Portland State Vanguard Volume 76 Issue 25

VOLUME 76 • ISSUE 25 • OCTOBER 26, 2021

Halloween

NEWS

ARTS & CULTURE

SPORTS

PSU unites with FUMC to combat houselessness P. 4

An autumn art show of local artists P. 6

"We’re capable of beating every team in this conference” P. 10-11

CONTENTS

COVER BY MIA LEVY GUIDE FRONT COVER BY ANASTASIA PARGETT GUIDE BACK COVER BY WHITNEY GRIFFITH

NEWS THE LANDING IS OPEN!

P. 4

SUPER SPOOKY HALLOWEEN GUIDE

P. 7-16

CARES ACT UPDATE FOR PORTLAND STATE STUDENTS

P. 5

ARTS & CULTURE PORTLAND’S LOCAL ARTISTS ROLL INTO THE PORTLAND ART MUSEUM

ARTS & CULTURE A TALE OF TWO FRIDAS

P. 17

P. 6

SPORTS VIKS BEAT NORTHERN COLORADO 3-1 AND LOOK TO CONQUER THE CONFERENCE

P. 18-19

STAFF EDITORIAL EDITOR IN CHIEF Vacant

ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR Béla Kurzenhauser

MANAGING EDITOR Karisa Yuasa

ONLINE EDITOR Lily Hennings

PHOTO EDITOR Sofie Brandt

COPY CHIEF Mackenzie Streissguth

NEWS EDITOR Victoria Calderon

MULTIMEDIA EDITOR Olivia Lee

SPORTS EDITOR Eric Shelby

CONTRIBUTORS Felipe Flores Nova Johnson Allison Kirkpatrick Analisa Landeros Kat Leon Milo Loza Alberto Pujazon Tanner Todd

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY EDITOR Ryan McConnell

PRODUCTION & DESIGN CREATIVE DIRECTOR Shannon Steed

ADVISING & ACCOUNTING COORDINATOR OF STUDENT MEDIA Reaz Mahmood

DESIGNERS Whitney Griffith Mia Levy Astrid Luong Anastasia Pargett Abigail Wallhauser

STUDENT MEDIA ACCOUNTANT Maria Dominguez

TECHNOLOGY & WEBSITE TECHNOLOGY ASSISTANTS Kahela Fickle George Olson Kwanmanus Thardomrong

To contact Portland State Vanguard, email editor@psuvanguard.com

STUDENT MEDIA TECHNOLOGY ADVISOR Vacant

MISSION STATEMENT Vanguard ’s mission is to serve the Portland State community with timely, accurate, comprehensive and critical content while upholding high journalistic standards. In the process, we aim to enrich our staff with quality, hands-on journalism education and a number of skills highly valued in today’s job market.

ABOUT Vanguard, established in 1946, is published weekly as an independent student newspaper governed by the PSU Student Media Board. Views and editorial content expressed herein are those of the staff, contributors and readers and do not necessarily represent the PSU student body, faculty, staff or administration. Find us in print Tuesdays and online 24/7 at psuvanguard.com.

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @psuvanguard for multimedia content and breaking news.

WE’RE HIRING Opinion Editor International Editor News Editor EMAIL RESUME AND COVER LETTER TO EDITOR@PSUVANGUARD.COM SECTION 3

PSU Vanguard • OCTOBER 26, 2021 • psuvanguard.com

THE LANDING IS OPEN! PSU PARTNERSHIP WITH FUMC PROVIDES TEMPORARY HOUSING FOR HOUSELESS STUDENTS KAT LEON Alycia Goodenough is an accounting major here at Portland State University—and they happen to be houseless. Now a resident of the PSU Landing at First United Methodist Church (FUMC), Goodenough started living in their car when attending PSU because they lived too far away from campus. When they were not at work or school, they were sleeping in their vehicle.

Unfortunately, the story of being a houseless student is not a unique one. Michelle Harris is an intern working with the PSU Landing at FUMC. They reported that they started working with houseless students at PSU after having a personal encounter with a houseless student.

“When I was working on campus a couple of years ago, I had a student tell me that they had nowhere to live,” Harris said.

“They had just arrived on campus with no plan of where to live [and] no money for anything beyond their limited financial aid.”

That day had a significant impact on Harris. “I never wanted to not have a way to help a fellow student again,” Harris said. “Finding out that the Landing was here made me want to share it with everyone I know at PSU and help any student who needs housing.”

Portland State Vanguard had reported previously in Feb. 2021 that “PSU [had] partnered with [First United Methodist Church] to create the PSU Landing at FUMC, a shelter for PSU students

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NEWS

facing houselessness or extreme housing insecurity.”

“It was one student resident during our "soft" opening in the middle of Spring 2021," said Scott Robison, the Landing Director at FUMC. "We then fully opened this summer, a few weeks before the start of Fall term. We now have 5 student residents.”

The shelter is an emergency shelter space with access to a cot for sleeping, a place to do laundry, private showers, internet access and light snacks seven nights a week. During the day, PSU provides two meals a day from Victor’s Dining Hall free of charge for students of the Landing.

The big question, then, is if it is enough. Houselessness in Portland has always been an issue, with an estimated 4,015 people experiencing houselessness in Multnomah County as of 2019. This number was projected to worsen due to the pandemic, with an estimated increase of 40-45% across the United States. Furthermore, according to an individual who works at the Landing, “Portland has never been as welcoming and inclusive a place as many of its more privileged residents like to imagine.”

Moreover, knowledge in particular about houseless students seems to dampen PSU's efforts to help. According to a staff member, the Landing “had a bit of trouble in the past connecting with students who could really use the services we provide. Part of the problem is that one's housing status is, understandably, not always something people want to let others know about.”

Goodenough confirmed this sentiment that students often do not disclose their houseless status, and many people are unaware that they are houseless in the first place.

“I do feel that there is more that could be done to help students who are experiencing houselessness,” Harris said. “PSU already has housing on campus they could use and designate a small portion for students who are having trouble finding housing. They could help get those students into student housing at discounted rates or no cost while also helping to guide them to the resources that can help them.”

When asked about setting aside some rooms on campus back in February, Associate Vice Provost and Dean of Student Life Mike Walsh made it clear that it would be too much of a financial burden on the campus. However, PSU has space to house at least 2,200 students and, as of Fall 2020, only housed 838 students. That's a significant amount of space that's not being used.

Furthermore, Walsh previously told Vanguard that they hoped PSU would either partner with other organizations or find a way to make it work for houseless students on campus. However, according to Walsh, the Landing had not sought out other partnerships yet.

“We are still working to make this model work before we try to replicate it,” Walsh said. “It's only now that we have

students really using the resource.”

However, Walsh spoke of other individuals that can help students with houseless resources. “Our CARE Case Manager knows of off-campus resources and refers as needed,” he added. “We will also have a Basic Needs Navigator starting in January, and that person's job will be to connect students to basic needs resources both on and off-campus.”

