Bedlam backfire Cowboys throttle Sooners in Bedlam dual Monday, December 13, 2021
Alicia Young
Gfeller. No. 20 Gfeller fired off two takedowns and a two-point nearfall in the third period to win 9-3. The underdog, in OU’s eyes, prevailed. “They thought I might have a litAdam Engel tle trouble coming off the scale with the Staff Reporter one-hour weigh-in but I just use it as motivation to go out there and wrestle NORMAN--Kaden Gfeller took it harder and get the win,” Gfeller said. personal. It was the first time in his life that Oklahoma wanted to take advan- Gfeller started the first bout of a dual. tage of its coin toss win. “It’s exciting especially here in “We choose to wrestle and start Bedlam,” he said. “There’s a big crowd. it at 125,” Oklahoma State coach John It’s a big deal for the state. To start that Smith said. “Of course, with the rules off, it was honor and to go against a the way they are you can flip a coin and quality competitor with Demas, it was they won the flip. They get to choose awesome.” where they want to start.” And at 157 pounds, OSU’s Wyatt The Sooners wanted to expose Sheets seeked revenge against Justin OSU’s middleweights and manufacture Thomas who beat Sheets twice a year momentum to win its first Bedlam win ago. since 2013. That was when Sheets wrestled The plan backfired and No. 4 on a torn left ACL with a clunky leg OSU crushed Oklahoma 31-3 at the brace. Lloyd Noble Center in Norman Sunday This was the healthy and hungry night. version of Sheets. Dom Demas, OU’s All-American, “I guess probably because I had trotted out at 149-pounds to battle two legs (was the difference),” he said.
That gave me more confidence.” A takedown 30 seconds into overtime gave Sheets a 4-2 win. But Cowboy coach John Smith doesn’t want those close wins. “How does that work?” Smith said. “Really? If you can get one in the first 30 seconds of overtime, how can you not get one in the match?” And it was those late scores that left Smith puzzled throughout the dual. “Just looking for a little bit more passion to score in situations,” he said. “A lot of it was just chain wrestling following up on missed shots and doing some things that they seem to always have a problem with early on. I can’t get those guys to think about it.” From the start, OSU collected six straight wins. At 165 pounds, No. 5 Travis Wittlake muscled his way to an 8-4 win over Joe Grello. A bout later, Dustin Plott, the No. 9 174-pounder accumulated 10 points, a dual high, over Anthony Mantanona. Dakota Geer beat Darrien Roberts 8-2 and in the highest ranked bout of the night, No. 1 AJ Ferrari wore down No. 11 Jake Woodley in a 6-3
bout.
“I just think there’s a level of confidence,” Smith said. “There’s a lot of stuff out there that he (Ferrari) wouldn’t have been doing this early in the season last year.” OU’s single win came via heavyweight Josh Heindselman who scored a takedown in overtime to defeat Luke Surber 3-1. In a reversal from an OSU home dual, the lightweights wrestled last. No. 12 Trevor Mastrogiovanni used a pair of takedowns and escapes to clip Joey Prata, a Virginia Tech transfer, 6-4. At 133, No. 2 Daton Fix pinned No. 19 Tony Madrigal in a rematch of the 2021 Big 12 133-pound final. Carter Young, OSU’s only freshman starter, defeated Jacob Butler 9-4. “Right now, we’re projected with three All-Americans,” Smith said. “That’s not accepted. It’s got to be more. Let’s make sure we work toward something that’s much bigger and better than that.” sports.ed@ocolly.com
Cowboys land commitment from JUCO prospect Benson Daniel Allen Staff Reporter Oklahoma State’s 2022 class continues to expand as National Signing Day draws closer. Xavier Benson, a linebacker out of Tyler Junior College in Tyler, Texas, announced his commitment to Oklahoma State earlier today. Benson held offers from Memphis, Indiana, Sam Houston State, and others, but ultimately chose the Cowboys, becoming their 16th commitment in the 2022 class. Benson initially signed with Texas Tech out of high school as part of the 2018 class, but stepped away from the program following the 2020 season due to personal reasons. Benson sits at 6-foot-3 and 210 pounds. He recorded 120 total tackles in his lone season at Tyler.
