The Florida Tech Crimson Issue 6 Fall 2018

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Issue 6

RIMSON The Florida Tech

The Official Student-Run Newspaper•since

1967

INDEX

Student Life . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Editorial . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Campus Life . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 FALL

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2018

McCay questioned by disgruntled students at town hall

Thomas Handel \\ staff writer

Students had questions and accusations for President Dwayne McCay at last week’s town hall.

The town hall was hosted in order to give students the opportunity to ask any questions they have directly for him, as well as the department heads that were also present.

McCay started the meeting by talking about what he believes creates a great school, and how Florida Tech is either lacking or substantial in these factors.

The first key he mentioned was great students, describing the change he has seen.

“Our incoming students are getting better every year,” McCay said.

“This year we had a huge group of Florida Academic scholars come in, so

this might be the best freshman class we’ve had in a while. Each year we are getting better and better.”

McCay said that a good student base was necessary for the success of Florida Tech, but this harmonious sentiment was broken up quickly.

The atmosphere became tense as a student began questioning McCay about the potential danger of training aviation students.

The student was referring to an incident that occured Sep. 20 at Orlando Melbourne International Airport when a part time Florida Tech student attempted to steal a plane.

While at first this student was calm with his questions, his eventually began yelling at the President in frustration.

Tension rose to the point where some students chimed in to argue with the student, while others remained

silent.

McCay said that universities are a place to learn.

“We do have a large international population, but you know most the terror that takes place in this country isn’t necessarily by internationals,” McCay said. “Our business is to educate the world as best as we can.”

The student was unappeased by the answer, and promptly left the meeting.

A major focal point throughout the Town Hall meeting was infrastructure, or the buildings at Florida Tech, which was one of the aspects McCay stated is required for any good university.

Many students asked questions about various facilities, including one who inquired about the status of a new biomedical instrumentation building.

President McCay was originally humorous with his answer, but soon

clarified, stressing the importance of the project.

“We are 10 million dollars short, but you know the highest priority in the university is that biomedical instrumentation building. The idea is to get a major donor to name it after them. It’s a 16 million dollar facility.”

Another student asked about the potential opportunity within the medical field, whether it be connecting with doctors, or even internships.

The status of a possible medical field is one that has been inquired about before, and President McCay explained the difficulties they’ve faced.

“We have been negotiating to open medical school, and so during that process we have tried to identify hospital locations where we could

Continued on page 4

Spotlight continues to shine on lip sync winners Christian Martinez \\ staff writer

The Homecoming lip sync competition was a combination of hard work and collaboration between two clubs, but the effects of winning has gone beyond that one night.

Street Dance Club and the Ultimate Frisbee Club won the lip-sync portion of the show, while SDC won the talent portion on their own.

The two clubs have enjoyed the fact they were chosen above the other clubs and individuals as the winners of the talent and lip-sync categories of the Homecoming week talent show.

The king and queen of the talent show were Robert Rogulski of Ultimate Frisbee and Khe’Lynn Pierce of SDC. This was SDC’s second time in a row winning the talent show in first place.

Pierce, who was the lip-sync choreographer, admits to crying after learning of the win, especially since this is her second year with SDC and it was her first time being on homecoming court.

With all of the work she and her fellow performers put into the props and choreography, the proud Lynn admits that “I put some tears down.”

Zackary Gordon-Cobham, SDC member, thought that they didn’t even place in the top three and “was over the moon” to have learned that they got first place.

Cobham said the clubs were grateful to have won, especially since they felt that after their performance, the win would’ve gone to the Caribbean Student Association or to the African Student Association.

@FTCrimson @FTCrimson crimson@fit.edu

Street Dance Club (SDC) has multiple choreographers working on projects for the club. They encourage students to go out of their comfort zones, like they did for Ultimate Frisbee, in order to put on complex and creative performances. Photo // Hunter Lee Cobham thought that because of the other club’s performances and the crowd’s reaction, that CSA and ASA would be first and second place.

SDC says working with Ultimate Frisbee for the talent show was fun and exhausting, especially since Ultimate Frisbee would spend two hours a day working with them after their own club practice.

Ngan Le of SDC said that during the lip-sync’s practice “they just had to be more comfortable with controlling their bodies and moving so that it fit to the rhythm of the music.”

“Running and dancing are two different categories. You can be the most athletic person I know, but you cannot pop,” Pierce said.

With some immediate recognition following the show, the Ultimate Frisbee club was glad to have won.

Winning the show helped give their pick-up games some publicity as more people have jumped into their sessions that go on at night over by the Crawford Greens.

“No one on the team’s ever danced like that before,” said Merrick Lavinsky, Ultimate Frisbee club member.

Check out our Halloween articles on pages 5 through 7

“It was a hundred percent worth it,” Lavinsky said later about the talent show.

Anyone is welcome to join in and have fun playing Ultimate Frisbee or to join up with SDC. Ultimate Frisbee has pick-up games every Friday at 5 p.m. and practice at 9:45 a.m. on Sundays at Southgate Fields.

SDC has practice on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 6 p.m. to 8 at the Harris Village Building C lounge and Saturdays from noon to 3 p.m. at the Group fitness room in the Clemente Center.

Our Mission: Live, discover and report the truth.

2 CAPS ISSUE 6

OCTOBER 30

Panther Diversity: EMBRACING our differences Ryan Daniels \\

CAPS Outreach Columnist Diversity is all around us.

While America is often considered a “melting pot” of different cultures, we as Florida Tech Panthers, where we rank well above average in cultural diversity, are surrounded by people of varying ethnicities, races, ages, ability levels, sexual orientations, gender identities, religions, and socio-economic statuses.

Although our cultural identity is what makes each and every one of us unique, it can sometimes seem difficult to engage in conversations about diversity.

Here are some tips to help us learn to EMBRACE our differences:

Empathy: Despite our unique cultural background, we have all experienced times when we felt we didn’t belong.

These times can be particularly scary when we feel persecuted based on our cultural identity.

Try to remember a time you felt alone, and empathize with others who may feel this more often due to being part of a cultural minority.

We can all relate to feeling like we don’t belong, and a little bit of empathy may go a long way.

Maturity: We may or may not feel as though we have a good grasp on what encompasses cultural identity and how we should treat other people.

Regardless of our understanding, it is important that we remain mature about the

words and phrases we use when discussing diversity.

Even when we do not mean any harm, words can inadvertently cause others to feel hurt or uncomfortable.

Remaining mature and becoming informed of appropriate language and demeanor is important in allowing others to feel safe to express themselves how they wish.

Bravery: It can definitely be considered brave or courageous to stick up for those who may feel different on our college campus or society at large.

