Oct. 28, 2022 Hutchinson Collegian

Cindy Hoss announces her retirement

ByAinsley Trunkhill Staff Writer

educational innovation to behind the pen, Cindy Hoss

off an impressive resume with

retirement after 12 years as the Vice President of Academic Affairs at Hutchinson Community Col lege, a decision confirmed at the Oct. 13th Board of Trustees meeting.

Published author, skilled grant writer, professional development trainer, and Higher Learning Commis sion Peer Reviewer, outline just some of the titles Hoss earned over her 47-year career. The Vietnam War ended, the Berlin Wall fell, the first Black U.S. President was elected, and the globe battled a pan demic all while Hoss shepherded generation after generation of students and educators.

At HutchCC, Hoss strove to prioritize these stu dents and educators.

“Our work in Academic Affairs has always been to support student learning goals and improve the teach ing (and) learning process,” Hoss said.

In doing so, Hoss worked collabo ratively alongside faculty and chairs, “dedicated servant-leaders” she oversaw in her position. As she nears the end of her career at the college, Hoss recalls these individuals fondly.

“Many HutchCC staff across the institution support the work of academ ic affairs and so my appreciation and gratitude go to (them),” she said. “Who could ask for more?”

Additionally, Hoss identified the development of The Teaching Academy, a resource for new Hutch CC faculty, as one of her favorite memories at the college, priding “innovation and creation.”

HutchCC plans to continue on this path past Hoss’ re

tirement with the addition of barbering to the cosmetol ogy center, for example, or the renovation of the campus tennis courts into an outdoor plaza. Hoss, meanwhile, notes her own plans following her retirement.

“I have always taught a range of classes … so that is not out of the range of possibilities,” Hoss said. “There will be plenty of avenues to keep my schedule full.”

The process to fill the open position will include a national search, accompanied by evaluations and interviews, with a new Vice President of Academic Affairs starting no later than February, according to Carter File, President of Hutchinson Community College.

File maintains a hopeful attitude about the future of the college and the position while imparting on Hoss a bittersweet farewell.

“Her leadership and experience will be missed and difficult to replace,” File said. “We wish her luck and a happy and fulfilling retirement.”

Fear Ye, fear Ye!

HutchCC Staff and students reveal their deepest fears

Spooky season is here and along with that comes all the creepy crawlers out to get you. Everyone is afraid of something, whether they want to admit it or not. It may be common things we encounter on a regular basis, or something totally irrational (but still valid) that sends shivers down people’s spines. No matter how tough one thinks they are, there’s always something that gets them shaking in their boots. In honor of Halloween we’ve compiled a list of HutchCC faculty fears.

Name: Jennifer Forker, Early Edu cation

Fear: Heights

Reason/story: “It is really odd because as a child we used to jump off the garage roof using plastic trash bags as parachutes. Where was my mother?”

Name: Jennifer Wiens, Chemistry Fear: Having to bury her children. Heights.

Reason/story: “I know this is irra tional and make myself do things that make me get over it. Like climb towers or walk across bridges, etc”

Name: Kim Newberry, Sociology Fear: Bears

Reason/story: “Even though I have never had an actual real-life encoun ter with one, I did see one from a dis tance when I was a teenager camping in Colorado.”

Name: Deidre Mattox, Theatre Fear: Dark water Reason/story: “If I can’t see my feet I won’t go in the water. Something furry once brushed up against me in Cheney Lake.”

By Mason Poepperling Staff Writer

What are you afraid of? This is a question that many of us love to ask each other and yet hate asking ourselves. Fear itself can take many different forms depending on the person. Fear can come from external, physical objects like Spiders and Snakes, and from internal thoughts like loneliness or rejection. Whatever form it takes, people all react to fear in different ways. People either stay as far away from it as possible, or tackle those fears head on. Even more interesting than how we react to fear, however, is where exactly these fears come from.

Fear: Snakes Reason/story: “My fear of snakes began in childhood Bible study of Satan tempting Eve in the form of a serpent at the Garden of Eden.”

For more physical fears, some may only need to be exposed with certain instances of being exposed to things like spiders to become afraid of them. “I saw a video of a guy getting bit by a Brown Re cluse once,” former HutchCC stu dent Zach Loomis said. “I could never be around them since.”

When it comes to more internal ized phobias of certain concepts, these may be rooted in a more general sense of uncertainty or lack of control over life.

“My biggest fear is time,” one student said. “I don’t want to look back on life constantly contem plating the ‘what ifs’ or thinking ‘I should have done this.’ I fear that I won’t be able to fulfill my pur

pose. Time is precious, and that’s why it scares me so much.”

At the end of the day, the best thing to understand about fear is how to not let it control lives. Whether people are constantly worrying about what the future may hold, or about that one spot under the porch where you saw a snake jump out and almost bite your sibling, in the immortal words of John Mellencamp, “Life goes on”.

