Turn to PAGE 2 for textbook information
Turn to PAGE 2 for photos of the MLK Day celebration
Follow the Rambelles on PAGE 6
Angelo State University’s student-run newspaper since 1936
Ram Friday, January 22, 2016
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Volume 82, Issue 14
Martin Luther King Jr. remembered Movement, Martin Luther King, Jr. on Jan. 19. From 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. the event was open to all students and staff as well as the San Angelo community in hopes to bring everyone together in celebration of human rights. “MLK day represents a time where basic human rights were pioneered and voices were heard to overcome
Students celebrated Martin Luther King Day with the Multicultural Center Luis Montoya Staff Writer ASU’s Multicultural Center hosted its 7th annual celebration of activist and leader of the AfricanAmerican Civil Rights
Accuracy puts Belle basketball as top team to beat
racial inequality,” said Robert Garcia, Multicultural Center program specialist. “The torch was lit and then passed on to others in the movement for justice.” In the past the Multicultural Center has collaborated with organizations that help give to the community, like Meals on Wheels and the Salvation Army. However, the Multicultural Center
sponsored the event alone this year. The theme of this year’s MLK Day celebration was to ‘promote peace.’ The event showed the “I Have a Dream” speech so the audience could remember the goals and dreams that MLK talked about and the enormously positive impact he had on society and humanity. “Mar t i n Lut he r Ki ng
HIGH HOPES FOR HOOPS
Rambelles break scoring records for the first time in over a decade
day makes me feel good,” freshman Ashley Douglas said. “This represents a day in history that should be remembered for peace and unity by everyone.” The MLK day celebration was a prequel to Black History month in February. This year the Multicultural Center wants to focus on the
See MLK page 2
SGA springs into action Student Government Association introduces new ideas Luis Montoya Staff Writer
Alana Edgin Managing Editor After the destruction of Arlington Baptist University’s Lady Patriots back on Nov. 17 with a score of 108-67, Rambelle basketball proved to be a contender in this year’s Lone Star Conference. With a win/loss record of 9-18 for the 2014-2015 season, the team had a lot to prove. Game after game, the Belles showed a complete turnaround from last season and proved that this will be a completely different Belle team. “Angelo State, for some reason, hasn’t had a target on them for a long time,” Head Coach Kevin Baker said. “So the fact that we are putting a target on our back is pretty neat.” Not only have the Belles improved their win/loss Courtesy of communication & marketing, to 10-5, they also broke a Photo by Summer Almaguer Danny Meyer record in their first game Left: Sophomore guard Kiahna Thompson goes up for a basket against her opponent. of the season. This was the first time since 2000 that the Right: Senior Tre Bennet brings drives the ball up to the basket to further the Rams’ lead against northern
See BELLE page 6
New Mexico.
With the spring semester beginning, everyone is getting ready for a busy term. Along with many clubs the Student Government Association have big plans for this semester. “T h i s s e m e s t e r S G A senators will be targeting all their initiatives and will be surveying students,” SGA President Jarret Lujan said. “They will be meeting with the administration and staff to form a bill before presenting it to the Student Senate.” One of the initiatives being formed by SGA is a student lead endowment. The endowment will turn into a scholarship and be given to a student who meets the qualifications set forth by SGA. At the Decemb er graduation ceremony of 2015, three SGA Senators, Maggie Smith, Matt Low and
See SGA page 3
University Center welcomes spring semester with new food options Over the winter break th e U C u n d e rwent renovations. The newly added Ranch Smokehouse is the first in what will be a variety of upcoming campus restaurants. It opened at the beginnning of the year and welcomed students with a new menu. What used to be the grill now makes brisket, turkey and pulled pork sandwhiches with sides like macaroni and cheese and coleslaw.
The Ranch Smokehouse welcomes students during lunch on Jan. 20
Photos by Summer Almaguer
NEWS
Page 2 MLK continued from page 1 Harlem Renaissance and provide history of the African-American movement. MLK day served as a platform to inform and educate ASU as well as the community about the flourishing arts of AfricanAmerican culture like literature, art and music. Freshman student Zamika Bradley says that Martin Luther King Day represents a time when someone decided to stand up for peoples’ rights and fight for not just the civil liberties for African-
Americans but fight for those of humanity. “Martin Luther King Day is a reminder of being able to inspire people for something you believe in,” freshman Steven Sanchez said. “As well as influence other through the power of words and actions.” The Multicultural Center hopes through the celebration on MLK day that they will be able to extend the movement Martin Luther King Jr. brought to the world and ultimately continue to ‘promote peace.’