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News Legal counseling, Zumba, English classes Afghans adjust to temporary life on US military bases
Courtesy of Tribune News Service
Andrea Castillo Los Angeles Times
Flights of up to 300 Afghans arrive at the base a couple of times a week. Three housing complexes make up Liberty Village. It is the largest of JOINT BASE McGUIRE-DIXseven “safe havens” on military bases LAKEHURST, N.J. — A new father around the country where the federal stopped Col. Soleiman Rahel as he government is working to process some walked through the old soldiers’ bar35,000 evacuees — and the only one racks, now dormitories for thousands still accepting new arrivals. of people evacuated after the U.S. withDuring the facility’s first, closely drawal from Afghanistan. supervised media tour, Department “I want you to know I named my of Defense and Homeland Security son after you,” the man told him. officials showed reporters a children’s The gesture stands out for Rahel English class, an impromptu soccer as a symbol of the significance of his game, a dining hall serving halal meals work assisting the largest U.S. reand a sprawling tented medical facility settlement effort in half a century. For with capacity to see 400 patients per Rahel, it’s personal — 35 years ago, day. he too arrived from Afghanistan as a “We have built a small city,” said refugee. Gen. Adrian White, who is in charge When the Taliban stormed Kabul of the 2,000 personnel who operate the in August, Rahel temporarily left his village of 11,100 Afghans — referred wife and home in Sacramento and to as “guests” — awaiting resettlement. moved across the country to Joint Base “Our unwavering goal has been to McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst. make their life in this temporary locaAfghans there know him as “the tion better every day.” governor” of their new village. The federal government has
evacuated 83,000 people from Afghanistan to the U.S., including nearly 75,000 Afghans and 8,000 U.S. citizens and green card holders. An additional 3,200 evacuees are waiting for U.S.bound flights at military bases in the Middle East and Europe, according to Homeland Security. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro N. Mayorkas told lawmakers last month that the timeline to complete resettlement is between December and February. The short-term spending bill that President Joe Biden signed last week to keep the government running into February includes $7 billion for Afghan resettlement efforts. The last-minute evacuation meant resettlement agencies didn’t have lead time to find housing for refugee families. The refugees are desperate to get off the bases and find jobs so they can start sending money back home. Afghanistan’s economy is collapsing and people are facing starvation. Many of those who have arrived want to end up in places with large Afghan com-
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munities, such as Washington, D.C., and California, but those regions have high rents. On a recent morning, many families were out for a brisk morning walk, several pushing strollers. Six boys in traditional tunic shirts and pants kicked around a soccer ball, cheering when one scored a goal. Those on the base can also opt for daily legal counseling sessions, Zumba sessions, English classes and cultural orientation classes with topics including sexual consent and how to navigate police interactions. At a conversational English class, two Afghan volunteer teachers stood before a few dozen children. On a whiteboard, they had written the vocabulary words of the day: stand, sit, hot, cold, table, chair. In unison, the students chanted sentences using their new words. “This is a chair. That is a table.”
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Legal... Continued from 2 Jeff Drumtra, who leads social programming for the refugees at McGuire, said some children are working though their trauma and loss in drawings. “You see the colors of the Afghan flag, either as a flag or in a heart. Some drawings have blood droplets coming from the heart,” he said. Among those young artists is Sana Khairi, 18, who had been at the base for 47 days. In that time, she had finished 15 pieces in ink, colored pencil and oil paint. Her favorite depicted four Afghan soldiers struggling to raise their country’s flag. “We never want to let anybody think that we’re going to let the Afghan flag drop on the floor,” she said in Dari through an interpreter. Khairi said her father was in the Afghan military and worked with U.S. troops. When she and her parents arrived at the Kabul airport, he couldn’t make it safely through Taliban checkpoints and was left behind. Now he is in hiding. Though she loves art and writing, Khairi said she dreams of being a surgeon — something that felt impossible in Afghanistan because of limited education and opportunities for women. At Liberty Village, a linguist helped her translate some of her poems into English to share with military personnel. One, written Sept. 1 at a military base in Germany, is called “I Am a Refugee.” “O motherland, your season changed. Your treasures, unseen. Your children, buried. Your flag,
