The Student Printz: February 24, 2021

SERVING SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI SINCE 1927 • WWW.STUDENTPRINTZ.COM • FEBRUARY 24, 2021 | VOLUME 106 | ISSUE 21

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Professor works to better explore Clyde Kennard’s legacy

Brian Winters | Printz

BRIAN WINTERS EXECUTIVE EDITOR person walking to Kennard-Washington Hall on the Southern Miss Hattiesburg campus might notice a historical marker on their way. The marker tells the story of Clyde Kennard, who spent years trying to desegregate Southern Miss. While that person can definitely learn about Kennard from the marker, one Southern Miss professor wants a much more extensive retelling of his life.

Samuel Bruton Ph.D., a professor of philosophy and the Director of the Office of Research Integrity, said the Kennard story had always moved him.

The historical marker for Clyde Kennard that can be found in front of Kennard-Washington Hall on the Southern Miss Hattiesburg campus.

Bruton wants to use his classes to build a digital humanities initiative, which would create a much more detailed retelling of Kennard’s life.

“Everything I know about the man impresses me[:] that he was an unusually admirable person, from his service in the military to his efforts to help out his mom,” Bruton said. “In many ways, he seems to encapsulate the many ethical values that I want my students to really understand and take seriously.”

Bruton said he wanted to take on the project because he believes Kennard’s story should be better known both locally and nationally. He said that, especially today, it is important to keep the history and issue of Civil Rights alive.

“The stories like Kennard’s and this poignant history [should be] kept alive,” Bruton said.

Kennard was born in Hattiesburg on June 12, 1927, and moved to Chicago to live with his sister. He served in the army for seven years and enrolled in the University of Chicago afterwards. Kennard eventually returned to Mississippi to help his mom run the family farm after his stepfather died.

Kennard wanted to finish his education, though, so he attempted to enroll at the University of Southern Mississippi, then referred to as Mississippi Southern College. Kennard was first refused enrollment in 1955 and again in 1959, being arrested after the latter attempt due to

claims of speeding and illegal possession of whiskey.

Kennard was arrested again in 1960, this time on charges of burglarizing the Forrest County Cooperative. The actual robber, named Johnny Lee Roberts, said Kennard planned the break-in with no supporting evidence. Kennard was sent to Parchman Prison, where he was diagnosed with cancer. Kennard was released in the spring of 1963, dying shortly after on July 4, 1963.

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FEBRUARY 24, 2021

MEET THE STAFF Executive Editor

Brian Winters brian.s.winters@usm.edu

News & Features Editor Mary Murphy mary.s.murphy@usm.edu

Sports Editor

Charlie Luttrell charles.luttrell@usm.edu

Multimedia Editor

Earl Stoudemire earl.stoudmire@usm.edu

Design Editor

Marissa Haas marissa.haas@usm.edu

The views represented in The Student Printz’s columns and editorials do not represent those of the faculty, staff or administration of The University of Southern Mississippi. We welcome letters to the editor representing similar and contrasting opinions. To be eligible for publication, all submission must include name, class distinction, major, phone number and email address. Submissions should be emailed to printzeditors@ gmail.com by 5 p.m. on the Friday before publication. Please limit them to 500 words or less. The Student Printz reserves the right to refuse publication or edit any material on the basis of clarity, space or journalistic ethics.

Opinions expressed in The Student Printz are those of the writer and not necessarily those of The Student Printz, its publication manager, USM, the Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning or the USM Board of Student Publications.

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NEWS

FEBRUARY 24, 2021

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Southern snowstorm leaves students powerless

KARA LOWE PRINTZ REPORTER hen it snows in the south, it creates an uproar of excitement among many of its residents. Because snow is so rare for many states in the south, some love the novelty of waking up to snow-covered lawns.