Photos by Summer Almaguer
The Multicultural Center celebrates with food and fun.
Students enjoy Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
1.22.2016
Delta Zeta donates blood The soroity calls for blood donations for National Blood Donor Month Chris Cole Staff Writer
Every year during the holiday season illnesses and accidents are higher on average, and blood donors typically don’t donate as much. This leads to shortages in hospitals and patients having to wait on life-saving blood donations. To combat this trend, every January since 1970 has been declared National Blood Donor Month. Blood drives are set up and people are encouraged to give and help hospitals recover from the holiday season. S en i or ASU stud ent Cheyenne Saldana has been donating blood ever since her freshman year. Encouraging everyone to attend the blood drive hosted by the Delta Zeta sorority in the University Center on Thursday, January 28th from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Cheyenne stresses the importance of donating in the month of
January. “It is important to donate blood in January since the holidays have just passed and supplies everywhere are short. I would encourage every person who has not already done so to donate and help families all over the world.” Committed to spreading the word, Delta Zeta has participated in aiding the blood drive for many years and always makes great progress. “It’s one of our priorities as the Delta Zeta sorority to give back to others,” Saldana said. The largest obstacle in the month of January and in general for the United Blood Services is reluctance or fear on part of eligible people who have never donated. Linda Grace, Senior Donor Recruitment Representative for the United Blood Services said, “Some people just don’t know what to expect, and from this grows a fear of the unknown. All too frequently I see a first-time donor go and sit in the chair and come back to me with a big grin on their face and say, ‘Well that wasn’t so bad!’ For many people it is a completely unfounded fear but a real one nonetheless.” Encouraging people to explore blood donation,
Grace also pointed out that donors who do not know their blood type, which could be life-saving to one who’s involved in a serious accident, would know it after their first time donating. They also will give each donor a cholesterol number which, while not a fasting number, could still help guide donors as to their current health status. “I believe people hesitate to donate blood because it affects each individual differently,” Saldana said. “They hear stories about feeling really weak after donating, and I know I’ve felt weak before but then there have been times where I felt just fine,” Saldana saidS. With 20 percent of blood donations coming in from Universities like ASU, Grace urges students to remember how vital their schools are when it comes to meeting the demand for well-stocked blood supplies. “And with many people who’ve never donated it’s just because they haven’t been asked,” GraceS said. “So I’m asking everyone at ASU right now to please come donate blood!”
Sell your books and set your price Events Calendar Saturday 1/23
Wednesday 1/27
Spring 2016 Cheer Tryouts 9:00am - 3:00pm January 24 Ben Kelly CHP Spring Cheer Tryouts
International student Juhui Seong looks through used textbooks at the book swap.
GiRL Power - Go for the Gold! 9:00am - 3:00pm McNease Convention Center Women’s Basketball vs Midwestern State University 2:00pm - 5:00pm San Angelo, TX
The Multicultural Center is working with students who want to sell their books. Set the price to sell your books, and the Multicultural Center will hold them until the right buyer for your books is found. You can also stop by to borrow a book from their diverse lending library. Visit the Multicultural Center in UC 114 or contact them here:
multiculturalcenter@angelo.edu
2100 W. Beauregard 325-942-1647
Come celebrate the new ASU Lions Club charter on Friday, Jan. 29
Open 7 days a week 6 a.m. - 2 p.m.