lowered. You have been abandoned. O motherland, you are forgotten. I packed for a journey. I don’t know its destination. My dreams like torn pages fall from your sky, and you fell in the hands of unkind.” Families like Khairi’s are screened before they arrive. Homeland Security reviews fingerprints, photos and biometric and biographic data for all Afghans before they are permitted to board a flight to the U.S. Upon arrival, guests are taken for medical screening and vaccinated against COVID-19 and other illnesses. Dari, Pashto, Persian, Tajik and Urdu interpreters are on hand. Just 3,500 of the 14,000 people housed at Liberty Village since it opened have been resettled, said Katy Swartz, an acting team lead with the State Department. Among all evacuated Afghans, more than 40% are eligible for special immigrant visas that are given to those who worked directly with the U.S. government, she said. The others, who got out amid the chaotic U.S. withdrawal, will face a case-by-case determination of their eligibility to stay. Many will seek refugee status or asylum, while others will seek green cards through immediate relatives who are U.S. citizens or residents. All arriving Afghans were temporarily admitted to the U.S. with protection from deportation for two years. More than 100 babies — including baby Rahel — have been born since the first Afghans arrived at McGuire on Aug. 24. Just under half of the guests are children younger than 14. Each housing complex is overseen by a lieutenant colonel who is identified as the “mayor” and holds weekly town halls with residents. Two
“governors,” including the elder Rahel, oversee the entire village. Rahel came to the U.S. at age 15 after the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979. Assisting Afghans in a similar position feels like his life’s purpose, he said. Villagers ask if they could someday join the military like he did. (Of course, he tells them.) Children ask if he is Afghan or American. (He explains he is both.) The hardest questions are from people asking how to bring over additional family members who are stuck in Afghanistan, including thousands of Afghan government workers, teachers, journalists and others at risk of persecution under Taliban rule and unable to move freely. “It’s heartbreaking because there isn’t much we can do,” he said. He tries to get people to focus on rebuilding their lives — the quicker they can transition to normality after resettlement, the quicker they can get jobs and assist their loved ones. After Liberty Village goes back to just being Joint Base McGuire-DixLakehurst, Rahel said, his work on Afghan resettlement will continue. Rahel’s wife recently took in three Afghan women after her husband met two of them at the base and they relocated to California. He connected a 12-year-old boy who was a gifted soccer player to a team in the Bronx, New York. The couple plan to become foster parents for Afghan children who were evacuated without parents or guardians. ——— ©2021 Los Angeles Times. Visit latimes.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. news.ed@ocolly.com
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US COVID death toll hovering around 800,000 Shant Shahrigian New York Daily News
while experts fear the latest variant of the virus, the omicron strain, could prove to be more resistant to vaccines than were previous variNEW YORK — The U.S. is ants. looking at yet another grim pandemAbout two years into the ic benchmark this holiday season. pandemic in the U.S., where the first The death toll inflicted by the coronavirus case was detected in virus hovered around 800,000 as January 2020, the country’s leading of Sunday, with more than 1,000 infectious disease expert was asked COVID-19 deaths being reported about “COVID fatigue” on Sunday. every day. “On that framework alone, just Reuters on Sunday declared vaccination, we can go a long way to the 800,000-benchmark had been getting us through this cold winter passed. Other outlets and organiza- season, which clearly is always astions had slightly lower numbers — sociated with a spike in respiratory 797,179, according to Johns Hopkins illnesses,” Dr. Anthony Fauci said University; 795,727, according to on ABC’s “This Week.” The New York Times; and 793,937, “You know, masking is not according to the Centers for Disease going to be forever, but it can get Control and Prevention. us out of the very difficult situation But with the dire daily death we’re in now,” he said. rate being cited by several trackers, the country is poised to top the 800,000 mark this year. Cases and hospitalizations have been rising around the country, news.ed@ocolly.com
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Page 4 Monday, December 13, 2021
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Sooner scuffle sports
Ferrari and Heindselman come to blows after dual
Alicia Young
Daniel Allen Staff Reporter
dual, both squads walked onto the mat to shake hands following Oklahoma State’s 31-3 Bedlam victory at the Lloyd Noble Center. NORMAN--The biggest double However, things didn’t exactly go leg takedown of the day happened after as anticipated. the match. Oklahoma’s Josh Heindselman As Carter Young trotted off the shoved AJ Ferrari as members of both mat following a 9-4 victory over Okla- squads walked side by side along the homa’s Jacob Butler in the 141 pound mat post dual. Ferrari grabbed Heind-
selman by the legs in relation, and executed a double leg takedown to perfection. “I went back and watched it on tape,” coach John Smith said. “We didn’t start it. (I’ll) just say that.” Immediately after the scuffle had transpired, assistant coach Chris Perry grabbed Ferrari and escorted him off the mat. Perry guided Ferrari in the op-
posite direction of the mayhem that had just unfolded, towards the tunnel, while attempting to calm him down. “Those things shouldn’t happen,” Smith said.
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sports
Monday, December 13, 2021 Page 5
3 things to watch
Abby Smith
OSU vs Cleveland State Chris Becker Assistant Sports Editor The Oklahoma State’s men’s basketball team has taken a turn down with two straight losses. Coach Mike Boynton’s squad gets a shot at Cleveland State to turn the tide back to the win column Monday.