With current availability at the Landing, PSU is still hoping to connect and place students who need this resource. According to Walsh, the easiest way to inquire is for students to "refer themselves to our CARE program either using the CARE Referral form or by calling our office or emailing us at askdos@pdx.edu to ask for an appointment with the CARE program.”

Walsh emphasized that the Landing wants to be as flexible as possible for students. “Rather than focusing on the requirements, we simply encourage students to reach out to the CARE program and have a conversation and then we can go from there,” he explained.

“The Landing is a great place and comfortable,” Goodenough said. “They could always use people who care to work there. Being houseless comes in many forms, and the best thing we can do is accept that person will get out of the situation if they want to and possibly offer avenues of support if known.”

ABOVE: EXTERIOR OF PSU LANDING. LEFT: PARTITIONS SET UP IN THE FUMC GYM FOR SEPARATE ROOMS. RIGHT: COT INSIDE OF PRIVATE GUEST ROOM. KAT LEON/PSU VANGAURD

PSU Vanguard • OCTOBER 26, 2021 • psuvanguard.com

CARES ACT UPDATE FOR PORTLAND STATE STUDENTS

AN UPDATE COULD RESULT IN STUDENTS SEEING AN

$800 DIRECT DEPOSIT VICTORIA CALDERON Last week, there was an update to the CARES Act: Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) that resulted in previously-approved applications seeing an automatic approval for up to $800, based on the last available criteria. This money would be directly deposited to the applicant, though it is possible a response email would give the option for utilizing the money toward their student account balance instead.

However, the email came rapidly with little explanation and some confusion for those who were not able to submit their application during the first round, as the original application at the start of the pandemic was evaluated via a Google Form.

Students who already met the requirements should have seen their deposit statement from PSU—or may have received their funds already—but where does that leave students who may not have met the criteria or are looking for more information?

The PSU CARES Act Emergency Fund site has more information, and applications are open as of Oct. 18. The website states that you must be an undergraduate or graduate student enrolled at PSU, and additional documentation to prove expenses will not be required based on the website. Providing information is simple enough in order to apply, mostly filling out how much of the $800 you are requesting, what expenses you are currently

PSU Vanguard • OCTOBER 26, 2021 • psuvanguard.com

struggling with (food, technology, etc.), where you are living and if you would like the funds applied to any outstanding balance.

If there is any additional information needed, the Financial Wellness Center will reach out directly. It is also important to note that applications will not impact a student’s financial aid eligibility package.

As of Sunday, Oct. 24, applications for the funding are still open to the public. While the last round of applications had awards that varied based on needs, the maximum per student for this cycle of applications is maxed at $800, and the funds do not automatically go towards your student balance, due to the money being provided by the government directly. The $800 capped limit comes at a highly reduced rate in comparison to the nearly $3,000 max per student in 2020.

The U.S. Department of Education’s website has gone over the CARES Act allotments to schools nationwide, roughly $14 billion broken down into different categories such as institutions by enrollment or direct to students. In addition, there was another $30 billion allocated to education in the same breakdown standard for institutions.

Each school has handled how it distributes and supplies the money to students differently—which is why the program at PSU

changes from utilizing a Google Form application to a well-established website. Updates to the website for the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act—which authorized the HEERF—can be found as recently as March of this year, but it is uncertain if there will be more to come, considering the sudden availability of funds. Portland State did not specify if this new round of applications is from newly allocated funds, or left over from the previous one.

The PSU site for the emergency grants has more information including the number of transactions, students and amount distributed (versus received). Currently, the site states that, to be pre-qualified for this round, a student would need to have an estimated family contribution of zero or qualify for the Pell Grant and be enrolled as of Oct. 10, 2021. Based on the numbers provided on the website, there is still roughly $20,000 available to be distributed to eligible students, so if you are a student who has not applied previously—or you believe your eligibility status may have changed—follow the instructions on the website to see if you qualify.

LOBBY OF THE FARIBORZ MASEEH HALL, WHERE PORTLAND STATE'S STUDENT FINANCIAL WELLNESS CENTER IS LOCATED. ALEX WITTWER/PSU VANGUARD

NEWS

5

"VAL D'ORCIA SUNSET" BY MICHAEL SCHLICTING. COURTESY OF THE PORTLAND ART MUSEUM

PORTLAND’S LOCAL ARTISTS ROLL INTO THE PORTLAND ART MUSEUM THE RENTAL GALLERY’S FALL ART SHOW RETURNS FOR AN IN-PERSON SHOWING TANNER TODD The first thing to strike a casual viewer looking at the works slated for exhibition at the Portland Art Museum Rental Sales Gallery’s Fall Show is the variety: hundreds of artworks, in dozens of forms and styles, hang from the walls and perch on tables, each one different from the last.

“There aren’t many galleries where you’d see three works like this all in the same space,” said Mark Tindle, the gallery’s director, as he stood in front of a huddled semicircle of paintings arranged on easels, each one unlike the last. There was pride in his voice as he introduced each piece, highlighting a Tuscan landscape here, a starkly abstract composition there.

“We like to showcase artwork in a variety of forms,” continued Tindle, handling an abstract woodwork carving with what seemed like a mixture of familiarity and curiosity. “We show everything from fine art, oils and acrylics, to crafted arts and creative pieces,” he added.

Looking around the immediate space, Tindle’s explanation is immediately self-evident. As he set the woodcarving back in its place, it rejoined its neighbors in a display that included a landscape print, a sculpted birdhouse and a photorealistic painting of a scarab, haloed by sacred geometry.

On the wall across from the display, a massive painting of the burnside bridge loomed, rendered in technically practiced, deliberate brush strokes.

Despite their differences in style, subject matter and even mediums, each of these pieces, and the nearly 250 other works planned for display on the evening of Oct. 29, have something in common: they were made in the Pacific Northwest, by local artists working in every medium available.

This makes the Fall Show a kind of con-

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ARTS & CULTURE

vergent space, with hundreds of artworks in and around Portland getting funneled into a single venue. The scope and breadth of these selections is an essential part of the gallery’s mission—to introduce as many people as possible to a wider variety of local works which might otherwise be unavailable to view in a museum, or other such accessible spaces. To this end, the gallery—owned by the Portland Art Museum—is listed as a nonprofit.

“The gallery was founded as a space for local artists to showcase their talent, and make a living from art,” Tindle explains. “Artists come to us at earlier points in their careers, and they grow through the gallery.”

In a way, the gallery can be seen as a kind of entry point for some beginning artists, with many up-and-coming local talents using the space as a stepping stone to becoming professional creatives. The Rental Sales Gallery’s mission doesn’t stop at just supporting the local artist’s community, however.

“We are providing the function of democratizing access to art, in a way that perhaps other galleries, with a pure selling-based structure, aren’t able to do,” Tindle said. “By giving people the option to rent art, people can access beautiful, original works of art and enjoy them in their homes and spaces for far less money than it would cost to purchase a piece. ” To this end, the gallery acts as a connecting space, providing accessible options for people to experience local art and local talent, which is frequently harder to find and experience in traditionally accessible spaces, such as museums or books.

