March 12 2014

THE COLLEGIAN WEDNESDAY, MARCH 12, 2014

FRESNO STATE'S STUDENT VOICE SINCE 1922

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WOMEN’S HOOPS:

BULLDOGS DOWN REBELS, ADVANCE TO SEMIFINALS

ASI MEETING RAISES LEGAL QUESTIONS A legislative body of a student body organization shall conduct its business in public meetings. All meetings of the legislative body shall be open and public....

• Gloria Romero Open Meetings Act, 89305.1 (a)

Students asked to help build Drone sculpture Artist’s rendering by Joseph DeLappe

By Matthew Criswell Collegian Staff

Photo illustration by Jesse Franz • The Collegian

By Brianna Vaccari and Ricardo Cano Two law advocacy groups say Associated Students, Inc. may have violated legal open meeting requirements at the March 5 meeting, an allegation ASI President Moses Menchaca denied.

“There may have been better ways that the student government could have handled the situation that would not have run afoul of the [Gloria Romero Open Meetings Act of 2000]” said Leila Knox, an associate of Bryan Cave, LLP, a general counsel for the California First Amendment Coalition.

Protesting students, faculty and alumni challenged Fresno State’s motto “Discovery. Diversity. Distinction.” at ASI’s public meeting held March 5,

expressing concerns over discrimination against underrepresented minorities after several student organizations were denied funding.

Due to the growing unrest of the audience, Justin Whisten, ASI executive vice president, announced the meeting room was to be cleared, and ASI would reconvene in 10 minutes.

During this intermission, senators deliberated in a separate room closed to the public. Menchaca said in an interview Tuesday that ASI went into the room and “took a deep breath, listened and reflected on everything.”

The Gloria Romero Open Meetings Act, specifically designed for student governments in the California State University system, states that “a legislative body of a student body organization shall conduct

its business in public meetings.”

The act also defines a meeting as “...any congregation of a majority of the membership of a legislative body at the same time and place to hear, discuss, or deliberate upon any item that is within the subject matter jurisdiction of the legislative body to which it pertains.”

There are conflicting opinions as to whether or not the open meeting law was broken when a majority of ASI members went into the private room to discuss the situation, the outcome being the decision to continue the meeting as usual. “...The student government going into what was essentially a closed meeting to decide whether or not to clear the room of

See ASI, Page 6

Construction will begin on a life-sized replica of a military drone on campus March 16, an art project that aims to display the loss of lives due to attacks by the unmanned aerial vehicles.

Media artist Joseph DeLappe is the creator of the endeavor titled The Drone Project: A Participatory Memorial. The piece will be located on the west lawn of the Conley Art Building and will be created with the help of students and volunteers.

DeLappe is looking for volunteers to help in a few different ways, he needs help with cutting, organizing, and assembling pieces of the sculpture. The piece will begin construction on March 16 and the planned finish date is March 29. The installation will be a semi-permanent structure until May 31, 2014.

The pieces will be a 3D model of a drone and will be interpreted by DeLappe’s own personal style of rendering objects with a unique geometric surface.

The piece will be a sculpture of a lifesize Unmanned Arial Vehicle or Drone made out of yellow corrugated plastic.

Upon completion of the piece the names of 300 civilians killed by drones will be read aloud and inscribed into the sculpture as an act of remembrance.

This installation has been commis-

See DRONE, Page 3

CLUB FUNDING

==> M.E.Ch.A.: Group forms coalition to address what it sees as institutional problems with ASI. [PAGE 3]

VOCALIST HOLDS SENIOR RECITAL --PAGE 5

“BAD WORDS”

==> MOVIE PREVIEW: Jason Bateman talks about his new movie coming soon to theaters.

[PAGE 4]

BASKETBALL

==> MEN’S HOOPS: Men’s basketball prepares for conference tournament opening round.

[PAGE 7]

CAMPUS IN BLOOM

-- PAGE 2

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 12, 2014

PAGE 2

CAMPUS IN

BLOOM Photos by Katie Eleneke • The Collegian

With the first day of spring just over a week away, Fresno State’s diverse plant life is starting to bloom.

