The Sunflower v.123 i.18

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 25, 2018 • VOL. 123, ISS. 19

THESUNFLOWER.COM

WICHITA STATE UNIVERSITY’S INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER SINCE 1896.

SGA: More than 100 student veterans did not receive GI Bill benefits after WSU failed to process paperwork

BY JENNA FARHAT

Student senators passed a resolution stating concerns that more than a hundred student veterans at Wichita State have not received payments for GI Bill education benefits due to understaffing at the Student Veteran Center. The resolution states that this has caused “severe financial crisis/hardship for a considerable portion” of students.

The resolution, presented to the Student Senate on Wednesday, states that the university has failed to process certification for many student veterans, which kept them from receiving their GI Bill education benefits and left them struggling to pay “day-to-day living expenses”

Former WSU assistant volleyball coach charged with child sex crimes

BY MATTHEW KELLY

Former Wichita State volleyball assistant coach Jeffery Sanders has been charged with two counts of sexual exploitation of a child.

Sanders, who last coached at WSU in 2013, before opening opening Wichita Volleyball Academy, was previously arrested in March. The SANDERS Sedgwick County district attorney’s office told KAKE the two counts are related to Sanders’s March arrest, in which the alleged victim was a 16-year-old.

Sanders was arrested Thursday and heard his charges Monday. He is scheduled for a court hearing next month.

Sanders was fired by WSU in 2013 after he was arrested for driving under the influence. At the time, WSU deemed his conduct “detrimental to the athletic program.”

Advance ballot applications due Oct. 30 in Kansas

BY KYLIE CAMERON

The advanced voting ballot application deadline is looming for out-of-town residents in the state of Kansas. The deadline to apply for advance ballot is Oct. 30.

If applying by mail, the application must be postmarked by that date as well.

The deadline to turn in advance ballots is the day of the general election, Nov. 6.

Advance ballots must be postmarked by that day and received no later than three days following the election. Advance ballots can also be hand-delivered to any county election office or polling location in the county. The ballot must be received that day before the close of polls at 7 p.m.

Advance ballots are a way for out-of-town residents to vote if they can’t go home the day of the election.

The ballot can be filled out at home as well and voters can research their candidates while voting.

and forced them to take out student loans and accumulate debt.

“We have students that are veterans that are not getting the money that they earned,” said Jeremy Warren, a student veteran and co-author of the resolution.

“This is not something that has been made better . . . This is an ongoing problem right now,” he said. “(Paperwork) is going to sit here for over 60 days while you are unable to pay your bills.”

Warren said he knows a fellow veteran who has yet to have his GI Bill paperwork processed by the university. “He was not able to go and buy diapers for his child because of this university’s lack of action,” he said. “That is unacceptable.”

“THIS IS A TIME-SENSITIVE ISSUE . . . FOR THE PAST TWO YEARS WE (THE STUDENT VETERAN CENTER) HAVE BEEN UNDERSTAFFED.” ­—JEREMY WARREN, STUDENT VETERAN

The resolution cites a recommendation from the Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) that universities have a School Certifying Official for every 200 student veterans enrolled.

A School Certifying Official is someone who processes certification for student veterans so they can receive VA education benefits.

The Student Government

EASTON THOMPSON/THE SUNFLOWER

Business Senator Ciaban Peterson co-authored a resolution stating concerns that many student veterans have not had their paperwork processed by WSU and did not receive their GI Bill payments.

resolution states that WSU technically has four but operates with just one “dedicated and active” School Certifying Official.

WSU had 593 student veterans receiving VA benefits as of Oct. 8, according to the resolution.

The resolution includes numbers from the University of Kansas for

the sake of comparison. The resolution states that KU has 848 student veterans receiving benefits, and has four “dedicated and active” School Certifying Officials who work to process that paperwork.

SEE SGA PAGE 3

‘Oh, the thinks you can think!’

Seussical The Musical takes the stage

BY AUDREY KORTE

S

eussical The Musical is a vividly multicolored musical based on some beloved characters created by children’s book author Dr. Seuss. Most of the musical’s plot is based on “Horton Hears a Who!” with The Cat in the Hat acting like a ringmaster in this circus of a show.