Besides the geographic criteria of being made in the Pacific Northwest, the gallery’s only other benchmark is quality. Each piece in the Fall Showing is reviewed before a panel of judges, who vote on the work’s inclusion into the event. The

pieces that pass review are then pooled into a working selection that is arranged throughout the exhibit, wall by wall.

“I’m very collaborative,” explained Tindle as he discussed the gallery’s technique. “I really like to empower the volunteers who work here at the gallery, who are such an intrinsic part of the Rental Sales Gallery, to take on this work.”

Tindle and the gallery’s volunteers tend to begin a wall’s arrangement with an anchor piece, a keystone artwork that ties all the other pieces together. From this thematic center, the rest of the wall grows, in a kind of freestyle process that is as intuitive as it is systematic.

“The one kind of hard-and-fast rule that we have is that we try to ensure that as many different artists as possible are on the walls at the gallery,” Tindle said. Diversity and representation has always been a key part of the gallery’s mission but, in the last halfdecade, the need for inclusion has taken a special importance in the venue’s operations.

“We are now in a place where anything that we do must be done with great care, thought, and deliberate action,” Tindle said. “Ensuring that there is the greatest diversity of artists on show as possible is essential.”

In recent years, the gallery has put a special emphasis on the fact that in order to serve the local artistic community, it needed to act as a representative for everyone within the Portland art scene.

“We need to grow ourselves, and work with intention in representing a broader base of individuals,” Tindle said. “[Be] a space where people can come and see work from a great variety of people, whatever their background.”

As Portland itself grows and changes, with new artists moving into the region every year, the gallery’s focus on representation means that its selection changes with the city. Portland, as it becomes

larger and more cosmopolitan, has also expanded the breadth and depth of its pool of artistic talent.

The gallery is in a unique position to showcase this change, as the selection of works on display is continually rotating.

“The gallery is always refreshing the artworks that we hold,” Tindle said. “New works are coming in all the time. One of the great things about it is it’s not a static collection.”

Because of this, seasonal events like this year’s Fall Show represent snapshots of a changing artistic landscape. For a brief night, the current arrangement of the gallery’s collection is frozen in time, and displayed for all to see before the cycle of changing pieces resumes.

This year’s showing, though, is unique. Because of the timing of the pandemic, the last time the gallery had an in-person exhibition was in 2019, under the dedicated care of Jennifer Zika, the gallery’s former director, who unexpectedly passed away in March 2021.

This year’s Fall Show will also act as a celebration of her memory, which will be recognized with a moment to appreciate her contribution and the enduring legacy in the space of the gallery. More than just stories and shared recollections, Zika’s enduring impact expresses itself tangibly on the shape of the gallery’s day-to-day operations.

“Focus on the fun,” recalls Tindle of her teachings. “Focus on the fact that this is a place of human connection, inspired by beautiful artworks. Remember that we are part of a wider community here.”

At its core, this is the key function of the Fall Show’s in-person format: to take different elements of the community, whether they be artists, patrons, critics or just curious bystanders and put them in a room together, to appreciate what is on the walls— Portland art, by Portland artists.

PSU Vanguard • OCTOBER 26, 2021 • psuvanguard.com

PSU Vanguard • OCTOBER 26, 2021 • psuvanguard.com

SECTION ANASTASIA PARGETT

7

Halloweentown A LITTLE SLICE OF

HORR-OREGON VICTORIA CALDERON

SHANNON STEED

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HALLOWEEN GUIDE

When it comes to Halloween, many flock to Oregon yearly to visit the Spirit of Halloweentown—located in our very own St. Helens. Many people didn’t even know that the far-away fantasy land filled with magic, known from the Disney Channel classic Halloweentown, actually exists a short drive from Portland!

Every year since the film, the locals of St. Helens have transformed their town to recreate the beauty from the franchise that is so close to many people’s hearts, allowing people to share the magic from generation to generation. The town looks forward to hosting every year and even supports tourism, by providing free parking for those shopping and spending money at local businesses.

Aside from the beautiful scenery and the recreation of the titular town itself, there’s also tons to do. There is currently a haunted hotel, self-guided walking tours, a giant pumpkin totem on display, a mysterious dark market, the so-called “whispers in the woods” and—last but not least—walking with pumpkins! The small businesses are also open all along the riverfront. The events are all familyfriendly and encourage all ages to celebrate—a great time to explore and learn more about St. Helens and the once-peryear transformation.

Halloweentown is just one of the major franchises that shares some of its scenery of St. Helens. Another beloved favorite that has its hooks in the area—Twilight.

A couple notable locations are actually located in this beloved town: the dress shop where Bella first finds herself in danger and her father Charlie’s house.

Actually, Charlie’s house is a real place that you can rent, though it’s booked out until 2024. Both the Twilight and Halloweentown films have led to a boom in St. Helens’ tourism industry during the month of October—though some sites can be visited year-round.

During 2020, many people simply didn’t get the Halloween they expected.

This small town’s incredibly immersive experience will be taking place through the end of the month, giving everyone a chance to enjoy the sinister season.

While open on weekdays, the special events tend to happen on weekends. For the final weekend, watch the trick-or-treater parade or get an autograph signed on Oct. 31 by Sophie (Emily Roeske) from Halloweentown or Emmett (Kellan Lutz) from Twilight (tickets available on their site). A great send off for pumpkin season!

PSU Vanguard • OCTOBER 26, 2021 • psuvanguard.com

THE GREATEST SHOW OF THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST

WHY YOU SHOULD WATCH TWIN PEAKS

BÉLA KURZENHAUSER In regards to a canon of Pacific Northwestbased filmmaking, little attention has been given to the selection of television shows produced in the region. While works of the 2010s era like Grimm and Portlandia have secured themselves a reputation as cultural touchstones of the PNW, relics of the 1990s like Nowhere Man and Northern Exposure are frequently excluded from conversation.

Indeed, 31 years ago, the groundwork was laid in Snoqualmie, Washington, for a show the likes of which television had never seen before—a show whose legacy would surpass two decades of cancellation, clawing its way back from the grave for a triumphant return in the form of an apocalyptic third season helmed by its two original creators. Those two creators are David Lynch and Mark Frost, and the show is Twin Peaks.

Twin Peaks’ reputation both as a landmark in television history and as a foundational masterpiece of its medium easily precedes itself, and the dynamism of the show as it evolved over the 27 years it spanned ensures that any creative or cultural discourse will be focused on the enigmatic silhouette the show casts.

While Twin Peaks represented the oncoming explosion of what would become known as “prestige television” as it crested the early 1990s, it also spurred an entire subculture of fan-driven theorizing and obsessing years before cerebral mystery shows broke into television’s mainstream. For over three decades, people have mulled over the unanswered questions gestated by Twin Peaks’ 48 episodes—what exactly is the red room? Who, or what, is Phillip Jeffries? And, perhaps most importantly: who really killed Laura Palmer?

