Issue 26

the

Journal We s t e r n O r e g o n U n i v e r s i t y

APRIL 27, 2011

WWW.WESTERNOREGONJOURNAL.COM

VOL. 11, ISSUE 26

LACROSSE

MAKES PNCLL FINAL FOUR FOR 4TH STRAIGHT YEAR

Wolves beat SOU to earn the top spot in the PNCLL and will compete for their 4th consecutive conference title in May SEE COVER STORY ON PAGE 12

Photo by | Emily Laughlin

FOUR DAY FOURCAST thursday

51 / 40 friday

56 / 40

Non-profit organization focuses on about taking classes with ‘dead wood’ educators providing health care to disadvantaged Konner Knudsen | Freelancer Lindsay Pirelli | Freelancer

saturday

57 / 38 64 / 47

find us online

/ WOUJOURNAL @WOUJOURNAL westernoregonjournal . com

INSIDE

The good, the bad and the Oregonian Joanna Gates spends 5 weeks ugly of professor tenure While providing professors with job security, tenure aboard Mercy Ships track causes some students to be concerned

>>

Oregonian Joanna Gates recently returned from Africa after she was given the unique opportunity to travel with Mercy Ships.

Mercy Ships, founded in 1978, is an organization of volunteers who travel across the world in a retired ocean liner to help those in need of health care and relief aid in third world countries.

They have provided surgery, dental care, medical supplies, development training sessions, clothing and building materials to 90 port districts worldwide.

2 NEWS

Gates was on the African Mercy last year (2010) from February through July and this year for five weeks from the end of February through April 9.

She volunteered for Mercy Ships as a pediatric physical therapist and last year she was the coordinator of Rehabilitation Services acting both as a physical therapist and as coordinator for services.

MERCY SHIPS SEE PAGE 6

4 CAMPUS LIFE

Tenure is a contract that, along with higher pay, provides job security that non-tenured professors do not have. In other words, it acts as a safety net for professors.

However, tenure not only affects professors, but the student populace as well.

With the economy as it is, many people criticize universities for spending money on tenure for their professors. Some believe the less tenured positions a university has, the more economic the teaching staff is. These critics think

6 CULTURE

it needs to be easier to remove a professor who has received bad results in the classroom.

Sophomore Shawn

a bad professor just because he or she is tenured.

That’s why I believe that professors — and, indeed, all teachers —should have

“It protects the good and it protects the bad. The difficulty is it makes it harder to remove the bad.”

-Jessica Landreth Senior Western Student

Mentzer voiced his thoughts about tenure, stating, “To me, there is no bigger educational blunder than having to keep around

8 OPINION

the future of their careers

TENURE SEE PAGE 2

10 SPORTS

2 NEWS

April 27, 2011

TENURE FROM PAGE 1

based upon their merit.”

Mentzer’s statement is an opinion shared by a variety of students. Some refer to these professors as “dead wood,” a term indicating that these individuals have been around long enough to obtain tenure, but have lost their passion or drive to teach, causing them to be perceived as “bad” professors.

“It protects the good and it protects the bad,” senior Jessica Landreth stated of the duality of tenure. “The difficulty is it makes it harder to remove the bad.”

With both its positives and negatives, tenure is a two-sided coin.

On the other side of the coin, Dr. Shaun Huston, a tenured professor, shared his thoughts on the matter, stating, “It gives a professor the freedom to pursue research and interest without getting fired because of a disagreement with those in charge. It allows for a pursuit of knowledge and pursuit of expression.

Without it, basic research

and creativity could be stamped out.”

For many, a professor who has passion and creativity for the subject they are teaching is essential to the enjoyment and success of a class.

Tenure track at Western takes about seven years to complete, which does speak to the commitment it takes

tenure position. I can just be fired at any time, and there are no guarantees on my contract; it is quarter by quarter. The problem with not giving professors tenure is that there is no job security and adjuncts are historically underpaid.”

President John Minahan also addressed the topic of tenure,

“Tenure allows us to find new

truths and teach them. This outweighs all the abuses.”

- John Minahan PRESIDENT OF WESTERN OREGON

to become a tenured professor.

Moreover, a current trend within the university system is the hiring of adjunct professors. Due to budget cuts, more adjunct professors are being hired for lower pay to replace tenured professors.

One adjunct professor, who asked to remain anonymous, addressed the difficulty of being an adjunct professor, stating, “My job can never turn into a permanent

voicing his belief that it works well.

“Tenure allows us to find new truths and teach them,” he stated. “This outweighs all the abuses.”

To clarify, Minahan stated that he does not believe that many abuses of this system happen, but that the positives outweigh the negatives, should they occur.

When asked how Western is handling tenure during this economy when most

colleges are cutting back on such job security measures, Minahan explained that just recently the university had performed a search to fill 17 tenure track positions,with all except four being filled. Overall, Minahan indicated that he wants to do all he can to maintain the small class size and quality of education here at Western.

“Western is adding more tenure track positions instead of cutting positions,” Minahan stated. “This is not a time to weaken tenure.”

The topic of tenure has been a hot button issue in these difficult financial and economical times.

Making both sides of issues argue to necessity of either keeping tenure or eliminating it completely.

Students, faculty, and administration have all made their voices and opinions heard on the good and the bad of tenure.

With Western adding more tenure track position is it obvious that Western has no intention of cutting the tenure program any where in the near future.

TENURE

The Good and the Bad Pros: Tenure gives professors liberties and freedom to teach possible controversial topics without fear of reprocussions or termination.

Freedom to publish works outside the university due to the job security tenure entails, since adminitration can not terminate due to ideological differences.

Professors with teneure positions are secure in a diffucult or hard economical conditions.

Better pay and benefits are given to professors on the tenure track.

Professors can not be repalced by newer faculty members due to the latter’s lower pay scale, even if the insitution is going threw budget problems or cuts.

Cons: Allows for ‘dead wood’ professors to continue teaching, harming students’ education at the respective institution.

Tenure may give professors such a sense of security they may begin to slack off or not give 100 percent in their classes and to their students.

Tenure professors typically receive higher pay, making universities cut non-tenured professors and staff to continue to afford tenured professors.

Get Involved in Western’s campus plays host high schoolers for a day Student Media to Approximately 500 Oregon high school students

Editors-in-Chief for the “ Western Oregon Journal”

& the “Northwest Passage,”

as well as a new Station Manager for KWOU are being sought for the 2011-2012 academic year.

Applications, reference forms and job descriptions can be picked up at the Student Media Office or the Information Desk in Werner.

Interested? Contact Student Media Adviser Shelby Case at 503.838.9697 or by e-mail at cases@ wou.edu.

Applicants must be Western students in good academic and judicial standing with a minimum GPA of 2.25.

The DEADLINE for applications and reference forms is FRIDAY, MAY 6, at 5 P.M.

www.westernoregonjournal.com

competed in Speech and Debate Tournament Katrina Pettigrew | Freelancer

Thursday, April 21, to Saturday, April 23, Western played host to the Oregon School Activities Association (OSAA) State Speech and Debate Tournament. Roughly 500 high school students from 66 schools all over Oregon flocked here to compete in this three day tournament.

According to Jane Berry-Eddings, Speech Championship director, the tournament has been held at Western off and on for many decades, but has been here for the last five years.

Planning such a tournament takes months, many e-mails and countless phone calls between OSAA officials and Western staff. Roughly two months are spent on District Tournaments, which decide who is eligible to attend State, drafting topics for events, electing the tournament committee, matching the rounds and finalizing topics. “[Western] does some excellent preliminary planning to help make the impact of 500 high

school students a positive experience for the students and the high schools. The extended hours for food service, the set up for Wi-Fi access, the extra custodial work, etc. all make the tournament run smoothly,” Berry-Eddings said. “[Nan and Kathy] spend lots of time getting room lists and coordinating details with various departments, and professors to try to make sure that the rooms are available to both competitors and classes. It is a task that is critical to the process.”

The task taken on by Nan Lehto, Western Facilities Scheduling coordinator and Kathleen Bolen, Werner University Center Facilities Scheduling & Program Manager, was an enormous one. For Werner alone, they had to create diagrams for every event in each room, knowing that some rooms might have to change twice in a day.

In addition to Werner, other buildings that were utilized for the tournament

included the Humanities and Social Sciences (HSS) building, the Instructional Technology Center (ITC), the Education building (ED), Todd Hall (TODD), Hamersly Library (HL), and even Ackerman (ACK).

“We work with other departments on campus, keeping them in the loop on all aspects that may concern them, [such as] food service, approval of classroom use, unlocking and locking classrooms, parking, coordinating HVAC, monitoring wireless internet access, etc.,” Bolen said. “We work very closely with the building managers across campus to schedule rooms that aren’t being used for classes. It’s actually like putting the pieces of a puzzle together; creating the right fit so very few, if any classes have to move from their assigned rooms.”

