11 01 2012

VOLUME 102, ISSUE 29

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NOVEMBER 1, 2012

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tributions came from individuals who have been vocally opposed to large student housing developments near neighborhoods. At least six of Derrick’s 14 donors have clear ties to the opposition of multi-family housing projects.

Among Derrick’s top contributors was Jaimy Breihan, a resident who voiced concerns about the Sessom Creek development in a city council meeting last winter. The development would have brought 420 apartment units to the area across the street from the newly constructed North Campus Housing Complex.

Breihan frequently posts on the Protect San Marcos website, a group that describes itself as “dedicated to

By Hollie O’Connor The University Star Controversy over student housing developments has been a driving issue in this year’s city council elections and it shows in recent campaign finance reports.

Incumbents Ryan Thomason and Shane Scott have embraced donations from realtors and developers, while challengers Melissa Derrick and Greg Frank have received significant donations from those opposed to large student housing developments next to neighborhoods.

About a third of Place 5 write-in candidate Melissa Derrick’s $3,680 in con-

preserving the unique family neighborhoods and natural beauty of San Marcos.” Breihan has given $790 to Derrick’s campaign.

Another top donor is Nancy Moore, who donated $450 and was outspoken about her stance against the development at a Planning and Zoning meeting.

“Several of my donors were highly involved in the Sessom Creek controversy,” Derrick said. “For the last year, a lot of us have been speaking out at city council and the Planning and Zoning Commission. They know I know what’s best for San Marcos.”

READ FINANCE, PAGE 2

Ryan Thomason

Melissa Derrick

Shane Scott

Lisa Prewitt–$400

Ellen Waller–$400

Carol Frank–$500

San Marcos Neighborhood PAC–$1,000

SMA BOR–$500

Robert McDonald–$500

SMPFFA–$1,000

Nancy Moore–$450

Top donors for city council candidates

James & Susan Bragg–$500

A former Texas State and University of Texas physics professor will be running under the libertarian ticket for the District 5 seat on the State Board of Education.

Mark Loewe said he has attempted to get proposals approved by the Texas Legislature to improve education throughout the years. Knowledge in the areas of physics, chemistry, mathematics and engineering is what separates him from the opponents.

In the 2010 election, Loewe received 6.97 percent of the vote against Republican incumbent Ken Mercer and Democratic opponent Rebecca Bell-Metereau.

Loewe will face off against Mercer and Bell-Metereau again this year, as well as independent candidate Irene Meyer Scharf. Loewe said he has spent roughly $50 on his campaign.

According to his website, Loewe believes teachers and professors should not be responsible for curriculum standards and textbook requirements in public schools. He believes the Board of Education should write and adopt statewide curriculum standards.

Loewe said he devised a progressive version of school choice in the 1980s in order to attract billions of additional private dollars per year into K-12 education. This plan would maximize public educational funds.

“Progressive vouchers will empower millions of parents, especially poor parents and parents of children with special needs, to reject mediocre schools and choose safe schools that would better serve the needs, abilities and interests of their children,” Loewe said.

Joseph Sadler, physics senior and member of the Young Americans for Liberty, said progressive vouchers work better in some areas than others.

“Texas is a big state,” Sadler said. “It is more dependent on different localities.”

Loewe said another issue he brought to the state legislature is the availability of low cost textbooks for students and the ability to permanently keep those books for the future.

“That adds value to the book as a fa-

Housing issue divides campaign funds

Jaimy Breihan–$790

By Natalie Berko News Reporter

HOUSE MONEY

Randall & Kathy Morris–$200

Former professor runs for office

Greater Austin HBA–$250

GO NE ONLI NOW

Texas Association of Realtors PAC–$500

THURSDAY

Greg Frank

READ MARK LOEWE, PAGE 2

Online media leaders stress new technology, broad skill sets

By Caitlin Clark News Editor

Shea Wendlandt, Staff Photographer

Evan Smith, CEO and editor of the Texas Tribune, speaks Oct. 31 at the LBJ Student Center during Mass Communication Week.

Media companies cannot resist the necessary evolution of the model if they want to be successful, according to the brains behind a growing online news site.

The Texas Tribune is a non-partisan, nonprofit media organization that promotes coverage of issues like public policy, politics and government. Evan Smith, CEO and editorin-chief, and Rodney Gibbs, chief innovation officer, spoke to students Wednesday as part of Mass Communication Week. Smith and Gibbs discussed the importance of journalists and news media evolving with technology.

Nov. 3 is the third anniversary of the Tribune’s launch. Smith said the Tribune’s mission is to produce dynamic, aggressive journalism about public policy and politics that is completely non-partisan. He said the discussion of those issues is the only way to reach solutions in a properly functioning democracy.

“When everybody in the for-profit press was saying, ‘We’ve stopped writing about this

stuff because nobody cares,’ we knew better,” Smith said. “We knew they were exactly right, but they had it backwards. Nobody cares because they’ve stopped writing about it.”

Smith said while newspapers have to make money and satisfy shareholders, the Tribune asks for support from individuals, foundations and corporations. The Tribune will have raised $15 million by the end of 2012—$6 million more than anticipated. Smith said this was accomplished with a model that was untested in the worst economy since the Great Depression.

Emily Lyons , mass communications graduate student, asked if the non-profit model for reporting will be popular nationwide.

Smith said the base of wealth and number of billionaires in Texas are not present in other states. Accordingly, the Tribune’s model may not be replicated easily.