Men’s Basketball vs Midwestern State University 4:00pm - 7:00pm San Angelo,TX
Resources and Connections Meeting 4:00pm - 5:00pm Weekly (to Mar 2) Houston Harte University Center, Room 202 Drumming Workout and Technique Sessions 7:00pm - 8:00pm Room 288, Carr Education-Fine Arts Building, 2602 Dena Drive
Thursday 1/28 Rodeo Sweethearts Storm the Fort! 9:00am - 2:00pm The Stables at Fort Concho
Sunday 1/24 Women’s Basketball vs Texas Woman’s 2:00pm - 5:00pm San Angelo, TX
Friday 1/29 Lions Club comes to ASU 6:30 PM C.J. Davidson Center
Tuseday 1/26 Book Swap Program All Day M-F Multicultural Center (UC 114)
SAN ANGELO WEEKEND WEATHER FORECAST Saturday, Jan. 23:
H: 64 L: 39
Sunday, Jan. 24:
Monday, Jan. 25:
H: 73 L: 41
H: 66 L: 34
Tuesday, Jan. 26:
H: 57 L: 30
FEATURES
1.22.2016
Page 3
UREC & Intramural Sports read y for an exciting semester University Recreation revamps their intramural-recreational sports for the spring semester Miguel Luna Staff Writer
A
s the semester begins the University Recreation staff prepares for the spring season of intramural sports and the increase of traffic in both the weight room and fitness classes. UREC offers 18 intramural sports which are divided into major and minor sports. Major sports are basketball, flag football, softball, soccer and volleyball, have a four week regular season. The teams are then seeded into a single elimination tournament. The minor sports, such as
disc golf, dodgeball, and tennis are composed in a doubleelimination tournament. The basketball and flagfootballs teams also have the opportunity to compete at the Regional Tournament where the teams represent ASU. Recently, the Regional Champion co-ed flag football team of IM Legends won the 2015 Co-Rec Division National Championship on Jan. 4 at the National Int r amu r a l - R e c re at i on a l Sports Association (NIRSA) National Campus Championship Series. The team claimed their third national championship among other individual awards. The intramural sports office will introduce inner-tube water polo this coming April, Reid Jackson, Manager of Intramural Sports and Camps, said. Aaron Kenter, Manager of
Continued from SGA page 1 Josh Meyers graduated, allowing for some positions to open up for new candidates. Matt Low represented the computer science department and served as their Senate Clerk. Maggie Smith and Josh Meyers each represented the political science department. Smith was in charge of the “Special Events” committee and was the Project Manager of the ASU Christmas Tree lighting for 2015. For the 2016 spring semester, there are multiple positions open in SGA. There are four seats available for departmental representation. Two seats in the political science department, one seat in computer science and one seat in agriculture remain available. SGA’s president Jarret Lujan plans to ensure leadership within the Student Government Association. Lujan plans to enhance the SGA department within the senate and better serve ASU’s student body. “SGA has strongly impacted
my communication and leadership skills,” Lujan saidS. “Leadership has always been my strongest skill but never have I been tested in such an amazing way. I love my job and I would encourage any student to pursue their dreams and goals.” Lujan also expressed he will not be seeking reelection and that his term as SGA president will expire at the spring 2016 graduation ceremony. SGA’s vice-president Haley Rhodes’ goal for the upcoming semester is to increase SGA’s campus presence. “I hope that students know that SGA is always around to address concerns and to hear their recommendations,” Rhodes said. “I also aim to enhance the student experience in any way I can. I feel that SGA can truly help with that.” This semester SGA will continue to focus on bettering the campus as a whole and making positive decisions to improve ASU’s student body.