Here are three things to watch. Can OSU figure out it’s offensive woes? Cleveland State made the NCAA Tournament a season ago and is well coached. Like most teams the Cowboys have played this season Cleveland State will most likely throw some zone into their defensive mix. The Cowboys offense hasn’t been successful against zone defenses this season, but will need to be down the stretch. Stopping a surging team. While OSU has lost two straight, Cleveland State has won its last six games. The Vikings have won all
but one of the games handily. The Cowboys will have to figure out their offense and score effectively in order to avoid another slip up in front of a home crowd. This game could be considered a must win for OSU with a tough stretch of games coming after the meeting with the Vikings. The Cowboys have two more nonconference games both on neutral sites against USC and Houston before beginning Big 12 play. Cowboys need to protect the ball on offense. The OSU defense has proven it can wreak havoc on opposing teams by
forcing turnovers, but on offense the Cowboys also have had their fair share of turnover issues. Over nine games the Cowboys are averaging more than 16 turnovers per game. The Vikings have been able to get to opposing offenses averaging 9.3 steals per game. In OSU’s three losses it has averaged just over 18 turnovers per game in those games. Turnovers could be a key in the game.
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sports
Match of the night Gfeller wears down Demas
Alison Conway Staff Reporter
NORMAN--Before the Bedlam duals began, a coin flip gave the Sooners the decision of where to start. The Sooners decided to start Bedlam at the crucial middle weight of 149 with Kaden Gfeller and Dom Demas. Cowboy coach John Smith interpreted this decision as a message, so he told his team: “They’re trying to start at our weak spots, I guess they are calling you guys weak.” Dom Demas is nationally ranked No. 6 and Gfeller is ranked 20th. As the whistle blew to start the match, a certain level of intensity was immediately seen. Gfeller not only wrestled with skill, but also smarts. Despite never having wrestled before, Gfeller realized that Demas loves to tie up, inside trip and to stay close enough to look for throws. With this in mind, Gfeller found success in the match by continuing to move and avoid a lot of tying up. Before the second round began, it became clear that Demas was exhausted. His well known explosiveness and style was rarely seen throughout the second and third round as Gfeller raised the level of intensity. Gfeller dominated the match, leading to a 9-3 decision. This win at 149 led to a long line of victories for the Cowboys. Alicia Young
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BE DEFINITE!
It has been a number of years ago that the Lord Jesus challenged me to be definite in making myself available to him. I was attending church regularly. My wife and I were giving to the work of God. We were not doing anything that would be considered wrong in the eyes of God. I thought I was available to Christ. As I prayed about this, I felt the Lord wanted me to spend more consistent time with him. I decided to get up each morning and spend an hour in prayer and in the Bible. The first morning when I knelt at the living room couch, I went to sleep. What a commitment! However, I did not give up. The next morning with my Bible in hand, I walked back and forth across the living room praising, praying and reading the Bible. I was being definite, not perfect, but definite.
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King David said, “My heart says of you (God), ‘Seek his Face! Your face, Lord, I will seek.’ (Ps.27:8) David was a man after God’s own heart. He certainly was not perfect, but one who sought after and followed God. Being definite with God has such great reward. He is the Good Shepherd that will faithfully lead our lives into the best and lasting way. As the Lord challenges our lives in various areas of obedience and service, It is so important to be definite; to be clear, to be wholehearted. Go all the way, and do that thing(s) you are challenged to do. Don’t compromise! Possibly God is challenging you about a definite time in prayer and in scripture. Maybe it is in giving; not just occasionally, but often and consistently Maybe it is Christian service; helping is mission work; worthwhile projects. Go for it! Be definite. You will find God definite, and there will be lasting fruit and satisfaction.