Smith said the most successful media companies are now using technology to create relationships with audiences, build their brand and present information in new ways.

“Any media company that is not self-de-

READ TRIBUNE, PAGE 2

Texas State courses to participate in e-book pilot program

By Adrian Omar Ramirez News Reporter Students taking part in a new pilot program will have a lighter load to carry around campus this spring.

A software platform called Courseload will be introduced to seven classes next semester.

Students enrolled in the selected courses will access online textbooks and notes, or eTexts, for a fee of $25 per class. The eTexts will come with a number of features including the ability to highlight, share notes and make study guides.

Debbie Thorne, associate vice president for Academic Affairs, said assessments and surveys will be taken by both faculty and staff after the pilot program ends. The surveys will show how effective the eTexts were and if Courseload should be used in different classes.

Courses using the platform during the pilot program are Editing the Professional Publication, two sections of Specializations in Technical Communication, two criminology classes, Sociology of Sport and Leisure and Business Statistics.

Thorne said Courseload was chosen over

several other platforms for its ability to open texts on any device or computer with Internet access. Students can also download portable documents for offline viewing.

Thorne said studies show eTexts are 50-60 percent cheaper than new textbooks.

“There are discussions in Texas and across the United States regarding the cost of college, and one part of those costs is textbooks,” Thorne said. “Textbooks are pretty expensive, and if you start adding that together over the course of a college career, it’s thousands of dollars. One of the solutions is electronic textbooks.”

Nick LaLone, lecturer in the Department of Sociology and systems support specialist, said he was “staggered” during a meeting where he was shown textbook statistics. The statistics said only 40 percent of students buy textbooks for their classes.

“If 40 percent of a consumer base is buying a product, that 60 percent is a loss, and textbook prices are going to keep going up,” LaLone said. “If the cost of your books is $25 per class, versus $100 to $200 per class, it’s a big deal.”

READ E-BOOKS, PAGE 2

2 | Thursday November 1, 2012 | The University Star

NEWS

FINANCE

Check out more at UniversityStar.com

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

The San Marcos Neighborhood Political Action Committee, committed to stopping the rezoning of single-family neighborhoods to multi-family housing, donated $250 to Derrick’s campaign and $1,000 to Greg Frank, making the PAC Frank’s top donor.

Greg Frank, Place 6 challenger, lists at least six donors who have been vocally opposed to zoning changes out of 22 total. He took in about a quarter of his $6,842 in donations from that group.

Lisa Prewitt, active in Protect San Marcos and a vocal opponent of rezoning single-family neighborhoods, donated $400 to Frank’s campaign. The contribution made Prewitt his third top donor after Carol Frank with $500.

Place 5 incumbent Ryan Thomason brought in a total of $1,680 with about

TRIBUNE

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

fined as a technology company is headed for the graveyard,” Smith said.

Gibbs said the Tribune is “a technology company that has to deal with the news .”

The Tribune is trying to find news ways to use technology to engage people wherever they are and predict the future of this form of journalism, he said.

Gibbs said the Tribune takes what might be “hard to understand, mind-numbing data” and presents it in a way that is comprehensible to the readers. The Tribune’s Public Schools Explorer, for example, combines records from all of Texas’ districts and public educational institutions into one easy-to-navigate database, he said.

Smith said data journalism means displaying information in a non-traditional, non-narrative fashion.

E-BOOKS

$1,400 of that coming from developers or realtors. At least eight of Thomason’s 12 campaign donors are connected to development.

His top donors are the Texas Association of Realtors PAC, which gave him $500, and the Home Builders Association of Greater Austin, which donated $250.

Thomason said as a real estate broker, it makes sense his personal and professional relationships with people in that field led them to donate to the campaign.

Thomason said involvement in real estate does not necessarily correlate with the way he has voted in the past, nor is it indicative of the way he would vote in the future.

Thomason voted for the Sessom Creek development, but against two other recent controversial developments—The Retreat and Hillside Ranch II.

“It’s not just data for data’s sake,” Smith said. “It tells you something. It points you to more traditional narrative stories.”

The news media evolves with technology, and students need to adapt to the change, Smith said. He said today’s mass communications students are needed more than ever because data journalism is second nature to them.

Students must now have a set of what Smith described as Swiss Army knife-type skills, not just one area of expertise. He said the best job candidates are the ones who have a diversity of skills.

“Nobody gets within 100 feet of our door with the traditional ‘I want to be a writer’ attitude,” Smith said. “Build a time machine. Go back to Esquire of 1962. That’s where you’re going to get a job.”

“Most of the development community that I’m close to agrees that, just because you’re in real estate or construction, you’re not for everything,” Thomason said. “You understand that there needs to be a balance.

You try to find a mix of everything.”

Derrick said she believes Thomason’s donors show his disregard for the concerns of San Marcos residents.

“I think my record speaks for itself. I am for and funded by the people, and he is for and funded by developers,” Derrick said.

Shane Scott, Place 6 incumbent, received $3,950 in campaign donations, about 40 percent of which came from realtors or developers. At least five of Shane Scott’s 12 donors are involved in development.

Scott, also drew donations from the San Marcos Professional Firefighter’s Associa-

MARK LOEWE

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

Photo courtesy of Mark Loewe

Mark Loewe, former Texas State physics professor, is running for the District 5 seat on the State Board of Education.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

Tahir Ekin, assistant professor in the McCoy College of Business, will be using Courseload in his Business Statistics class next semester. He said Courseload’s ability to incorporate textbook material on top of class notes will help him emphasize important points for students. Its immediacy is also a major selling point, Ekin said.