Berry-Eddings feels, it is difficult to find 2021 classrooms available

STATE DEBATE SEE PAGE 3

NEWS 3

April 27, 2011

Taking time to play in the dirt

Green Team and Green Wolf promote Earth Day, creating activities throughout the week to bring the campus community together Barbara Ketchum | Freelancer

Friday, April 22, marked the 41st annual Earth Day celebration. This is a day devoted to raising public awareness of the damage being caused to the Earth’s environment as well as taking action toward improving it. Viewed as a major social movement, Western students in the past week have been contributing their efforts toward educating fellow students and adding more “life” to the campus.

Various Earth Day activities took place throughout the week at Western. These events were brought to the campus by the Green Team, along with much support from Green Wolf, a club focused on sustainability.

A clothing swap was conducted in the Oregon room, promoting sustainable wear on Monday, April 18.

On Wednesday, April 20, the Green Team organized a movie night featuring the film “Earth Days.” Originally airing on PBS, “Earth Days” follows the paths of several different specialists and professionals who all share the common focus of environmental protection and awareness.

The film gives a historical glimpse at the beginnings of environmental issues being identified in American society and the progression of public awareness, including a history of Earth Day and how it came to be.

Green Team members sophomore Maija KellnerRode and junior Chenise Crockett were excited to kick off the Earth Day activities and hoped the movie would encourage other students to be just as excited to observe and take part in it as well.

“We want students to

STATE DEBATE FROM PAGE 2

all day for two weekdays.

The OSAA officials have been very pleased at how successfully Western has scheduled the rooms for the tournament.

Besides getting all of the rooms ready for the tournament, there is also the matter of getting extra helpers to run the other aspects of the tournament.

“The OSAA Speech Tournament has been coming here for many years, so several

of the tenured staff I work with have an understanding of what it takes to make the event successful,” Bolen said.

With all of the coordination that takes place to organize such a big event, it is important that it goes off without one too many hitches and it did just that.

“I would say the tournament is a success every year. There is a great deal of collaboration that goes on between OSAA coordinators and the staff at Western in order to ensure this happens,” Bolen said.

OSAA Tournament Winners After Dinner Speaking 1. Danner Marshall, Canby 2. Samuel Petshow, Canby 3. Andrew Sechrist, Willamette (Eugene) Dual Interpretation 1. Gavin Knox and Ethan Elliott, Silverton 2. Aden Krueger and Truman Mallon, Silverton 3. Keifer Crownover and Ethan Prow, North Valley (Grants Pass) Photos by | Emily Laughlin

Chenise Crockett (front left), senior Stephen Calkin (front right), alumna Natalie Sullivan (back left) and junior Nick Martin (back right) plant flowers. care beyond Earth Day,” said Kellner-Rode. “We want students to look at the big picture, not just look at today.”

Following the film, students in attendance grouped together to discuss their thoughts and reactions on the film, as well as what they learned from it.

“I did not realize how long Earth Day has been around. I was also unaware of the goal of Earth Day, so the documentary helped me understand it,” said senior Katrina Pixley, an attendee of the film night.

On the actual day of Earth Day, Green Team put together a planting session. This was an activity previously organized by ASWOU in past years, but is now a tradition Green Team is proud to plan and continue.

Throughout the afternoon, students planted flowers and trees in several locations around campus.

Given that it was a sunny

day, it was an ideal time to pull together and get work done outside.

Senior Maria Hommes, a member of Green Wolf, was very enthusiastic about the activity.

“It’s gorgeous outside.

There’s nothing I would rather do today than play in the dirt,” said Hommes. “I think it’s fantastic that we can actually do something for a change, while having fun.”

It was also an opportunity to grasp attention from people passing by and possibly spark their interest in getting involved.

“It’s different to see another student doing something,” said Crockett.

“It makes it seem more worth their time to get involved.

Plus, this brings more color to the campus.”

Both the Green Team and Green Wolf are seeking student involvement for activities planned throughout the year. Their focus is to improve campus life by tackling environmental

issues through the power of a good group dynamic and creating a friendly atmosphere for all students.

They welcome anyone with a shared interest in the environment and living sustainably, and also those who are willing to put their best foot forward to raise awareness throughout Western and spread knowledge of global issues that are arising.

Natalie Sullivan, a recent Western graduate who attended the planting event, was very pleased with the turn out of the activity and the effort Green Team put in to organizing it.

“I really support what the Green Team does,” she said. “There are a bunch of people here getting to know each other simply by working together.”

For more information on getting involved with Green Team activities, students can contact the group at wougreenteam@ gmail.com.

Expository Speaking 1. Ashley Wong, Westview (Portland) 2. Dante Haruna, Bandon 3. Jasmin Kim, Silverton Extemporaneous Speaking 1. Sofia Ellis-Curry, Glencoe (Hillsboro) 2. Alex Bean, McMinnville 3. Troy Phillips, Roseburg Impromptu Speaking 1. Sam Director, Beaverton 2. Savan Patel, Beaverton 3. Jonathan Wu, Southridge (Beaverton) Literary Interpretation for Beginning English Language Learners (LIBELL) 1. Hnin Lwin, Cleveland (Portland) 2. Ghassan Eiwaz, Clackamas 3. Gui Hao Chen, Clackamas Memorized Humorous Interpretation 1. Gavin Knox, Silverton 2. Dante Toppo, Ashland 3. Robyn Helwig, Sprague (Salem) Memorized Serious Interpretation 1. Quinby Barrows, Butte Falls 2. Austin Ewing, McMinnville 3. Kayla Wade, North Valley (Grants Pass) Oratory Speaking 1. Troy Phillips, Roseburg 2. Kaitlynn d’Auvergne, Rex Putnam (Milwaukie) 3. Jamie Lee, Tigard Poetry Reading 1. Alex Elizárraga, South Albany 2. Tenaya Kenner, Ashland 3. Elie Hoover, Madison (Portland) Prose Reading 1. Dante Toppo, Ashland 2. Bethany Chupp, Canby 3. Emma Higdon, Nestucca (Cloverdale) Radio Commentary 1. Kelsey Filosi, Neah-Kah-Nie (Rockaway Beach) 2. Caitlin Mitchell, Lake Oswego 3. Lydia Koemer, Hood River Valley Student Congress 1. Nidhi George, Westview (Portland) 2. Mack Bullock, South Albany 3. Xander Harris, Silverton Outstanding Chair Mack Bullock, South Albany

(From left) Chenise Crockett, junior, Stephen Calkin, senior, Maija Kellner-Rode, sophomore and Maria Hommes, senior, dig space for a tree.

Maija Kellner-Rode, sophomore, and Natalie Sullivan, alumna, settle in a newly planted tree.

Public Forum Debate 1. Kayin Johnson & Maureen Page, Ashland 2. Taylor Farris & Mason Kriz, North Valley (Grants Pass) 3. (tie) Rachel Ramirez & Olivia Cordell, Tigard 3. (tie) Jack Patterson & Ty Bofferding, Hood River Valley

www.westernoregonjournal.com

4 CAMPUS LIFE

April 27, 2011

Anniversary Events Monday, April 25 – Gay Day Noon to 5 p.m.: Crafternoon (pride ribbons/button making) Werner University Center’s (WUC) East Foyer Noon to 2 p.m.: “Weenie Roast” BBQ WUC outside plaza TBA: Abby’s House “Get Yourself Tested” 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. – Comedian Jason Stuart WUC Pacific room

Tuesday, April 26 – Bisexual Day Noon to 5 p.m.: Crafternoon (coloring contest/ button making) WUC outside plaza 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.: Safe Zone Workshop WUC Willamette room 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.: Poetry Slam/Open Mic Night WUC Santiam room

Wednesday, April 27 – Trans Day Noon to 5 p.m.: Crafternoon (cookie decorating/ button making) WUC outside plaza 4 p.m. to 5 p.m.: Trans 101 Workshop Ackerman Hall, room 139 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.: Concert with Athens Boys Choir and Rocco KATastroPHE WUC Pacific room

Thursday, April 28 – Lesbian Day Noon to 5 p.m.: Crafternoon (Easter egg hunt/ button making) WUC East Foyer 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.: Beyond the Binary: Safer Sex Presentation with Angie Tissi Ackerman Hall, room TBA 9 p.m. to 11 p.m.: Dance sponsored by Triangle Alliance WUC Pacific room

Friday, April 29 – Ally Day Noon to 2 p.m.: Birthday party with keynote speaker Jessica Petit WUC Columbia room 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.: Crafternoon (chalk drawing/ button making) WUC East Foyer 3 to 5:30 p.m.: Ally Training WUC Columbia room

Safe Zone trivia night combines eager minds, wine, and great company Safe Zone kicks off 5th anniversary with evening of fun facts Katrina Pettigrew | Freelancer

At 6 p.m. on Saturday, April. 23, teams of students, ages 21 and over, headed over to Crush Wine Bar & Tasting Room, on the corner of Main and Warren Street, and participated in Safe Zone trivia night. For a $5 cover charge, those in attendance played trivia, supported Safe Zone and even got 15 percent off their tab. A prize went to the winners of the trivia game.

