The Spectator Online Edition, August 29, 2013.

August 29, 2013

W W W. V S U S P e C TAT O R . C O M

VOLUMe 85 iSSUe 2

On the Web

Inside This Issue

w w w. v s u s p e c ta t o r. c o m

- OPiniOnS: “government keeps bees ‘buzzing’” - FeATUReS: “Blazin’ Brigade ready to ‘rock’ the football field”

- SPORTS: “Blazers new o-line has big, ugly cleats to fill”

Volleyball Newcomers

Meet the seven new volleyball members, page 5.

Police roadblock, though routine, shocks drivers

Today at VSU The happening - Last week the rain cancelled VSU’s plans, but the Happening is back!

Come to the Front Lawn from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. to see what community businesses and organizations and clubs on campus have to offer.

Will Lewis

DisTinguisheD Women of excellence inTeresT meeTing - to learn about the

Managing Editor walewis@valdosta.edu

distinguished Women of Excellence, come to the Student Union Ballroom a at 6:30 p.m. the attire is business casual. For more information, follow the organization @dWE_VSU2012.

make your oWn cupcakes - VSU dining

Services is hosting a cupcake deocoration bar in Hopper dining at noon to 2 p.m.

Black sTuDenT league inTeresT meeTing - an interest meeting will be held in the Student Union theater at 8 p.m.

miss Vsu pageanT - the Miss VSU georgia Scholarship Pageant is hosting an information meeting in the Student Union Meeting room 2 at 5 p.m. For more details, contact alisha at apstabler@valdosta.edu or visit the Student Life office.

free Zip line anD sWing CorE outdoors is reopening the tech course and zip line.

Come by at 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. for a chance to check out the monster swing and zip line for free. CorE outdoors can be found behind SrC in the Sustella Parking deck. For more information, contact CorE outdoors at 229-245-2355 or email at core@valdosta.edu.

Weather Today

Partly Cloudy 94 H 73 L

Friday Sunny 92 H 72 L

Saturday

Scattered T-Storms 88 H 71 L

This Day in History Hurricane Katrina hits the Gulf Coast August 29, 2005 hurricane Katrina hit New orleans, Louisiana as a category 4 storm. The hurricane was marked as the worst natural disaster in U.S. history. Katrina flooded 80-percent of the city and caused an estimated 1,300 deaths and $150 billion in damages.

Source: History.com

Steven Setser’s column “Spec Tech” is all about the new technology hitting shelves soon.

Ritsuki Miyazaki / The SPecTaToR

Mixed media comes to Fine Arts Gallery Hillary Straba S ta F F W r i t E r hlstraba@valdosta.edu

there’s an old saying, “those who cannot do, teach.”

Clearly, whoever believes that notion has not been to the 2013 Faculty art Exhibition. this mixed media exhibition features works from VSU art department faculty members and has everything from sculpture to animation. the exhibit will be available for viewers at no cost in the Fine arts building until Sept. 6. “this is the show where the faculty demonstrates to students that we practice what we preach,” Julie Bowland, Fine arts gallery director and art professor, said. “the star of the show this year has been Mark Stafford,” Bowland said.

Mark Stafford is one of the three new art department faculty members.

Ritsuki Miyazaki / The SPecTaToR

Students of Perspectives 2300 gathered in the gallery to learn more about the art displayed.

His featured piece, “Pity,” is a funky ceramic bust of Mr. t, from the a-team television series. the bust has a nebulizer in it that causes steam to come out of the nose.

Stafford said he selected Mr. t because of his appearance and his B-list celebrity status.

“Mr. t is in his later stage in life and has become a caricature of himself,” Mark Stafford, art instructor, said.

dr. Cindy Hasio and abigail Heuss are the other new additions to VSU’s art department. the other featured artists this year are Hollis Barnett, Julie Bowland, Clyde Edwards, dominick gheesling, Craig Hawkins, Jim Hornsby, Paula Mcneill, Karin Murray, Selena nawrocki, Kyoung-im Park, Blake Pearce, richard Peterman, Michael Schmidt and Kalina Winska.

Student 3-D printing privileges pushed back 3-D printing is still not available for general use.