The world is full of endless possibilities and outcomes, and if we keep thinking about the worst possibilities of what might happen, we stop ourselves from making the best possibilities into reality.

Name: Dan “Coach Nac” Naccarato, Busi ness

Compiled by Laci Sutton/Managing Editor- Content

Hoss

‘House’: Some good horror comedy

So there I was, sitting in the newspaper room, when Brad Hallier asked, “Are you going to watch the new ‘Halloween’ movie?”

I told him that I’m not much of a slasher movie guy, and that I was already planning to review “House”.

“House” or “Hausu” if you’re a dweeb … or just trying to distinguish it from the other two horror films titled “House”, is a 1977 Japanese fantasy horror movie.

The story behind it is that one of the guys at Toho (the studio that made “Godzilla”) asked this director who had only ever made commercials, to make a film like “Jaws”. He didn’t know how to, so he asked his 10 year old daugh ter what she thought was scary and put all of her ideas into a movie.

The plot is simple. Gorgeous is planning on visiting her aunt’s house for summer break with her friends, Fantasy, Melody, Prof, Mac, Sweet, and best girl, Kung Fu.

Everything is fine, but some of them go missing, they notice strange things, and suddenly they’re in a fight for survival as they discover the house is haunted and trying to

eat them.

Sounds simple right? Tame even, but this is by far the cra ziest film I have ever seen.

The first question you’re probably wondering is, “is it scary?” Well, no, but it’s not necessarily trying to be. It really does fall more into being a fantasy film, but with a haunted house as the setting.

Rather than being scary, the movie is just trying to be fun and creative. It’s not always doom and gloom as the first chunk of the film is

very upbeat and happy, there’s even lots of upbeat songs and music.

You might find yourself laughing more than you’re screaming but not in a “so bad it’s good” kind of way. The funny stuff does feel intention al.

The film is pretty crazy throughout, but once things start going wrong it all gets dialed up to 17. I don’t nor mally like to do this, but I’ll describe a scene to give you an idea of what this movie is like because it really is a hard film

to review.

In one of the highlight scenes, Melody is playing the piano, when suddenly it starts eating here. From here we start cutting between all different sorts of shots, one of which is from behind a fish bowl with flashing cartoonish jagged-lines around the screen. A skeleton dances in the cor ner. There are severed parts of Melody’s body blue screened into the scene, and her floating head comments on how undig nified her legs are, still in the piano’s mouth …

So yeah, the average scene from “House”.

This film should be bad on many levels. The charac ters are all one note, (it’s in each of their names) the ef fects don’t look convincing, and there’s a lot of crazy stuff happening. Somehow though it all works to create a very funny and creative film.

Now if you’re scared of reading subtitles and or scared of women, or suffer from epilepsy, steer clear from this film, but if you’re willing to check this one out, it’s an entertaining time.

I give eight bananas out of 10.

The comfort of listening to vinyl

In the past few years, I’ve noticed vinyl records becoming popular again.

In a society that values portability and easy to use items, I find it interest ing. So, why has something that isn’t portable become popular? For me, part of the draw was that record players are stationary, there are no headphones to buy and later lose or hate, because they’re uncomfortable. I’ve found that I stay more focused, and that the process of using a record player is grounding. But obviously I didn’t know any of that when I got one, I just liked the sound.

The sound of vinyl is like nothing else. It fills a space, but feels more gen tle than its contemporary counterparts.

I love that the sound isn’t perfectly clear, the music almost has a texture to it that I find calming.There’s no shuffle, no hunting through playlists, no need to pay extra to listen without ads, you can just experience music.

Because I’m not looking for just the right playlist or hearing ads every few songs, I can stay more focused on what I’m doing. I can just put on a record and get to work. I only have

to change sides or records occasional ly, and not only is that a pro cess I love, but it also forces me to step away from what I’m doing and take a break, even if it’s for just a few seconds. I can’t get distracted and start scrolling through social media.

There’s something so wonderfully tactile about the process of using a record player that I find grounding. After a long and possibly overwhelming day, it’s nice to come home and do something as simple as sifting through records. It’s something that helps me

relax after a long day. It gives me a chance to decompress, and by the time one side has finished, I’m probably ready to get work done.

There’s also something wonderful about sifting through records in stores, getting to really see the cover art. It’s fun to collect the different versions of an album.

There’s something about vinyl that feels more real, more tangible, and maybe that’s its age. No matter the cause, it has allowed me to expe rience a deeper connection to the music.

Let’s talk about opinions

ing has to agree with what is written.

Here’s my opinion - if some thing is explicitly stated as “opinion” and you read it and disagree, just keep scrolling and go about your day.