Have a campus issue or concern? Contact the SGA Office: sga@angelo.edu 325-942-2063 Houston Harte University Center, 001
Aquatics/Facility Management, proposed the new sport in hopes of allowing a sport to use the aquatic facility. “We have all these sports that utilize all of our facilities and I think Kenter’s idea is to branch out and use all of our facilities,” Jackson said. “It’s going to be a one evening kind of tournament,” Devon Wilde, Graduate Assistant for Aquatics and Facility Management, said, “and then we’ll see how it goes.” The intramurals office will allow the students to sign-up for inner-tube water polo in mid-April for men’s, women’s and co-ed divisions with team sizes of seven to eight people, respectively. After the registration the staff will see where to go from there. “We will give it a go and if it has great turnout it will be something that we introduce
into our regular season and double-eliminatio n ,” R e i d said. Although, the intramural sports generate a lot of student interests, the UREC also offers many other programs. “We have a lot of fitness classes that are offered in the spring semester,” Jodi Jackson, Manager of Fitness, said. “Usually it is really busy coming back from the holidays and the fitness classes are super busy.” The fitness classes are free for all students and need only to complete a participant info form. A total of 19 classes are offered. Among the newest are Hip-Hop Fitness, which is a Zumba based workout, and Cycle, Core and More, which has 20 minutes of cycling, ab workouts and yoga. “Our first priority is to strive for participant safety,”
Jackson said. “The goal we try to achieve is for students to relieve stress from classes and to be healthy and active.” Mrs. Jackson and a few of her student fitness instructors attend the TexFIT Collegiate Fitness Conference. The conference, hosted by Texas A&M University, allows universities to bring their own workouts and demonstrate them to other schools. “From the conference we have acquired the workouts Foam and Flex Yoga, High Intensity Interval Training, and No Equipment, No Problem,” Jackson said.S All of the classes are student-based with the fitness instructors being paid students. “You don’t have to be into sports to participate with us. Typically, we find something each student is going to like,” Reid said.
Outdoor Adventures hits the slopes
Photos contriubuted by Sydney Wegner Above: ASU skiers Ian Brown, Sydney Wegner, Matthew Cummings, Rebecca Key and Dustin White hit the slopes for some winter fun. The trip was hosted by UREC. Below: The skiers and snowboarders pose for a silly photo before heading down the hill.
The University Recreation club spent part of their winter break skiing, snowboarding and enjoying the cold weather in Angel Fire, New Mexico.
You may reach outdoor adventure by calling 325-942-2034 or email adventures@angelo.edu.
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FEATURES
1.22.2016
Professor receives funding for research Dr. William Taylor of the Security Studies department awarded two grants Chris Cole Staff Writer
W
riting in the field of academia can not only be time-consuming. It can also be costly. Financial complications can hinder the most diligent of researchers, delaying the publication of books or preventing them from being written altogether. This is not the case for Dr. William Taylor, a professor in the department of Security Studies and Criminal Justice here at ASU. Taylor has been graciously awarded two grants to help with his independent research and to fund his excursions to two Presidential Libraries this year. The grants, a 2016 Dwight D. Eisenhower Foundation Research Grant and a 2016 Moody Research Grant from the Lyndon B. Johnson Foundation, will be available to assist Taylor when traveling to the Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library in Austin, Texas and the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library in Abilene, Kansas. “This type of research requires travel to an archive,” Katie Plum, Director of Sponsored Projects here at Angelo State said, “Archives aren’t a neat, tidy website on the internet but rows and rows of boxes of information and documents that haven’t been scanned and may not have even been looked at since the person drafted it, you just never know.” Plum has been at ASU for eight years and helps notify individuals of
funding opportunities and assist them in organizing their applications. She makes sure applicants understand what is expected of them and their proposals and how to navigate some of the unfamiliar territory involved in the process. “These grants will help offset the cost of Dr. Taylor traveling to these destinations,” Plum said. Taylor will be visiting these Presidential Libraries to pour over the vast amount of primary sources in researching his book, In Defense of Democracy: American Military Service from World War II to Operation Enduring Freedom. The book is set to be published in fall 2016 through the University Press of Kansas. “The main challenge is the vast expanse of primary sources at any presidential library,” Taylor said. “Even a smaller one typically contains several million documents, so understanding the library’s holdings before arriving is critical to a productive research trip. It is also important to engage the professional archivists at the libraries prior to and during a research visit to leverage their detailed understanding of where relevant records might be located in the archives.” Requiring numerous hours of document examination and analysis, Taylor’s research trip will take him to Austin and Kansas late this spring and early summer.
Photo by Josh Lopez Taylor stands representing the security studies department for the new semester.