However, because it’s so different to what we’re used to, many Southerners aren’t equipped to go about their daily lives in snow. Schools shut down and roads are closed, leaving many isolated in their homes. In severe cases, such as during the freeze last week, the power gets cut off and it sometimes takes days before power companies can fix the issue.

Northerners, much more exposed to severe winter weather, tend to have extra equipment, like generators, to fall back on in case things go wrong. Southerners don’t have that same luxury. Without power, many people lost their main source of heating, as Southern homes don’t tend to be as insulated as Northern homes. This meant people were trapped in the freezing cold for what could be days at a time.

For college students, this type of loss of power and heating can be critical for their education. Senior Social Work

Charlie Luttrell | Printz

major Lakyn Welborn said she struggled to get things done when the winter storm hit.

“My power went out and left me extremely cold and the icy roads caused me to be unable to drive to a warm place.

Due to my power going out, I was unable to access Wi-Fi and I was also unable to charge my computer. This caused me to miss my classes and get behind in my schoolwork,” said Welborn.

Missing assignments, especially during your senior year, can be extremely critical and Welborn struggled with keeping up with all her assignments with the extended power loss. This is even more true this year, with the condensed academic schedule leaving little room for leeway.

Not only did students lose power, but some ended up stuck in other states, unable to get back on campus. Angie Fonseca, a sophmore Marketing major, was worried she wouldn’t be able to get assignments done outside of her on-campus room.

“I was in Fort Worth, Texas when the storm hit. We, fortunately, did not lose power due to being near a church, but it caused me a lot of stress to not be able to get back to campus,” said Angie Fonseca, a sophomore Marketing major. “Although we didn’t lose power, I still found it very difficult to focus on my schoolwork with everything going on.”

Another student, senior History Education major Jenna Vining, was also un-

able to leave her home due to her incline driveway being completely iced over.

It took four days before the ice finally melted, and it was an incredibly stressful four days at that.

Vining discussed how this storm should be a lesson in important crisis management, and that the state of Mississippi should be doing more to protect its citizens.

“Even though Mississippi rarely gets events like this one, I feel like there should be some funding allocated towards things just in case,” said Vining.

“Snow plow trucks, salt trucks and other equipment that can safely handle the roads would be extremely effective. I’ve seen it in action in Kansas where it gets regular weather like this and it works.

Things like this might not happen often here in the south, but when it does, it is a disaster in that people get hurt and get in wrecks because of it.”

Welborn and Fonseca agreed with Vining, saying more precautions for severe winter weather should be put into effect state and nationwide.

To better prepare against severe winter weather, look into winter weather resources available at https://www. weather.gov/safety/winter-before. To keep up-to-date with campus operations during severe winter weather, sign up for Eagle Alert by following the instructions at https://www.usm.edu/police/ eagle-alert-enrollment-login.

Career Services to host virtual career expo BRIAN WINTERS EXECUTIVE EDITOR

Photo courtesty of Career Services

rom Feb. 23 through Feb. 25, Southern Miss Career Services will be hosting a virtual career and internship expo.

Each day will be for a different school – Feb. 23 will be for Arts and Sciences plus Graduate school, Feb. 24 will be for Business and Construction and Feb. 25 will be for Health and Human Services.

Florence Maillot, the Marketing Specialist for Career Services, said the event will be held through Handshake. There is also a dress code for the event as well.

“Students will need to dress in business professional [or] business casual for this event,” Maillot said.

“Students will be able to talk to employers about their resume, interest in a company and potential job openings.”

Students will also be able to choose to attend a group session or have a one-on-one session with employers. Maillot said students should come prepared to the event and do their research on the companies beforehand. That way, they can best maximize their time with the companies they are interested in.

“Some one-on-one sessions will be like interviews,” she explained.

Students can sign up for the event by going to usm.joinhandshake.com and clicking on the ”Events” tab. A video for how to navigate Handshake can be found at https://www.usm.edu/ career-services/index.