Brian Hickey S ta F F W r i t E r bdhickey@valdosta.edu

although there are no flying cars just yet, we may already be living in the Jetsonsesque future that we’ve long awaited. once costing $20,000, the MakerBot replicator 1 now sells online for less than $1,000. this past January, VSU purchased two of the devices for about $2,000 each and the filament used for the machines, which ranges from $30 to $50 a roll. although they weren’t immediately available to the student body, the projected release time for

File Photo

students to use the printers was this fall. this, however, has been pushed back to spring 2014. “the reason (we’re) holding off until spring is (because) we want to make sure we have a process for students to bring in 3-d printing material, reserve a time with the machine, print it out and have a fee structure for it that is all going to work and cause as little headaches as possible,” Michael Holt, reference librarian and assistant professor, said.

as of now there are two printers on campus. one is located in Media Services on the first floor of odum Library and will be for general student use. the other printer will be geared toward group projects and classes and is on the third floor of odum Library in the Library Maker Space.

With kinks still being worked out, there is no fee set in stone, but Holt has a pretty good idea of how stuSee 3-D, Page 2

tuesday night roadblocks were set up on Baytree road and in Lake Park, following a meeting of the South regional traffic Enforcement network--one of 16 chapters of an organization that monitors all 159 counties in georgia. “[tuesday] night city police, county police and state patrol had roadblocks in Lake Park and, i believe, Baytree road,” Maj. anne Farmer, VSU Police dept., said. the cooperative police presence is a regular occurrence in Lowndes County.

Farmer said it is a “tool” to help with establishing a presence in Valdosta. the roadblocks allow law enforcement to utilize their various resources. the City will usually take the opportunity to use their Mobile Command Van, Farmer said. the large police presence was disconcerting to some

Valdosta residents. “it looked like it was every cop in Valdosta,” said amanda Stone, public administration graduate student, said. “they don’t normally have public safety vehicles out there for just a traffic stop. all of their lights were on; it looked like a wreck or something. Fifteen cops all in a row, all stopping people and checking id’s.” the roadblock comes in advance of a joint push by georgia and tennessee police to crack down on driving offenses over the holiday weekend. the operation is being set into motion to combat a holiday weekend notorious for driving accidents and fatalities.

Last year there were 13 deaths recorded on georgia roads last Labor day.

"When dinner is done and homework is complete are See Roadblock, Page 2

SGA gets a visit from McKinney Joe Adgie SoCiaL MEdia Editor jmadgie@valdosta.edu

VSU president dr. William McKinney spoke to the Sga on a night where four justice nominees were announced and committees were formed. dr. McKinney and first lady dacia Charlesworth stayed at Monday night’s meeting for only a brief time but gave an inspirational speech for those in attendance during that short time. “i need you all to know that you provide such an energy to this campus,” dr.

McKinney said. “it’s a wonderful life that you have in the academic world. the beginning of school brings a new energy, it brings new ideas, it brings a new Sga administration, with whom i am looking forward to working very much.

“You go through that school year, you’re racing and racing and you finally get to May and commencement and everybody’s ready for a break. and you do what you do over the summer, and then July rolls around, and things get way too quiet around here. Well, it’s not quiet anymore, and it’s because you brought all the energy back,” dr. McKinney said. dr. McKinney also said that all the university needs is the students on campus, and without the students, nobody—least of all him— would be able to do what they do. not long after their depar-

tures, four justice hopefuls were introduced by tullis Beasley, Sga chief justice. “these past two weeks we’ve been doing interviews for four of the spots on the judicial council, which is the third branch of Sga,” Beasley said.

Beasley noted that he, Sga president Will Jimerson, assistant dean Sherolyn Hopkins and an unnamed justice interviewed ten hopefuls for these four slots. the nominees were Mary Bausch, adrienne Fry, Chelsey Mcneil, and Lance Stephens.

Various committees were also filled up during the meeting.

Edgar James has been named the new chair of the judiciary committee, while Valencia Warren is the new Pr chair, Jamaica Hill is the new Parking and transportation chair, ololade Fagbohun is the new Health Services chair and tamelonie thomas is the new Student affairs chair.

SGA NoteS: the budget stands at $21,801.51. two representatives from dining Services’ new dining advisory Board were present at the Sga meeting.