Queens of volleyball court win academic and athletic awards in best season yet Mallory Blauser and Head Coach Waddington discuss last season Alana Edgin Managing Editor
O
pponents were struck down left and right by the Rambelle volleyball team this season. Match after match the Belles set themselves up for what has been a successful, record breaking season for the 39th year of ASU’s volleyball program. “This was one of the best years we’ve ever had in volleyball history here at Angelo State,” Head Coach Chuck Waddington said. “We got to host the regional, which we’ve never done before. We had three All-Americans
and it was pretty awesome.” Not only have the Belles made program firsts, but they brought in a slew of awards due to their 33-6 win/loss record. Multiple Lone Star Conference Players of the Week, three All-Americans, one All-Regional and more show the athletic prowess of the Belles. “We had a lot of girls on our team not only get athletic ability awards but academic awards as well,” outside hitter Mallory Blauser said. “Coach really instills in us that our main focus is academics and we work just as hard on that as we do on the court.” Several of the Belles took a spot on the commissioner’s honor roll for the Lone Star Conference and Katie MacLeay, libero and recent graduate made her mark in the school’s history academically as well as winning Homecoming Queen. “Katie MacLeay won a ton of
academic awards,” Waddington said. “She was the Lone Star Conference’s Academic Player of the Year and an academic All-American. She’s the first player in Angelo State history to be both and AVC All-American and an Academic All-American, first team.” “[Fans] should expect the same success at our home gym,” Blauser said. “We only lost one match this whole year in our home gym. The crowd was a huge part of that. We love it when people come out and support.” Waddington also attributes this season’s success to the supporting fans, especially during the regional meet. “We played in front of 1,500 people three nights in a row and that was pretty awesome,” Waddington said. “Our senior leadership was excellent this year and our best players on the team were our hardest workers. That is always a sign of a championship level team.”
Photos by Summer Almaguer Rambells fight hard last season in the pink out game against A&M Commerce Lions with a win.
Among the team’s goals for last season was the desire to win conference, the conference meet and the regional meet. Out of these three, they accomplished one by winning the conference meet for the first time in 23 years. They were second in overall conference and surpassed the previous years by going to the championship in regionals. This was also the first season in program history where the Belles hosted the regional meet. “We accomplished goals we haven’t been able to accomplish as a program in a while like winning the conference tournament,” Blauser said. “Hopefully we will put ourselves in the same position and will be able to host regionals again.” Blauser also gives the defensive players credit for being solid year after year and is proud that the offensive end started to heat up this season. “I think if we are able to do that again, then we’ll have a successful year,” Blauser said. “I think a big reason of why we were so successful this last year was because a lot of us played the year before. This is pretty much the same core group of girls and we will have two years of experience together.” The team also faced adversity due to injuries. At one point, the Belles were down three starters yet still managed to win the two games while the injured Belles sat out. After all of the success from this year, Waddington expects next season to be even better. “We compete at the highest level every year,” Waddington said. “We want to host the regional again and we want to go to an Elite Eight and those are all within reach for us.” Returning players for the Belles will be outside hitters Blauser and Brianna Sotello, two setters, Abbie Lynn, Morgan Seaton and all defensive specialists. “It was a great year from start to finish,” Blauser said.
1.22.2016
OPINIONS
Page 5
Ready for the challenges ahead
Hanna Schindler Editor
A
s of late, journalism has become my biggest hobby, my most laborious homework and my most recent love. I had yet to discover the art of journalism as of two years ago, and if you told me then that I would be offered the position I now hold, I wouldn’t have believed you, but would thank you for presenting me with such a dreamy proposition. When I was being considered for the position as Editor-in-Chief, I started doing some research about our campus newspaper and discovered something obvious but still unanticipated by me. Angelo State is old and so is the Ram Page! The campus newspaper was founded in 1936 and has its own Wikipedia page, who knew? If that doesn’t make this newspaper more legitimate, I don’t know what will. With that being said, I want the readership to embrace the paper’s history and purpose. I know many students who regularly ignore the printed publication, and that’s okay. I admit that before I
switched my major to Mass Media, I hadn’t ever picked up a copy of the newspaper. That got me thinking about what a college newspaper should be, and how to make it more appealing to the student body. This semester, I hope to make the Ram Page something that students want to pick up and read. The Ram Page staff and I intend to revamp the newspaper and give it a fresh, modern aesthetic, as well as improve content. We want to include stories that will better represent the wonderfully diverse student body here. We will address things that are going on locally as well as world-wide and affirm student’s voices. I will make sure we work on the physical newspaper as well as online content, in order to contend in this fast-paced world of media consumption. Further, I intend to work on eventually creating and implementing a Ram Page application for smart devices. Along with these ideas, I am openminded to hearing and working on so much more. I want this student-run paper to advance to the next level and I feel that the more diversity the paper includes, the better it will be. It is an absolute honor to have been tapped as the Editor-in-Chief for the spring semester at the Ram Page. I know I will learn so much over the course of my time as Editor and will strive to do the position all the justice it deserves. I couldn’t be more excited for the experiences to come. Thank you Angelo State University!