This musical by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty includes characters familiar to Dr. Seuss fans.

When a red-and-white-striped top hat appears on stage, it is easily recognizable to readers of Dr. Seuss. Soon, a girl enters the stage. She’s drawn to the magic of that hat.

Suddenly The Cat in the Hat appears and begins singing about the power of imagination in “Oh, the Thinks You Can Think.”

More Dr. Seuss characters are introduced throughout the opener, including Horton the Elephant; Gertrude McFuzz, the bird with the one-feather tail; the Whos of Whoville, including the Mayor and his wife; General Genghis Khan Schmitz; Mayzie La Bird; the Sour Kangaroo and the Citizens of the Jungle of Nool.

The opening number comes to a close with Jojo and the Cat in the Hat using their active imaginations to transport everyone, including the audience, to the Jungle of Nool. And so the adventure begins.

The Cat in the Hat tells us the story of Horton, an elephant who discovers a speck of dust that contains the Whos, including Jojo, a Who child sent off to military school for “thinking too many thinks.”

Horton must protect the Whos from a dizzying variety of dangers. He must also safeguard an abandoned egg left in his care

by Mayzie LaBird. Though Horton faces hardships galore his friend Gertrude McFuzz never doubts him.

Gertrude is one of two lead female characters in the show. “She’s the love interest,” Xan Mattek said. “That’s who I play. She takes all these pills to make her tail grow,” doing everything she can to make Horton notice her.

SEE SEUSSICAL PAGE 3

EASTON THOMPSON/THE SUNFLOWER

Caleb Freeman sings in Seussical, the musical. You can see the musical on Oct. 25-28 in Wilner Auditorium.

INSIDE

LIFE IN FOCUS

TEDDY FEVER

FAMILY AFFAIR

Are birds government spy machines?

Dancer Courtney Wages talks Seussical.

The Shockers get antsy as the season nears and with no word from the NCAA.

Senior golfer plays alongside sister.

OPINION • PAGE 2

CULTURE • PAGE 3

SPORTS • PAGE 4

SPORTS • PAGE 4

BIRDS?

2 | THURSDAY, OCT. 25, 2018

OPINION

www.thesunflower.com

High flying propaganda invasion hits WSU campus

THE STAFF EDITORIAL

Editor in Chief Matthew Kelly

www.thesunflower.com

shocker

street speak

Digital Managing Editor Andrew Linnabary Visual Managing Editor Madeline Deabler

Are you going to vote?

News Editor Jenna Farhat Culture Editor John Darr Sports Editor Evan Pflugradt Photo Editor Selena Favela Sports Photo Editor Joseph Barringhaus

ADVERTISING

Advertising Manager Kylie Cameron

ADVISING

Faculty Adviser Amy DeVault

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Send letters to the editor to editor@thesunflower.com or submit at thesunflower.com. Please keep letters to 400 words or less. All letters are edited for clarity and length. Please include your name, WSU affiliation and a phone number for verification purposes.

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The Sunflower — both in print and online — will be a timely resource of information about the Wichita State University community. It will report on news, issues, activities, academics and athletics, in addition to offering a forum for discussion, reviews and commentary. It will also be an effective learnig experience for students, who will have the final authority over what is published.

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The Sunflower (published for use by WSU students, faculty and staff) is private property and unlawful removal or use of papers is prosecutable. One copy may be taken for free. Additional copies must be purchased for $1 each. The Sunflower is also partially funded by the Student Government Association at WSU. The opinions expressed in The Sunflower editorials, columns, guest columns, reviews, advertisements, letters and editorial cartoons are not necessarily those of the staff, publications board, student body or university. The Sunflower reserves the right to edit or reject any submission. We also reserve the right to edit or reject any advertisement.

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CORRECTIONS This space is reserved for corrections.

Spot an error? Call us at 316-978-6905.