Spring may be in the air, but that is exactly the problem for some who suffer from allergies. Today’s forecast from the Allergy Institute projects pollen levels to be mediumhigh, and levels are expected to increase throughout the week.

Temperatures are also expected to rise this week, reaching a high of 79 degrees by Saturday, according to the National Weather Service in Hanford.

THE COLLEGIAN The Collegian is a student-run publication that serves the Fresno State community on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Views expressed in The Collegian do not necessarily reflect the views of the staff or university.

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WEDNESDAY, MARCH 12, 2014

THE COLLEGIAN • NEWS

PAGE 3

MOCK DRONE AIMS TO INCREASE MEChA builds coalition to CAMPUS AWARENESS address grievances

By Nadia Pearl

Artist’s rendering by Joseph DeLappe

@nadia_pearl_

DRONE from Page 1 s ione d by the Ce nte r of Creativity and the Arts at Fresno State. The sculpture fits into the 2013-2014 CCA theme “Data and Technology.”

DeLappe is a new media artist and a professor of art at the University of Reno, Nevada. He is also the director of the digital media program. DeLappe has been experimenting in the field of new media art since 1983.

DeLappe has had other art installations featured nationally and internationally. In The 1,000 Drones Project, he folded origami and infiltrated Army gaming systems in the name of fallen soldiers. n a CCA newsletter, DeLappe said that making the drone and writing the names of those killed it will allow participants to actualize the loss of lives due to drone attacks.

Some of DeLappe’s previous work is on display at the Fresno Art Museum through April 27.

There will be a talk given by DeLappe on Friday, March 28 at 4 p.m., with a reception following the event at 5 p.m.

Dr. Adán Ávalos, the artistic director of the drone project is hoping to have many people volunteer to help with the construction of this sculpture.

For more information on The Drone Project visit the CCA website, and to get involved you can email Dr. Ávalos at the TheDroneProject2014@ gmail.com

Student organizations that were denied funding by Associated Students, Inc. are looking to collaborate and address issues of institutionalized discrimination at Fresno State through discussions with administration and leadership.

“We want real change, and we want these things to actually happen,” said Maria Ortega, president of Fresno State’s chapter of Movimiento Estudiantil Chican@ de Aztlán (M.E.Ch.A.) in an interview Tuesday.

After protest at last week’s ASI meeting, in which students, faculty and alumni protested the denied funds for M.E.Ch.A and other groups, an inquiry by M.E.Ch.A into ASI was rumored to take place.

Ortega confirmed that no investigation is underway.

However, she said if anything were to move forward, it would be agreed on among all the student organizations that have expressed concern over ASI’s decision-making.

“We strive for consensus,” Ortega said. “If we do move forward with anything, before we do and before we make that public, we have to make sure everyone is on board.”

After originally being denied funding, M.E.Ch.A. sent ASI a public letter voicing its concerns over minority discrimination at Fresno State and outlining six demands for ASI to follow. Ortega said “five to six” other groups then came forward expressing similar experiences.

Having “consensus” across these groups was part of the reason M.E.Ch.A. asked to reschedule a meeting proposed by Fresno State President Joseph Castro last Wednesday.

“This isn’t just a M.E.Ch.A. thing,” Ortega said. “Because there are other groups that are involved, we decided it was going to be very unfair for us as M.E.Ch.A. to have a meeting solely with the president when it’s a coalition.”

Ortega said another reason for asking to reschedule was because Castro’s late notice did not give them “enough time to prepare exactly what we wanted to say.”

“We felt it was a little unfair for them to call us two hours before they wanted to have a meeting with us,” Ortega said.

Castro tweeted later Wednesday night: “@ MosesRMenchaca and I invited the MECHA President to meet with us early this pm to discuss their concerns. Our invitation was declined.”

Ortega said the collaborating groups are hoping to schedule a joint meeting with Castro in the coming days, looking to address the issues with “concrete” results.

She said the discussion would not be about ASI’s denial of funding, but the bigger picture as marginalized groups on campus “still feel oppressed,” despite the university’s promotion of diversity.