Addicted over winter break
Alana Edgin Managing Editor
R
ecently, I have discovered something about myself. I learned that I have an addiction. This addiction consumes my days off and my time between studying. I should be able to stop but I just can’t. Night after night, episode after episode, I stay awake. My addiction goes by the name of Bones. When winter break first began and I had a day off from work, I foolishly decided to watch a new series on Netflix. I had finished the Flash and needed an emotional break from the hours spent watching Supernatural. So, I scrolled through the series section and knew I wanted a cop-like show. Castle, NCIS and more I had already watched came up when the addiction first appeared. I looked at it and thought, “this sounds like Rizzoli and Isles.” So I clicked the button for episode one. Really, I should’ve known better.
Starting a new season is like ordering a large cookie pizza all for yourself. You have to finish it all or you feel like you wasted your time and money. I set up my laptop on the couch, plugged in my headphones and began my descent into the marrow of Bones. The show made me laugh from the start as Dr. Temperance Brennan showed qualities similar to Big Bang Theory and the wonderful Detective Beckett from Castle. While the show has many similarities to other shows I love, it also had many traits that were its own. Brennan isn’t just super intelligent with social skills that aren’t always tactful, she is easily fascinated by “cultures” such as those of child beauty pageants in one of my favorite episodes. The show also isn’t afraid to put my favorite characters in danger. I’m not going to spoil anything but just be ready. All of the characters take a turn on the chopping block. It was enough to make me stay up all night until I knew they were okay, but then the next character would be in danger. So, after many days and nights staying awake solely to watch the amazing writer and forensic anthropologist Dr. Temperance “Bones” Brennan fight crime in her own way, I realized I am easily addicted to good shows. I’d say I’m sorry, but I’m not. Now, I must go back to watch the Bones team in season five. I can’t stop now. Only six more seasons to go.
What are your goals for this semester? “To have a great semester and finish my senior year strong.”
Jasmin Andrade Senior “Probably one of them would be to not procrastinate, because I’m pretty bad at that.”
Kyla McGray Junior “To not have New Year’s resolution because they are stupid.”
Adam DeLoach Junior
“To eat healthier and make better life decisions, but I already failed at that, so do good in classes.”
Jacquelyn Turnbow Sophomore
“To finish up with my major in the next couple of years, and go into full time ministry what ever type of ministry God is calling me to.” Gavin Juarez Sophomore
Ram Page Staff Spring 2016 Angelo State University
Editor: Hanna Schindler Managing Editor: Alana Edgin Copy Editor: Dustin Dodson Online Editor: Chris Cole Layout Manager: Charlotte Lin Photo Editor: Summer Almaguer Photographer: Josh Lopez Advertising Manager: Mckena Peregrino Cartoonist: Johnny Le Staff Writer: Miguel Luna Staff Writer: Chris Cole Staff Writer: Luis Montoya Circulation Manager: Matthew Cummings Advisor: Dr. Cathy Johnson Ram Page ASU Station #10895 San Angelo, Texas 76909-0895
Editor: rampage@angelo.edu Advertising: rampageads@angelo.edu Newsroom:(325) 942-2323 Advertising: (325) 942-2040 Fax: (325) 942-2551 Member of The Texas Tech University System Associated Collegiate Press Texas Intercollegiate Press Asscoiation
PUBLISHING POLICY Published every Friday and available to students, one copy per student, the student newspaper of Angelo State University is a public forum, with its student editorial board making all decisions concerning its contents. Unsigned editorials express the views of the majority of the editorial board. Ram Page welcomes all letters. Please include your name, classification/position and a phone number and/or e-mail address for verification purposes. Letters must be signed and be no more than 350 words. The paper reserves the right to edit letters for grammar and clarity, and all letters are subject to laws governing obscenity, libel and privacy. Deadline is 5 p.m., Monday. Submission does not guarantee publication. Letters may be mailed, e-mailed or submitted at the newspaper’s office, Room 324 on the third floor of the Porter Henderson Library. Opinions in letters are not necessarily those of the staff, nor should any opinion expressed in a public forum be construed as the opinion or policy of the administration, unless so attributed.