MARSHALL SUNNER COLUMNIST

L

et’s be honest: birds are real. Or are they?

Recently, flyers have been springing up all over the Wichita State campus stating that “Birds aren’t real.”

These flyers are a part of the Birds Aren’t Real movement.

The movement is based around facts regarding the bird population decline over the years. The organization’s website refers to multiple different occasions where the government tested out different surveillance tactics, making devices that resembled our feathered friends in the sky. The people of the movement simply believe biological birds no longer exist.

According to the Birds Aren’t Real website, 99.5 percent of the general public still believe in real birds. This comes off as a shock to the members of the movement.

They believe it is their duty to remove the blindfolds from the eyes of the people and welcome them in the light of the truth. Well, what they believe is the truth.

This soaring revolution that the Bird Brigaders are forming makes the flat Earth and JFK conspiracies look like a child playing in the McDonald’s Play Place. The leaders of the movement want this to be the most highlighted conspiracy this world has ever seen.

“I will be voting. I lean democratic. It seems that Wichita is conservative, but we’ll have to see how it turns out.”

—CASEY PALMER, Biology, Senior

Members of the movement are part of the Bird Brigade, according to their website. The Bird Brigade has social media accounts in other states and even in Australia. However, the state of Kansas is not listed anywhere on the site. With flyers being put up around campus, this could mean the beginning of a statewide push of activism. This is most likely just the beginning of something new to follow along the prairie.

Yes, the government was a factor in the extinguishing of more than 12 billion birds between 1959 and 1971.

However, that is all that happened with those events, and there was no knowledge of government corruption involved in the mass genocide of these aeronautical creatures.

Richard Nixon may have created a fleet of surveillance devices that he called “birds,” back in 1978, but the overall purpose of the revolution has no significant correlation with actual substantial evidence. Therefore, the purpose of this movement is definitely raising awareness about the population decline of birds but is simply overexaggerated propaganda of government corruption.

Next time a bird flies by, you can decide what the truth is for yourself. If you look into the eyes of a bird and you see flashing red lights, then you might want to take caution. However, don’t be alarmed when things get a little “hawkward” because technically they did warn us.

Hippo Campus emerges on a new wave with latest release ‘Bambi’

“I vote with a mail-in ballot. I wanted to see if I can make a difference.”

—CHRISTAL BACH, Strategic Communication, Junior

“I probably will vote. I want to have a say in who leads us. I will be voting Republican.”

—LAUREN MCMINN, Biology, Freshman

ELLA DOMINGUEZ MUSIC CRITIC

After touring the country in what has no doubt been their largest and most successful tour yet, it’s no wonder the dreamers of Hippo Campus have outgrown their boyish persona in their new album, “Bambi.” Leaving the rosy tinted days behind, this project is a torn diary page set to a chill beat.

A somber opening far from the normal bubbles and booze that Hippo Campus songs carry, “Mistakes” is a glimpse into the new era that the group has waded into.

With vocals reminiscent to those of a church choir, this song instantly defines the aura of this album.

“Anxious” conveys the reality of living with an anxiety disorder and the complex thoughts that haunt basic human interactions.

Attempting to dismantle an anxious mindset is a frustrating uphill battle. This song captures the essence of trying to rationalize the irrational.

Despite its title, “Doubt” is perky, cutting the clouds with a sweet little love ballad. “Honestly” is more upbeat than most.

Lyrically, however, it still follows the melancholy undertones heard throughout the album.

“Passenger” is one last call to the one that has been lost. It neatly wraps this album up with

“I am voting, mainly, because I am into politics.

I care about the outcome of the upcoming election.”

— VICTORIA OQUENDO, Theatre, Freshman

COURTESY

a gift tag that says “Sorry, I’m going through something right now.” A passionate plea for what once was, this song in particular hits a level of emotional depth that is unbeknownst to the sunny rockstar singles of Hippo Campus’ first album, “Landmark.”

After all is done, I am left clinging to the final lyrics of this song, “If we ever became the things we lost, the things we left behind, I would wish for the past, when we were pure, suffering intertwined.”