Senator isaiah Smart and Vice President Hassanat oshodi were named to be the representatives to attend the Planning and Budget Council meetings.

News

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AUGUST 29, 2013

Peace Corps opens ranks

Police Briefs Aug. 27

Khiry Clements S ta f f W r i t e r keclements@valdosta.edu

On august 21, the Peace Corps held an interest meeting for students interested in joining. the informational, held in Powell Hall, gave students insight to what the Peace Corps is about and which steps they should take to begin their Peace Corps career. “this is also to help seniors get a chance to finally get signed up and informed by the deadline for them to be able to travel in summer 2014,” emily Whitfield, the regional recruiter and main presenter for the evening, said. each volunteer must sign up nine to 12 months before his or her desired departure date, so seniors that want to be shipped out on an assignment next summer are applying now. the information session had a rather large turn out with about forty student at-

tendees. “(the Peace Corps is) something that i can use to gain some experience

“ This is also to help seniors get a chance to finally get signed up and informed by the deadline for them to be able to travel in summer 2014.”

- Emily WhitfiEld

while i can also better my skills at the same time,” Valencia Johnson, senior, said. founded in the ‘60s, the Peace Corps is a government program that sends volunteers to work in various countries while giving people a better outlook of americans.

Volunteers work as educa-

tors, agriculturalists and health workers by teaching english to non-english speakers, assisting farmers in field work and informing people about vital health issues such as the importance of nutrition, respectively.

Volunteers also work in other areas such as economics. today, the Peace Corps serves more than 70 countries, spanning from Latin america, to africa, asia and others. typically, volunteers and trainees serve for 27 months, three of which are devoted to training. anyone is welcome to apply to join the Peace Corps as long as they are 18 years or older.

Over 210,000 americans have served in the Peace Corps to date, and it currently has 8,073 active members.

Shenika row, freshman, said she attended the information session to “gain more knowledge and a sense that i have helped someone with my future career.”

3-D Continued from Page 1 dents will be charged for printer usage.

“Generally, we are going to do it by the time it takes to print,” Holt said. “With the amount of filament it takes to print, generally, a fee of about $2 an hour (would work), and that’s whether or not the print completes correctly.”

Students, however, will not be able to use their university printing allowance to pay for 3-D printing services as Media Services has the ability to take cash or checks. as for how the printer actually works, the machine starts off with a 3-D model and then reproduces the model by laying down successive layers of material usually consisting of plastic. this allows the printer to have a very wide range of capabilities. it has been used to make molds for sculptures and jewelry as well as engine parts. “a guy last semester printed out components to make a wind turbine,” Holt said. “We (also) printed out a case for an LeD light box that was put in the art show last year.”

With the positives that have already come from 3-D printers, there have also been negatives. in May, a 25-year-old law student at the University of texas stirred up controversy when he claimed that he not only simulated a gun us-

red Schwinn bike was stolen from the bike rack in front of Nevins Hall. a bike was reported stolen from Centennial Hall. a bike was reported stolen from Brown Hall.

Aug. 26 a bike was stolen from outside Centennial Hall a student witnessed an attempted bike theft outside of

Odum library. Police were given a description of the suspect, but were unable to make contact.

Aug. 25

a girl reported that her phone had been taken from the Brown/Lowndes parking lot. a pink Panama Jack bicycle was stolen from outside Georgia Hall.

Silver Schwinn bike stolen from outside Georgia Hall.

Aug. 21

Aug. 22

a student reported her phone stolen from the fine arts building.

Sgt. Blanton, VSU police, reported his dealership decal had been removed from his car.

Roadblocks Continued from Page 1 prayers are said that moms and dads can put their children to bed, kiss them goodnight and live to see another day... that's what our goal is," Captain Gary McConathy, ft. Oglethorpe police captain, said in an interview with WrCB in Chattanooga, tenn.

Check out more stories online at vsuspectator.com

File Photo

As for how the printer actually works, the machine starts off with a 3-D model and then reproduces the model by laying down successive layers of material usually consisting of plastic.