As such, while we find ourselves situated in the midst of yet another brisk and chipper autumn in the Pacific Northwest, one may argue that the changing of the leaves signals the start of a Twin Peaks binge. Tragically, the show was taken off Netflix in July, so you’ll have to head to Hulu, Paramount+ or Showtime—which is the exclusive platform for the show’s third and final season—in order to engulf yourself in the show’s onslaught of dramatic tension and secrecy.

The rose-red hues—a trademark of 80s and 90s television cinematography—of the first two seasons seem to stamp the show with a viscerally autumnal feel that is echoed by the atmosphere: a microcosm of Cascadian geography, with a towering enclosure of waterfalls and forests dominating the quaint logging town of Twin Peaks, Washington.

Despite the show’s premise—focused on the murder of Laura Palmer, a high school girl whose history and presence seems to be less opaque than her friends and family thought—the story never seems

to situate itself in the kind of dreariness and despondency common in other murder-mysteries. Rather, the colorful cast of characters, in combination with the sincere juxtaposition of tragedy and comedy frequently found within Lynch’s work, manages to give Twin Peaks a somewhat light-hearted atmosphere that doesn’t minimize the darkness and sadness present within the plot. If anything, Twin Peaks is a show about grief and reckoning, as the unexpected death of a seemingly-innocent young girl reveals an underbed of supernatural conspiracy and corruption rotting the roots of the town and rocking the collective world of its inhabitants.

Lynch and Frost have always been adamant that Twin Peaks was never really about a murder, and was actually more about the lives and relationships of Twin Peaks’ denizens. As each person associated with Laura attempts to reckon with their grief and trauma surrounding her death, they come to terms with understanding how they fit into the world around them. Twin Peaks arrived on public broadcast television at a time when youth became synonymous with disillusionment, and after three seasons, Laura’s murder still hangs over the town like a fog, even as the supernatural and mythological themes of the show become increasingly prominent. It is as if to understand the unexplainable death, one must understand the cosmic entirety of existence.

PSU Vanguard • OCTOBER 26, 2021 • psuvanguard.com

While Twin Peaks may falter at times, particularly in the second half of its second season due to Lynch’s departure from the writers’ room after creative disputes with CBS, it never manages to lose sight of its own identity. While the show was dramatically cancelled in 1992, leaving an unfinished conclusion alongside the prequel film Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me, 25 years later it descended from the heavens like a fallen angel for a third and (likely) final season. What followed was 18 episodes of pure abstract insanity the likes of which television had never seen; a reconstruction of everything the medium stood for and a complete rebuilding of what people previously understood Twin Peaks to be.

The season—aptly subtitled The Return—was declared by many to be one of the finest works of art ever produced, and polemically criticized by others as a farcical mess of unanswered questions and experimental filmmaking. Regardless, it is indisputable that The Return is a bold and creative tour-de-force whose artistic eccentricities are perfectly representative of the evolution of television throughout history.

The TV medium is stranger than ever, with streaming shepherding a new era of television less artistically bound to the pastiches of network broadcasting, and if anything, The Return feels like a striking response to the questions of where television will go in the future.

It proposes strange concepts and alienating

narratives, but instead of provoking its audience to pull apart its machinery, it asks them to simply marinate in the journey.

The answers to the show’s aforementioned questions, at least abiding by Lynch and Frost’s artistic philosophy, are simple: they have none.

Such a statement might seem like a deflating disappointment for a show framed around a mystery, but to be clear here, the show presents answers to many of these questions, but parametrizes them as mere raindrops amidst a torrential storm. In any other show, the grand reveal of a mystery would arrive at the culmination of a season, cracking open the world’s narrative through some seismic explosion of twists and betrayals. Here, however, every epiphany is tinged with a sense of grief and tragedy, as though the inhabitants of Twin Peaks are merely pawns entangled within some cosmic scheme of fate and destiny.

There are few shows and few works of mystery artistry that are as intricate and thoughtprovoking as what Twin Peaks and its modest depiction of the Cascadian landscape bring to the television screen. So, if you’re itching for the mind-shattering binge of a lifetime, then get a slice of cherry pie and a damn fine cup of coffee and strap in for the sometimes-tragic, sometimes-heartwarming but always-mystifying masterpiece that is Twin Peaks.

HALLOWEEN GUIDE

9

5TH AVENUE CINEMA PRESENTS THE RETURN OF

TWILIGHT

TANNER TODD Unless you were asleep for the better part of the early 2000’s, you probably remember the Twilight series. Maybe you remember it as the sole topic to occupy the high school hallway grapevine, or as a series of increasingly melodramatic scenes acted out on the playground the way some people perform Shakespeare in the park.

Perhaps, it made its way into your family home, with a parent or sibling sheepishly burying their faces in one of the tetralogy’s dense pages. There’s even a good chance you read it yourself, becoming one of the 12% of U.S. adults to read it.

As was inevitable for the time, they made it into a movie. Featuring a star-studded cast in pale makeup that included the likes of Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson, the 2008 adaptation picked up on the book’s already-soaring popularity and cemented the franchise into a cultural phenomenon.

People loved it, people hated it, but everyone seemed to be talking about it. The teen vampire bubble expanded on the waves of the franchise’s success, as each of the novels was adapted into a movie format, for a combined global gross of over $2.5 billion.

Eventually, the bubble burst, and people moved on to other things. Fast forward to now, 13 years after the first film installment was released, and Twilight has moodily sauntered back into our local collective consciousness by way of 5th Avenue Cinema, which screened the movie over the second weekend of October. For the PSU-based student-operated theater, which normally programs obscure indie films, the Twilight screening is a bit of a departure from its usual content, and the fact that it made it into the lineup at all repre-

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HALLOWEEN GUIDE

THIRTEEN YEARS LATER, THE FILM GRACED THE SILVER SCREEN FOR A WEEKEND

sents something of a serendipitous accident.

When a distribution issue tanked a film’s availability in the fall lineup, 5th Avenue Staff were left with a gaping hole in the schedule to fill. During a discussion with distributors to acquire Twilight for another theater location that specialized in blockbuster reruns, they made a surprising discovery—Twilight, or so the distributors claimed, was available in 35-millimeter format for distribution. “[The distributors] ended up telling us ‘oh, we have it on 35’ so we just decided to just make it a part of the main program and fill that slot,” said Nayeli Naranjo-Robles, who helps oversee the theater’s programming. For the staff at 5th Avenue, the key detail of 35mm availability for Twilight qualified it to slip into the programming alongside the likes of films such as Mala Noche and The Piano Teacher.

Unfortunately, due to further distribution problems and shipping miscommunications, the precious canisters of film

imprinted with Edward and Bella’s likenesses didn’t make it to the theater in time. “ We were waiting and waiting for it to come through in the mail, and then just yesterday morning an email came in and they were like ‘well, actually we don’t have it,’” Naranjo-Robles said. “So...we are showing it on digital.”

Incidents like these, while unfortunate, do highlight the often-overlooked obstacles faced by small, independent movie theaters. “We are at the whims of the distributors,” NaranjoRobles concluded.

