also scored more goals in one season (49) than it ever had before.

Drake already has the topscoring team in the Missouri Valley Conference (82 goals in 2015) and Brennan will surely aim to help keep the goals coming next season.

However, Brennan looks to make an impact on the other side of the ball.

“I pride my teams on being very solid defensively,” he said.

“I’d say that’s naturally the first thing that my eyes are going to be drawn to is how we are defensively.”