The definition of opinion says “a view or judgment formed about something, not necessarily based on fact or knowledge.”

By the way, that is the only part of this column that was researched. So, with this being an opinion piece, no one read

Let’s face it, at the end of the day there are always going to be things that you disagree with. Just because you don’t agree, doesn’t mean you have to say some thing. The whole world does not have to be a debate class. What happened to agree to disagree?

My whole life, I feel like I have been the mediator. The middle man to both sides. Whether it be parents or friends, I am always in the middle. I have always been the one to want to hear both

sides. Let me tell you, that gets exhausting.

Nothing is more tiring than listening to opposing argu ments that have no reasoning behind them. Or having to explain what is being said in a different way so that the other side understands it.

So, that being said, here’s another one of my opinions. You do not have to agree with everyone. You do not have to like everyone. However, I think if you are not able to have an adult conversation without bashing the opposing side, you should not speak in the first place.

So many of the issues in today’s society are because people can no longer have conversations. Everything that is said is taken personally and

people get way too defensive. We need to realize that every one has had different experi ences in life and some beliefs are just already set in people’s heads.

I also think that questioning someone’s opinion and ask ing why they think that way (as long as it’s in a nice way) should not be taken offen sively. I think it’s a respect able question to want a better understanding.

I have passionate views on some things, so I know it is easier said than done, but why can this not be something that we work on to improve society?

I think social media has greatly influenced this be cause it’s so easy to type a snappy response and hit send

The

or post.

I think it’s about time we start thinking through what we respond with. Think about if it is really worth the energy you’re going to use on the subject at hand. If it is, think it through before you respond. Have a conversation, not an argument.

If we spent more time discussing peacefully, it might lead to a better under standing of each other. This is not something that happens overnight.

Still, I think with discus sion over an argument, in time, things could at least be brought to a level of under standing.

sex, disability, religion, age, military status, sexual orientation, or any other protected category under federal, state, or local law, or by college policy.

For inquiries regarding the non-discrimination policies contact: Christopher Lau, Coordinator of Equity & Compliance 1300 N. Plum Hutchinson, KS 67501 (620) 665-3500

(www.hutchcc.edu/equity)

Connor Keating

Columnist

Lynn Spahr

Carly Thompson is a Hutchinson freshman in general studies.

Connor Keating is a Halstead sophomore in general studies.

Lynn Spahr is a Hutchinson freshman in general studies.

Columnist

Carly Thompson

Election Day: 2022 Kansas Gubernatorial Election Candidates

By Mason Poepperling Staff Writer

ing. With Nov. 8 being the day Americans vote in the midterms, much is at stake for Democrats

and Republicans nationwide. In Kansas, Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly is going for

Education

“First and foremost, it’s the governor’s responsibility to ensure that our public school system is fully funded. I also think it’s important for the governor to be a champion for our schools and teachers and our students and parents and I have done that. I have been a very, very strong advocate for our public school system ever since I came to Kansas and I will continue to do that. I have said often that I want my legacy to be that Kansas has the most robust comprehensive early childhood education system in the country, and we’re working now with our businesses and our communities to ensure that that legacy is fulfilled. We know that kids are having a lot of mental health issues long before the pandemic, so we are developing mental health services in our schools in partnership with our community mental health centers.”

Inflation

I think I’ve done probably the most important thing that we could do, and that was to eliminate the sales tax on food. We have a six-and-a-half percent sales tax on food, which is the highest in the country. That is immoral. I proposed to eliminate the sales tax all at once, should have been effective July 1, it wasn’t, a little game-playing going on, a little politics being played, but I will propose another immediate elimination of our food tax when the legislature comes back to town. I’ve always prided myself on my fiscal responsibility, I have vetoed bills that have come to my desk that would have spiraled us right back into the Brownback era.”

Abortion

“I think we saw on Aug. 2 the overwhelming majority of Kansans believe that a woman’s right to make private medical decisions should rest with her and not with politicians. I think they saw that amendment as serious government overreach. I believe, and always have, that a woman’s medical decisions should be made between her, her family, and her doctor, and that women should have bodily autonomy equal to that of men.”

Transgender Policies

“The issue of fairness in women’s sports has always been in the forefront of my mind. I do believe in basic fairness, nobody should have an unfair advantage, but that’s exactly why we have governing bodies like the Kansas State High School Activities Association and the National Collegiate Athletics Associa tion to look at cases on an individual basis, have the facts in front of them and make rulings. Derek’s claim that I support men playing in girls’ sports is just so absurd. It is not happening here in Kansas. We really do need to focus on the issues of true concern to people - our education, our economy, our healthcare access.”