It’s clear to see that Hippo Campus is coming of age.

Every song of this album blends together to tell one complete, winding story.

While the verses are packed with a new eclectic sound Hippo

Campus discovered on their travels, the choruses stay true to their lush Indie roots. One thing that struck me about this album is its stunning resemblance to some of Death Cab for Cutie’s earlier works, which is not at all something that I would expect from a band like Hippo Campus.

“Bambi” is a story about navigating the emotional debris of lost lovers and cranial chemistry.

This album is a catharsis for every 20-something struggling with feelings of anxiety, self-doubt and romantic regret. This album is not carefree, rather careful. It is perfectly suited for the cooler tones of October, as everyone is left wishing for one more day of Summer, sunburn and all.

“I can’t vote. I am an international student from Vietnam. I am not allowed to vote.”

—KHANN TRAN, Information Technology & Information Management Systems, Junior

Sunflower Editorial Briefs

The Sunflower editorial board offers their one-sentence takes Matthew Kelly: This should go without saying, but don’t dismember journalists.

Andrew Linnabary: I really like that the Red Sox named themselves after Curt Schilling’s bloody sock, even with all the controversy.

Madeline Deabler: We hate when only one side of our earbuds work, but we will willingly put only one earbud in and be perfectly fine.

Jenna Farhat: Everything is fine.

John Darr: Don’t publish your most exciting or humorous ideas on social media before trying to do something with them first.

Evan Pflugradt: Maybe I’m nostalgic, but Drake Bell has some good music on Spotify.

Selena Favela: College life should involve more time for naps.

Joseph Barringhaus: The parking spots on campus are so small even my bike can’t fit in one.

“I’m registered to vote and I plan on voting. It’s important to use our right to vote. Sometimes we take it for granted.”

—RHIANNON VIEYRA, Dance & Pre-physical Therapy, Junior

CULTURE

www.thesunflower.com

SEUSSICAL

FROM PAGE 1

EASTON THOMPSON/THE SUNFLOWER

Courtney Wages sings with cast members at Suessical, the musical.

Choreographer gives dimension to Seussical through dance

BY ANDREW LINNABARY

Courtney Wages is focused when she’s on stage dancing — almost like a laser, she said. She doesn’t get nervous. She gets passionate.

“When (the performance) is clean, it’s that laser beam,” Wages said.

Wages, a sophomore majoring in musical theater, is the assistant choreographer, dance captain and a member of the ensemble for the Dr. Seuss mashup musical “Seussical.”

Wages has been focused her whole life, whether on school, sports, or dancing.

Dancing became a part of Wages’s life in the 7th grade.

Before that, she spent her time on sports.

“I always liked sports, but in 7th grade I told my mom and dad I wanted to dance,” Wages said.

“I went to my first ballet class in soccer shorts and a soccer jersey with no shoes on.”

“My teacher had to explain to me that in ballet class you wear pink tights and a black leotard.”

Wages quickly started channeling the energy she spent on sports into dancing and eventually fell in love with it.

“It’s passion and energy, and no matter what show it is, you’re telling a story and you are

making people leave their seats at a different perspective than when they came in.”

In “Seussical,” Wages plays a fish, a Who, a military cadet, and more.

It’s a show with “a lot of imagination,” she said. And the show’s message is universal — “Turn your can'ts into cans and your dreams into plans,” Wages said.

Auditions began in August, and rehearsals began in September.

Those rehearsals meant a lot of late nights for Wages and her fellow cast members.

“We all have went to our 8 a.m. [classes] tired because we were at rehearsal late,” Wages said. “You can’t go to sleep because you just want to do it again.”

“Seussical” performances begin Thursday.

Before the shows, Wages won’t be exercising or doing vocal warm ups. She’ll be bonding with her castmates.

“Whatever you do before will show on stage,” Wages said. “So it’s important to make those relationships and have fun in the dressing room. That chemistry will show in the show.”

She and 20 other cast members are ready to tell the “Seussical” story, Wages said.

“We’ve been so excited and we’re so close.”