Students could even come in costume for a chance to win an additional prize.

According to Megan Habermann, assistant director for Student Leadership & Activities, Safe Zone is a community on campus of students, staff and faculty that have gone through training to provide places on campus where those students who may feel marginalized can go to talk safely. While Safe Zone’s mission focuses on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual, queer, questioning, intersex and allies (LGBTQQIA) individuals, Safe Zone exists to make everyone feel positive about being at Western.

Saturday night’s event was not the first of its kind. There have been two previous trivia nights and two of the three have been held at Crush. Safe

Photo by | Emily Laughlin

“Off Like a Prom Dress” team participates in the evening’s trivia events.

Zone hosts a wide array of events, including trainings and various other events that will be showcased throughout the rest of April as a celebration of Safe Zone’s fifth birthday.

The choice to have the event at a venue such as Crush was an attempt to engage faculty, staff, students and community members in a fundraising event.

Crush gave discounts to participants in the event to help their effort.

According to Marshall Guthrie, educational adviser and trivia master, the previous trivia nights had been held on weeknights. The owner of Crush, Josh Brandt, suggested that the next event be held on a weekend.

The game was set up as a team trivia night.

Teams were limited to five people per team. Teams were required to choose a team name and had the option to come in costume in order to compete for an additional prize.

According to Guthrie, the answer system was not a first-come, firstserve sort of answering system; any team could answer and get the points.

The setup of the game consisted of two rounds of twenty questions with a bonus question at the end.

The teams wagered points on the final question.

The trivia was casual and covered a wide variety of topics with just the right amount of difficulty. “[I had] everything from pop culture,

television, music and movies to science, history and others,” Guthrie said.

“Off Like A Prom Dress,” dressed in 80s prom fashion with taffeta dresses and corsages, won the costume contest and received a handmade trophy. The winning team of the trivia night came all the way from Corvallis.

The Heat of the Valley Homebrew Club’s team, the “Little Beer Engine That Could,” took first place and the prize of a bottle of wine that had been donated by Firesteed Winery.

“It went great,” Habermann said. “We had about 25 people there.

Everyone had a great time and it was very successful both as a fundraiser and as a program.”

Western’s annual ‘International Night’ boasts a new theme: ‘From Four Corners of the World’ This year’s event will present food and performances from China, India, Morocco and many more This Friday, April 29, the International Club at Western will be hosting one of its annual events, International Night. The International Club’s mission is to provide the members with the means to share with Western’s campus and area communities the politics, economy, culture, religion and history of the various countries represented by the members.

One of the club’s events that help to carry out its mission is International Night. The club has been putting this event on for several years, with each year having a different theme. “[This year] our theme is ‘From Four

Corners of the World,’” said Biraj Bisht, president of the International Club. “This event basically is composed

us a lot with food. We have a variety of performances.

To name a few: Indian Bollywood dance, Japanese

“I hope students will get to

experience different cultures in form of performance, food and also meeting people from different countries.” - Biraj Bisht INTERNATIONAL CLUB PRESIDENT

of performances, food and country information booths. We have food items from Morocco, Saudi Arabia, India and China.

Local restaurants and WOU catering has helped

www.westernoregonjournal.com

Taiko drumming, Tahitian dance and African dance.”

This year the members of the club have been planning the event since winter term to make the 2011 International

Night a fun and successful event.

“I hope students will get to experience different cultures in [the] form of performance, food and also meeting people from different countries,” said Bisht. “This year we are also offering 50 percent discount just for students, if they buy it during the presale in the Werner Center this coming week, [April 25 through April 28]. I think this will really increase the number of students that attend this event.”

The event will be held in the Pacific room in Werner at 6 p.m. The cost is $6 for students, $10 general admission and attendees will receive a discount with an international costume.

Photo courtesy| International Club

Caitlin Finnell | Freelancer

CAMPUS LIFE 5

April 27, 2011

Support group for female students opens at Western

Encouraging students to open up about their personal issues, “Support for Women” hopes to benefit all Candace Cheney | Freelancer

Photo by | Emily Laughlin

Western’s Health and Counseling Center is located behind Todd Hall.

The mission of Western’s Student Health and Counseling Center of, “facilitating student health and well-being by providing quality and affordable outpatient medical and mental health care, and prevention and health education,” encompasses multiple areas of well-being.

Monday, April 18, the center initiated, “Support for Women,” a new series of meetings that are being held in the Student Center every Monday from 3:30 p.m. until 4:45 p.m. The purpose of these meetings is to provide resources and support for Western students and to help them better cope with the changes that come along with the college lifestyle.

The aim of these meetings is to empower students so that they leave feeling like they have gained additional skills to help themselves tackle daily stressors in healthy ways, more specifically, issues facing women, such as body image and selfesteem. As new growth begins to bring forth a spring of opportunities for outdoor activities, women may feel it necessary to lose or gain weight in order to feel more “attractive” in their swimsuit and that desire may bring along with it a tumultuous roller coaster of emotions.

Techniques in supporting healthy thinking along these lines are being addressed in the “Support

for Women” meetings.

Strategies include: learning to accept your body the way it is right now, eating healthy to be healthy instead of beating yourself up about not being exactly where you want to be and having a healthy support network of friends and loved ones.

Even though the sessions are scheduled to last for approximately one hour and 15 minutes, students are able to stay afterward and ask additional questions of Center staff. Director of the Health and Counseling Center, Dr. Luis Rosa, encourages students to take advantage of the center’s newest addition, the “Student Health Resource

Center,” where students can obtain a variety of services.

Resources include a material and digital library, study areas and services specifically for women.

Post-traumatic stress, “the persistent mental and emotional stress occurring as a result of injury or severe psychological shock,” will be discussed, as well as misconceptions about this condition.

One of the most common misconceptions of post-traumatic stress is that it only occurs in the victims of those who have gone to war. The reality is that any injury or psychological shock can cause someone to suffer the symptoms of post trauma and this is one of the major issues that will be addressed at the meetings.

Other issues that will be covered during the sessions are stresscoping skills while in college, sexual violence, eating disorders, weight management and grief counseling. The goal of this seminar is not only to inform and educate students, but to also open up a dialogue between students in the form of peer counseling. Students will learn that college is about having new experiences,

meeting new people and facing challenges, but there are many resources available to assist them throughout their college career.

The other pivotal part of the meetings is the information that will be provided about Aetna student insurance, which is available to students taking at least six or more credits.

Students taking fewer than six credits can pay for the health insurance, which would provide them

with access to all Health and Counseling Center services.

In the meetings, Rosa talks about his experience working through college, and others will share experiences of how they were able to cope with difficult things while full time students. The next “Support for Women” meeting will be held Monday at 3:30 p.m. in the Health and Counseling Center and it is open to all Western students.

Group meets Mondays from 3:30 p.m. to 4:45 p.m. in the Student Health and Counseling Center.

Topics discussed include: - Healthy relationships - Body image and self esteem - Post traumatic stress - Learning tools and techniques to support healthy thinking - And more!

For more information, call (503) 838 - 8396 or email contact@wou.edu

Western’s 5th annual triathlon hopes to ASWOU inspire an active lifestyle for students, faculty Candidate Combining a 500-yard swim, a 17.1-mile bike ride through Monmouth and a 3.2mile run, this event brings together athletes from all arenas with a variety of goals Alex Riecke-Gonzales | Freelancer

Photo by | Brandon Woodard

The pool in the HWC, one of the event locations.

Whether to compete, exercise, have fun or accomplish a personal goal, anyone can find their niche in the Western Sprint Triathlon on Saturday, April 30, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Athletes of all ages and abilities are welcome to compete in a course

consisting of a 500-yard swim in the Western pool, a 17.1-mile bike ride through the hills surrounding Monmouth and a 3.2mile run through campus finishing on Western’s outdoor track.

This is going to be the fifth year of the Western

Triathlon, which, according to co-race director Melissa Ineck has the goal “to inspire our community to get active and to offer a fun, exciting event to challenge people.”

Diversity within the competition can extend throughout a single team.

One team consists of Anna Holt, an art major at Western who will be swimming 500 yards, Julie Desloge, a resident of Beaverton, Ore., a breast cancer survivor who is married with three children, who will be biking the 17.1-miles, and junior art major at Western, Stephanie Merritt, who will be running the 3.2-miles.

Merritt and Holt competed last year in the triathlon with a different bicyclist.