Climate

“I think you know that we landed the Panasonic Electric Battery Factory. That will go a long way to ensuring that we do move to electricity. Kansas is uniquely focused to lead the way to expanding renewable energy. We’re strong on wind, solar, biofuel, and now ever hydrogen. When I think about climate change, I really see it as a huge job creation opportunity for our state. We are doing everything in our department of commerce and department of agriculture to ensure that we’re bringing those kinds of companies to our state to further our economy but also to contribute to cleaner energy.”

re-election against Republican nominee Derek Schmidt, the Attorney General.

Here is a look at where the nominees stand on many issues.

Education

“Many Kansas kids and families are suffering right now because their kids were locked out of schools, their lives were disrupted, they’re dealing with serious mental health issues, suicidal ideation is up, we have to do more to be a voice for those parents and families and kids whose voices have not been heard. Parents are much more engaged as a group than they were before because they saw first-hand things that happened with their kids and the damage done to them. They want more involvement and we must advocate for that.”

Inflation

“ I think going forward there are two things we have to focus on. One is addi tional relief on the tax side, things we can do. We have proposed on our side, for example in our campaign, something called retire tax-free to help seniors in particular deal with the costs of living and retirement. We also have to focus on costs. For the past four years, the state of Kansas has spent more money at a faster pace than ever before in the history of the state, and those bills will make the problem worse.”

Abortion

“I would prefer a Kansas that has fewer abortions, not more. Obviously Kansas voters spoke to a portion of this issue in August and made the decision that any state involvement in this area is going to have to satisfy judicial scrutiny, and we have to respect that decision going forward. I do believe that, going forward, the biggest challenge will be in defending those limitations and restrictions that are already on the books. I believe they will be subject to legal challenge and I am committed to defending them going forward.”

Transgender Policies

“It is a matter of fundamental fairness and I do not think as a matter of law or policy that people who are biologically male ought to be competing in women’s sports. I think that is counter to the purpose of Title IX. I think that is fundamen tally unfair to female athletes, and I think that ought to be the law in the state of Kansas. As I said, I would sign that Fairness of Women’s Sports act into law without hesitation.”

Climate

“I think Kansas is a wonderful place and we don’t want to be more like Califor nia. I do not think their command-and-control approach is the right way to deal with energy policy. I support an all-of-the-above energy policy.”

Award-winning photojournalist Lynsey Addario comes to Dillon Lecture Series to share her story

By Lizzie Kipp Staff Writer

Let’s face it- Kansas can be pretty bor ing. It’s 90% wheat, and the terrain is so flat, one could watch their dog run away for a week. But every once in a while, someone neat comes into Hutchinson for the Dillon Lecture Series.

Since 1982, the Dillon Lecture Series has been providing Hutchinson with some pretty interesting speakers - pro football players, NASA scientists, pol iticians - pretty much anyone you can

think of. The next lecture, at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday at the Sports Arena, is from Lynsey Addario, an award-winning photojournalist.

Addario is an award winning photo journalist. Her work focuses on human rights issues, especially in regards to the role of women in society. Her lecture is titled “Of Love and War: Stories of Trag edy and Resilience Across the World.”

“The Lecture Series Committee felt her photos and stories would be a good learning experience for the audience,” said Robin Woodworth, DLS Coordi

nator. “She has been on the suggested list of speakers for a couple of years, but her recent assignment in Ukraine during the Russian invasion made her more notable.”

Addario covers conflicts in all sorts of places like Ukraine, Afghanistan, Syria and Libya. Her work is nothing short of breathtaking, and her lec ture will feature many examples that put emphasis on human rights issues around the world.

“Through her photographs, students will see true examples of what is hap

pening in the world outside of Hutchin son,” Woodworth said. “They can be raw, but her photographs are another side to what is really happening in the stories we hear from the news.”

These photos tell a tragic story about human suffering, but they also tell a story about hope and rising above the odds.

“A film company is currently work ing on a documentary about Lynsey,” Woodworth said. “They will be here in Hutchinson with her filming at the lecture.”

Derek Schmidt (Republican Gubernatorial Candidate)

Election Day is approach

Laura Kelly (Democratic Gubernatorial Candidate)

Original analog horror deserves another look

Analog Horror. A genre of horror that is recognizable for its usage of tape cameras, low quality graphics, and audio corruption.

Happy Halloween!

Allow me to introduce you to the greatest flavor of horror.

To celebrate the season, let me introduce to you a couple of series’ that exemplify this unique horror experience. The original analog horror. “Marble Hornets”. Have you heard of Slenderman? Think he’s scary? Thank “Mar ble Hornets”. Its entity of The Operator is the primary source for most slender man media, and the story of the film crew’s struggle is

incredibly well written and interesting, and makes for a very scary watch with the addition of the side branch of ToTheArk and its cryptic yet frightening videos.