“During all this time Jojo is going on her own adventures as well, so the Cat in the Hat is bouncing between Gertrude and Jojo,” said Courtney Wages, assistant choreographer, dance captain, and ensemble member.

In addition to Mattek, the cast is led by Austin Ragusin, Caleb Freeman, Abby Jolicoeur, Karen Blackmon, Kalene Blanton, Jackson Dorris, Haylee Couey, and Megan Ahern.

The Production Team is led

by Co-Director Amy Baker Schwiethale. Music Direction is led by Phil Taylor. Stage Management is led by Katherine Donaghue and Erin Mittman.

The show designs are by the Wichita State School of Performing Arts students and faculty.

“The lighting and the sound is all done by students. The props and the set are kind of a mixture.

We borrowed a lot of stuff from Musical Theatre Wichita. And all the stage management and running crew backstage and the pit are all run by students,” Mattek said.

WSU School of Performing Arts alumnus, Daxton Bloomquist, is the guest director and choreographer.

Austin Ragusin who plays The Cat in the Hat said that Bloomquist gave him leeway

SGA

FROM PAGE 1 Warren said that all but one of WSU’s School Certifying Officials have other primary responsibilities. Only one of the officials is “actively working,” to process certification for student veterans, according to the resolution.

“This is a time-sensitive issue,” Warren said. “For the past two years we (The Student Veteran Center) have been understaffed.”

The resolution states that in February 2017, student veterans met with the President’s Executive Team, a group of university administrators that work out of President John Bardo’s office, to implore them to hire more School Certifying

THURSDAY, OCT. 25, 2018

|3

with his character. “I’m sort of trying new stuff every time I go on stage. Daxton would be like, ‘Okay I want you to end up here but how you get there is up to you,’ but a lot of our ensemble spent a lot of time working, cleaning very specific set dances and then I’m just sort of making up my own way through their predetermined movements.”

Wages said that she worked closely with Bloomquist to bring the show to life.

She said having someone fresh off of Broadway has given her and the other students valuable insight into what it means to commit to musical theatre professionally.

“Daxton has done Broadway, he’s toured, he’s done a cruiseline. He’s always wanted to direct and be on this side of musicals.

He wanted to try everything. If anything he wanted everything really honest and energetic.”

Schwiethale, musical theatre program director and associate professor of musical theatre said, “The special thing with Seussical is that my student that graduated ten years ago has gone on to be in the Book of Mormon on Broadway and on the National Tour is back as our guest director and choreographer.”

“This is my eleventh year at WSU so this is my first time having two generations of students working on one project with me and it is very special

and rewarding as an educator,” Schwiethale said.

Showtimes for Seussical are 7:30 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday.

Contact the WSU Box Office to reserve your tickets at 316-978-3233 or wichita.edu/ fineartsboxoffice.

“It’s basically a bunch of Dr. Seuss books strung together by the Cat in the Hat,” Wages said. “He’s the narrator of the whole show.”

“It’s fun,” said Ragusin, who plays the Cat in the Hat. “Groovy is a good word for it.”

“The show opens and the Cat in the Hat appears, Ragusin said, “Through the first song all the characters that the audience will see throughout the show get introduced and he basically encourages the audience to think and to use their imagination.”

“And then it goes to the Jungle of Nool,” Mattek said.

“Everybody becomes their character because in the opening, nobody is a Who or a jungle character but once we get to the jungle Horton is introduced and he finds the speck of dust and he finds the clover that the speck of dust goes onto and that’s kind of like the inciting incident.”

The quick-moving story is almost entirely musical and the whole show is done in rhyme.

“There’s always a song going on,” Wages said. “There’s no dead space.”

Officials “to more closely reflect the VA recommended ratio” of one official for every 200 student veterans “and to ensure accountability during high traffic periods or emergency leave.”

The resolution asks that the university ensure there is more than one School Certifying Official “working through the backlog of certifications” that haven’t been processed and continue accumulating.