“ As 3-D printing

evolves, advanced printers can use metal, composite or even biological material. ” - Eric thomAs

ing a 3-D printer for parts but that it actually worked. this immediately drew skepticism and controversy from some while others felt it was a breakthrough. also, some people found it dangerous and challenged the true usage of a 3-D printer and its access in the future. “as 3-D printing evolves, advanced printers can use metal, composite or even biological material,” said eric thomas, journalist and co-an-

chor of the San francisco aBC7 Morning News, in an article on abclocal.go.com. “if and when somebody decides to use those to make a weapon, government regulation may not be far behind.”

With that being said there will be restrictions placed on printing for students such as copyrighted materials or any devices that could purposely be used to harm another individual. More restrictions will be further explained in spring when the printers are made available to students.

Holt believes the printers will be very popular among students. “the reason i put (the printer) here (is because) i wanted people, regardless of their major, if they had that creative spark in them, to come in and use this technology,” Holt said.

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auguSt 29, 2013

vSuSpectator.com | page 3

Our point of view...

Government keeps bees ‘buzzing’ throughout South georgia, honey production is a vibrant industry. in Lowdnes County and every year the Honey Bee festival, promotes appreciation for local manufacturing of honey and honey bee related products.

While consumers are increasingly mislead to purchase and consume “fake honey,” a pollen-less concoction of corn syrup and artificial sweeteners marked as real honey in laboratories is sold in grocery stores as an overpriced alternative to honey. americans are being blinded by a mass genocide occurring across the nation. the honey bee is quickly becoming extinct in the United States. Common species of honey bees in the county have declined 96 percent in recent decades. the cause of the decline is

colony collapse disorder, an instance where bee colonies spontaneously vanish. the cause of the disorder is the increasing use of neonicotinoid insecticides. these insecticides, typically used on corn crops, cause bee populations to dramatically fall causing beekeepers and farmers to grow concerned. 37 million bees were found dead this June in elmwood, Calif. shortly after corn was planted near a series of six hundred hives. in the same month fifty thousand bees were found dead in a Wilsonville, Ore. parking lot. the culprit was a neonicotinoid insecticide known as “safari,” which was sprayed over trees in the area.

Why should the existence of honey bees be a concern when the art of fake honey making has been mastered

and integrated into the diets of many americans?

Without the honey bee, 90 percent of global agriculture will be endangered.

Humanity needs the pollinating bees to ensure a flourishing and stable food supply.

Congressmen have introduced the Saving america's Pollinators act of 2013. this legislation is a means to save the defenseless honey bees by suspending the use of the insecticides. if passed the act will call for a 2-year suspension of the insecticide and the effects will be analyzed. the european Union has also strove to enact legislation that combats neonicotinoid and ensures the livelihood of the bee.

Here at the Spectator we support legislation that en-

sures the safety of the honey bee and disprove of the use of neonicotinoid insecticide.

Humans and bees possess a vital mutually exclusive re-

lationship. as we grow agricultural crops the bees acquire a food source in the form of nectar, and in return they pollinate the crops en-

MCT suring the vitality of the crop and the development of the seed, essentially our own existence.

This editorial was written by Stephen Cavallaro (sjcavallaro@valdosta.edu) and it expresses the general opinion of the editorial staff.

Allow minds to create Defunding Obamacare David Lacy S ta f f W r i t e r dclacy@valdosta.edu

recently, Jared Bernstein wrote an article for the Huffington Post asking the question of whether or not the government was stifling the innovation of the people of america. this was inspired by an article that was written by robert Shiller in the New York times. the article is about capitalism and the role it plays in innovation and it speaks the truth. the best way for true innovation to happen is for the government to step back and let those who have the minds create. according to Shiller’s article, there is a troubling trend in many countries, including the United States. it’s called corporatism, where the government and large interest groups control a major part of a country’s economy. this is unfortunately becoming true in the U.S. there are so many things that large interest groups and the gov-

ernment have a hold on, that it stifles the creativity of people who, if given the chance, may be able to perform amazing things. there are hundreds of documentaries that discuss this. their common message is

So do we really want the government to have its hands in everything that we do? that large interest groups and the government make it almost impossible for small businesses to make it.