“We really focus on the WOU community (student/faculty/staff), but

we open it up to the public as a great way to interact, inspire and encourage,” said Ineck.

She also says that the triathlon is really meant to encourage those who wish to do activities such as triathlons and marathons, but may need a head start that is close to home, safe and relaxed.

Though the goals of the participants may vary, Ineck says that as a co-director she hopes the contestants leave the triathlon with “a love for fitness and an appreciation for challenging one self, as well as just a fun day trying something different.”

Training for the triathlon has been more difficult for contestants this year. With the pool closed since fall for the final stages of the construction of the new Health and Wellness Center (HWC), it has been

impossible for swimmers to train in town. Not to mention that before the creation of the indoor track of the HWC, the weather this year has not been exactly encouraging to those who wished to enjoy the outdoors.

However, with the new HWC finally complete, last minute training for the triathlon is possible. Though the directors of the triathlon do not offer coaching, Ineck says, “We have offered two free bike rides with Elke Asleson as a guide.”

The bike rides occurred on April 16 and April 23, where Asleson offered tips, advice and encouragement for free.

Ineck added that Asleson is a past Ironman Triathlete, so the free tips may have been worth the effort those bicyclists took to meet her.

forum to be held at noon, on April 29th.

Be there to learn more about the future of your school government!

Located on the first floor of the WUC.

www.westernoregonjournal.com

6 CULTURE MERCY SHIPS FROM PAGE 1

As a pediatric physical therapist, she worked with the orthopedic surgeons during the screening process to determine those children who could benefit from orthopedic services and rehabilitation. She also worked with the children

April 27, 2011

cases, the patient’s joints had been immobilized, often for years, after severe burns which, when left untreated, resulted in significant limitations in movement due to skin contractures.�

The most difficult part of Gates’ job was telling children and their families that Mercy Ships’ volunteers were unable to

“The Lord provided many opportunities to truly help the children and impact the lives of the children and their families.�

- Joanna Gates

MERCY SHIPS MEMBER

after surgery both while they were inpatients as well as outpatients.

Gates was also part of the team that trained health care professionals in Togo and Sierra Leone in the Ponseti method of working with club feet. In Togo, she worked with patients after they had plastic surgery to correct burn scars. When describing her patients, she said, “These patients need intensive rehabilitation to improve joint mobility and functional skills. In many

help them. “During the screening process thousands of people wait for long hours to see the doctors,� said Gates. “These people are hoping that they will be able to receive surgery and improve their child’s ability to walk or move in some way. Unfortunately, the doctors on the ships are limited in what conditions they are able to help with surgery.

For example, in some cases the children

are not old enough to undergo surgery to correct deformities because the surgery would affect the growth plates of the bones and this would ultimately create additional problems.

Or, these conditions cannot be helped by surgery [for example] children with cerebral palsy, brachial plexus injuries or muscle diseases. These cases were challenges, but it was a blessing to be able to pray with these families and to show them God’s love through our love, touch and our words.�

She was most impacted when she heard stories “of how the children were accepted back into the family home because they no longer had bowed legs, of how the parents were now able to rent an apartment because their child no longer had a club foot and were not seen as cursed, or how a child could now go into the neighbor’s house to play with other children because they no longer had to only crawl, but could now walk with crutches so they were now acceptable.� “It was wonderful to work with the people from Sierra Leone [this year]

Photos courtesy | Joanna Gates

The children Gates has worked with as a member of Mercy Ships suffer from a variety of ailments, including severe cases of bow leggedness. and Togo [last year],� said deformities. Being part As an organization, Gates in regards to her of the medical team to be Mercy Ships has provided work. “The Lord provided Jesus’ hands and feet to more than 56,000 many opportunities to help them to be able to be operations, such as cleft truly help the children and like other children was lip and palate, cataract impact the lives of the amazing.� removal, straightening of children and their families.

Gates fully crossed eyes and orthopedic “I worked recommends this and facial reconstruction, specifically with children experience to “anyone treated more than 520,000 with orthopedic disabilities wanting to serve other people in village medical including many with club people in Africa. It is a and dental clinics, educated feet, bow legs and knock wonderful multicultural 29,000 local health care knees. In Africa, these experience because not workers who have in children are often seen as only are you serving the turn trained thousands in cursed, rejected, made fun people of Africa but there primary health care and of and unable to attend are also 35-40 different completed more than school or play with friends nationalities as crew on the 1,095 construction and because of their orthopedic ship. agriculture projects.

Congratulations. Now what?

ASb g]c` aWUVba ]\ acQQSaa eWbV O EWZZO[SbbS ;0/ ES ]TTS` ^`]U`O[a Q][[WbbSR b] PcaW\Saa U]dS`\[S\b O\R \]b T]` ^`]TWb [O\OUS[S\b 5SbO@SOZ;0/ Q][

www.westernoregonjournal.com

CULTURE 7

April 27, 2011

Caitlin Finnell | Freelancer

Photos courtesy | Michael Lopez

On his 2011 comedy tour, comedian George Lopez will be performing at the Keller Auditorium in Portland, Ore., on Friday, April 29, for one night only.

At this time, Oregonians will have the chance to see one of the most popular comedians in the world.

Born in Mission Hill, Calif., in 1961, Lopez’s earlier life was not so bright. Abandoned by his father and then mother before the age of 10, Lopez was raised by grandparents who lacked parenting skills.

He used these earlier life experiences as the basis for his comedic routines.

By the mid 1980s, Lopez’s career as a comedian began taking off. He performed routines in clubs around the country, and appeared on various television and comedy shows.

Lopez’s acting career moved to the big screen with his first role as Eddie Martinez in the 1990 film

“Ski Patrol.” Other movies Lopez has starred in were the 1993 film “Fatal Instinct” and the 2002 film “Real Women have Curves.” Lopez has also done voice overs for several characters including Papi the Chihuahua in “Beverly Hills Chihuahua” and “Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2,” and most recently Raphael in the 2011 animated film “Rio.” In 2002, Lopez followed in the footsteps of his idols Freddie Prinze and Desi Arnaz, to be one of the few Hispanic actors to begin their own television series.

“It means a lot in that I always felt invisible and I was louder in my own head than I was verbally . . . I was torturing myself, wanting to say things and not knowing how to be,” said Lopez according to icomedytv.com.

“The stand-up was a way out but it never came easy. So to have something that's named after me make it, and that has history tied to Desi and Freddie and now

ENGLISH MAJOR? Just like to write?

FREELANCE for the Western Oregon Journal

Stories: $10 /story Photos: $10 /1st photo

$5 /additional email:

editor@westernoregonjournal.com

The George Lopez comedy tour premiers in Portland for one night only

Book Review

The Igiby family makes their way north out of the reaches of the dreaded Fangs of Dang Joanna Walker | Freelancer

Photo courtesy | The George Lopez Show

Freddie Jr., it’s unbelievable to me because I never really thought anything good would happen to me.”

The television show, entitled “George Lopez” was a success, airing for six seasons, along with winning several awards such as the 2003 ASCAP Film and Television Music Awards Top TV series and the 2003 Young Artist Award for Best Family Television Series.

Lopez also received the 2004 Imagen Award Best Actor in a Television Comedy.

Lopez moved to late night with his talk show “Lopez Tonight,” premiering on TBS in 2009. This show has comedy routines, along with appearances from celebrities such as Kobe Bryant and Eva Longoria.

Along with starring as an actor in movies and in television shows, he continues with what put him in the spotlight: stand up comedy. Two of his most popular stand up shows,

“America’s Mexican” and “Tall, Dark, & Chicano” have premiered as HBO specials. His stand up comedy usually reflects his childhood and family, along with Mexican American culture, race and ethnic relations. His 2011 tour has been a success thus far.

“I went with my family and we couldn't stop laughing. We laughed so hard that we all had to take a breather,” wrote an anonymous fan on the ticketmaster.com review page. “Must admit that at first we thought that the opening act would be hard to beat, but of course George Lopez proved us wrong. We had a blast!”

The show starts at 8 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at ticketmaster. com or the Portland Center for the Performing Arts box office. Tickets are $57 and $67.50. The show is recommended for mature audiences only.

Join the Igiby children, along with their mother and grandfather, as they move from hiding in the woods at their uncle’s house to cooler regions up north, where the dreaded Fangs cannot survive in such temperatures. There are already established groups of people living where the family plans on going, however, their journey will be anything but easy. There are many perils and dangers they will encounter, and they will have to fight their way to the only place they know can provide them with safety and support.

In Andrew Peterson’s “North! Or be Eaten,” Peterson continues his saga as he shapes the three children by putting them through separation and strife time and time again.

The family experiences anger and jealousy as the children strive to fully understand the true meaning of family. The trials they face, whether they be the wicked stranders along the river, having to make their way across high bridges near waterfalls or even trying to sneak their way underground to avoid the dangers that lurk above, only make the family grow stronger.