In addition to Warren, the bill was co-authored by Business Senator Ciaben Peterson and Veterans’ Senator Michael Bearth. Peterson and Bearth also serve on the Student Veteran Organization.

The resolution was sponsored by the WSU Student Veterans Organization, KU’s Student Veterans of America

chapter, George Mason University’s Mason Vetern Patriots, Returning Adult Senator Eugene Potts, Liberal Arts & Sciences Senator Jaiden Soupene, and student veteran Kegan Fisher.

Additionally, the Student Senate unanimously passed a resolution to stand in solidarity with children separated from their families at the U.S. border with Mexico. The resolution was authored by Peterson and Graduate Senator Carolyn Fugit and sponsored by the WSU Hispanic American Leadership Organization, WSU Student Veterans Organization, Student Government Diversity Task Force, Out of State Senator Kathlynn Short, Fine Arts Senator Haley Ensz, Soupene, and Bearth.

Former WSU campus ministry director elected first female Episcopal bishop of Kansas

BY AUDREY KORTE

Rev. Cathleen Bascom has broken ground as a woman in the Episcopal church many times through the last three decades.

She was the BASCOM first woman to go through the entire lengthy and taxing process of ordination to the priesthood in Kansas in the 1980s. Now, Bascom will be consecrated as the first-ever woman bishop of the Diocese of Kansas.

Bascom, from the Episcopal Diocese of Iowa, was in charge of campus ministries at Wichita State and Kansas State from 1993-2001.

She was elected Friday as the tenth bishop to lead the Episcopal Diocese of Kansas — making her the first woman to fill the role since the formation of the diocese in 1859.

Women have been allowed ordination to the priesthood in the Episcopal Church since 1976, but the first woman was not elected as bishop until 1988. When Bascom was ordained in the Diocese of Kansas, women’s ordination was relatively new and those early days could be lonely and difficult for female clergy.

Bascom’s election also marks the first time in history that a diocesan bishop was elected from a group of all women candidates.

“I’m very moved to have received the vote of confidence,” Bascom said in a phone interview from her Iowa office.

Originally from Denver, Bascom has family connections in Kansas and spent years here as a student and young priest in charge of campus ministries. WSU did not really have a campus ministry program at the time. Bascom and WSU alumnus, Rev. Gar Demo, worked to change that in the early 1990s.

“There had been a ministry there but it had been a long time.

I want to say it had been maybe eight or 10 years when there hadn’t been one there,” Bascom said.

“So at K-State and WSU, we were

planting a new ministry.

Demo of Overland Park worked with Bascom while he was an undergraduate at WSU from 1989 to 1994.

“At the time, campus ministry was very small,” Demo said. “[Bascom] was my supervisor. I was the peer minister and she was the priest that was assigned. It was the first attempt to restart campus ministry. She would come down about once a month to be with us.”

Demo said those early days were tough. He spent a lot of time reaching out to local churches, looking for a viable space for the new student group to meet.

“It was kind of hard,” Demo said.

“I was like, ‘can I have my group meet there?’ and they would say ‘well, we don’t really have any room,’ so we were kind of out on our own.

Cathy (Bascom) was instrumental in just giving us support and kind of getting something going.”

After Bascom stopped overseeing it, WSU’s Episcopal program once again went on hiatus.

“After she left, it kind of died away and then they re-started it under Deacon John Roper,” Demo said. “And they’ve got a pretty active group down there now.”

Bascom said campus ministries are vibrant in Kansas.

“Kansas has a very strong and supported interest in young adults and the faith of colleges,” Bascom said. “That intellectual engagement is very important in the Diocese of Kansas and that’s one thing that draws me to it.”

“There’s more happening on campuses that’s similar to what was happening at Wichita State when I was there. We have more peer ministers on more campuses and more connections with local parishes.”

Many of Bascom’s religious roots were planted in Kansas.

In addition to her young days at Grace Cathedral, she had a faith experience that was nurtured at KU’s Canterbury House where she lived as a student. She said this was instrumental in helping her explore a call to ordination.