Look at the electric car, for example. it was a great idea that had backing, but because of the U.S. government and interest groups that had a lot of stake in the oil companies, the electric car died. i don’t think that government should be a major factor in innovation, and a trend that i have noticed recently is that many people are starting

their own Kickstarter. these are fundraisers that raise money for people who have an idea and don’t want to deal for corporations or people who could sabotage the project. this is done by asking the people that want to buy the product to donate so they can make their product without having to go to a company or producer.

Kickstarter is still a new concept and for as many people that succeed, ten more fail, but this is good that people essentially buy into something that they want to see happen and if there are enough backers the project will succeed, and if it doesn’t, the backers get their money back.

So do we really want the government to have its hands in everything that we do? No way. there is a lot of creativity in this country. Just look on the internet. People have some crazy ideas but there is no reason that they can’t work if they have the right backing.

Taylor Stone S ta f f W r i t e r tnstone@valdosta.edu

Do you enjoy your health care plan? if so, get ready to say goodbye to the freedom to choose your health coverage and say hello to Obamacare.

Defunding Obamacare by withholding taxpayer dollars from fueling the program is essential in order to protect millions of americans from losing their current employerprovided health insurance. thousands of jobs will be lost in addition to employees’ freedom to choose coverage through their employer. at the same time, premiums are expected to increase by a projected $2,100 per family. even if americans are happy with their current coverage, an estimated average of seven million people will lose their employer-sponsored health insurance. even if subscribers are in good health, businesses may cut hours if they cannot afford to implement the program. it

will destroy the very foundation of the 40-hour workweek, which has become crucial to the american middle class. this mandated burden would force many employers to drop healthcare coverage and consequently offload their employees onto the state exchanges. the law is falling apart. this is primarily because it is simply unworkable based on the sheer complexity of its contents and the enormous amount of new mandates that it imposes. the process by which it was passed through Congress offered little time for the bill to be reviewed or debated. this has already resulted in a very long list of postponed mandates and a long list of impending failures to come.

Nearly everything that President Obama has promised about his signature legislation is untrue, such as the promise that americans can “keep their current healthcare plans if they like them.” the truth is that many health care plans do not even qualify as “government ap-

proved” under Obamacare.

Behind the 2,700 pages of the law and all of the new taxation lies the true purpose of Obamacare. it is intended to complicate and cripple the entire private healthcare insurance industry so that the american people have no other choice except to crawl back to the government to save them after everything they have known has been destroyed.

Obamacare is an act of political treachery and is not a way to “defend americans from insurance companies.” rather, it is a way to control and impede upon americans’ freedom to decide. americans need to be defended from Obamacare, not the insurance companies. the affordable Care act is simply not the way to jumpstart a lethargic economy; it is a disturbing and dangerous attempt by the government to take over the healthcare industry. Once a government controls a society’s healthcare, it basically controls everything.

California prohibits prison hunger strike Von Kennedy WeB DeSigNer vtkennedy@valdosta.edu

as a baby, some of us fondly remember our parents swirling a spoon full of baby food like an airplane in order for us to be comfortable enough to eat it. But what if they had a court order to skip that and shove it down your throat if we protested? a U.S judge in California has approved the right for prison officials to force-feed inmates that are protesting in a statewide hunger strike, a strike that is entering its eighth week. the strike began on July 8 as a way for some inmates to protest the detention of violent inmates and gang leaders in solitary confinement for

long periods of time. in its inception, nearly 29,000 of California’s 133,000 participated. Over the weeks, this number has dwindled to 130 loyal protesters still fighting the good fight. i realize that convicted criminals “fighting the good fight,” is oxymoronic, but in this case they are justified

and here are a few reasons why: • even if they are outcasts of society, inmates are still citizens of the country. this means that they are protected by their first amendment right to peacefully assemble and protest. these California inmates are not causing

prison riots, fighting or committing other violent offenses to show their disapproval. they are just not eating.

One con that can arise from their right to peacefully assemble is the fact that assembling for a common cause while in prison is almost impossible between prisons, but their “affiliations” unite them.

Workers strike daily under the unity of their federal unions, so just because they are not in the same city, state or under the same local employer, they are united and that goes for frustrated gang members as well.