“The Mandela Catalog”. Arguably the scariest among these, “The Mandela Catalog” features a story about ‘alter nates’, mysterious entities that kill and mimic their victims, to a degree that is imperfect in the most terrifying way. Add to that a background of religious themes implying these alter nates are potentially angelic in nature and you have a very

interesting, terrifying horror story.

“The Backrooms (Found Footage)”. Possibly the most talented creator on the list, Kane Pixels is a 17 year old director that showcases an incredible talent for rendering entire environments. The con cept behind the “Back Rooms” is already pretty powerful, but add into it the background story Pixels is telling and you have an incredibly well done, frightening little series.

Of course, there are mov ies that cover this area as well, “The Blair Witch

Project” is one of them, and probably the most popular of the mainstream movies. Unfriended, a movie using entirely internet calls. Para normal Activity’s security cameras cover this as well. And lastly, Earth to Echo, while not a horror movie, still covers the base of a found footage movie that stands on its own as a visual style.

Braedon Martin is a Hutchinson sophomore study ing journalism. He is the Col legian’s Opinion Page Editor.

Field day brings in prospects

HutchCC fire science department has annual recruitment day to show high schoolers opportunities at school, in the field

Photos by Sabrina Anzo/Collegian

A

fire

student prepares to

a

during the an nual

Day on Wednesday at the

Building.

Braedon Martin

Prospective Hutchinson Community College fire science students work on extinguishing a dumpster fire during the department’s annual field day on Wednesday at the Fire Science Building.

Fire science prospects from area high schools get instructions for an upcoming

Two prospective HutchCC fire sceince students put out a dumpster fire.

New opportunity for government classes

By Mariah McGarraugh Staff Writer

This year, Hutchinson Com munity College has welcomed a new government instructor to the faculty.

Brooklyn Walker, Graduated from Kansas State University with her Bachelor’s degree, The Univer sity of Michigan with her Master’s degree and the University of Kan sas with her Doctorate. She began teaching government in graduate school where she primarily taught on the Arab-Israeli conflict. Since then she’s taught multiple political science courses at several colleges for 6 years and is now teaching American Government and World Geography at HutchCC.

Walker also teaches international relations and comparative politics.

“I find each one fascinating and important for students, for different reasons,” Walker said.

She then describes why each course is important and what they intel as a class.

“Comparative politics is my first love - I studied Middle Eastern politics as an undergraduate and Master’s student,” Walker said.

“Comparative politics is all about politics in countries around the world, and it investigates some of the most important questions in po litical science, like, ‘Why are some countries rich and others poor?’ and ‘Why are some countries demo cratic and others aren’t?’ A major strength of comparative writing is that you learn how to draw strong conclusions from comparisons, something we all do every day.”

If this course sounds interesting, Walker will be teaching her com parative politics class in the fall of 2023. Walker also mentioned her international relations class, which focuses on how countries interact with each other, why they go to war, why countries trade, how they cooperate to deal with global changes like climate change and human rights violations, and more.

“Learning IR is best done through simulations and games - it’s a lot of fun to teach. I’m teaching IR this spring,” Walker said. “Then we move on to her two regularly taught classes. World Geography and American government. World Geography is a course I teach each semester. Geography brings togeth er science topics, like geology, and cultural topics, like anthropology, so it appeals to students with a wide variety of interests. We spend about a week on each of 12 regions, and it’s exciting to see students explore unfamiliar places and find that many people around the world are facing similar issues.

“We take a deep dive into a few topics for each region, like defor estation in the Amazon or ethnicity

in sub-Saharan Africa. At the end of the semester, students get to design their own trip to explore a topic they’re interested in.”

Finally, there is American Gov ernment, which is Walker’s favorite class to teach

“My PhD was in American Government, and I love keeping up with what the best scholars are writing and communicating those ideas to students,” Walker said. “So many college students are disillusioned by politics, so I like pulling back the curtain to show how government actually works in the US. We talk about the history of US government, civil liberties and civil rights, the three branch es of government, how everyday people feel about and participate in government, and how groups like political parties work. I find that there’s almost always something in the news that links to our topic in class.”

After talking with Mrs. Walker there’s no doubt that she’s very passionate about what she teaches, and if you are still not convinced on why you should take a govern ment class she has an answer for that too. “Ultimately, our lives are influenced every day by govern ment,” Walker said. “Take the milk you had for breakfast today. Dif ferent types of cows are best raised in different geographic areas of the country, and the type of farming enterprise that exists in an area will shape the culture. Texas is different from Wisconsin, even though both produce a lot of cattle (World Ge ography). If your milk came from the US, it was produced by farmers that have created interest groups to lobby government, is support ed through legislation that passed Congress, and is highly regulated by the bureaucracy (American Gov ernment). American and Canadian farming systems are different, and the way that the two governments support dairy farmers is different - Canada doesn’t subsidize dairy farmers as much as the US does (Comparative Politics). To protect its farmers from cheaper, subsi dized American milk, Canada tries to limit sales of American milk in Canada. But to help keep your breakfast milk as cheap as possible and to support American farmers, the US has negotiated trade agree ments with Canada to help Amer ican farmers sell milk to Canada (International Relations).