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CONT. FROM PG 1 In 1991, The Clarion-Ledger published Sovereignty Commision documents that showed Kennard had been framed. In 2006, another Clarion-Ledger reporter, Jerry Mitchell, further investigated the case, finally getting Roberts to admit that he had lied. Kennard was posthumously exonerated on May 17, 2006.

“For the average faculty member or student just landing on the Hattiesburg campus, you could spend a lot of time at USM without understanding or knowing much about Clyde Kennard and his story,” Bruton said. “I think every student and everyone who works [at USM] should understand that story. It’s an important part of our history and an important part of the legacy for this institution.”

Bruton said that, while many parts of Kennard’s story are well known, there are still other parts that are not readily available.

Bruton wants students to help him search the Mississippi Sovereignty Commision archives, find relevant passages about Kennard and bring the passages together in a common website.

Bringing the findings together would make it easier for Southern Miss faculty, students and members of the general public

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to study documents relating to Kennard.

“The basics of his stories – you can access through Wikipedia and other sources – but there are still aspects to the story that can be usefully brought out,” Bru-

to Kennard. Bruton added that people outside of his class would eventually be welcomed to help with the project, but not at the outset.

“I am learning myself and going to have to learn as part of

ton said. “I want to engage my students in a digital humanities service learning project to explore these archive materials.”

He also wants for his class to seek out people in the community or around the country who had known or had a connection

this effort how to do an Omeka website,” he said. “I will have to learn to do that and teach students how to work with Omeka tools, so I imagine it will take me a semester to understand how the process can be most effectively constructed.”

Bruton said he is expecting the project to take multiple semesters to complete. He imagines the website in sections, with certain parts being biographical, others detailing the trials against him and still others explaining the way Southern Miss was segregated at the time.

“I see this as an important way to educate my students, that the students would be involved in not just learning a bunch of stuff but to construct something with lasting value and meaning,” Bruton said. “I think that is something students would find rewarding and would be educational for them.”

The first semester this project will begin in the fall 2021 semester. Bruton wants his Philosophy of Law class to first dig into the legal details relating to Kennard’s conviction. He believes learning about the trials and conviction will be an engaging way to teach students about the law.

“Depending on the nature of the students in the class and the class focus, we might delve into a different aspect of the Kennard story,” Bruton said.

If any student is interested in working on the project, they can sign up for one of Bruton’s philosophy classes with help from their academic advisor.

ENTERTAINMENT

FEBRUARY 24, 2021

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‘Minari’ is a tender, raw portrayal of immigrant life MARISSA HAAS DESIGN EDITOR inari’, which premiered Feb. 12, is the closest to a cinematic experience we will get during the pandemic. It paints a stunning picture of Americana and Korean food as an immigrant family chases an unraveling American Dream.

In the 1980s, Jacob Yi (Steven Yeun) decides to move his family from California to rural Arkansas in order to build a better life as a farmer. He had previously found success as a chicken sexer in a factory, but he wants to make a name of his own. He wants a life his children can look to with pride.

Jacob’s dreams come at the expense of his family. Spending every penny he has to finance his new life, his family is forced to live in a cramped trailer on otherwise picturesque farmland. His family -- especially his wife, Monica (Han Ye-ri) -- resent their new surroundings, but Jacob is determined to see things through. He finds a kindred spirit in Paul (Will Patton), an incredibly religious local, who he recruits to work on the farm.

But the real star of the film is Jacob’s son, David (Alan Kim), a seven-year-old boy who has only known Californian life. His older sister, Anne (Noel Kate Cho), briefly lived in Korea, but they immigrated before David

was born. A central conflict of ‘Minari’ is being at odds with your identity, and nowhere is this better portrayed than in David’s story.

David finds himself alienated from both Korea and America, and is unsure where to find solace. In one scene, a child asks David, “Why is your face flat?”, to which David responds, “It isn’t.” He has no one that truly sees him and understands him, and he feels more alone than ever.