Addressing someone who is using discriminatory language or attempting to stop stereotyping from taking place may not be easy, but your act of bravery may be the difference for someone feeling as though they do not fit in with the world around them.

So don’t be afraid to unleash that Panther courage and fight for what you believe in on behalf of yourself or someone else.

never considered before.

Take pride in the things that make you who you are!

Acknowledge: While it is important to remember that we are similar in many ways, that does not mean we have to be “culturally blind” to the differences around us.

Simply acknowledging our differences for what they are can lead to interesting and enlightening conversations you may never have had otherwise!

Curiosity: While judgement and stereotyping can be harmful and dangerous, there is nothing wrong with expressing curiosity about another person’s cultural background.

As long as we remember to be mature and respectful in our interactions, and to not make assumptions, there is much to be gained from simply asking someone about their culture.

These are likely things that you could never learn in a textbook or from a movie.

Remember, you’ll never know if you don’t ask!

Encourage: Lastly, it is important we encourage ourselves and others to have the discussions we’ve talked about.

While it may seem awkward at first, it truly is the best way to learn about and discuss what makes each of us unique.

Breaking through that initial fear through mutual respect and understanding can help us all learn just a little bit more about what makes us different, and how special that can be.

To learn more about how you can embrace diversity here at Florida Tech, please join us at our “How to Embrace Like a Panther” event taking place on Wednes-

Reflect: It is important to reflect on what our cultural identity means to us.

It is never a bad time to take a second to explore your own culture identities, and how factors such as age, ability level, religion, ethnicity, sexuality, socioeconomic status, race, and gender intersect and impact your life.

You may be surprised at how much your culture impacts your daily life and activities.

Asking a relative or doing research on your own can be a good way to learn something about yourself you may have

Corrections

At The Florida Tech Crimson, it is our policy to promptly correct errors within our publications. If you find any factual errors, please contact Editor-in-Chief, Eleanor Mathers, at lmathers2014@my.fit.edu Here are the corrections for the last issue: Issue 5 - October 16 J.T. Hassell's last name was incorrectly spelled in the title and caption of the article "J.T. Hassel named Player of the Week for a third time."

We regret these errors.

day, November 7th from 7:008:30pm in Evans Hall, Room 202.

Navigating your conversations and relationships with people from various cultures can seem intimidating at times.

So, we may place barriers in front of ourselves in an attempt to protect ourselves from judgement and misunderstandings.

When we learn to break down those walls and accept people for who they are, we recognize we are all just people looking to connect with one another.

As we grow from our experiences with diversity, we can learn to better acknowledge our similarities and understand our differences, EMBRACING each other in the process!

ISSUE 6

OCTOBER 30

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STUDENT LIFE

Town Hall continued from front

have residencies. So we are in discussions with the local hospitals,” McCay said. “For them, they are concerned about liabilities, about trying to train students.”

An issue that was addressed was one on every student’s mind, the possibility of expanding the campus, including parking.

McCay said that since Florida Tech is surrounded by many residential areas, this progress can be slow.

“If a house is available we buy it, but I want to improve the infrastructure we currently have,” McCay said.

He also explained how expensive a new parking garage would be compared to just a vacant lot, saying that that money is better spent on present facilities that need improvement or upgrade.

Many students asked questions that addressed them more directly, including one that inquired about the possibility of outside graduation in order to accommodate more

people.

While this was an idea that McCay said he had once insisted upon trying before he became president at Florida Tech, he decided it was not for the best.

“I still want to do that, but it just isn’t really practical in Florida. Because of the heat and weather. I like the idea, that’s why we went to two ceremonies, so everyone could come. We may even happen to go to three ceremonies, but that’s so that the families have the opportunities to come,” McCay said.

The status of clubs was also addressed, with one student citing the lack of new students that join clubs in recent years.

The student recalled a past requirement making it mandatory for students to join a club.

Monica Baloga, the Senior Vice President of Academics and Provost, spoke on the issue.

“It was originally a University Experience requirement, we found that it just wasn’t

President McCay took questions in the DSL of Evans Library. what the students were interested in. But I can have that conversation again with the leader who runs that course,” Baloga said.

McCay also spoke on the issue, stating that ultimately requiring anything doesn’t lead to optimal outcomes.

McCay urged students to write to the university about their grievances.

“We have suggestion box systems, both electronic and physical, so if you submit some of these comments they’ll get addressed better,” McCay said.

Tom Handel // Crimson “We have this town hall so we can hear them, and I appreciate hearing them, but you know if you can define the things you are missing, in terms of your curriculum and education, then they percolate up a list and they eventually get addressed.”

Omani students englighten others at Coffee Hour emily walker \\ staff writer

Asma Alrashdi is from Oman, a country many of her peers don’t even know about.

The freshman studying civil engineering said when she tells people from her major where she’s from, they ask her where Oman is.

According to Alrashdi, this is why she was excited for the Omani Coffee Hour.

On Friday, Oct. 19, the Omani Student Association hosted this semester’s final Coffee Hour in Evans Library.

The event offered students and faculty a glimpse into what life is like in Oman.

The night involved a presentation providing an overview of Omani culture, trivia questions, dancing, coffee, food and a demonstration from the Omani students on how to greet and serve a guest.

For Alrashdi, this was her favorite part. “I liked the little act that they did about how we serve people,” Alrashdi said.

“I think the other cultures will learn more about us.”

That was the goal for the night, according to Hamed Alshamsi, a sophomore studying business and the president of the Omani Student Association. “[We want to] meet as

many people as possible and let them know what Oman is— who the Omani students are,” Alshamsi said.

As students ate Omani-inspired dishes and drank tea and coffee, students from a variety of cultures mingled.

Johana Teta Muhizi, a freshman studying aerospace engineering, is originally from Congo in the Central African Republic.

Muhizi said she originally came to the event for free food but was excited to find out about the similarities between Oman and her home.

“I actually just found out that in Oman they speak the same language,” Muhizi said,

Students get the opportunity to be immersed in the culture of the hosting country during Coffee Hour.

Photo //Deborah Matta

referring to Swahili.

Coffee Hour provides food for those in attendance but the event is really about learning, according to Deborah Matta, the manager of International Student Programs and a member of the International Student and Scholar Services Office, also known as ISSS. “The goal is so that the students can share their culture with American students and students from other countries, make friends, and mostly it’s about sharing culture,” Matta said.

Matta said she works with students who are part of the International Student Service Organization, or ISSO, to plan Coffee Hour events.

This past semester, there have been four: an African Coffee Hour at the Ruth Funk Center, a Libyan Coffee Hour at Evans Library, a Saudi Coffee Hour at the Rathskeller, and the Omani Coffee Hour again at the library.