“I went through the process in Kansas for the priesthood as a really

young person,” Bascom said. “There was a woman priest who had come into Kansas, but I was the first woman to go through the whole process of ordination here in about 1984 when I graduated.”

After seminary, Bascom returned to Kansas to help “replant campus ministry.”

She said she’s looking forward to being back in Kansas and wants to spend plenty of time in the field working with different parishes and programs across the state.

Though she’ll have an office in Topeka, don’t expect to find her behind a desk for long.

“A big part of my platform and what I really believe in is that I plan to spend at least two or three weeks at every convocation in the four different sections of the diocese if possible every year, to be on the ground with people,” Bascom said.

“It will take some shuffling of the way business as usual is.

“I feel a pretty strong call too that we’re in Topeka because the state government is there. I think we need to pray for what’s going on in our state and be a presence and a witness at times.”

Bascom also said the environment, especially prairieland preservation, is important to her.

She hopes to work with locals on programs that help prevent environmental destruction and preserve the grasslands.

Demo said Bascom’s return to Kansas will be good for campus ministry. He said she will “bring more energy to what we’re already doing.”

Demo was present at the bishop’s election Friday, which took place at Grace Cathedral in Topeka.

“I think there was surprise and excitement at how quickly it came together,” Demo said. “It was pretty clear on the first ballot that she was in the lead.”

Bascom will soon begin wrapping up her work in Iowa as an assistant professor of religion and philosophy at Waldorf University in Forest City, Iowa, so she can prepare for her ordination and consecration ceremony in Topeka on March 2, 2019. The service will take place at Grace Cathedral, Topeka.

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SPORTS

4 | THURSDAY, OCT. 25, 2018

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How Teddy Allen could change WSU’s team dynamic

BY MARSHALL SUNNER

JOSEPH BARRINGHAUS/THE SUNFLOWER

Wichita State’s Teddy Allen poses during media day on Oct. 16.

Why Teddy Allen might soon be declared NCAA eligible

T

BY EVAN PFLUGRADT

he waiting game continues for those keeping an eye on West Virginia transfer Teddy Allen.

The Shockers’ season is two weeks out and Wichita State still doesn’t know if Allen will be eligible for play this season. WSU submitted a hardship waiver request for Allen approximately three weeks ago. The waiver asks the NCAA for Allen, who transferred from West Virginia after one season, to forgo sitting out the mandated academic year for transfers.

“I’m prepared either way,” Allen said. “I’ll be ready to play this season, or keep working if not.”

If the NCAA grants the waiver, Allen would likely start right away

for Gregg Marshall’s depleted team. WSU returns 11 percent of their minutes from a season ago, and senior Markis McDuffie is the only player with more than one season of Division I experience.

Monday, Braxton Key was granted eligibility for a similar appeal. Key transferred from Alabama to Virginia and requested a hardship appeal on behalf of an older close family member who was in struggling health and otherwise would not be able to see him play.

The NCAA has a history of being closed-minded with these requests. This summer, they’ve been more lenient granting waivers.

Allen lost his mother to cancer the spring he signed with

West Virginia. Part of Allen’s case is that Wichita is a five-hour drive to his support system in Boys Town, Nebraska. Proximity is a factor in the case of granting a hardship waiver.

WSU must demonstrate that Allen’s transfer was due to “documented mitigating circumstances … that directly impacts the health, safety or well-being of the student-athlete.”

The NCAA states that standard processing time is typically three weeks, but notes that cases could require more time. It’s possible a decision could be made on Allen’s case ahead of WSU’s exhibition against Catawaba on Tuesday, but there’s no deadline for the NCAA to issue a final decision on Allen’s case.

“They’ll get that decision back to us when they get back to us,” WSU Head Coach Gregg Marshall said. “Hopefully, they’ll see fit to have him play, and if not, he’ll sit out.”

Marshall has praised Allen for his “relentless work ethic” in practices.

Allen could be the offensive spark the team needs. He had a game-high 12 points in the team’s public scrimmage.

Allen is a 6-foot-5, 220-lb forward with a 6-foot-8 wingspan.