It doesn’t help that David has a heart condition, making it so he can’t explore the world the way he wants. He wants to run and be free on the miles of land his family now possesses, but he physically can’t. Thematically, this shows how America seems like a place where you can live out your dreams, but it’s oftentimes full of heartbreak and anguish.

Things only get more tense once Soon-ja (Youn Yuh-jung), Monica’s mother, moves into the trailer. Jacob hopes Soon-ja will help ease his family’s isolation in Arkansas, and make it so he can spend all of his time and resources on the farm.

However, David resents his grandmother.

He says she’s “not a real grandmother” because she curses, wears men’s underwear and doesn’t know how to cook anything, much less the cookies he desires. It doesn’t help that she “smells like Korea”, which only further isolates him from his Korean heritage.

Adding to the Yi family’s disillusionment of Americana, Jacob, so hopeful that his

Photo courtesty of A24 Films

farm will succeed, is still filled with anguish and turmoil, much like America itself. Jacob’s dream, much like the American dream, is largely unsustainable. As much as he wants to, he can’t have it all. So, Jacob has to figure out what he really wants: his family or his success.

This is what happens at the climax of the film, which also brings its themes to a boiling point. When Jacob finally finds a buyer for his crops, his wife threatens to leave him. Then his crops catch fire, and he must

decide: keep his wife, or keep his dream. In the end, he chooses his wife. Even if he can’t have it all, he can still find solace in those he loves.

For a story full of instability and conflict, ‘Minari’ is incredibly tender and told with care. The name “Minari” comes from the plant which comes out of the land itself. The connection one feels with land is personal and delicate, which is beautifully reflected in the lives of the Yi family, despite all their struggles.

Kelly Rowland’s “K” is more than ok

JAKORI BEAUCHAMP PRINTZ REPORTER

ormer Destiny’s Child member Kelendria “Kelly Rowland” Weatherspoon released her latest project, ‘K’, this past Friday. This EP was, despite the uninspired title, a surprisingly solid project. However, it was also indicative of her general effort as an artist, as well as what she needs to improve.

‘K’ is the first EP Rowland’s released since 2013’s ‘Talk a Good Game’.

To hype up ‘K’, Rowland released its three singles: “Black Magic”, “Hitman” and “Crazy”. She released a stand-alone single “Coffee” this past year as well. Hearing “Coffee” I had high hopes for whatever came after that whether it was more singles or a full body of work.

However, after “Hitman” and “Black Magic”, I felt my excitement for the project slipping away. I feel as though the videos and the songs were very reminiscent of another former Destiny’s Child member, Beyonce. In particular, it sounded too much like the music from Beyonce’s ‘Black Is King’, and her ‘The Gift’, which diminished my excitement for any other Rowland releases.

Courtesy of Kelly Rowland’s Twitter

Rowland also has a bad track record in marketing, which is key to becoming a successful, mainstream artist. She seems to just throw things out there and hopes people will listen to them.

If it catches, then she tries to push it, but never before that. We have gotten plenty of singles since ‘Talk a Good Game’, but Rowland never did much promotion for the records outside of posts on social media. We got very few

performances of the songs, too, if we even got any at all.

That’s the problem of being a Kelly Rowland fan. You expect the bare minimum and nothing more. There was no reason for her to have her most successful era to date with ‘Here I Am’, only for her next project to flop so spectacularly. It’s sad, too, because that follow-up was ‘Talk a Good Game’, which I think is still her best

body of work to date.

So, with all that in mind, I had very little hopes going into ‘K’. I half expected a boring comeback project, and definitely nothing beyond that.

I was thoroughly shocked when ‘K’ turned out to be a solid project.

The opener, “Flowers”, captured my attention almost immediately with its excellent harmonies and production value.