The Omani Coffee Hour will likely be the last for this semester.

According to Matta, their plan was to wrap up the semester with a bonfire on the beach, although that may not happen now due to the red tide in the area.

According to the National Ocean Service, red tide can cause respiratory problems, especially in people who already have chronic illnesses such as asthma.

Coffee Hours will resume in January and continue throughout the semester.

Matta is not the only one

helping groups organize their Coffee Hours.

Mohammed Nafadi, a junior studying biomedical engineering, is the president of ISSO as well as the vice president of the Saudi Student Union.

Prior to an event, he helps provide groups with a budget, and at the event he and the rest of ISSO help make sure everything runs smoothly.

According to Nafadi, they set everything up and later clean up after the event so that the group presenting can focus on hosting.

While what they do might be different from the hosts of the Coffee Hour, they share the same goal.

“Our purpose is just to try to engage students together from all over the world,” Nafadi said.

Matta believes the Coffee Hours help students break out of their usual social groups.

“At the Saudi Coffee Hour a couple weeks ago, there were students from every part of the world,” Matta said. “I think it’s encouraging a lot of people to not stay in their groups but to mingle with one another.”

As Coffee Hour events wrap up for the semester, Nafadi said they’re considering other ways to engage students with international groups.

“We’re actually trying to get different events that would engage the students together even more,” Nafadi said. For now, however, he said Coffee Hour “definitely does the job right.”

ISSUE 6

Surviving Halloween Horror Nights?

Arpad Marsh \\

Contributing Writer The entire month of October is reserved for the preparation for Halloween.

From all the decorations and costumes at Walmart, to advertisements for upcoming horror films, many kinds of organizations have been coaxing us to get in the Halloween spirit.

Universal Studios is no exception to this, having their employees dress up in costumes, construct haunted houses, and prepare for hordes of brave visitors ready to experience HHN. HHN is an annual event conducted by Universal Studios with purpose of celebrating the Halloween season every October, doing so by bringing out screams and scares from park goers looking for a thrill.

Haunted houses are scattered throughout the theme park, accompanied by scare zones that mean to create an atmosphere of horror all over the park that gets your adrenaline pumping.

With that in mind, how does the event fare this year?

Most of the time Universal has something new to show every time they hold the event, although they have been known to reuse themes, such as The Walking Dead.

Fortunately, Universal has not reused anything this time around.

HHN this year had ten haunted house which, according to Universal, was more than any previous event.

These houses are somewhat large, with visitors being able to walk through the entirety of it within a few minutes.

I decided to attend this event to see if it lives up to its scary reputation.

This year the most popular haunted houses were based on Netflix’s Stranger Things, Poltergeist, and Halloween, due to them having the highest wait times out of any of the other houses.

I believe the Stranger Things house was the most anticipated out of the three, due to the popularity of the show.

REVIEW

5

You're doing it wrong

Walking through this house was an incredible experience.

I was surprised that Universal created a Stranger Things haunted house; the show is better described as science fiction rather than horror.

However, the Demogorgon, the creature that terrorizes the main characters in the show, is a frightening force all its own.

There were plenty of Demogorgons scaring people in the house.

I was really amazed by how there were actors within the house playing the rolls of several of the characters in the show.

It was a great edition to the house, especially since I have seen the show myself.

The Halloween house is a treat for any fan of horror films that is familiar with Michael Myers.

I liked how the interior of the house was an amalgamation of locations from the various films in the series.

This, coupled with the iconic theme from the films, made me feel like I walked into the movie, and I was fearing for my own life.

Unfortunately, I also felt the scares were repetitive, in that all of them came from people dressed like Michael Myers.

Nevertheless, I still enjoyed the house very much.

I was unable to experience the Poltergeist house during my visit there due to time constraints, although I have heard from other park goers that it is quite scary, and very much similar to the setting in the movie.

Besides these three, there were a couple of other houses I managed to go through.

One of these was Carnival Graveyard, which I actually enjoyed more than Stranger Things.

I say this because I felt a feeling of dread as I approached the house, which came from not knowing what to expect.

With Stranger Things and Halloween I knew what I was going to encounter. With this house, the feeling of uncertainty contributed to an increased level of fear.

Spike the killer clown on the prowl for victims.

OCTOBER 30

Photo // Arpad Marsh

Haunted church hiding in the scare zone, Twisted Traditions Photo // Arpad Marsh The scares themselves were superb, with varying monsters and demons around every corner.

This house was definitely my favorite.

The other house I went through was Seeds of Extinction, the premise of which involves the annihilation of the human race and the rise of a plant-monster hybrid species.

It had some decent scares and a typical atmosphere of fear, however what made this house stand out was its uniqueness.

I went to HHN expecting ghosts, serial killers and demons, but I never would have thought of plant monsters.

I loved the creativity of it.

HHN also included scare zones, outdoor areas filled with costumed characters based off of different themes.

These characters targeted random spectators to try and get a scream out of them, many off which were successful.

There were five scare zones this year. The Harvest, the first zone I encountered, was decorated like an eerie farm full of demonic scarecrows.

The costumes used in this zone were incredible, although I thought the area itself was too small.

It definitely felt like a good start the night, though, a way to ease into the horror.

The Revenge of Chucky was another scare zone near the entrance of the park.

I’m not a fan of the Chucky films, however I thought the scare zone did a pretty decent job at scaring people with creepy dolls and giant bloody teddy bears.

Chucky himself was placed in a theater-type setting where he would pop out on stage every 15 minutes or so and frighten park goers.

It was fun to watch.

Another scare zone was Vamp 85:News Years Eve. I really liked this one because it reminded me of a 1987 vampire film called The Lost Boys.

The film and the scare zone had

similar aspects; punk-rock vampire teens harassing poor unsuspected partiers in the night.

In addition to this there was a mini-concert by the vampires themselves in celebration of the new year they were commemorating.

Killer Klowns from Outer Space, another scare zone, was perhaps my favorite one in the entire park.

This zone is exactly what is sounds like: killer klowns landing in a spaceship and slaughtering people with a variety of circus themed weapons.

This seemed like an odd edition to the park, mainly because the 1988 movie with the same name is not well known as the more prominent horror films, like Halloween.

I’m a huge fan of the movie though, so I love this scare zone.

This scare zone also felt a little small, similar to The Harvest.

Twisted Traditions, the final scare zone, made use of the trees to hang spooky pumpkins to give a haunted forest vibe.

I believe that this zone had the greatest amount of horror amongst the other zones; the area was dimly lit, and there were perfect hiding spots for pumpkin-headed monsters and witches to pop out and scare you.

Unfortunately, HHN will be ending soon; the final night to enjoy the event is November 3rd.