“It’s just how it goes...but the showing, for me, that’s the most important thing, for people to be able to see it for free,” added Owen Peterson, another event programmer.

35-millimeter format or not, Twilight still packs a punch in the cultural nostalgia department. For some of the event programming technicians (and much of the audience), Twilight recalls visceral memories of the early 2000’s Twilight fever, which swept across U.S. middle and high schools thirteen years ago.

“I remember people in my class would like, reenact the scenes on the playground, and it was like this huge deal for months,” Peterson said.

“It’s a strange experience, watching them,” said projectionist Catie Godula. “They take themselves so seriously that it becomes like this weird pseudo-comedy.”

Godula’s experience of the movie seemed to be shared by the theater’s audience, which provided a veritable laugh-track to the night’s screening. Popcorn and ginger beer in hand, the student crowd cackled as Edward Cullen gazed lustfully across the biology desk at teen heroine Bella Swan, and they practically roared when a white makeup-covered Edward delivered a soliloquy of Shakespearean proportions while dangling comically from a tree.

Besides the cheap laughs, people were clearly enjoying being back in the space of the theater after pandemic closures made traditional movie-going impossible. Across the venue, they enthusiastically crinkled their popcorn bags and tore open candy wrappers with a special gusto, and the film’s absurd dialogue and convoluted plot points allowed ample opportunity for theater-goers to giggle witticisms into their neighbor’s ears.

By the end of the night, as Bella Swan danced on the undead feet of Edward Cullen, Peterson’s recommendation rang true: “Just come in with an open mind,” he said earlier that night, “and you’ll probably have a good time...it’s pretty hilarious.”

BELLA SWAN REACTS IN CONFUSION TO EDWARD CULLEN'S SUDDEN DISGUST IN A SCENE FREQUENTLY MADE INTO A MEME FROM TWILIGHT. COURTESY OF SUMMIT ENTERTAINMENT.

PSU Vanguard • OCTOBER 26, 2021 • psuvanguard.com

THE HISTORY OF

SAMHAIN THE PAGAN HOLIDAY

RYAN MCCONNELL Pronounced “SAH-win,” or /saʊɪn/ for those who study the International Phonetic Alphabet, Samhain is a Sabbath from Oct. 31–Nov. 1 to honor ancestors, celebrate the harvest of crops and mark the beginning of the dark half of the year.

Many pagans and Wiccans believe this is also a period when the barrier between the physical and spiritual worlds is at its thinnest.

Earliest known practitioners come from the ancient Celts; druid priests would light a community fire using a wheel to spark friction and flames. This wheel was a representation of the sun

and renewal. Many additional aspects of this holiday symbolize death and rebirth.

A common myth associated with Samhain is that the holiday’s name is derived from a Celtic deity of death. However, Celts from Wales, Ireland and Scotland had different cultural interpretations of death and afterlife that don’t find direct comparisons in of many of the Abrahamic religions that came later in the region’s history.

Arawn would be the closest example of a Celtic god of the underworld, although even the understanding of the underworld is

misconstrued. He was known as a skilled magician who resided as the Lord of Annwn, a Welsh otherworld described throughout ancient texts and folklore. It is believed that Annwn presents many similarities to the Arthurian legend of Avalon.

Another deity often described as the Celtic Goddess of Death would be the Morrigan. The Morrigan has been variously interpreted throughout history and folklore, but she is often associated with war, battle, fate and death. She is a triple goddess, appearing in many tales alongside her sisters Badb and Macha, although the Morrigan can sometimes refer to all three deities together.

None of these deities are usually associated with Samhain, at least not directly. Samhain, for many pagans and Wiccans, is the opportunity to celebrate and honor whichever deities they worship, as this holiday represents the best time to communicate with entities from the otherworld.

Dumb Supper—a meal held in silence to honor the deceased and invite ancestral spirits to the table—is now celebrated as part of Samhain. The ritual offers a time to commune with lost loved ones and celebrate the turning of a new year together, not dissimilar to Día de los Muertos.

As Christianity made its way into previously pagan communities, church leaders attempted to reframe Samhain as a Christian celebration, first declaring the celebration be moved to May 13 as a way to celebrate saints and martyrs. By the ninth century, Pope Gregory moved this celebration back to its original timeframe in autumn, declaring Nov. 1 to be All Saints’ Day and Nov. 2 to be All Souls’ Day. This reframing did little to change the pagan roots of the tradition that continue to exist today. Oct. 31 became known as All Hallows Eve, retaining long-held traditions before it was widely adopted as Halloween in the 19th-century United States through Irish immigration and cultural migration.

Many of the gimmicks in modern-day Halloween come from the Celtic practices leading up to this time of year.

The most notable aspects of trick-or-treating, such as dressing up and going door-to-door, come from an Irish and Scottish tradition known as guising. Children would go door-to-door, singing songs, reciting poems, telling jokes or performing tricks, and collect fruits, nuts or coins as a treat.

Halloween pranks, while also originating from Samhain celebrations, existed but were often blamed on fairies.

While Halloween developed from Samhain, the pagan revivals that reintroduced Wicca and Druidism in the 1980’s have indoctrinated Samhain as a religious practice, separate from the U.S. celebration.

Dumb Suppers, communal practices and religious bonfires are only some of the many traditions that Wiccans and pagans practice on this holiday. Known as Summer’s End, it is a way for practitioners to reflect on the year, honor loved ones and invoke new opportunities moving forward.

A TRADITIONAL IRISH TURNIP JACK-O'-LANTERN FROM THE EARLY 20TH CENTURY. RANNPHÁIRTÍ ANAITHNID/MUSEUM OF COUNTRY LIFE, IRELAND.

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HALLOWEEN GUIDE

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ST. JOHN'S BRIDGE VIEWED FROM CATHEDRAL PARK. TANNER TODD/PSU VANGUARD

Portland's HAUNTED PLACES FELIPE FLORES Have you ever wondered why some moments, both ephemeral and temporary, make you feel unsettled, as if some undetected force is present?

This intuition doesn't normally come with conscious reasoning, but is our body's way of telling us that something is off. This instinctive feeling can become deep and sometimes incurable—staying with you from place to place.

In that ethos, we currently find ourselves subscribed to a stretch of Pacific Northwest autumn weather, which brings a wealth of gloomy darkness, saturated greys and harsh shadows to the region. Paired with Portland’s historic indelible folklore, we quickly find plenty of spaces, places and things in October that appear to have a bump in the night written all over them.

EXTERIOR OF THE HEATHMAN HOTEL. ALBERTO ALONSO PUJAZON BOGANI/PSU VANGUARD

CATHEDRAL PARK BRIDGE

One of the more melancholy tales comes from 1949 via the Cathedral Park Bridge, and a horrific teenage kidnapping.

Known for its sweeping gothic arches, Highway 308 and its elongated section above the east shore of the Willamette River commonly frames some of Portland’s more iconic scenic landscapes. While sweeping restoration projects have developed over the years, the park has still retained a rather ghostly chattering effect when occupying the spaces beneath—partly due to the materiality of the bridge and the geometry of its structure.