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ACROSS 1 To __ her own 5 Work on, as a bone 9 Swedish pop group 13 Pond plant with floating “pads” 14 “West Side Story” heroine 16 Golf scorecard numbers 17 TV Mister with a “neighborhood” 19 MADD ads, e.g. 20 Achy from exercise 21 Italian half-dozen 22 The “L” in “SNL” 23 Regular cybersecurity measure 27 Thurman on screen 29 Crumpets drink 30 Enjoy a meal 31 Fulfill fully 33 Things best not all put in one basket? 36 Ocean levels 40 Agatha Christie play set in Egypt 43 Identify as yours, as baggage 44 College sports org. 45 Man or Wight 46 Spanish aunt 48 First-aid set 50 Cell pic taker 51 Self-inflicted tennis mistake 57 Get close to 58 Charlemagne’s domain, for short 59 Disney exec Robert 61 Painter of limp watches 62 Like a nonfunctioning vending machine, or what the circled letters are, in two ways 66 Memorable lioness 67 Performance sometimes seen through glasses 68 German article 69 Rod partner
12/13/21
By John Harrington
Saturday’s Puzzle Solved
70 “Jurassic Park” menace, briefly 71 “Halt!” DOWN 1 Santa helper 2 Broadcasts 3 Antony’s last spouse 4 Monster slain by Hercules 5 Modern food concern, briefly 6 Old horse 7 “Am not!” reply 8 Electrical job 9 Drink replacing “mar” with an apt fruit 10 Foundation 11 Courageous 12 Balance sheet item 15 “Step __!”: “Outta my way!” 18 Take a break 24 Prophet 25 Old West vehicle 26 Per-hour amount 27 “Semper Fi” org. 28 Hammering tool 32 Opinion piece 34 Health supplements co. 35 Vampire’s undoing
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37 Cast doubt on 38 Scat legend Fitzgerald 39 Apparently are 41 Mideast ruler 42 Win by a __: barely beat 47 Sneezing sound 49 Emerson, Lake & Palmer, e.g. 51 Beneath 52 Author Zora __ Hurston
12/13/21
53 True-__ test 54 Explode in rage 55 Try to stop 56 Shrek and family 60 City sometimes mistaken for the capital of Nevada 63 Mined resource 64 Obsolescent document transmitter 65 One ab crunch, say
Daily Horoscope
Nancy Black Tribune Content Agency Linda Black Horoscopes
Today’s Birthday (12/13/21). Creativity abounds this year. Follow inspiration with dedication, coordination and networking to develop ideas into reality. Winter brings personal triumph, energizing your springtime for high performance. A change in summer plans redirects you toward fulfilling dreams and ambitions next autumn. Communicate and connect to grow. To get the advantage, check the day’s rating: 10 is the easiest day, 0 the most challenging. Aries (March 21-April 19) — Today is an 8 — Career opportunities multiply, with Mercury in Capricorn. Discuss personal ambitions with family. Speak with influential people over the next three weeks. You’re growing stronger. Taurus (April 20-May 20) — Today is a 7 — Plan and schedule. Enter a threeweek expansion phase, with Mercury in Capricorn. Travel, research and education flourish. Broaden your horizons. Stretch your capacities. Gemini (May 21-June 20) — Today is an 8 — Begin a financial management phase, with Mercury in Capricorn. Communication and networking pay off. Learn economics, hands-on, over the next three weeks. Budget for growth. Cancer (June 21-July 22) — Today is a 9 — Grab an opportunity. A three-week partnership phase begins with Mercury in Capricorn. Solve problems in conversation. Collaborate on solutions. A mutual attraction heats up. Leo (July 23-Aug. 22) — Today is a 7 — Discuss options and adapt practices to improve health and physical performance over the next three weeks, with Mercury in Capricorn. Get expert coaching and support. Virgo (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) — Today is an 8 — Collaborate for shared gain. Creativity flowers, with Mercury in Capricorn for three weeks. Express your feelings and affection. Share your passion. Romance arises in conversation. Libra (Sept. 23-Oct. 22) — Today is a 7 — Get creative with home renovation. Enjoy a three-week domestic phase, with Mercury in Capricorn. Share memories and traditions. Invent family fun. Cook up something wonderful. Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 21) — Today is an 8 — Practice, research and learn voraciously. A three-week study phase dawns with Mercury in Capricorn. Communications are wide open. Express your views and ideas. Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 21) — Today is a 9 — Discuss lucrative opportunities. Communications get profitable, with Mercury in Capricorn for three weeks. Use your wits to increase profits. You’re especially clever with money. Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) — Today is a 9 — Confidently share and express. Begin a three-week intellectual phase, with Mercury in your sign. Creativity flowers. Update your self-image, branding and marketing materials. Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) — Today is a 7 — Dreams could seem prophetic. Begin a pensive phase, with Mercury in Capricorn for three weeks. Finish old projects, and review progress made. Consider possibilities. Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) — Today is an 8 — Share team support, with Mercury in Capricorn. Strategize and coordinate. Work together to get farther, faster. Whatever you need can be found in your networks.
Level 1
2
3
4
Solution to Saturday’s puzzle
12/13/21 Complete the grid so each row, column and 3-by-3 box (in bold borders) contains every digit, 1 to 9. For strategies on how to solve Sudoku, visit sudoku.org.uk
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