• Prison is all about structure and order; yet in these controlled environments, prisoners should have the right to

express their opinion about the causes that they care about. for an inmate, choice on an opinion is limited for them in life now, so a statewide hunger strike should be allowed in order for inmates to express their individuality. for people who can no longer vote in a government election, this hunger strike shows that they still have some freedom of choice. allowing protest in this form without the consequence of violence or solitary confinement could possibly lead to a

Sports Editor: eric Jackson Photo Editor: ritsuki Miyazaki Multimedia Editor: rebecka Mcaleer Web Designer: Von Kennedy Copy Editor: Olivia McLean Social Media Editor: Joe adgie Faculty Advisers: Dr. Pat Miller, Dr. ted geltner, Keith Warburg

and i have not found one account of a government forcing them to eat. if someone wants to starve to prove a point, let them starve and if corrections officials feel that their safety is in jeopardy, that care should be redirect to the issue they are fighting for in order to peacefully and not force a decision on them.

So next time there is a baby that doesn’t fall for the airplane trick, just remember, they have a right to refuse to be fed by their familial wardens.

People Poll What are you planning to do with your excess check?

Contacting Us

Spectator Staff Editor-in-Chief: Jennifer gleason Managing Editor: Will Lewis Business Manager: Kristen Varney Advertising Manager: aimee Napier Circulation Manager: abbie Baggerly Opinions Editor: Stephen Cavallaro Features Editor: Sarah turner

more socially conscious inmates and spark a thirst for knowledge and peaceful debate rather than killing or fighting for bars of soap in the future.

• finally, if health is the central concern for corrections officers to want to break the hunger strike, i believe because of their right to peacefully assemble and express their opinion, they should be able to risk their health for a cause they believe in. Many civil rights leaders have participated in hunger strikes

Reporters/Photographers: Niamani Carlyle-Hollis, Cole edwards, allison ericson, William garrett, Brian Hickey, eric Holley, ivey ingalls-rubin, ashley Johnson, LaShawn Oglesby, Steven Quinn, Lawrence Smith, John Stephen, Shane thomas, alex tostado, elan Waite

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Online at www.vsuspectator.com Opinions expressed in the Spectator other than editorials are the opinions of the writers of signed columns and not necessarily those of the Spectator and its staff. all rights reserved. reprints by permission of the editors. Views in this newspaper are not necessarily those of the Valdosta State University administration, faculty and staff.

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Features week the VMas were Miley can’t onthis everybody’s mind, and depending on who you ask, the left nothing to be stop; NSYNC ceremony desired. there was nudity, shade-throwing and won’t stop twerking, just all around ratchetness—

Pop Addict Anthony Pope

Ritsuki Miyazaki/THE SPECTATOR Legregis Purnell, senior biology major, and Dylan Sloan, senior music major, practice playing bass drum for the marching band.

Blazin’ Brigade ready to ‘rock’ the football field Cole Edwards s ta f f w r i t e r

csedwards@valdosta.edu

all eyes may be on the Blazers at the start of the new football season, but the Blazin’ Brigade marching band is training to ensure that it is also ready for the upcoming football season. “we want to have the effect that it would be obvious if we were not (at the game),” eric Bradshaw, director of athletic bands, said. the 157 members of the band began practicing during the summer to prepare for the season, beginning with the first football game versus fort Valley in Macon on sept. 7. the Blazers’ first home game is versus shorter University on sept. 21.

Bradshaw guides the band in giving the best performance possible at each game to help boost the energy of both the fans and the football team, as well as to add to the overall game experience.

“Our goal is to keep the crowd engaged during games so they’ll feel they are more involved than just watching,”

Bradshaw said. this year the band is focusing on more classical selections for the first two home games but plans to offer a history of american pop later in the season. the band will play songs ranging from the ‘70s disco classic “stayin’ alive” to fall Out Boy’s “My songs Know what You Did in the Dark.” at last year’s national championship game, the marching band was noticed numerous times on esPN and hopes to get that chance again this year. “it’s helpful (that) we play for such a good football team,” Bradshaw said.

Pursuing a degree in music is not a requirement to be in the band as long as a student has had prior experience in high school. Bradshaw encourages any student interested in joining to register for the concert band next semester.

Be sure to check out the Blazin’ Brigade live on sept.