However, at the time of the Roosevelt High School student abduction, sections of the beach underneath it rife with junk and foliage spreading uncontrollably. Police subsequently found the missing teen seven days later under a pile of driftwood. Now, some 70 years later, it is said that you can still hear a person screaming out for help at night.

In June of 1980, the park decided to seal a time capsule into one of the walls of Memorial Garden with plans for opening it slated for 2030.

Given the fascination that people have with both the past and the future, we should be wary of what's in store.

THE BENSON HOTEL

Simon Benson, the philanthropist who made his mark in the timber industry, is at the center of another eerie materialization.

His iconic “Benson Bubblers” pepper Portland’s downtown streets, his childhood home is stilted and preserved on the corner of SW 11th and Clay.

Yet something is left undone—something is still incomplete—with a man dressed in a dark suit coat and hat in a constant state, place and condition of transition.

This takes us to The Benson Hotel, which made USA Today’s list of most haunted hotels in the world. Opened in 1913 and quartered with 287 rooms, Benson successfully ran the operation of the building himself for seven years, establishing a world-class hotel during the first half of the 20th century, which saw periods of prohibition and dramatic social and political change.

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HALLOWEEN GUIDE

A known supporter of prohibition, Benson has been accused of battering guests’ drinks, silently observing ongoings of business travelers in meeting rooms and skirting the boundaries of the hotel’s two chandeliered cathedral ballrooms.

Maybe Benson still disagrees with inebriant behavior, maybe he wants to ensure his hotel retains its venerable demeanor—in either case, if you ever find yourself on the grounds of The Benson Hotel, be mindful of its host.

THE HEATHMAN HOTEL

The Heathman Hotel, constructed in 1927, is a 10-story concrete structure wrapped in a brick façade that continues to cause unrest while providing swanky accommodations in a nationally registered historic landmark.

Located at the edge of Portland’s downtown Cultural District on SW Broadway, its connections to the number three and ghostly encounters run extraordinarily deep. Pair these connections with one of the oldest remaining buildings in Portland, and you get a hot spot of activity between its urban intersections.

Despite its zeal and luster, unseen movements continue to assemble, massing in every space of their guest’s occupation. Over the years, stories at the Heathman have continued with a common thread—screams can be heard in rooms ending in the number three. Ultimately, one of these cantilevered spirits exposed its tracery, and a staff member was able to snap a picture. Today, that photo still hangs in the employee break room, encapsulating a vision of the past, cementing its remains.

With guests reporting persistent spiritual misgivings throughout the property, management has yet to uncover its root cause, leaving those who enter to determine how much angst they can handle.

What we have found in these stories, like many, is that dredging up the tales of the past can make their folklore more ambiguous, alarming and chilling than originally perceived.

Preparing yourself for the chills that go along with brushes of death, sorrow and obscurity have become all too easy to attain in the origins and traditions of Halloween.

PSU Vanguard • OCTOBER 26, 2021 • psuvanguard.com

SUITE LIFE OF ZACK AND CODY TELEVISION SERIES. COURTESY OF DISNEY+

How to have a very

DISNEY SPOOKY SEASON KARISA YUASA Growing up as a Disney kid meant that every year, from October to December, the TV was tuned in as my sister and I awaited themed Disney Channel Original Movie replays and new special episodes of our favorite shows. Over the years, I have compiled personal favorites that bring on the nostalgic feeling, but I haven’t actually sat down to watch any in a long time. As we come up on the two-year anniversary of the wonderful existence of Disney+, which has let me go back and watch some of these, I present to you my list of the most iconic, underrated and/or cringey spooky-themed episodes and movies to cozy up to this season.

SERIES HALLOWEEN SPECIALS

Everyone that grew up watching Disney Channel in the early 2000s knows that this list could not be complete without the infamous Suite Life of Zack and Cody episode, “The Ghost of Suite 613.”

These 24 minutes alone are the reason this list exists in the first place, as 16 years later the episode still lives up to its nostalgic feeling. The episode brought together the entire cast for a night of frights that gave my little kid self nightmares. After rewatching it as a 20-year-old, however, I have to argue that it is not just the nostalgia speaking, and it is still a quality piece of Disney Channel history.

Even if you don’t want to take it from me, take it from the 2011 MTV article titled “How The Suite Life Of Zack And Cody’s Halloween Episode Changed Everything,” in which the author stated, “Out of all 87 episodes produced during The Suite Life of Zack and Cody’s threeseason run, one is responsible for making the series last as long as it did.”

There are more blast-from-the-past Disney Channel Halloween episodes that also hit the mark, like season one, episode 15 of Phil of the Future, in which Kay Panabaker plays a cyborg named Debbie that forces students to make 50,000 cupcakes without stopping.

Although not the scariest thing I’ve seen in my life, this episode was not made for a comedic effect, and I know my childhood self would probably not be sleeping well after watching this.

Some episodes of Disney’s past have not stood the test of time quite as well. For instance, That’s So Raven’s season two Halloween episode titled “Have a Cow,” in which Raven and Chelsea turn into cows on Halloween, misses the mark. Chelsea, a vegetarian, accidently eats a burger with meat and immediately stresses while Raven jumps up to say, “That’s terrible...I almost ate something healthy.” Despite my love for the show as a whole, I do have to say that the episode has not aged very well and was utterly disappointing.

In slightly more recent Disney Channel episodes, A.N.T. Farm’s “MutANT Farm” episode was conceptually really strong, as it was a remake of the pilot episode with a fun, spooky Halloween twist. K.C. Undercover’s “All Howl’s Eve,” which premiered in 2015, was a quality Halloween special as well. Zendaya also stars in it, so what is there not to love?

DISNEY CHANNEL ORIGINAL MOVIES

Disney Channel Original Movies, or DCOMs, are iconic, and there is one for basically every occasion. The first official DCOM was a spooky movie titled Underwraps (1997), in which a group of kids accidentally revive a mummy and

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must race the clock to return him to his final resting place before midnight on Halloween. Although the original movie is not available on Disney+, a remake by the same name which premiered this month is.

In terms of Halloween DCOMs, the big name is the Halloweentown franchise. The movie and its three sequels were filmed in St. Helens, Oregon. The film continues to be a Halloween staple, despite the final sequel, Return to Halloweentown, premiering 15 years ago.

Despite Halloweentown’s success, I always took on the controversial opinion growing up that the superior Halloween DCOM franchise was Twitches—and Twitches Too—that premiered in 2005 and 2007. I desperately wanted to add them to the list of must-watch movies, but due to the fact that it has been over a decade since I have seen either of them, I needed to do more research.

I will not go as far as to agree with film critic David Nusair from Reel Film Reviews, who states that “Twitches is ultimately as bland and forgettable as one might’ve expected—with the film’s various problems exacerbated by the distinctly underwhelming performances (though the Mowry sisters are personable enough, they simply cannot act).”

However, watching it as an adult has given me a different perspective.