“After taking my classes, I hope that students see the fingerprints of geography and government on almost every aspect of their lives. And then once they see the role of government and understand how it works, they are better able to iden tify the things they want to change and more empowered to make changes.”

High expectations for women’s basketball

By Sam Ojeda Staff Writer

The Hutchinson Community Col lege women’s basketball team returns to the court after a highly successful 2021-2022 campaign.

The Blue Dragons return after a 29-6 record last season and a return to the NJCAA national tournament. They come in ranked No. 9 overall in the NJCAA rankings. Coach John Ontjes and his staff hope for another great season.

Mya Williams, who stood out as a freshman last season, returns for her sophomore season. Last year Williams, a Waxahachie, Texas na tive, averaged 18.7 points per game which led the team and was good enough to be 16th best in the whole country. She also shot an impressive 37.7 percent from behind the 3-point line. She expects to be a leader for the team this season.

Williams’ sophomore counterparts, Ziya Simms and Kali Howard, are

expected to step up this season for Ontjes’s team. They were both role players last season but got enough experience that they can produce this season. Simms is from Hutchinson and the locals would enjoy seeing her grow this season. Sophomore Natalie Payne is from Lenexa. She was a solid bench player last season, scoring 4.7 ppg and grabbing 3.7 rebounds per game. She looks like a strong candidate for the starting lineup this season, and those numbers are sure to increase.

Transfers will be helpful for the Blue Dragons this season. Leata Te Nana-Williams from New Zealand is a sophomore. She averaged 7.6 ppg and 4.6 rpg at Central Maine Com munity College last season. Victoria Lewis from Australia brings in some size at 6-foot, 3-inch. She comes to Hutchinson CC after a season at East ern Florida State College. Morgan Browning is a transfer from NCAA Division 1 school Morehead State. She started 23 games there and hopes to produce for Hutch this season.

Puzzles

New food options, including vegetarian, in HutchCC cafeteria

By Victoria Lewis Staff Writer

After the remodel in 2020, the Hutchinson Community College cafe teria has undergone many changes, but this semester has seen more upgrades to students’ dining experience.

Since Brenda Roberts assumed her position as Food Service Director in mid July, the cafeteria has steadily added to its menu variety, as well as add more kitchen tools for students to use. Roberts said of the improvements so far, “From what I understand, this is a definite improvement and I know that the students, staff and general public really like it.

“I’ve had an opportunity to visit other colleges, and I can say that our cafeteria really caters to our students’ wants and needs. With our diverse menu options, we ensure that there is something for everyone.”

Roberts said that this semester, the staff has spent a lot of time speaking with students and gaining their input as to what they would like to see on the menu.

“Our goal is to be a place where the students feel comfortable and get a great meal,” Roberts said.

Student feedback that Roberts has received has been that the “Daily Crave”, which includes quesadillas, burrito bowls, chicken fried rice and more, is the most popular station, with the quesadillas on Wednesdays being the biggest stand out.

This semester, a new panini maker is coming soon to the cafeteria, and a waffle maker has already become a hit among students, as well as more vege tarian options being regularly prepared.

One student who eats at the cafeteria for breakfast, lunch and dinner is Ash lynn Burgess, a McPherson freshman.

She said that she enjoys eating at the cafeteria, because the food is good and they have options for people with allergies. She also sings her praise of the new option to make waffles on campus.

“I love that we have the waffle maker so I can get a hot breakfast when they don’t serve hot breakfast,” Burgess said.

Another student, who doubles as an athlete for the women’s basketball team, sophomore Leata Te Nana-Wil liams, said she is “excited for the pani ni maker, but (is) pretty stoked about the waffle maker too.”

“I like the fact we can make our own stuff. I enjoy making my own break fasts especially - I normally go for some concoction of tomatoes and meat on toast,” said the New Zealand native.

In speaking about her general experi ence at the cafeteria, Te Nana-Williams said “my favorite part of the caf is the company. I get to see and talk to a lot of new people.

“I really like the staff, the staff make the experience at the cafeteria better - they make me feel very welcomed and they are very friendly and are just really genuine people.”

Sports

Soccer pushes for Region 6 title

Athlete of the week (Oct. 16-22)

Jalik Thomas, Football

By Colin Shields Online Editor

The Hutchinson Community College women’s soccer team wrapped up its regular season with a 13-3 record and second place finish in the Jayhawk Con ference Western Division. Entering the playoffs ranked No. 19 in the country, the Blue Dragons likely have two paths to nationals, where 12 teams will com pete in four groups of three, playing two games with group winners advancing to the semifinals.