“We can ensure (students) have material from day one, so that’s a big plus,” Ekin said.

“Generally in the first few weeks we have trouble ensuring everyone has the textbook, and it eats up class time.”

LaLone said he plans on using Courseload for his Sociology of Sports and Leisure class. LaLone’s job as a systems support specialist is to raise the technological literacy in his department.

“The way we understand and access information is changing, and we need to start changing with it,” LaLone said.

LaLone said the availability of the eTexts on wireless electronic devices would provide students with easy access to study materials and lighten their loads of things to bring to class.

LaLone said Courseload will allow professors to view what students are reading and what reaches them more easily, which is a good way of getting feedback.

“It’s really exciting because you can customize your course and know your students are receiving the information you’re giving them,” LaLone said. “The ease of delivery and the cost are the things that are most exciting for me.”

tion. With $1,000 donated, the firefighter association was his top contributor. The Homebuilders Association of Greater Austin was Scott’s next-highest donor, giving $250 to his campaign.

Scott voted against the Sessom Creek development, but in favor of The Retreat.

He said lack of developers among Frank’s donors and significant presence of those opposed to multi-family developments near neighborhoods indicates he is a “puppet” of that special interest group.

“We can have growth and still maintain the charm of our city,” Scott said. “I imagine people want to support somebody who is not influenced by special interest groups and has a range of individuals (contributing).”

Frank did not return multiple calls for comment.

miliar and reliable reference for the future so (students) can easily refer to that material in the future if they have forgotten something,” Loewe said.

Matthew Petre, District 7 libertarian candidate, said Loewe is a “nice gentleman” who, in a previous election, gave Petre guidance on the race.

“A lot of the ideas that I bring up when I do talk to people about the State Board of Education are coming directly from Mr. Loewe’s mind rather than my own,” Petre said. “I agree with him almost one hundred percent on all of the general issues.”

Petre said it is important to have a

libertarian on the State Board of Education because liberty-minded thinkers are generally open-minded thinkers. He said the state needs to have education curriculum based on fact and sound science rather than religious, political or other beliefs outside the realm of reason.

Petre said he hopes people vote without the belief the political system is based upon two parties.

“We are much more than a two-party system and people need to realize they have choices out there and not just the same old status quo,” Petre said.

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OPINIONS

For more viewpoints or letters to the editor, e-mail staropinions@txstate.edu

Scott deserves students’ vote in Place 6 elections

T

he University Star is endorsing Place 6 incumbent Shane Scott for a second term on the San Marcos City Council.

Scott has consistently been on the side of students, which is reflected in his votes on city council issues. Scott often holds what could be considered popular opinions among students, and it is commendable that he does not waver on his decisions.

Scott voted in favor of The Retreat, a student housing development that was highly disputed among San Marcos residents. Scott defended his decision at two debates this month, saying the construction of The Retreat was the “right decision at the right time,” and described the apartment complex as “managed chaos.”

The hassle of commuting to campus is a common complaint among students. Parking is scarce, and the buses are often full during the busier times of the day. Scott said at an Oct. 22 debate that he wants to put students closer to campus so they can walk to class instead of driving or taking the buses.

Whether residents like it or not, Texas State is growing, and so is the student body. Building more apartment complexes closer to campus would help alleviate traffic problems throughout town if students were able to walk to class. It would also keep students out of single-family neighborhoods, which is a common complaint among residents.

Scott was opposed to the San Marcos City Council’s ordinance banning the public consumption and display of alcohol in city parks. Drinking is an activity synonymous with the San Marcos River and is a popular activity among many students and the city’s tourism and economy will take a turn for the worse once the ban goes into effect.

Scott was outvoted, but it is still reassuring to know he was not in favor of a ban that will have such a negative impact on the city.

While it is good to see a Texas State alumnus eager to take on a leadership role in the city, Greg Frank is not the right choice for Place 6. One would think that as an alumnus Frank would support the issues that would improve the quality of life of students. However, it seems that Frank is more focused on earning the votes of San Marcos residents who are concerned with keeping students out of single-family neighborhoods.

Frank has said he wants to provide a voice for residents in neighborhoods, which is admirable. However, Frank believes the construction of The Retreat “injected” students into neighborhoods in a detrimental way and is concerned about people selling their houses and leaving as a result.

Conversely, Scott will actively work to meet the needs of students and embrace their role in the community, especially as students comprise a large portion of the city’s population. Scott is the best candidate to fill the Place 6 city council seat.

The Main Point is the opinion of the newspaper’s editorial board.

Columns are the opinions of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the full staff, Texas State University-San Marcos Student Media, the School of Journalism and Mass Communication or Texas State University-San Marcos.

Kara Ramer, Star Illustrator

New commissioners court policy fair to all constituent religions

By Molly Block Opinions Columnist

T

he members of the Hays County Commissioners Court were correct in embracing an inclusive prayer policy that highlights the variety of religions practiced in the area.

Before the Oct. 16 policy change, only Christian prayers were said during Hays County Commissioners Court meetings.

According to an Oct. 18 University Star article, Americans United for the Separation of Church and State sent a letter to the court in April about the issue after receiving a complaint from a resident. The letter stated that during a period of 13 meetings, strictly Christian prayers were

given 75 percent of the time.