With more action, adventure, and several twists and turns along the path to discover who they really are and the important role they play, the Igiby children will set out on another leg of their journey to find their place in the world and somehow stop the evil that has ruled and set fear in the hearts of so many for so long.

Little do they know of a new kind of danger that lies up north, a new kind of adversary that is stronger than what they have seen before and a kind of enemy that will be harder to defeat.

Life is becoming much more complicated and things are changing fast in Janner Igiby’s world.

Decisions have to be made, but more importantly is living with the consequences of those decisions: “He was only twelve, but he knew

enough to realize that the way before him would be hard. Is it worth it? He asked himself. Was it worth losing his old life in order to learn the truth of who he was and who he was becoming? Yes.” As readers follow the Igiby children through their trials, one must understand that Peterson has a reason for what he does. In a lecture at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, on Feb. 25, 2010, Peterson spoke of his characters, stating, “I’m sitting here writing this story, I have this main character, this boy named Janner Igiby…I have this picture in my mind of who Janner Igiby is going to be at the end of book five. And I know as an author, as the author of his story, the only way for Janner to become that person is for me to ruin him, to destroy his life, to strip him of everything that is familiar to him, to inflict great suffering on him, and to put him in situations where he is terrified and alone.”

Peterson continued by quoting some advice a fellow author and friend gave, stating, “What you do when you write a story, is you chase your main character up a tree, and then you throw rocks at him,” and throw rocks at his characters he does.

Peterson continues by then relating this quote to life, and how we are sometimes “chased up a tree” – having rocks thrown at us - and then “shake our fists, asking ‘Why?’” Peterson continues his career as a singer, songwriter and storyteller.

Starting late March and ending the second week in April, Peterson toured Sweden and continues to perform here in the U.S. His Wingfeather Saga has received the Christy Award, and in early April, the final edits to his third book were completed and sent to the publisher. The release date for Peterson’s third book, “The Monster In the Hollows,” is May 10. Book three is available by preorder at www.rabbitroom. com.

www.westernoregonjournal.com

8 OPINION Western Oregon Journal Office: 503.838.8347 Advertising: 503.838.9691

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Paige O’Rourke porourke@ westernoregon journal.com MANAGING EDITOR Chris Reed creed@ westernoregon journal.com NEWS EDITOR Jake Logan jlogan@ westernoregon journal.com CULTURE/ CAMPUS LIFE EDITOR Christina Tilicki ctilicki@ westernoregon journal.com SPORTS EDITOR Jeffrey Larson jlarson@ westernoregon journal.com DESIGN EDITOR Nadia S nsawir@ westernoregon

April 27, 2011

Cup of Jo: Classroom etiquette Where have all the manners gone to?

Maybe it is because of what I have been through that I have grown to respect others more. Maybe it is because I was brought up in a time when cell phones, TV celebrities and reality shows had no influence on my life. Or maybe it is because I am older than most of my classmates. Regardless of the reason, however, I think it is downright rude to have a conversation with other classmates while a professor is trying to give a lecture. I believe it is ridiculous to text or browse the Internet while in class, too.

I understand times have changed and electronics have become a major part of society. However, what I do not understand is the “all about me” attitude I have encountered with some of my fellow classmates. It seems that too many students are occupied with themselves.

This is what inspired me to express my opinion. I have had conversations with other students in my age range recently and, before talking to them, I thought it was just me feeling this way. But, as it turns out, it is not only me. Older students also find it difficult to concentrate in

Jo Bruno

Freelancer

class when younger students have a conversation.

Classroom etiquette, as I see it, should consist of an overall consideration for fellow classmates and, the professor.

When I am in class, I do not like the interruptions of chatter between students or the clicking of cell phone buttons. I am in college to get an education. I am in college because I want to learn. I get upset when I have to listen to these noises while trying to listen to my professor at the same time. It is difficult.

I realize this has a lot to do with my sensitivity to noise because I tend to listen to too many things at once and I am easily distracted.

However, the bottom line has more to do with respect.

It has to do with respect for the professor, your fellow classmates and oneself.

If an educational subject comes easy for you, think about the classmate who may not understand the

material. Let go of the “all about me” attitude and think about the students who may have a learning disability.

Step away from the electronics and pay attention to what is going on in class instead of a text message or updating a Facebook status.

I have noticed many students using their laptops in class. They say it is because they prefer to type instead of write their notes.

Okay, fine; As someone who has wrist problems, I can understand that writing notes in class can be a bit tiresome at times. However, if you are going to use your laptop in class, do not go browsing your Twitter page to see which celebrity is doing what. Save it for your own time, not my time or the professor’s time.

There are a lot of us at this university and we cannot make the best of our experience if we do not work together. I need your help to pass my classes and graduate, and you need mine. I try to stay away from expectations because they usually set me up for heartache, but in this

ETIQUETTE SEE PAGE 9

journal.com DESIGN EDITOR Sara Davis sdavis@ westernoregon journal.com DESIGN EDITOR Stephanie Merritt smerritt@ westernoregon journal.com COPY EDITOR Blakelee McCulley bmcculley@ westernoregon

INDEPENDENCE CINEMA 8 Showtimes for April 29 - May 5 Matinees are all shows starting before 6PM.

Tickets available at box office, WOU bookstore and online at www.PrestigeTheatres.com. *No passes on starred attractions FAST FIVE (PG-13) (1:10) (4:00) 7:00 9:55 HOODWINKED 2 (PG) (1:05) (3:15) (5:20) 7:20 9:20 PROM (PG) (12:15) (2:35) (5:00) 7:25 9:40

journal.com

SOUL SURFER (PG) (12:20) (2:45) (5:10) 7:40 10:00 PHOTO EDITOR Emily Laughlin elaughlin@ westernoregon

RIO (3D) (G) (11:50) (2:00) (4:10) 6:30 8:45 HANNA (PG-13) (11:30) (1:55) (4:20) 6:50(2:10) 9:25(4:45) 7:15 9:50 WATER FOR ELEPHANTS (PG-13) (11:35)

journal.com WEB EDITOR Nadia S nsawir@ westernoregon journal.com ADVERTISING MANAGER Paige O’Rourke porourke@ westernoregon

HOP (PG) (12:10) (2:20) (4:30) 6:40 HANNA (PG-13) (11:45) (4:20) 9:05 ARTHUR (PG-13) (2:05) 6:45 SOURCE CODE (PG-13) 9:00 THOR (3D) MIDNIGHT SHOW (PG-13) FRIDAY 5/06/11 12:01AM (LATE THURSDAY).

journal.com STUDENT MEDIA ADVISER Shelby Case cases@wou.edu

www.westernoregonjournal.com

450 S. 2nd Street Independence, OR 97351 503-606-3000 | www.IndependenceCinema8.com

Jake Logan News Editor

Emily Post said, “Manners are a sensitive awareness of the feelings of others. If you have that awareness, you have good manners, no matter which fork you use.”

Manners are something I was taught while I was growing up, and still use today. It seems to be an unfortunate trend that people are either not teaching their children manners or not using them in general.

It seems like every time I go to a restaurant there is a screaming child or someone shoveling food into their mouths like it was their first meal in months or their last one before execution. At the grocery store there are more screaming children, or people cutting in line, or being rude to cashiers or baggers for the slightest mistake.

It is like people forget they are in public, talking loudly on their cell phones and eating without basic etiquette. I was taught to hold my fork like a pencil, not grip it like a shovel. While I know it is rude to stare, sometimes I am honestly so flabbergasted by how people just shove food into their mouths and weirdly amazed that they forget to close their traps when chewing.

At the supermarket or store, people are cutting in lines, or people with a massive amount of items won’t let the person with two or three items go ahead of them, making the person whose transaction would have taken only a few minutes stand through 10 minutes of waiting while the cashier rings up his small

hoard.

But the absolute worst transgression is yelling at either your server or cashier.

If your steak comes out medium when you asked for well done, it is not the end of the world. Most servers have no problem taking back an order if you are polite and respectful about it.

As a former server in a steakhouse, I know how touchy and particular people are about their steaks, and have had both very respectable and very disrespectful customers.

And let me tell you, I have never spat in a respectful customer’s drink.

I honestly want to slap a person who yells and gives servers and cashiers a hard time. When I see someone chewing out the supermarket cashier or giving him or her a hard time for accidentally ringing an item twice, instead of simply pointing it out, I want to pour a gallon of milk over their head.

What gets me even angrier is when people are so completely rude when returning an item at a clothing store. I have seen countless people yell and berate sales associates for not accepting a return item that has no tag, receipt or has been washed and worn. Honestly if you are too stupid to not check the return policies of the store you deserve being stuck with the defected garment, since

MANNERS SEE PAGE 9

Bramblewood

Peaceful, quiet and close to campus 2 bedroom, 1 bath Upstairs starting at $655/mo Downstairs starting at $665/mo w/s/g paid, dogs negotiable

Ask about specials!