The first is simple, win these next three games and, in turn, win the Re gion 6 title which guarantees a spot in nationals. The second scenario is a little more up in the air and would require some outside help and upsets. The Blue Dragons would need to win their first two playoff games and then play a tight

match in the championship game, likely against Jayhawk Conference Western Division champion Barton, in order to be granted an at-large bid to advance to nationals.

The Blue Dragons will host the first round as they secured the No. 3 seed in the tournament and will host their first match at the Salthawk Sports Complex this Sunday against 8-9 Johnson County.

Revenge is on the Blue Dragons mind after falling to the Cavaliers 3-1 earlier this year. Freshman defender Kendra Brungardt awaits the challenge.

“I’m looking forward to a rematch with JCCC since we lost to them last time, and hope to get redemption,” Brungardt said.

The Blue Dragons will take on the Cavaliers this time with Head Coach Sammy Lane who had to miss the last match vs Johnson County due to a

last-second emergency.

“Our head coach will be back to coach us this time and that will be a huge contributor because I think he motivates us more than anything,” said sophomore midfielder Emma Scholl.

Scholl is looking forward to the chance to show what the Blue Dragons are made of as they make their push towards nationals.

“I’m really looking forward to show ing everybody what our team can do when the pressure is on and to have a rematch with one or more of the teams who gave us one of our few losses this season,” Scholl said.

A win on Sunday would advance the Blue Dragons to the semifinals which will take place at Stryker Sports Complex in Wichita where they would face the winner of Butler vs. Dodge City.

The week: The Blue Dragon de fense had a dom inant perfor mance at Gar den City, as the Blue Drag ons posted a comfortable 65-7 win. Thomas intercepted two passes, returning one 38 yards for a touchdown. That increased the Blue Drag ons lead to 48-7. Thomas also had a pass breakup. Overall, the de fense had seven takeaways.

The season: Thomas, a soph omore defen sive back from Macon, Ga., has three intercep tions so far this season for the undefeated and top-ranked Blue Dragons. He also has seven tackles, includ ing five solo tackles, and one fumble recov ery. He has 38 career tackles in three seasons.

Kicking is the key for Blue Dragons

By Ben Short Staff Writer

A lot of players on the Hutchin son Community College football team have stood out this year and helped the Blue Dragons continue an undefeated season.

One in particular, Cole Seg raves, a freshman kicker from Maize.

Segraves has been a dynam ic piece to the Blue Dragons and has even kicked a game winning field goal in overtime against Iowa Central.

“It felt great, because that was one of the things going into the season that I wanted to work towards receiving,” Segraves said.

Being consistent is not by ac cident for Segraves. He said he gets his head in the right place before going out and kicking.

“Leading up to the game winner, I was visualizing the kick, knowing it was a pos sibility that I’d have to kick one,” Segraves said about the Iowa Central game-winner. “I

Basketball, men’s

Nov. 1, FORT SCOTT, 7:30 p.m.

Nov. 4, TRITON, 7:30 p.m.

Nov, 5, NEO, 7:30 p.m.

Nov. 9, LABETTE, 7:30 p.m.

Nov. 11, vs. Victoria at Great Bend 3 p.m. Basketball, women’s

Nov. 1, BETHANY JV, 5:30 p.m.

Nov. 4, MINERAL AREA, 5:30 p.m.

Nov. 5, NEO, 5:30 p.m.

Nov. 9, WASHBURN JV, 5:30 p.m.

Nov. 11, Labette at Great Bend, 1 p.m.

kept to myself on the sidelines, getting into a calm mindset, and reminded myself to trust my unit. I ran out on the field and lined up and kicked it. Iowa Central called a timeout, so I swung my legs a few times and got back lined up to kick it for real this time. The snap was

great and the hold was perfect, so all I had to do was hit the ball straight into that stiff wind and the rest would take care of itself. Nikko Taylor started to push me to start the dog pile, so we all started screaming, it was the best football moment I’ve ever experienced.

“It’s a blessing to be put in the situation to help us win, and I’m ready for whenever the next opportunity arises.”

Game’s on the line, how can you not feel pressure? You perfect your craft.

“The way I control the pressure is by practicing,” Segraves said. “During prac tice we do a lot of kicks from every spot on the field, so I’ve already visualized each kick before the game. When I run out on the field I do a quick prayer and just trust my holder and snapper and the rest will take care of itself.”

Kickers are important in foot ball and for Segraves, he’s one of the most important players on the field for the Blue Dragons.

“It really is an important piece of a successful football team,” Blue Dragon coach Drew Dallas said. “Consistency at that spot means you feel confident with putting points on the scoreboard when you get close to or in the red zone. You obviously want to score touchdowns when you get

the ball down there, but having a security blanket and being able to add your point total really changes the game.”