“It’s more than the fact that our funding was denied; it’s the reasons behind why and the justification for that,” Ortega said.

Ortega also said the groups would like to meet with ASI to address discriminatory issues and clarify that there is a differ-

MECHA’S DEMANDS formally acknowledge it • ASI was at fault members attend a work• ASI shop to learn about oppression, racism and classism

training for • “Competency” ASI members pass a resolution pub• ASI licly denouncing all student

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fee or tuition increases ASI fully support and take measures to secure ethnic studies at Fresno State

termination of all indi• The viduals who have exercised discriminatory actions

ence between “focus and exclusivity.”

“ASI and its senators seem to be very uneducated in the difference between focusing on a specific group of a particular population, versus being exclusive and only admitting that certain population,” Ortega said.

ASI President Moses Menchaca said ASI has not been in contact with M.E.Ch.A. since last week’s meeting, but would be willing to meet with the club.

“I would love to sit down and talk and just have a conversation,” Menchaca said. “Make sure that students feel that they’re represented and know that we’re here for them.”

Yet in Ortega’s opinion, “ASI is not representative of the student body.”

“It’s not to discredit all the things they’ve done, but it’s not representative of the community,” she said.

By protesting the meeting, Ortega said the organizations weren’t there to be rebels, but to point out serious issues.

“We weren’t there necessarily to cause a ruckus,” Ortega said. “It was really about these things that have been boiling up, this institutionalized racism and institutionalized oppression.”

Menchaca said that since the meeting’s unrest, ASI has been focused on “maintaining day-today operations.”

“We’ve been in conversation with some people from the university side to make sure we’re complying with everything,” Menchaca said.

Menchaca said it has been important to make sure senators “feel safe going through classes and continuing to do their work.” He said as president it has been hard to deal with student leaders “coming in your office crying or being afraid to do their work because of some of the individuals in the crowd.”

“That’s what we’re having to deal with now,” he said. “What can we do to help out the senate to best continue to do the great work that they’ve been doing, despite the allegations.”

Yet Menchaca expressed that ASI was “very proud of our sponsored activity grants.”

“We’ve given more money than ever before, and we’re halfway through the semester,” Menchaca said. “We’re more than happy to be able to showcase the great work that ASI has been able to allow clubs to have and put on the events that they’ve had on campus.”

The Collegian’s Brianna Vaccari and Ricardo Cano contributed to this report.

4

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

‘Bad Words’ From Bateman

Vocalist holds senior recital

Jason Bateman’s new comedy marks his directorial debut

By Sam Desatoff Collegian Staff

By Yvette Mancilla @yvette_mancilla

Actor Jason Bateman marks his directorial debut in his latest film, “Bad Words,” an edgy comedy starring Bateman as a raunchier character than his previous roles.

The film centers on 40-year-old Guy Trilby, a man attempting to dominate The Golden Quill national spelling bee after finding a loophole to compete against the other competitors, who are kids.

After building his career in television and film over the course of 20 years, Bateman said he felt it was the right time to take a seat in the director’s chair.

“It’s the first time I had the opportunity to do it and the community would let me,” Bateman said. “I would direct full time if they would have me; it asked me to do everything that makes me excited to do everything that I love about film.”

“Bad Words” is a small-budgeted, limited release film that centers on Guy, a high school dropout who actually has spelling skills to compete, but lacks social skills.

Although he starred and directed, Bateman said it was not too hard to direct.

“It felt comfortable,” Bateman said. “You’re going to have to let me know if I could have done better. I did go after a couple actors, but they were unavailable, so I said ‘Well, why don’t I give it a shot?’ ” Guy is persistent in trying to compete, much to the

5

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 12, 2014

Photo courtesy of Focus Features

chagrin of the spelling bee’s officials and the competing students. Although the film centers on Guy’s rude, foulmouthed personality other supporting characters get in on Guy’s journey.

Ten-year-old actor Rohan Chand plays Chaitanya Chopra, a fellow competitor who befriends Guy, much to Guy’s annoyance. Through Chaitanaya, Guy begins to

soften his tough exterior and shows Chaitanaya a wild side to life.