21 at the Bazemore–Hyder stadium as VsU’s football team takes on shorter University.

or as i would call it, a normal MtV event.

Kicking things off, everyone’s favorite narcissist, Lady Gaga, opened the show with her current single “ap-

AUGUST 29, 2013 plause.” a song about—what else—herself. and then things took a turn toward the strange.

Miley Cyrus took the stage to perform her hit single “we Can’t stop” wearing a yellow two-piece that would make Billy ray Cyrus cry deepfried tears.

Later, Justin timberlake took to the stage to perform a medley of his hit songs and

accept the MtV Vanguard award. the best moment of the night came when Justin reunited with his former *NsYNC band mates.

Scan QR code to continue

SportS

AUGUST 29, 2013

PAGe 5 | vSUSPecTATor.com

Blazer Men’s Basketball Update Shane Thomas s p o rt s w r i t e r

shanethomas@valdosta.edu

Jamal Tull/THE SPECTATOR Seven new players led by new head coach Mike Swan hope to catapult the Blazers to conference contenders this season.

VSU volleyball enters season with seven lucky newcomers Neil Frawley s p o rt s w r i t e r ndfrawley@valdosta.edu

with a new regime intact, the VsU volleyball team welcomes seven new players to its family. the seven newcomers include: Natalia Campos (Fr.), taylor Holder (Fr.), Danyelle Drummond (Fr.), Marissa woodworth (Fr.), Kelsey Hedman (so.), Jessica Codato (Jr.), and Jenna Kirkwood (Jr.), making it a total of four freshmen, one sophomore, and two juniors.

Aside from filling necessary holes in the team's roster, the new players have brought a new energy to the team that has the entire team playing with higher intensity. "i believe that the recruits who have come in this year have added to our team in a

physical and mental aspect. the girls who have come in this year were in shape, strong, competitive, fast, and also mentally they have experience," Krista Bradford, junior outside hitter, said. the recruiting process was a collaborative effort by both first year head coach Mike swan and assistant coach Jordana price. "the recruiting process can get pretty complex. there are a lot of routes to go," price said.

"Coach swan came knowing some players he was recruiting from before. we also (had) people send us emails and videos and contact us on the internet and we look at them and we recruited a couple players that way. After we contact them, we go and watch them (and) we let them know we are interested." there also becomes the

challenge of immersing the new players with the returning players so that there is an easy transition, and with so many changes to the VsU squad it would appear evident that there would be some bumps in the road.

Fortunately according to price, the process has gone over extremely smoothly. "i think they've all transitioned pretty well. we haven't had any big problems yet that or that it's been brought our attention that they are struggling, (but) if there's a problem, we try to address it in the best interest of the coaching staff and the players," price said.

As far as where the program is headed in the future, the team is extremely confident that the new players, along with the experience of swan will help set the standard for Blazer volleyball for

many years to come. "i believe that since Coach swan has come into the program, we have definitely seen an increase in expectations and the overall mental part of the game, the intensity, the competitiveness and everything," Bradford said. the excited new look Blazers begin their season with the west Georgia tournament on sept.10 at 7 p.m. "this is going to be our breakout year. so, if you want to see some good volleyball come out and support," said Bradford.

entering his ninth season as head coach for Valdosta state basketball, Mike Helfer once again will take a newlook Blazers team into this season. though the Blazers will not tip off the 2013-14 campaign until mid-November, Helfer believes his team is coming together nicely in the offseason. “we have three guys that played minutes last year that are coming back,” Helfer said. “it’ll be a blend of some returners and some new guys—it’s going to be tough. we have some new teams coming into our league

this year so we’re going to have to make sure we get ready here in the preseason.”

Featuring 11 new players, the Blazers finished 19-10 last season, including an improbable run to the Gulf south Conference championship game. the Blazers came within a made shaquille Harris threepointer of sending the game into overtime, falling 65-62 to Christian Brothers.

“Last season was a good bounce-back from the year before,” Helfer said. “it could’ve been better—we lost three games right at the buzzer. But, i like that our guys brought back the excitement and work ethic that we were known for.”