I believe that HHN this year was an overall success.

The houses this year had a lot of variance; there were no two houses that were similar to each other, with some very creative themes thrown into the mix.

I would say that Universal could have expanded some of the scare zones.

Some of them just felt too small, although I still enjoyed them very much.

If given the opportunity I would definitely go again.

HHN had the perfect balance of spooks, scares, but not many skeletons. Plenty of klowns though!

6 REVIEW halloween: A Review ISSUE 6

OCTOBER 30

Christian Martinez \\ staff writer

Evil has come home to Haddonfield once more, this time triumphantly.

With this being the eleventh movie in the Halloween movies series, this one (the third one to be simply called Halloween) is definitely a worthy sequel.

This year’s Halloween, directed by David Gordon Green, is an amazing horror movie that is officially the direct sequel to John Carpenter’s original movie, 40 years after.

The decision to make all of the other sequels non-canon was a smart one after viewing this movie because it wouldn’t work with the cult stuff from Halloween 5 or the first death from Halloween: Resurrection.

After low points in the series, like Rob Zombie’s two movies and 2002’s Halloween: Resurrection, the 2018 update really has brought back fan appreciation to the series.

This is what a horror sequel needs to be: an interesting story that follows the killer’s newest rampage as the main character tries to survive, while expanding upon the previous entry.

one who survived a But the twist slasher movie could with this tale is that be like after the the main characoriginal incident: ter, Laurie Strode, scarred, broken, is actually on the angry, wants offensive to hunt control of their own down Michael life and how terriMyers. bly it affects their This movie’s family. premise is similar to The beginning Halloween H20: 20 of the movie is a Years Later, where cautionary tale of an older Strode and not poking a sleepMyers clash after ing bear after two a long time has podcasters attempt passed and Strode’s to provoke Myers, family is caught in who is in custody at the middle. the time.

The execution The sheer terror of that premise is Myers brings in this better in this movie movie is intense as as Halloween H20 he is “reawakened”, took place in one with a balance of central location, on-screen carnage an empty boarding and implied kills. school that is dull Myers is like and literally lifeless. a shark, he circles The setting around his prey, for this movie, Myers' eyes peer out Photo // Universal Pictures waiting for the right Haddonfield, Illimoment before closnois, is much more interesting this time around Curtis, who plays Laurie ing in for the kill to satiate his and feels just like a town that Strode, is putting everything bloodlust.

Michael Myers is pure evil embraces the titular holiday, she has into the role in her with decorations everywhere fifth outing as she portrays in this movie, just as he was and people dressed up for a her famous character as an always intended to be.

The main characters on-edge older woman who fun night.

The town feels vibrant and has been preparing for Myers’ are great, along with the side characters in Strode’s alive, even though a killer is return for 40 years.

This movie also is an estranged family, the standout taking lives at the same time.

It looks like Jamie Lee exploration of what some- being Allyson Strode, played

by Andi Matichak.

There is really only one scene that feels out of place in this movie, where a soonto-be victim jokes about girls with Myers before their imminent demise.

The scene is played like a joke, which is odd because comedy is rare in the series and it sticks out like a sore thumb.

When it comes down to the final act, the movie’s tension becomes intense as Strode and Myers are trying to kill the other.

The scene was so tense, that it lingered until the lights came back on in the movie theater.

The tone of the movie was set by composer John Carpenter, the original movie’s director, who helped to make scenes feel exceedingly dreadful, tense and heart-racing.

All-in-all the movie is a definite 8/10, with some out-of-place humor that brings it down a little bit. It is definitely one of the best in the series, maybe being the best sequel behind Halloween 4.

Fortnite costumes trending for Halloween

Xiao Liang \\ staff writer

When preparing to going out this Halloween, one question may plague Trick o’ Treaters and party goers: What will be the most trending costume of the year?

The costume trend constantly change every year based on popular cultures and recent events, such as movies, video games or politics.

To help answer the question, Google has created a list (frightgeist. withgoogle.com) of most searched and trending costumes from 1-601.

The video game Fortnite has become increasingly popular ever since the release of its battle royale mode and its also number one on Google’s list.

Due to the recent release of its game on PS4 and popularity of the character in Marvel

movies, Spiderman has earned its place as number two on the list, followed by dinosaurs, and witches.

The Crimson also sent out a poll earlier this month to see what students at Florida Tech think would be the most popular Halloween costume of this year.

The poll contains some costume ideas to choose from while also allowing the students to write and select anything that wasn’t listed.

94 students participated in the poll and the result was very similar to what was found on Google Trend.

40 out of 94 students chose Fortnite as the most popular Halloween costume of the year, while Spiderman came in second with 16 votes.

Other ideas listed on the poll were Spooky Scary Skeleton with nine

Google Trend were also popular trends from last year, such as Harley Quinn and Wonder Woman as number 6 and number 12 respectively, and there are a number of superheroes related costumes being listed as well.

“I think it is really interesting to see how Photo // Epic Games popular culture affects us Fortnite is a popular battle royal game. these days,” said senior Zachary Bartlett, who votes, Thanos with eight will be both sad and also participated in the votes, The Nun with four terrifying at the same poll. “It is not usual for votes, and followed by time.” two video games to be the Michael Myers with three “I think just because most popular costume votes.

Fortnite is listed the most ideas, this really shows John Mccormick, trending doesn’t really how big of an influence a sophomore who mean that everyone is they have on our culture.” participated in the poll, going to dress up as Halloween costumes said he knows for a fact Fortnite characters,” said follow trends in pop that Fortnite will be the junior Henry Diep. “ I culture and this year is most popular costume of feel like since everyone no exception. the year. probably knows about With that in mind, “I don’t know how it, they are just going to anyone who isn’t already I feel about this,” pick some more unique familiar with Fortnite Mccormick said. “ I think costumes.” dances may be in for an seeing everyone dressed Some popular eventful Halloween. up as Fortnite characters costumes listed on

ISSUE 6

OCTOBER 30

CAMPUS LIFE

7

Students, faculty and local community bond over candy and costumes greg Schneider \\ Contributing writer

Nearly 60 Residence Assistants took over Panther Plaza and the Residence Quad for the annual Treat-or-Treat event, five of the residence halls were transformed into unique haunted houses.

A pumpkin patch, bounce houses, and booths for student and local organizations were also set up in anticipation of a big crowd.

Each year, Residence Life puts on three big events at Florida Tech and Halloween’s Treat-or-Treat has the biggest turnout by far.

On October 27th, the open space quickly filled up at the 2 p.m. start and the crowd stayed consistently large through the whole afternoon.

This year, around 100 Greek Life students volunteered to help out, a boon to the already-plentiful number of event staff.