Kathryn Hahn plays a reporter that gets in on the action of Guy’s spelling conquest. After many shenanigans and laughable moments, the audience learns the real

See BAD WORDS, Page 6

Matt Vieira / The Collegian

Senior Katherine Simmons sings during her vocal recital on Tuesday night inside the Wahlberg Recital Hall.

Fresno State student Katherine Simmons held a vocal recital in the music department’s Wahlberg Recital Hall on Thursday night.

Simmons, who plans on graduating summa cum laude in music, said the recital was “a culmination project featuring musical works I studied throughout my degree.”

“I had been preparing for this recital since my first voice lesson with my studio professor, Dr. Anthony Radford,” Simmons said.

“In fact, the first song that I ever studied at Fresno State was featured in the program.”

Simmons attributed much of her college success to professors in the music department. In addition to Radford, Simmons credits professor Helene Joseph-Weil, and music accompanist Hatem Nadim of the Fresno State music department.

When asked if she had any advice for incoming music students, Simmons stressed a number of steps to alleviate as much stress as possible.

“Go to class [and] dress for success,” Simmons said. “Your peers and professors will take you more seriously and this will help you in the long run.”

Organization is a key component of Simmons’ college career. She suggests that students use a planner.

“This was the single most important tool for me to get those 4.0s.”

Simmons also believes networking is an important part of college life, and credits the support of her sorority with helping her at Fresno State. “Join a student organization or club,” she said. “It was important for me to have a balance during college and I am so glad that I got involved, because it got me scholarships, friends and a rounded university experience.”

Simmons’ recital also featured the music department’s collaborative pianist Hatem Nadim and Maelyn de Fede, Simmons’ fellow music-major classmate and sorority sister.

While music remains an important part of Simmons’ life, she intends to pursue a degree in law after graduating from Fresno State.

“I plan to continue working and start a small voice studio while I prepare law school applications,” she said. “Music is a sincere passion of mine, but I am also very excited at the possibility of going to law school and becoming an attorney.”

Simmons hopes audience members appreciated the variety of songs presented in the recital.

“There [were] songs that some audience members…have never heard of,” Simmons said. That’s the exciting part for me – to be able to share the music I love so much with others.”

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PAGE 6

THE COLLEGIAN • NEWS

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 12, 2014

FUN & GAMES

SUDOKU: Fill the 9×9 grid with digits so that each column, each row, and each of the nine 3×3 sub-grids that compose the grid contain all of the digits from 1 to 9.

Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Lewis / McClatchy-Tribune

Across

1 Deer guy 5 Dian Fossey subjects 9 Walking tall 14 Snoop (around) 15 Son of Leah and Jacob 16 One unlikely to bring home the bacon?

17 Work on galleys 18 Works by Raphael and Michelangelo, e.g.

20 Signed agreement mailed by someone in prison?

22 “... kissed thee __ killed thee”: Othello 23 NYC-based insurance co.

24 Backs a fashion venture?

31 Eyelid inflammations 32 Dogwood, e.g.

33 Sock part 34 Pottery oven 35 Drag through the mud 37 Gardener’s bagful 38 Rescuer of Odysseus 39 Irene of “Fame” 40 Gainesville is about halfway between it and Jacksonville 41 Authorize two bros’ get-together?

45 “Double Fantasy” artist 46 Measurement named for a body part 47 Songwriter’s dream?

54 Rites of passage

Bateman talks upcoming film, directorial debut BAD WORDS from Page 4 reason for Guy’s participation in the bee.

The film also holds a strong supporting cast with the likes of Allison Janney, Rachael Harris, Ben Falcone and Philip Baker Hall.

Janney and Hall take on antagonist roles as the competition’s officials who undermine Bateman’s character. Bateman also said he was lucky to have a great supporting cast and their willingness to participate in “Bad Words.”

“They didn’t need to audition,” Bateman said. “I just asked and I was very very lucky. Allison Janney is the queen and Rachael Harris just annihilates me.”

Being that the film is based on a spelling bee, Bateman said he is a reasonable speller and participated in one when he was younger.