SPORTS Freshman Richards takes first place, ranked no. 16 Page 6
Belles first meet in Wichita Falls goes well, earns awards Miguel Luna Staff Writer The Rambelles on Jan. 19th captured three provisional marks among other awards at the season’s first meet in Witcha, KA. “It was a good meet and a good start,” Coach James Reid said. The Rambelles placed fourth at their first indoor track meet of the season. In order for an athlete to receive a provisional mark they must “hit a certain time or height,” Candida Chairez, who placed fifth in the 5,000 meters, said. If an athlete receives a provisional mark, the athlete is then added to the national list and has the opportunity to compete at the national meet. Provisional standards are the B standards to get to nationals. The higher the mark the athlete receives the better the considered16 advance. The A standard is automatic qualification for the national meet. Freshman Yasmyn Richards made her first collegiate track meet a
memorable one. Richards placed first in the 60-meters with a time of 7.67. This ranks Richards No. 16 in Division II. Sophomore Kami Norton placed fourth in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.76. Norton now sits at No. 13. Kaitlin Lumpkins earned second place in high jump. The sophomore jumped a distance of 5’ 5.25,” Lumpkins ranks at No. 17. The mile relay who placed second overall with a time of 4:02.48 “ran fairly decent” and qualified to last year’s nationals, Coach Reid said. While only 14 girls competed at the meet, because not all had returned from the Winter Break, the team had several advances to finals. Even though only a small group was taken they “did a great job” considering they were competing against full teams, Coach Reid said. The entire team travelling depends on the location of the meet and the events that need to be competed in at the time. “We’re going to be working in each and every event to try to get as good as we can,” Coach Reid said, “so we’ll have an opportunity to not only win a meet but hit a mark that will allow us to get
to the national meet.” The team has their goal of winning the indoor conference championships among other expectations, Chairez said. Although the men’s team only competes in outdoor track they are preparing for their season. “I expect everybody to step up and to we’re looking to teach the young ones, so they can improve,” Luis Perez, who competed at last year’s national
1.22.2016
meet, said Perez also received the LSC Outdoor Track Athlete of the Year for 2015 The men’s team also has the goal to win conference, Perez said. “We have a really talented group of freshman and transfers and we all performed well,” Chairez said. The Rambelles will compete again on Jan. 29 at Pittsburg State University in Pittsburg, KA.
Photo by Summer Almaguer ASU runners pace themselves throughout their long distnace race.
Rams muzzle Greyhounds on their home court Team rebounds from earlier conference losses Alana Edgin Managing Editor
Photo by Summer Almaguer Stedmen Allen reaches for a lay-up against Arlington Baptist.
Ram basketball started off strong, beating team after team, and never scoring less than 70 points a game but that perfect record didn’t carry on into conference. At home on Jan. 6 at home, the Rams faced Tarleton and lost their first game in the conference opener with a score of 85-67. Next to take advantage of the Rams were the Texas A&M Commerce Lions but the men fought hard, only losing by five with a score of 93-88. Despite the two losses, the Rams charged into their next opponent. West Texas A&M Buffs were ill-prepared for the Rams, who were starving for a win for their home crowd. The men had a slow start, but rallied together in the second half.