Treat-or-Treat does not solely exist for Florida Tech students however.

Anyone in the community is welcome to attend, due to this the haunted houses’ main audience are young children.

The “Under the Sea” theme in Shaw Hall was for children under the age of five, providing plenty of candy but

no scares.

Campbell and Wood Halls were themed as the movies Black Panther and Coco respectively.

These two houses ended up being the two most popular sections of the event.

Their age range fell between 5-12 years old.

Grissom Hall had a suggestion for ages of 10 to 13 for their Stranger Things theme.

In Evans Hall, the fearless enjoyed the unnerving Slender Man themed haunted house, with a suggested age of 13 years and older.

On campus organizations and local non-profits saw great foot traffic in the Panther Plaza where community outreach and candy giving were the main goals.

Treat-or-Treat was advertised through Facebook and Florida Tech’s news sources, but Brevard County circulates the event enough to rally considerable attendance.

In 2016, the event essentially went viral online within the local public.

Attendance in 2016 tripled compared to the previous years.

In 2017, 2,600 people filled the Residence Quad.

This year, Residence Life

Photo // Greg Schneider Students came together with locals for a day that was fun for any age or scare-tolerance. Whether they were in costumes or not, anyone could be a part of the event to get candy, run in haunted houses, or just take a break from the rest of the week. claimed equally high numbers.

“Based on our past three years of attendance, it shows that the event is successful in our outreach and people are interested and keep coming back,” said Zachary Eichholz, the Director of the Residence Quad.

This year, over 2,000 attendees came into the event, a number well on par with the recent success.

People appreciate Florida Tech’s outreach, which aims to provide a “fun, free, safe environment to have a Halloween experience” to anyone who may or may not be able to otherwise, according to Eichholz.

The event lasted until 6 p.m. when the shrieks in the residence halls finally quieted and the crowd started to disperse.

At this time, there were still well over 100 people in the Residence Quad, mostly smaller kids enjoying last moments in the bounce houses.

Merely 15 minutes later though, the inflatables had sunk to the ground and the theatrical haunted houses were emptied until only students and staff remained in the quad.

“invading” on Halloween.

On this side of the issue, we have students like Swarr who said, “I hate it. The corporations are evil and want to make even more money off Christmas. They need to stop.

It enrages me.”

However, there is also the other side of the issue where people who prefer Christmas actually enjoy the early decorating.

Software engineering sophomore, Kyle Stead says,

“I'm not upset about it, I'm happy to see the Christmas decorations up and count the days down.”

Yet still, there are some people who don’t even see it as an issue.

Civil engineering senior Alex Thierer said, “Personally I don't care or think too much about it.”

Even if he doesn’t find it to be an issue, Thierer did offer some insight as to why he feels companies do this.

“I think it's happening because it gets people in the mindset to start buying Christmas gifts earlier. Maybe they will buy more as they keep returning to the store as Christmas gets closer.”

This is by no means a new phenomenon.

Throughout the years there have been many comedians and cartoonists mocking the retail created holiday mash-up.

There has even been a classic major motion picture inspired by this phenomenon.

According to the IMDB page, Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas was actually based off a poem he wrote after seeing this in a

store.

Burton said the juxtaposition of ghouls and goblins with Santa and his reindeer sparked his imagination.

The film was released over 20 years ago in 1993, but the original poem was written in 1982 according to Huffington Post.

This means that the “Holiday Creeping” phenomenon has been around since at least the 80’s.

No matter how you feel about these early Christmas decorations, there is no doubt that this has been happening in many stores for some time now and it shows no sign of stopping.

According to a study by the National Retail Federation, 25% of shoppers start researching their Christmas gifts in October and 17% start the actual shopping.

As long as these numbers stay like this, retailers will have more and more reason to continue “creeping” the holidays earlier and earlier.

The earlier these holiday items reach the shelves, the earlier the stores can gain the benefits and profits.

The "Holiday Creep": Is Christmas encroaching on Halloween?

Jordan Densler \\ Contributing writer

T’was the night before Halloween and the supermarket already has up their Christmas tree.

As Halloween approaches, it's time for costumes, haunted houses, spooky movies, and… Santa Clause?

It seems that every year you find more stores putting out their Christmas decorations early, at this point it is

done by “literally any store that sells,” according to electrical engineering freshman, Fiona Swarr.

This is a phenomenon that has been studied by the National Retail Federation and it is aptly named “The Holiday Creep.”

This is an issue that has been causing controversy on both sides.

On one side there are the people who enjoy Halloween and think that Christmas is

Walmart began to sell their Christmas decorations before Halloween had even passed.

Photo // Jordan Densler

8

ISSUE 6

OCTOBER 30

EDITORIAL

What traveling with chronic illnesses taught me emily walker \\ staff writer

When I was invited on the trip to the College Media Association Conference in Louisville, my first thought was that there was no way I could go.

It sounded like fun and I was thrilled to have been invited, but more than anything, I was sad.

I’ve been living with chronic illnesses for about half of my life, and traveling with the symptoms they cause didn’t sound possible.

When I was seventeen, I was diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), although I had been showing symptoms since I was ten.

According to the Mayo Clinic, PCOS is an incurable hormonal disorder whose main characteristics include irregular periods, excess male hormones, and cysts on the ovaries.

I’ve also dealt with symptoms of endometriosis since I was about ten, although the various doctors I saw didn’t believe anything was wrong with me until I was nineteen.

According to the Center for Endometriosis Care (CEC), endometriosis occurs when cells similar to the tissue found in the lining of the uterus grow in other areas of the body.

The CEC states that these cells bleed and become inflamed, causing pain during your period and often throughout your cycle. It’s chronic and while it can be treated, it has no cure.

My pain varies with each day.

Additionally, there are a lot of symptoms that come with these illnesses that vary from person to person.

For example, when my endometriosis is flaring, I

experience severe bloating, or what is also known as “endo belly.”

My stomach swells to the point where I look pregnant and doing things as simple as walking are painful.

It takes very little to make my illnesses flare. Eating too much or too little can make my stomach bloat or cramp.

Walking too much or sitting in the same position for too long can leave me in pain for the rest of the day.

Some days, staying up too late won’t bother me, and on others it upsets my stomach and makes my head hazy with what’s called “brain fog”, a common symptom among those with chronic illnesses.

Having illnesses that make basic activities difficult and whose symptoms can be set off by almost anything made the idea of traveling to a big city terrifying.

However, after a lot of thought, I decided I wanted to go.

The conference sounded like an awesome opportunity, and I didn’t want to miss the chance to become closer friends with the other members of the Crimson.

When I packed for the Louisville trip, I packed with my pain in mind.