“I was a decent speller,” Bateman said. “I’m probably better than my wife and that all that matters. I lost in grade school in the first round, and the word was ‘answer.’ ” Although the film has comedic bits, Bateman said “Bad Words” might not be perceived well by a broad audience, which is one of the reasons why it is a small budgeted film.

“It’s not for everyone,” Bateman said. “But if it’s your thing then I hope you enjoy it. I’m confident that most people who are somewhat rational and progressive would get it.”

“Bad Words” opens for limited release in the U.S. on March 14 and opens in Fresno on March 28.

55 Heathrow postings: Abbr.

56 Point a finger at 57 Dark purple 58 Charlie Brown cry 59 Title role for Michael or Jude 60 New newts 61 “Off with you!”

Down

1 Job detail 2 Commotion 3 Analogous 4 Avenges a wrong 5 Runway shapes 6 Bob __, first NBA player to be named MVP (1956) 7 FEMA recommendation, maybe

8 Storage structure 9 Like some press conference answers 10 Go back (on) 11 “A Summer Place” co-star Richard 12 Dessert conveyance 13 “Rizzoli & Isles” airer 19 More ridiculous 21 Spanish 101 word 24 1986 rock autobiography 25 Windbreaker fabric 26 Cook, as dumplings 27 One may be rolled over 28 Weasel kin 29 Patterned fabric 30 Ward of “CSI: NY”

31 Two percent alternative 35 Skipped 36 C-ration successor 37 Throws here and there 39 Fails to understand 40 Funk 42 Musical scale sequence 43 Produce a change in 44 Scary Wild West circles?

47 Meet, as needs 48 Norwegian saint 49 “Won’t do it” 50 Plenty, in slang 51 Bonneville Salt Flats site 52 Peacekeeping acronym 53 Name on a Canadian pump 54 Mgmt. degree

ASI ‘absolutely did not’ violate open meeting laws ASI from Page 1 members of the public may have been a violation of the Act, since they were technically holding a ‘meeting’ that the public -- and the press-- was not able to view,” Knox said.

Adam Goldstein, attorney advocate for the Student Press Law Center, said that the law’s definition of the word “meeting” makes ASI’s recess congregation in the private room illegal.

When Menchaca was asked whether or not ASI violated the act, he said, “Absolutely not.”

“We’ve consulted registered parliamentarians regarding this issue, and they’ve informed us that this is not an infringement on Gloria Romero at all,” he said.

Though Menchaca said ASI consulted the parliamentarians, he was unable to name them due to lack of permissions to release their names.

Menchaca said when ASI went into the other room, executive vice president Justin Whisten decided to continue the meeting as usual.

As executive vice president, Whisten serves as chair and mediator to the ASI meetings.

Menchaca said Whisten made

the decision to adjourn the meeting and go into a closed session “because business was not able to be conducted with the remarks,” and “he decided it was best to adjourn it after multiple warnings.” “...If business is not allowed to be conducted, they have the opportunity to go to recess,” he said.

“When I felt that the interruptions had become substantial enough to disrupt the conduct of business I referred to and followed procedures stated in Section 89307.1 of the Gloria Romero Act,” Whisten said, quoting the section of the act that deems it appropriate for a student government to clear the room due to interruptions to the meeting.

That section also stipulates that a meeting may only be cleared if “order cannot be restored by the removal of individuals who are willfully interrupting the meeting.”

However, Whisten said, “We did not attempt to remove any individuals as it was multiple people who were interrupting the meeting.”

Whisten said the interruptions in the meeting “made the discussion between the members of the senate unfeasible,” and that “one senator even addressed the public stating that the public’s distur-

bances were making it hard to follow the discussion.”

All ASI members receive training on open meeting requirements during a transition retreat.

Whisten received the training, and is also trained in Robert’s Rules of Order and parliamentary procedure, which are methods of operations to run an open public meeting.