A second letter was sent in June threatening legal action if the organization did not receive an answer. The new commissioners court policy states that an invocation can only be said if all faiths are given equal consideration.

Although Christianity is a growing and prevalent religion in Hays County, it is important that members of the court show respect for all religions, regardless of their own personal beliefs. By only saying the Christian prayer during the opening invocation, individuals who might not hold the same religious beliefs are being left out.

This is a serious concern that needs to be fixed.

According to information compiled by the County Information Program and Texas Association of Counties, the estimated population of Hays County in 2011 was 164,050. With the population becoming so large, the religious makeup in the area is diverse.

According to statistics from city-data. com, 2 percent of the community adheres to the Muslim faith, 2.3 percent follow the

Mormon church, 1 percent are Presbyterians and another .2 percent believe in the Bahá’í faith. Together, there are more than 20 different practicing religions in Hays County.

The establishment clause in the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution prohibits the federal government from getting involved in religion. Although this means that church must be separate from state, it does not completely separate religion from the individuals who work in the public sector. Although citizens are allowed to inwardly carry their personal religious beliefs into public functions, a government entity must take care to treat all religious views equally.

According to a Sept. 26 University Star article, Judge Bert Cobb said the court as a whole would like to keep prayer in the court sessions. According to the Oct. 18 University Star article, Alex Luchenitser, associate legal director for American United for Separation of Church and State, said his group is not advocating for an absence of prayer altogether, but for a push of nonsectarian prayer. Luchenitser

does bring up a good point when he mentions that if a majority of ministers who lead prayers at the meetings are Christian, it would violate the establishment clause.

It is a move in the right direction for the court to allow a volunteer chaplain to organize the invocation and direct religious leaders from around the community to give prayers. It is vital the court truly makes sure a wide variety of representatives from religions in the area are brought in to lead the prayers. Additionally, the leaders will be allowed to use terminology essential to each of their religions.

Through visits with local religious entities, volunteer chaplains could choose religious leaders based on their status within those institutions.

By ensuring that no religious view is favored over another and allowing different leaders from around the community to give the invocation, Hays County residents can expect change and equality in future commissioners court meetings.

—Molly Block is a mass communication junior.

Businesses near campus can capitalize on students’ late-night tendencies

By Savannah Wingo Assistant Opinions Editor

S

an Marcos businesses near campus must consider extending operation hours to better accommodate the latenight college crowd.

Most college students tend to stay up late. According to a study released by the Journal of Adolescent Health, 20 percent of students pull all-nighters at least once a month, and 35 percent stay up until 3 a.m. on a weekly basis. Late night treks to convenient stores and fast food restaurants are iconic aspects of the college

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experience, and Texas State students are not exempt from these trips.

Despite these statistics, many of the stores near campus have relatively early closing times. This trend is indicative through a string of popular shops along North LBJ Drive. For example, Dan’s Dollar Bookstore has a closing time of 6:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday.

Paper Bear, a popular store that carries a wide variety of gifts and trinkets, closes at 6 p.m. Both stores are within walking distance of campus and just a few minutes away from the more than 34,000 students who attend Texas State.

It would not be advisable to suggest these stores stay open until three in the morning, but it would be a smart move for business owners to implement later evening closing times. Students who regularly stay up until early in the morning finishing class assignments or working a job may not be able shop during regular

Editor In Chief................................................Beth Brown, stareditor@txstate.edu Managing Editor............................Lee Moran, starmanagingeditor@txstate.edu Letters..................................................................................starletters@txstate.edu News Editor...................................................Caitlin Clark, starnews@txstate.edu Trends Editor............................Hollie O’Connor, starentertainment@txstate.edu Opinions Editor..........................................Liza Winkler, staropinion@txstate.edu Photo Editor.......................................Austin Humphreys, starphoto@txstate.edu Sports Editor..........................................Cameron Irvine, starsports@txstate.edu Copy Desk Chief......................Thomas Glasebrook, starcopychief@txstate.edu Web Editor............................................Karyn Kittlitz, starwebeditor@txstate.edu

store hours. Extended hours could help businesses draw in busy students who are looking to buy used books or trinkets.

In these economic times, it is understandable shopkeepers may want to close early rather than pay employees extra wages. However, some stores may actually lose income by closing their doors early.

If closing times were extended by even two extra hours, students who are accustomed to a late-night schedule may be more enticed to stop by and make a few purchases.

Night-owl students would enjoy having the option to shop a little later. There are not many stores near campus that currently stay open past 7 p.m., excluding bars and restaurants. Many students looking to shop or participate in non-bar related fun would benefit from store closing times being extended to 8 p.m. at least.

Nocturnal shoppers currently relegated to the San Marcos Premium Outlets and

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Tanger Outlets could find other locations to spend their money, which would boost the local economy.

Furthermore, many students may be more likely to shop at local stores after hours, especially when the dust has settled from day-to-day construction projects across campus and the downtown area. Students most likely do not want to go shopping covered in dust or while listening to jackhammer mood music blaring outside of stores.

A win-win situation for both students and shopkeepers would result from an extension to store operational hours. Shops affected adversely by construction around campus could attract a new demographic of shoppers with the extension, and nightowls could finally have a shopping haven tailored to their needs.

—Savannah Wingo is a mass communication sophomore.

The University Star is the student newspaper of Texas State University-San Marcos and is published every other Wednesday in the summer semesters. It is distributed on campus and throughout San Marcos at 8 a.m. on publication days with a distribution of 6,000.