I packed my heating pad to help with stomach pain, extra sweatpants for when bloating happened, and more than enough medicine.

The trip went much more smoothly than I had imagined it would.

That’s not to say I wasn’t in pain—my pain almost never completely goes away—but I felt fine.

I didn’t have any major flares despite traveling on two different planes for half a day and sitting in seminars for

Khemari Howard // Crimson

three days.

Walking around the city and eating the unfamiliar food made my stomach bloat, but it was manageable.

There was even an unexpected surprise at the conference: A couple of students hosted a seminar about how to deal with illnesses (both physical and mental) while working in journalism.

The session was mostly a group discussion, and even though no one else had the same illnesses I do, it made me feel less alone.

Seeing a group of other chronically ill people come together to talk about struggles that can feel so isolating was empowering, and hearing from the hosts about how they’ve managed their illnesses made me feel like I could handle mine, too.

The seminar on Friday helped remind me I’m not the only college student dealing with a chronic illness.

There are other people my age dealing with similar issues and surviving—and thriving.

I still have a long way to go to get as much help as I can for my illnesses, but this trip

was a big step for me.

I’m learning to balance pushing myself and taking it easy.

When my pain is flaring more than usual, the best thing I can do is rest as much as I can.

However, almost constantly lying down at home when I’m not at school has made me afraid to go out and do things.

For me, this trip was about more than just learning new journalism skills.

It helped pull me out of my comfort zone and show me that just because something is unfamiliar doesn’t make it unsafe.

I wouldn’t have been able to go on the trip if I hadn’t been prepared, and I encourage anyone else in a similar situation to plan in advance if you want to travel.

Bring more than enough medicine and any items that ease your symptoms, like I did with my heating pad and sweatpants.

Also try to have someone at home check on you while you’re away. Getting texts and phone calls from my parents

every day helped reassure me that I could handle the trip and made me less anxious.

If you’re traveling with a group, consider telling them about your illness. I didn’t bring it up until the last day, but it was always in the back of my mind that if I needed to, I could.

It can be hard to speak up and say something when your symptoms are flaring, but try to remember that your health is worth it.

It can be healthy to push yourself, but it can also be healthy to take a break.

If you can go on a trip, try it. But if you can’t, there’s nothing wrong with that. It’s okay to wait until another time.

I’m not an expert and I can’t tell you what will work for you as an individual, but I do know that nothing is worth sacrificing your health.

However, if you have the opportunity to travel and feel you can manage your symptoms, talk with a professional and go for it. It might help you in ways you never thought it would.

Kaleidoscope Corner African Bosco Mambo Keep your chin high little Africa, For the kinkiness of your hair Holds strength greater than that of solar panels, The curves that hold you together, Were molded to build temples, The courage within you, Was generated from moonbeams And if you don’t believe me, Look skywards And hear the blues yearn, For the poetry within your skin, Was present from the webs of the skies.

ISSUE 6

OCTOBER 30

REVIEW A Casual Review Xiao Liang

9

RimWorld: Hamster Farms, Organ Trades, and Space Cowboys After 5 years of being in early access, RimWorld finally got its official release on October 17, 2018.

I have spent roughly around 120 hours playing this game even before it’s official release (which is not a lot compared to some of the more passionate fans), and to summarize my experience, I’ll just say: it never gets old.

RimWorld is a base-building and management game with a top-down view developed by Ludeon Studios.

As the title suggests, the “story” of the game occurs on a “rim world” - a planet located in the frontiers of known space.

For now, the game is only available on Windows, Mac, and Linux.

The player’s main objective in RimWorld is to survive and expand a group of settlers on an alien planet, and the game doesn’t have any regulations on how the player does it.

In fact, the players are able to choose or make scenarios they want to start with: maybe an ice-covered planet with a group of highly sophisticated scientists or perhaps a jungle planet with members of a primitive tribe.

Your imagination is your limit.

While the player has to worry about food, energy and other basic needs to survive, defense is also a big part of the

game since dangerous predators and bandits roam around the planet.

The game is also extremely detailed in character design.

Each character may have different backgrounds, abilities, psychological attributes, medical conditions, prosthetics and even relationship with others.

Before the game starts, the player is also given a chance to pick an AI Storyteller, who will throw random events at the player to help progress the story from time to time.

The event can be helpful to the player such as cargo drops and wanderers who wish to join the colony, or bad events such as raider attacks and animal rampage.

What made RimWorld so special is the endless possibility of things a player can do and encounter in the game, and all of them are designed to be fun and challenging at the same time.

The game also has an active community of modders.

These are gamers who develop and release modifications, which are additional customized contents to the game.

This term is often shortened to "mods," which is where the term "modders" comes from for those who create them.

Ever wondered what happens when an elf, a cyborg, and a Siberian tiger live

KRUNCH time:

Louisville Experience Mussels and Burgers Picture this—a sunny-side-up egg on a burger served with sweet potato fries and the cutest ice cube you’ll ever see.

Burger and Mussels has all that and more.

This sit-down restaurant sported a wide assortment of burgers and seafood for order.

There was a for those interested in drinking and options that catered to other tastes.

I went twice, however the second visit was the highlight.

There was a macaroni ‘n cheese appetizer that I ordered as an entrée—it was the best decision of the night.

Served hot in a sizzling pan, the cheesy past was mixed with bacon chunks and covered with fried cheese curds.

Because it was an appetizer served as an entrée, however, the portion size was that of an appetizer and left me wanting a little more.

Needless to say, Burgers and Mussels is a wonderful restaurant and worth the many recommendations.

Rimworld together? Now is your chance to find out with extra mods!

In short, RimWorld is a Sci-Fi colony simulation game which includes but is not limited to: • Unethical medical practices.

• People getting mental breakdowns because they ate without a table.

Photo // Ludeon Studios • Having spaceship chucks dropping directly on to your house.

• Having two pirate raids, a volcanic winter, and five hurricanes occurring at the same time .

Other than gameplay, the graphics of the game is very clean and simple but is also fairly unique.

The music of the game is enjoyable but lacks variety, though there are mods that can fix this problem easily.

RimWorld is a game that almost everyone could enjoy.

It can be a game for someone who wants to sit back and relax or for those who wish for strategic thinking and micromanaging.

Royals Hot Chicken Taco Luchador A couple hungry college students, a missed name opportunity and the promise of a good time—these are the ingredients that lead me to Taco Luchador.

The Mexican restaurant had been on my radar after I saw what I thought was Taco ‘Lunchador’ out of the corner of my eye.

After two days of constant hype I finally found myself in the fast food restaurant.

There was a wide variety of options.

Menu items were broken up into the animals that made up the primary meat in dish for ease.

I ordered one of their carnitas meals, some chips and queso, and a fountain drink.