Menchaca also said ASI takes extra measures to ensure the meeting mediator understands the Gloria Romero Open Meeting Act. Since the meeting, there has been little word from M.E.Ch.A., the most-represented organization at the March 5 meeting, Menchaca said. M.E.Ch.A. didn’t appeal the denial of an application for funding, and though the ASI’s vice president of finance, Rebecca Rosengarten, provided group leaders with her availability to meet, a meeting was never set up.

In the meantime, “we’re just kind of talking with different university individuals...making sure that our senators feel safe going through classes and continuing to do their work,” Menchaca said.

The Collegian’s Nadia Pearl contributed to this report.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 12, 2014

THE COLLEGIAN • SPORTS

PAGE 7

2014 MOUNTAIN WEST WOMEN’S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS

Fresno State advances to semifinals

The Bulldog Bulletin Softball: Aldridge named Mountain West Pitcher of the Week Fresno State redshirt sophomore Kiley Shae Aldridge was selected as the Mountain West Pitcher of Week Tuesday.

In her first start in almost two years, Aldridge pitched a 1-0 shutout against No. 6 Washington during the Judi Garmin Classic last Sunday.

She only allowed three hits from the Huskies, who entered the game batting .358 as a team.

She led the team with a 0.00 ERA, three hits, nine strikeouts, and a .130 opponent batting average.

In the season, she leads the team in ERA (0.51) and opponent batting average (.208).

During last week’s tournament, the ‘Dogs (12-8) won their first games over top-25 teams since Feb. 2012.

Men’s Golf: Fresno State has a better outing in Fresno State Classic The Fresno State men’s golf team recorded the third-lowest score of the Fresno State Classic Tuesday to finish the tourney in ninth place.

The Bulldogs finished at fiveover par, 289 in Day 2 of the classic. The first game saw them finish in a 12th-place tie in a game plagued by high winds.

“The team’s performance today was great,” Fresno State coach Chad Spencer said. “We got off to a good start and they showed some toughness today.

Yesterday, the conditions got the better of us and hopefully we can learn from that and improve for the rest of the year.”

Overall, the Bulldogs made 38 birdies to record a final score of 49-over par, 901 (299-313-289).

Troix Tonkham, Nate Jessup and Keenan Nelson led the Bulldogs throughout Tuesday, each firing their lowest round of the tournament.

Tonkham had a team-high five birdies to record one-under par, 70. The sophomore moved up 22 positions on the leaderboard to finish among the top 25. Jessup fired one-over par, 72 after making four birdies to sit in a tie with Tonkham. The duo finished in a tie for 23rd place.

On the tournament, Tonkham (75-79-70) and Jessup (75-7772) carded 11-over par, 224.

UC Santa Barbara claimed the team title at 21-over par, 873 (288-298-287) and Jordan Epstein of UC Santa Barbara rose as the individual champion at one-over par, 214 (73-73-68).

The Bulldogs will visit Phoenix, Ariz., for the Arizona State Invitational on March 21-23.

’Dogs don’t look back after taking early lead BULLDOGS from Page 8 the game with a fast-paced approach that enabled them to catch the Rebels off guard and jump out to a 24-7 lead in the first 10 minutes of the game.

UNLV was not able to respond to the tempo, and that allowed Fresno State to cruise on to the next round.

“I love how we started the game,” Pebley said. “I think that helped a lot because it created a cushion which helped secure our lead.”

Junior guard Alex Sheedy also contributed off the bench.

She sunk 4 of 9 shots for a total of 15 points. Her 6 of 6 performance from the free-throw line also helped fuel her double-digit game.

UNLV guard Danielle Miller scored a game-high 18 points and the Rebels outrebounded the ‘Dogs 45 to 37, but ultimately it was not enough.

The Rebels couldn’t get over

the hump this season as they finished out the year .500 in league play.

“I thought we battled, it was just difficult to give up as many points as we did in the beginning,” UNLV head coach Kathy Olivier said. “Fresno was hot at shooting the 3-ball in transition.

“When a team shoots like that, it’s hard to come back.”

The ‘Dogs hope to keep their momentum going as they increase their win streak to six, their largest of the season. The momentum will be a critical factor for the ‘Dogs moving forward in the tournament.