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PAGe 6 | vSUSPecTATor.com

SportS

AUGUST 29, 2013

2013 Women’s Soccer GSC Preview Alex Tostado S p o rt S W r i t e r ajtostado@valdosta.edu

Commentary

Last season was a strong one all around for women’s soccer in the Gulf South Conference. the University of West Florida took home its fifth consecutive GSC tournament title as well as the NCAA Division ii title by beating University of California San Diego.

Valdosta State and University of North Alabama also made an appearance in the tournament.

West Florida posted a 24-1 record in the 2012-13 season and come into this season not only as GSC No. 1 team, but also the No. 1 team in the nation. it is going to take a special team to bring down this conference powerhouse.

VSU comes into this season with big expectations. they fell in the first round of the NCAA tournament last year after being named a No.5 seed in the tournament.

UNA finished third in the GSC for regular season play and lost in the GSC tournament finals to UWF.

the Lions are hoping to leap frog both VSU and UWF for a GSC crown. the University of West Georgia brought in a new head coach in Chris Davidovicz. this marks the third head coach in the 9-year-old program for the Wolves. i still have questions surrounding the new coach, however. the Wolves finished the 2012-13 season record of 611-3 (2-5-2) and the first year coach may not have what it takes to improve on this record in a tough conference. the University of Alabama-Huntsville struggled in the conference finishing with a 4-5 record. in non-confer-

Blazers new o-line has big, ugly cleats to fill Chris Kessler S p o rt S W r i t e r ckessler@valdosta.edu

it's always difficult to come into the season with five new starting offensive linemen.

Last season's offensive line broke numerous school records, had four players named first team Gulf South Conference, three players earning All-American status, and two players currently playing in the NFL. Not to mention, leading Valdosta State to a National Championship. it's safe to say this season's offensive line has some big shoes to fill.

As the opening game inches closer, Head Coach David Dean still hasn’t cemented any linemen as definite starters but has a strong idea.

Colin Glasco, Felei tauave,

Michael Miller, Jeremy Daniels, and Jesse Yancey are projected to start week one against Fort Valley State. “they're starting to gel, but they haven't played together, this was just their 20th practice they've been together”, said Dean after the team's second scrimmage. the five have zero starts between them. Glasco, Miller, and Yancey bring some experience, having been in the program for the last two years, and receiving some playing time as reserves last season. tauave and Daniels will be in their first year at VSU. tauave joins VSU as transfer from American river Junior College, and Daniels is a freshman who played at Lanier County in high school. offensive Line Coach and offensive Coordinator Andy richman knows there's pres-

sure for the new linemen but has high expectations for his group, “i think there always is (pressure). When i came in i set the precendent here to just be an offensive linemen and play here, everyone is counting on us. i think we put pressure on ourselves no matter what.” the coaching staff doesn't believe their offense will be limited by the offensive line. “there's obviously been some growing pains, but i don't think there's anything serious that we've had to hold back the offense. i know we've put in all our plays. they're starting to gel and come together. it takes time for five guys to get on the same page. From week one to week seven, we'll be better,” said richman. read the rest of Chris’s story at www.vsuspectator.com

ence play, the Chargers posted a 6-5 record to finish the season 10-10.

Delta State struggled mightily last season with an overall record of 3-12-2, including 2-6-1 in GSC play. the preseason polls have the Lady Statesmen finishing last in the GSC. Christian Brothers finished last in the GSC last season with a mark of 1-7-1 in the conference.

Christian Brothers will be struggling to keep up with the other talented teams in the GSC and they will be outdone by the Lady Statesmen by only a few points.

Finally, the University of West Alabama had an average season and looks to improve

after winning only once in their final seven games. UWA posted a losing overall record but stayed above .500 in the GSC with a mark of 5-3-1. the tigers are my dark horse to win the conference but they need to be prepared to play big every game. the GSC will line up much like it did last year with Christian Brothers and Delta State fighting to stay out of the basement. the top will be decided by the slimmest of margins and probably come down to the final few games on the schedule.

Alex’s projections to finish top three in the conference 1. University of West Florida- 14-1-1 (9-0-1) 2. Valdosta State University 12-3-1 (7-1-2) 3. University of North Alabama 13-3-4 (7-3-3)

Note: Lee University, Shorter University and Union University are all ineligible for postseason play.

Follow Alex on twitter: @Alex_tostado12

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