Not long after getting my drink I was delivered a tray of chips with a side of queso.

It was delicious.

Had there not been carnitas on the way, I would have filled up on the chips.

The entrée finally came and delivered on the promise that the chips and queso set forth.

There were two tortilla shells stacked with the pork in the middle.

Anything that spilled from the first tortilla shell could be used to make a second taco.

Though I didn’t enjoy the taco’s as much as I thought I would, the restaurant was well worth the build-up.

CH'D KRUN IT!

It may have taken a while to get to my mouth, but I’ve found the best the fried chicken tenders on the planet.

Royals Chicken Fried is hands down the best fried chicken spots in Louisville.

The fast food restaurant did one thing and did it well—chicken tenders.

The tenders came in different tiers of hot from classic fried, or no heat, to gonzo, or very hot.

There were tenders by themselves and tender sin sandwiches.

There were also various sides which included shell and beer macaroni ’n cheese and creamy coleslaw.

I ordered their signature tender sandwich with the shell and beer macaroni ‘n cheese and fountain drink.

Not long after receiving my drink the sandwich was brought to my table.

I only needed one bite to fall in love.

The sandwich—a chicken tender covered in their special sauce in between two buns with mayonnaise—was a delicious.

Krunch!—I took one bite and couldn’t stop eating.

The shell and beer macaroni ‘n cheese was a nice compliment to the burger.

It was all washed down by a classic coke.

All-in-all, I give Royals Hot Chicken the ‘Krunchie Stamp of Approval’.

10 CAMPUSLIFE ISSUE 6

OCTOBER 30

Classrooms in the midst of upgrades Tyler Jones \\ staff writer

Florida Tech classrooms received many technological upgrades over the summer as technicians dedicated around nine hours a day for five days a week in order to get them ready for the 2018 fall semester.

These upgrades included Apple TVs, laser projectors, computers, sound systems, and more.

Most of these upgrades were done in the F.W. Olin Engineering Complex, as well as the F.W. Olin Life Sciences Building, with the addition to

upgrades in Crawford room 210.

However, these upgrades didn’t end when the fall semester started; renovations are still taking place on campus, primarily in Crawford.

To make this happen, the IT technicians work with the schedulers that assign instructors their classrooms in order to move them temporarily so as to complete the renovations.

Although some instructors may find the moving of classrooms frustrating, some students don’t seem to mind

the sacrifice.

“If it means we’re getting better equipment in the classrooms, I don’t see it as much of an inconvenience,” said Anthony Carfagno, a junior psychology major.

John Meyer, the director of IT Instructional Technologies here at Florida Tech said that these upgrades were a great start, but they’re the beginning of what’s to come.

“We’re looking to put in technology that makes it easier for students to get their work done and perform to their full potential,” said Meyer.

Meyer has plans to install

USB charging stations in all the classrooms in order to give students, as well as instructors, the convenience to charge their devices anywhere in the class.

He also aims to add in more Wi-Fi transmitters in the buildings to ensure every classroom on campus has Wi-Fi accessibility.

Meyer is also open to any suggestions or ideas that students may have regarding tech inside the classrooms.

“I think the charging stations would be a great addition to the classrooms,” said Elizabeth Wyatt, a junior

aerospace engineering. “It gives the students in class the ability to charge their devices anywhere instead of fighting for a charging port.”

If students have any tech suggestions that they would like to see inside classrooms either next semester or next year, they can either bring it up to SGA or go straight to the IT department themselves.

The IT department is directly across from the PDH parking garage and is the building closest to Babcock Road.

PIKE celebrates 50th anniversary with new house

Marc Kanneh \\ staff writer

PIKE fraternity received a new fraternity house and a new high profile member for their 50th anniversary.

While students were celebrating homecoming, the brothers of Pi Kappa Alpha, Zeta Sigma chapter were celebrating 50 years at Florida tech.

The Zeta Sigma chapter of Pi Kappa Alpha was approved and chartered on March 1, 1968 and was the first fraternity at Florida Tech.

On Sep. 25, the Pikes officially moved out of their old house and into the new one.

On that same day, the old house was demolished.

Greg Ierokomos, a senior in mechanical engineering, is the current house manager.

He said his main goal this semester is to establish a new

The PIKE house is located off campus and avilable to members. normal before he graduates.

“We’re still working on a few things inside the house so we don’t know what a normal day inside the house is yet,” Ierokomos said.

Ierokomos said the move in was a landmark point in a plan set in motion about six

years ago.

He also praised the alumni and donors who made the new house possible.

“We have plaques in the rooms recognizing the donors,” Ierokomos said.

Two weeks after, they would start their 50th anni-

Photo // Jim Hughes versary celebrations.

The three days of celebration starting on Oct. 11 saw alumni from throughout the years returning to their alma mater to celebrate and of course check out the new house.

On Oct. 11, PIKE hosted a

mixer at the Marriott, followed by an award ceremony on the next day that recognized past and present members and donors who contributed to the new house.

On Saturday, Oct. 13, the Pikes came out at the football tailgate in their garnet and old gold, showing their pride and representation with a large crowd of members.

At half time, PIKE recognized one of their newest members, President of Florida Tech T. Dwayne McCay. The anniversary was made extra special as, nationally, PIKE was celebrating its 150th anniversary.

Ierokomos explained that because our Florida Tech chapter of the fraternity had such a major change this year with the new house, they’re being featured on PIKE’s national magazine the Shield & Diamond.

ISSUE 6

OCTOBER 30

GAMES

11

Look through our stories to find the answers to these questions!

1. The resident building that held the "Under the Sea' haunted house during Treat or Treat.

2. The last Fall 2018 coffee hour.

3. The engineering building that had classroom renovations.

4. The men's basketball team faced them in a friendly game.

5. The Louisville restaurant that got the Krunchie Stamp of Approval.

6. One of the scare zones at this year's Halloween Horror Nights.

7. He's making a return this Halloween.

8. This phenomenon is called the "Holiday ____".

9. This year's Halloween trend according to Florida Tech students and Google.

HALLOWEEN WORD SCRAMBLE Below are a mix of SPOOKY scrambles. Unscramble them all!

NIHGNUAT

IHWCT

DCYNA

EWFOREWL

OSSHTG

GMODNOOREG

RMTSOSNE

EOPRIGTTLES

LKOENTES

ALOAMARNPR

DM us your correct answers of all puzzles to enter for a chance to win a Crimson Goodie Bag. The winner will be announced Monday, Nov. 5, at 6 p.m. and must claim the prize by the Tuesday, Nov. 6 meeting at 6 p.m.

Answers will be released online after the drawing is finished!

Find yourself twiddling your thumbs during the week?