“I think we are playing with a lot of momentum, more momentum than we’ve had all season,” Pebley said.

The ‘Dogs will continue their quest for consecutive conference championships on Friday at 2:30 p.m., when they will play in the semifinals of the Mountain West Tournament.

MEN’S HOOPS

’Dogs earn postseason accolades heading into conference tourney Watson named MW’s Freshman of the Year freshman in program history to receive Freshman of the Collegian Staff Year honors. He joins Mike Mitchell, who won the award The Fresno State men's in 1985-86. Greg Smith took basketball team had three home the award during the players receive recognition 2009-10 season.

Johnson helped Fresno for their play on the court this year as Bulldogs forward State's late-season surge by Paul Watson was named the averaging 18.2 points and Mountain West's Freshman 7.7 rebounds per game, while Harris averaged 14.4 of the Year. points per game and Joining Watson in 5.9 boards per game. receiving postseason Johnson was an honors were senior All-Mountain West guard Tyler Johnson honorable mention and sophomore last season. This is Marvelle Harris. the first postseason Johnson was named honorable mention to the second-team All-Mountain West, (16-15, 9-9) for Harris.

This is also the and Harris received VS first time three an honorable menBulldogs were rection All-Mountain ognized with allWest distinction by conference postseathe league's head son honors in the coaches and select same season since media members.

Paul George (secDuring league p l a y , W a t s o n (12-17, 1-15) ond-team), Sylvester Seay (honorable led all Mountain mention) and Smith West freshmen in rebounding (4.6 rebounds (All-Newcomer Team and per game (rpg)) and finished Western Athletic Conference second among conference Freshman of the Year) took freshmen in scoring, aver- home awards during Fresno aging 8.6 points per game State’s 2009-10 campaign.

Fresno State will face Air (ppg). Watson also led the freshmen MW class with 12 Force in the first round of the Mountain West Tournament blocked shots.

Watson is only the third today at 4:30 p.m.

By Quinn Robinson

Consistency the key variable in MWC championship run NUMBERS from Page 8

the court. The teams combined for 48 free-throw attempts, which tied the Mountain West Tournament quarterfinals record.

The first half saw UNLV hit the line 14 times, while the Bulldogs had zero free-throw attempts. Fresno State committed 10 personal fouls, double the amount that UNLV tallied.

Out of the 14 trips to the line, the Rebels made 11 free throws. Those points kept them close to Fresno State in the first half. The Bulldogs led by as much as 17 (at the 11:31 mark), before UNLV started making its free throws.

Afterward, the Rebels outscored the Bulldogs 19-12.

In the second stanza, the tables turned. Although Fresno State again committed 10 penalties, UNLV came out of the tunnel more aggressive with 13 fouls to show for it.

That gave the Bulldogs 20 free-throw attempts – Faulk, Sheedy and Thompson had six attempts each – and the team made 16.

Defense was a variable The Rebels may have lost the contest, but their rebounding presence made a statement.

UNLV outrebounded Fresno State 45-37, and Rejane Verin shouldered the team’s presence in the paint. She had 13 boards, and the next highest on the team had a little less than half of that.

That would not faze the Bulldogs. A defensive variety was present, as Thompson, Sheedy and Jacinta Vandenberg had six boards apiece. Farley and Faulk had four, and Furr had three.

However, the Bulldogs forced 18 UNLV turnovers that turned into 19 points. Vandenberg’s team-high three blocks and Thompson’s three steals helped that cause.

Fresno State also flexed its 3-point shooting defense muscle (it holds its opponents to 29.2 percent on average, No. 1 in the conference) and held the Rebels to 20 percent from behind the arc. Mia Bell and Danielle Miller were the only two UNLV players who made those shots.

Clearly, that the Bulldogs had players with their own niche: Farley with shooting, Furr from behind the arc and Thompson with free throws. That showed something that was seen in the game as a whole: all hands were on deck for the Bulldogs.

It did not take one person to lead the team into the semifinals.