Things were slightly less promising with the next track, “Black Magic”. I hate to say this during Black History Month, especially as a black man, but “Black Magic” was my least favorite song on ‘K’. It just couldn’t keep my attention. So I was glad that track three, “Hitman”, pulled me back in. It reignited my hope and made me mad that I didn’t listen to it while it was a single.

The next three songs also held my attention fairly well, which gave ‘K’ a good grade in my book. My favorite songs were “Flowers”, “Hitman” and “Speed of Love”. They really solidified the project for me and gave a great peek into the artistic side of Kelly Rowland.

As we enter this new decade of the world, I hope Rowland will grow more as an artist and promoter. Hopefully, she can finally get accolades for her work outside of Destiny’s Child.

OPINION

FEBRUARY 24, 2021

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The Capitol Riot shouldn’t be Congress’ main concern

MARY MURPHY NEWS/FEATURES EDITOR n Feb. 15, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced the creation of a “9/11-type Commission” designed to apprehend the perpetrators of the Jan. 6 Capitol Riot. This is the absolute last thing that anyone in Congress should be worried about.

A part of me understands why this happened. Over the last few years, more and more policymakers have begun valuing ideology and perception over actual, physical reforms. This is why Donald Trump’s second impeachment trial took place at all, even if there was little chance of it actually succeeding. It is as if they hope that, by being on the “right” side of history, the American public will value their “contributions” for years to come.

However, there is a clear and obvious thing wrong with valuing ideology over all else: namely, that there are no future “contributions” to analyze, as there has been no concrete change in sight.

This has especially been true as it pertains to COVID-19 aid. Because the global lockdown last year caused massive job loss across the board, there are still millions of Americans struggling to pay their bills

and support their families. Things have especially turned dire over the past week in Texas, as Winter Storm Uri has left the majority of the state without power or adequate heating. If there were a time for stimulus checks to arrive, it would be now.

But day by day, it seems as though the mere concept of stimulus checks have turned into a punchline. Congress has fought over the specifics of Biden’s proposed COVID relief package for weeks now. There is still a lot of confusion over when people will receive checks, how much the checks will be and where people can find additional help due to outstanding situations. In the meantime, Pelosi and the rest of the House of Representatives have made the second impeachment and Capitol Riot commission their priority.

This intense focus on denouncing the Trump administration has become ridiculous. Yes, there is good reason to denounce Trump and his horrific policies. But the past few weeks have reeked of Democratic grandstanding.

Then again, this is probably because we are in the beginnings of Joe Biden’s presidency. Biden has never used his policy work to win voters. He instead markets himself as anti-Trump and only as anti-Trump. Even during the Democratic primaries, Biden’s campaign could have just as easily used “Not Trump” as

Photo courtesty of CNN

a slogan. So it should be no surprise that this is the exact attitude he’s gone into his presidency with.

Yet there is a difference between “working to fix problems” and “pretending to fix problems”, and Biden has spent the first few weeks of his presidency doing the latter. Biden’s administration is so focused on getting the ideological win over the Trump administration that they have discarded the concerns of the public.

Instead of focusing their efforts to provide

COVID-related aid for millions, there is a “9/11-type Commission” to address a far less pressing issue.

It’s incredibly ironic that Pelosi’s letter mentions George Washington’s stance against parties as a way to justify the Jan. 6 commission. In actuality, the Biden administration’s constant harping on the Capitol Riot shows the dangers of “cunning, ambitious and unprincipled men” using governmental powers for their own ends.

The upsides and downsides of student loan forgiveness DIPIN SUBEDI PRINTZ REPORTER tudent loans have always been a burden for American students. While some manage to repay their student debt within a few years, a lot more spend their entire lives paying off their loans.

For a long time, top Democrat politicians have sympathized with students who struggle to pay back hefty loans. This issue has especially gained momentum over the past year, with the COVID-19 pandemic making the situation with borrowers even more dire. With President Joe Biden now in office, they have urged him to take urgent action on this issue and forgive student loan payments.