WE HAVE SOMETHING FOR YOU TO DO. Join the weekly Crimson meetings on Tuesday nights at 6:00 p.m. in the newsroom (the back enterance of Grissom Hall) to snag a story and a slice of pizza.

@FTCrimson @FTCrimson crimson@fit.edu

12 SPORTS ISSUE 6

OCTOBER 30

Panthers victorious against alumni in friendly head-to-head

Seamus Burns \\ Staff Writer

Florida Tech Men’s Basketball hosts Alumni and win the game 95-85 over their fellow Panthers.

The Clemente Center was full of panther pride during an intense game between the current men’s basketball team and a variety of Alumni who have played from years past.

While both sides were wearing the same school colors, there was no shortage of competitive energy.

Alumni player Nigel Alexander said, “We came out here wanting to win.”

While the focus of the game was to better prepare the current men’s team for their season, the Alumni gave everything they had to show the current team a hard fought game.

Senior Derek Murphy was a large presence driving the ball and drawing trips to the foul line that helped stop any comebacks that were being made by the Alumni team.

The current Panthers team held a lead for the vast majority of the game but the Alumni team cut down the margin to single digits multiple times.

The game was played under two halves of 12 minutes each.

The first half looked as if it were going to end by an electrifying half court alley-oop dunk from the alumni team, thrown down by Anthony Jackson.

With only a few seconds left, the inbound pass went to the guard Valur Valsson, who banked in a shot past

Marquise Lewis \\ Staff Writer

Alumni faced current men's basketball members to boost teamwork and morale.

Seamus Burns // Crimson half court as the buzzer sounded.

The score at half was 46-36 for the current team.

“Of course it was not as intense as a conference game, but we take whoever we play really serious, and they were not an easy game,” said junior guard, Antonis Pefanis.

Pefanis did not play during the game due to a back injury, but is at the end of his recovery and should be healthy within a few days.

Pefanis said, “The team had some pretty good players with experience.

Five of them played at FIT 3-5 years ago.”

Those players were Randy Echols, Bobby Booth, Julius Reid, Nigel Alexander, and Anthony Jackson.

There were not many problems in team chemistry on the Alumni team, said Alexander. “We all played at the

same school, so we know the defensive scheme running a 2-1-2 we tried out towards the second half.”

“Some players still play competitively, some just shoot by themselves, some just pickup, and a few didn’t prepare at all for the game,” said Alexander, who graduated in 2016.

The game ended with one final drive to the hoop from junior, Phil Bernhard, and the players and coaches all met up to break it down in the middle of the court together.

This was the first game on the Men’s Basketball schedule. They play again on Nov. 3 at Georgia Tech.

The Men’s basketball team will take court in the Clemente Center again on Nov. 9 and Nov. 10 for the NCAA South Regional Tip Off Challenge.

at 14-13.

Florida Tech’s defense kept West Alabama’s offense scoreless for more than 27 minutes after the pair of opening touchdowns in the first quarter.

That streak ended on a one-yard Tiger touchdown run into the end zone with 5:13 remaining in the third.

Florida Tech Senior defensive back, Richard Leveille, intercepted West Alabama and ran it back 53 yards for a touchdown to make the score 21-19.

After another field goal by Schaneville, the Panthers got their first lead of the game, 22-21, with 7:53 to go in the fourth quarter.

The lead didn’t last long as the Tigers answered with their own 10-play drive and recaptured the lead on a 15-yard passing touchdown.

After converting a two-point conversion the Tigers led a 29-22 edge with less than five minutes remaining in the game.

The game ended poorly for the Panthers; their final two drives ended in a turnover on downs and an interception.

The Tigers were able to run out the remainder of the clock and take home the win.

West Alabama finished the game with more offensive yards, 386-333.

The Tigers ran for 182, while the Panthers were held to just 40 rushing yards, their second-lowest running output of the season.

"We didn't do the things we needed to win against a good football team on the road," head coach Steve Englehart stated in the Florida Tech Athletics press release. "We turned the ball over too many times and we didn't score in the red zone.”

The Panthers will look to bounce back and send the seniors off with a win in their final regular season home game on Saturday, Nov. 3, against North Greenville.

Tigers defeat panthers in a 29-22 lead David Thompson \\ Managing Editor

Coming off a win against West Florida, the Panthers lost in a close game to the West Alabama Tigers.

Florida Tech Football now drops to 6-3 and 3-3 in the GSC. West Alabama began the game with a 14-0 lead in the first quarter after scoring two touchdowns in a span of 56 seconds.

Senior running back Antwuan Haynes put the Panthers on the board, capping off a 9-play 73-yard drive with about ten minutes remaining in the second quarter.

Freshman kicker Trey Schaneville put in a 31-yard field goal with 2:48 remaining in the second quarter to cut the Tigers' lead to 14-10.

Entering the third quarter, senior safety John McClure intercepted the West Alabama and the Panthers drove down the field for a second successful field goal, making it a one-point game

Successful outing on Senior Day Florida Tech women’s soccer team came out with an important win for the seniors’ final home game.

The Panthers defeated Lynn University 3-2.

“This win was very important for the seniors,” said Jessica Monarch, Florida Tech women’s soccer head coach. “For them it was capping their successful careers and having a celebratory win in their last home game for the year.”

The Panthers senior class is very small with only five seniors: forward Keira McCarthy, midfielder Taylor Eller, midfielder Kelley Johnson, defender Agathe Malmberg and goalkeeper Natalia Milashus.

Of the three points, Johnson attributed to one of those goals.

Her goal was the third and final score from the Panthers to put them in the lead and solidify the win against Lynn University.

The first two scores came from junior defender Samantha Grim and junior midfielder Maria Munoz.

Emotions were high for Eller as she was with the program when Fidgi Haig was the head coach from 20052014. Haig passed away due to a heart attack three years ago.

Eller is the veteran of the group, as she has been with the program for five years since 2014. She was redshirted her first year due to a season ending injury.

“I’ve been here since Fidgi was the coach so there’s a lot of memories out here for me,” Eller said. “It’s a little sad but I don’t want to picture it.”

Not only was this win important for the seniors, it was also important to help place them in chances of making the conference tournament.

“We really needed to win this game to get three points and move up, which we did,” said McCarthy. “We came out strong and got the win.”

Although the seniors are leaving, they left a big impact on the underclassmen.

“They always gave their best which leads us to play with the passion and desire that we have,” said Kiana Zanganeh, junior defender for the Panthers. “We’re always playing for them.”

Coach Monarch said the future is bright for the program thanks to the way the senior class has helped bring in and mold the players under them.

The team is currently at record of (8-8-1) overall and (5-5-0) in the Sunshine State Conference.