Printing and distribution is by the New Braunfels Herald-Zeitung.

Copyright Thursday, November 1, 2012. All copy, photographs and graphics appearing in The University Star are the exclusive property of The University Star and may not be reproduced without the expressed written consent of the editor in chief.

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TRENDS

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Holiday season brings fall recipes to San Marcos restaurants

Sonja Burton, Staff Photographer

The Coffee Pot is currently offering a pumpkin dirty chai in celebration of fall.

By Randi Berkovsky Trends Reporter San Marcos restaurants are gearing up for the holidays with recipes and flavors to help students and residents fall in love with fall all over again.

The Coffee Pot Bistro, Root Cellar Cafe and Cool Mint Cafe have dishes planned to bring fall flavors to patrons’ taste buds and spice up their lives for the coming seasons.

The Coffee Pot Bistro, located at 129 East Hopkins St. on The Square, is a restaurant by day and study spot/music ven-

ue by night. The Coffee Pot has specials in the fall spectrum for all the chai and pumpkin lovers. The drink strays away from anything else on the bistro’s menu.

“We are definitely pushing the pumpkin dirty chai right now,” said Coffee Pot barista Chris Bernal. “It is a chai latte with espresso and pumpkin spice flavoring. It is awesome. Also, since the cold front blew in, hot chocolates have been (selling like) crazy around here. We also have the gingerbread syrups year-round.

They are not seasonal like other coffee shops.”

For fall dessert lovers, Root Cellar

Students present play about love, injuries

By Paige Lambert Trends Reporter A small collection of acting students will bring a story about love, tragedy and serious afflictions to the PSH Foundation Studio Theatre this November.

“Gruesome Playground Injuries” chronicles the relationship of Kayleen and Doug, whose interactions always seem to be tagged with a serious injury.

Each new injury builds off the last. As they get older, Kayleen goes into a coma, while Doug ends up electrocuting himself.

Director Julian Verner said while the set and script circle around the characters’ injuries, the physical events aren’t the focus of the story.

“This play seems like a red herring in a way,” Verner said. “They grow up, fall in and out of love together. It is more about the milestones, love and friendship shared

by Kayleen and Doug.”

The play presents a dark sense of humor, Verner said. The characters go five to 10 years without any contact, only to see each other in a hospital or life-threatening event.

“The part that destroys me on the inside is that Doug has this inherent hope that he and Kayleen will be together, but they never solidify their feelings,” said Evan Davies, theatre sophomore who plays Doug. “It really makes me realize all the stupid things we let get in the way of our relationships with people.”

The play will be performed in the studio theatre due to scheduling with the professor-directed plays on the main stage.

Gianna Yanelli, who plays Kayleen, said the smaller stage would deepen the feel of the play.

“The studio is the perfect space for this story,” said Yanelli, musical theatre junior. “It has three

sides we can use, and the audience is right there with us. You can’t get that intense, intimate feeling from a big production.”

To make the story even more personal, the cast is made of only two actors, who are constantly rolling from one scene to the next.

“This is one of the hardest things I’ve ever done,” Yanelli said.

“You’re 50 percent of the show, so it takes a lot of energy and focus to stay in character.”

The actors have to create their own transitions along with staying in character for the whole duration of the play. After each scene they have to change costume, makeup and other details while on stage.

To aid in the transition process, Verner added two doctors to the character list. The understudies don white coats and scrubs, each working on one part of an injury while setting up the next scene.

“I went home and researched all about different injuries and how to treat them. In one scene Doug gets a firecracker shot into his eye—crazy how that’s actually happened,” said Marisa Jones, theatre junior.

“It has become more of a character than a transition. You really get a sense that those people are being treated.”

The show isn’t just an intense story and challenge for the students performing it. It is an intimate look at how life can be when relationships are neglected.

“It’s not a sad story, just a depiction of human nature,” Davies said.

“I want people to make a connection with this story and think ‘Oh, this is how my life can be,’ if they only see family or friends when something bad happens.”

“Gruesome Playground Injuries” will run Nov. 1-3 at 7:30 p.m. and Nov. 4 at 2 p.m. Tickets are available at the box office, $7 for students and $10 for the public.

Sonja Burton, Staff Photographer

The Root Cellar on The Square is serving its pumpkin cheesecake this season.

Cafe and brewery located on 215 North LBJ has different options from its everyday specials for main dishes. These desserts are baked fresh in house every day.

“Right now we are featuring our pumpkin cheesecake and bourbon pecan,” said executive chef Megan Turbeville. “These are two very seasonal flavors. Plus, one dollar from every dessert sold goes to our Desserts for a Difference program, which donates that dollar to the Hays County Food Bank. It’s a nice way to help our neighbors in need while eating something tasty.”

The Cool Mint Cafe serves seasonal

dishes. Located at 415 Burleson St. across from Sanctuary Lofts, the restaurant is straying away the “pumpkin everything” trend and doing something a little different.

“One of the things we are looking forward to is the spiced duck breast as a special entrée. It will have a lot of Asian flavors that crosses over really well with the holiday flavors,” said sous chef Ryan Hernandez. “This dish will include things like cinnamon and nutmeg. We love the seasonal sweet potato as well.

As far as drinks go, we do like to bring in seasonal beers and wines.”

Haunted maze scares students

Carlos Valdez, Assistant Photo Editor

Daniel Zavala, radiation therapy freshman, is frightened by Shallan Johnson, theatre freshman, Oct. 31 at the haunted maze.