Democrats planned to persuade Biden to sign an executive order to erase $50,000 from the accounts of each student’s education loan. The Biden administration, however, denied that amount.

It instead proposed to forgive $10,000 of student debt per borrower. Biden could have single handedly authorized the cancellation of debts of any amount, but he intends to deal with Congress on this issue, so lowered it to make it easier to pass through.This policy, regardless of what amounts passes, would help boost the productivity of these students, who are an integral part of the job market.

However, Biden’s plan is not immune from other major drawbacks. Fifty thousand dollars is a colossal amount of debt

to forgive, but not every student in America took out loans that were equal to or crossed this amount. The average student debt in the United States is slightly over $30,000, and the median student loan is close to $20,000. The plan proposed by Democrats would make sure that every student is free of debt, but Biden’s unwavering resolution to forgive only $10,000 would be a mere palliative remedy for the student debt crisis.

Still, the administration’s current plan isn’t entirely bad. Each plan would primarily target students who have defaulted on their student loans. This includes college dropouts, who incurred a significant chunk of debt for only a few semesters of college and lack the ability to repay loans in a short period of time. There are currently eight million students who have defaulted on their loans. The consequences of student loan delinquency and default are substantial, and it will echo throughout a borrower’s lifetime.

A lot of students who drop out are also minorities, making it even harder to pay back debt. Along with having disproportionately low income among college graduates, they lack secondary funding sources such as family wealth. Forgiving loans to these students will liberate them from personal financial crises and will help them increase their living standards.

Such a step, if passed by the current administration, will breathe life into millions of students’ aspirations to achieve the American dream.

Furthermore, students who have fallen

Illustration by Alexandria Moore | Printz

prey to predatory lending practices will get relief from their abusive student loan servicers. This also includes taxpayers who also get exploited by this predatory industry, making it so their fraudulent practices can no longer thrive.

A lot of Republicans disagree with this proposal, and are not necessarily wrong in their dissent. In addition to the problems previously discussed, the cost of forgiving these student loans would be imposed on those who did not choose

to attend college, who tend to be lower income. The logic behind redistribution is fatally wrecked in this plan, as high-income graduates will get their debts paid indirectly through low-income taxpayers.

Still, this proposal for forgiving the student debt by the Biden administration will no doubt be a firm step towards elevating the prosperity of the nation. It is up to the legislators to reckon with the moral hazards that linger, and find a way to minimize it as much as possible.

SPORTS

FEBRUARY 24, 2021

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Southern Miss’s defense earns victory against FIU CHARLIE LUTTRELL SPORTS EDITOR

outhern Miss’s (7-9, 5-9 Conference USA) stout defensive play helped the Lady Eagles earn a victory in its weekend series against Florida International University (FIU).

Southern Miss limited FIU, one of the league’s top-scoring offenses, to 60 points or less in both games and forced a combined 50 turnovers.

“We were really trying to limit the three balls because they’ve scored 100 points in multiple games,” senior guard Jalise Smallwood said.

“We knew that if we could hold them to 60, we’ll win the game.”

Despite holding FIU to under the goal of 60 points, Southern Miss fell one point short in overtime to the Panthers, losing its first game 59-58. However, the Lady Eagles still succeeded in stopping the three-point attack, holding the Panthers to 26% shooting accuracy from the three-point range. Southern Miss also forced FIU to turn over the ball 29 times, a season-high.

“I think our defense was very much a big part or the biggest part of our success,” Head Coach Joye Lee-McNelis said.

Southern Miss started the first game with a full-court press, pressuring the Panthers into ten turnovers in the first quarter.

“Destiny [Smith, Junior guard] played the front of that press and she brought a tremendous amount of energy and took a lot of pride in making that press work,” McNelis said.

Smith was the frontrunner against FIU, as she recorded a double-double with ten points and ten rebounds.