Given the main characters are supposed to be close in age with myself, I felt the movie didn’t work as much as I had hoped it would—and how I remembered it did. It was cringey at its finest and although I still love it for the nostalgia factor, in terms of quality content, you might just want to stick to Halloweentown.

A personal guide to the Disney Channel nostalgia

HALLOWEEN GUIDE

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ANASTASIA PARGETT

SHANNON STEED

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HALLOWEEN GUIDE

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WHITNEY GRIFFITH

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HALLOWEEN GUIDE

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SECTION

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A TALE OF TWO FRIDAS

TRIBUTE TO THE FAMED MEXICAN ARTIST TAKES CENTER STAGE AT THE ARMORY ANALISA LANDEROS After more than a year-long hiatus, Portland Center Stage at The Armory welcomed audiences back to the theater with a one-woman story of reflection, healing and dualportraiture in Frida...A Self Portrait, written and performed

by Brazilian actress Vanessa Severo.

Set in her home in Mexico City, La Casa Azul, Frida Kahlo welcomes a magazine reporter into her home the night before her passing for an interview. Through retrospectives curated as costume changes strategically pinned up on clotheslines in the opening scenes—and an arsenal of narrative devices— Severo recounts a multitude of chapters in the artists’ life in a 75-minute solo performance. From the bus accident that severely injured her to her tumultuous relationship with fellow painter Diego Rivera and more, the performance navigates the many complexities of Kahlo’s identities.

Severo introduces the show by breaking the fourth wall, letting the audience in on how her connection to the artist has evolved as the production has been in development.

Frida...A Self Portrait came into fruition in 2014, after a friend of Severo’s commented on her likeness to Kahlo. Uncertain of what they meant and interested in learning more about the artist, she embarked on a whirlwind journey that led her to discovering more than she could have imagined.

Through the development of the production, from her first performance at the Living Room Theatre in Kansas City in 2014 to her debut show in Portland, the script would undergo changes that brought forth events in the actress’s own life, as

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Severo realized that portraying Kahlo would have more personal implications than she originally thought.

“On this journey to find Frida, I was surprised that in order to tell her story I had to tell mine,” said Severo, in a 2019 interview.

Frida...A Self Portrait gradually became an intimate exploration of Severo’s own experiences as much as the artist she sought to pay homage to. Severo, who has a congenital defect on her left hand, was particularly moved by how Kahlo navigated the art world as a disabled woman; how she expressed her nuanced relationship with her body, complicated relationships and view of society and its treatment of her, through her paintings—and her unapologetic nature in doing so.

On stage, Kahlo takes the journalist through her life story—in one of the many ways she told it—diving into prominent moments and zooming out to make commentary as she answers his questions, or addresses the audience. On a few occasions, Severo steps out of character, sharing personal anecdotes, drawing parallels between the artists’ and her own experiences. Kahlo copes with her polio diagnosis and the subsequent effect of it on her legs—her right becoming thinner than her left—and the pressure to walk, unhindered by the pain it caused her. Severo shares a scene from her childhood in which she had to decide whether or not she should move forward with a surgery in which her toes would be attached to her hand, the intent being to grant her mobility akin to fingers, albeit inevitably taking away the mobility from her foot. Both women express feeling pressure to adhere to a world that wants them to be as close to able-bodied as possible, no matter how much of themselves they have to sacrifice, to fit whichever ideas of them would best suit them.

“We need to tell our stories to heal,” said Severo to the opening night crowd. She described the vulnerability it took to include herself in the production as something she fought against internally—however, she came to see a new layer of her connection to Kahlo and more freedom with the performance as a result. At the end of her monologue, Severo shares a line from Kahlo’s own diary that punctuates her resonance with the artist’s experiences: “I used to think I was the strangest person in the world, but then I thought there are so many people in the world, there must be someone just like me who feels bizarre and flawed in the same ways I do.

I would imagine her, and imagine that she must be out there thinking of me, too. Well, I hope that if you are out there and read this and know that, yes, it’s true I’m here, and I’m just as strange as you.”

A notion that can be garnered from Kahlo herself—as well as in Frida...A Self Portrait—is that, as much as isolation or death may be an art, legacy is too. She would leave behind numerous self-portraits illustrating her life in all its realities unapologetically. Her home would evolve into a museum, a place for the public to have a curated glimpse of her life without giving away too much.

She would leave memories of her resistance to peoples’ attempts to control her and fit her into their narratives of who she was, a defiance that continues to speak volumes for Severo.

Showings of Frida...A Self Portrait are available now until Nov. 7. Tickets are on sale at Portland Center Stage’s official website with discounts available for full-time students who can provide ID and proof of enrollment.

VANESSA SEVERO IN FRIDA ... A SELF PORTRAIT AT PORTLAND CENTER STAGE. OWEN CAREY/PORTLAND CENTER STAGE

ARTS & CULTURE

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VIKS BEAT NORTHERN COLORADO 3-1 AND LOOK TO CONQUER THE CONFERENCE “WE’RE CAPABLE OF BEATING EVERY TEAM IN THIS CONFERENCE,” SAYS ELLIE SNOOK

PARKER WEBB AND VOLLEYBALL TEAM CELEBRATING. ERIC SHELBY/PSU VANGUARD

ERIC SHELBY

VOLLEYBALL

The Viks ended their roadtrip in Sacramento, playing the Hornets. The Hornets had an 8-10 record and 3-5 in conference.

The Viks hoped to get an edge on the Northern Colorado Bears, which they shared a second place spot with. With multiple blocks

by Sac State, the Hornets broke the Vikings seven-game winning streak, and the team lost 3-0.

Sac State had a 6-0 run in the first set to give them an early 7-3 lead. The Hornets, with their blocking skills, allowed only 13 points for the Vikings in the first set—the lowest they have scored since playing UCLA in early September; Gabby Hollins led the team that match with 10 kills and two aces, and Makayla Lewis had nine kills and two blocks. Luckily, Sac State played the Bears and beat them 3-0 to even the standing at 7-2 in conference play for both Northern Colorado and Portland State.

This makes it perfect for the Viks, who played the Bears on Oct. 23. With each team knowing what's on the line, both played hard, but the Vikings prevailed. Portland State beat the Bears 3-1 (2516, 25-23, 27-25 and 25-17). The Viks showed up and didn't let the Sac state game affect their morale. Makayla Lewis had 13 kills, one ace and two blocks. Zoe McBride showed out with 10 kills, three aces and four blocks to secure the win.

“We were just more disciplined today,” McBride said. “After Sac State, a lot of stuff was going on, we just didn't click as well as we normally do. That wasn't us as a team and today we really played as a team and we were us today.”

McBride, along with libero Ellie Snook, spoke to Portland State Vanguard about changing the team attitude.

McBride: “[We are] going in knowing that we’re capable of beating every team in this conference.”

Snook: “Our confidence was kinda low at Sac State, but we’re happy to be back in our home gym and our energy changed.”

That energy was felt at the game, for sure. Snook had 21 digs at the Northern Colorado match. The Viks dropped their third set in a stressful 27-25 which would've ended their match earlier with a clean 3-0 set win.

