Going the Extra Mile
Young Love
Features, page 5
Campus Life, page 7
Senior Night Flop
Opinion, page 11
End of an era?
Centerfold, pages 8-9
October 28, 2010• Volume 107, No. 6
One Alpha Drive • Elizabethtown, PA 17022-2298
On the Web: www.etownian.com
athletics
I came, I saw, I threw: marshmallows invade Messiah Joelle E. Atkinson Assistant Campus Life Editor
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do,” Roderick said. “It also seemed that both teams were very successful with winning records, and we were highly ranked and played each other at the end of the year.” The rivalry seems to escalate as both Etown and Messiah move throughout the playoffs. “We would play each other three times: once at the end of the season, once in the MACs and once in the league championships. So we were always playing each other,” Roderick explained. Over the years, many students have questioned why we throw marshmallows. Roderick said that he is not sure when or how the tradition came about, but both teams were known to be “soft teams.” “Someone came to a game and
every time someone didn’t make a tackle, they threw a marshmallow. Then, all of a sudden, it escalated and became a huge rivalry,” the veteran coach said. The reason it is such a big event, he continued, is because most of the games in the past have been either one goal or overtime games and tend to be very competitive. “In the ’80s and ’90s we were one of the premiere teams in the league, and it seemed that they had always been chasing us. Now, it seems as though everyone is always chasing them,” he said. Though within the past few years the Blue Jays have been unsuccessful in their quest to beat their biggest rival, Roderick has a different philosophy about the game this year. “As a coach, you always Photo: Matthew P. Butera think you have a better shot. We always focus on the game at the end of the year. This year, we’ve been taking each game as it comes and will worry about this game when it happens.” With the Messiah game comes the end of a successful regular season. Looking back on the season, the head coach has a positive feeling. “We are fortunate so that we don’t have one player who has helped us win. We have all worked together,” he said of the team. “It’s been really fun to watch and to coach.” In their latest matchup on Saturday, Oct. 23, against Lycoming, the Blue Jays scored 3-0 in their Senior Night game
ith Halloween weekend comes falling leaves and carving pumpkins. Here at Elizabethtown College, the end of the Etown Blue Jays’ regular soccer season and the much-anticipated Etown versus Messiah College game also arrives. This rivalry has been more than 20 years in the making and will come to a head once more on Saturday, Oct. 30 at Messiah’s Shoemaker Field. The last game of the regular season is marked by the trademarked throwing of white fluffy marshmallows onto the field and according to Men’s Head Coach, Skip Roderick, this annual matchup is “the biggest Division III sporting event within the country.” When entering the College freshman year, students are regaled with stories of past games and the antics that take place before, during and afterwards. However, many wonder why the rivalry is so great, why we throw marshmallows and why this is such a big event. Roderick gives several reasons for the increased rivalry between Etown and Messiah over the past years: it is not only an issue of location, but factors also include a similar style of play and familiarity of players. “In the beginning, we would often recruit the same players, so it is fun to see who The annual Etown vs. Messiah marshmallow soccer game is this Saturday, Oct. 30 at went where and what they can Messiah’s Shoemaker Field. Buses are available to and from Messiah College.
See BLUE JAYS, page 2
in the nation
Bedbugs rampant in major cities; epidemic imminent Alyssa F. Broda Staff Writer
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on’t let the bedbugs bite! Once a cliché, this saying has relevance again. Bedbugs have stirred up trouble in large areas such as New York City, and are slowly making their way across the United States. These critters have nuzzled into many different kinds of life, from high-scale apartment buildings to the dorms of college campuses. It is clear no one should be ignorant of these pests. Experts claim the recent surge of bedbug infestations is due to the increase of global travel. Bedbugs
spread by jumping from one host to another when people brush against one another in crowded areas such as subways or airports. Bedbugs are also spread through reconditioned mattresses, and when old mattresses are transported with new ones. Bedbugs are small, brown or red colored insects that are around the size of an apple seed. Living a nocturnal life, bedbugs only come out at night to feast on human blood. They can feed for about ten minutes at a time, turning from brown to red after ingesting the blood. Bedbugs are problematic because they can rarely be seen — they live in the cracks and crevices of homes. Mattresses are a favorite hiding spot for bedbugs
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(hence their name) because they give the bugs easy access to food. Other places where bedbugs can be found include wooden floorboards and in the seams of furniture. The first sign of bedbugs is usually their bite — an itchy, swollen red bump, which goes away in a few days. Some students have dealt with the nationwide bedbug problem directly. Senior Caitlin Koller lived in New York City this past summer. The increase in the prevalence of bedbugs was evident, and it affected her everyday life. The building she lived in had a bedbug infestation on a lower floor. Staff paid for the cleaning of the entire house, as well as a place for the tenants to stay until everything was bedbug free. Koller says television commercials were full of advertisements for bedbug cleaning services and products. If she saw a mattress in the street waiting to be picked up by a garbage truck, she would make sure to avoid it. Koller said, “You always wanted a shower after getting off the subway.” However, Koller does not think bedbugs are nearly as
much of a problem in Etown as they are in New York City. Whitney Rufo, a sophomore and Ober resident, said, “It wouldn’t surprise me if [bedbugs] were in the dorms.” Although bedbugs are seen as repulsive and disgusting, Eileen Wagener, the health liaison for Etown College stressed, “The most important fact is that bedbugs do not spread disease.” Wagener also noted that, since their bites cause a break in the skin, an infection may occur, which is why keeping bites clean is important. Wagener stated, “I think all colleges need to be concerned about bedbugs as a possibility, just as hotels do. With all the traveling we do these days, it is easy for bedbugs to hitch a ride and be transported from place to place, so I do think colleges need to be concerned and prepared if they need to deal with a bedbug problem.” Although Etown College and other schools are not currently facing a large risk, they are aware of the situation and will act accordingly if bedbugs make their way into college students’ mattresses.