By Mark A. Alvarez Trends Reporter Halloween got even spookier Wednesday night when SACA held its third Haunted Maze at George’s.

The Maze opened at 8 p.m. to celebrate what is often called the most frightening night of the year.

SACA member Philip Ramon was in charge of the event.

“I would really like to really freak some people out,” Ramon said. “The way that I can make it different is by adding my own flare of what I feel is a little scary, kooky or cryptic.”

SACA had been recruiting volunteers for the event for the past two months from pools of different organizations, students and close friends, encouraging others to get involved.

Katie Smith, SACA’s vice president of marketing, advertised the event, coming up with ways to get the word out and draw attention to George’s before Halloween night.

“We want to go beyond just telling them the time and place,” Smith said. “We want them to want to figure out what’s going on. It’s like a puzzle. They will want to solve it.”

SACA decorated pumpkins with paint displaying the date and location of the event, hoping to spur the curiosity of the students by letting them know something is happening at George’s.

It worked.

Students lined up at George’s Wednesday night.

Melinda Hoang, exploratory junior, and Lisa Vu, nursing freshman, both went through the maze.

They shared their thoughts right before entering.

“I’m curious and scared at the same time,” Vu said. “I’m freaking out.”

Hoang remained reserved.

“I’m not scared at all,” she said. “If anything, I’m more curious.”

Later, Vu exited in a fit of laughter.

“It was scary,” she claimed. “Not scary-movie scary, but startling.”

Hoang commented on the setup, calling it “creative for its size”.

The maze consisted of tarps used to create different types of rooms based on various fears.

There was a clown in a room filled with balloons and strobelights, while in other areas ghost girls popped out, and spiders hung low from the ceiling. Zombies growled at people as they passed, and screams could be heard ahead.

Myisha Bradham, Pride and Traditions Coordinator for SACA, served as the creative director for the maze. Bradham provided insight into the distorted world SACA tried to create. A threeyear SACA member, she has provided a “voice to the past,” suggesting ways to improve and enhance the experience of both newcomers and those who have visited George’s Haunted Maze in previous seasons.

Bradham smiled as she spoke of the past years.

“We have lots of screamers on this campus,” she said. “I know that.”

Bradham has described the maze as being heavily influenced by specific phobias and movies released during the year.

“The rooms naturally evolve out of what people are afraid of,” she said.

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6 | Thursday November 1, 2012 | The University Star

SPORTS

Check out more at UniversityStar.com

SOCCER

Texas State must defeat Idaho or go home in team’s first, final WAC Tournament

By Odus Evbagharu Sports Reporter The Texas State soccer team is entering Utah determined to capture a WAC championship and make the NCAA tournament in back-to-back seasons.

The Bobcats were able to clinch the overall No. 3 seed in the conference tournament this past Sunday with a 1-0 win over their Interstate 35 rival University of Texas at San Antonio. The shutout marked their second in three games and the fifth overall for the season. Coach Kat Conner and the teammates look to keep the energy going into tournament play.

“Ultimately, this was a postseason game because it was win or go home,” Conner said. “The players are going to be jazzed to have the momentum and start their run again of win or go home, and we want to keep it going.”

The Bobcats will play the University of Idaho, which gained the sixth seed by beating New Mexico State University 3-1 this past weekend. The Vandals are led by Chelsea Small, the WAC Preseason Offensive Player of the Year.

Small, a senior forward, scored Idaho’s lone goal in a meeting earlier this year against the Bobcats. She ended conference play by finishing in the top five in six categories, including shots, shots per game, points, points per game, goals and goals per game.

She ended the regular season tied for first with four game winning goals.

The Vandals as a team finished in the top five in major statistical categories such as

goals (23), assists (23) and points (67) accumulated this season. However, the team finished last in goals given up this year with its opponents scoring 45 times in 20 games played. Its opposition scored on average 2.19 times a game, which ranks 294 out of 321 Division 1 soccer teams and is last in conference. Bobcat junior goalkeeper Natalie Gardini knows, however, Idaho is a formidable foe.

“We (Texas State) are looking forward to everyone coming out and playing their best soccer,” Gardini said. “We want to put up a good result against them knowing that we beat them earlier this year, and they want payback.”

Texas State opened up conference play by taking on the Vandals Sept. 28 at the Bobcat Soccer Complex. The team won its WAC opener 2-1 on late goals scored by freshman forward Lynsey Curry and sophomore midfielder Tori Hale. Idaho had a 1-0 lead with nine minutes left to play in the match.

However, Hale struck with the equalizer in the 81st minute, and Curry scored the gamewinner in the 84th to seal the match. Senior defender Emma Staley knows Idaho is seeking some retribution after losing the match late.

“I definitely think they want some revenge,” Staley said. “But I also definitely think that we have grown as a team. They were our first WAC team, and so I think we have gotten our stuff together. We’ll be ready. Both teams want to win, and I think it’s going to be a good game.”

The Bobcats finished the WAC season with a 4-4-0 record, which was good enough

to earn a berth in the conference tournament. Last season Texas State clinched a spot in the NCAA tournament with a 14-6-1 overall and posting an 8-1 record in conference play. The bid came with a win in the Southland Conference tournament championship game against Stephen F. Austin University that was down to the wire. Conner knows it will be different this year challenging a new conference.

“Each team in the WAC is very good, very athletic, very organized, and most of the time that’s what we’ve seen,” Conner said.