Omari Gudul, returning senior forward, gathered the first points of the game less than a minute in. The Buffs gathered a lead, then the Rams caught up. A score of 50-40 ended the half with a Buff lead. “We’ve had a slow start in the first half of the last few games, then you look at our second halves and they’re a lot better,” Head Coach Cinco Boone said. Rams shoved their way through the Buffs with nine minutes left in the game to begin a lead they would refuse to let go of. The Rams won their first conference game on Jan. 13 with a final score of 85-75. “I thought we did a better job playing defense in the second half against West Texas A&M and we are happy with that performance,” Boone said. “Hopefully we can keep putting stretches of defense like that together and it will become contagious.” Boone and the Rams hit the road to play the Eastern New Mexico Greyhounds on Jan. 16. Feeling good from the previous win, the Rams were
ready to play. The first half began and both teams would trade the lead until it ended with a Greyhound three point shot that sealed the lead. Rams were behind by one with a score of 28-27. Greyhounds would take the second half by storm until the last minute of the game. Ram offense slowly whittled down the Greyhound lead until 39 seconds were left on the clock. Shelton Boykin, junior guard, stood at the charity stripe. His shot stayed true and the Rams scrambled to maintain the lead. One second left, and junior guard Shaquan Rhoades repeats Boykin by sending off another free throw. This sealed a two point win over the Greyhounds with a score of 70-68. After this game, Tre Bennett, senior guard, also landed a spot on the Small College Basketball Bevo Francis Top 100 watch list. On Wednesday night the Rams fought hard on the road but fell short in a close loss to Cameron University with a score of 80-79.
Don’t miss the next Rams and Rambelles basketball games on Jan. 23 at their home court Continued from BELLE page 1 team reached over 100 points in one game, and only the eighth team in program history. Baker attributes this success to recruiting. Brea Mitchell a senior guard transfer from the University of New Mexico was newly crowned Lone Star Conference Offensive Player of the Week and has made a strong impact on the team. “[Brea Mitchell] is a special player,” Baker said. “She assumed the leadership role mainly with her play and the others are falling in line.” Going in to conference play, the Belles had already racked up seven wins. When they faced Tarleton in the conference opener on Jan. 6, despite losing 94-65, they set themselves up as a good percentage shooting team. From the free-throw line the team hit 85% and has continuously built their reputation as solid shooters. “So much of winning and losing comes down to two things; rebounds and free throws and it’s something that we talk about all the time,” Baker said. “I told our team at the beginning of the year that they could be one of the best free throw shooting teams I’ve ever had. I think it’s one of our strengths and people know if they foul us, we can punish them from the free throw line.” This stellar shooting percentage played a key role in taking down the
The Rambelles play at 2 p.m. and the Rams play at 4 p.m. at the Junell Center against Midwestern State no. 1 team West Texas A&M University Buffs on Jan. 13. The Belles may not have been on the LSC radar, but by beating the Buffs they have certainly made an impression. “I told them, now you guys have done it,” Baker said. “There’s no nights off now for you because now you’ve shown what you can do.” Most teams would have celebrated a win like that as soon as the buzzer went off, but the Belles kept their cool according to Baker. “One of the things we told them at half time was when the horn goes off and we beat them, don’t celebrate, don’t jump up and down, don’t act like you won the championship,” Baker said. “It’s business as usual for us. It was a big win, and they know that. I thought they handled it pretty well for upsetting the number one team.” Belle basketball has decided to build on this win and not rest on their laurels. They knew everyone in the LSC was watching to see how they would react to taking down such a big competitor. With all the eyes on them hitting the road to face Eastern New Mexico University Greyhounds on Jan. 16, it was sure to add pressure to the team. The Belles not only built on their win by adding the Greyhounds to their win streak, but beat them by 18 points
with a final score of 79-61. Against the Greyhounds, Mitchell hit her third consecutive game in double digit points with 13. The starters had some foul trouble and the bench had their chance to shine in the second and third quarters. Returning senior post Diamalises Rivera led the team in points with 19, and with the rest of the bench, they pulled together 41 points. This showed future opponents that not only are the starters dangerous, but the bench pulls their weight.
“We can really score, which is nice,” Baker said. “There’s just not any nights off in this league. It hasn’t always been that way in the Lone Star Conference, but it is now. Baker believes college basketball is supposed to be the team who plays the best wins. If a team can go into someone else’s gym and beat them by 30 every night, that’s not fun. For Baker every possession is supposed to be monumental, and just like the Belles this season, monumental might be just
Photo by Summer Almaguer KeAnna Kelly pushes past the defense and makes her way to the basket.