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DEFENDER HAILEY GREEN. ERIC SHELBY/PSU VANGUARD

McBride: “I think we did a really good job of staying positive in this game. We came back at the end so we thought we still had all the momentum going into the fourth set.”

VG: And what did you think through that third set?

McBride: “Stay focused and stay determined and not let anything influence us like inside factors and outside factors. Just keep going.”

VG: What is the plan for Idaho State, this Thursday, Oct. 28, and first-place Weber State which is next on the schedule?

McBride: “Go after it. Let’s try to get to first place.”

The Viks have six games left in the regular season, and are only two losses behind Weber State, which is in first place.

The Viks played Weber State in September and fell 3-1, but they are ready for the next match up.

Snook: ”We’re ready to have them at our place...the Viks are capable of beating every single team in the conference.”

Weber State is currently 10-0 this season in the Big Sky, but the Viks aren't far behind with a 8-2 record. Northern Colorado and Montana State are tied for third with a 7-3 record. The standings are tight, but their chemistry and confidence proves that the Viks have a chance.

The next home game is against Idaho State on Thursday, Oct. 28 at 7 p.m. Free swag and shirts will be available at the game as you cheer for the Vikings in a green-out. The pregame is at 5:30 p.m. and is always free with your student ID. If you can't catch the game, it will be available for you to watch on ESPN+.

O’Billovich had a save for the team, but Northern Arizona had five saves in the match.

The Vikings end their regular season 4-10-2, finishing eight in the conference. Northern Arizona, along with Montana, Northern Colorado and Weber State have all clinched a Big Sky Tournament spot and look to win. The Viks have not made the tournament since 2019, but have their eyes set on next year with young key players like Jensen and Abi Hoffman.

CROSS COUNTRY

The men and women's cross country team prepare for conference on Friday, Oct. 29. The Big Sky Championship will be hosted in Hillsboro with the women's 5k at 11 a.m. and the men's 8k at 12 p.m. This is coming after a successful meet at the Santa Clara Bronco Invite, where the men's team finished first in the 8k and women’s in second place in the 6k. In that first place finish, the men's team leaped over ranked schools like #14 UC Santa Barbara and #10 Cal Poly. The Viks are ranked ninth in the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association west region for the men’s and are ranked #12 on the women's side.

FOOTBALL

Portland State had a bye week after a 31-10 win over Idaho

CROSS COUNTRY VIKINGSPRACTICE. VICTORY / ERIC ERIC SHELBY/PSU SHELBY, PSU VANGUARD VANGUARD

State last week. Now, the team prepares for another home game against Cal Poly, which is 1-6 this season with a six game losing streak and 0-4 in conference play.

The Viks are currently 3-4 and 2-2 in conference play making them seventh in the Big Sky. The Viks look to become .500 in win percentage for the first time this season.

There are four games left this regular season with only two home games left to cheer for the Viks.

The last home game is on Nov. 20 against Pacific Northwest rival Eastern Washington, who suffered an upset against Weber State this week. This was Eastern’s first loss of the season from a school that shares the same record as PSU, showing that the Eagles can be beaten. The Viks hope to also give these rivals another loss to end the season.

Portland State needs to score early if they want to continue winning every week, and defense needs to show out like they did over Idaho State. If the Viks finish the season above 500 this season, this will be the first time they have done so since 2015 when they were 9-3 with wins over Football Bowl Subdivision schools Washington State and University of North Texas.

The Cal Poly game at Hillsboro Stadium starts at 2:05 p.m. and is on ESPN+, if you can’t root for the Vikings in person.

SOCCER

The Viks finished out their final two matches of their season at home and celebrated senior day at the Northern Arizona game.

The Viks drew with Southern Utah on Friday in double overtime, giving the Viks their second draw of the season. The Thunderbirds scored early, eight minutes into the first half. Chloe Huling responded in the 25th minute to give the Viks the equaliser.

Portland State outscored the Birds 15-10 with eight shots on goal. Goalkeeper Sidney O'Billovich played the full 110 minutes and kept the game to only one goal with three saves.

The Viks played their last game of the season on Sunday, playing the Lumberjacks of Northern Arizona on senior day. Portland State recognised their five seniors, Natalia Blanco, Liz Hansen, Megan Cornett, Diana Santiago and Sofi Papastamos. Just like the Southern Utah match, the Lumberjacks scored early in the 13th minute, but were taken over by Parker Reichner and assisted by Ani Jensen in the 32nd minute.

It was a rainy, windy 1-1 draw at the half. But the rain didn't stop the Viks who continued to give it their all in the full 90. In a penalty kick, Northern Arizona got past O’Billovich to give them the 2-1 lead. The Vikings had more shots—and shots on goal— than their opponent but could not get it done on senior day.

The match ended 2-1 with a suspenseful last 20 minutes.

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VIKINGS VICTORY. ERIC SHELBY/PSU VANGUARD

SPORTS

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THE HORROR CINEMA CROSSWORD SMACKDOWN TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE IN A TRIAL OF THE CLASSICS

ACROSS

DOWN

6. AN ITALIAN ROCK BAND, OR A RACE OF EVIL FANTASY CREATURES

2. YOU MIGHT CALL ONE OF THESE IF YOU NEED TO BUILD A HOUSE, OR IF YOU WANT

8. YOU SHOULDN'T FEED THESE FURRY CRITTERS PAST MIDNIGHT

TO WATCH A HORROR MOVIE

12. IF YOUR DAUGHTER'S POSSESSED, YOU MIGHT NEED TO CALL ONE OF THESE

3. SURVIVING A DOLL-FACED MURDERER ISN'T EXACTLY __________

13. THIS SERIES OF PENNSYLVANIA-SET MOVIES IS CREDITED WITH REINVENTING THE

5. BE CAREFUL NOT TO SEW YOUR MOUTH SHUT WHILE WATCHING THIS OREGONIAN

ZOMBIE GENRE

CHILDREN'S HORROR CLASSIC

15. THIS SOUTHERN STATE IS HOME TO SEVERAL MASSACRES

7. EVEN A _______ PARTY WON'T PROTECT YOU FROM A POWER DRILL MASSACRE

16. YOU WOULDN'T WANT TO GET STUCK IN A TELEPORTER WITH THIS INSECT

9. VIOLENT VIDEO _______ WERE COMMONLY BANNED IN THE UK IN THE 1980S

4. STEPHEN KING WAS PAID $2,500 FOR THE RIGHTS TO THIS FILM

1. THE CHRISTMAS OF 1974 WAS _____ RATHER THAN WHITE

10. YOU DON'T WANT TO BE STUCK AT A SUMMER CAMP ON THIS DAY OF THE WEEK 11. THIS FATHER-AND-SON DUO WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR MANY EARLY MONSTER MOVIE CLASSICS

12. THIS GENUS OF TREE SHARES A NAME WITH A MURDEROUS NEIGHBORHOOD 14. IT'S A SILENT AND ______ NIGHT IN THIS CHRISTMASTIME SLASHER

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