BASEBALL IN REVIEW

B1G BEATDOWN Fresno State hits 17 in 13-3 rout over Penn State

TODAY

Katie Eleneke • The Collegian

The Fresno State baseball team celebrates after bringing home a runner during the Bulldogs’ 13-3 win over Penn State Tuesday night at Beiden Field.

Fresno State concludes its two-game set today at 6:35 p.m.

Fresno State extended its winning streak to three games with a 13-3 rout of Penn State Tuesday night at Beiden Field behind a 17-hit attack in the opening game of a weeklong fivegame homestand.

Fresno State opened its lead up to 6-0 in fifth inning on a sacrifice fly by pinch hitter Austin Guibor.

The Bulldogs exploded for six more runs in the eighth to put the game out of reach. Chris Mariscal ripped his first home run of the 2014 season with a shot that hit the scoreboard in left field to start the scoring barrage.

Fresno State will be back in action today to wrap up its twogame set with Penn State. First pitch is slated for 6:35 p.m.

SPORTS

8

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 12, 2014

2014 MOUNTAIN WEST WOMEN’S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS

80

65

STORMING TO THE SEMIS Second-seeded Bulldogs coast past No. 7 UNLV to advance to Friday’s semis

LEFT: Fresno State senior guard Bree Farley charges toward the basket in the Bulldogs’ 80-65 quarterfinal win over UNLV Tuesday night at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas.

Fresno State advances to Friday’s semifinal round of the Mountain West Tournament seeking to repeat as conference champion.

By Daniel Leon @DanLeon25

LAS VEGAS -- The Fresno State women’s basketball team (20-10, 13-5 Mountain West Conference) kicked off its quest for back-to-back Mountain West titles with an 80-65 win over the UNLV Rebels (13-19, 9-9 MWC) in the quarterfinals of the conference tournament Tuesday night at the Thomas & Mack Center.

This was the third contest between the two teams this season. The ‘Dogs won both of the previous two meetings by an average of 17 points.

“We feel really fortunate and excited to survive and advance,” Fresno State head coach Raegan Pebley said.

“This was a very tough firstround matchup.”

Five Bulldogs registered double figures, including seniors Taylor Thompson and Bree Farley, who each received Mountain West honors.

Thompson, the Mountain West Co-Defensive Player of the Year and first-team all-conference selection, recorded six rebounds, five assists and three steals to go along with her 15 points.

“UNLV is a great team, they put everything at us,” Thompson said. “They were in zone [defense], they were in man [defense], so I think our team responded well to that. Our focus was there and I think that was key for this win today.”

Farley, a second-team allconference selection, posted a team-high 17 points on 7 of 14 shooting including 3 of 5 from 3-point range.

The ‘Dogs started off

See BULLDOGS, Page 7

Photos by Khlarissa Agee • The Collegian

Senior guard Taylor Thompson (33, left), junior forward Alex Sheedy (10, center) and senior guard Bree Farley (5, right) each scored in double digits in Fresno State’s 80-65 Mountain West Tournament quarterfinal win over UNLV Tuesday night at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas.

By the Numbers Selflessness the driving factor behind Fresno State’s rout

Christopher Livingston

Going into the Mountain West Tournament, the Fresno State women’s basketball team had one thing on its mind: Consistency.

And it’s not just about continuing a winning streak against the No. 7 UNLV Rebels. Instead, it was about exhibiting control over its opponent, especially in shooting.

Coming into the contest, the Bulldogs were third in the conference in scoring margin (winning by an

average of 6.7 points) and were fifth in field-goal percentage (40.9), which helped them ride a fivegame winning streak.

The Bulldogs shot 44.3 percent during the game compared to UNLV’s 30.8. Five Fresno State players were in double figures.

The last time that happened was in 2013’s season finale against the Rebels.

In fact, Farley scored 10 points in the first seven minutes of the contest. After that, the Bulldogs

showed variety in their gameplay.

Taylor Thompson finished the game with 15 points, scoring seven in the first half and eight in the second.

Two other Bulldogs scored 15, Alex Sheedy and Moriah Faulk. Guard Alex Furr had 11 points and was perfect from the field.

What about fouls?

Both UNLV and Fresno State were aggressive on

See NUMBERS, Page 7