Managed by JPM Real Estate ~ 503.838.2110

Letters to the editor Letters to the editor must be signed with submitter’s name, affiliation (if applicable) and include a physical address, e-mail and phone number. Letters may be edited for grammar, punctuation and spelling, but never for content. Letters to the editor may be up to 250 words. The Journal reserves the right to run letters to the editor that are over 250 words if space allows it.

DEADLINE: Letters to the editor must be submitted no later than Monday at 12 p.m. in order to run in the paper the following Wednesday. The Western Oregon Journal cannot guarantee the publication of all letters due to space limitations.

SUBMIT: Letters to the editor may be submitted to editor@westernoregonjournal.com or in person at the Student Media office located in the WUC during scheduled staff and adviser hours. Students can also comment on any story online by visiting the Journal’s site: www. westernoregonjournal.com.

Editorials written by individual “Journal” staff members do not necessarily reflect the opinion and/or values of the staff.

The Western Oregon Journal, published for use by Western students, faculty and staff, is private property. A single copy of each week’s Journal is free from campus newsstands. Unauthorized removal of multiple copies will be considered theft and is prosecutable.

OPINION 9

April 27, 2011

letter to the editor

In response to ‘Dead Week’ article Dr. Narasingha Sil | Professor of History

The term “dead week” in the academe is derived most certainly from a familiar but fearsome term “deadline,” that implies a finality. In that sense, dead week stands for the final (not “finals”) week of teaching, learning, reading and making up all course requirements minus the final exam which takes place in the “finals” week. For me, dead week is truly a fiercely active week, for I have to forego the aesthetic luxury of teaching sumptuously and rush to finish the course for the sake of fairness to students even at the risk of elevating my BP!

CRANBERRY JUICE

Stephanie Merritt Design Editor

The BIG Picture Every week there will be a close-up photo of a random object that can be found on campus. The first person who emails the “Journal” at editor@westernoregonjournal. com with the correct identification wins a free Little Caesar’s pizza. In your email, please include your name, phone number and area of study/title.

The answer to the photo hunt will be printed in the following week’s issue. Good luck!

Answer from April 13 (Issue 24): Stone mask located on the bottom floor of HSS.

Photo by | Emily Laughlin

ETIQUETTE FROM PAGE 8

case, I have to say that I expect cooperation from my fellow classmates.

I expect my fellow classmates not to text while in class. I expect to come to class and not have to worry about struggling to hear the professor.

Classroom etiquette is simple, I think. Each class is different, of course, because of how the professors structure their class. The basic understanding, however, is simple. First, do not talk while the professor is talking. Second, do not text or browse the Internet while in class. That is it.

All of the other things are

personal preferences of the student/teacher relationship.

If a student does not want to interact when there is a class discussion, so be it. If a student does not take notes, so be it. If a student decides to miss an entire week of class, so be it. However, when a classmate’s actions interrupt the entire classroom it is irritating and uncalled for.

MANNERS FROM PAGE 8

most stores now print return policies on the receipt.

It’s not the sales associate’s fault that you are not organized enough to keep

receipts or tags until you have at least fully committed to the purchased garment. Yelling at the sales associates will not get you your money back or make them want to help you.

Common courtesy and decency need to make

a come back in our society and stay. I will stop staring at you when you stop acting like a chimp at the zoo.

Treat others as you want to be treated, and close your mouth when chewing your food.

www.westernoregonjournal.com

10 SPORTS

MLB needs to accept steroids and move on Kyle Bruce Freelancer

Steroids and baseball.

They go together like oil and water. Or so the higherups in Major League Baseball (MLB) would have you believe. They want their product to be “pure,” as baseball was as recently as the 1970s. Their precious records, held by legends like Babe Ruth and Cy Young, are considered sacred and should never be threatened by so-called “juicers.”

Well, I’ve got bad news for those people. The MLB has been severely tainted by steroid use in recent years. Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens and Mark McGwire are a few of the highest-profile players linked to steroids in some fashion since the late 1990s. Recent stars like Manny Ramirez and Alex Rodriguez have continued the downward trend of the league’s image, a trend baseball tried to stop by instituting penalties for steroid users starting in 2005.

Since that time, baseball has been a veritable snooze fest in comparison to the sport I watched as a child. For that reason, I say the league needs to accept the fact that steroid use is prevalent within baseball and that there is not a whole lot they can do about it.

Remember McGwire and the 1998 home run chase? I was only 10 years old at the time, but I can remember watching McGwire hit homers on a nightly basis. I did not know a whole lot about baseball at that point, but each time a ball went over the fence, the fans went crazy, so I figured it was a big deal.

It was an incredible time in baseball. The buzz was palpable and it became must-see television. Now, we’re lucky if someone hits 50 home runs in a season.

Remember Clemens, one of the best pitchers in the last 30 years? He is the only pitcher to win seven Cy Young awards (presented to the year’s best pitchers, one in each league), and is one of just four pitchers to record 4,000 career strikeouts. He has 354 career wins and two World Series rings to go along with 11 All-Star appearances. All told, he is

one of the most decorated pitchers of all time. The recent crop of pitchers is exciting, but nobody can match Clemens’ impact on the game’s outcome.

Remember Bonds and his record-setting 762 home runs? Statistically, Bonds is considered one of the greatest players to ever play the game. He owns the records for most career home runs and most home runs in a season (73, breaking McGwire’s record in 2001). He was named the league’s Most Valuable Player seven different times, is a 14-time All Star and an eight-time Gold Glove winner. I was in the stands for Bonds’ 600th home run and was jumping up and down like everybody else. It is one of my fondest memories of baseball.

The one thing these three men have in common?

They have all been linked to steroid use. McGwire admitted in 2010 to taking steroids at different times in his career, including his record-setting season.

Clemens has adamantly denied taking steroids, but has been involved in numerous trials that have seen testimony claiming he used them frequently.

Bonds, whose own steroidrelated trial just concluded, has also denied using the stuff. He was found guilty of obstruction of justice, but not perjury.

Recent All Stars like Rodriguez and Ramirez have been linked to steroids as well, with Rodriguez admitting to using them early in his career and Ramirez retiring from the sport all together because of a second positive test.

Call me crazy, but having players like McGwire, Clemson, Bonds, Rodriguez and Ramirez playing baseball is great for the game, not bad for it. Their accomplishments are incredible and they single-handedly made the game exciting. The league needs to realize steroid use is not going to go away. If it continues to take such a hard line stance, they will drive more great players from the game and tarnish records set by former players.

From a fan’s perspective, I would much rather watch a man chase a home run record or dominate the game on the mound. Things like that are what make the game great, so just accept steroids and move on.

www.westernoregonjournal.com

April 27, 2011

Softball team splits two games with NNU, drops pair at MSUB Hallmark earns 41st career homerun to give Western their lone victory of the week over NNU Kyle Bruce | Freelancer

Western’s softball team played a split schedule this past week, hosting Northwest Nazarene in a Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) doubleheader Thursday before trekking to Montana State Billings for a league twinbill Saturday.

The Wolves split with NNU, winning the opener, 6-1, before falling, 10-6, in the nightcap. MSUB took both games of Saturday’s series, defeating Western 6-3 and 8-4. Western now sits at 12-28 (9-19 GNAC) on the year.

Thursday’s opening game saw Western cruise to a 6-1 win behind a huge second inning and a strong pitching performance from freshman Alex Hillmick.

Western blew the game open in its half of the second inning. After a groundout to open the frame, junior Kelsie Didion singled up the middle to reach first. Freshman Tia Misfeldt was subsequently walked before advancing to second on a wild pitch as Didion took third. Freshman Ashley Gardner followed with a full-count single through the left side, scoring Didion.

During sophomore Andrea Bailey’s at-bat, Gardner stole second, allowing Misfeldt to steal home. After Bailey grounded out, advancing Gardner to third, senior Tierra-Lyn Cuba drew a walk. Gardner managed to score on a wild pitch during freshman Ashley Worthey’s at-bat, putting the hosts up 3-0. Worthey delivered a single up the middle, moving Cuba to second. Senior Jessica Hallmark followed with a three-run shot to left field, giving Western a 6-0 advantage.

Meanwhile, Hillmick was keeping the Crusaders off the scoreboard. NNU’s lone run came on a solo homer to lead off the seventh inning. Hillmick (7-9) went the distance for Western, giving up 11 hits and two walks. She struck out four batters while forcing NNU into 12 flyouts and four groundouts.

NNU’s Chelsey Anderson (7-9) was saddled with the loss, allowing seven hits and three walks. She struck out three in six innings of work.