He averaged 31.6 points per game his senior season of high school, which was the 12th-best in the nation. Allen averaged seven points per game as a freshman at West Virginia; he appeared in 35 games for the Mountaineers.

Teddy Allen’s eligibility changes the dynamic of this Wichita State basketball team.

Allen displayed what he can do on the floor during the team’s open scrimmage on Oct. 7, scoring 12 points and snagging a teamhigh seven rebounds as well.

The West Virginia transfer proved he could score plenty for the Mountaineers last season.

He had a career-high 24 points against Coppin State, 22 points against Kansas State, an Elite Eight team, 20 against Oklahoma, and 16 against Texas Christian.

For the season, the man known as “Teddy Buckets,” averaged 7 points and 2.7 rebounds in just under 12 minutes per contest.

Allen will help this young Shockers team out tremendously should the NCAA declare him eligible this season. WSU is awaiting a hardship appeal filed on Allen’s behalf that would allow him to forgo the mandated academic year for transfers.

Allen has experience at the Big 12 level, and NCAA Tournament experience — something only two other players on this roster have.

Should Allen be deemed eligible, he would likely start right away.

If his numbers from a year ago aren’t convincing, take a look back at his stats from high school. Allen averaged more than 30 points per game, which was one of the top averages in the nation.

“I’m prepared,” Allen said. “I’ve been working, and I’m ready. We can turn a lot of heads this year.”

Allen has been bothered some by the appeal process, which is now in the third week. The NCAA has no deadline to make a decision, and WSU’s season starts in less than two weeks.

“I got a lot of questions asking when and how,” Allen said. “I didn’t know anything, so that was the hardest part.”

FAMILY FUN DAY JOSEPH BARRINGHAUS/THE SUNFLOWER

Wichita State’s Gavrilla Arya lines up for a shot on the course during practice on Oct. 11.

Golf is a family tradition

BY SEAN MARTY

Gavrilla Arya feels at home in more ways than one, despite being 9,000 miles from where she grew up.

Arya, a senior, from Indonesia, learned golf from her grandfather and father.

“I chose golf because my grandpa and dad were very active in the sport,” Arya said.

Her grandfather first learned the sport while in the army and played golf with his military friends.

He then passed the game down to Arya’s dad, who became profound with the sport, climbing to the No. 1 amateur in Indonesia.

Gavrilla’s sister, Chiara, a freshman, is also on the golf team at Wichita State.

“It is mostly because of [Gavrilla] that I play golf,” Chiara said. “Our grandpa started it, then our dad, so I saw her start it and thought I might try it.”

Gavrilla chose WSU for its “friendly” atmosphere and the selection of golf courses in the Wichita-area.

Since coming to Wichita Gavrilla has continually improved her game, WSU head coach Tom McCurdy said.

“I think she understands her game much better now than she did then,” McCurdy said.

Gavrilla’s start to her senior season includes a top-five finish at the Johnie Imes Invitational.

“I would credit my sister,” Gavrilla said. “She is [my] mental support.”

Chiara, in return, credits Gavrilla with her choice in school.

“One of the reasons I came to Wichita was to play with her,” Chiara said. “For the last three years I was training by myself, so I missed the competitive feel with her — so it’s nice to have that same environment right now.”

Gavrilla is one of two seniors on the team. She’s taken a leadership role among her teammates, and she’s taken pride in the role.

“Being a leader on the team is not a hard transition for me because all of us are very close and we respect each other,” she said.

“She’s really an excellent model on how she practices with every shot, she’s always ready to go,” McCurdy said. “There is never a day she doesn’t bring it.”

Gavrilla, who is studying biology and pre-dental, plans to pursue medical school upon graduation this spring.

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 27 1-3 P.M.

Free and open to the public Bring the whole family for an afternoon of gallery exploration, games, and hands-on art making activities inspired by the artists, ideas, and materials featured in our fall exhibitions.

Millie the Millipede turns 10 this weekend!

Stop by to celebrate her birthday!

Tom Otterness, Millipede, 2008, Bronze.