“It’s hard to break these teams down. Overall, it makes us a better program and a better team. It gives us a chance to play for the NCAA tournament, and to get there, you have to beat these tough teams.”

This will be Texas State’s first and last appearance in the WAC tournament. The athletic programs of Texas State will be moving in 2013 to the Sun Belt conference. The Bobcats look to make a lasting impression this weekend, and if they beat Idaho, Friday they will take on 2nd seed University of Denver (14-1-4, 6-0-2).

The Pioneers beat the Bobcats 1-0 earlier this season in a closely contested match in Denver. The team knows how important beating Idaho is in the first round in order to avenge that loss.

“We definitely want to win against Idaho and move on,” Staley said. “We want to win the WAC and have a chance to advance in the NCAA tournament. We know if we lose, we go home, and that’ll be disappointing.”

Twitter: @odus_Outputs

Thursday Nov. 1 #4 Louisiana Tech

#5 Seattle U

3:30 p.m.

3:30 p.m.

Utah State defense

The host school, Utah State University, has not allowed more than one goal in any game this season. Of its 20 games, eight have gone to overtime and one of the school’s only two losses was to the 12th ranked team in the nation at the time, Brigham Young University. The Aggies have won six straight heading into the tournament.

Denver’s Kristen Hamilton

Hamilton leads the WAC by four with 13 goals scored. Next best in the WAC is University of Denver’s Kaitlin Bast with nine goals. With 31, Hamilton leads the WAC in points. With 25, Bast is second.

Bast has scored in four straight games and the duo has at least one goal in their last five games.

Texas State team offense

The Bobcats have had six different players score goals in the last six games.

Only freshman forward Lynsey Curry has scored multiple goals in October.

Junior midfielder Kelsie Townsend scored her first goal of the season to lift the Bobcats into the tournament with a double overtime win against UTSA. The Roadrunners were eliminated with the loss to Texas State.

Louisiana Tech

Sunday Nov. 4 WAC Championship Game 2:00 p.m.

#3 Texas State #2 Denver

The Lady Techsters are going into the tournament with three straight losses. Louisiana Tech University has not beaten a team that will be in the WAC Tournament this weekend since Oct. 12, when it defeated Texas State 2-0 in San Marcos. Texas State would not face Louisiana Tech unless the two teams faced off in the championship game.

Idaho defense

The Vandals give up an average of 2.25 goals per game in the WAC, last in the conference. Utah State gives up the fewest goals per contest at 0.53 goals per game.

Winner of Texas State vs. Idaho

1:00 p.m.

#6 Idaho

What’s hot.

What’s not.

Friday Nov. 2 #1 Utah State Winner of Louisiana Tech vs. Seattle

WAC Soccer Tournament

1:00 p.m.

Idaho’s road record

Sophomore midfielder Tori Hale

16

Points for Tori Hale, who leads the Bobcats. Hale has five goals and six assists in her first season at Texas State. Hale has improved from her 2011 numbers, when she started 12 games and produced one goal and two assists as a freshman at TCU.

80:51

Goals scored by Hines in her four years as a Bobcat. Last year in the postseason, Hines shot the game-winning goal against Sam Houston State. It vaulted the Bobcats into the Southland Tournament Final against SFA and eventually into the NCAA Tournament.

19

SOCCER

Time gone by before Hale got the Bobcats on the board against Idaho in their only other matchup this season—her fourth goal of the year. That goal ignited the nine-minute comeback that gave the Bobcats a 2-1 win over the Vandals in their first game in WAC play.

Senior forward Serena Hines

16

BY THE NUMBERS

Hines is one of nine players on the roster to stay healthy and active all season, playing in all 19 games in 2012. Hines made the All-Southland Conference Tournament team in 2011.

Idaho has the worst record on the road, 1-7-1, of any team in the tournament. Including neutral site games, the Vandals are 1-9-1, which goes for worst in the conference out of all schools.

Idaho was 1-6-1 on the road in the 2011 season.

Freshman forward Lynsey Curry

8

Curry has four goals as a freshman for Texas State, and all of those have come in the last eight games. Curry scored the game winner against Idaho in their only meeting this season and out of 44 shots, 21 have been on target (47.7 percent).

120

Curry scored 120 goals in high school, 49 in her senior season. All of Curry’s goals this season have come in the first or last 10 minutes of contests.

Sports | The University Star | Thursday November 1, 2012 | 7

FOOTBALL

Utah State star players to test Texas State abilities

Star File Photo

Texas State football will travel to Logan, Utah to take on Utah State University. The Aggies have a record of 7-2.

By Jordan Brewer Sports Reporter The Bobcat football team will try to put their most recent loss to San Jose State University behind them as they travel to battle Utah State University.

“We played a good first half, played hard,” said Coach Dennis Franchione about last weekend’s game against San Jose State. “De-

fensively, we couldn’t get enough stops. Offensively, we could not reestablish field position and make enough happen.”

The Aggies (7-2, 3-0) are currently on a three-game winning streak and have won five of their last six with a lone loss coming to rival Brigham Young University. BYU defeated the Aggies 6-3 in front of a national television audience.

Sophomore quarterback Chuckie Keeton

leads Utah State’s offense. He was just named WAC Offensive Player of the Week for the third time this season. Keeton is already 10th on the school’s all-time list in total offense with 4,206 yards through two years of play.