Thursday’s nightcap saw the Crusaders’ jump out to a 3-0 lead and hold on to defeat Western, 10-6.

NNU took a quick 2-0 lead in the first after an RBI-single and sacrifice fly drove in a pair of runs. It increased its advantage to three an inning later after a bases-loaded walk forced a run in.

Western started off the second with a single from Hallmark, who advanced to second on a wild pitch during Rueck’s at-bat. Rueck took the next pitch and drove it over the left-field wall, reducing NNU’s lead to 3-2.

NNU regained control with a three-run third inning as a lead-off home run and a two-RBI double put the Crusaders up, 6-2.

Bailey led off the third with a single to left field. After a pair of foul-outs, she stole second, allowing Hallmark to drive her in with a single to center field, narrowing the margin to 6-3.

The Wolves knotted the game at 6-6 with a three-run fifth. Once again, Bailey started things with a hit, doubling to left center. Cuba reached on an error by NNU’s shortstop while Bailey advanced to third. Worthey plated Bailey with a double to left center, advancing Cuba to third in the process. Cuba used a sacrifice fly from Hallmark to score Western’s second run of the inning.

Worthey moved to third on Hallmark’s sacrifice fly, followed by a walk to Rueck. Worthey managed to steal home as NNU’s catcher attempted to pick off Rueck’s steal attempt, tying the game.

NNU went back up in the sixth thanks to a pair of RBI singles, taking an 8-6 advantage. Western was retired in order in the sixth before the Crusaders tacked on two more runs in the seventh to close the game out.

Hillmick (7-10) took the loss for Western. She pitched five innings of relief, allowing nine hits and four walks.

NNU’s Nicole Grummons (7-15) earned the win behind a seven-inning outing that saw her allow eight hits. She fanned SOFTBALL | SEE PAGE 11

Track and Field moves up in rank

Women’s team marked as No. 22 in the nation, Slowey captures 3rd place in school history and 4th in GNAC Paige O’Rourke | Editor-in-Chief

Western’s track and field team traveled to Eugene, Ore., under sunny skies to compete in the Oregon Relays competition on Friday, April 22, and Saturday, April 23.

“We are always looking for the very best competition for each individual,” assistant coach Jessica Harper stated. “We are confident that the athletes will perform to the best of their ability.”

With high spirits after being ranked No. 22 in the nation by the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association, the women’s team achieved high marks over the weekend, most significantly the women’s 4x400 meter relay team.

For this event, sophomore Lexi Pola, junior Janelle Everetts and seniors Annan Applebee and Annie Hayward came together to place No. 4 at 3:51.07, a new school record for the women.

Everetts also came in

third place for the women’s 800-meter run with a time of 2:15.39.

The women’s 4x100 meter relay team, made up of freshman Madison McClung. sophomore Sarah Kathrein, senior Lacey Meusec and Pola pushed for a good time, coming in fourth place with a time of 47.93 seconds.

Freshman Katie Pelchar placed fourth in the women’s high jump, coming in at 1.68 meters.

Athletes from the men’s team performed equally well, beginning with senior Kyle Larson who earned third place in the men’s 800-meter run section B, coming in with a time of 1:55.57.

Among the men’s 1,500-meter run section B participants, sophomore Connor Kasler took fourth place at 3:55.94.

Freshmen Kevin McCurdy and Kody Reaves went three-four in the men’s 400-meter hurdles section two, coming in at

55.41 seconds and 55.43 seconds, respectively.

Sophomore Ryan Chapman took the No. 2 spot in the 3,000-meter steeplechase section B. He came in at 9:23.32 and, after moving into the alltime list last weekend, improved upon his spot at No. 10 in school history.

The men’s 4x100 meter relay team, consisting of sophomores Matt Kaino, Dustin Boyd, Bobby Alexander and Yakovich, took fourth place this weekend with a time of 42.61 seconds.

Yakovich and Kaino also participated in the men’s 4x400 meter relay alongside sophomore Josh Moore and freshman Tyler Thomas, coming in second place with a time of 3:17.76.

In the men’s shot put, senior Jason Slowey captured second place with a distance of 52-10 (16.10 meters). Slowey also took on the men’s discus throw, earning second place in this event as well at 168-8 (15.40

meters), and advancing to third place in school history.

This achievement also earned him the No. 4 spot in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) standings.

Freshman Greg Cruise also competed in the discus throw alongside Slowey, coming in fourth place with a throw of 156-9 (47.78 meters).

The Wolves will head to the Pacific Twilight in Forest Grove, Ore., on Saturday, April 30. Those who have qualified will also travel to Nampa, Idaho, for the GNAC Multis to be held Monday, May 2, and Tuesday, May 3.

“We are excited for the next few weeks of competition and look forward to even greater success in our conference championships,” Harper stated. “We’re encouraging the Western Oregon and Monmouth communities to come out and support the team during that two day meet.”

SPORTS 11

April 27, 2011

Western takes first in GNAC with sweep Dominant pitching propels Wolves to 11th straight victory, 8th against conference opponents Matthew Curran | Freelancer

The baseball team continued its road trip over the weekend with a four-game series against Montana State Billings (MSUB).

Western swept the feisty Yellowjackets, 4-0 (12-1, 11-5, 13-1, and 5-1). The Wolves are currently on an 11-game winning streak and have a one game lead over Saint Martin’s for first place in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC).

Last week, the Wolves (27-11 overall, 17-3 conference) had a four-game series against the former top team in the GNAC. Western swept the series and took the lead for first place in the conference. Western has currently won its last four series, including two sweeps.

MSUB is currently in fourth place in the GNAC. The Yellowjackets split a series with Northwest Nazarene last week.

On Saturday, April 23, Western swept a doubleheader, 12-1 and 11-5. The Wolves’ pitching was flat-out sensational.

Senior Michael Ward (6-3) started atop the rotation for the series. He pitched an outstanding game, allowing one run and five hits, throwing eight strikeouts. Ward had a shutout until MSUB scored one run in the seventh inning.

Western’s offense was exceptional as well. There was four innings where it scored three or more runs. With two outs in the first inning, senior Daniel Dillard blasted a double down the left field line. Junior ‘Bo’ Folkinga followed by hitting a single to drive in Dillard. Dillard had an outstanding game by recording 4-for-4 hitting, two stolen bases, a home run and six RBIs. In the second game of the doubleheader, it was another show by the

SOFTBALL FROM PAGE 10

seven batters while ceding just one walk.

Saturday’s contest saw MSUB use a dominant pitching performance, along with some powerful bats, to earn a 6-3 win.

The ‘Jackets got on the scoreboard in the first inning behind an RBI bunt,

Wolves’ offense. This time they scored 11 runs, including an incredible fifth inning.

Senior Cam Nobles (5-2) pitched strongly. In six innings pitched, he allowed three runs and six hits, tossing five strikeouts.

This season, Nobles has allowed 17 hits and five runs (two earned) in 22 innings pitched.

He has 14 strikeouts.

After the fourth inning, the game was tied at 3-3. Western’s fifth inning included 13 batters and eight runs scored.

This inning started out with a walk

by Josh Solemsaas. The next batter, senior Grant Glover, was hit by a pitch.

Senior Aaron Headrick decided to sacrifice bunt to advance Glover to second base and Solemsaas to third.

Dillard was next-at-bat, but MSUB intentionally walked him to load the bases.

The next three batters drew walks, driving in three runs and keeping the bases loaded.

Junior Andre Royal reached first base on a fielder’s choice that drove in two of the three basemen.

MSUB finally got an out from a pop fly to right field, but that allowed a runner to score. Western scored its seventh run on an error by the catcher.

Headrick got a second at-bat in the inning and hit a single that drove in the final run of the inning. Dillard then flied out to end an epic inning that made the score 11-3.

The series ended on Sunday, April 24 with another doubleheader. Western swept the doubleheader in impressive fashion, 13-1 and 5-1.

Game three of the series featured an inspiring pitching performance by junior Grady Wood (5-4). He pitched all nine

taking a quick 1-0 lead.

Gardner started the third inning for Western with a single through the left side. After two strikeouts, Bailey knocked a single through the right side, advancing Gardner to third.

During Cuba’s subsequent at-bat, Bailey stole second, allowing Gardner to make it home, knotting the game at 1-1.

The hosts responded with a four-run frame in the bottom of the third, getting an RBI single to take a 2-1 lead before a trio of runs scored on two separate errors, putting MSUB up 5-1.

Western got a two-out solo home run from Rueck in the top of the fourth to trim the ‘Jackets’ lead to 5-2, but MSUB answered

innings and allowed one run, one hit, no walks and threw a career-high 11 strikeouts.

This was Wood’s fifth straight win.

It was another day at the office for the offense. The offensive unit scored 13 runs and added 16 hits. Glover and Dillard were a huge part of offense’s productive day.