Segraves is 8 for 13 kicking field goals this season, with a season-long of 46 yards against Dodge City. After a sluggish start, Segraves has hit seven of his last eight field goals. He was the NJCAA na tional special teams player of the week for his performance Saturday at Garden City when he drilled 3 of 4 field goals and all eight extra-point attempts.

When the game comes down to the wire and you win on a game-winning field goal, ev eryone is emotional - players, fans, and even coaches.

“Relieved. That was such a big moment in our season,” Dallas said about the winning kick against Iowa Central. “We won a game against a very good football team when we didn’t play our best. That kick by Cole really spring-boarded his confi dence and he has continued to grow from that moment on.”

Nov. 12, vs, Redlands at Great Bend 1 p.m. Cross country

Oct. 28, REGION 6, at Prairie Ridge Park Nov. 12, at NJCAA Championships, Tallahas see, Fla. Football

Aug. 27, NAVARRO, Texas, W 42-0 Sept. 3, at Ellsworth, Iowa, W 70-7

Sept. 10, IOWA CENTRAL, W 31-28, OT Sept. 24, at Coffeyville, W 14-9 Oct. 1, BUTLER, W 27-19 Oct. 8, at Dodge City, W 47-14 Oct. 22, at Garden City, W 657-7 Oct. 29, HIGHLAND, 7 p.m. Nov. 5, INDEPENDENCE, 1 p.m. Nov. 12, at Iowa Western, 1 p.m. Soccer Aug. 26, vs. Western Nebraska at Sterling, Colo., W 3-2 Aug. 27 at Northeastern Colorado, W 4-3, OT Aug. 31, at Kansas City, W 3-1 Sept. 4, WESTERN WYOMING, W 1-0 Sept. 7, at Garden City, W 5-0 Sept. 10, NEOSHO COUNTY, W 2-0 Sept. 14, DODGE CITY, W 6-0 Sept. 17, at Johnson County, L 3-1 Sept. 21, at Cowley, W 2-1 Sept. 24, COFFEYVILLE, W 2-1, OT Oct. 1, at Butler, L 3-0

Oct. 5, BARTON, W 2-0 Oct. 8, GARDEN CITY, W 3-1 Oct. 12, at Dodge City, W 6-0 Oct. 19, COWLEY, W 3-1 Oct. 22, at Barton, L 2-0

Volleyball Aug. 19-20, at Reiver Classic, vs. Indian Hills, Iowa, L 3-2; vs.Jefferson,Mo., L 3-0; vs. Mis souri State-West Plains, W 3-2; vs. Iowa West ern, W 3-2 Aug 22, OTTAWA JV, W 3-0; NEOSHO COUN TY, W 3-0; BETHEL JV, W 3-1 Aug. 24, at Dodge City, W 3-0 Aug. 26-27, at TJC Classic, vs. Eastern Wyo ming, W 3-1; vs. Frank Phillips, Texas W 3-1; vs. Clarendon, Texas, W 3-1; vs. Casper, Wyo., W 3-0 Aug. 31, at Seward County, L 3-1 Sept. 2, CLOUD COUNTY, W 3-0; FRIENDS JV, W 3-0

Sept. 7, at Pratt, W 3-0 Sept. 9, at NJC Classic, vs. Casper, W 3-0; vs. Western Nebraska, L 3-1 Sept. 10, at NJC Classic, vs. Indian Hills, L 3-0; vs. Northeastern Colorado, W 3-1 Sept 14, at Colby, W 3-1 Sept. 21, GARDEN CITY, W 3-1 Sept. 23, JEFFERSON, W 3-1; IOWA WEST ERN, L 3-1 Sept. 24, MINERAL AREA, Mo., L 3-0; TRINITY VALLEY, L 3-2 Sept. 26, at Barton, W 3-1 Sept. 28, DODGE CITY, W 3-1 Oct. 1, SEWARD COUNTY, W 3-0 Oct. 5, at Cloud County, W 3-0 Oct. 12, BUTLER, L 3-0 Oct. 15, COLBY, W 3-2 Oct. 17, PRATT, W 3-0 Oct. 22, at Garden City, L 3-1 Oct. 26, BARTON, W 3-0 Oct. 28, at Butler, 6 p.m.

Blue Dragon schedules. All home games, events in caps.

Thomas

Photo by Sabrina Anzo/Collegian

Emma Scholl (left) and Kendra Brungardt (right) look to attack the Dodge City defense during a game earlier this season. The Blue Dragons will play at 1 p.m. at the Salthawk Sports Complex this Sunday

Photo by Josie Schrag/Collegian

Blue Dragons kicker Cole Segraves attempts a kick against Butler during a game earlier this season at Gowans Stadium.