The Lady Eagles continued its defensive effort in the second quarter by holding the Panthers scoreless for over eight minutes. Southern Miss led 28-21 at halftime.

Charlie Luttrell | Printz However, FIU’s guard Jiselle Thomas warmed up from a frigid first half and scored 12 points in the third quarter. Thomas finished the game with 27 points, three rebounds and two assists. The Panthers continued to rally in the fourth quarter on a 15-2 run, jumping to a four-point lead.

But the Lady Eagles fought back. Freshman guard Brikalya Gray hit a contested layup to tie the game with less than a minute remaining.

Then Junior guard Daishai Almond missed a shot to win the game at the buzzer, sending the game into overtime.

Southern Miss got off to a fast start, but could not overcome its struggles at the free-throw line. The Lady Eagles made only two of its 18

attempts. This is what helped the Panthers take over to win.

However, Southern Miss came ready to play in its next game for Senior Night, beating the Panthers 76-60.

“The two seniors have grown in every aspect of their lives here at Southern Miss,” McNelis said about Smallwood and guard Allie Kennedy.

“It’s been fun to watch Allie’s growth over her four years. She’s worked really hard every year that she’s been here. Jalise has been really fun to watch her growth. Her growth as a player really changed as well. We’re going to miss them.”

Smallwood led the team, scoring 13 points in her final home game. She says she wasn’t too nervous about it being Senior Night, especially

since she was ready to get revenge from the previous loss.

“I was ready to play because I was thinking about the game like we got to beat them from yesterday,” Smallwood said. “I was ready to play, get out there and leave it out on the court.”

Only a night after a 11% shooting accuracy at the free-throw line, the Lady Eagles shot a perfect 18 of 18 at the line in the second game against FIU. Kennedy says she felt confident in the team’s ability to turnaround its free-throw performance.

“We know we can make free throws, we do it every single day,” Kennedy said. “Last night, I don’t know what happened, but we just couldn’t buy one, but tonight, I had a good feeling about it.”

Southern Miss dominated FIU on the glass from the start. The Lady Eagles grabbed nine offensive rebounds in the first quarter and outrebounded the Panthers 47-20 in the game.

While Southern Miss had shooting struggles in the first quarter, the team flipped a switch in the second quarter and ended the half on a 17-3 run. Kennedy capped the run with a halfcourt shot at the buzzer, which gave Southern Miss a 37-19 lead at halftime.

“The ball landed perfectly in my hands and I just took off running. I looked up and saw the shot clock and just let it go and it just went in,” Kennedy said on her impressive goal.

The Panthers warmed up to a 57.7% shooting accuracy in the second half, as they similarly did in the first game. The Lady Eagles pushed ahead to a 20-point lead in the third quarter, though, never losing their momentum.

Almond led the Lady Eagles in the second half, scoring all 12 of her points. She also added three assists, a block and a steal. It was a strong showing for Senior Night, and one that the Lady Eagles hope to end the season on.

The Lady Eagles will play its final conference series against FAU on Feb. 26 and 27 to conclude the regular season.

Southern Miss Baseball returns with two victories against Northwestern CHARLIE LUTTRELL SPORTS EDITOR

outhern Miss Baseball began its much anticipated season last week after a 348-day hiatus, winning two of three games against Northwestern State.

The Golden Eagles’ pitching staff shone throughout the series, recording 45 strikeouts in three games.

Game One Hunter Stanley, in his first start at Southern Miss, recorded 13 strikeouts, breaking the record for most strikeouts in an opening game over Head Coach Scott Berry’s 12-year tenure.

“It’s an honor to be the opening day starter. [...]

I was nervous going in,” Stanley said. “I’ve started a lot in my career before, but obviously my first start for Southern Miss [is different]. I was nervous but I was excited too.”

Stanley started strong, recording seven strikeouts throughout the first three innings. He allowed a double in the second, but did not allow another hit for the remainder of his playing time.

