Sports Sp rt ing Passi n
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Two staff members at CSU Long Beach bring a new meaning to sports journalism through their personal interests in athleticism.
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by Janel Pineda ports promises all participants at least two things: a winner and a loser; but for two men on staff at the newspapers2 program at Cal State University Long Beach this week, the value of sports goes above and beyond scores and stats. Zak Krislock, 43, and Gary Metzker, 59, have both been captivated by the universal bond that sports provide for players and audiences alike, whether on the field or from behind a television screen. They also agreed that sports provide a unique escape from reality that can be both amusing and personally profitable. “With sports, you don’t have to worry so much. This is a game. This is not life or death. This is a game,” Metzker said. “Enjoy it for what it is.” Krislock and Metzker both fell in love with sports very early in their lives. For Krislock, this sports enlightenment came when he attended his first Angels game as a child. While growing up, Krislock soothed his craving for indulgence in the sports world by playing basketball, baseball and football. He attended the University of Oklahoma, where
he was a pitcher; he went on to play minor league baseball for the Houston Astros and Chicago Cubs. Metzker, on the other hand, first became interested in sports in 1962, when he began to play baseball and basketball at every chance he got. In his freshman and sophomore years of high school, Metzker played for his junior varsity basketball team. By his junior year, he said he was “too small to make the cut” and instead decided to seek an alternative outlet for his passion. He became the statistician for his basketball team. Both Metzker and Krislock recognize the importance of sports journalism. The sports page is often the most popular, and thus the most profitable, they
agreed. Krislock attended the JEA National Convention at Portland in the spring of 1987. It was there that he wrote his first sports article and won first place for it. His mother, Konnie Krislock, is the director for the newspapers2 program and has been involved with journalism for 60 years. Her impressive journalism background combined with his own interest in sports allowed for a much easier writing experience. Krislock did not pursue sports writing professionally beyond his high school newspaper staff. “You don’t get to do both—you can’t play the game and report on it, too,” Krislock said. However, Krislock’s interest in sports journalism did not subside. He is a firm believer that
you cannot have a successful print newspaper without a good sports page. “Sports is the original reality television: it is life. We want to see what happens; we want to see the mistakes; we want to see the crash. People can identify with sports somewhere in their life and they can enjoy it,” he said. Metzker has been considerably more involved in sports journalism. He attended Concord High School in Delaware where he was a sports writer for their newspaper, The Word. At this point, he took initiative and collaborated with his local newspaper, The News Journal. Impressed with his attention to the detail of sports games, The News Journal hired him as an intern during his junior year.
“People can identify with sports somewhere in their life and they can enjoy it.”
He later obtained a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Missouri where he wrote feature stories about athletes and sent them to the athletes’ hometown newspapers. Metzker’s emphasis on reaching out to local newspapers and maintaining strong connections with hometown newspapers only highlights the unity that sports creates for people across the country. “Sports can connect two people and give them memories they’ll never forget,” Metzker said. In his own experience, sports created a generational bond— as with his father when he was growing up, and later on with his son. Whether playing sports together or watching games from home, Metzker realizes that sports has helped create powerful ties between people. Metzker also appreciates the display of talent, skill and good sportsmanship that can be gained from watching sports games and believes that many valuable lessons are learned. “It’s a joy to watch— although I hate his guts—LeBron James, for his great moves and athleticism. He can make a shot at just the right moment when his team needs him the most.”
OARing to success Incoming freshmen are receiving receving a helping hand from their senior SOAR mentors by Lauren Rodriguez and Soolgi Hong
Out of 21,730 transfer applicants, only 19 percent were accepted to Cal State University Long Beach. In order to help these students adjust, Student Orientation, Advising and Registration (SOAR) advisers host Orientation Day. According to CSULB senior Stephanie Mojica, a SOAR adviser, the program helps both freshmen and transfer students by giving campus tours, helping
students register for classes and telling students about resources, such as financial aid and housing, on orientation day. For Mojica, she was inspired to become a SOAR adviser after she went through the same orientation as many of her students. “I went through freshmen orientation super nervously, but my SOAR adviser, Nicole, showed me how awesome [school] is,” Mojica said. SOAR advisers are
essential to the CSULB experience because they are the first to interact with the incoming students, said Cody Dunn, a SOAR adviser. “We are like their first friends.” Dunn said. Nafiza Sinha Ray, an incoming student who had attended University of Miami, Miami Dade College and West Los Angeles College, transferred to CSULB for its art program. According to Ray,
she enjoyed Orientation Day and learned more about the school. “I really appreciate that we
had this opportunity,” Ray said. “A lot of schools don’t do this for their students.”