They both hit a home run and drove in four runs.

Western recorded six runs in the top of the sixth inning, four coming on a grandslam by Glover.

The final game of the series did not reach double digits, but Western still pulled out the win. The fourth pitcher in the rotation, junior Kirk Lind (4-1), pitched 5.2 innings, allowing one run and seven hits, striking out six. Lind has been outstanding this season ever since head coach Jeremiah Robbins put him into the pitching rotation, winning his last four games.

In the first inning, the offensive produced three unearned runs and scored two more in the second to set the tone with a 5-0 lead. This took the pressure off Lind

early.

“I really liked our small-ball package today,” said head coach Jeremiah Robbins.

“Our guys are going up there and competing each at-bat. We are making things happen with the bats and on the bases.”

Western’s fourth run of the game was exciting. Ockerman and Glover pulled off a double steal that advanced Ockerman home and Glover to second base. Headrick then smacked a ball to center field that drove in Glover to score Western’s fifth and final run.

Analyzing this series, Western’s offensive numbers were off the charts. The offense scored 31 total runs on 41 hits. The pitching did not do a bad job either, allowing eight total runs over four games.

“I like the way we are playing as a team right now and we will continue to go out there and battle,” concluded Robbins.

Western continues its three-series road trip to Central Washington on Saturday, April 30. With the 11-game winning streak intact, Western is playing its best baseball of the season.

Baseball

2011 BASEBALL GNAC STANDINGS Western Oregon Saint Martin’s Northwest Nazarene MSU Billings Central Washington W=Win

L=Loss

W 17 20 12 7 3

L PCT GB 3 .850 -8 .714 1 12 .500 7 17 .292 12 19 .136 15

W 27 24 27 16 11

PCT=Percentage

L 11 19 13 23 27

GB=Games

PCT .711 .558 .675 .410 .289 Back

* Standings as of press time.

with a solo home run of its own in the bottom of the inning.

Both offenses stalled until Western started their half of the seventh with Didion reaching first on an error. After a strikeout, Misfeldt was hit by a pitch, pushing Didion to second.

Junior Kendra George delivered an RBI single through the right side, plating Didion and advancing Misfeldt to third. Two consecutive outs, however, would end any hope for a late-game comeback.

Amanda Todd (7-6) pitched a complete game for the ‘Jackets, striking out 11 batters while giving up five hits and two walks.

Hillmick (7-11) took the loss for Western. In six innings of work, she

Softball

gave up nine hits and four walks, striking out one. She was charged for just two of MSUB’s six runs.

Saturday’s nightcap saw Western get a pair of home runs from Didion, but the ‘Jackets stayed true to form, using their strong hitting to claim an 8-4 victory.

MSUB struck first, scoring two runs in the opening frame, one behind a sacrifice fly to right field and the other on a wild pitch.

The first of Didion’s two home runs came in the top of the second. After Rueck hit a one-out single up the middle, Didion powered one over the left field wall, tying the game at 2-2.

The hosts regained control in the third. An RBI triple to left field and a two-

run shot to right center put MSUB up 5-2.

The Wolves refused to go away, getting two more runs by way of Didion’s second homer, a two-out, two-run roundtripper down the left field line, cutting MSUB’s lead to 5-4.

The hosts would have the final say, however, notching three more runs in the fifth behind a three-RBI homer, giving the ‘Jackets a four-run advantage that would be too much for Western to overcome.

Junior Kelsey White (1-1) took the loss for Western. She gave up eight hits and five walks in six innings, striking out two.

MSUB’s Annaleisha Parsley (10-9) got credit for the win, allowing six hits and two walks. She fanned six.

2011 SOFTBALL GNAC STANDINGS

Photo by | Emily Laughlin

Freshman Ashley Gardner earned one run and one RBI in her three at bats for the Wolves in their 6-1 win over Northwest Nazarene on Thursday, April 21.

Central Washington Western Washington MSU Billings Northwest Nazarene Simon Fraser Western Oregon Saint Martin’s W=Win

L=Loss

W 19 19 19 15 9 9 5

L PCT GB 5 .792 -9 .679 2 13 .594 4 15 .500 7 14 .396 9.5 19 .321 12 20 .2`1 14.5

PCT=Percentage

* Standings as of press time.

W 25 31 24 16 9 12 6

L 11 12 20 26 18 28 25

GB=Games

PCT .694 .721 .545 .381 .339 .300 .210 Back

www.westernoregonjournal.com

12 SPORTS

April 27, 2011

Western’s lacrosse team wins south division Rothstein, Wolves held Southern Oregon to only 4 goals in the 15-4 win, sixth straight victory Chris Curtis | Freelancer

On Saturday, April 23, Western’s lacrosse team took on archrival Southern Oregon University (SOU) in a battle that would determine who would win the Pacific Northwest Collegiate Lacrosse League (PNCLL) south division crown.

The contest was played in Monmouth in front of 200 fans that came out to enjoy a great day of lacrosse, highlighted with perfect spring weather.

The Wolves got off to a good start, winning the opening faceoff and starting their offense.

Two minutes into the game, SOU was penalized for an illegal body check that gave the Wolves a one minute man up opportunity. Wasting little time, sophomore Jacob Bohince fed junior Spenser Brock for a goal inside.

However, SOU was able to respond shortly after they too were awarded an extra man opportunity.

With the score tied at one and both squads playing a very physical style of lacrosse, the game looked like the making of another great rivalry game.

Senior Ian Bohince won the next faceoff to help swing the momentum back to Western and Dan Hochspeier was able to

break the tie as he found freshman Clay Malensek in close for the goal.

Western started to roll from there as Hochspeier fed another to Brock and then Brock was able to feed Malensek to push the score to 4-1.

COVER STORY SOU looked to attack again, but two of its shots rang off the goalposts and its final shot of the quarter was saved by Western net minder Ronnie Rothstein.

As the first quarter winded down Western capitalized one last time as junior Matt Frutiger dodged his man up top and then made a spectacular feed to Brock, who netted his third of the game.

Western led after one, 5-1.

SOU was called for another penalty early in the second. Western worked for a good shot

by Mark Iliyn but the shot fired off the post, hit a Southern defenseman and rolled perilously in front of the crease. Frutiger was there to clean up the miss as he was able to bat the ball into the net like a hockey puck.

The Wolves had everything going their way early in the second as they continued to keep pressure on the SOU defense.

Hochspeier

found an open Joe Gehrig, who scored on a big rip from up top and Western took a 7-1 lead.

With the Wolves in strong command, it looked like nothing could slow them down. Unfortunately, the penalty flags started to fly. Western was penalized six times to close out the second quarter, which put a lot of pressure on the defense.

After fighting off the third man-down stand in a row, Southern was able to break through the Wolves’ defense and they scored in close with even strength.

Southern continued to possess the ball more in the second, but the Western defense held strong, killing another penalty and finding Iliyn in transition for his first of the game. Western led at the end of the first half, 8-2.

After the break, Western fought off being two men down before Ian Bohince was able to dodge his man from up top and score on a well placed shot low and away.

Western was able to play a more controlled quarter in the third as it avoided penalty calls and possessed the ball for most of the quarter.

Iliyn found the younger Bohince for a quick stick goal on the crease pushing the score to double digits.

As the SOU defense began to tire, Frutiger took a dodge from the midfield, beat his man and scored his second of the day.

With Western controlling the tempo of the quarter, the defense saw little action as it allowed only two shots in the quarter. Rothstein was able to turn away the only threat and help shut out the Raiders in the third.

Rothstein was also able to lay a big, legal hit on an SOU player who was looking to score a hit that brought the crowd to their feet.

As the third quarter entered its final minute, it was Ian Bohince who

fired a laser that beat the keeper stick side high and Western led after three, 12-2.

Western was called for two penalties on the same play and had to battle being two men down again. The defense continued to answer the call turning away the Raider threat. SOU was called for a penalty of its own and, again, the extra man unit for Western was able to break down the interior defense of Southern this time with Hochspeier finding Frutiger open in close.

Both sides continued to battle despite the lopsided score and Brock

fired another shot past the keeper, scoring his fourth on the day. With the game safely in hand, Ian Bohince was able to dodge through traffic and score Western’s final goal of the game, leading 152. In the final minutes of the game SOU was able to claw back and score two goals, but it was too little too late as Western held on to win, 15-4.

The Wolves will now prepare for the PNCLL Final Four weekend that takes place at Wilsonville High School on May 7 and May 8. Western will look to win games on both Saturday and Sunday to claim its fourth league title.

Sophomore Dan Hochspeier (9) looks for an open teammate against SOU.

Photos by | Emily Laughlin

Matt Frutiger (5) flings a shot at the goal. He had three goals and two assists.

www.westernoregonjournal.com

Ian Bohince, senior, runs upfield during Western’s game Saturday.