“He was really good on the mound tonight, filled up the zone, […] covering six innings for us, he was very sharp for the first time out,” Head Coach Scott Berry said. “He was the difference in Game One.” After Stanley gave the Demons the run-around at the beginning of the game, Christopher Sargent hit an RBI single to send Gabe Montenegro home for the Golden Eagles’ first run of the year.

Southern Miss got on the board again in the bottom of the fourth as DJ Lynch hit a two-run home run. Montenegro hit an RBI single in the seventh inning, and then Sargent hit a double to score Montenegro, giving the Golden Eagles a 5-0 advantage.

The Demons responded with its first run of the game by Kendall Foster, but the Golden Eagles retired Northwestern to win the game 5-1.

Game Two

Sean Smith | Printz Southern Miss’s pitchers continued to impress in the second game with a record-tying 19 strikeouts, but the Golden Eagles struggled in hitting and lost 7-1.

“Northwestern State, being the program they are, they had to try to get that momentum back,” Berry said. “It was our job to keep it with us and we didn’t do a good enough job to do that and didn’t do anything during the game to try to even get any momentum.”

The Demons started the second game with the advantage, as Marshall Skinner hit an RBI double in the first and Foster hit a solo home run in the second.

Chandler Best and the rest of the Golden Eagles struggled in the third inning, allowing three runs and four hits. Ben Ethridge replaced Best in the third, finally helping to stop the Demons’ attack.

Ethridge marked one of the few bright spots for

Southern Miss in Game Two, recording 12 strikeouts total.

“I thought Ethridge did an outstanding job coming in out of the bullpen and keeping the score where we needed him to try to get our offense back,” Berry said.

Southern Miss got its first hit in the fourth inning on a single from Slade Wilks, but the Golden Eagles remained scoreless until the bottom of the seventh, as Lynch scored on a passed ball. Southern Miss retired the inning with the bases loaded.

Gabe Shepard replaced Ethridge in the ninth inning as pitcher, but was shortly replaced by Justin Storm after allowing two hits and throwing a wild pitch.

Storm allowed a run, but the Golden Eagles prevented the Demons from scoring again with a double play.

The Golden Eagles did not get the comeback

it hoped for in the final inning, though, and the Demons retired Southern Miss to win.

“They did what they had to do, but I just feel like that our competitive side of us didn’t show Game Two like it needs to,” Berry said.

Game Three Working off one win and one loss, Southern Miss improved its hitting in its final game against Northwestern and ended the series with a 10-run mercy rule in the seventh inning.

Reed Trimble was a vital asset for the Golden Eagles in Game Three as he hit two three-run home runs and tied his career-high of six RBIs. “I was just so happy to be back here,” Trimble said about the series. “I really just wanted to win this one and help the team win.”

Montenegro also scored from Sargent’s RBI, putting Southern Miss up 2-0 by scoring on a fielder’s choice to begin the game.

Southern Miss seemed to have learned from Game Two, as it passed its hit total from the second game in two innings. Trimble hit his first home run, boosting the Golden Eagles to a 5-0 lead.

“We had that sense of urgency,” Berry said about Game Three’s hitting accuracy.

Drew Boyd held the Demons scoreless throughout the game and broke his career-high for strikeouts in the third. Boyd finished with nine strikeouts total, with only two hits allowed in five innings pitched before Matthew Adams replaced him on the mound.

“It was nice to finally be out there and compete,” Boyd said. He noted that the fastball worked as his main pitch against the Demons.

McGillis scored on a sacrifice fly from Johnson in the third. Trimble then added his second home run, giving the Golden Eagles a 9-0 lead.

The Demons stopped Southern Miss from scoring in the fourth, but the Golden Eagles ended the game in the seventh inning. Garrity walked to first with loaded bases, sending Johnson home to win 10-0.

Southern Miss will play home in a three-game series versus the University of Connecticut starting Feb. 26.