Keeton has passed for 2,355 yards with a 67.5 completion percent. He has tossed 19 touchdowns with five interceptions. He has rushed for 358 yards with a 4.2 per carry average, while adding three touchdowns on the ground. His best game of the season came against the University of Nevada-Las Vegas when he passed for 404 yards with four touchdowns.

The Bobcats will face another running back near the top nationally in rushing. Kerwynn Williams leads the Aggies in rushing with 885 yards, carrying a 6.1 average. He ranks 23rd in rushing yards in the nation. He has contributed nine touchdowns on the season and averaged roughly 100 yards per contest. He is the team’s leading receiver with 493 yards on 33 receptions and has found the end zone three times.

Senior Matt Austin is the next man up at receiver totaling 425 yards on 31 catches.

The wide receiver has four touchdowns to his credit. Tight end Kellen Bartlett has added 31 catches, and wide out Chuck Jacobs has 376 receiving yards and five touchdowns.

The Aggies do most of their damage early, outscoring its opponents 89-6 in the first quarter of games this season.

Junior wide receiver Andy Erickson would like to see the team’s first-half offense continue into the second.

“It helps us as players to know that we can move the ball,” said Andy Erickson about the first-half offensive successes. “I don’t know what happens in the second half. In my opinion we have a great short passing game. I think we have completed a lot of them, and we are good at running the ball sometimes.”

The Aggies have not allowed more than 27 points per game all season, which came in their victory against San Jose State. Its defense ranks among the nation’s top 20 in four categories: sacks per game (3.56), scoring (14.2), rushing (96.0), and total (319.4).

Utah State runs a 3-4 defense with its linebackers primarily making the plays. Inside linebacker Zach Vigil is among the team leaders in three categories: tackles with 71, 8.5 for a loss and has five sacks. Jake Doughty teams with him in the middle and has 65 tackles. Kyler Fackrell flanks them on one side and has 62 tackles.

The Aggies will need to slow down senior quarterback Shaun Rutherford and the Bobcat pistol offense, one of the ways the Spartans were able to come away with a victory against Texas State last Saturday.

“We had to slow (the speed option) down,” said San Jose State’s linebacker Keith Smith regarding Rutherford’s ability to run. “We knew they were a good team, and we had to stop their speed option. Instead, we ended up over-pursuing it, and once we stopped doing that, it worked out well for us.”

Kickoff at Romney Stadium is at 2 p.m.

Twitter: @jbrewer32

VOLLEYBALL

Bobcats clinch tournament spot, continue looking for more wins

By Jordan Cole Sports Reporter The Texas State volleyball team will hit the road for a two game trip versus Louisiana Tech University and the University of Texas-Arlington this weekend. The Bobcats, who have already clinched a spot in the WAC conference tournament, beat both teams earlier this season and are looking to improve their seeding.

“I think (it is most important) to build some momentum going into the conference tournament,” said Coach Karen Chisum. “I think it’s real important to get both of these wins on the road. It’d be nice to finish up as the fourth or fifth seed and not the seventh or eighth. We’ve got a lot of pride and our goal is to win each of the last five matches we play.”

First the team will travel to play the Louisiana Tech Lady Techsters at Thomas Assembly Center. The Bobcats currently lead the all-time series between the two teams 5-2 and swept Louisiana Tech 3-0 in their first meeting of the season. When the two teams met earlier this season, the Bobcats hit .294 as a unit. Junior outside hitter Amari Deardorff led the way with her 16-kill, .455 hitting percentage performance.

Senior setter Caleigh McCorquodale said despite the Lady Techsters’ low ranking in the WAC, she and her teammates will have to give it all they have to get the win.

“We have played really good games this season, and we have played really not very good games this season,

and so we come in approaching every game one at a time every week,” McCorquodale said. “LA Tech has been struggling a little bit in the WAC, but they have definitely taken some teams to five and played really well and even against us they played really well.”

Last week the Bobcats started off the weekend with their most efficient game of the season versus Seattle University, which translated to a four set victory. Without that efficiency, they were unable to score a victory in Saturday’s game versus the University of Idaho, hitting .088 for the match. That loss stopped their fourgame winning streak.

The last time the Bobcats battled UTA, Chisum said the team played one of its best sets of the seasons. McCorquodale earned a double-double with a team-high 25 assists to go along with 12 digs versus UTA. “UTA is always a good team for us to play because they were in the Southland too. That competitiveness between us will never go away no matter what conference we’re in because we played them for so many years,” McCorquodale said. “This will be the first time playing them in their new gym and they beat New Mexico in four. We’re just trying to come in and play (our) best.”

As McCorquodale and the team finish out the season, she and the other seniors are looking to lead the Bobcats to a strong finish.

“With there only being five games left, me, Danielle (Sanchou) and Patti (Bradshaw) are trying to really lead this team and have them play, if not for them-

Star File Photo

Texas State volleyball will take on Louisiana Tech Nov. 1 and University of Texas - Arlington Nov. 3 on the road. The Bobcats have a 4-6 away record. selves, then for each other and end this season well,” McCorquodale said.

The first of the team’s last five regular season games will take place 7 p.m. on Thursday against LA Tech.

Texas State will arrive at the College Park Center for a 2 p.m. start time Saturday in Arlington.

Twitter: @TXStatesman

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LA: Did you have any specific expectations in terms of recruitment?

ZA: With recruitment this (offseason), we were able to fill in gaps in areas of need and in terms of offense and defense.

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8 | Thursday November 1, 2012 | The University Star | Advertisement